Understanding Delta award/miles fare classes is not straight forward or well understood by the casual flyer. This article was written by a very frequent Delta Air Lines flyer who has spent many years studying how the airline industry operates and documenting the changes that full-service airlines make in an effort to devalue frequent flyer benefits.
This article is designed to help a Silver, Gold, Platinum or Diamond Medallion understand fare class restrictions and rules around upgrades (including the upgrade order).
The information contained is not endorsed by Delta Air Lines. If you find something incorrect, please send me a message and I’ll get it updated.
Delta Fare Classes & Information
Learn what the fare class letters on your boarding pass mean
Since the 2015 introduction of revenue requirements to the SkyMiles Medallion program, Delta has added TONS of fare classes and made it much more complex to keep track of the rules around each.
The ultra-simplified way to understand Delta fare classes and how they associates to ticket price, restrictions and upgrade eligibility is this:
Delta One, Delta Premium Select, Comfort+, Main Cabin and Basic Economy all have multiple seats and fare classes available for for sale to customers. By default, you’ll always buy the cheapest fare class available in the cabin of service selected; however, as the plane fills up, so do the cheaper fare classes, meaning the next higher (and more expensive) fare class is for sale until the cabin is sold out.
Fare classes do not relate to where you sit within your purchased cabin, they are placeholders for how much you paid and establish a pecking order for upgrades.
You can easily purchase a last minute Main Cabin ticket in the NY-fare bucket and sit a middle seat in the last row, while a NV-fare Main Cabin ticket purchased months ago may be sitting right behind Comfort+ in a preferred seat – this is due to the economics of supply vs demand (i.e.: less seats in the cabin = higher fare classes, and thus prices).
Once all fare classes in a cabin have been sold, the cabin no longer has availability. Once all fare classes in all cabins have been sold, the flight no longer has availability and is considered sold out.
Award Fare Classes
Information about each Award Fare Class on Delta Air Lines.
First Class / Delta One
A comprehensive list of all known award/miles and upgrade fare classes in the First Class / Delta One cabins on Delta Air Lines. Click on an individual fare class to find out more information about upgrades, rules and other important information to maximize your SkyMiles earnings.
Delta Premium Select
A comprehensive list of all known award/miles and upgrade fare classes in the Delta Premium Select cabin on Delta Air Lines. Click on an individual fare class to find out more information about upgrades, rules and other important information to maximize your SkyMiles earnings.
Comfort+
A comprehensive list of all known award/miles and upgrade fare classes in the Comfort+ cabin on Delta Air Lines. Click on an individual fare class to find out more information about upgrades, rules and other important information to maximize your SkyMiles earnings.
Main Cabin
A comprehensive list of all known award/miles and upgrade fare classes in the Main Cabin on Delta Air Lines. Click on an individual fare class to find out more information about upgrades, rules and other important information to maximize your SkyMiles earnings.
Basic Economy
A comprehensive list of all known award/miles and upgrade fare classes in the Basic Economy cabin on Delta Air Lines. Click on an individual fare class to find out how you’ll be let down because you booked in cabin that doesn’t earn SkyMiles.
