Delta Air Lines and Hertz have announced an expansion of their partnership, giving SkyMiles members more opportunities to be rewarded when renting with Hertz. It’s always awesome to see partnerships between travel brands (airlines, hotels, rental car companies, etc.), as it’s an obvious fit. Let’s go over the two aspects of this expanded partnership.
Earn up to 8x SkyMiles with Hertz rentals
As of January 30, 2023, Delta is introducing new and enhanced SkyMiles rewards with Hertz, based on the dollar amount spent on rental cars. SkyMiles members now earn the following number of miles for Hertz rentals:
- Diamond Medallion members earn 8x miles per dollar spent
- Platinum Medallion members earn 7x miles per dollar spent
- Gold Medallion members earn 6x miles per dollar spent
- Silver Medallion members earn 5x miles per dollar spent
- SkyMiles members earn 4x miles per dollar spent
As before, SkyMiles members continue to earn 4x miles per dollar spent with Dollar and Thrifty.
As always, you don’t earn miles on taxes, fees, other incidental charges, other booking charges, or any element of the booking that is paid or reduced by the redemption of voucher or discount codes. You have to provide your Delta SkyMiles number at the time that you make your reservation in order to earn SkyMiles.
Personally I value SkyMiles at 1.1 cents each, meaning that this partnership offers a 4.4-8.8% return on rental cars. That’s better than nothing, but also unlikely to move the needle when it comes to consumer behavior.

Delta Medallion members receive Hertz elite status
With this partnership, all Delta SkyMiles Medallion members can receive elite status with Hertz Gold Plus Rewards. Here’s how status maps over:
- Diamond and Platinum Medallion members receive Hertz President’s Circle status
- Gold and Silver Medallion members receive Hertz Five Star status
You can link your Delta SkyMiles and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards account at this link in order to take advantage of this status match opportunity. The terms suggest that it can take up to eight weeks for status to be reflected in your Gold Plus Rewards member account, though hopefully it happens much faster than that.
Status will be valid for as long as you remain an active Delta Medallion member. There’s no end date for this partnership, though it can be terminated with six months advance notice.
For context, this isn’t the only way to get Hertz President’s Circle status. This is also offered to those with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (review) and The Platinum Card® from American Express (review).
President’s Circle is Hertz’s top-tier status, so it’s pretty cool to get that just for having status with Delta (or for having a premium credit card). This status ordinarily requires 15 rentals per year or $3,000 in annual rental car spending, so this is most definitely an easier pathway to that tier.

What are the perks of Hertz President’s Circle status?
- Guaranteed car upgrades, a minimum of one-class, at participating locations
- Freedom to choose any vehicle in the President’s Circle section of the Hertz Ultimate Choice lot on the spot at no extra charge
- No additional driver fee for a spouse or domestic partner in the United States
- 50% bonus on Gold Plus Rewards points on all qualified rentals
- Expedited vehicle pick-up at over 1,000 locations worldwide
- No stopping at the counter at over 50 airports
- eReturn, whereby you don’t have to wait when returning your car
- Hertz Valet, whereby you can take advantage of a terminal drive-back service at participating locations up to four times per year
- A dedicated President’s Circle call center line
Below is a chart comparing the different Hertz elite status tiers.

Bottom line
Delta SkyMiles and Hertz Gold Plus Rewards have expanded their partnership. SkyMiles members can now earn 4-8x miles on Hertz rentals, and can also receive rental car status, all the way up to Hertz President’s Circle status. These kinds of partnerships are always great for frequent flyers.
Do you plan on taking advantage of this Delta & Hertz partnership?
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