Citi cards-- awards worth it? Great Intro APR

[wilkersonk]

Hello!

I do not have any Citi cards and I have received several mailers from them the past few days for the Diamond Preferred and the ThankYou card. They have specific APR's, so I assume they're legit. So a couple of questions-- Is the reward system worth it? I have an Amex Plat & Gold, along with a Chase Preferred and Reserve. All of those cards have been amazing for free/upgraded travel. I am missing a connection with American airlines miles though. I got a large SL with my Preferred at 16k and 29k for the reserve. I don't want a pull if the SL will be low (which I've seen on a lot of Citi cards on here). I just put a big purchase on my amex that I wouldn't mind transferring to the 0% APR.  

[MrDisco99]

If you're looking for AAdvantage miles and status, Citi's ThankYou rewards won't do you any good.  You'll need to get their AA branded cards for that.

[wilkersonk]

Thank you for the note! Would you happen to know if the Thankyou rewards are equal to the Chase Ultimate rewards? 

[FinStar]

Apples to Oranges OP.

Ultimately, what each person valuates TY points versus URs will largely depend on how they're used and the yield in redemption value. It also depends on the earning product or vehicle: TY Preferred/Premier or Prestige versus CSP/CSR.

If American happens to be your primary carrier look into Citi's AA cards and/or compare against Barclays Aviator CC as well.

[GeorgiaBulldog]

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@wilkersonk wrote:

Thank you for the note! Would you happen to know if the Thankyou rewards are equal to the Chase Ultimate rewards? 

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While it comes down to how you'll use them, generally speaking, folks consider UR more valuable than TYP.  

Citi's program only has one domestic airline (JetBlue) and an unfavorable transfer ratio, which is a big minus for a lot of folks.  You can book domestic flights with some of the foreign transfer partners, though (I know this is possible with Flying Blue and Avianca--not sure about other transfer partners).  Citi also has no hotel transfer partners (they lost Hilton, but that generally wasn't a good use of points either).

Chase UR has more domestic options (Southwest and United) at a better 1:1 ratio and lots of hotel options (though Hyatt's the only really solid one IMO).