@qlopp wrote:Hi, I haven't found much discussion about this, maybe because it is fairly new. I am new to the cash back card world as well. Recently I received notice from Citi that ThankYou points were going to be rewarded going forward, however one can still apply cash back to their account balance, have it deposited in their checking account, etc like before. I didn't think much about it. Then Citi and Amazon started promoting the use of TY points on Amazon purchases.
Tonight I just started the payment process on my first Amazon purchase since this went into effect and noticed the new payment option, where it shows Citi TYP and its cash equivalent. It turns out that Amazon figures the points at 80% of their Citi cash back value. I logged into Citi.com and verified that Citi cash back still works the same, in that you request your cash back in whatever form you want and you get that full cash amount. For example, 5000 points equals $50 using conventional Citi methods of payment but only $40 in Amazon dollars.
If that's the way it is then so be it. WHY is it that way, though? Why would anyone use points for something when they are worth less than their cash value?
Welcome to the forum.
For some of the points programs, using the points on Amazon is a loser. And the TYP program is a good example. But it's not the only example.
So the short answer is don't waste your TYP points on Amazon.
As to why anyone would use TYP's there, it could be because they don't know better, or because they were short on money or credit that day, or because they made a mistake.... or any number of other possibilities. Just make sure you don't 
