Bottom line

This credit card provides substantial and continuous rewards, making it a favorable option for frequent international travelers. However, alternative cards may present more valuable partnerships and broader interpretations of travel. Let’s dive into the Citi Premier Card!

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At a Glance

	Citi Premier Card
Annual Fee	– $95
Sign up bonus	– Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.
Ongoing rewards	– 1x-3x Points
Foreign transaction fee	– None
APR	– 21.24% – 29.24%, based on your creditworthiness
Value of points redeemed	– points can be redeemed for travel at a rate of 1.25 cents each –  1 cent value from your ThankYou points.
Balance transfer fee	– Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Additional benefits	– Big sign-up bonus – Multiple big international travel partners – 3x points on “big 3” – 3x points on flights and hotels

Detailed overview

The Citi Premier® Card, with its $95 annual fee, provides bonus rewards in popular spending categories, making it a potential choice for everyday use, particularly for frequent international travelers.

However, it falls short of the premier status implied by its name, especially when compared to other travel credit cards in the same price range. For instance, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, also with a $95 annual fee, allows points redemption for travel at a rate of 1.25 cents each, whereas ThankYou points from the Citi Premier® Card have a 1 cent value.

Due to limitations in key areas, such as point values and transfer partners, it doesn’t quite live up to its “premier” label. While it offers a decent sign-up bonus and an annual hotel credit that can offset the annual fee, overall, the Citi Premier® Card doesn’t measure up to its competitors.

Benefits and perks

3x points on daily spending

This may be the biggest selling point when it comes to any credit card, and that’s, “Will this give me the most money back on my spending?”. To keep it short and sweet, yes, this is exactly what this card will do for you. The three major categories of this card are as follows – Dining out, groceries, and gas.
Earning triple points specifically at supermarkets surpasses what many premium credit cards, such as the Citi Prestige® Card, offer in that category.

3x points on Hotels and Airlines

If the 3x in 3 main categories wasn’t enough for you, you will receive 3x the points when booking hotels and airlines. The Citi Premiere card has a leg up on all the other competitors, as it’s the only card to offer 3x points back instead of 2x points back on every dollar spent.

Useful point redemptions

The points redeemed for travel are mainly accessible through the Citi ThankYou portal, where you can expect a value of 1 cent per point… but this isn’t the only way to get the most value per point.

Drawbacks and consideration

Simple travel redemptions

As a travel card with outstanding rewards rates, it’s a shame that the card stands where it does, with it’s current travel redemption standards. The Citi Premier card is mainly catered towards international travels, seeing as most of the airlines are only overseas airlines. This may limit you drastically if you’re simply an ‘In states’ traveler, for business or personal flying. That doesn’t mean there isn’t any domestic airlines available! It’s just… the only one is JetBlue. It is a fairly simple transfer over from a 1:1 transfer ratio, from Citi ThankYou points to JetBlue TrueBlue points (1,000 ThankYou points = 1,000 TrueBlue points).

0 Travel protection

So, this is where it gets weird… well, at least we think so. The Citi Premier Card has revoked all of its travel protection, so no peace of mind for you if you travel. If that’s not a big deal for you, then no worries, the 3x points on this card are well worth the money regardless. Just be weary.

Is this card right for you?

For a considerable number of individuals, the response may not be a clear yes, at all.

It could be worth considering if you frequently spend on gas, dining, groceries, or specific types of travel, as points can accumulate rapidly. However, it’s essential to note that the value of these points has diminished over time, and if you intend to transfer them, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with a few less common travel partners.

If your goal is to redeem points for cash rather than travel, each point holds a value of 1 cent. This aligns with the point value offered by other cards within its category.

>>MORE : Best Credit Cards List