Delta Elite Status Will Be Harder To Earn In 2023

Delta SkyMiles Medallion elite status will be harder to earn in 2023 for those who want to be in the program for the next year.

Delta Medallion revenue requirement increasing

To become a Delta SkyMiles Medallion elite, you have to do the following.

• You need to earn a certain number of Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) OR Medallion Qualifying Segments (MQSs)
• You also need to earn a certain number of Medallion Qualifying Dollars (MQDs) OR you can get a waiver by spending money on a co-branded Delta Amex card

The requirements for Delta SkyMiles Medallion elite are listed below.

• Delta Silver Medallion requires 25,000 MQMs OR 30 MQSs AND 3,000 MQDs
• Delta Gold Medallion requires 50,000 MQMs OR 60 MQSs AND 6,000 MQDs
• Delta Platinum Medallion requires 75,000 MQMs OR 100 MQSs AND 9,000 MQDs
• Delta Diamond Medallion requires 125,000 MQMs OR 140 MQSs AND 15,000 MQDs
• You can get an MQD waiver for spending on Delta credit cards — all tiers require $25,000 of spending per year, except Diamond Medallion, which requires $250,000 of spending per year

Delta SkyMiles will be increasing the amount of money you need to spend in order to get status.

• Delta Silver Medallion will require 3,000 MQDs (no change)
• Delta Gold Medallion will require 8,000 MQDs (an increase of 2,000 MQDs, or 33%)
• Delta Platinum Medallion will require 12,000 MQDs (an increase of 3,000 MQDs, or 33%)
• Delta Diamond Medallion will require 20,000 MQDs (an increase of 5,000 MQDs, or 33%)

It's important to note that.

• There will be no change to how many MQMs or MQSs you need to earn
• You earn one MQD for each eligible dollar spent on a Delta ticket, not including taxes and fees
• As you can see, Silver Medallion status spending requirements aren’t changing, while spending requirements for other tiers are increasing by 33%
• You can continue to get an MQD waiver for spending on Delta credit cards — $25,000 of spending per year will get you a waiver for Silver, Gold, and Platinum Medallion, while $250,000 of spending per year will get you a waiver for Diamond Medallion

Delta claims the change affects multiple tiers. These changes are described by Delta's VP of Customer Engagement and Loyalty.

“These limited SkyMiles Program changes are a necessary step toward both preserving and improving the customer experience for our most loyal and engaged Members. The travel and loyalty landscape has changed considerably since we last made changes to the earn qualifications of multiple membership tiers. We are continuing to invest in the customers who invest in us so those Members experience the best of what Delta has to offer—with our new Choice Benefits, our premium and transformed Delta Sky Clubs, and our expansion of the use of SkyMiles as currency throughout the journey.”

Delta rolling out new Choice Benefits

Diamond and Platinum Medallion members will be able to choose from an expanded slate of Choice Benefits from February 1, 2023. There are new choice benefits.

• Diamond and Platinum Medallion members with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card, Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business American Express Card, or Delta SkyMiles Platinum Business American Express Card, can choose a statement credit for their card — $500 for Diamond Medallion members or $200 for Platinum Medallion members
• Diamond Medallion members will receive two Gold Medallion gift statuses per selection, while Platinum Medallion members will receive two Silver Medallion gift statuses per selection 
• A Delta Vacations Experience (flight and hotel) — $500 for Diamond Medallion members and $400 for Platinum Medallion members
• An MQD “head start” for the next Medallion year — $1,000 MQD boost for Diamond Medallion members and a $500 MQD boost for Platinum Medallion members
• Increasing the Delta Travel Credit Voucher to $250 
• A $250 sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) contribution

My take on Delta Medallion program changes

Delta was the most generous US airline during the Pandemic. The airline is the first to increase elite requirements as travel demand increases. I don't think this will make a difference to elite ranks.

This is part of Delta's effort to make sure that a lot of SkyMiles members use a Delta Amex card. The Delta and Amex partnership is worth billions of dollars and Delta has used its loyalty program to drum up spending on co- branded credit cards.

The airline is just increasing the revenue requirement for status, since this is also the requirement that is easiest to get around with credit card spending, so it makes sense that this is the reason.

It is odd to be doing this at a time when business travel is still down. The approach taken by other airline loyalty programs is different than the one taken by Delta SkyMiles. Delta allows members to earn elite status without credit card spending.

Bottom line

Delta SkyMiles is making it more difficult to get elite status in the future. There will be an increase in the revenue requirement for elite status. There is still an opportunity to get a revenue requirement Waiver if you spend on a Delta Amex credit card.

Delta is improving Choice Benefits, which should be good news for Platinum and Diamond members.

What do you think about these changes?