Thank you, may I have another?
Looking for some free credit card rewards?
Citi has two different ThankYou Preferred Cards that give you a bonus points reward for hitting certain spending levels.
Depending on the card those free bonuses are worth $150 or $250 in gift cards or merchandise.
Let's look at the details of how these cards play out and whether or not they are a good fit for your goals.
Two Different Citi ThankYou Preferred Cards
There are technically two opportunities to open a Citi ThankYou Preferred account. The bonus level and specific rewards program of your card are dependent upon which opportunity you to choose to go with, so choose carefully.
It's like a choose your own adventure with free money at the end of the story! (I wasn't the only one that read those growing up, was I?)
The first option: $250 in free gift cards, earn 1 ThankYou Point (TYP) per dollar spent (essentially 1% cash back) on all spending
The second option: $150 in free gift cards, earn 5 ThankYou Points per dollar spent on gas station, drug store, and grocery store purchases for the first 12 months (1 point per dollar after the first year), and 1 TYP per dollar spent on all other purchases
It depends on what you're looking for more. Do you need a card for every day use? Then taking the lower gift card reward level to get the 5 ThankYou Points per dollar spent (essentially 5% cash back) makes sense.
But if you already have an every day spending card, or need one that will give you maximum rewards after 12 months, then simply apply for the $250 in gift cards version of the card and don't worry about earning additional ThankYou Points.
If You Want Maximum Free Rewards
Some people are content with their credit card situation. They have a good travel rewards card and a good everyday spending card. They earn their rewards, put the card back in their wallet, and go on with their lives.
But getting $250 for essentially free? How could you pass that up?
That's exactly the reward you will get (technically 25,000 ThankYou points, which you then convert to gift cards or a statement credit) when you open a Citi ThankYou Preferred account. To get the 25,000 point bonus reward you just need to spend $2,000 on the card in the 4 months of having the card. That's only $500 per month to get $250 in free rewards. (Plus, you'll earn another 2,000 ThankYou Points that you can convert to additional rewards.)
Don't worry, there isn't a catch beyond the spending requirement. There is no annual fee on the card. Just meet the spending requirement, get your bonus points, and cash them out.
If You're Looking for a Credit Card for Other Purchases
If you are seeking a credit card with a good rewards program to use for the next year, then take the lower gift card level. You still get 15,000 bonus ThankYou Points which can be converted into $150 in gift cards or statement credits.
Plus, getting those bonus points has an even lower spending requirement: just $1,000 in the first 3 months of having the card. That's only $333 per month. You probably spend more than that on gas and groceries already.
What's great about taking this version of the card is not only do you get $150 for free, but you also get what amounts to a 5% rewards program on your gas station, drugstore, and grocery store spending. I know that's where my family spends a majority of its money and you won't find any program that pays higher than 5% back on that type of spending that also doesn't have an annual fee. (American Express' Blue Cash Preferred card offers 6% on grocery spending.) You can enjoy that higher cash back level for the first 12 month of having the card; after that it drops back to the typical 1 TYP per dollar spent on the card.
There isn't any other catch beyond the low spending requirement. There is no annual fee on this card, either. Simply spend $1,000 on the card, get your bonus points, and convert them to whatever is most useful for you as a reward.
How Can I Use My ThankYou Points?
Citi's ThankYou rewards program is just as robust as its competition. You can buy a lot of different things with your ThankYou points: gift cards, statement credits, merchandise, and travel. Most of the ratios of points to dollars is 100 points per dollar of rewards (or, flipping the equation, each point is worth $0.01). So a $25 statement credit will cost you 2,500 points.
They do offer you the option to get a check sent to you, but sadly the ratio at which your points convert to cash is horrible. You can get $50 via check for 8,000 points. That's 160 points per dollar or valuing each point at $0.00625. That's a devaluation of 37.5% ' ouch! Never convert your ThankYou Points into cash.
What's the Catch?
With some credit cards with big bonuses there is some sort of catch like:
- an annual fee that you pay up front before getting the card
- an annual fee that is waived for the first year but you pay every year after that
- impossible requirements to meet before getting the bonus
And it's understandable that you might think these cards would do the same thing.
The good news?
They don't.
No annual fee. Not up front and not next year. Never.
No impossible requirements. Either $2,000 in spending in 4 months or $1,000 in spending in 3 months.
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