Are thank you points worthwhile?

[mongstradamus]

I think you really need to look at the airline partners for TYP, the issue is i am not sure there are any domestic airlines. The flip side of that is that they at least have access to the 3 alliances. Also like MR i would never use points to transfer to Hilton there is just no value there for me personally. 

[sunkissed]

Y'all are awesome!  Thanks so much for all the help.  The Citi TY Premier card is not a "best choice" for me, so I'm going to pass.  I may decide at some point in the future to go with the Prestige (when I'm able to capitalize on the travel credit).  In the meantime, my spade is still intact.

[enharu]

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@sunkissed wrote:

Y'all are awesome!  Thanks so much for all the help.  The Citi TY Premier card is not a "best choice" for me, so I'm going to pass.  I may decide at some point in the future to go with the Prestige (when I'm able to capitalize on the travel credit).  In the meantime, my spade is still intact.

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TY points can be useful but for your case, they don't seem to be.

If I were you, I'd focus primarily on Chase UR points instead. 

I wouldn't get the Prestige if I were you either, unless your travel plans change dramatically. The Prestige is a nice card and all, but since you don't fly with any of the partners Citi is working with, AA included, you are much better off with the CSP or some other UR earning card. And the CSP has a lower AF which makes it a no brainer for u really. AA lounge access and priority pass isn't going to make a significant difference, if any at all, when you're flying Southwest. 

[IWOL]

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@sunkissed wrote:

I’ve been considering the Citi Thankyou Premier card, largely because it give 3x points on entertainment – a category I spend a decent amount in but do not have covered by any other card. I fly Southwest. I do know that thank you points can be used to book Southwest flights. Unfortunately, I’d have to book those over the phone, as it is not an option online. I’m also aware of the new transfer partners added this summer. I don’t use any of their partners, except for Hilton. Hilton transfers don’t appear to be a good value.  I’m kinda hoping that once the AA/US merger settles out, AA will be added as a transfer partner also, but I’m not sure how realistic that hope is considering that would compete with Citi’s AA cards.

I have a Southwest card and CSP, so I don’t need this card to fly. I’m mostly considering it because my entertainment spend is going either un-bonused or on cashback cards, like Quicksilver. I was hoping to squeeze more value out of that spend category.

I’m also wrestling with the $125 AF. Although waived the first year, I’m not sure if the math will work in my favor long-term.

Thoughts?

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OP....one way to get more points out of the entertainment category is to purchase visa gift cards at grocery stores and then use the gift cards for your entertainment spend using cards that earn grocery bonus.

.

[sexy_kitten7]

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@sunkissed wrote:

sexy_kitten7, you state exactly what I was concerned about: the 3x spend required to breakeven on the card is steep and it is not recommended as an everyday card.

I'm still undecided...1st year's AF is waived.  The bonus offered on Citi's site is for 20k points after $2k spend within first 3 months + 30k points after another $3k spend in the first 3 months of the second year.  That's a lot of work - a lot to track to not miss both ends of the bonus.

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Thanks for reminding me about this. So you could either ramp up spend during month 13 and try to close it within 60 days of AF hitting or you'd have to factor in this cost into your cost/benefit analysis. Citi is famous for clawbacks wrt AA miles so I wouldn't put it past them to be aggressive here if you try to be sneaky as I suggested lol!