The Citi Double Cash® Card is an extremely simple fee-free 2% cash back card — 1% cash back when you make the purchase, and 1% cash back when you pay it off.
This is truly one of the best — and simplest — ways to earn cash back as you don’t have to worry about category bonuses. However, this card also allows you to transfer points to a premium ThankYou Rewards account, if you have one, and then transfer your points to many partner airlines and hotels.
Here’s everything you need to know about the card and maximizing your cash back…
Application Tips
Should you apply?
The Double Cash is one of the most rewarding cards available and worth considering.
The Citi Double Cash rarely has a signup bonus. As a result, you may be better off product changing from another consumer Citibank card to the Double Cash card (call Citi to make the change). One warning: some Citi cards have 48 month restrictions against getting a bonus for the same or a similar card. For example, the Citi Rewards+℠ bonus has this restriction:
Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you received a new cardmember bonus for Citi ThankYou® Preferred, Citi Strata Premier℠ Card (formerly Citi Premier®) or Citi Prestige® (no longer available) in the past 48 months.
Are you eligible?
Given that there isn’t usually a signup bonus for the Double Cash, the only eligibility criteria is whether or not you can get approved. Compared to other issuers, Citi is usually pretty easy on approvals.
How to apply
Product change to the Double Cash card or look for a signup offer in-branch. If you want to apply online, you can find the signup link here: Citi Double Cash Card.
Reconsideration
If your application is denied, call reconsideration here: 800-695-5171. If the reconsideration call doesn’t work, try the Citi Credit Card Executive Office: 423-477-6858.
Rewards
Signup Bonus
This card doesn’t usually have a signup bonus, but if one is available it will appear here:
Spend
The best way to earn Citi Double Cash rewards is through credit card spend. This card earns 1% when you make a purchase and 1% when you pay your credit card bill. It is simpler to say that this card earns 2% cash back.
The Citi Double Cash card is particularly good for “non-category bonus” spend. For example, some cards earn bonuses at restaurants, some at grocery stores, some at gas stations, etc. The Double Cash is good choice for any purchases you make.
Increase Spend
Here’s one example that’s particularly rewarding with the Double Cash card:
- Pay federal taxes: You can pay your estimated federal taxes by credit card for as low as 1.87% in fees. This is a way to “make” money since you’re earning the 2% cash back on all purchases — 1% when you make the purchase, 1% when you pay your bill.
Citi Double Cash Redeem Rewards
Cash Back
By default, the Double Cash card earns ThankYou points. You can convert to cash back and withdraw as a statement credit, direct deposit, or a check by mail.
The Rewards+ Rebate “Trick”
One way to make your rewards go farther is to get a Rewards+ card and combine it with your Citi Strata Premier ℠ Card (formerly Citi Premier) or Prestige (no longer available) account. The Rewards+ card offers a 10% rebate on redeemed points, up to 10,000 points rebated per year. This essentially gives you an extra 10% cash back!
Manage Rewards
Combine and Share Points
If you want to keep all rewards earned from multiple Citi ThankYou Rewards cards, you can combine your accounts into one. This will help you manage your accounts and redeem for cash back. (Note: There’s also a big benefit here if you prefer to redeem your points per travel as you can redeem points at the highest level card you have. If you prefer to learn more about the travel options, visit our sister site at Travel Freely.)
However, when you do this, you lose visibility into how many points remain with each card.
Additionally, you can share your points with another cardholder. Citi allows you to transfer points to anyone else, for free. However, shared points expire after 90 days and there’s a 100,000 per calendar year (for both the person sharing and receiving).
If you are feeling generous, this is a way to gift points to a friend or family member and then they can redeem the points how they desire — whether it’s for cash back or travel.
