Citi Double Cash Card review

While many credit cards play games, making you activate bonus categories to trigger rewards, the Citi Double Cash Card skips all of that and offers a simple solution for cardholders.

Here’s what we think about the Citi Double Cash Card:

It’s refreshing to see a cash-back card offering a straightforward rewards structure with no annual fee.

Deacon Hayes of Well Kept Wallet says it best: “It’s great this card pays you double — 1% on purchases and 1% when you pay it off. Talk about a good reason for not carrying a balance, they give you 1% back just for paying it off!”

Indeed, all purchases with this card are eligible for 1% cash back, all the time.

And what is truly special is that you get 1% when you pay off those purchases, too. You get 1% back on all payments, with no restrictions.

There are no restrictions on the rewards either. Unlike many other cards, including those that offer higher rewards, the Citi Double Cash Card doesn’t make rewards contingent upon purchasing in certain spending categories.

This means that the Citi Double Cash Card is a true 2% rewards card, with no exceptions.

Cash-back rewards can be redeemed by check, statement credits or gift cards. You aren’t forced into odd point schedules on gift cards —  the rewards are cash or cash equivalents.

Finally, there is also no limit on how much you can earn in rewards. They continue to accumulate on all purchases and payments until you redeem them. The only limit is that you must redeem at least $25 in rewards each time.

Citi Double Cash Card: Interest rates and fees

The interest rates are competitive on the Citi Double Cash, and there is no annual fee. Here’s a breakdown of this card’s interest rates and fees:

• Interest rate: 14.49% APR to 24.49% APR, depending on your credit score. All rates are variable.
• Penalty rate: Up to 29.99% APR.
• Cash advances: 24% APR. Cash advances will cost you 5% of the advance with a $10 minimum.
• Credit card account fees: There is no annual fee on this card, but there is a $35 late payment fee. This card does offer a free pass on your first late fee and will not charge you a penalty.
• Balance transfer fee: 3%.
• Foreign transaction fee: 3%.

Additional features and benefits

In addition to the 0% balance transfer and cash-back rewards, this card also comes with many of the features and benefits that you would expect from a premium credit card. Those include:

• Citi Private Pass: Get special access to purchase tickets to concerts, sporting events, dining experiences and even complimentary movie screenings.
• Citi Price Rewind: This tool searches for a lower price on the registered items that you purchase with your card. It searches hundreds of online merchants, and if the same item is found for a lower price, you can get the difference between the price you paid and the lower price. It applies to purchases within 60 days of the initial purchase date.
• Extended Warranty: When you make a purchase using the card, this feature extends the manufacturer’s warranty.
• Citi Cards with Apple Pay: You can pay for purchases in-app or at more than 200,000 stores.

The Citi Double Cash Card’s balance transfer promo

If you need a balance transfer, this card offers a 0% APR for 18 months, if you request a balance transfer within the first 4 months of opening an account. Notably, you do not earn rewards on balance transfers.

What we like about this card

The biggest benefit of the Citi Double Cash Card is its cash back policy, with 1% cash back at purchase and 1% when you pay it off. You don’t have to remember which categories it applies to because it applies to them all.

Perhaps just as important, the cash back with this card is actually cash, as opposed to rewards you have to redeem at a store. You can request a check or statement credit.

And if you need a balance transfer, 18 months at 0% is a very competitive promotional offer.

The big picture  

The Citi Double Rewards Card offers a straightforward structure with generous cash-back rewards. But some cards, like the American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card, offer up to 6% cash back in certain categories. Cards with high cash-back percentages often have spending caps to counteract their effectiveness, but there’s no beating the numbers – 6% is greater than 2%.

If you have spending categories that you know are much higher than others, like groceries or gas, it pays to do additional research and find a card that fits your lifestyle.

Still, if you’re looking for a cash-back card for everyday spending, the Citi Double Cash Card is a great choice.