Is Citi DC That Good?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

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Do you plan to keep your CSP? What sort of UR values can you get?

[Anonymous]

I like the DC, but there is no reason for you to apply for it before your double cash promotion with Discover runs out. The card doesn't have any sign up bonus, so you don't lose anything by waiting. I think QS is also good, and has a cleaner website. Some people just prefer the non-threashold of QS to the $25 threshold of DC and give up the 0.5% back.

[SunriseEarth]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

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It depends on your perspective and spend.   DC delivers 33% more rewards than QS, which is HUGE!!!!   It is also just an extra 0.5% on your non-category spend, which can be very small.      If your spend is large, it's well worth it, otherwise you might find better rewards for the HP via a sign up bonus on a different card.

(I have it and use it, QS gets very little use now, just foreign expenses)

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What is "huge" is the amount of spend you'd need to offset the fact that Citi DC has no signup bonus.   Both Cap One QS and Barclay CashForward have a $100 bonus once spend is met.   In order for DC's extra 0.5% to break even, you'd need to spend over $20,000.   

The rewards structure for Citi DC is 1% for spend and 1% for payment, and neither posts until the following statement closes.   Citi DC also has a $25 minimun redemption for rewards.  CashForward has a higher threshold ($50!), whereas QS has none.  QS rewards post very quickly after spend.   I'm not sure about CashForward, but if SM is at all indicative, they would post quickly.

If you have a significant general spend (or just don't want to deal with Cap One or Barclay), then DC would be a good choice.  If your non-category spend isn't significant, I think QS is the best choice of the three.  

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

---

Do you plan to keep your CSP? What sort of UR values can you get?

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I love my CSP, I didn't use it for a few months as I was hitting spend bonus on Marirott and Southwest at the same time. I've ran about $17k through the CSP since April. It's essentially my daily driver as I like how I can transfer them to any of their partners. BCE is my gas card, Discover is my large purchase card and for Discover Deals with the double cash back...but it's my lowest limit so I have to pay off 2x a month, which gets old.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

---

Do you plan to keep your CSP? What sort of UR values can you get?

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I love my CSP, I didn't use it for a few months as I was hitting spend bonus on Marirott and Southwest at the same time. I've ran about $17k through the CSP since April. It's essentially my daily driver as I like how I can transfer them to any of their partners. BCE is my gas card, Discover is my large purchase card and for Discover Deals with the double cash back...but it's my lowest limit so I have to pay off 2x a month, which gets old.

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The last mailed targeted offer I got for DC had an extended 0% period and low APR, but no signup bonus. That, combined with my ability to redeem URs well, makes the card totally unappealing.

Since you like CSP and DC (presumably) has no bonus for you, I suspect you may come to the same conclusion.

[yfan]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Banks charge interest ranging from 13-25% on their credit cards. Plus swipe fees. 1.5-2% cash back really is nothing. It's just a marketing strategy used to allow banks to compete for our business, and to keep people who can afford to from using cash.

They have huge amounts of profits left to use for high risk derivatives. 

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This assumes a false paradigm: Because a business is very profitable overall, it wants to suffer losses in parts of the business. Yes, the cashback rewards don't break Citi's (or Capial One's) back, but the credit card business itself has to make money, and preferably, they don't want any one customer losing them money.

[longtimelurker]

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@SunriseEarth wrote:

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

---

It depends on your perspective and spend.   DC delivers 33% more rewards than QS, which is HUGE!!!!   It is also just an extra 0.5% on your non-category spend, which can be very small.      If your spend is large, it's well worth it, otherwise you might find better rewards for the HP via a sign up bonus on a different card.

(I have it and use it, QS gets very little use now, just foreign expenses)

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What is "huge" is the amount of spend you'd need to offset the fact that Citi DC has no signup bonus.   Both Cap One QS and Barclay CashForward have a $100 bonus once spend is met.   In order for DC's extra 0.5% to break even, you'd need to spend over $20,000.   

The rewards structure for Citi DC is 1% for spend and 1% for payment, and neither posts until the following statement closes.   Citi DC also has a $25 minimun redemption for rewards.  CashForward has a higher threshold ($50!), whereas QS has none.  QS rewards post very quickly after spend.   I'm not sure about CashForward, but if SM is at all indicative, they would post quickly.

If you have a significant general spend (or just don't want to deal with Cap One or Barclay), then DC would be a good choice.  If your non-category spend isn't significant, I think QS is the best choice of the three.  

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Right, but taking into account sign ups does complicate the discussion.   Once you have met the spend for the $100 on QS (or CF) you can SD that card and go on to the next bonus card, in which the normal earning potential of the card is almost iorrelevant.   So at some stage you need to consider ongoing behavior.

[yfan]

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@SunriseEarth wrote:

What is "huge" is the amount of spend you'd need to offset the fact that Citi DC has no signup bonus.   Both Cap One QS and Barclay CashForward have a $100 bonus once spend is met.   In order for DC's extra 0.5% to break even, you'd need to spend over $20,000.   

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That's true, however, one successful price protection claim (either through Citi Price Rewind or through Mastercard's price protection program) can easily offset a $100 bonus. You buy something (say electronic). It drops in price within 60 (120 if World MC) days. They cut you a check. No such luck with Visa/Sig.

[Anonymous]

Interesting discussion...

[Anonymous]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@SunriseEarth wrote:

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Receiving pre-qual's in the mail and online from Citi...have the Discover It with double cash back promo currently until July of 2016...also have QS Visa Sig, just want to get opinions of those who have the DC to see if it's really that great - thanks in advance!

---

It depends on your perspective and spend.   DC delivers 33% more rewards than QS, which is HUGE!!!!   It is also just an extra 0.5% on your non-category spend, which can be very small.      If your spend is large, it's well worth it, otherwise you might find better rewards for the HP via a sign up bonus on a different card.

(I have it and use it, QS gets very little use now, just foreign expenses)

---

What is "huge" is the amount of spend you'd need to offset the fact that Citi DC has no signup bonus.   Both Cap One QS and Barclay CashForward have a $100 bonus once spend is met.   In order for DC's extra 0.5% to break even, you'd need to spend over $20,000.   

The rewards structure for Citi DC is 1% for spend and 1% for payment, and neither posts until the following statement closes.   Citi DC also has a $25 minimun redemption for rewards.  CashForward has a higher threshold ($50!), whereas QS has none.  QS rewards post very quickly after spend.   I'm not sure about CashForward, but if SM is at all indicative, they would post quickly.

If you have a significant general spend (or just don't want to deal with Cap One or Barclay), then DC would be a good choice.  If your non-category spend isn't significant, I think QS is the best choice of the three.  

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Right, but taking into account sign ups does complicate the discussion.   Once you have met the spend for the $100 on QS (or CF) you can SD that card and go on to the next bonus card, in which the normal earning potential of the card is almost iorrelevant.   So at some stage you need to consider ongoing behavior.

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The sign up bonus is irrelevant, as OP already has a QS. Therefore, the question is just whether the extra 0.5% is worth the extra potential hassel in redeeming.