The Citi ThankYou Premier card is among my favorite credit cards in my wallet today. I’d argue it’s the single best all around points earning credit card out there. The card comes with a great points earning structure which most people should find easy to maximize. For this reason, whenever anyone asks me for a credit card recommendation the Citi ThankYou Premier is always near the top of the list.
While I love the card, for the past several months Citi wasn’t offering a sign-up bonus. The card still made sense to carry, I couldn’t recommend applying for the card without a sign-up bonus. At the time there were other cards (Chase Sapphire Preferred) offering sizable sign-up bonuses which couldn’t be overlooked. However, Citi recently introduced an incredible sign-up bonus for the Citi ThankYou Premier card which makes the decision to finally apply for this card very easy.
The bonus is fantastic and everyone should consider applying, if eligible. It’s been a while since I’ve seen an offer this generous on this particular card and I’m not sure an offer this good will return anytime soon.
Citi ThankYou Premier Limited Time 50,000 Point Sign-Up Bonus
Before I jump into the Citi ThankYou Premier card’s benefits I want to outline the terms and conditions of the cards latest offer.
Citi is currently offering a 50,000 ThankYou point sign-up bonus after applying for the Citi ThankYou Premier card. To earn the 50,000 point bonus you must meet the minimum spending requirement of $4,000 within the first 90 days following account approval. With this offer Citi is also waiving the $95 annual fee for the first 12 months.
The only small issue with this 50,000 point sign-up bonus is that it doesn’t appear to (yet?) be available to the public. Instead, to unlock this offer you must use an affiliate link. You can easily find affiliate links by searching Google for “Citi ThankYou Premier 50,000.” If you’d like you can also use links provided by OneMileAtATime or Gary Leff. I’m not affiliated with either of them in any way, I just really enjoy reading both blogs.
Keep in mind you are not eligible for the offer if you’ve opened or closed either the Citi Prestige or Citi ThankYou Premier card in the past 24 months.
Is The Citi ThankYou Premier Card Worth Carrying?
While the 50,000 point sign-up bonus alone makes this card worth applying for it’s the card points earning structure that make it worth keeping open for years to come. For starters the card comes with great everyday spending bonus categories. The Citi ThankYou Premier card offers:
- 3X ThankYou Points on all travel including gas.
- 2X ThankYou Points on dining and entertainment
- 1X ThankYou Points on all other qualifying purchases.
When you compare that to the points earning structure of other $95 annual fee cards it’s clear that the Citi ThankYou Premier card offers superior bonus point earning opportunities. I can’t think of a card that offers a more well-rounded points earning structure. For that reason, this card would be a great fit for most. When compared to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card the Citi ThankYou Premier card is far superior.
The only downside to the Citi ThankYou Premier card is the smaller choice of airline transfer partners. Chase offers points transfers to more US based airlines than Citi which means it may be more difficult to use your Citi ThankYou points than Chase points. However, Citi ThankYou points transfer to at least one airline in every major alliance (SkyTeam, OneWorld, Star Alliance) which means you should be able to figure out a way to easily redeem points/miles.
Final Thoughts
This is a very rare and generous offer. The sign-up bonus alone is worth considering this card as there is no out-of-pocket expense for the first year. You are getting at least $750 of value (50,000*$0.015) at no cost to you. There’s potential to get even more value from the sign-up bonus and Citi ThankYou points. Last year I redeemed ThankYou points to fly Singapore Airlines Suites Class from New York to Frankfurt. For that flight I got well more than $0.015/point of value from my Citi ThankYou points.
Generally I try to avoid telling readers which credit cards to consider. I much prefer writing about cards and letting you, the reader, decide if a card fits your needs or not. However, every now and then the stars align and certain cards with increased sign-up bonuses seemingly make sense for everyone. When these situations arise I will try to point them out and explain why all readers should at least consider applying.
