Citi Premier Credit Card Review

Hello Friends, I hope all is well with you! Today, I am going to be reviewing the Citi Premier Credit Card. These opinions are my own, and I am in no way influenced by anyone.

Overall Verdict: The Citi Premier card is a solid rewards credit card that has a low annual fee. It offers high amount of points for air and hotel purchases and some other everyday categories. If you don’t primarily spend in those categories, it might be worth to get a flat rate rewards card even if the reward might be a little lower. Additionally, Citi does not have the extensive benefits that Chase or Capital One offer, which is somewhat disappointing, but the high rewards on everyday categories and the ThankYou rewards program could make this card worth it for you.

Some things about this card I like:

1. High rewards on certain categories
2. Sign-up bonus
3. Hotel savings opportunity

Some things about the card that I don’t like:

1. Annual fee
2. Not that many benefits and protections
3. Low rewards on most categories

What type of reward are you getting?

The Citi Premier rewards credit card offers you the chance to earn ThankYou points for every dollar that you spend. These ThankYou points accumulate in your account until you are ready to use them. These points are part of Citi’s ThankYou rewards program; that is their loyalty reward program. You can redeem the points in a number of ways, which is a positive thing. You are able to use your points to pay bills or loans, but only if you have loans with Citi. You can also able to credit the bank account that you pay the bills with or you can simply redeem the points as a statement credit. Additionally, you are able to use your points to book flights, cruises, hotels, and shop at different stores like Amazon and BestBuy. Furthermore, you will be able to transfer your ThankYou points to a participating airline loyalty program. The reason why some people opt to do this is because sometimes partner loyalty programs might offer you more to redeem the points with them. For Example, 60,000 ThankYou points may be worth $600 to Citi but if you transfer it to one of the loyalty programs, that company might value them at $700. It’s important to check how the partner loyalty program will value your ThankYou points.

Is there an annual fee?

The Citi Premier rewards credit card has a $95 annual fee.

What is the rewards amount?

This rewards card offers you the opportunity to earn 3x points for every dollar you spend on air travel, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, and gas stations. Everything outside of those categories will earn you 1x points. Cruises or ridesharing will only earn you 1x points per dollar that you spend.  There are no quarterly limits that other cards may have; you can also earn unlimited points. Additionally, there are no bonus points for shopping certain brands or stores.

Is there a bonus offer?

The Citi Premier rewards card offers you the opportunity to earn 60,000 bonus points if you spend at least $4,000 in purchases in the first three months of your account opening. This is about a 15% return on the money you would have spent regardless.

Are there foreign transaction fees?

There are no foreign transaction fees for the Citi Premier rewards card.

Are there any other benefits?

The Citi Double Cash rewards card does offer some extra benefits, but it’s not as extensive as other cards.

They offer:

1. $0 liability for unauthorized charges – you are not liable for any unauthorized purchase made on your card
2. 24-hour fraud protection – you will get alerted if Citi sees any unusual activity
3. Identity theft solutions – Citi will help you to resolve any identity theft issues
4. The lost wallet service – your card will be replaced in a timely manner if the card is lost or stolen
5. Hotel savings benefit – you get a $100 annual hotel credit when you book a single stay hotel of $500 or more.

For more information on their benefits, visit the Citi benefits page.

What is the interest rate and are there any other fees?

This rewards card does not have an introductory APR offer like other cards; the APR on this rewards credit card is between 15.99% and 23.99%. It just depends on your credit score.

Their other fees include:

1. Balance transfer fee – $5 or 3%, whichever is higher
2. Cash advance fee – $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater.
3. Late payment fee – up to $40
4. Return payment fee – up to $40

For more information on their fees, check out their fee schedule.

How is the customer service like?

There are a number of ways you can contact Citi’s customer service. The first and the most common way is to call the number on the back of the card. The second way is to send in mail with your problem or concern. The third way would be to visit a Citi branch and speak to someone there. The last way would be to chat with them through their messaging system. It’s important to remember that everyone might have different experiences with their customer service.

Should you get the Citi Premier Credit Credit Card?

Who it’s perfect for:

1. People who spend in the categories listed above
2. People who want a sign-up bonus

Who it isn’t perfect for:

1. People who don’t want an annual fee
2. People who want extensive benefits

If you are still unsure if a rewards credit card makes sense, check out my post on Why You Should Use Rewards Credit Cards.

Additionally, if this card isn’t right for you, I invite you to check out my credit cards page for more information on other cards.