Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

These 3 Citi credit cards are the best combination to earn maximum points on every purchase<!-- wp:html --><p class="headline-regular financial-disclaimer">Insider's experts choose the best products and services to help make smart decisions with your money (<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/personal-finance-editorial-standards" class="not-content-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here’s how</a>). In some cases, we receive a commission from our <a href="https://www.insider-inc.com/commerce-on-insider-inc" class="not-content-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our partners</a>, however, our opinions are our own. Terms apply to offers listed on this page.</p> <p>Many credit cards earn bonus points for purchases within a certain category, like dining or groceries. For other purchases, you'll usually earn 1 point per dollar spent. But what if you could earn 2 to 5 points on every purchase you make? You can — and the trick is remembering which card is the best choice at the point of sale. </p> <p>It's worth it though because you can pool all your points together in one place. When your cards are linked to a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/transferable-credit-card-points-best-rewards-to-earn" target="_blank" rel="noopener">transferable points program</a>, you can redeem your rewards for travel through the bank's travel portal, cash or statement credits, gift cards, or transfer them to travel partners where they can be potentially much more valuable. </p> <p>Citi ThankYou is one such program that's often overlooked, but those who are willing to learn about Citi ThankYou transfer partners can access incredible <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-credit-card-rewards-sweet-spots-maximize-points-miles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sweet spots for award flights</a>, and earn bonus points to book more of them. </p> <p>With the "Citi trifecta" — the Citi Premier® Card, Citi® Double Cash Card, and Citi Custom Cash℠ Card —  you'll earn the most points to book your next reward that much faster. </p> <p class="headline-regular financial-disclaimer">We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.</p> <h2>The Citi card trifecta</h2> <p>Citi is generous — you'll earn 2x, 3x, or 5x points when you combine the three cards that make up the Citi trifecta. They're personal cards, which makes it easier to get them all. </p> <p>However, in most cases, you can only earn a bonus on a Citi ThankYou card if you haven't opened a Citi ThankYou card and received a welcome bonus, or closed another Citi ThankYou card, in the past 24 months. Citi ThankYou cards also include the Citi Rewards+® Card, Citi Prestige® Card (not available to new applicants), and Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card (not available to new applicants). Because of this, it's best to start with the card that offers the highest welcome offer. </p> <p>Another thing to know is that Citi assigns a separate account number for every ThankYou card you open. To pool your points in one place, you must call Citi and have them combine your ThankYou accounts. Once they're merged, there's no way to separate them. I've always had mine combined and prefer the convenience of having all my points pooled automatically. </p> <h2>Citi Premier Card: For air travel, hotel stays, supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations</h2> <p>The Citi Premier® Card is an absolute powerhouse that earns 3x Citi ThankYou points per dollar spent on air travel and hotels, and at supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations — and there are no earning caps for any of these categories. For most households, these bonus categories will make up the lion's share of typical monthly expenses. And in fact, this card easily stands on its own because of its strong earning potential. </p> <p>There's a Citi Premier® Card annual fee, but the bonus categories are so good that what you'll earn can easily offset it. You'll also earn Citi Premier® Card as a welcome bonus, which is worth around Citi Premier® Card in travel when you transfer to partners, based on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/what-are-points-miles-worth-value#citi-thankyou-rewards-points-value" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Insider's valuations</a>. That's also worth $800 toward travel booked through Citi, statement credits, or gift cards.</p> <p>And once per calendar year, you can get $100 off a hotel stay of $500 or more (before taxes and fees) when you book through the Citi ThankYou travel portal. You usually won't earn bonus points or have your elite status recognized when you book this way, so it's best to use this benefit for non-chain hotels, or for chains where you're not concerned with earning tier credit or perks. This benefit more than covers the annual fee, if you'll use it. </p> <p>Because of Citi's application rules, it's best to get this card first because it has the highest welcome offer of any ThankYou card. If you open other ThankYou cards within 24 months of opening this one, you won't qualify to earn another welcome bonus. </p> <p>Because this card covers so many lucrative bonus categories, you won't have many gaps to fill. </p> <p><strong>Read more:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-premier-card-review" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Premier card review</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/reasons-to-get-citi-premier-card" target="_blank" rel="noopener">6 reasons the Citi Premier should be your go-to card in 2022</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-premier-vs-chase-sapphire-preferred" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Premier vs Chase Sapphire Preferred: Which travel rewards credit card is best for you?</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/capital-one-venture-vs-citi-premier" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Capital One Venture vs Citi Premier: Which travel rewards credit card is best for you?</a></p> <h2>Citi Custom Cash Card: For your biggest expenses every month</h2> <p>With the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card card, you'll earn 5% cash back (awarded as 5x Citi ThankYou points) on up to $500 of spending in your biggest category every billing cycle, then 1x after that. The categories include restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment.</p> <p>Because of the bonus earning structure, you'll want to make sure to stick to one category to earn the most points. For example, you might choose home improvement stores for a billing cycle when you need to make repairs or purchase appliances, and then switch to travel for another billing cycle when you want to book travel for a trip because this card provides the opportunity to earn 5x instead of the usual earning rates, up to its $500 limit per billing cycle. </p> <p>It's a versatile card with no annual fee that's good for an extra 30,000 ThankYou points each year if you make the most of the bonus categories each billing cycle. It'll take some planning ahead, but it's worth it for that amount of points! </p> <p>New cardholders can also take advantage of a Citi Custom Cash℠ Card (followed by a Citi Custom Cash℠ Card APR). If you have large purchases coming up you can't pay off all at once, or want to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-consolidate-credit-card-debt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">consolidate other debt</a>, this offer could save you money on interest.</p> <p>The Citi Custom Cash℠ Card also comes with Citi Custom Cash℠ Card. That's a decent bonus for such a useful card — and especially for one that has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-no-fee-credit-card" target="_blank" rel="noopener">no annual fee</a>. </p> <p><strong>Read more:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-custom-cash-card-review" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Custom Cash card review</a></p> <h2>Citi Double Cash Card: For everything else</h2> <p>The Citi® Double Cash Card earns 1 point per dollar (worth 1% cash back) when you make purchases, and 1 point per dollar (1% cash back) when you make payments — which means this card essentially earns 2x Citi ThankYou points on every purchase. </p> <p>There's currently a limited-time welcome offer of Citi® Double Cash Card, which is a great deal because the card doesn't normally come with an intro bonus. There's no annual fee, either — and the earning rate is uncapped, so you can earn as many points as you please. </p> <p>This card is also a good pick if you're looking for an extra-long <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-balance-transfer-credit-cards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introductory APR on balance transfers</a>. New cardholders receive a Citi® Double Cash Card (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR). If you're carrying high-interest balances on other credit cards, this could give you some breathing room to pay off your debt and save you money on interest.</p> <p>The Citi Premier® Card and Citi Custom Cash℠ Card cover a lot of bonus categories, and all your other spending can go on the Citi® Double Cash Card. That could include purchases like doctor and vet visits, car repairs, and clothing, as well as recurring expenses like your utility bills and lawn care. The "everything else" category might be more than you expect, so it's a good idea to have and use this card when you're unsure of which bonus category your purchase might fall into. </p> <p>It's rare to find a personal credit card with the ability to earn 2x transferable points in non-bonus categories, especially one that has no annual fee. This card is truly a gem and an excellent one to round out your powerful Citi trifecta of cards. </p> <p><strong>Read more:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-double-cash-card-review" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Double Cash Card review</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-double-cash-vs-wells-fargo-active-cash-card-comparison" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Double Cash vs Wells Fargo Active Cash: How to decide between these popular cash-back credit cards</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-double-cash-chase-freedom-unlimited-credit-card-comparison" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi Double Cash vs Chase Freedom Unlimited</a></p> <h2>Why earn Citi ThankYou points? </h2> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/guide-earning-using-citi-thankyou-points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi ThankYou</a> doesn't get as much attention as other transferable points programs, and that's too bad because its cards are designed in such a way that it's actually the easiest program to keep the points rolling in with everyday purchases. Citi ThankYou cards have bonus categories that others don't — and offer higher earning rates for certain categories than other cards. </p> <p>Citi ThankYou has lots of overlap with other points programs, but there are a couple of things holding it back. First, although <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-thankyou-rewards-points-transfer-partners" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi has a long list of transfer partners</a>, there are no domestic airlines among them other than JetBlue TrueBlue (which has a limited route network outside of its focus cities). Second, not all points transfers are instant — and can take up to a few days in some cases. </p> <p>However, if you know about airline partnerships, you can access award seats on every major alliance to fly to virtually any major destination. So you can still fly to where you want to go, but it requires you to know more about the airline partners and their individual programs. And if you can book early, the transfer times shouldn't be much of an issue, especially for routes that aren't in high demand. </p> <p>Citi has also added two hotel programs — Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards — to its list of partners. Between these programs, you can stay just about anywhere in the world when you transfer points for award nights.</p> <h2>Citi ThankYou transfer partners</h2> <p>Aeromexico Club PremierAir France-KLM Flying Blue<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-earn-redeem-american-airlines-aadvantage-miles" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a>Avianca LifeMilesCathay Pacific Asia Miles<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-earn-redeem-choice-privileges-hotel-points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Choice Privileges </a>Emirates SkywardsEtihad GuestEva Air Infinity MileageLandsJetBlue TrueBlueQantas Frequent FlyerQatar Airways Privilege ClubSingapore Airlines KrisFlyerThai Airways Royal Orchid PlusTurkish Airlines Miles & SmilesVirgin Atlantic Flying Club<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-earn-redeem-wyndham-points" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wyndham Rewards</a></p> <p>Most partners have a 1:1 transfer ratio, except JetBlue, Choice, and Wyndham. These three are the only transfer partners available (along with Sears Shop Your Way rewards) if you don't have a Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige® Card. Their transfer ratios and availability vary depending on which card(s) you have.</p> <p>You can also use your points to book flights, hotels, rental cars, and more through the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-thankyou-travel-portal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Citi ThankYou travel portal</a>. Or you can redeem them for statement credits, cash, or gift cards. You can also <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/use-credit-card-points-amazon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">use points at checkout with Amazon</a> and other store partners, although you won't get the best value for your points. </p> <p>I've personally gotten excellent returns from my Citi ThankYou points and find it's easy to earn lots of them through regular purchases that happen to fall into bonus categories more often. Because of this, the points add up more quickly than with other points programs. </p> <p>If you like the bonus categories, a similar strategy could work well for you, too. </p> <h2>Bottom line</h2> <p>The Citi trifecta earns a baseline of 2 points per dollar on every purchase with the Citi® Double Cash Card, all the way up to 5x points on certain purchases with the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card. And having the Citi Premier® Card, with its multiple 3x bonus categories, is a great workhorse to complete the strong earning rates.  </p> <p>Between these cards, you'll only pay one Citi Premier® Card annual fee for the Citi Premier® Card. That means you can earn extra points on virtually every purchase and boost your balance with a low cash outlay. Even better, you can pool your points together automatically so they all appear in the same account. </p> <p>What I love about this <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/credit-card-pairings-maximize-rewards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">credit card combination</a> is the multitude of bonus categories with the Citi Premier® Card, the flexibility to earn extra points every billing cycle with the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card, and having the Citi® Double Cash Card for everything else without category restrictions. It may sound like a lot, but it becomes a habit the more you use your cards. And seeing how fast your points balance can grow is a big motivator, especially if you have an award booking in mind. </p> <p>If the bonus categories on the cards and award travel opportunities through the points program appeal to you, the Citi trifecta of cards will supply you with plenty of points to travel almost anywhere.  </p> <div class="read-original">Read the original article on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citi-trifecta-earn-maximum-thankyou-points">Business Insider</a></div><!-- /wp:html -->

Insider’s experts choose the best products and services to help make smart decisions with your money (here’s how). In some cases, we receive a commission from our our partners, however, our opinions are our own. Terms apply to offers listed on this page.

Many credit cards earn bonus points for purchases within a certain category, like dining or groceries. For other purchases, you’ll usually earn 1 point per dollar spent. But what if you could earn 2 to 5 points on every purchase you make? You can — and the trick is remembering which card is the best choice at the point of sale. 

It’s worth it though because you can pool all your points together in one place. When your cards are linked to a transferable points program, you can redeem your rewards for travel through the bank’s travel portal, cash or statement credits, gift cards, or transfer them to travel partners where they can be potentially much more valuable. 

Citi ThankYou is one such program that’s often overlooked, but those who are willing to learn about Citi ThankYou transfer partners can access incredible sweet spots for award flights, and earn bonus points to book more of them. 

With the “Citi trifecta” — the Citi Premier® Card, Citi® Double Cash Card, and Citi Custom Cash℠ Card —  you’ll earn the most points to book your next reward that much faster. 

We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

The Citi card trifecta

Citi is generous — you’ll earn 2x, 3x, or 5x points when you combine the three cards that make up the Citi trifecta. They’re personal cards, which makes it easier to get them all. 

However, in most cases, you can only earn a bonus on a Citi ThankYou card if you haven’t opened a Citi ThankYou card and received a welcome bonus, or closed another Citi ThankYou card, in the past 24 months. Citi ThankYou cards also include the Citi Rewards+® Card, Citi Prestige® Card (not available to new applicants), and Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card (not available to new applicants). Because of this, it’s best to start with the card that offers the highest welcome offer. 

Another thing to know is that Citi assigns a separate account number for every ThankYou card you open. To pool your points in one place, you must call Citi and have them combine your ThankYou accounts. Once they’re merged, there’s no way to separate them. I’ve always had mine combined and prefer the convenience of having all my points pooled automatically. 

Citi Premier Card: For air travel, hotel stays, supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations

The Citi Premier® Card is an absolute powerhouse that earns 3x Citi ThankYou points per dollar spent on air travel and hotels, and at supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations — and there are no earning caps for any of these categories. For most households, these bonus categories will make up the lion’s share of typical monthly expenses. And in fact, this card easily stands on its own because of its strong earning potential. 

There’s a Citi Premier® Card annual fee, but the bonus categories are so good that what you’ll earn can easily offset it. You’ll also earn Citi Premier® Card as a welcome bonus, which is worth around Citi Premier® Card in travel when you transfer to partners, based on Insider’s valuations. That’s also worth $800 toward travel booked through Citi, statement credits, or gift cards.

And once per calendar year, you can get $100 off a hotel stay of $500 or more (before taxes and fees) when you book through the Citi ThankYou travel portal. You usually won’t earn bonus points or have your elite status recognized when you book this way, so it’s best to use this benefit for non-chain hotels, or for chains where you’re not concerned with earning tier credit or perks. This benefit more than covers the annual fee, if you’ll use it. 

Because of Citi’s application rules, it’s best to get this card first because it has the highest welcome offer of any ThankYou card. If you open other ThankYou cards within 24 months of opening this one, you won’t qualify to earn another welcome bonus. 

Because this card covers so many lucrative bonus categories, you won’t have many gaps to fill. 

Read more:

Citi Premier card review6 reasons the Citi Premier should be your go-to card in 2022Citi Premier vs Chase Sapphire Preferred: Which travel rewards credit card is best for you?Capital One Venture vs Citi Premier: Which travel rewards credit card is best for you?

Citi Custom Cash Card: For your biggest expenses every month

With the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card card, you’ll earn 5% cash back (awarded as 5x Citi ThankYou points) on up to $500 of spending in your biggest category every billing cycle, then 1x after that. The categories include restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment.

Because of the bonus earning structure, you’ll want to make sure to stick to one category to earn the most points. For example, you might choose home improvement stores for a billing cycle when you need to make repairs or purchase appliances, and then switch to travel for another billing cycle when you want to book travel for a trip because this card provides the opportunity to earn 5x instead of the usual earning rates, up to its $500 limit per billing cycle. 

It’s a versatile card with no annual fee that’s good for an extra 30,000 ThankYou points each year if you make the most of the bonus categories each billing cycle. It’ll take some planning ahead, but it’s worth it for that amount of points! 

New cardholders can also take advantage of a Citi Custom Cash℠ Card (followed by a Citi Custom Cash℠ Card APR). If you have large purchases coming up you can’t pay off all at once, or want to consolidate other debt, this offer could save you money on interest.

The Citi Custom Cash℠ Card also comes with Citi Custom Cash℠ Card. That’s a decent bonus for such a useful card — and especially for one that has no annual fee

Read more:

Citi Custom Cash card review

Citi Double Cash Card: For everything else

The Citi® Double Cash Card earns 1 point per dollar (worth 1% cash back) when you make purchases, and 1 point per dollar (1% cash back) when you make payments — which means this card essentially earns 2x Citi ThankYou points on every purchase. 

There’s currently a limited-time welcome offer of Citi® Double Cash Card, which is a great deal because the card doesn’t normally come with an intro bonus. There’s no annual fee, either — and the earning rate is uncapped, so you can earn as many points as you please. 

This card is also a good pick if you’re looking for an extra-long introductory APR on balance transfers. New cardholders receive a Citi® Double Cash Card (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR). If you’re carrying high-interest balances on other credit cards, this could give you some breathing room to pay off your debt and save you money on interest.

The Citi Premier® Card and Citi Custom Cash℠ Card cover a lot of bonus categories, and all your other spending can go on the Citi® Double Cash Card. That could include purchases like doctor and vet visits, car repairs, and clothing, as well as recurring expenses like your utility bills and lawn care. The “everything else” category might be more than you expect, so it’s a good idea to have and use this card when you’re unsure of which bonus category your purchase might fall into. 

It’s rare to find a personal credit card with the ability to earn 2x transferable points in non-bonus categories, especially one that has no annual fee. This card is truly a gem and an excellent one to round out your powerful Citi trifecta of cards. 

Read more:

Citi Double Cash Card reviewCiti Double Cash vs Wells Fargo Active Cash: How to decide between these popular cash-back credit cardsCiti Double Cash vs Chase Freedom Unlimited

Why earn Citi ThankYou points? 

Citi ThankYou doesn’t get as much attention as other transferable points programs, and that’s too bad because its cards are designed in such a way that it’s actually the easiest program to keep the points rolling in with everyday purchases. Citi ThankYou cards have bonus categories that others don’t — and offer higher earning rates for certain categories than other cards. 

Citi ThankYou has lots of overlap with other points programs, but there are a couple of things holding it back. First, although Citi has a long list of transfer partners, there are no domestic airlines among them other than JetBlue TrueBlue (which has a limited route network outside of its focus cities). Second, not all points transfers are instant — and can take up to a few days in some cases. 

However, if you know about airline partnerships, you can access award seats on every major alliance to fly to virtually any major destination. So you can still fly to where you want to go, but it requires you to know more about the airline partners and their individual programs. And if you can book early, the transfer times shouldn’t be much of an issue, especially for routes that aren’t in high demand. 

Citi has also added two hotel programs — Choice Privileges and Wyndham Rewards — to its list of partners. Between these programs, you can stay just about anywhere in the world when you transfer points for award nights.

Citi ThankYou transfer partners

Aeromexico Club PremierAir France-KLM Flying BlueAvianca LifeMilesCathay Pacific Asia MilesChoice Privileges Emirates SkywardsEtihad GuestEva Air Infinity MileageLandsJetBlue TrueBlueQantas Frequent FlyerQatar Airways Privilege ClubSingapore Airlines KrisFlyerThai Airways Royal Orchid PlusTurkish Airlines Miles & SmilesVirgin Atlantic Flying ClubWyndham Rewards

Most partners have a 1:1 transfer ratio, except JetBlue, Choice, and Wyndham. These three are the only transfer partners available (along with Sears Shop Your Way rewards) if you don’t have a Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige® Card. Their transfer ratios and availability vary depending on which card(s) you have.

You can also use your points to book flights, hotels, rental cars, and more through the Citi ThankYou travel portal. Or you can redeem them for statement credits, cash, or gift cards. You can also use points at checkout with Amazon and other store partners, although you won’t get the best value for your points. 

I’ve personally gotten excellent returns from my Citi ThankYou points and find it’s easy to earn lots of them through regular purchases that happen to fall into bonus categories more often. Because of this, the points add up more quickly than with other points programs. 

If you like the bonus categories, a similar strategy could work well for you, too. 

Bottom line

The Citi trifecta earns a baseline of 2 points per dollar on every purchase with the Citi® Double Cash Card, all the way up to 5x points on certain purchases with the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card. And having the Citi Premier® Card, with its multiple 3x bonus categories, is a great workhorse to complete the strong earning rates.  

Between these cards, you’ll only pay one Citi Premier® Card annual fee for the Citi Premier® Card. That means you can earn extra points on virtually every purchase and boost your balance with a low cash outlay. Even better, you can pool your points together automatically so they all appear in the same account. 

What I love about this credit card combination is the multitude of bonus categories with the Citi Premier® Card, the flexibility to earn extra points every billing cycle with the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card, and having the Citi® Double Cash Card for everything else without category restrictions. It may sound like a lot, but it becomes a habit the more you use your cards. And seeing how fast your points balance can grow is a big motivator, especially if you have an award booking in mind. 

If the bonus categories on the cards and award travel opportunities through the points program appeal to you, the Citi trifecta of cards will supply you with plenty of points to travel almost anywhere.  

Read the original article on Business Insider

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