Review: Is the Citi Prestige the best card for you?
When it comes to luxury travel credit cards, the
While the Citi ThankYou Rewards program might as well known as the Chase Ultimate Rewards program or even American Express Membership Rewards, there are many reasons the
The Citi Prestige has a (slightly) lower annual fee than some competing travel cards including the
The
Currently, the card is offering a welcome bonus of 50,000 Citi points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months from account opening. You can redeem points in a ton of different ways, including for gift cards, statement credits, merchandise, or payments toward your student loans or a mortgage. You can also use your points to book travel directly through the Citi travel portal, or you can transfer them to Citi's airline partners.
The bottom line: The Citi Prestige® Card offers an intriguing earning structure and the major perks you'd expect from a travel credit card. You'll also get a generous bonus for signing up and meeting a minimum spending requirement, which can make your first year as a cardholder well worth the $495 investment.
Citi Prestige versus other Citi credit cards
| Annual fee | $495 | $95 | $0 |
| Earning rewards | 5x points on restaurants and air travel 3x points on hotels and cruises 1 point per dollar on all other purchases | 3x points on dining, hotels, air travel, supermarkets, and gas stations 1 point per dollar on all other purchases | 2x points on up to $6,000 spent at supermarkets and gas stations each year, then 1x 1 point per dollar on all other purchases Citi rounds up all purchases to the nearest 10 points |
| Welcome bonus | 50K points after you spend $4K in the first 3 months | 60K points after you spend $4K in the first 3 months of account opening | 15K points after you spend $1K in the first 3 months |
Citi Prestige versus other premium travel credit cards
| Annual fee | $495 | $550 | $550 |
| Earning rewards | 5x points on restaurants and air travel 3x points on hotels and cruises 1 point per dollar on all other purchases | 10x points on Lyft rides* 3x points on dining and travel (after earning the $300 travel credit) 1 point per dollar on all other purchases | 5x points on flights booked with the airline or Amex Travel** 5x points on prepaid hotels booked with Amex Travel 1 point per dollar on all other purchases |
| Welcome bonus | 50K points after you spend $4K in the first 3 months | 50K points after you spend $4K in the first 3 months of account opening | 60K points after you spend $5K in the first 3 months |
| Travel benefits | $250 annual travel credit Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership 4th Night Free hotel perk Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit | $300 annual travel credit Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit | $200 annual airline fee Broad airport lounge access Up to $200 in annual Uber credit Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit Gold elite status with Hilton and Marriott |
| Not available through Business Insider |
*10x points on Lyft rides with the Chase Sapphire Reserve through March 2022
**Starting January 1, 2021, earn 5X points on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year
Earning and using Citi rewards
As you can see, the
First off, the earning structure on this card is very lucrative thanks to the 5x points you earn on dining and air travel and the 3x points you earn on hotels and cruises. Not only that, but the Citi Prestige has a lower annual fee (at $495) than the
When it comes to rewards, points from the Citi ThankYou program are incredibly easy to use. After all, you can redeem Citi points for statement credits to your account, or even for a mortgage payment or student loan payment, all at the rate of 1 cent per point. You can also cash in your points for merchandise, or you can "pay with points" using your rewards with select retailers.
On the travel front, you can redeem your Citi points for travel through the Citi portal, or you could transfer your points to Citi airline partners like Air France-KLM, Flying Blue, JetBlue, Emirates, and more.
You'll want to take the time to compare Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards to the Citi ThankYou program. When you do, you'll notice that each of these cards and programs lets you use points for travel, but that the airline and hotel transfer partners for each are dramatically different.
Another detail to keep in mind is how much points are worth when redeeming for travel with any of these programs. Recent valuations from The Points Guy estimate Citi ThankYou points are worth 1.7 cents each while Chase Ultimate Rewards points and Amex Membership Rewards points are worth 2 cents each, yet these valuations are for when you move points to airline and hotel transfer partners.
From there, the value of points can vary a lot. With the
Further, the Citi Prestige and the Chase Sapphire Reserve tend to give you 1 cent per point in value for non-travel options, but you may only get 0.6 cents or 0.7 cents per point in value when you redeem Membership Rewards points for options like merchandise using "pay with points" or statement credits on your account.
Citi Prestige features
Like other premier travel credit cards, the
Travel benefits
$250 annual travel credit
This credit applies automatically to any eligible travel purchases you make with your card, including airline and hotel purchases, car rentals, parking, tolls, and more. If you spend at least $250 on travel each year, this credit can effectively deduct $250 from the card's annual fee. The Chase Sapphire Reserve does offer a similar benefit, but at a higher limit of up to $300 in travel credits per year.
4th Night Free
This is one of the Citi Prestige's most unique benefits. Get a complimentary fourth night after a minimum four-night consecutive stay when you book through ThankYou.com. The fourth night rebate is based on the average rate of your stay and excludes taxes and fees. You can only use this benefit twice per calendar year, so it's best to reserve it for your most expensive stays.
That said, this benefit alone can get you as much as the $495 annual fee (or more) in value if you use it at expensive hotels, so if you're booking a high-end hotel this benefit can help you save hundreds of dollars.
Priority Pass Select membership
The
Credit for Global Entry or TSA Precheck membership
Like several other travel rewards cards, the Citi Prestige also includes a statement credit of up to $100 to cover the application fee for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. Both of these programs can expedite your experience at the airport,, and it's better to choose Global Entry because it includes TSA PreCheck.
Purchase protection and trip coverage
Citi used to offer a more extensive set of insurance benefits like trip delay protection and car rental insurance, but the company eliminated many of these perks in 2019. If you're purchasing airfare, hotel stays, and more for an upcoming trip, you could be better off going with a card that offers more comprehensive trip coverage, like the
However, the Citi Prestige still offers the following coverage benefits:
Cell phone protection
If you pay your phone bill with the
Damage and theft purchase protection
If you buy a covered item with your
Extended warranty
If you pay for an item with the
Citi Prestige costs and fees
While the
A 3% balance transfer fee (minimum $5) will apply if you transfer a balance, and you'll pay a 5% percent cash advance fee (minimum $10) if you use your credit card to take out a cash advance.
A variable APR of
