topic Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards? in Credit Cards

best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 06:22:41 GMT

which method will give me the full amount because I read that some methods give only like 99% of the rewards? Is it direct deposit or check?

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 06:25:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
which method will give me the full amount because I read that some methods give only like 99% of the rewards? Is it direct deposit or check?

Either one of those probably.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 08:03:57 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
which method will give me the full amount because I read that some methods give only like 99% of the rewards? Is it direct deposit or check?
Either one of those probably.

Either direct deposit or check is fine. If you get a statement credit you won't get 1% credit for the amount paid. Practically, this is inconsequential since the difference is 1.99% v. 2.00% rewards. But if you want the maximum get it in a non statement credit form so you can get the 1% for paying as well (you lose out on the 1% cashback on the portion paid by the statement balance).

Example:

You spend $1000. You get 1% back which is $10. If you paid the $1000 as well, you would get another 1% or $10 back for a total of $20. If on the other hand you used a statement credit of $10 and paid $990, you would only get an additional 1% back on the 990 which is 9.90 dollars. Thus, your total cash back would be 1% of 1000 spend plus 1% of 990 paid which is 19.90 dollars. You would lose 10 cents for every $1000 spent if you used it this way. 10 cents is 0.01% of $1000. Thus, your cash back would be 2% - 0.01% or 1.99% if you got a statement credit and paid the rest versus 2% if you paid the whole thing and cashed out the balance (check or direct deposit).

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 12:52:10 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
which method will give me the full amount because I read that some methods give only like 99% of the rewards? Is it direct deposit or check?
Either one of those probably.

Either direct deposit or check is fine. If you get a statement credit you won't get 1% credit for the amount paid. Practically, this is inconsequential since the difference is 1.99% v. 2.00% rewards. But if you want the maximum get it in a non statement credit form so you can get the 1% for paying as well (you lose out on the 1% cashback on the portion paid by the statement balance).

Example:

You spend $1000. You get 1% back which is $10. If you paid the $1000 as well, you would get another 1% or $10 back for a total of $20. If on the other hand you used a statement credit of $10 and paid $990, you would only get an additional 1% back on the 990 which is 9.90 dollars. Thus, your total cash back would be 1% of 1000 spend plus 1% of 990 paid which is 19.90 dollars. You would lose 10 cents for every $1000 spent if you used it this way. 10 cents is 0.01% of $1000. Thus, your cash back would be 2% - 0.01% or 1.99% if you got a statement credit and paid the rest versus 2% if you paid the whole thing and cashed out the balance (check or direct deposit).

I agree that it is pretty inconsequential. But setting it up once is pretty quick (although maybe more than 10c of your time!) so you may as well do that and get the full value. If you had to call each time (as wiith TYP mortgage/student loan redemption) then it probably wouldn't be worth it.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 13:06:35 GMT

This is why I'm not crazy about the way the rewards work with this card. Redemption gets a little murky.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 13:23:58 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
This is why I'm not crazy about the way the rewards work with this card. Redemption gets a little murky.

Well, there is the one extra step of setting up ACH once. Fidelity is the same (or more) with setting up the CMA. So this is very minor IMO, and you can even just go statement credit and get 1.99, which is really pretty similar to 2!

And even the "wrong" choice of statement credit here is much less bad than doing things like getting statement credit/cash on Amex MR or Citi TY cards, or using points on Amazon with those cards. So I don't think that murky is a fair description.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 13:26:24 GMT

Yea but amex MR and citi TYP aren't advertised as cash back. They're points. Nowhere do they claim you will get x amount of value out of them for cash.

Double cash is advertised 2 percent cash back meaning you should always get 2 percent cash back.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:04:25 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
Yea but amex MR and citi TYP aren't advertised as cash back. They're points. Nowhere do they claim you will get x amount of value out of them for cash.

Double cash is advertised 2 percent cash back meaning you should always get 2 percent cash back.

The only reason one doesn't get 2% back when claimed as a statement credit is because of a technicality.

Sure, they could fix it to where you get issued x amount of CB for every redemption ala $.25 per $25 redemption, and so forth... But this is Citi we're talking about and they're going to nerf it anyway, right?

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:40:54 GMT

Oh I understand that this tiny amount is a technicality and not a big deal. Its not. Its just that I don't see why they make the card and redemption so much more confusing than it needs to be. Why didn't they just do 2 percent instead of 1+1?

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

takeshi74 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:46:56 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
Double cash is advertised 2 percent cash back meaning you should always get 2 percent cash back.

No, it's not. It's advertised as 1% + 1% which is exactly what it is. If you have a Citi link indicating that it is 2% please share. Your murkiness stems from your assumption but that's understandable as people lump it in with 2% cards.

@kdm31091 wrote:
Why didn't they just do 2 percent instead of 1+1?

Probably because a fair number of consumers carry balances. While they're carrying they're only going to get the 1% on purchases and won't get the 1% on payments.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:46:54 GMT

Right, its advertised as 1 plus 1, which equals 2. So, you should still get 2 percent not 1.99. I don't care about 0.01 percent but the fact is they're advertising it as 2 percent since 1 and 1 is 2.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

takeshi74 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:49:45 GMT

Again, you're assuming. You get 1% on purchases. You get 1% on payments. If you redeem for a statement credit then there's a portion you can't pay. If you don't pay for that portion of the balance then you can't get the 1% on payment for that portion of the balance. Again, don't assume. You can't just add 1 and 1. If it was 2% they'd advertise it as 2%.

If that doesn't work for you then find another card that does.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:49:34 GMT

Assuming what? That 1 plus 1 equals 2? Come on.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:49:57 GMT

Its not about whether it works for me, I just find the structure to be strange.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

takeshi74 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:52:27 GMT

You're compeletely ignoring what the numbers mean and assuming you can just add them. You can't and that's precisely why it's not advertised as 2% cash back.

@kdm31091 wrote:
Its not about whether it works for me, I just find the structure to be strange.

Sure it is. If you find it strange you don't have to use it. Plenty of others find it useful. Those that don't can skip it. Same as any other rewards program out there.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:52:30 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
Assuming what? That 1 plus 1 equals 2? Come on.

The commercial even says 1% when you spend, 1% when you pay.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:52:44 GMT

Well, either way, I don't see how they can't just give the reward right away. Id PIF anyway, but it takes until statement cut for your 1 percent to post, and then another statement for the full 2 percent, from your payment. Yes? Or is that wrong?

I just find that kind of annoying, but then again my BCE takes a month to post rewards haha

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:53:49 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
Well, either way, I don't see how they can't just give the reward right away. Id PIF anyway, but it takes until statement cut for your 1 percent to post, and then another statement for the full 2 percent, from your payment. Yes? Or is that wrong?

I just find that kind of annoying, but then again my BCE takes a month to post rewards haha

Orrrrr

They could just withhold the 1% until payment is made and give you 2% for paying.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

kdm31091 — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 14:55:27 GMT

I dunno. I like the 2 percent thing just not crazy about how they execute it. Maybe next year when I'm not gardening anymore they'd give me a decent limit. I have a bad taste in my mouth from the ridiculous 1K limit they gave me in the fall, which I promptly closed.

Re: best way to redeem citi double cash rewards?

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 15:00:04 GMT

@kdm31091 wrote:
I dunno. I like the 2 percent thing just not crazy about how they execute it. Maybe next year when I'm not gardening anymore they'd give me a decent limit. I have a bad taste in my mouth from the ridiculous 1K limit they gave me in the fall, which I promptly closed.

You kill me with this, lol..

It's pretty easy just to get it Direct deposit to get the full 2%. However the fact remains that when you PIF, You DO in fact get your other 1%, If you redeem as statement credit you are shorting yourself the other 0.01% on future cashback, not the cashback in question at the time of redemption.