Can I Transfer Delta Points To Another Airline? | Other Ways

No, Delta miles can’t be moved into another airline’s loyalty program, though you can use them on partner flights or send them to another SkyMiles member.

That’s the plain answer, and it saves a lot of wasted time. If you were hoping to push Delta SkyMiles into United MileagePlus, American AAdvantage, Alaska Mileage Plan, or another airline account, that isn’t how Delta works. SkyMiles stay inside the SkyMiles program.

Still, that doesn’t mean your miles are boxed in. Delta belongs to SkyTeam and also works with other airline partners, so your miles can still take you far beyond flights that show a Delta logo on the tail. The trick is knowing the difference between a transfer and a redemption. Those two ideas sound close. They’re not.

This article walks through what Delta lets you do, what it blocks, when paying a transfer fee makes sense, and the smarter ways to book flights on other carriers without draining value from your account.

Can I Transfer Delta Points To Another Airline? Delta’s Own Rules

No. You can’t transfer Delta SkyMiles into another airline loyalty program. Delta lets members transfer miles only to another SkyMiles member, not to a separate airline account. That means you can move miles from your SkyMiles account to a friend or family member who also has SkyMiles, but you can’t convert them into Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles, Virgin Points, or miles with another airline plan.

That rule catches a lot of people because many travel rewards articles talk about “airline transfers” in a broad way. That phrase usually refers to flexible bank points like Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One miles, or Citi ThankYou points. Those currencies can often move into airline programs. Delta SkyMiles are different. They already sit inside an airline program, so they don’t transfer outward the same way.

There’s another wrinkle. Delta’s site uses the word “transfer,” which can make the whole thing sound more open than it is. In Delta’s version, a transfer means sending miles to another SkyMiles member and paying the fees tied to that move. It does not mean exporting miles to another carrier.

Why People Get Mixed Up

The confusion usually starts with partner flights. You can book seats on partner airlines with Delta miles, so it’s easy to assume you can also move your balance into that partner’s loyalty program. You can’t. Booking a partner seat and transferring miles to a partner account are two separate actions.

Say you want to fly Air France, KLM, Korean Air, or Virgin Atlantic. You may be able to book that trip through Delta using SkyMiles if award space is available. In that case, your miles never leave Delta. Delta just redeems them for a seat on a partner carrier.

How Delta Miles Work With Partner Airlines

This is where the better option sits. Delta miles can be redeemed for travel on partner airlines, even though they can’t be converted into another airline’s own points or miles. That opens up more routes, more schedules, and sometimes a better cabin choice than what appears on Delta-operated flights alone.

Delta’s partner network includes SkyTeam airlines and a few non-SkyTeam partners. So your miles may cover trips on carriers like Air France, KLM, Korean Air, Aeromexico, Virgin Atlantic, and others, depending on the route and the award inventory Delta can access.

That matters because many travelers don’t really need a transfer. They just need a seat. If the seat can be booked through Delta, a transfer isn’t needed at all. You search on Delta, redeem SkyMiles, and fly the partner airline.

Delta spells out its transfer option on its Buy, Gift, Transfer or Donate Miles page, where transfers are framed as member-to-member moves inside SkyMiles. Delta also lists its airline partners on its SkyMiles airline partners page, which is the better place to look when your real goal is booking another carrier with Delta miles.

Transfer Vs Redeem: The Split That Matters

If you remember one thing, make it this: transfer means moving miles between accounts, while redeem means spending miles on a ticket. With Delta, you can transfer only within SkyMiles. You can redeem on many partner airlines.

That’s why the answer to the headline question is “no,” while the practical answer for many trips is still “you may not need to.” If Delta can issue the award ticket on the partner you want, you’ve already solved the main problem.

When A Delta Transfer Still Happens

A Delta transfer still exists in one narrow lane: you send miles to another person’s SkyMiles account. That can help when someone in your household is a little short for an award, or when one traveler needs a small top-up to complete a booking. Even then, it’s not always the best move because Delta charges for transfers, and those fees can eat into the value of the miles you’re sending.

If the recipient needs only a small number of miles, compare the transfer cost against other options. Sometimes it’s cheaper to buy a few miles, pay cash for a low fare, or shift the booking to a different date with a lower SkyMiles price.

Action	Is It Allowed?	What It Really Means
Move SkyMiles to United	No	Delta miles cannot be converted into United MileagePlus miles.
Move SkyMiles to American	No	Delta does not let members export miles to another airline program.
Move SkyMiles to Alaska	No	SkyMiles stay inside Delta’s loyalty system.
Move SkyMiles to Flying Blue	No	You can’t turn Delta miles into Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles.
Send miles to another SkyMiles member	Yes	Delta allows member-to-member transfers inside SkyMiles, usually with fees.
Book an Air France or KLM flight with SkyMiles	Yes	You redeem through Delta for partner award travel.
Book a Virgin Atlantic flight with SkyMiles	Yes	If Delta has access to award space, you can book the partner seat through Delta.
Use a bank program to send points to Delta	Sometimes	That depends on the bank program, not on Delta miles transferring outward.

Taking Delta Miles To Another Airline: What Actually Works

If your goal is to fly another carrier, start with Delta’s award search before you do anything else. Many travelers jump straight to transfer ideas and miss the cleanest option. Delta may already sell the exact partner seat you want for SkyMiles.

Run a flexible date search if you can. Award pricing moves around a lot, and a trip that looks expensive on Friday may look much better on Tuesday. Also check nearby airports. A longer train ride or short drive on the ground can save a pile of miles in the air.

Option 1: Book The Partner Flight Through Delta

This is the path that lines up best with how SkyMiles is built. You stay inside Delta, search award space, and book the trip there. You don’t need a second loyalty account, and you don’t need to worry about whether a transfer will go through.

This works best when the partner space is clearly visible on Delta’s site. You may still want to compare the route against other programs if you have flexible bank points, since Delta’s award pricing can run high on some itineraries. But if your miles already sit in SkyMiles, this is usually the cleanest route to another airline seat.

Option 2: Transfer Flexible Credit Card Points Somewhere Else

If you also hold bank points, you may not need Delta for this booking at all. Say you want to fly Air France or Virgin Atlantic and Delta’s mileage price looks rough. In that case, check whether your bank points can transfer straight into that airline’s program. This is not a Delta transfer. It’s a bank-to-airline transfer, which is a different move with different rules.

That can be the better play when a partner’s own program charges fewer miles than Delta does for the same flight. Plenty of savvy travelers use Delta miles for some trips and save flexible bank points for the awards where Delta runs expensive.

Option 3: Transfer SkyMiles To Another Person, Then Book From One Account

This can work if two people each have small balances and one person is close to an award. Still, the fee issue matters. Delta transfers aren’t free in the regular consumer program, so you need to check whether merging balances is worth the money. In plenty of cases, it isn’t.

If the booking is small, paying cash may beat paying a fee plus giving up miles. If the booking is big, you may still prefer one account with enough miles to lock the seat before it disappears.

When Delta Transfers Make Sense And When They Don’t

A Delta member-to-member transfer makes sense only in a tight set of cases. One, you’ve found award space and need a small top-off right now. Two, the value of grabbing that ticket is better than the transfer fee. Three, the recipient already knows how they’ll use the miles.

Outside those cases, transfers can be a leak. You pay the fee, the miles leave your account, and there’s no easy do-over if plans shift. Since Delta miles don’t expire in the usual way for active members, holding them until you have a clear booking target often beats moving them around just because you can.

There’s also a control issue. Once the miles land in the other person’s SkyMiles account, that person owns the redemption path. That’s fine in a household account setup where everyone is on the same page. It’s less tidy with casual trip plans.

Situation	Best Move	Why
You want to fly Air France, KLM, or another partner	Search Delta award space first	Your SkyMiles may already book that seat without any transfer.
You want miles in another airline account	Don’t use Delta miles for that	Delta does not allow outbound transfers to another airline program.
A family member is short a few SkyMiles	Price the transfer before sending	Fees can wipe out the value of a small move.
You have bank points and Delta wants too many miles	Check bank-to-airline transfers	A partner’s own program may cost less.
You need a simple one-account booking	Transfer only if the math works	It can help close a gap, but it’s rarely the first pick.

Common Mistakes That Cost Miles

Paying A Transfer Fee Before Checking Award Space

This is the big one. Some travelers transfer miles to another SkyMiles member first, then start hunting for seats. That’s backwards. Find the seat, check the mileage price, then do the transfer only if it still makes sense.

Assuming All Partner Flights Show The Same Value

They don’t. A partner route booked with SkyMiles can price well one week and poorly the next. Delta doesn’t publish a fixed award chart for most bookings, so price swings happen. Compare dates, airports, and cabins before you commit.

Mixing Up Bank Points With Airline Miles

This mix-up sends people down the wrong rabbit hole. Flexible card points often transfer to airline programs. Delta SkyMiles usually do not transfer out. Once you separate those two systems in your head, the booking choices get a lot clearer.

What To Do Before You Spend A Single Mile

Start with your goal, not your balance. Do you want a seat on another airline, or do you want miles in another airline account? If you want the seat, search Delta first. If you want the account transfer, Delta isn’t the tool for that job.

Next, check the full cost. That means miles, cash taxes, and any transfer fee if you’re sending SkyMiles to another member. Then compare that total against a paid ticket. Cheap domestic fares can make an award look weak. Long-haul partner flights in a premium cabin can make the same miles look much better.

Last, act only when the booking path is clear. SkyMiles can still be handy, even with Delta’s transfer limits. You just get the best value when you use them where Delta is strong: straightforward partner redemptions, solid domestic coverage, and trips where cash prices are running hot.

What Works Better Than A Transfer

If you came here hoping to shift Delta points to another airline, the straight answer is still no. But the better move for most travelers is not a transfer anyway. It’s a partner redemption through Delta, or a separate bank-points transfer through a card program when Delta’s price is ugly.

That small shift in approach can save miles, cut fees, and get you to the same destination with less hassle. Delta miles aren’t built to hop into another airline’s loyalty account. They are built to book travel, including travel on many partner carriers. Use them that way, and the limits feel a lot less frustrating.