The $95 annual-fee Citi Premier card was replaced last year by the Citi Strata Premier card. Earlier this year, Citi paused applications for the no-fee Rewards+ card.
The news today is that the Rewards+ card which launched in 2019 is being discontinued and replaced by a new Citi Strata no-annual-fee card.
New Strata Card
- Existing Rewards+ cardholders will be converted to the new Strata card on July 20, 2025 and will lose the special 10% rebate and roundup feature of the Rewards+ card. Those who opened their Rewards+ card from July 20, 2024 through July 19, 2025 will continue to have access to the Round Up feature and the 10% Points Back until July 19, 2026.
- New applications for the Strata card will become available later this year.
Card Details
- Both cards have no annual fee and 3% foreign transaction fee.
- 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months
The other details of the new Citi Strata no-fee card are very different from the Rewards+ card:
- Signup bonus on the Citi Strata at launch will be 30,000 ThankYou points. That’s better than the 20,000-25,000 offers we saw on the Rewards+ card.
- The 10% redemption rebate feature on the Rewards+ card will not be a feature of the Citi Strata card.
- The points roundup feature on the Rewards+ card will not be a feature of the Citi Strata card.
- Points earning details on the Strata card are better:
- 5x points on Hotels, Car Rentals and Attractions booked on Citi Travel
- 3x points at Supermarkets
- 3x points on Select Transit and at Gas and EV Charging Stations
- 3x points on an eligible Self-Select Category of your choice. Eligible categories include Fitness Clubs, Select Streaming Services, Live Entertainment, Cosmetic Stores/Barber Shops/Hair Salons or Pet Supply Stores.
- 2x points at Restaurants
- 1x points on All Other Purchases
Our Verdict
Obviously a bummer on the removal of the 10% and roundup feature. Overall, though, I’d say this can be a solid no-fee card for a non-hobbyist who is just using one card for everything. Getting 3x on Grocery/Gas/choice, and 2x on Restaurants isn’t bad. Still, I’d think for most people Double Cash makes more sense, especially given that the Strata is no longer easily redeemable for 1 cent per point.
Reminder: Before cards get converted on July 20, 2025, everyone should do redemptions to max out the 10,000 annual max for the 10% redemption bonus.
Hat tip to DDG
