Delta credit cards: Up to 90,000 bonus miles

(CNN) —  

CNN Underscored reviews financial products such as credit cards and bank accounts based on their overall value. We may receive a commission through the LendingTree affiliate network if you apply and are approved for a card, but our reporting is always independent and objective.

As vaccines start to become widely available, travel is beginning to pick back up and planes will soon return to the skies. If you’re looking to get back on the road, you’ll want to have a pile of frequent flyer miles ready to go so you have the flexibility to hop on a flight as soon as you can.

Fortunately, American Express has just released some fantastic welcome offers on its Delta credit cards, which means you can earn up to a whopping 90,000 bonus miles by signing up for a new personal or business Delta credit card right now.

These offers are only available fo a limited time through April 28, 2021, so let’s start with a look at the personal Delta credit card offers, which break down like this (terms apply):

Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card: Earn 10,000 bonus miles when you spend $500 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card: Earn 70,000 bonus miles when you spend $2,000 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Earn 90,000 bonus miles when you spend $3,000 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Earn 80,000 bonus miles and 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) when you spend $5,000 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta uses a dynamic pricing scheme for its award flights instead of a fixed award chart, so you can expect to get a fairly consistent value for your miles. Frequent flyer website The Points Guy values Delta SkyMiles at 1.1 cents apiece, making these bonuses worth between $110 and a crazy-high $990.

The bonus MQMs offered on the Delta Reserve card can also be a big boost for anyone actively chasing Delta elite status, especially since Delta rolled all 2020 MQMs over to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While all these cards are geared toward Delta flyers, the best Delta credit card for you will depend on your spending habits and how frequently you plan to fly with the airline as travel returns to normal.

If it’s simply bonus miles you’re after and you don’t want to pay an annual fee, then the Delta SkyMiles Blue Amex card is for you. It earns 2 miles for every dollar you spend on eligible Delta purchases and at restaurants worldwide, and 1 mile per dollar on everything else. It also offers a 20% discount on in-flight purchases, access to Delta’s Pay with Miles program and no foreign transaction fees.

Click here to earn Delta miles with no annual fee with the Delta Blue Amex card.

However, if you plan to fly Delta occasionally — even once per year — when planes are back in the air and don’t mind paying a $99 annual fee (which is even waived for the first year you have the card), you’ll get a lot more value from the Delta SkyMiles Gold Amex.

Aside from a much heftier welcome bonus, the Delta Gold Amex comes with more perks, including your first checked bag free when flying Delta (which normally costs $30 to $60 for economy passengers), priority boarding and a $100 Delta flight credit after you spend $10,000 in eligible purchases on your card in a calendar year.

And, in addition to earning 2 miles per dollar on US supermarket spending, Delta Gold Amex card members earn 2 miles for each dollar spent at restaurants, including takeout and delivery, as well as 2 miles per dollar on eligible Delta purchases.

Save money with the Delta Gold Amex card with a free checked bag when flying Delta.

If you plan to go on more than a few trips each year after planes return to the skies and Delta is your carrier of choice, it’ll probably make more sense to go with one of Delta’s more premium credit cards. The Delta SkyMiles Platinum Amex and the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Amex have annual fees of $250 and $550, respectively, but are loaded with elite-like benefits and shortcuts to earning elite status to go along with them.

The Delta Platinum Amex has many of the same perks as the Gold version, such as a free checked bag on Delta flights and priority boarding. You’ll also earn 3 miles for every dollar you spend at hotels and on eligible Delta purchases, as well as the same 2 miles per dollar at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets.

The card also comes with a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck fee credit worth up to $100 every four years (or four and a half years for TSA PreCheck) and a domestic main cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your card.

Related: Dig into more details with our guide to the best credit cards for Delta flyers.

For those chasing Silver, Gold or Platinum elite status, the Delta Platinum Amex waives Delta’s Medallion Qualifying Dollars (MQD) requirement when you spend $25,000 on the card in a calendar year. Plus, Amex has expanded the card’s Status Boost feature for 2021.

When you spend $25,000 on the Delta Platinum Amex this year, you’ll earn 12,500 bonus MQMs toward elite status. That’s 25% more than the normal 10,000 MQMs offered with Status Boost on the card, and you can do it twice in a year, so you’ll get another 12,500 bonus MQMs if you get to a total of $50,000 spending in 2021.

Earn Delta elite status faster with the Delta Platinum Amex card.

Meanwhile, the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Amex comes with even more benefits, such as complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs as well as the exclusive American Express Centurion Lounges — which have now all reopened across the country -— when you’re flying on a Delta flight, access to complimentary upgrades for non-elites and an annual companion certificate that can be used for first-class travel each year upon renewal of your card.

The card earns 3 miles for every dollar you spend on eligible Delta purchases and 1 mile for every dollar you spend on everything else. And with the Delta Reserve Amex, you’re also getting an enhanced Status Boost feature this year.

You’ll earn 18,750 MQMs for every $30,000 spent on the Delta Reserve Amex in 2021, up to four times within the calendar year. That’s 25% more than the usual 15,000 MQMs earned with each Status Boost, and if you earn all four possible boosts, you’ll get Delta Platinum elite status without even stepping on a plane.

Related: Earn Delta elite status in 2021 without even flying by using this credit card perk.

You can also waive Delta’s MQD requirement for elite status up to the Platinum level by spending $25,000 in a calendar year on the Delta Reserve Amex, or the MQD requirement for Diamond status by spending at least $250,000.

Access the Amex Centurion Lounge when flying Delta using the Delta Reserve Amex card.

If you own a business, you might want to consider getting one of the Delta business credit cards, which come with slightly different perks and bonuses than the personal cards. Here’s a look at the welcome offers currently available on the three Delta business cards (terms apply):

Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card: Earn 70,000 bonus miles and a $50 statement credit when you spend $2,000 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card: Earn 90,000 bonus miles and a $100 statement credit when you spend $3,000 in the first three months after opening the account.

Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card: Earn 80,000 bonus miles and 20,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs), plus a $200 statement credit when you spend $5,000 in your first three months after opening the account.

Similar to the personal version, the Delta Gold Business Amex comes with a free checked bag and priority boarding on Delta flights, a 20% discount on eligible in-flight purchases, access to Delta’s Pay with Miles program, up to $100 in Delta flight credit after you spend $10,000 in eligible purchases on your card in a calendar year and no foreign transaction fees.

But it earns miles a little differently. In addition to earning 2 miles for each dollar spent on eligible Delta purchases and at restaurants (including takeout and delivery), the Delta Gold Business Amex earns 2 miles per dollar on US shipping purchases and US purchases for advertising in select media. And like the personal version, the business version waives its $99 annual fee for the first year.

Earn Delta miles for your small business with the Delta Gold Business Amex card.

The Delta Platinum Business Amex also has perks and benefits that are similar to its personal card counterpart, including the same bonus categories, the same free checked bag and priority boarding on Delta flights, the same ability to earn 25% more bonus MQMs in 2021 and the same $250 annual fee. But the business version also earns 1.5 miles per dollar on single eligible purchases of $5,000 or more, which is an extra half point per dollar, up to 50,000 additional miles per year.

Get Delta elite status faster for yourself or your employees with the Delta Platinum Business Amex card.

Similarly, the Delta Reserve Business Amex matches the high-end travel perks of the personal Delta Reserve card, including complimentary access to…