How to Transfer Amex Points to Delta SkyMiles

The transfer at a glance

What the fee costs you

Amex calls it an excise tax offset fee. On every transfer to a US airline program, it charges $0.0006 per point, capped at $99 to your card, per Amex's transfer page. The ratio, blocks, maximum and the time Amex allows come from the same page.

What Delta awards cost

Delta has no award chart. It prices every seat by demand, so the same Delta One seat can cost hundreds of thousands of miles more on one date than another. Don't transfer until you've seen the price for your exact flight.

Two past examples show the range. Both came from a Delta One award flash sale. The sale ended October 29, 2026.

• Delta One, New York (JFK) to Dublin: 230,000 miles plus $48 round trip, for travel February 19 to March 2, 2027. Seen October 28, 2026, reported by Yahoo Finance (Oct 28, 2026); Upgraded Points (Oct 27, 2026).
• Delta One, Los Angeles to Honolulu: 256,200 miles plus $12 round trip, for travel January 15 to 21, 2027. Seen October 28, 2026, reported by Yahoo Finance (Oct 28, 2026).

Outside the sale, Yahoo Finance (Oct 28, 2026) reported the same Delta One routes at 400,000 to 500,000 or more miles round trip.

A worked example

Had you booked the Delta One, Los Angeles to Honolulu seat at 256,200 miles, you'd have moved 257,000 Amex points, since transfers go in blocks of 1,000, with a maximum of 999,000 per transfer. Amex's fee on that transfer would have been $99.

How to transfer, step by step

1. Check that Delta has the award you want at the price you want. Delta prices by demand, and transfers are final.
2. Make a free SkyMiles account if you don't have one, in the name of the person who'll get the miles.
3. Log in to Amex, open Membership Rewards, then choose Transfer points.
4. Pick Delta SkyMiles and link your SkyMiles number the first time. The SkyMiles account must be yours or belong to an Additional Card Member on your account, and an Additional Card must be issued at least 90 days before you link that person's SkyMiles account.
5. Enter the points, in blocks of 1,000. Amex may ask for your card's security code.
6. Confirm. The fee charges to your card.
7. Book the award as soon as the miles show in your Delta account.

Is it worth moving Amex points to Delta?

Our values put an Amex point at 2.0 cents per point and a Delta mile at 1.2 cents per point. Add the fee and a transfer to Delta usually loses value.

Transfer only when a specific Delta award beats 2.0¢ per mile, like a Delta One flash sale or a short flight that's expensive in cash. For most trips, Amex's other airline partners get more from the same points.

See what Delta miles are worth for the full breakdown. The booking steps for SkyMiles, Flying Club, and Flying Blue are in How to book Delta with miles. The Amex map, including when a partner beats SkyMiles, is how to book Delta with Amex points.

Does it help Medallion status?

Award tickets paid fully in miles earn little or no Medallion progress. Run your numbers in the Delta status calculator.

When not to transfer

• You haven't found the award yet. Points stay more useful in Amex, where they can go to 20 partners.
• You'd cover a cheap fare. Delta's Pay with Miles rate of 1¢ is a better yardstick there than a transfer.
• A transfer bonus is coming. Check transfer bonus alerts first.
• You could book a Delta partner flight for fewer miles through another Amex partner, like Air France-KLM Flying Blue at 1:1 or Virgin Atlantic at 1:1. The steps are in how to book Delta with Flying Blue and how to book Delta with Virgin Atlantic.

Learn this properly

Lesson 11: Transfer Partners & When to Use Them explains how to pick a partner, and Lesson 13: How to Search for Award Flights shows how to find the space first.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a fee to transfer Amex points to Delta?

Yes. Amex charges $0.0006 per point, capped at $99, so 50,000 points costs $30.

How long does an Amex to Delta transfer take?

Most arrive instantly. Amex says to allow up to 48 hours.

What is the Amex to Delta transfer ratio?

1:1.

Can I undo a transfer to Delta?

No, transfers are final.

Is it better to transfer Amex points to Delta or use them another way?

Usually another way. Delta miles are worth 1.2¢ each in our values, against 2.0¢ for Amex points.