Upcoming Changes to Delta Medallion Status & Sky Club Access

Recently, Delta Air Lines announced some sweeping changes to the way its members qualify for Delta Medallion Status, which will come into effect as of January 1, 2024.

The US airline has also released details of changes to Sky Club lounge access, including how often passengers may enter on account of an eligible credit card.

These are massive, wholesale changes that will affect Delta frequent flyers and co-branded credit cardholders alike, in a largely negative way.

Upcoming Changes to Delta SkyMiles Medallion Status

As of January 1, 2024, the way you earn Delta Medallion Status is going to change dramatically.

As it stands, members earn Medallion Status with a combination of Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQM), Medallion Qualifying Segments (MQS), and Medallion Qualifying Dollars (MQD).

However, that’s all set to change next year, as Delta is doing away with MQM and MQS requirements, and members will earn status based on the amount of MQD accumulated.

As of January 1, 2024, you’ll be able to earn MQDs to qualify for status through a variety of means, including:

• Flying with Delta ($1 MQD per US dollar spent)
• Flying with partner airlines (based on a percentage of fare class and distance flown)
• Spending on Delta SkyMiles American Express Cards
• Booking car rentals and hotel stays through the Delta platform ($1 MQD per US dollar spent)
• Delta Vacations ($1 MQD per US dollar spent)

While you’ll be able to earn MQDs in more ways than you can now, you’ll also have to earn more MQD to qualify for each tier than you currently do. A breakdown of the current MQD requirements, as well as the new thresholds, is as follows:

As the above chart shows, you’ll soon have to spend more to qualify for the same tier of status. In all cases, it’s a significant increase, including for top-tier Diamond Medallion Status.

Delta is also doing away with the MQD Waiver, which is currently a feature on many of its American Express co-branded credit cards. The MQD Waiver removes the MQD requirement for various tiers of status, which means that you can currently qualify through MQM or MQS alone with an MQD Waiver.

In lieu of the MQD Waiver, Delta is introducing the MQD Boost as a feature on its co-branded credit cards. With an eligible Delta American Express co-branded credit card, you’ll earn:

• $1 MQD per $20 (all…