Flying Delta With Your Dog: Cabin Rules, Fees and Why You Have to Phone
Delta is one of the easier US airlines for a small dog, with one odd rule: you cannot book the dog online. You have to phone. And unlike most airlines, Delta publishes no maximum carrier size at all — the aircraft decides. Here's the short version, checked September 2026. Confirm on Delta's own pet page before you book.
In the cabin: the aircraft sets the size
Delta publishes no fixed maximum for the carrier and no weight limit for dog and bag together. It recommends a soft-sided bag of 18 × 11 × 11 in (about 46 × 28 × 28 cm), which fits under the seat on most of its fleet. The carrier must be leak-proof and ventilated on three sides for domestic flights, four for international ones.
- How many: one kennel per passenger. Per flight: two in domestic First, four in Comfort and Main Cabin.
- Not at all: Delta One, Premium Select and international Business take no pets in the cabin.
- Age: 8 weeks for domestic flights, 6 months for a dog entering the United States, 15 weeks to the EU.
- Seats: no bulkhead, no exit row, no flat-bed seats, and a few blocked rows on the A330 and Boeing 757.
Where your dog can't come
No pets in the cabin to Australia, Barbados, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Hawaii, Hong Kong, Iceland, Jamaica, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates or the United Kingdom. For the UK, our guide on taking your dog to the UK shows the ferry and train routes instead.
What it costs
- US, Canada, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands: $150 each way.
- International, including Brazil: $200 each way.
It's per kennel, per direction, and you pay at check-in.
The hold and cargo: closed for now
Checked pets are limited to active US military and State Department staff with transfer orders, at $200 each way, with a maximum of one connection and no segment over 12 hours. Delta also states that pet shipments through Delta Cargo are only being accepted for that same group until further notice, so for everyone else Delta's hold is simply not available. If your dog is too big for the cabin, look at an airline that does take dogs in the hold, such as KLM or Finnair.
Breed rules
Snub-nosed dogs and cats and their mixes, such as bulldogs, pugs, boxers and Shih Tzus, are not accepted for hold or cargo transport. Delta publishes no breed ban for the cabin.
Three things that catch people out
- You can't book online. Phone Delta Reservations with the dimensions of your kennel.
- The kennel replaces a bag. With a dog you take one personal item or one carry-on, not both.
- Check in at the counter, not at a kiosk, and expect to take your dog out of the carrier at security.
Does your dog fit?
Our free Dog Flight Checker takes your dog's weight and tells you whether Delta, and 26 other airlines, take it in the cabin or the hold. It works out the bag size your dog actually needs.
Also flying with: American Airlines · Air France. Need a bag? Which Dog Carrier Bag Is Really Airline-Approved?
Source: Delta pet travel pages, checked September 2026. Always confirm with the airline before you book.