Citi ThankYou Premier: Flexible Rewards for Travelers

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What Is the Citi ThankYou Premier Card?

The Citi ThankYou Premier card is a rewards credit card that lets users earn points on everyday purchases. Triple points are earned for spending on travel, including gas, airfare, hotels, and car rentals; double points are earned for spending on restaurants and entertainment, and one point is earned for all other purchases.

ThankYou points can be redeemed for gift cards, merchandise, concert tickets, and airfare. Points are worth more when redeemed for airline tickets through the ThankYou travel center, and Points Transfer allows points to be put toward airline and hotel loyalty programs like Hilton HHonors and TrueBlue. As a welcome offer, new members can earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months of account opening.

Pros & Cons of Citi ThankYou Premier

This card offers a competitive welcome offer with no annual fee for the first year of card membership. In addition, cardholders will continue to find value in this card by using it to earn bonus points in numerous categories such as travel, dining out and entertainment. When points are redeemed directly for travel reservations, they are worth more. Furthermore, it’s possible to earn additional value from points when they are transferred to airline miles. Finally, this card is a good choice for use overseas since it has no foreign transaction fees.

While it is an advantage to be able to transfer points to miles, this program is mostly partnered with foreign airlines at this time. Some of these frequent-flier programs provide good value, such as Singapore or the Flying Blue program of Air France and KLM. Nevertheless, most of the frequent-flier programs require large amounts of miles. And, as with all rewards credit cards, you can expect a higher interest rate and annual fee than with similar cards that don’t offer rewards.

 Alternatives to the Citi ThankYou Premier Card

Although the Citi ThankYou Premier card is a great card for those who love travel, there are other options as far as credit cards go. Here is another credit card for you to review:

Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard®

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The Barclaycard Arrival® Plus World Elite Mastercard® has a great welcome offer: 70,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first 90 days that the account is opened-that’s a $700 travel statement credit. Miles can also be redeemed for cash back, gift cards, and merchandise. Purchases made with the card earn two times the miles on all purchases and cardholders also receive five percent miles back when they redeem miles. Miles never expire and they can also be used toward hotels, car rentals, and more. The card has no foreign transaction fees and a special balance transfer offer of . The card has an ongoing APR of based on creditworthiness and an annual fee of .

Citi® AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®

The Citi® AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® offers 50,000 miles for travel booked with American Airlines after spending $2,500 within the first three months of opening the account. Cardholders receive two  times the miles on American Airlines purchases and purchases made at gas stations and restaurants along with preferred boarding. They also get the first checked back free for themselves and up to four other people traveling with them on domestic flights through American Airlines.  Additionally, they receive 25% savings on purchases made in-flight on American Airlines. Cardholders can also earn a $100 American Airlines flight discount when they spend $20,000 or more in purchases during their cardmembership year and renew the card. The card has no foreign transaction fees and an annual fee of $99. The card’s ongoing APR is 17.74% – 25.74% (Variable).

Before You Apply

You’ll want to make sure your credit is in great shape, since these cards are targeted at those with excellent credit scores. You can view two of your credit scores for free on Credit.com.

If you meet the issuers’ credit requirements, comprehend the cards’ terms, and believe you can put the benefits to use, one of these cards may be right for you. If your credit doesn’t meet the card issuers’ requirements, we advise building your credit and applying when your scores have improved.

At publishing time, the Citi Thank You Premier Card, JetBlue Plus Card, Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard, and Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard are offered through Credit.com product pages, and Credit.com is compensated if our users apply and ultimately sign up for this card. However, this relationship does not result in any preferential editorial treatment. This content is not provided by the card issuers. Any opinions expressed are those of Credit.com alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuers.

Note: It’s important to remember that interest rates, fees and terms for credit cards, loans and other financial products frequently change. As a result, rates, fees and terms for credit cards, loans and other financial products cited in these articles may have changed since the date of publication. Please be sure to verify current rates, fees and terms with credit card issuers, banks or other financial institutions directly.

This article was last updated on September 25th, 2018. It was originally published February 29, 2015.

 

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