As we reported last week, Delta Air Lines has now made several options available for Delta SkyMiles members who were sitting on excess Medallion Qualification Miles.
As part of many Delta SkyMiles Medallion program changes announced last year, the earning metric known as MQMs is no longer. That means SkyMiles members with Medallion status no longer have the annual rollover benefit that used to let them begin each year with an MQM boost.
Delta has now moved to a less complicated metric: Medallion Qualification Dollars. In light of this change, Delta is allowing some interesting options for those members who have leftover MQMs from the 2023 calendar year. This is important, as some people had hundreds of thousands of rollover miles.
As we covered, there are several options to choose from. You can use MQMs to extend your status, or you can convert them to MQDs, Delta SkyMiles or a combination of the latter.
However, many TPG readers asked questions about the various possibilities, so I reached out to Delta for some clarity. Delta was able to provide some detailed answers, which you will find below.
Remember, you have until Dec. 31, 2024, to make your decision, so in many cases, it may make the most sense to take a wait-and-see approach. This is especially important given this word of caution from Delta: “All selections are final, unchangeable and irrevocable,” according to the carrier.
In other words, choose wisely.
Does the Delta MQD rollover count toward my 2025 status?
Many Delta fans wonder if MQD rollovers will count toward 2025 status (which is earned based on your activity during the 2024 calendar year). Fortunately, the answer is yes.
Whether you earn MQDs from spend, flying or rolling over MQMs, those MQDs will count toward 2025 status.
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Can you still earn Diamond Medallion status even if you only convert to Platinum Medallion?
A few readers wanted to know if you could get Diamond Medallion status after converting to MQDs at the Platinum Medallion level. In other words, is it possible to earn the difference in MQDs for Diamond Medallion status?
“Yes, if they converted their Rollover MQMs to MQDs and earned 2025 Platinum Medallion Status at the 15,000 threshold, they would only need to reach the 28,000 threshold (13,000 more) to reach earned 2025 Diamond Medallion Status,” a Delta spokesperson told TPG. “The 15,000 MQDs are treated like any other form of earned MQDs.”
What about excess MQDs above various status thresholds?
Delta also reminded readers that converting everything to MQDs wouldn’t always make sense.
“Just as a reminder, any excess MQDs above a status threshold will not roll over,” a Delta spokesperson said.
This is a powerful reason to wait until your 2024 travel and spending activity is closer to final before converting your rollover MQMs. That will allow you to gauge your progress to your desired Medallion tier before determining whether you’d benefit from additional MQDs — or would be better off with miles to use for your next trip.
What about excess MQDs beyond the Platinum Medallion status threshold?
One reader asked about this example scenario: If an elite converts to MQDs and there are enough to qualify for Platinum Medallion status for two years in a row, will you earn the status for both years? Or, would you only receive Platinum Medallion status until Jan. 31, 2026?
In this case, you wouldn’t get multiple years of Platinum Medallion status. Instead, you’d get MQMs converted to the next level of status.
“If a customer converts their Rollover MQMs to MQDs, it goes toward their qualification for 2025 Medallion Status,” a Delta spokesperson said. “If they reach the 15,000 threshold for 2025 Platinum Medallion Status, they will have it until Jan. 31, 2026. If they reach the 28,000 threshold for 2025 Diamond Medallion Status, they will have it until Jan. 31, 2026.”
How long will rollover status last?
Medallion members with more than 100,000 rollover MQMs have the option to extend their current status. This rollover status gets extended in one-year chunks per 100,000 MQMs and lasts through the end of the status year. If you extended status by one year, for example, “That earned status would last until Jan. 31, 2026, the end of the 2025 Medallion year,” according to Delta.
Remember that you can roll over your current status for 100,000 MQMs, so if you have 300,000 rollover MQMs from last year, you could extend your current status for three years.
Depending on your current status, this may be a better option than converting all of those MQMs to MQDs since that would only get you 30,000 MQDs for this year’s qualification — and Diamond status through just Jan. 31, 2026.
Can you convert MQDs all the way to Diamond Medallion status?
Lots of readers were confused about the power of MQDs.
For example, one reader mentioned having 280,000 MQMs and is thinking of turning them into 28,000 MQDs. They wanted to know if they would immediately qualify for Diamond Medallion status.
“Yes, if they choose to convert them to 100% MQDs. These MQDs are treated like any other form of earned MQDs,” a Delta spokesperson said.
However, it’s worth noting that this same reader could use 200,000 of those rollover MQMs to extend their existing status for two years and then have 80,000 left to convert to MQDs, miles or a combination of the two.
Does the new status happen right away?
“I picked a choice to convert my MQMs to dollars (MQDs) that would advance me two levels,” TPG reader Charlotte Huss said. She wanted to know when her status would be updated.
Delta said it would happen right away. Indeed, Huss told me after she sent her original email that her status had been updated in the Delta app. The rollover perk allowed her to go from Silver Medallion to Platinum Medallion.
When will my status get updated?
TPG reader Jay Susman presented the following scenario: “If I convert my 210,000 MQMs into MQDs, I will get 21,000 MQDs. That’s more than enough to become Platinum (15,000 MQDs). So I should become Platinum at that moment and be, well on my way to Diamond since I have already earned over 3,000 MQDs this year. The question is whether my new status will become effective immediately or only on Feb. 1, 2025.”
According to Delta, yes, Susman would achieve Platinum Medallion status once the MQDs appear in his account, even if that’s before Feb. 1, 2025.
“When converting Rollover MQMs into MQDs, the MQDs are treated like all other earned MQDs. This status is earned status,” a Delta spokesperson said. “This is different from converting 100,000 MQMs into a year of complimentary status extension, as this is complimentary status. Complimentary 2025 status would not take effect until Feb. 1, 2025.”
What if I have extra MQDs at the end of the year?
TPG reader James Keenan wanted to know what happens if someone has extra MQDs at the end of 2024.
“I have approximately 190,000 MQMs and received Diamond status in November of 2023. This goes through 2024,” he said. “I have approximately 7,600 MQDs accumulated under the new system. If I hit 28,000 MQDs and achieve Diamond, does Delta allow the rollover of status to 2026?”
Unfortunately, that won’t be happening.
“If the Member used 100,000 of his/her MQMs for the complimentary status extension of Diamond AND earns 28,000 MQDs, the extended status would essentially be wasted,” a Delta spokesperson said. “We are not ‘extending the extension.’ Both of these statuses would be for the 2025 Medallion Year, which ends on Jan. 31, 2026.”
What about Choice Benefits?
We also received many questions about Choice Benefits that are provided to top-tier Platinum and Diamond Medallions each year upon qualification.
“I had over 100,000 of MQM to roll over and used them to extend my Delta Diamond status,” TPG reader Aaron Percy said, “but one thing I noticed and wanted to see if you can confirm is that I don’t get any of the choice benefits. It wasn’t in the terms and conditions, and it may have made more sense to convert my MQM to MQDs instead. I would love any insight you might have. I assumed I would be able to get the choice benefits for 2025 Diamond status, but please keep me honest.”
Another reader asked, “Do you still qualify for the Diamond Choice Benefits if you are using your MQMs to extend your status?”
The short answer is yes. According to Delta, you will get the Choice Benefits, but you won’t have those choices until the normal elite year qualification time frame.
If you instead convert to MQDs, it’s a different story.
“Just as a reminder, you are only eligible to extend your earned 2024 Medallion Status,” a Delta spokesperson said. “If you use Rollover MQMs to extend 2024 Diamond Medallion Status … you will receive complimentary 2025 Diamond Medallion Status. For this option, you will then be eligible to select 2025 Diamond Choice Benefits on Feb. 1, 2025.”
“However, If you earned 2025 Diamond Medallion Status via conversion to MQDs and it results in a total of 28,000 MQDs (which can be from a combination of MQDs from all MQD-earning methods), then you would be eligible to select your Choice Benefits soon after qualification,” the Delta spokesperson added.
What Delta Choice Benefits am I eligible for?
Unfortunately, if you use your rollover MQMs to extend your Diamond Medallion status, you won’t get Platinum Choice Benefits in February of next year, but you will still get Diamond Choice Benefits.
“The option to convert to complimentary status extension does provide a Member with the Choice Benefits at the tier that is being extended,” a Delta spokesperson said. “There are a few nuances with this status since it is considered complimentary. 1. The Member only gets the Choice Benefits of the status level being extended. … And 2. Since complimentary status does not take effect until February 1 of the Medallion Year, the Choice Benefits will not be available until then.”
What about those with lifetime Delta Diamond Medallion status?
TPG reader Bill Hunt wanted to know about lifetime status.
“For those of us with lifetime status with Delta, how does it work if we decline extra years of our current status?” he asked. “In my case, I have 4.6MM with approximately 285,000 MQMs. If I say ‘Don’t extend status’ and convert my MQMs to 142,000 miles, will I remain Diamond for Life? The way it’s phrased is lifetime ‘annual’ renewal, and that makes me nervous.”
Delta said not to worry. In this case, the person really will retain Diamond Medallion status for life, and those with 3 million miles and above will not have the option to extend status “since they already have annual complimentary Diamond Medallion [status].”
According to Delta, there are two possible reasons why someone might want to convert their MQMs to MQDs.
“1. You could use the MQDs to reach 15,000 MQDs which grants 1 Platinum Choice Benefit that does not come with complimentary DM status,” a Delta spokesperson said, “or 2. MQDs are a tie-breaker on the upgrade hierarchy.”
Still, it’s an individual choice when it comes to what’s best. Some members may want the additional redeemable miles instead.
Bottom line
Delta Air Lines is offering MQM rollover choices for SkyMiles customers with extra MQMs.
If you are one of the lucky Delta flyers with lots of MQMs, you can extend your status, convert them to MQDs, turn them into redeemable SkyMiles or a combination of a few options. It’s a bit complicated, but hopefully, some of the answers above will help you pick the right option for you.
However, the best option for now may be to wait to decide. After all, you don’t have to pull the trigger until the end of the year. Maybe you’ll earn enough MQDs this year to hit your desired tier of status. In that case, converting your extra MQMs to MQDs could be worthless if they don’t get you to a higher tier. After all, your additional MQDs above a specific qualification threshold in 2024 won’t roll over, making gaining a stash of miles a better option.
For me, one option was the clear winner. I’ll enjoy Diamond Medallion status through the end of 2025. That’s pretty wild considering just a few months ago I was thinking of abandoning the program altogether. The enhancements Delta made to its American Express cobranded credit cards and the status extension mean I will stick with Delta for the next few years, at the very least.
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