Positive Changes Coming to Citi Prestige on July 23 (75,000 Point Signup Bonus, Online 4th-Night Booking, Cash Redemption, Metal Card) + Analysis

The rumored changes coming to the Citi Prestige card have been confirmed by TPG, including some new things we didn’t previously know.

The following positive changes will take place on July 23rd:

  • Signup bonus will go up to 75,000 Thank You points, though it will have a high spend requirement of $7,500 within three months
  • The Citi Prestige 4th-night-free benefit will be able to be booked entirely online, and the discount for the fourth night will come off at checkout
  • You’ll be able to pay for the hotel booking with Thank You points at a rate of 1 penny per point
  • The Prestige card will be metal
  • Prestige cardholders will be able to redeem points for cash at a rate of 1 penny per point

I asked Citi about the rumored Shoprunner benefit addition and they replied that they don’t have anything to announce on that; maybe we’ll still hear about that in the future. They also could not give a clear end-date for the increased 75,000 point bonus.

75,000 Signup Bonus

75,000 Thank You points is the best ever bonus on the Prestige card that comes to mind. While the card has a $450 annual fee, it also comes with a $250 airline credit which can be used twice during the first year, more than offsetting the annual fee.

75k is excellent, and anyone who is eligible to get a Thank You signup bonus should consider it for sure. If you can meet the spend, it’s worth getting this card instead of the 50,000 Premier signup bonus, then you can downgrade after the first year. Just make sure you are eligible for the bonus and aren’t bumping into the 24-month rule limitation (like me and many of us are).

While this signup bonus increase is maybe the biggest immediate news, bear in mind that it’s a temporary signup bonus increase, perhaps for a few months. As always, signup bonuses go up and down.

Online Booking

We all love doing things online instead of dealing with phone reps. This new method simplifies the process a lot, and it’s nice to be able to see the 4th night discount immediately while checking out at thankyou.com, as opposed to the old system where you get the money back as a statement credit.

While you can use the online booking option if you choose, the Citi Prestige Concierge phone booking option will remain exactly as before: the fourth night will be billed to your card and it’ll come back as a statement credit.

There are many reasons why using the online option can be a net negative:

  • You won’t get credit card points (3x travel) for the cost of the fourth night since it’s discounted at checkout
  • You won’t get hotel points since the booking was done via online travel agency (Citi); previously, the booking was like a cash booking for points purposes, done via Citi Concierge
  • You won’t be able to use special rates and corporate discounts since the booking is done through an online travel agency (Citi); previously, it was like a cash booking, and special discounts could be added
  • Those booking business travel will have a harder time getting reimbursed for the 4th night

Again, if you these factors matter to you, simply use the Citi Prestige Concierge booking method over the phone, and everything will run exactly as before.

Paying with Thank You points

Beginning July 23, you’ll be able to pay for all or part of your hotel stay with ThankYou points while booking the four night stay.

Paying for hotels and other travel with Citi’s online booking portal at a redemption rate of 1 cent per point isn’t new. (Airfare is even given a higher value of 1.25 cents for Prestige cardholders.) But since it wasn’t possible, in the past, to get the 4th-night benefit via online booking, it wasn’t either possible to use points in conjunction with that benefit.

Still, at the end of the day, you’re just getting 1 penny per point. I don’t see why anyone would use this option instead of redeeming out the points for cash (see below) and paying for the booking with a credit card. You still get the same 4th night free, so to say you are getting 1.33 cents value (due to the 4th night benefit) is misleading. Better book with a credit card and get points for the trip.

Metal Card

Another premium metal card. HOW MUCH WILL IT WEIGH???!!!  🙂

Citi tells us that existing Citi Prestige cards will be replaced with metal cards.

Cash Redemption

The addition of being able to cash out points at one penny per point is useless to some and invaluable to others. Citi doesn’t have an easy way of redeeming points for cash at full 1-penny value (though you can get a check for your mortgage at that rate), and now it’ll be easy to get the 1 penny without any tricks. Moreover, it will probably be possible to cash out Thank You points from other Citi cards at 1-penny per point, if you have the Prestige card, by transferring it over.

Citi has clarified with Doctorofcredit that Prestige cardholders will receive the 1 cent value even on their other ThankYou cards like Preferred and Premier.

Wrap Up

The increased signup bonus is excellent, and well worth considering if you are eligible and can meet the spend. The online booking sounds nice, as does the new cash redemption option.

Remember, it’s not all roses: we’ve known for a while that Citi will be making many negative changes on July 23. The positive changes mentioned above are meant to mitigate those somewhat.

  • The free golf benefit will be removed
  • No more American Airline redemptions at 1.6 cents-per-point
  • The airfare redemption rate of 1.33 cents-per-point will be lowered to 1.25 cents-per-point
  • The fourth-night-free benefit for hotels will be based on average nightly rate instead of the 4th night’s rate
  • The fourth-night-free benefit will no longer include taxes
  • No more Admirals Club access

Did Citi redeem themselves (pun intended) with these positive changes? I don’t see it. The signup bonus is irrelevant for existing cardholders, and the online booking + cash redemption are mostly just enhancements, not additional value. Still, they’ve made aspects of the card more palatable, which was likely their goal. And they’ll keep signups strong with the increased bonus.

[Post updated.]

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106 Comments
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Eve
Eve (@guest_544722)
December 31, 2017 17:10

Hello! I needed help in trying to decide between Citi Premier credit card VS. Citi Prestige credit card. My points got reinstated, and will expire Dec 2018. Therefore, I need to apply for a credit card within 2018.
There is an existing Citi Premier credit card (50k bonus with $4000 spending), but I read on another website about the Citi Prestige that was briefly available in July 2017 (mentioned in the above article) .

I am wondering if you think it’s highly likely that Citi will again offer such good Citi Prestige card offer within 2018?
If you don’t think that’s likely, and you think it’s better for me to just apply for the Citi premier’s existing 50k offer while it exists, please kindly advise. I am not subject to the 24 month rule. Thank you in advance!

Teddy Broosevelt
Teddy Broosevelt (@guest_498911)
October 22, 2017 22:05

I lied, nevermind…

ValueTactics
ValueTactics (@guest_494881)
October 16, 2017 11:38
William Charles
Admin
October 16, 2017 19:04

Yup

Teddy Broosevelt
Teddy Broosevelt (@guest_498908)
October 22, 2017 22:04

It’s back. 75k points after $7500 spend in 3 months.

William Charles
Admin
October 23, 2017 19:31

Link? Make sure you click apply, lots of landing pages still live but when you click apply they error out

Subexistence
Subexistence (@guest_446609)
July 25, 2017 20:11

To meet my spending requirements, I may need to add family members. Would I be successful if I called to waive the adding AU $ 0 fee?

Lisa
Lisa (@guest_443422)
July 20, 2017 18:55

Chuck,
I look for cash redemption value. I was unaware that TYPs could be redeemed for mortgage check. Good news! However, after googling, I see comments elsewhere that the redemption value has been reduced. Can you confirm that the redemption value for mortgage check is still one cent per point? Or is the redemption rate lower than that. Thanks.

Miles Hustler
Miles Hustler (@guest_441736)
July 18, 2017 09:32

Do we know for sure whether a downgrade/product change (say from a Prestige to a Preferred) will count as a closure for purposes of the opened or “closed” within 24 months rule?

Dave
Dave (@guest_441544)
July 17, 2017 21:12

So I opened my Premier card back in May 2013 and Prestige card in March 2015. Both cards are still open. Can I open an 2nd Prestige card to take advantage of the higher 75k sign up bonus? Or Citi won’t allow 2 card accounts of same type?

Subexistence
Subexistence (@guest_441336)
July 17, 2017 14:57

Why is it you don’t recommend downgrading to citiDC?

William Charles
Admin
July 17, 2017 18:54

It’s an option for sure and something we mention in our downgrade specific post, but I think there are often better every day cards now: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-credit-cards-for-every-day-purchases/

Ravi C.
Ravi C. (@guest_441291)
July 17, 2017 13:23

Can I product change my prestige to a double cash with no pull?

William Charles
Admin
July 17, 2017 18:59

Yes

HooDad
HooDad (@guest_441136)
July 17, 2017 09:35

I’ve used the 4th night free benefit twice this year, saving almost $600. I also snuck in three rounds of golf (two of which would have cost me $267 each at TPC Potomac) before that benefit ends this month. That’s the benefit I’m going to miss the most, though hanging in the Admirals Club made travel more bearable. Does any other card offer free golf?