Earning credit card rewards is an excellent strategy to gain value from daily purchases. However, even when you find a card that offers extra points on your highest-spending categories, other purchases typically earn just one point per dollar. When you use a credit card combo like the Citi Duo, you can maximize rewards on every purchase. Learn what the Citi Duo is, which cards are eligible, and how to maximize rewards when you earn and redeem points.
[Read: Best Credit Cards.]
Which Cards Are Included in the Citi Duo?
Whether you’re looking to earn rewards, do a balance transfer or gain access to valuable benefits, there’s a Citi credit card to meet your needs. However, only cards that earn Citi’s flexible rewards, called ThankYou Points, can be combined to form the Citi Duo.
Citi offers 15 credit cards, but only six qualify for Citi Duo benefits. Here’s a quick rundown of eligible cards and key features you need to know about.
— Citi Double Cash® Card. With the Citi Double Cash® Card, you’ll earn unlimited 2% cash back on every purchase without paying an annual fee. When you make purchases, you’ll receive 1% cash back plus another 1% as you pay down the balance.
— Citi Strata Premier? Card. This travel credit card earns three points per dollar spent on air travel, hotels, dining, groceries, EV charging and gas. Plus, you can earn up to 10 ThankYou Points per dollar spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked through the Citi Travel portal. Cardholders will also receive $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more every calendar year — which can help cover the card’s annual fee.
— Citi Custom Cash® Card. Earn 5% cash back on the first $500 you spend in your top eligible spending category each billing cycle. And Citi will automatically apply the bonus cash back to your top spending category without manually activating the promo or selecting a category ahead of time.
— Citi Rewards+® Card. Get two ThankYou Points per dollar on the first $6,000 spent on groceries and gas per year without an annual fee. All transactions are rounded up to the nearest 10 points, which makes this an excellent choice for small dollar purchases.
— AT&T Points Plus® Card from Citi. With no annual fee, the Citi AT&T credit card offers three points per dollar spent at gas and EV charging stations, two points on groceries and one point on other purchases.
— Citi Prestige Card. While this premium travel card is no longer accepting new applicants, it offers tremendous value for those who still have it. You’ll earn five points on dining, flights and travel agency purchases. It has a hefty $495 annual fee, but the $250 annual travel credit, Priority Pass membership and fourth night free hotel benefit (twice per year) can offset that cost.
Zac Hood, founder of Travel Freely, recommends the Citi Duo because it is a powerful, yet straightforward, combo offering three points on travel and two on everything else, with no need for multiple category-specific cards. “It’s ideal for those who value simplicity but want strong earning potential,” he says.
Pros and Cons of the Citi Duo
The Citi Duo allows cardholders to maximize rewards with just two credit cards. But before you consider this strategy, it helps to understand the pros and cons.
Pros
— It’s simple. With just two cards, the Citi Duo is easier to keep track of spending than the three-card strategies of the Amex Trifecta and Chase Trifecta.
— Lower annual fees. You’ll spend less than $100 per year on annual fees with the Citi Duo of the Citi Strata Premier and Citi Double Cash. Lower annual fees make it easier for your rewards and benefits to cover the cost of having the cards.
— At least two points on spending. By using the Citi Double Cash on all non-bonus category purchases, you’ll never earn less than two points on your purchases.
Cons
— No luxury card. While existing cardholders can still use their Citi Prestige Card, this luxury travel credit card is no longer open to new customers. So no Citi Duo card combination offers airport lounge access and other premium features.
— Must book through travel portal to get benefits. Whether you want to earn up to 10 points or use the $100 hotel credit, you must use your Citi Strata Premier card and book through the Citi Travel portal.
— Transfer partners and ratios differ. All ThankYou Points cards can transfer to airline and hotel partners, but some have limited access. To unlock all 19 partners, you must have the Prestige or Strata Premier. Additionally, no-annual-fee cards have lower transfer ratios on eligible partners.
[Read: Best Rewards Credit Cards.]
How to Maximize Points With Citi Duo
If you’re interested in using the Citi Duo to maximize points on your purchases, follow these strategies to earn and redeem your Citi ThankYou Points.
Earning Points
Earning the most points with your Citi Duo can be rather simple. For example, since you only have two cards, you could use the Citi Strata Premier for all air travel, hotels, dining, groceries, EV charging and gas purchases. Then, the Citi Double Cash is your best option for all non-bonus spending because it earns an unlimited two points, which is double the base rate of the Strata Premier.
Consider booking eligible travel reservations through the Citi Travel portal to earn up to 10 points. These bonus points can add up quickly, even if you don’t travel frequently.
If you’re opening a new card to create your Citi Duo, be sure to meet the card’s minimum spending requirement before the deadline. Earning a welcome bonus can offer a large number of points quickly. Plus, while you’re working toward that spending requirement, you’ll also be earning points on every purchase.
Redeeming Points
To get the most value from your Citi ThankYou Points, you should combine points regularly. For example, you can transfer points for free from your Citi Double Cash to the Citi Strata Premier. Doing so not only unlocks more airline and hotel transfer partners but also offers better transfer ratios as well.
Julia Menez, a points strategy coach at Geobreeze Travel, recommends leveraging different Citi transfer partners to maximize the value of your points. Her favorites include Cathay Pacific for flights to Asia, Air France KLM Flying Blue for flights to Europe and Africa, and Choice Hotels for hotel stays. Since Citi points transfer to Choice Hotels on a 1:2 basis, “You often only need 4,000 points for a free hotel night,” she says.
Citi ThankYou Points can also be used to redeem for cash back, travel, gift cards, online shopping and more. However, you’ll get the best value when transferring points to partners.
Occasionally, Citi will also offer a transfer bonus to select partners. Promotions like this stretch the value of your points and may give you enough points to book premium cabin international flights, which tend to offer the highest value redemptions.
[Read: Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards.]
Who Should Consider the Citi Duo?
The Citi Duo is the best credit card combination for people who prefer a simple approach that doesn’t incur high annual fees. You’ll earn at least two points on every purchase with the Citi Double Cash, even if you forget to use your Citi Strata Premier on one of its bonus categories. Six of Citi’s credit cards earn ThankYou Points, which enables you to mix and match card options to align its bonus categories with your highest spending categories.
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What Is Citi Duo? originally appeared on usnews.com
