Citi Double Cash Card review: 2% cash back on everything

Citi® Double Cash Card overview

The Citi Double Cash Card (see rates and fees) is one of the simplest and most rewarding cash-back rewards cards. With up to 2% earnings on all purchases — 1% when you make a purchase and another 1% when you pay it off — it’s difficult to beat this no-annual-fee card. Plus, you can convert your rewards to fully transferable ThankYou points if you also have other select Citi cards. Card rating*: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

*Card rating is based on the opinion of TPG’s editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.

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The Citi Double Cash Card is the cash-back card I recommend most to friends and family. If you’re earning less than 2% back on your credit or debit card purchases, you can benefit from how the Citi Double Cash Card earns up to 2% cash back on all purchases (given as 1% when you make a purchase, plus 1% as you pay that purchase off).

You’ll usually need a fair credit score of 580 or higher to get approved for the Citi Double Cash Card. But this card has no annual fee, so it’s a great card to keep in your wallet long-term. [LHR]

You’ll automatically earn cash-back rewards in the form of ThankYou points that you can redeem for statement credits and more. But you’ll unlock higher-value redemption options if you also hold a Citi Premier® Card (see rates and fees) or Citi Prestige® Card (no longer available to new applicants), as you can then convert your rewards to fully transferable ThankYou points.

Let’s take a closer look at this simple yet valuable card.

The information for the Citi Prestige has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Citi Double Cash welcome offer

There is currently no welcome offer for cash-back rewards on the Citi Double Cash.

However, the card offers an introductory 0% annual percentage rate for the first 18 months from account opening for balance transfers. Note that you must transfer a balance within the first four months to be eligible for the introductory 0% APR, and you’ll need to pay a balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5). After that, your fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5). After the introductory APR period ends, the variable APR is 19.24% to 29.24% based on your creditworthiness.

Note that you won’t earn cash back on balance transfers, and the introductory APR doesn’t apply to purchases. If you transfer a balance, interest will be charged on your purchases unless you pay your entire balance (including balance transfers) by the due date each month.

Related: Why the Citi Double Cash will always have a place in my wallet

Citi Double Cash benefits

The Citi Double Cash Card doesn’t offer many other standout benefits or perks as a no-annual-fee card. However, it does offer:

• A chip-enabled card to use at merchants that support contactless pay
• $0 liability on unauthorized charges
• Access to Citi Entertainment, which offers special access to purchase tickets to thousands of events
• Enrollment in complimentary ID theft protection that monitors your information and alerts you if suspicious activity is found

Note that the Citi Double Cash has a 3% foreign transaction fee. As such, you’ll want to have an alternate card without foreign transaction fees to use when traveling outside the U.S.

Related: What credit score do you need to get the Citi Double Cash Card?

Earning rewards on the Citi Double Cash

You’ll earn cash back in the form of ThankYou points with limited transferability when you make purchases with the Citi Double Cash Card. Cardmembers earn 1% cash back when they buy and 1% when they pay for their purchases.

However, Citi Double Cash members should see a banner for a limited-time offer when they log in to the Citi Travel site. With this limited-time offer, Citi Double Cash cardmembers will earn 5% total cash-back rewards — 3% cash back on top of that standard 1% when you buy and 1% when you pay — on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked through the Citi Travel site through Dec. 31, 2024.

Your card account must be current to earn rewards. This means you must pay at least the minimum payment due by the first day of each billing period — although it’s best practice to pay your statement in full whenever possible.

Related: Best 2%-cash-back credit cards

Redeeming rewards on the Citi Double Cash

The Citi Double Cash Card earns ThankYou points with limited transferability. The value you’ll get when redeeming these ThankYou points will vary depending on the redemption you choose. Here’s a look at how to redeem the ThankYou points you earn with the Citi Double Cash Card.

Redeem for cash back

If you want the simplest redemption option that still provides good value, you can redeem for cash-back rewards at a rate of 1 cent per point. You can request this cash back as a statement credit or direct deposit of any amount. Alternatively, you can request a check in the mail if you redeem for at least $5 in cash-back rewards.

Redeem for gift cards

You can also redeem your ThankYou points for gift cards, although the redemption rate will vary depending on the merchant. You’ll usually find the highest redemption rates in the sale section, where I found a $25 Red Lobster gift card on sale for 2,250 points (a redemption rate of 1.11 cents per point).

Book travel

You can redeem Citi ThankYou points earned with the Citi Double Cash Card toward hotels, flights, rental cars and attractions you book through the Citi Travel portal. In the example searches I did for each type of travel booking, I could get 1 cent per point each when redeeming points from my Citi Double Cash account.

Shop with points

You can also redeem Citi ThankYou points at the following merchants through the Shop with Points program:

• Amazon
• Best Buy
• BP/Amoco
• CVS
• Dollar General
• Paypal
• Shell
• Walmart
• 1-800-Flowers

However, you’ll usually get a redemption rate of less than 1 cent per point when you Shop with Points. As such, we recommend redeeming for a statement credit or direct deposit instead of using Shop for Points.

Donate your points

You can also donate your ThankYou points to various charities, starting at just 1,000 points per donation. However, it will usually be better to get a statement credit or direct deposit and then donate to a charity of your choice if you feel generous.

Transfer your points

As we’ll discuss in the next section, you can also redeem your points by transferring them to other Citi ThankYou Rewards members or travel loyalty programs.

Related: Redeeming Citi ThankYou points for maximum value

Transferring points on the Citi Double Cash

You can transfer points you earn with your Citi Double Cash Card in two primary ways. Firstly, you can transfer up to 100,000 ThankYou points per calendar year to other ThankYou members. However, know that points transferred to other members expire 90 days after they’re received.

You can also transfer Citi ThankYou points to select loyalty partners. If you don’t have the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige card, you’ll only have the option to transfer to four loyalty partners:

• Choice Privileges: 1,000 ThankYou points can be converted to 1,500 Choice points
• JetBlue TrueBlue: 1,000 ThankYou points can be converted to 800 JetBlue points
• Shop Your Way: 1 ThankYou point can be converted to 10 Shop Your Way points
• Wyndham Rewards: 1,000 ThankYou points can be converted to 800 Wyndham points

If you also have the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige, you can combine the ThankYou points from your Citi Double Cash Card with the ThankYou points from one of these cards. When you do this, you’ll be able to use your ThankYou points as if you earned them with your Citi Premier or Citi Prestige, including transferring them to all of the standard Citi ThankYou Rewards partners.

Related: 5 of the best Citi ThankYou Rewards redemption sweet spots

Which cards compete with the Citi Double Cash?

The Citi Double Cash Card is a great choice to earn 2% cash back (1% when you make a purchase and another 1% when you pay it off). But, there are three primary situations where a different cash-back rewards card might be better for you:

Related: How to choose a cash-back credit card

Is the Citi Double Cash worth it?

The Citi Double Cash is a great choice if you’re looking for simple cash-back rewards without worrying about spending categories.

You can also use the Citi Double Cash as part of a larger Citi credit card strategy. After all, you can get more value from Double Cash rewards when you have a premium Citi ThankYou card and can utilize the full set of Citi ThankYou transfer partners.

Related: Why the Citi Double Cash Card is an integral part of my strategy to beat inflation

Bottom line

If you’re looking for a cash-back credit card where you don’t have to worry about bonus categories, the Citi Double Cash Card may very well be the right card for you.

But even if you do like to maximize bonus categories with other cards, the Citi Double Cash can also serve as an everyday spending card for your non-bonus category purchases. If you have a premium Citi credit card like the Citi Premier, you can unlock more transfer partners for the rewards you earn with your Citi Double Cash Card.

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Apply here for the Citi Double Cash Card.