Spending on Delta, other co-brand cards outperforming according to Amex
Jul 24, 2020, 12:47 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2011
Location: NYC (LGA, JFK), CT
Programs: Delta Platinum, American Gold, JetBlue Mosaic 4, Marriott Platinum, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond,
Posts: 4,895
Spending on Delta, other co-brand cards outperforming according to Amex
Interesting tidbit from Amex’s quarterly release today... Spending on the Delta cards has fallen a lot less than spending on some of Amex’ own branded cards (I am assuming Gold, Platinum, cashback cards, etc). They said that customers are spending to generate points for future trips, and to also gain status for future trips. I do think that the biggest change Delta made in terms of its cards was carrying over MQM earned this year into next year - it actually motivated me to put more spend on that Delta Reserve as it should help me get to Plaitnum or higher next year if we are traveling again...
Jul 25, 2020, 11:09 pm
#2
Join Date: May 2004
Location: formerly Gold now Diamond, formerly MSY, now LAX, formerly NW, now DL
Programs: Hyatt Plat, Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, Delta Diamond/1MM
Posts: 4,635
That's good news for Delta. Hopefully there isn't a big devaluation in the point redemption once things get moving...
Jul 26, 2020, 7:45 am
#3
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: MSP
Programs: AA Plat Pto, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 2,538
I have the Delta Gold. Due to the 10k spend gift card reward It has been my default card for any spend that did not have a higher earn rate on another card in my wallet. I am at about 8k YTD which is much more than the card saw last year, the revamp turned it from a card to have for Delta benefits to a card to actually use. That said I have little incentive to keep using the card once the grocery promo ends and I reach 10k and the $100 GC..
Jul 26, 2020, 8:08 am
#4
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,409
When I realized that I had a choice whether to put the small business bonus ($5 credit ten times through the end of September IIRC, with repeats of the same merchant allowed--this will be easy as my regular grocery store and three wine stores that I use all participate, plus some random local restaurants) on my regular Plat card or the DL Reserve card, I picked Reserve. I should be able to get my third 15,000 MQM increment this year if I put most purchases on the Reserve card. Otherwise, I like MR points more than DL miles, so I tend to put some nonDL purchases on the regular Plat card, especially after I hit my last threshold of the year. Rollover rocks.
OTOH it's a bit hard to keep track of the differences in bonuses and credits between AmExPlat and DL Reserve, so it would take effort to truly optimize.
OTOH it's a bit hard to keep track of the differences in bonuses and credits between AmExPlat and DL Reserve, so it would take effort to truly optimize.
Jul 26, 2020, 1:29 pm
#6
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: OKC
Programs: DL DM/2.768MM, Global Entry, Titanium_Marriott, GHertz
Posts: 6,751
I have used my DL AMEX like normal whick gains a few SMs and MQMs. However, not the same story on my corporate PL AMEX as I still cannot fly anywhere.
Last edited by Xeno; Jul 26, 2020 at 1:35 pm
Jul 26, 2020, 6:46 pm
#7
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: TYS
Programs: Delta Diamond 3MM, AMEX Delta Reserve, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Lifetime Titanium Elite
Posts: 208
I dropped my corporate Platinum AMEX when Delta added the 2 extra MQM bumps to the Reserve card and did all of my corporate spend exclusively on the Reserve card. I fell from Diamond to Platinum this year because I was $5K short on MQD spend in 2019.
It looks now like I’ll be able to hit the $250K spend threshold on the Reserve Card this year and the MQM bumps are going to qualify me for Diamond again in a couple of months even though I have flown actual miles less this year than I have in 20 years!
It looks now like I’ll be able to hit the $250K spend threshold on the Reserve Card this year and the MQM bumps are going to qualify me for Diamond again in a couple of months even though I have flown actual miles less this year than I have in 20 years!
Jul 26, 2020, 7:10 pm
#8
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Irvine, CA USA
Programs: DL DM
Posts: 510
I'm not surprised at all for those that have the ability to spend to put that spend on a DL Plat or Reserve Amex cards. The entire MQM balance including ALL boosts that are earned this year will roll over into next year once rollovers are processed.
Jul 26, 2020, 7:49 pm
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2011
Location: NYC (LGA, JFK), CT
Programs: Delta Platinum, American Gold, JetBlue Mosaic 4, Marriott Platinum, Hyatt Explorist, Hilton Diamond,
Posts: 4,895
I am going to hit the first MQM boost on my Reserve this week, trying to decide whether to go for a second. The main problem with the cards is the lack of multipliers on the Delta Reserve.
Jul 29, 2020, 1:08 am
#10
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: West of CLE
Programs: Delta DM/3 MM; Hertz PC; National EE; Amtrak GR; Bonvoy Silver; Via Rail Préférence
Posts: 5,384
I repeat a question I raised on another thread but never got a credible answer: If I hit the $25k AMEX waiver in 2020 (which I should hit by the end of August), will that count for 2021 so that I am assured PM status for 2022?
Jul 29, 2020, 1:28 am
#11
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: SJC/SFO. EWR/JFK
Programs: AS MVP 100K, DL PL
Posts: 542
Jul 29, 2020, 11:10 am
#12
Join Date: May 2013
Location: RMS
Programs: DL Plat, UA Gold, Bonvoy Titanium, Hilton Credit Card Diamond
Posts: 8,789
I thought about putting my DL Reserve in my sock drawer for the year when they announced they were extending status for 2021. Instead, I decided to finish out the $30k spend for the MQM boost even though the MQD waiver no longer matters. That should make it easier for me to move back up to PM for 2022 (hopefully earned early in 2021 but will depend on when I get back in the air). I may stock up on $1-2k in HEB gift cards during August while I can earn 4x on them to cover groceries for the rest of the year.