Updated Oct 30, 2026 5:41 AM EDT
Delta's baggage policy gives you one free carry-on and one personal item, then charges $45 for the first checked bag and $55 for the second on US flights. Those fees apply to tickets bought from 8 April 2026. Checked bags must stay under 50 lb and 62 linear inches.
Delta raised its checked bag fees on 8 April 2026, by $10 for the first and second bags and by $50 for the third. These are the fees for flights within the US as of October 2026, for Delta Main, Delta Comfort (the cabin that used to be called Comfort+) and Basic fares when nobody on the booking has status, the right credit card or a military exemption.
| Bag | Fee each way | What changed on 8 April 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 1st checked bag | $45 | Up from $35 |
| 2nd checked bag | $55 | Up from $45 |
| 3rd to 10th bag | $200 each | Up from $150 |
Each bag must be under 50 lb (23 kg) and 62 linear inches (157 cm), meaning length plus width plus height. Tickets bought before 8 April 2026 keep the older fees. Fees change, so check the price on your own booking.
International trips work differently. On many long-haul routes, such as most flights to Europe, Delta Main includes a free first bag, and Delta says its Basic fares generally include one checked bag fewer than the standard fare. The allowance is shown on your booking, so look there rather than guessing.
Related: How Frontier's bag fees compare · Alaska Airlines bag fees, for comparison
Every Delta fare, Basic included, comes with one carry-on bag and one personal item at no charge.
Measure your bag at home with the wheels and handles included. A soft bag that bulges past 9 inches deep can still be stopped at the gate, even if it fits the other two limits.
There are two usual reasons, and neither costs you anything. On Delta Connection flights with 50 seats or fewer, only personal items are allowed in the cabin because the bins are too small, so bigger bags are tagged at the gate, loaded into the hold and handed back at the aircraft door when you land. On full flights, gate staff can also check carry-ons once the bins fill up.
Forced gate checks come up again and again in traveler forums such as FlyerTalk and Reddit's r/delta, and the fix is simple. Our advice: pack anything you can't be without in your personal item, not your carry-on. That means medicines, keys, travel documents and, above all, spare batteries.
This is where Delta's fees climb fast, because each limit a bag breaks is charged separately and added to the normal bag fee. These are the charges within the US and between the US and Canada, as of October 2026.
| Problem | Range | Extra charge each way |
|---|---|---|
| Overweight | 51 to 70 lb (23 to 31.75 kg) | $100 |
| Overweight | 71 to 99 lb (32 to 45 kg) | $200 |
| Overweight | 100 lb (45.36 kg) or more | Not accepted |
| Oversize | 63 to 80 linear inches (161 to 203 cm) | $200 |
| Oversize | Over 80 linear inches | Not accepted |
Bags over 70 lb aren't accepted at all to, from or through Europe, South Africa or the United Arab Emirates, or to, from or within Australia and New Zealand.
Here's how it adds up. A second bag that weighs 55 lb costs $55 plus $100, so $155 each way and $310 for the round trip. A cheap luggage scale at home saves most people from that. We'd also split the weight across two bags before paying an overweight fee, since a second bag at $55 is cheaper than $100 for 5 extra pounds.
If you check bags on several trips a year, the card can be the cheapest way out of the fees. Two travelers each paying $45 both ways spend $180 per trip. Weigh that against the card's annual fee and your own travel before deciding.
You can't prepay. Delta only sells checked bags during the 24-hour check-in window, and it says any third party charging you for Delta checked bags in advance isn't authorized to. The fee is the same whether you pay in the app the night before or at the airport kiosk.
Report a problem before you leave the airport if you can. The Baggage Service Office gives you a file reference number, and you need it for any claim Delta handles online later.
| Situation | Deadline or trigger | What you can get |
|---|---|---|
| Bag reaches the carousel more than 20 minutes after the gate, domestic | Claim at delta.com/bagsontime within 2 hours of arrival | 2,500 SkyMiles, once per trip direction |
| Bag delayed on a domestic flight | Not delivered within 12 hours of arrival at the gate | Your checked bag fee back, under the DOT refund rule |
| Bag delayed on an international flight | 15 hours for flights of 12 hours or less, 30 hours for longer flights | Your checked bag fee back |
| Damaged bag, domestic | Report within 6 hours of arrival (tickets issued from 8 October 2025) | A damage claim with Delta |
| Damaged bag, international | Report within 7 days of arrival | A damage claim with Delta |
| Bag still missing | Not found 21 days after arrival | Treated as lost, and Delta contacts you about settlement |
The DOT refund applies once you've filed a mishandled baggage report. Refunds go back to your original payment method within 7 business days for card payments.
The 6-hour window for domestic damage is the rule that catches people out. It's much shorter than it was for tickets issued before 8 October 2025, which had 24 hours. Photograph any damage at the carousel and report it before you head home.
Atlanta (ATL) is Delta's largest hub, so many of these trips connect there. Your bag is checked through to your final destination on a single Delta booking, so you collect it only at the end, except after an international arrival, when you recheck it after customs.
About this page
Written and fact-checked by the Flyingscanner team, last updated 30 October 2026. The facts in this post were checked on 30 October 2026. Airline fees and rules change, so confirm the details for your own trip with the airline before you pay. About Flyingscanner
