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We've previously written about temporary elevated earning rates for several Citi credit cards. The Citi Double Cash® Card previously earned 5% back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through the Citi Travel portal through December 31, 2025. Plus, Citi Custom Cash® Card cardholders earned 5% cash back (5x ThankYou points) on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel through June 30, 2025.
Now, Citibank has announced permanent heightened earnings on those travel categories for both cards beginning May 18, 2025. Let's dig into the details of this news.
Overview of the Citi Double Cash and Custom Cash
As a refresher, Citi Double Cash® Card has a simple earning structure: Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. To earn cash back, pay at least the minimum due on time. Plus, a special travel offer, earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/25.. Rewards are delivered in the form of ThankYou points, which are convertible to cash back at a ratio of one point to 1% cash back.
The Citi Custom Cash® Card earns 5% cash back in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent (1% cash back thereafter), and 1% cash back on all other purchases, plus an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel℠ portal through 6/30/2025. So that means you can earn a total of 9% cash back (9X points per dollar spent) on the first $500 in eligible travel expenses each billing cycle when booked through Citi Travel!
Citi Makes Travel Portal Bonus Earnings Permanent
Now, as of May 18, 2025, these heightened earning rates are a permanent benefit of the cards. You'll earn 5x ThankYou points (or 5% total cash back) with the Citi Double Cash and 5x ThankYou points (which equates to 5% cash back) with the Citi Custom Cash — plus the bonus earning if travel is your top spending category each billing cycle).
This earning rate applies to three categories:
- Hotels
- Car rentals
- Attractions
Unfortunately, that means you won't earn 5x on airfare. Therefore, for Citi Custom Cash cardholders to get the 9X earning rate, you'll need to spend on hotels, rental cars, or attractions in the travel portal, with travel being your top spending category.
Earn even more when paired with certain cards
If you happen to have the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card or Citi Prestige® Card in your wallets, your rewards on this offer could be even more lucrative. That's because pairing ThankYou points earned with Citi Double Cash and Citi Custom Cash with a premium Citi points-earning card opens up the possibility to transfer points to Citi's transfer partners. Taking advantage of this could save you more on your travel through awards instead of redeeming for statement credits.
How does this compare to other card ecosystems?
Citi seems to be attempting to compete directly with Chase's slate of credit cards. The Chase Freedom Unlimited® and Chase Freedom Flex℠ cards both earn 5% cash back on travel booked through Chase Travel. The difference between Citi and Chase is that Citi's 5% elevated earnings are only valid for hotels, rental cars, and attractions. With Chase, every purchase made through the Chase Travel portal is eligible for 5% cash back, including flights.
Similar to Citi, if you hold a Chase Ultimate Rewards earning credit card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you can transfer your points earned from the cashback cards and convert them to Ultimate Rewards. That opens up transfer partner possibilities to programs — like World of Hyatt.
Our Take
Promotional offers made permanent for the benefit of cardholders are great to see. But, like all booking portal earnings, you have to weigh what you're giving up in rewards elsewhere before taking advantage. The biggest potential issue is if you enjoy hotel elite status and points earning, as booking through Citi Travel would likely negate any loyalty benefits enjoyed by booking directly with the hotel brand. You'll also want to make sure you're booking the best rate available, as travel portals can sometimes have different pricing than other booking channels.
The offers are potentially enticing for the right cardholder, especially if you have a premium Citi card to multiply your rewards by utilizing transfer partners. However, the exclusion of flights from Citi Travel bonus earnings is not as competitive as other credit card travel portals in the market.
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