Citi Premier® Card Review
The Citi Premier® Card is perhaps the best mid-range card for earning bonus points across different categories. In our Citi Premier® Card review we will take a look at the welcome offer, earning structure, card perks and share our overall thoughts.
Current Welcome Offer
The Citi Premier has a current welcome offer as follows:
- Earn 60,000 bonus Citi ThankYou Points after spending $4,000 in the first three months of account opening.
- Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel℠ Portal through June 30, 2024.
- The card comes with a $95 annual fee, which is NOT waived the first year.
Citi Application Rules
If you choose to apply for the card, remember that Citi has a few application rules to keep in mind. Citi will not approve you for more than one card every eight days, and two cards every 65 days. Also, you will not be eligible for the welcome bonus if you received a welcome offer for the Citi Premier® Card in the last 48 months.
Citi Premier® Card Review: Earning Structure
The Citi Premier® Card comes with the following earning structure:
- 3x points at
- Restaurants
- Supermarkets
- Gas Stations
- Air Travel
- Hotels
- 1x on all other purchases
It should be noted that “air travel and hotels” covers airlines, hotels, and travel agencies.
Citi Premier Card Benefits
The Citi Premier comes with the following card benefits for its $95 annual fee:
- No foreign transaction fees
- Extended warranty protection that adds an additional 24 months to a manufacturer’s warranty.
- World Elite Mastercard benefits
- $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more when booked through thankyou.com or 1-800-THANKYOU
- This is available per calendar year
ToP Analysis
The Citi Premier is an excellent well-rounded card that earns 3x points per dollar spent on four major bonus categories. The card is one of the best cards for uncapped spend at supermarkets and for gas station spend at 3x points. That is already a massive start but when you throw in restaurants, hotels and air travel you have the best earning set up for any card in the sub $200 annual fee market. In terms of earning power the Citi Premier is pound for pound the best card on the market.
Where it lacks is offering any meaningful perks. That can be overlooked with its earning power but the other thing holding the Citi Premier back is ThankYou points having the weakest transfer partners of the big 3 (Chase, Amex and Citi). Citi has worked diligently to improve their roster over the years, but they still trail the competition. If they could ever get American Airlines fully on board as a transfer partner then this conversation may be a bit different.
Citi Premier® Card Review: ToP Thoughts
The Citi Premier is a well-rounded tool for earning ThankYou points. The card earns 3x points on restaurants, air travel and hotels, gas stations, and supermarkets. No other card with a $95 annual fee offers these many bonus categories, especially at 3x points per dollar.
What are your plans for the Citi Premier? Do you have it? Are you getting it? Let us know on our Facebook group!
