Best Airline Credit Card 2023 | American, Delta, Southwest, United

The best airline credit cards includes airlines based in the United States and international.

The big 4 US airlines of American Airlines, Delta, Southwest, and United all offer multiple airline miles credit cards that allow you to earn miles on spending and flying.

Military servicemembers and military spouses have a unique benefit on Citi and Chase airline credit cards: their annual fees are waived down to $0. Active duty, Guard and Reserve on 30+ day orders, and military spouses can get the most premium airline rewards cards and they don't need to pay the annual fee, thanks to the Military Lending Act.

See the detailed American Express military article for a full explanation of those benefits.

Military annual fee waivers on cards is an amazing benefit that more servicemembers and spouses are becoming aware of everyday. Learn more about how the military credit card annual fee waivers work in my free course and free podcast.

In this article we'll compare the airline credit cards offered by the big four US airlines.

• Best Delta Airlines Card: Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve American Express Card
• Best American Airlines Card: Citi^® AAdvantage^® Executive World Elite Mastercard^®
• Best Southwest Airlines Card: Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card
• Best United Airlines Card: United Club℠ Infinite Card
• Best Travel Rewards Card for Airfare Purchases: The Platinum Card^® from American Express

Best Delta Airlines Credit Card

Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve American Express Card
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

Annual Fee: $550 per year* *see more details on American Express protections for you and spouse

Welcome Bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

• This is my top recommended Amex Delta card for military
• Enjoy Delta Sky Club® access at no cost and bring up to two guests or immediate family at a rate of $50 per person per visit. Effective 2/1/25, Reserve Card Members will receive 10 Visits per year to the Delta Sky Club; Starting on 2/1/25, spend a total of $75,000 or more on eligible purchases on the card between 1/1/24 and 12/31/24, and each calendar year thereafter to earn an unlimited number of visits each year.
• Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge when you book a Delta flight with your Reserve Card.
• With Status Boost®, earn 15,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $30,000 in purchases on your Card through 12/31/23, up to four times per year getting you closer to Medallion Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion Status and are different from the miles you earn towards flights. Effective 1/1/24, this benefit will no longer be available, and there will be a new way to earn toward Medallion Status with the Card. Learn more at delta.com/skymilesprogramchanges.
• Eligible Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
• Receive a domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+® or domestic Main Cabin round trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
• Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® after you apply through any Official Enrollment Provider. If approved for Global Entry you will receive access to TSA PreCheck.
• Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights.
• Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases.
• Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.
• No foreign transaction fees, terms apply

Delta partners with American Express to offer 4 version of the Amex Delta cards:

• Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles^® Platinum American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles^® Gold American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles^® Blue American Express Card

The best Delta card available is the Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve American Express Card. This is my #1 recommended Delta card for military troops and their spouses.

The chief benefit of the Amex Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve card is the annual companion pass. You can earn a domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+, or main cabin round-trip companion certificate every year. You can use this certificate to fly you and a friend, family, partner, loved one, or spouse round-trip anywhere in the contiguous United States (lower 48 states).

If you have an Alaska of Hawaii address loaded in your Delta Skymiles account, you can also use the annual companion pass to fly round-trip from those states, provided your trip starts and ends in the state of your address. For instance, if you are stationed in Hawaii, you and your companion could fly round-trip from Honolulu to Atlanta with the Amex Delta Reserve companion pass.

The Amex Delta SkyMiles^® Reserve card has a variety of valuable benefits and usually offers a large welcome Skymiles bonus after you meet the minimum spending requirements.

Learn more about the American Express Delta credit cards.

Best American Airlines Credit Card

Citi^® AAdvantage^® Executive World Elite Mastercard^®
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

• Earn 70,000 American Airlines AAdvantage^® bonus miles after making $7,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of account opening
• Admirals Club^® membership for you and access for up to two guests or immediate family members traveling with you
• No Foreign Transaction Fees on purchases
• Earn 1 Loyalty Point for every 1 eligible AAdvantage^® mile earned from purchases
• First checked bag is free on domestic American Airlines itineraries for you and up to 8 companions traveling with you on the same reservation

American Airlines AAdvantage miles are tough to acquire because they have no travel transfer partner. The easiest way to build a large collection of American Airlines miles is to open co-branded credit cards, like the Citi^® AAdvantage^® Executive World Elite Mastercard^®.

The Citi^® AAdvantage^® Executive World Elite Mastercard^® also provides Admirals Club access for you and up to 2 guests when traveling on an American Airlines ticket. This can be very useful if other airport lounges are overcrowded.

Best Southwest Airlines Credit Card

The best Southwest Airlines Credit card allows you to earn Southwest points, an annual travel credit on Southwest tickets, and points towards a Southwest Companion Pass.

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Priority Credit Card
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

• Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
• $149 annual fee waived for military and mil spouses
• Earn 3x points per $1 spent on Southwest purchases
• Earn 2x points on local transit and commuting, including rideshare
• Earn 2X points on internet, cable, and phone services; select streaming.
• 7,500 Anniversary points each year.
• $75 annual Southwest travel credit
• 4 Upgraded boardings per year
• 25% back on in flight WiFi and drink purchases
• No foreign transaction fees
• Member FDIC

Best United Airlines Credit Cards

The best United Airlines card includes unlimited access to the United Club Lounge when you fly United airlines.

United Club^℠ Infinite Card
Learn how to apply at our partner's secure site

• Earn 80,000 bonus miles after making qualifying purchases after you $5,000 in the first 3 months from account opening
• Earn 4 miles per $1 spent on qualifying United® purchases
• Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on all other eligible travel and dining purchases with your card
• Also earn 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases
• Free first and second checked bags – a savings of up to $320 per roundtrip (terms apply) – and Premier Access^® travel services
• 10% United Economy Saver Award discount within the continental U.S. and Canada
• You can earn up to 8,000 Premier qualifying points (500 PQP for every $12K you spend on purchases)
• Member FDIC

United is a travel transfer partner of Chase. Sometimes, it might be more worthwhile to acquire Chase Ultimate Reward points and transfer them to United. It may be easier to accumulate many Ultimate Reward points than United miles.

Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards for Airfare Purchase

Even though each airline above offers airline branded credit cards specifically for their airline, you can earn even more points by using a travel rewards credit card.

For instance, The Platinum Card^® from American Express earns 5x points on airfare purchased directly with the airline or through amextravel.com.

The Platinum Card^® from American Express
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

• Annual fee of $695* See more details about military protections for you and your spouse 
• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards^® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Earn 5x points on airfare booked directly with airline or on amextravel.com up to $500,000 per calendar year
• Earn 5x points on prepaid hotels at amextravel.com
• $200 Annual Hotel Credit: Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts^® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card^®. Note that The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month when you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card^® at your choice of one or more of the following providers: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Peacock, Audible, SiriusXM, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
• $200 Uber Cash: Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on Uber Eats and rides
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year in baggage fees and more at 1 qualifying airline
• $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Breeze through security with CLEAR® Plus at 45+ airports nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Platinum Card®.
• $300 Equinox Credit: Get up to $300 back each year on an Equinox+ subscription, or any Equinox club memberships when you pay with your Platinum Card. Enrollment required. Membership subject to auto-renewal.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax.
• Up to $100 annual Saks Fifth Avenue credit, enrollment required
• Access 40+ Centurion Lounges and 1,200+ Priority Pass airport lounge for free
• No foreign transaction fees
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express – learn how to apply
• Read my full review of the Amex Platinum card for military, terms apply

If you prefer earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points, don't neglect the Chase Sapphire Reserve^® Card. The annual fee is waived for US military servicemembers and spouses.

Chase Sapphire Reserve^® Card
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site

• $550 annual fee waived to $0 for US military + spouses with Chase MLA policy
• Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on eligible purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards portal
• $300 Annual Travel Credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year.
• Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards^® immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually.
• 3x Points on other Travel (airfare, hotels) after earning the $300 travel credit
• 3x Dining restaurants, takeouts, delivery
• Chase Ultimate Reward Points redeemed through the Chase travel portal are worth 1.5 cents, a 50% bonus.
• Priority Pass lounge and restaurant access with over 1300+ airport lounges worldwide
• Up to $100 application fee credit for Global Entry every 4 years
• Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Primary coverage with Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more
• No foreign transaction fees
• Learn more in the Chase Sapphire Reserve review

Airline Credit Cards FAQ