Deltas consist of three physiographic parts called the upper delta plain, the lower delta plain, and the subaqueous delta. The upper delta plain begins as the river leaves the zone where its alluvial plain is confined laterally by valley walls. When the valley wall constraint ends, the river breaks into a multitude of channels, and the depositional plain widens. This point source of the upper delta plain can be thought of as the apex of the entire delta, which is analogous to the same reach of an alluvial fan. The entire upper delta plain is fluvial in origin except for marshes, swamps, and freshwater lakes that exist in areas between the many river channels. The surface of the upper delta plain is above the highest tidal level and thus is not affected by marine processes. In contrast, the lower delta plain is occasionally covered by tidal water. For this reason, the boundary between the upper delta plain and the lower delta plain is determined by the maximum tidal elevation. Features and deposits in the lower delta plain are the result of both fluvial and marine processes. Tidal flats, mangrove swamps, beach ridges, and brackish-water bays and marshes are common in this zone.

Deltas affected by high tidal ranges, such as those constructed by the Niger River and the Ganges-Brahmaputra system, are dominated by marine incursions and expansive lower delta plains. For example, the Ganges-Brahmaputra system in Bangladesh has a lower delta plain that occupies more than half of its total surface area of 60,000 square kilometres and is characterized by enormous mangrove swamps. Low tidal ranges result in deltas having much better developed upper delta plains (e.g., the Nile of Egypt and the Volga of Russia).

A subaqueous delta plain is located entirely below sea level, and marine processes dominate the system. This part of the delta is responsible for the topographic bulge seen on the continental shelf seaward of channels that flow across the exposed delta plains. Sediment-laden river flow entering the ocean in well-defined channels loses transporting power where the channels end, and sediment is deposited as the subaqueous delta plain. Large subaqueous plains are best developed where the continental shelf is shallow and gently sloping and where sediment loads derived from source basins are great. The subaqueous deltas of the Amazon, the Orinoco, and the Huang He are broad and widespread in response to these controls. It is true, however, that even if these ideal conditions exist, a broad subaqueous delta does not always result. This is especially true where large submarine canyons exist near the terminations of river channels. In these cases, sediment delivered to the ocean is funneled down the canyon and deposited beyond the margin of the continental shelf. If a subaqueous delta develops in such situations, it is usually very small.

River channels that traverse the subaerial portion of a delta (upper and lower delta plain) serve as the conduits through which sediment is delivered to the subaqueous component. The channels assume any one of three patterns: (1) long, straight single channels, (2) braided or anastomotic (veinlike) multiple channels, or (3) channels that bifurcate (branch) in a downstream direction. In general, the channel pattern is controlled both by source basin characteristics (sediment size and volume, flood-discharge features, etc.) and marine properties (tidal range and wave energy, for example). Rivers transporting fine-grained sediment tend to develop either single channels or downstream bifurcating patterns. The single-channel pattern results where offshore wave energy is high (e.g., the Mekong and Congo deltas). Braided or anastomotic channels develop best where rivers carry a large volume of coarse-grained bed load. Branching distributaries form most commonly where tidal range and wave energy is low (e.g., the Mississippi and Volga deltas).

Most delta channels are bordered by natural levees that resemble those found on floodplains. These features are best developed by rivers that flood frequently and transport large volumes of suspended load, as, for example, the Mississippi. Interfluve areas (those between adjacent streams flowing in the same direction) are variable in character, depending on climate, tidal range, and offshore wave energy.

Deposits and stratigraphy

Delta growth indicates that a river delivers sediment to the shore faster and in greater volume than marine processes can remove the load. During the delta-building process, sediment is distributed in such a way that the feature develops a unique form. Under normal discharge conditions, sediment remains within the channel until it reaches the river mouth. No lateral dispersion of the load occurs on the subaerial delta plain, and because river velocity is so low, waves and currents spread the fine-grained portion of the sediment laterally along the delta front. During floods, however, suspended sediment and organic matter are deposited in the interfluve areas, causing those portions of the subaerial delta to aggrade. The high river velocity at the mouth offsets wave and current action, allowing sediment to be transported farther seaward. This facilitates accumulation at the delta front and causes the subaqueous delta to prograde.

The dispersal of sediment during floods and normal discharges creates a well-defined horizontal and vertical depositional sequence. On the subaerial delta plain, silts and clays accumulate vertically in inter-distributary zones. At the mouths of deltaic rivers, marine processes rework fine-grained sediment, but more coarse deposits of sands and silts usually build forward while maintaining a steep seaward slope. Smaller clay particles pass over the delta slope and are deposited on the continental shelf in front of the subaqueous delta plain. Therefore, in a horizontal sense, many deltas have silty, organic-rich deposits in their subaerial portion, though channel sands and levee deposits interrupt the fine-grained interfluve sequence. More coarse sediment is deposited at the river mouth, and very fine-grained materials (clays) accumulate beyond the delta front. The vertical sequence is essentially the same with marine clays at the lowest elevation (greatest depth), silts and sands at nearshore depths, and silts, clays, and organics—along with associated channel and levee sands—at the highest (subaerial) elevations. This model of alluviation does not accommodate very coarse (gravel and sand) deposition on the subaerial delta plain, which provides the special deltaic types known as fan deltas or braid deltas (see above), but it is representative of most of the major deltas of the world.

Deposits found in the deltaic stratigraphic sequence were named topset, foreset, and bottomset by the American geologist Grove K. Gilbert in his 1890 report on Lake Bonneville, the vast Pleistocene ancestor of what is now the Great Salt Lake of Utah. Although Gilbert examined small deltas along the margins of the ancient lake, the stratigraphic sequence he observed is similar to that found in large marine deltas. Topset beds are a complex of lithologic units deposited in various sub-environments of the subaerial delta plain. Layers in the topset unit are almost horizontal. Foreset deposits accumulate in the subaqueous delta front zone. The deposits are usually coarser at the river mouth and become finer as they radiate seaward into deeper water. Strata in the foreset unit are inclined seaward at an angle reflecting that of the delta slope or front. In large marine deltas the beds rarely dip more than 1°, but where bed load is coarse, such as in braid deltas, foreset beds may be inclined at angles greater than 20°. Foreset layers are beveled at their landward positions by topset beds, which expand horizontally as the entire delta advances into the ocean. At their seaward extremity, foreset beds grade imperceptibly into the bottomset strata. Bottomset deposits are composed primarily of clays that were swept beyond the delta front. These beds usually dip at very low angles that are consistent with the topography of the continental shelf or lake bottom in front of the subaqueous delta. This depositional environment is commonly referred to as the prodelta zone.