UPGRADE CERTIFICATES

About Upgrade Certificates

  • Global Upgrades and Regional Upgrades are available as Choice Benefits selections. 
  • Global Upgrades (available in all markets) and Regional Upgrades (available in the same markets as Medallion Complimentary Upgrades and for nonstop flights between JFK-LAX, JFK-SFO, DCA-LAX, and BOS-SFO) have higher priority than Medallion Complimentary Upgrade requests. 
  • Global and Regional Upgrade Certificates cannot be applied towards Award Travel or tickets booked in Basic Economy (E).

Upgrade Certificate Allowances

  • Diamond Medallion Members may choose either four (4) Global Upgrades or eight (8) Regional Upgrades or two (2) Global Upgrades and four (4) Regional Upgrades.
  • Platinum Medallion Members may choose four (4) Regional Upgrades.

Diamond Medallion Members will be eligible to use Global Upgrade Certificates to upgrade to Delta Premium Select, a new class of service on select long-haul international flights, beginning with flights between Detroit (DTW) and Narita (NRT) on October 30, 2017. On Delta Premium Select-equipped aircraft, Global Upgrade Certificates can still be used to upgrade to Delta One®. Regional Upgrade Certificates cannot be used to upgrade to Delta Premium Select.

Upgrade Certificates

Regions

Medallion Complimentary Upgrades

Regional Upgrades

Global Upgrades

Mileage Upgrade Awards*

U.S. 48

X
 

X

X

X

Between Hawaii and LAX, SEA, SFO, or SLC

X

X

X

X

Between Hawaii and all other nonstop domestic destinations

X

X

Between JFK and LAX or SFO

X

X

X

Between DCA and LAX

X

X

X

Between BOS and SFO

X

X

X

Alaska, Canada, Mexico,

Caribbean, Bermuda

X

X

X

X

Central America

Excludes Delta One® and Delta Premium Select

Excludes Delta One® and Delta Premium Select

X

X

Northern South America

Excludes Delta One® and Delta Premium Select

Excludes Delta One® and Delta Premium Select

X

X

Southern South America

X

X

Transatlantic

X

X

Transpacific

X

X

Intra-Asia Oceania

X

X

 *Mileage Upgrade Awards fare class restrictions vary by region.

CABIN ELIGIBILITY FOR UPGRADE CERTIFICATES

Using an Upgrade Certificate? Check out the chart below to see how to upgrade into each of our cabins.

CABIN

REGIONAL UPGRADES

GLOBAL UPGRADES

Delta One®

Only eligible on nonstop flights between JFK-LAX, JFK-SFO, DCA-LAX, and BOS-SFO

Yes

Delta Premium Select

No

Yes

First Class

Yes

Yes

Delta Comfort+®

Yes

Yes

  • No availability in your preferred cabin when booking your upgrade? Get on the waitlist to ensure your upgrade clears if seats become available.

    Here is how it works:

    • Call Delta Reservations to book your upgrade – 1-800-323-2323 in the U.S. View worldwide phone numbers.

    • If there is currently no upgrade availability for your flight, request to be put on a waitlist.
      • Open seats in the seat map do not necessarily mean they are available for upgrades (they might still be available for purchase) so keep in mind that seat map availability does not necessarily match upgrade availability.
    • If a seat becomes available in the cabin you are waitlisted for, your upgrade will clear automatically.

    • One Upgrade Certificate can put you on a single waitlist or multiple waitlists – from a specific cabin on a particular flight to multiple cabins on multiple flights. But, your upgrade will only clear off of ONE waitlist and will be based on the FIRST seat that becomes available across all of the waitlists the Certificate is listed on.
      • For example, if you are waitlisted on DTW-NRT and also JFK-LAX with one certificate,  if a seat becomes available on the DTW-NRT flight you will be upgraded on that flight and you will no longer be waitlisted on the JFK-LAX flight as the certificate has been used.

      • Or, if you are waitlisted for both Delta One and Delta Premium Select on your DTW-NRT flight, if a seat in Delta Premium Select becomes available first, you will be upgraded to Delta Premium Select and you will no longer be waitlisted for Delta One as the certificate has been used.
    • Once your upgrade clears off the waitlist, your certificate will be considered used.

    • If no seats become available before departure, your certificate will be returned to your account for you to use on a later flight.


    Waitlist Options:

    Use this chart to understand your different options for being added to the waitlist depending on the cabins available and the number of certificates you have. This is meant to be a general guide, and your options may have to adjust if, for example, you’re traveling with a companion, which would require another certificate. 

    Number of Upgrade Certificates in your account:

    Situation:

    1 Upgrade Certificate

    At least 2 Upgrade Certificates

    No current upgrade availability in Delta One/First Class but there are seats available in Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+











     

    You can choose one of these two options:

    1. Upgrade to Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ immediately
    2. Get put on the waitlist for Delta One/First Class







       

    You can choose one of these three options:

    1. Upgrade to Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ immediately
    2. Get put on the waitlist for Delta One/First Class
    3. Use 1 certificate to clear into Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ immediately and use a second certificate to waitlist for Delta One/First Class

    No current upgrade availability in Delta One/First Class or Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+






























     

    You can choose one of these three options:

    1. Get put on  the waitlist for Delta One/First Class only
    2. Get put on the waitlist for Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ only
    3. Use your one certificate to get put on the waitlist for both Delta One/First Class and Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ to increase your chances of receiving an upgrade - if one of the cabins clears, regardless of which one, your certificate is considered used. 












       

    You can choose one of these four options:

    1. Get put on the waitlist for Delta One/First Class only
    2. Get put on  the waitlist for Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ only
    3. Use one certificate to get put on the waitlist for both Delta One/First Class and Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ to increase your chances of receiving an upgrade - if one of the cabins clears, regardless of which one, your certificate is considered used.
    4. Use two certificates -- one to waitlist for Delta One/First Class and another to waitlist for Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+. If a Delta Premium Select/Delta Comfort+ seat becomes available first, you will still be on the waitlist for Delta One/First Class.