8 Best Ways To Earn Lots of Citi ThankYou Points [2025]

Citi ThankYou Points often seem to fly under the radar compared to more well-known transferable currencies such as Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards.

But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t add a stash of ThankYou Points to your portfolio — in fact, they can be a powerful addition to your arsenal of points. Citi’s ThankYou program has a slew of awesome transfer partners and its own booking portal, making these points extremely versatile.

New to ThankYou Points? Thankfully, you have plenty of earning options if you’re looking to get started. Here are all the best and easiest ways that you can earn Citi ThankYou Points quickly and sustainably so that you’ll always have a stock of ThankYou Points ready to redeem them for amazing experiences.

Using a ThankYou Points Credit Card To Earn Points

Let’s get this out of the way: You need a Citi ThankYou Points-earning card to start accruing your stash of ThankYou Points.

Thankfully, there are multiple ThankYou Points-earning cards on the market, each with different features, category bonuses, welcome bonus offers, and annual fees.

Here, we’ll show how to earn ThankYou Points with credit cards. We’ll start by looking at all of the different cards available, and then we’ll move on to ways you can earn points with your Citi ThankYou card.

1. Welcome Bonus Offers

As discussed, there are a few Citi ThankYou Points-earning cards you can choose from. Here’s a quick list of the best Citi credit cards that let you start earning ThankYou Points, along with a list of their special features and welcome bonus offers.

Citi Strata Premier℠ Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

Citi Strata Premier℠ Card

Welcome Offer

Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com

60,000 points

UP's Offer Valuation*:

$960

Annual Fee

$95

APR

19.74% to 27.74% Variable APR

Why We Like This Card

The Citi Strata Premier℠ Card is a great all-around travel rewards card that allows you to earn big rewards on a variety of purchases like air travel, at restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, and more, along with flexible redemption options, all for a modest annual fee.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 10x points on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through CitiTravel.com
• 3x points on air travel, other hotel purchases, restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, and EV charging stations
• $100 annual hotel benefit

Cons

• $95 annual fee

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $600 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com.
• Earn 10X points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com.
• Earn 3X points per $1 on air travel and other hotel purchases, at restaurants, supermarkets, gas and EV charging stations.
• Earn 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases.
• $100 Annual Hotel Benefit: Once per calendar year, enjoy $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more (excluding taxes and fees) when booked through CitiTravel.com. Benefit applied instantly at time of booking.
• No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card.
• No foreign transaction fees on purchases.

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 19.74% to 27.74% Variable APR
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Citi Strata Elite℠ Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

The Citi Strata Elite card is Citi's most premium card built for frequent travelers and foodies.

Citi Strata Elite℠ Card

The Citi Strata Elite card is Citi's most premium card built for frequent travelers and foodies.

Welcome Offer

Earn 100,000 bonus ThankYou Points after spending $6,000 within the first 3 months of account opening.

100,000 points

UP's Offer Valuation*:

Up to $1,600

Annual Fee

$595

APR

20.74% to 28.74%

Why We Like This Card

The Citi Strata Elite card is a great option for frequent travelers, foodies, and those who are fans of the Citi ThankYou Rewards ecosystem thanks to its combination of bonus categories, perks, and annual credits.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 12x points on hotels, rental cars, and attractions booked through Citi Travel
• 6x points on airfare through Citi Travel
• 6x points on dining on Citi Nights (Friday and Saturday nights from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.) and 3x points on dining at all other times

Cons

• $595 annual fee
• Boosted dining rewards are limited to 2 nights per week

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn 100,000 bonus ThankYou Points after spending $6,000 within the first 3 months of account opening
• 12x points on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on cititravel.com
• 6x points on air travel booked on cititravel.com
• 6x points at restaurants, including restaurant delivery services, every Friday and Saturday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. ET, and 3x points any other time
• 1.5x points on all other purchases
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit
• Up to $300 annual hotel benefit
• Up to $200 annual Splurge credit
• Up to $200 annual Blacklane credit
• 4 American Airlines Admirals Club passes every calendar year
• Transfer Citi ThankYou Points to partners like American Airlines
• Complimentary Priority Pass membership
• No foreign transaction fees

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 20.74% to 28.74%
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Citi Strata℠ Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

Citi Strata℠ Card

Welcome Offer

Earn 30,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.

30,000 points

UP's Offer Valuation*:

$480

Annual Fee

$0

APR

0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, and then a variable APR 18.74% to 28.74%.

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

Good to Excellent

Why We Like This Card

The Citi Strata card offers a fresh way to earn Citi ThankYou Points with a $0 annual fee, allowing you to maximize your spend at gas stations, supermarkets, and more.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 5x points on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com
• 3x points at supermarkets, select transit, gas and EV charging stations, and an eligible self-select category of your choice (fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salon or pet supply stores)
• 2x points at restaurants

Cons

• Doesn’t offer the best transfer ratio to Citi’s airline and hotel partners
• Charges foreign transaction fees

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn 30,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.
• Earn 5x points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com.
• Earn 3x points per $1 on supermarkets, select transit, gas, and EV charging stations, and an eligible self-select category of your choice every quarter (fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salons, or pet supply stores).
• Earn 2x points per $1 at restaurants.
• Earn 1x point per $1 spent on all other purchases.
• No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card.

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, and then a variable APR 18.74% to 28.74%.
• Foreign Transaction Fees: 3% of the U.S. dollar amount of each purchase

Rewards Center

Citi ThankYou Rewards

Citi Double Cash^® Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

Great card for the average spender with no specific focus category; worry-free cash-back earning on everything!

Citi Double Cash^® Card

Great card for the average spender with no specific focus category; worry-free cash-back earning on everything!

Welcome Offer

Earn $200 cash-back after spending $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening.

$200 cash-back

Annual Fee

$0

APR

17.74% to 27.74% Variable

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

Fair to Excellent (580-850)

Why We Like This Card

The Citi Double Cash^® Card has long been one of the top cash-back credit cards on the market, and the card now has the ability to earn Citi ThankYou Points!

This means that cardholders of the Double Cash card will now earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. Cash back is earned in the form of ThankYou Points. This means each billing cycle, you will earn 1 ThankYou point per $1 spent on purchases and an additional ThankYou point for every $1 paid on your purchase balance as long as there is a corresponding balance in your Purchase Tracker.

Citi has turned the Double Cash card into a top choice for those who are looking for an everyday, no-fuss credit card.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Uncapped 2% for every $1 spent (1% when you buy and another 1% when you pay)
• Flexible redemption options
• No annual fee

Cons

• No bonus categories
• 3% foreign transaction fees

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou^® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
• Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases.
• Earn a total of 5 ThankYou^® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rental, and attractions, excluding air travel, when booked through the Citi Travel^® portal.
• To earn cash back, pay at least the minimum due on time.
• Balance Transfer Only Offer: 0% Intro APR for 18 months on balance transfers; after that, the variable APR will be 17.74% to 27.74%, based on your creditworthiness. Balance Transfers do not earn cash back. Intro APR does not apply to purchases.
• If you transfer a balance, interest will be charged on your purchases unless you pay your entire balance (including balance transfers) by the due date each month.
• 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).

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 17.74% to 27.74% Variable
• Foreign Transaction Fees: 3% of the U.S. dollar amount of each purchase

Rewards Center

Citi ThankYou Rewards

Citi Custom Cash^® Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

Earn big on purchases in your top eligible spend category, up to the first $500 each billing cycle, without an annual fee!

Citi Custom Cash^® Card

Earn big on purchases in your top eligible spend category, up to the first $500 each billing cycle, without an annual fee!

Welcome Offer

Earn $200 cash-back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou^® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash-back.

$200

Annual Fee

$0

APR

0% Intro APR on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months. After that, the variable APR will be 17.99% - 27.99%.

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

Fair to Excellent (580-850)

Why We Like This Card

The Citi Custom Cash^® Card is inventive when it comes to cash-back credit cards. Instead of earning a set amount of cash-back on predetermined bonus categories, the Citi Custom Cash card earns 5% cash-back on your highest eligible spend category each billing cycle, with a $0 annual fee.

Thanks to that unique perk, you’ll never need to worry about whether you’re using the right card for the right purchase, as your Citi Custom Cash card will always pay you 5% back on whichever category you end up spending the most on each month.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 5% cash-back (on up to $500 each billing cycle) from your largest purchase category, including restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment
• $0 annual fee
• Multiple redemption options

Cons

• Your 5% category is limited to $500 in spend ($25 in cash-back) each month
• Not particularly rewarding for any purchases outside of your top 5% cash-back category

Read Full Review

Card Highlights

• Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou^® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
• Get 0% Intro APR on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months. After that, the variable APR will be 17.99% - 27.99%, based on your creditworthiness.
• 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. Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.
• Earn an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked with Citi Travel.
• 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.
• $0 annual fee.
• Citi will only issue one Citi Custom Cash^® Card account per person.

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 0% Intro APR on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months. After that, the variable APR will be 17.99% - 27.99%.
• Foreign Transaction Fees: 3%

Keep in mind that Citi does not classify annual fees, balance transfers, cash advances, fees, interest, and items returned for credit as eligible purchases for earning bonus points.

Citi generally only allows you to earn 1 welcome bonus offer every 48 months per card. When you’re ready to apply for a new card, you have to decide which welcome bonus offer you want and apply for that card. Check the fine print on the card’s application page to make sure you understand any restrictions to receiving the welcome bonus.

2. Category Bonuses

Citi ThankYou Points are easy to earn, especially when you put together a simple spending strategy.

Here’s a look at Citi’s various category bonuses across its credit card lineup:

As you may know, some credit card companies place restrictions on what purchases qualify for extra points, but thankfully, Citi is pretty fair when defining the above categories. So no matter where you’re having a fun time, you’ll be earning extra points, too!

Please remember, always check the specific terms and conditions associated with your card to be certain your purchases will qualify for bonus points.

Hot Tip:

A huge draw to the Citi Strata Premier card and Citi Strata card is the gas station category, which does not limit you to buying fuel to earn extra points. This means anything you buy with these cards at a gas station is eligible to earn 3x bonus points.

Earning Points With Travel Purchases

Travel purchases are a favorite for many of our readers, and you can earn lots of bonus points for your travel purchases with credit cards that earn Citi ThankYou Points.

3. Airfare Purchases

Citi offers 2 credit cards that earn extra points on airfare purchases:

The Citi Strata Elite card offers 6x points on airfare, but only when booked through Citi Travel. If you are looking to get bonus points on other airfare (including directly from an airline, through an online travel agency (e.g., Orbitz, Kayak, Expedia, etc.), or even Citi Travel), consider the Citi Strata Premier, which offers 3x points on all airfare.

4. Other Travel Purchases

There are 3 Citi ThankYou cards offering bonus points for other travel purchases:

Both the Citi Strata Elite card and Citi Strata Premier card offer huge earnings on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked through Citi Travel. The Citi Strata card offers a more modest 5x on those purchases but also offers 3x points on select transit purchases. Both the Citi Strata elite card and Citi Strata Premier card offer 3x on EV charging and at gas stations.

What’s helpful here is that extra points on hotels are not limited to the room rate. You also earn extra points for ancillary purchases that appear on your hotel bill upon checkout. This includes minibar purchases, in-room dining, and more.

Earning With Category Bonuses

Besides travel purchases, there are some other category bonuses that you can take advantage of.

5. Maximize Your Restaurant and Dining Spending

If you’re a foodie, the Citi ThankYou suite of cards has you covered as well. The Citi Strata Elite card offers 6x points during Citi Nights, which is every Friday and Saturday night from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Eastern time. At other times, it earns 3x points. The Citi Strata Premier card earns 3x at all times, while the Citi Strata card earns 2x on restaurant purchases.

The Citi Strata card also earns 3x points at supermarkets.

Specialty Earning Opportunities

Outside of standard credit card purchases, Citi offers some special ways to earn more points.

6. Transfer Points to Another ThankYou Cardholder

Finally, you can transfer points to friends and family members with ThankYou Points-earning cards.

Unlike with American Express Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you can transfer Citi ThankYou Points to just about anyone with a ThankYou card. Citi calls this its Points Sharing feature.

So if you have a friend who isn’t using their ThankYou Points — or maybe you want to give the gift of travel to a family member — you can arrange a transfer easily and without breaking any of the ThankYou program’s rules.

Just note that there are a few restrictions in place when transferring ThankYou Points to another member:

• ThankYou Points shared between members expire 90 days after they are received, so make sure the person you’re sharing points with has an immediate use for the points you send them.
• You can share up to 100,000 points and receive up to 100,000 points from another member per calendar year.

Here’s how to transfer ThankYou Points to another account with Points Sharing:

Step 1: Go to the ThankYou website and log in to your account by clicking the Sign On button in the upper right corner of the screen.

Step 2: Look at the top of the screen and hover over More Ways to Redeem. Then click Points Sharing from the drop-down menu.

Step 3: You’ll now be asked to verify your identity by text message or phone call. Do this and you can continue the transfer process.

Step 4: Now click the Begin Sharing button at the bottom of the page.

Step 5: You’ll now be prompted to enter information about the person to whom you’d like to transfer points. This includes their full name and a Citi account number. This account number can be either a credit card number or a Citi ThankYou account number that can be retrieved from the My Citi Accounts page on the ThankYou website.

Step 6: Follow the rest of the on-screen instructions, and your transfer will process immediately.

7. Use the Citi Custom Cash Card for Changing Top Spend Categories

The Citi Custom Cash card is unique because it earns 5% cash-back, earned as ThankYou Points, on your highest eligible spend category every billing cycle, up to $500 per billing cycle.

Because these cash-back rewards are earned as ThankYou Rewards points, you can earn 5x points on up to $500 every billing cycle!

The eligible categories include:

This is fantastic because you don’t need to worry about selecting any bonus categories or any rotating bonus categories — the rewards are all automatic!

You earn 1% cash-back on all other purchases.

8. Use the Citi Strata Card to Select Your Own Bonus Categories

The Citi Strata card has a similar benefit, but with the Strata card you can choose your own bonus category. You earn 3x ThankYou points on an eligible category of your choice.

The eligible categories include:

Bottom Line:

Both the Citi Custom Cash card and Citi Strata card do not have access to American Airlines AAdvantage partners and transfer to partners at reduced rates. If you’re planning on transferring points, pair them with a premium ThankYou card to access the full suite of Citi’s travel transfer partners at elevated ratios. 

Final Thoughts

There are only a few credit cards for earning Citi ThankYou Points, but there are plenty of great bonus categories to help you earn tons of points.

This is especially true if you combine ThankYou Points earned from the Citi Double Cash card or Citi Custom Cash card with a premium Citi card like the Citi Strata Elite card or Citi Strata Premier card. Doing this will ensure that you earn the most points possible on all purchases, regardless of the purchase category or merchant.

Then, once you’ve earned a stash of ThankYou Points, you can redeem them for luxurious travel experiences around the world. Need some inspiration on how to redeem your points? Check out our list of the best ways to redeem Citi ThankYou Points.