I recently had the chance to check out Delta’s Premium Select product on their 767-400 when flying between Paris and Atlanta. I really enjoyed the Premium Select experience and figured it would be great to compare Delta One to Premium Select. Even better that I can compare Premium Select Vs Delta One on the same aircraft type, the 767-400. Delta introduced Premium Select a few years ago when the A350 was added to their fleet. They soon rolled out Premium Select to more of the wide-body fleet.
There are lots of differences between Delta Premium Select and Delta One: Cost, Seat Comfort, Lounge Access, and Meal Service. Both are good products, they are just different.
I liked flying in Delta Premium Select. The seat is comfortable, the meal was perfectly pleasant, and the smaller cabin is nice and quiet. On a daytime flight, Premium Select is extremely competitive. Obviously Delta One Business Class is more comfortable, but it’s also more expensive. Premium Economy really does a nice job of bridging the gap between Main Cabin Economy and Delta One Business Class.
Check out my full Delta Premium Select Review on the 767-400 here.
Or, check out my Full Delta One Review on the 767-400 here.
What is Delta Premium Select
Delta Premium Select is Delta’s Premium Economy product. Currently(Jan 2023) it is only sold on international flights. When wide-body planes are used on domestic flights, the Premium Select cabin is sold as Comfort Plus.
Delta Premium Select is designed to be the bridge between Delta One Business Class and Economy. The seats are bigger, the meals are nicer, the service is more personal, and the cabin is smaller.
Cost Difference
Ok, getting the big one out of the way first. Delta One is more expensive than Premium Select. There’s no set number for how much Premium Select will be in relation to Delta One, but a good guess would be less than half price. This of course can change rapidly like all airline tickets. Premium Select is likely to be about twice the cost of a regular economy seat on Delta.
Some routes have better deals that others and it wouldn’t be unusual to see Delta Premium Select for only a few hundred more dollars than economy. Like Delta One, there are no complementary medallion upgrades to Delta Premium Select on international routes. Delta does often sell upgrades with miles or cash as a post purchase add on, some of these deals are good and well worth paying attention to.
Seat Difference
The biggest difference between Delta One and Delta Premium Select is the seat. Delta One is a lie flat seat and Premium Select is a recliner. Apart from a few odd ball planes, Delta One seats have direct aisle access so you’ll never need to step over someone else to leave your seats. Delta Premium Select seats do not have direct aisle access. For this comparison I’ll be using the Delta 767-400 in Premium and Delta One.
Delta One Seats
The Delta One seat on the 767-400 is a very private suite. They are arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration. On the 767-400 the Delta One seats are between the first two boarding doors. There are 34 seats spread across 9 rows.
Each Delta One seat lays flat completely and due to the suite design, the seats feel private. The Delta 767-400 doesn’t have doors like the A330Neo, but it’s still very quiet.
The Delta One seats recline into a flat bed. This obviously is great for long haul overnight flights. The beds are comfortable but some people might not like the small foot area, I’ve never had an issue, but I could understand the issue from taller people.
When it comes to seats, Delta One is head and shoulders above Premium Select.
Delta Premium Select Seats
The Delta 767-400 Premium Select seats are comfortable recliners. There is a small cabin of 20 seats, spread across 4 rows, in a 2-2-2 configuration. The Delta Premium Select cabin is just behind the second boarding door.
The Delta Premium Select seats are comfortable and have a large amount of recline, but are not a lie flat seat. They do feature a leg and foot rest than extends like a living room recliner.
On negative about the Premium Select seats is the recline. The seat in-front of you will recline into the space above your legs. It’s not a deal breaker, just something to remember.
I really enjoyed the Delta Premium Select seat on the 767-400, it’s a great middle ground between business class and economy.
Meal Service
Both Delta One and Delta Premium Select will offer a meal service in flight. Delta one just takes it a step further with both the quality and quantity of food. Not that Premium Select is bad or small, it’s just not as fancy as Delta One.
Delta One Meal
Delta One is Business Class and as such gets a plated 3-4 course meal. These meals are usually preselected on the Delta website or Delta App a few days before departure.
The Delta One meals are usually pretty good, for plane food. During boarding Delta One offers champagne(or some sparkling wine) along side beer or juice.
Delta One also has a second meal served a little bit before landing. On overnight flights this is breakfast, on daytime flights it’s usually a light lunch/dinner offering. Between meals, snacks are offered and drinks are readily available on request.
Delta Premium Select Meals
Delta Premium Select meals are a step above Economy meals, but not to the level of business class. You do not have the ability to pre-order a Premium Select meal, you have a few options once on board. They are also not served on plates, just from the trays used to prepare them. I found the Premium Select meals to be very good, while not pretentious or over the top.
For a plane dinner, both Val and I liked our meals on Delta’s 767-400 in Premium Select.
Through the flight, Premium Select get’s snacks offered from the snack basket along with drinks. While not as premium as Delta One, I found this service to be very nice.
Before landing a second snack sized meal was offered. It was a hot sandwich. while, not special it was enough to hold us over. This was on a daytime flight between CDG and ATL.
Comfort Difference
In terms of comfort, there are obvious differences between Delta One and Premium Select. Delta One is a lie flat business class product with nearly unlimited leg room, lots of privacy, and direct aisle access. Premium Select is a premium economy product with excellent recline, leg rests, and fewer seats per row than a regular economy seat.
Comfort in Delta One will always be better than Premium Select, that’s just the nature of the product. I will say that Premium Select is very comfortable, but just not as good a Delta One. On a daytime flight Premium Select is great for Trans-Atlantic flights. On overnight flights a lie flat seat is my preference though.
Bedding
Both Delta One and Delta Premium Select offer bedding to passengers in their respective seats. The Delta one bedding is a bit more plush and certainly larger than the bedding offered to Premium Select. I will say I liked the pillows in both classes, but the blanket provided in Delta One is certainly better than in Premium Select.
In-Seat Entertainment
Delta does a great job with their in flight entertainment options on all of their long haul aircraft, every single one has in seat entertainment. The 767-400 is no different and because the planes have been recently refreshed, the selection along with physical screens are fantastic. Across both Delta One and Premium Select the selection of shows and movies available at each seat is exactly the same. The primary difference is screen size.
Delta One In Seat Entertainment
The Delta One in seat entertainment is wonderful. It’s truly world class in both function and options available. The large touch screen is very responsive and easy to use. As I mentioned earlier, there’s a remote available so that you don’t need to have gorilla arms to swipe through the selections, you can just use the remote.
Premium Select In Seat Entertainment
The Premium Select entertainment is very good, really just one notch below what’s available in Delta One. The screens are fast and easy to use and there’s also a remote available here in Premium. One thing to note, the screens are on the seat back in front of you, if the person in front reclines, the screen will move, they are adjustable, but just something to note.
Seat Special Features
Apart from the fact that Delta One is a lie flat seat and Premium Select is just a recliner, both seats have a few special features that make them somewhat unique. This doesn’t make one better than another, more like something to look forward too if you happen to by flying with Delta.
Delta One Special Features
In the Delta One Seat on the 767-400 there is a nice little control panel for the seat. This control panel adjusts the seat, the lights, and even includes a “do not disturb” setting. Perfect for an overnight flight where you’re not interested in getting woken up for breakfast and would rather just sleep.
In Delta One, there’s also a little vanity mirror under the remote cover. These small mirrors are starting to be come really common in business class seats.
Premium Select Special Features
The Delta Premium Select seats have a few little tricks to make the flight a little easier and more comfortable. The seats do include a set of headphones with two prongs, but the seats will accept a single prong headphone plug from your own set.
Lots of premium economy seats have leg rests or foot rests, very few have both. The Delta Premium Select seats have an adjustable leg rest alongside the length adjustable foot rest. At first I didn’t think much of this, but after a little while of relaxing, I came to really enjoy it. Not sure why, but having my feet supported really added to the comfort of the Premium Select seat.
Lounge Access
While not related to the airplane, an advantage of Delta One over Premium Select is access to lounges during the trip. Many people have access to Delta Skyclubs via credit cards, but to get access to partner lounges you need frequent flyer status or a business class seat. Delta One includes this, Premium Select does not.
Final Thoughts
Delta One and Premium Select are both great products, especially on the 767-400. They not ever going to compete with each other on service, comfort, or price. Delta One is business class and as such is just nicer in every way than Premium Select. I really like Premium Select, it’s a very nice way to travel, but it’s premium economy.
On an overnight flight, I’d much prefer to be in the lie flat seats of Delta One. The service of course is secondary when the goal is to get as much sleep as possible. On a daytime flight, I’d be glad to fly in Premium Select again. For the relatively short trip across the Atlantic westbound, I would gladly save the dollars or miles and ride in Premium. The service is good, the seat is comfortable, and the entertainment is plenty to keep me amused.
Delta One is the best Delta has to offer, Premium Select is only a few steps behind.