Why the Citi Double Cash is so valuable
The Citi Double Cash is possibly the most versatile no annual fee credit card out there. It’s the credit card I use for everyday spending, and it’s one I recommend regardless of whether you want to earn cash back or travel rewards.
Here are the four reasons that the Citi Double Cash should be in your wallet:
Earn a higher cash back on all spending
The Citi Double Cash has a phenomenal rewards structure if you’re looking to earn cash back. At this point that’s understandably what lots of people are looking to earn, as getting cash towards your daily expenses may be preferable to earning travel rewards.
The card offers:
- 1% cash back when you make a purchase
- 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase
By the time you’ve paid for your purchase you’ll get two cents back on every dollar spent. This is more rewarding than a vast majority of cash back credit cards, and is in line with the best cash back return you’ll find on a credit card.
There’s not a single card I can think of that offers a return of better than 2% cash back unless its a business card such as the Capital One Spark Visa and you have to pay a $59 annual fee.
The Citi® Double Cash Card used to just be an excellent cash back credit card, but nowadays it’s also an exceptional credit card for those looking to earn rewards points. So in this post I wanted to provide an updated review of this amazing card.
As far as were concerned, this card has ushered in a new era of credit cards, where you can earn 2x transferable points on all purchases with no caps. So not only is this a great card for those looking for a simple credit card strategy, but it’s also a great card for those who go great lengths to maximize their points.
No Annual Fee
The Citi Double Cash has no annual fee, which you can’t beat. A lot of people sacrifice credit card rewards because they don’t want a card with an annual fee, so here you’re getting a valuable card that won’t cost you anything.
0% Intro APR
The Citi Double Cash has an offer for 0% intro APR for 18 months on balance transfers from date of first transfer when transfers are completed within 4 months from date of account opening. After that, your APR will be 13.99% to 23.99%, based on your creditworthiness.
This won’t be for everyone, but I know that this is something that some people take advantage of. While some cards offer 12 months 0% APR, 18 months is quite a long time.
Mastercard Benefits
The Citi Double Cash is a Mastercard, which is worth mentioning because Mastercard has excellent acceptance with merchants.
The same is true of Visa, though this is an area where American Express is still improving. So there is something to be said for getting a Mastercard that will be accepted virtually everywhere.
Citi is among the most generous issuers in letting people product change between cards:
You can downgrade any personal Citi credit card to the Citi Double Cash; this even includes co-branded cards
You can generally only product change if you’ve had a card for at least 12 months, so you can’t do this with a new card
You’ll want to call Citi to see all the options available to you
The benefit of product-changing rather than applying new is that you can maintain your credit line, and also that it won’t count as a further inquiry on your credit report.
Whether you apply for the card outright or product change to it, you have options.
Earning Rewards With The Citi Double Cash
This is where the Citi Double Cash gets truly incredible, especially with the changes that were made to the card recently. When you spend a dollar on the card (and pay the bill) you’re potentially looking at earning two cents of rewards, and those rewards can even be transferred to Citi ThankYou points at a ratio of one cent per point.
Earning Cash Back With The Citi Double Cash
The Citi Double Cash offers 1% cash back when you make a purchase, and 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase.
So after paying for your purchase, you’ll earn rewards worth two cents back on every dollar spent, which is great. A lot of people earn 1-1.5% cash back on their credit cards, so this is much better.
HOW TO REDEEM CITI DOUBLE CASH REWARDS AS CASH
As explained above, the Citi Double Cash offers a return of two cents on the dollar for your spending (after paying your bill), but how does the actual process of earning cash back work?
The cash back will show in your Citi account after logging in, and will appear in two columns — the 1% cash back you earn from spending, and then the 1% cash back you earn from paying for your purchase.
You’ll need a minimum of a $25 cash back balance to redeem your Citi Double Cash rewards, which is earned after $1,250 of spending. You have four redemption options for Citi Double Cash rewards:
- You can redeem for a gift card from a variety of retailers
- You can redeem for a statement credit, which will post to your account within 2-3 days
- You can redeem for a direct deposit, which can be to a Citi account, or an account with another bank
- You can redeem for a check, which will be mailed to you within 7-10 days
- Personally, I wouldn’t redeem for a gift card (why limit yourself?), but rather would choose either a direct deposit or check, which gives you the most flexibility.
Earning ThankYou Points With The Citi Double Cash
In September 2019, Citi added the functionality to convert Citi Cash Rewards into Citi ThankYou points at the rate of 100 ThankYou points per $1 of Cash Rewards. In other words, 100 cents cashback converts into 100 ThankYou points.
There are lots of ways you can redeem your Citi ThankYou points. You can redeem them for one cent each towards gift cards and other purchases, though that isn’t worth it. At that rate you’re just better off earning cash back outright rather than gift cards.
Where this gets really valuable is if you have the Citi Double Cash in conjunction with either the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige. If that’s the case then you can also transfer these points to Citi’s airline transfer partners, including Etihad Guest, Singapore KrisFlyer, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, and more. This is a fantastic way to redeem for international first & business class experiences.
Points potentially transfer at the following rates to the following programs:
Citi ThankYou Transfer Partner Transfer Ratio
Aeroméxico Club Premier 1000 : 1000
Air France KLM Flying Blue 1000 : 1000
Avianca LifeMiles 1000 : 1000
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles 1000 : 1000
Etihad Guest 1000 : 1000
EVA Air Infinity MileageLands 1000 : 1000
Jet Airways JetPrivilege 1000 : 1000
JetBlue TrueBlue 1000 : 1000
Malaysia Airlines Enrich 1000 : 1000
Qantas Frequent Flyer 1000 : 1000
Qatar Privilege Club 1000 : 1000
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer 1000 : 1000
Thai Royal Orchid Plus 1000 : 1000
Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles 1000 : 1000
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club 1000 : 1000
This is the first credit card out there to offer an uncapped return of 2x transferable points per dollar spent. I value ThankYou points at 1.7 cents each, so to me that’s like a return of 3.4% on spending.
In some cases, you can do even better than that. Citi frequently has transfer bonuses, so you can potentially take advantage of those while earning 2x points on this card.
The only card that compares in any way is The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, which offers 2x Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 spent every calendar year.
Is The Citi Double Cash Right For You?
The Citi Double Cash has long been lucrative. However, historically I’ve thought this card was ideal for those looking to earn simple cash back rewards, rather than true points hobbyists. That’s no longer the case, since major changes were made several months back.
After you spend a dollar on the card and pay the bill you’ll have your choice of earning:
Two cents cash back
Two transferable points, assuming you have the card in conjunction with the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige
Earning 2x transferable points per dollar spent with no caps on earnings is unrivaled.
Citi Double Cash Card Alternatives
The Citi Double Cash is now industry leading when it comes to the return it offers on transferable points, though there are still some other cards that may be worth considering:
If you want a card that has among the best cash back rates in the industry, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card (review) has a $95 annual fee, a welcome bonus worth $500 of travel, provides great perks, and potentially offers up to 2.625% cash back
If you’re looking to earn flexible travel rewards, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card (review) and Chase Freedom Unlimited® (review) are an incredible duo that offer a great return on spending and valuable perks
If you want a cash back card and spend a lot on dining, the Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card (review) has a $95 annual fee that’s waived for the first year, offers a welcome bonus worth $300 cash back, has no foreign transaction fees, and offers 4% cash back on dining and entertainment
If you want a travel rewards card that offers flexible points, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card (review) has a $95 annual fee that’s waived for the first year, offers a welcome bonus of 50,000 points, offers 2x Venture miles per dollar spent, has no foreign transaction fees, and more
Citi Double Cash Card Summary
The Citi Double Cash has gone from a great cash back credit card, to an unrivaled card for those who are into miles & points. Not only can the card potentially earn up to two cents back per dollar spent, but in conjunction with the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige you can potentially earn 2x ThankYou points per dollar spent, which can be transferred to airlines or hotels.
This card is now a must-have. I picked up the card recently, and it’s now the card I use for my everyday, non-bonused spending.
This card is also a no brainer for paying your taxes with, for example, since you can do so for a fee of 1.87% (which is like acquiring ThankYou points for under a penny each). The same is true for payments through Plastiq.
