Delta Air Lines Baggage Policy 2026: Carry-On Size, Fees, Pets

Each carry-on can measure up to 22 x 14 x 9 inches (56 x 35 x 23 cm), and Delta counts wheels and handles in that measurement. The three sides together can't exceed 45 linear inches (114 cm). Every passenger gets one carry-on bag and one personal item free. Delta Connection flights, including those with 50 seats or fewer, allow only personal items in the cabin, and larger bags are gate-checked free.

Delta publishes the metric size as 56 x 35 x 23 cm, 1 cm narrower than a straight conversion of 14 inches.

Not published. Delta gives no dimensions or weight for the personal item, only the rule that it fits under the seat in front of you. Its examples are a purse, briefcase, small backpack, belt bag, fanny pack, camera bag or diaper bag. Jackets, umbrellas, duty-free purchases, strollers and child safety seats ride along without counting toward your two items.

Delta publishes no carry-on weight limit on its carry-on page or baggage FAQs. Agents work from size: 22 x 14 x 9 inches including wheels, and 45 linear inches in total. A bag that fails the size check goes in the hold.

Yes. Delta Main Basic, the fare once sold as Basic Economy, keeps the free 22 x 14 x 9 in carry-on and the personal item. The trade-off is boarding: Main Basic boards last in Zone 8, so bin space may be gone, though a gate-checked carry-on carries no bag fee. Checked bags cost the same as Delta Main on domestic routes. Delta One, Delta Premium Select and Delta First include two free checked bags, and Delta One and Delta First raise the weight limit to 70 lb.

Basic Economy became Delta Main Basic on flights from Oct. 1, 2025, when Main Cabin, Comfort+ and First Class also took the Delta Main, Delta Comfort and Delta First names.

$45 for the first standard checked bag and $55 for the second, each way, on domestic tickets bought on or after April 8, 2026. Tickets bought earlier keep the old $35 and $45 prices. The same $45 and $55 apply between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. Bags 3 to 10 cost $200 each on domestic flights. SkyMiles Members can pay standard bag fees with miles at most domestic airports.

Delta shows no discount for paying ahead online, so the app price matches the airport price.

$85 is the first-bag fee for Delta Main Basic to Japan and China on tickets bought since June 24, 2026. South America ranges from $70 (Colombia, Ecuador) through $75 (Brazil) to $85 (Argentina, Chile, Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay). Delta's fee table lists €70 for Main Basic between the Americas and Europe. Delta Main pays $100 for a second bag to Japan.

A standard checked bag can weigh up to 50 lb (23 kg) and measure 62 linear inches (157 cm), length plus width plus height. Delta One and Delta First raise the weight to 70 lb (32 kg). On domestic flights Delta refuses bags of 100 lb or more and anything over 80 linear inches (203 cm). You can check up to 10 bags, or 4 on Delta Connection flights.

Flights to or from Key West are limited to one checked bag per passenger, and Delta says that overrides every exception.

On domestic flights an overweight bag costs $100 from 51 to 70 lb and $200 from 71 to under 100 lb. An oversize bag of 63 to 80 linear inches (161 to 203 cm) costs $200. Each limit a bag breaks adds its own fee on top of the bag fee. Between the Americas and Europe, overweight costs $100, oversize $300, and Delta won't take bags over 70 lb.

Four groups check bags free on Delta: - Medallion Members get their first bag free, and the waiver covers up to 8 companions on the reservation. In Delta Main and Delta Comfort within the U.S. and Canada, Silver gets 1 free bag, Gold 2, Platinum and Diamond 3, at 70 lb each. - Eligible Delta SkyMiles Gold, Platinum and Reserve Amex cardholders get the first bag free when they book with the card, for up to nine passengers per reservation. - Since June 4, 2026, the Basic Card Member also gets a second free bag on domestic Delta flights. - Active-duty U.S. military get 5 free bags under 100 lb on orders, and 2 free bags in Delta Main on personal trips.

SkyTeam Elite and Elite Plus members also get the first bag waived on Delta.

$150 each way is the in-cabin pet fee within the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and international trips cost $200. Small dogs, cats and household birds can fly in the cabin, birds only within the U.S. Delta recommends a soft-sided kennel no larger than 18 x 11 x 11 inches (46 x 28 x 28 cm) that fits fully under the seat. The kennel replaces either your carry-on or your personal item. Pets can't fly in Delta One or Delta Premium Select.

Delta takes pets as checked baggage only for active-duty U.S. military and State Department Foreign Service Officers on transfer orders.

Zero bag fees apply to strollers and FAA-approved car or booster seats on Delta, and neither counts toward your baggage allowance or your ticketed child's. You can check them at the counter before security or at the gate.

2,500 miles is what Delta pays when your checked bag takes longer than 20 minutes to reach the carousel after the plane arrives at the gate. For lost or damaged bags, see our lost-bag guide.