AwardWallet receives compensation from advertising partners for links on the blog. The opinions expressed here are our own and have not been reviewed, provided, or approved by any bank advertiser. Here's our complete list of Advertisers.
Offers for the Chase Freedom Flex℠ are not available through this site. Some offers may have expired. Please see our card marketplace for available offers
The Citi Double Cash® Card is incredibly valuable for individuals who want to keep their rewards earning straightforward without an annual fee. This card earns an unlimited 2% back. You earn cash back as 1% when you buy plus 1% as you pay.
The best way to reach outsized value from the Citi Double Cash is by pairing it with one of Citi’s more premium cards, such as the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card. With both cards in your wallet, you can transfer the ThankYou® Points earned with the Citi Double Cash to transfer partners. This opens up the possibility of various airline and hotel partner redemptions for increased value. Otherwise, your options for redeeming rewards with the Citi Double Cash are fewer.
And while the Citi Double Cash typically hasn't offered a welcome bonus, it has one right now, meaning the card has become even more valuable in the first year. Here's everything you should know about the Citi Double Cash.
If you're looking to pay down debt or finance a larger purchase, this card also comes with one of the best available introductory APR offers on balance transfers.
- Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
- 2% cash back on every purchase - 1% when you buy + 1% when you pay
- 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the (Variable) APR will be 18.24% - 28.24% based on your creditworthiness
- There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5) completed within the first 4 months of account opening. After that, your fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5)
- No annual fee
Page Contents
Citi Double Cash Pros
- Unlimited 2% cash back (1% when you buy plus 1% as you pay).
- $0 annual fee.
- No minimum amount for redemptions.
- Citi ThankYou® points don't expire as long as your account is in good standing.
Citi Double Cash Cons
- Points transfer options are extremely limited without another Citi credit card in your wallet.
- 3% foreign transaction fee of the U.S. dollar amount for each purchase.
- No bonus spending categories.
Citi Double Cash Welcome Offer
The Citi Double Cash doesn't typically offer a welcome bonus. That's not the case right now, however.
New applicants can earn $200 bonus cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. That's a solid 13.33% return on spending during the introductory period.
Citi Double Cash Benefits
As a no-annual-fee card generally focused on cash back and not travel, the number of perks on the Citi Double Cash is limited. However, some benefits are worth highlighting. You'll enjoy these perks as a cardholder:
Introductory APR offer
New cardholders can enjoy introductory annual percentage rate (APR) offers on balance transfers as follows:
0% introductory APR on balance transfers for 18 months. Thereafter, your APR will be 18.24% - 28.24% (Variable). The fee for balance transfers depends on how long your account has been open: There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5) completed within the first 4 months of account opening. After that, your fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5)
Card protections
You'll enjoy typical $0 liability on unauthorized charges and fraud monitoring with your Citi Double Cash. Beyond these, you won't find protections like extended warranty or travel insurance, as Citi eliminated these benefits from most of its cards in 2019.
Citi Double Cash Earning Rates
The Citi Double Cash earns cash back at the following rate: 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.
This means the card is excellent for non-bonus spending on categories not covered by your other cards. It is also great for keeping things simple: No matter what, you are earning at least 2% cash back, which is tough to beat. That makes this one of the best credit cards for everyday spending.
Redeeming Rewards With the Citi Double Cash
With the Citi Double Cash, your cash back is earned as Citi ThankYou Points.
However, if you only have the Citi Double Cash and don't have a Citi ThankYou Points-earning card with an annual fee, your redemption options are more limited. You can redeem your ThankYou Points in the form of cash back as a statement credit, direct deposit, or check. Additionally, you can redeem points for gift cards or travel. These redemptions are typically at 1¢ per point for your rewards, which is the baseline value you should aim for with redemptions from this card.
You also have the option to transfer your points to three partners:
- Choice Privileges: 1,000:1,500 transfer ratio
- JetBlue TrueBlue: 1,000:800 transfer ratio
- Wyndham Rewards: 1,000:800 transfer ratio
However, if you have the Citi Prestige® Card (no longer open to new applicants) or Citi Strata Premier, the best way to extract value from your points is with the 21 Citi airline and hotel transfer partners. While redeeming for cash back provides 1¢ per point, AwardWallet readers typically redeem Citi ThankYou Points at 2.17¢ apiece with transfer partners — more than double the value of getting cash back.
However, to access the full gamut of transfer partners and their optimal transfer ratios, having the Citi Double Cash by itself won't be enough. That's a clear drawback.
Related: Build a Winning Combo of Citi ThankYou Rewards Cards
Application Restrictions
Citi has some application restrictions that may limit you from getting approved for the card or being eligible for a signup bonus. For instance, Citi has an 8/65 rule that applicants must abide by to be approved, including:
- No more than one Citi card in an eight-day period
- No more than two Citi cards in a 65-day period
For more details, check out our post covering application restrictions for major credit card providers.
Cards That Compete With the Citi Double Cash
- Earn 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent
- 1% cash back thereafter, plus, you'll earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases
- No rotating bonus categories to sign up for – as your spending changes each billing cycle, your earn adjusts automatically when you spend in any of the eligible categories.
- Special Travel Offer: Earn an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel℠ portal through 6/30/2025.
- Eligible spending categories are: Restaurants, Gas Stations, Grocery Stores, Select Travel, Select Transit, Select Streaming Services, Drugstores, Home Improvement Stores, Fitness Clubs and Live Entertainment.
- Earn 5% on purchases through Chase Travel℠
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1.5% on all purchases
- 5X miles per dollar on purchases through Capital One Entertainment (through 12/31/2025)
- 5X miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 2X miles per dollar on all other purchases
- If you're looking for bonus spending categories, consider the Citi Custom Cash® Card with a $0 annual fee. This cash-back card can be more valuable if you hold other Citi cards, as described above. More details are in our Citi Custom Cash review.
- If you want a card that earns elevated non-bonus spending but also has bonus categories, look into the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. This card offers unlimited 1.5% on all other purchases cash back on all purchases and 3% on dining and drugstores. The card also earns 5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠ and does not have an annual fee. You can learn more in our full review of the Freedom Unlimited.
- If you want a card with 2X earnings and transfer partners, check out the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. It earns 2X miles on all purchases with no limits, plus 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked in the travel portal. The miles can be transferred directly to Capital One’s hotel and airline partners with no other card needed. More details are available in our Capital One Venture review.
Related: Our Favorite Benefits on Credit Cards With No Annual Fee
Bottom Line
The Citi Double Cash is a lucrative cash-back credit card offering 2% on every purchase. This simplicity in earning points is excellent for non-bonus spending and for those who do not want to worry about when to use different cards. This is especially true considering there is no annual fee. Where the card begins to shine is when it is paired with a premium Citi credit card and the rewards’ value increases.
If you're looking to pay down debt or finance a larger purchase, this card also comes with one of the best available introductory APR offers on balance transfers.
- Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
- 2% cash back on every purchase - 1% when you buy + 1% when you pay
- 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the (Variable) APR will be 18.24% - 28.24% based on your creditworthiness
- There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5) completed within the first 4 months of account opening. After that, your fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5)
- No annual fee
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Freedom Unlimited® (Rates & Fees)
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
