(Back Again) Citi Premier: Welcome Offer Increased to 75K ThankYou Points

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Update 5/18/23: There is a still-functioning public link available for the 75K offer on the Citi Premier. We’ve inserted that public link into the Best Offers page. (h/t: reader Roberta)

Earlier today, we shared the news that Citi had increased the welcome offer on the AAdvantage Platinum Select credit card to 75,000 miles. It didn’t stop there, though. Citi has also increased the welcome offer on the Premier card to 75,000 bonus ThankYou points after spending $4,000 within the first three months.

That’s an excellent offer on a great all-round card and only 5,000 points below the all-time best of 80K that was around for much of last year.

A reader pointed out that, along with the increased welcome offer, Citi has also increased the eligilbility restrictions:

Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi Premier account in the past 48 months.

Previously, all ThankYou Point earning cards had the same 24 month language that prohibited earning a welcome bonus on a ThankYou Point-earning card if you had received a welcome bonus or closed any other ThankYou point-earning card within the last 24 months (the “family rule). Now, that has been replaced with a card-specific 48-month rule with the closing language removed. The same language is on the Rewards+, Custom Cash and AT&T Points Plus as well.

The one positive is that this makes it much easier to move within the Citi Portfolio since all of the language is card-specific and there’s no more closing langua

The Offer & Key Card Details

Card Offer and Details
Citi Premier Card

FM Mini Review: Very strong earnings for spend. Excellent bonus categories. Points transferable to select airlines. Recommend pairing this card with Citi Double Cash and Citi Rewards+. Sadly, this travel card doesn't provide any travel protections.


Card Type: Mastercard World Elite

Base
Travel
Dine
Gas
Grocery

Earning rate: 3X grocery ⚬ 3X dining ⚬ 3X gas stations ⚬ 3X flights, hotels, travel agencies

Noteworthy perks: Transfer points to airline partners ⚬ $100 Annual Hotel Savings Benefit

See also: Citi ThankYou Rewards Complete Guide

Quick Thoughts

75,000 ThankYou points is just 5,000 points shy of the all-time high on the Citi Premier card. It’s a fantastic bonus for a transferable currency that’s become more well-rounded in the past year since as they finally added a couple of hotel transfer partners – Wyndham at 1:1 and Choice at 1:2.

One of the best features of the Citi Premier card is that it offers 3x ThankYou points for several categories where you’ll organically spend a significant chunk of your monthly expenditure:

  • Groceries
  • Dining
  • Gas stations
  • Flights, hotels, travel agencies

If you were to meet the $4,000 minimum spend requirement by spending that all at 3x, you’d end up with 87,000 ThankYou points. That could get you 5 round trip economy flights to Hawaii booked on United after transferring points to Turkish Miles & Smiles, 174,000 Choice Privileges points or 5 nights in a one bedroom Vacasa property booked using Wyndham Rewards points.

Another great feature of the Citi Premier card is that the 3x grocery store category is uncapped. While many people will prefer to earn 4x Membership Rewards points on the Amex Gold card, that’s capped at $25,000 spend per year per Gold card. While that’s plenty for the average household, for people who can maximize their spend at grocery stores, earning a potentially unlimited number of ThankYou points makes it a wonderful additional option for when you need to spend a lot on “groceries”.

Bear in mind that Citi has the following 48 month rule when applying for this card:

Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi Premier account in the past 48 months.

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ECR12

Was at 22 months on my most recent premier, so this is pretty brutal timing for me. On the flip side, I had been putting off cancelling my 2 current premier’s until I got the bonus on #3, so I guess I’ll save those annual fee’s and use the 5/24 slot on a card from a different issuer…

[…] Citi has updated its standard language along with a new 75,000 point sign-up bonus on the Premier card. The new language: “Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi Premier account in the past 48 months.” So watch out if this one’s on your radar, and also don’t forget about the Citi Double Dip with these bonuses after 48 months. (Thanks to FM) […]

whocares

any thoughts on how long this 75k offer will last?

Can’t apply until June or so.

Sally Mae

Only this week I heard

[…] Citi Premier: Welcome Offer Increased to 75K ThankYou Points […]

Ben

My wife (P2) just got it yesterday with 75k bonus… If Strata ever happens, then I might sign up for that!

Lantean

Does Citi still approve you for a card if you’re not eligible for the welcome offer?

chandace

Got instantly declined. Apparently citi now uses a numeric score system to approve applications. If you’ve recently opened another card, you’re pretty much doomed.

Mark

Ughh!!! I applied yesterday and was approved (this was my 3rd try in the last 12 months). I didn’t notice the new terms though. My records show I received my last City Premier in January 2019 and the bonus on April 15 2019. 8 days away from 48 months. I really hope they still give me the bonus.

Bob

It seems the link to the 75,000 bonus Thankyou points no longer is active. Could Citi have remove this offer already?

Matt

I noticed the same thing but in my app I can apply for the 75k offer. Just can’t decide if I should wait for the rumored cards!

Barry

I’ve applied for this card several times in the past 3 years. My credit score is approx. 810. The denial reason is always the same. Too much unused credit on other credit cards. I thought that having access to credit and not maxing it out was a sign of a responsible borrower. It’s almost like Citi doesn’t want to compete for my business with other credit card providers.

Last edited 1 month ago by Barry
andy

I’m seeing 48 month language on the landing page. “Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi Premier account in the past 48 months.”

Jed

What are the rules for getting a 2nd one? Coming up on 24 months. PC to thank u +? Then apply, or apply first then PC. I can never remember how the citi points work when PCing

Oliver

See if you can find an old link with the 24 month language. The new link has the 48 month language. On the other hand, the language about closing cards and bonuses earned on other cards has been eliminated.

PS This language opens up the ability of existing card holders to sign up for the rumored new card.

Wanna Travel

I want this card too but I am waiting for the CSP to improve the online offer to 80k because I am at 4/24. I’m too far to walk into a branch for the in-branch offer they have. How long is this likely to stick around?

Dre travel

A friend of mine got 90k from an in branch offer so may be worth the walk

Duane

Just signed up for the premier last month. Chatted once and called twice and told no matching bonuses.

joremero

dang, applied 3/10 but just got it like 4 days ago

Matt

Thanks Tim! And congrats on going full time… I was one of those who was surprisingly denied for the Citi Premier back in January when the 80K offer was around. Any theories on how to increase approval odds with this card?

Tucker

+1 on this question, as I recall they told me last fall when I applied that I had “too much unutilized credit [sic]”! Definitely makes me hesitate before applying another time.

NK3

My anecdotal advice: call for reconsideration.

I was denied in August 2021 for too much unused credit. So when the offer went back to 80k, I applied again in Oct 2022. I had 0 new accounts & hard pulls in the last 6 months (which I had read can improve approval chances on the Premier), and I purposely made a tax payment the month before, to increase my credit usage a little. Then they denied me because the balance on one account was too high relative to the limit (so I was using too much of my credit?). I called and talked to reconsideration. The first agent was super unpleasant and started telling me that I was a huge credit risk (even though Citi has aggressively targeted me to increase my credit limits). Her reasoning was not making sense, so I asked to speak to someone else. Her supervisor was much more helpful, and said she could not approve the application on her own but would submit it to some other team who works on approvals. Two weeks later I received an email on my new account.

Justin

If the rumors are true and Citi finally releases the Strata Premier and Elite at the end of this month, it may be worth the wait to hold out for one of those cards instead, potentially with an even higher SUB.

Matt

Are there rumblings that it could be as soon as next month?

Justin

A couple months ago someone in the comments section on FM mentioned that the Strata cards for Citi will launch in late April and the earning rates would surprise some. All rumors of course, but that person seemed pretty confident in what they were posting. Only time will tell.

Matt

Dang. I want this card but also want to wait and keep a slot open for one of their rumored premium travel cards.