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11 Benefits and Perks of the Citi Strata Card [2025]

Victoria M. Walker's image
Victoria M. Walker
Edited by: Michael Y. Park
& Jestan Mendame
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The Citi Strata℠ Card is one of the newest cards on the market, having launched in May 2025.

If you’re looking for a no-annual-fee card as your first credit card or another Citi card to rack up ThankYou Points, you can’t go wrong with the Citi Strata card. This is especially true thanks to the many bonus categories that come with the card, including travel, dining, supermarkets, and more.

While some Citi ThankYou benefits are reserved for the issuer’s premium cards, the Citi Strata card is a fantastic choice on its own.

Let’s take a look at all of the most important perks and benefits of the Citi Strata card.

Card Overview

Citi Strata℠ Card
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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 30,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.
30,000 points
$480
$0
0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, and then a variable APR 19.24%-29.24%.
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 cardapplication.
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 hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com
  • 3x points at supermarkets, select transit and at 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 access to the entire collection of Citi transfer partners
  • Charges foreign transaction fees
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 19.24%-29.24%.
  • Foreign Transaction Fees: 3% of the U.S. dollar amount of each purchase
Rewards Center

Citi ThankYou Rewards

Earning Citi ThankYou Points

1. Decent Welcome Bonus Offer

The Citi Strata card comes with a solid welcome bonus offer once you’ve met the minimum spending requirement. The card’s current welcome bonus offer is:

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

According to our valuation of Citi ThankYou Points, this bonus is worth $480.

While this welcome bonus offer isn’t as high as Citi’s more premium credit cards, the points could easily get you a couple of stays at a midtier hotel or a few short-haul round-trip flights. Granted, how you redeem your welcome bonus offer determines its value, but this is a solid welcome offer given that the Citi Strata card has a $0 annual fee.

2. Excellent Earnings on Travel Purchases

The Citi Strata card has fabulous earnings on travel purchases. You earn 5 points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com.

Citi Strata Card Citi Travel Upgraded Points LLC
There’s a wide range of earning categories, including purchases on CitiTravel.com. Image Credit: Upgraded Points

3. Wide Range of Earnings on Everyday Purchases

Perhaps the best benefit of the Citi Strata card is the wide range of bonus points you can earn on everyday purchases. 

You earn 3 points per $1 on supermarkets, select transit, gas, and EV charging stations. Plus, you also earn 3x points on an eligible self-select category of your choice every quarter, which can be fitness clubs; select streaming services; live entertainment; cosmetic stores, barbershops and hair salons; or pet supply stores. 

But that’s not all: You also earn 2 points per $1 at restaurants, making this the perfect card for foodies. Finally, you’ll earn 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.

With such a wide range of earnings, the Citi Strata card is one of the best no-fee cards for everyday spending.

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Redeeming Citi ThankYou Points

4. Redeem Citi ThankYou Points With Airline and Hotel Partners

With your Citi Strata card, you can transfer ThankYou Points to a limited number of transfer partners, including Choice Privileges, JetBlue TrueBlue, and Wyndham Rewards

With the Citi Strata card, you can transfer ThankYou Points to Choice Privileges at a 1:1.5 ratio and Wyndham Rewards and JetBlue TrueBlue at a 1:0.8 ratio. Of these options, Wyndham and JetBlue offer the best value. Unfortunately, the transfer rates for all 3 programs will reduce on July 27, 2025.

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Transfer Partner

Current Transfer Rate

New Rate on July 27, 2025

Choice Privileges

1,000:1,500

1,000:1,400

JetBlue TrueBlue

1,000:800

1,000:700

Wyndham Rewards

1,000:800

1,000:700

Wyndham Rewards has a straightforward award chart with just 3 tiers. Free nights cost 7,500, 15,000, or 30,000 points per night, based on the property, so you could get several nights at a hotel with just the bonus.

Wyndham Southbury exterior building
You can use your bonus to book stays at Wyndham hotels. Image Credit: Jessica Merritt

Similarly, you can find JetBlue awards starting at just 700 TrueBlue points each way. This is especially true on short-haul domestic flights, but you can also find affordable award flights to international destinations, such as the Caribbean. Even with the reduced transfer rate, there’s excellent value to be had when transferring Citi ThankYou Points to TrueBlue.

Unfortunately, you don’t have access to the full suite of ThankYou transfer partners. These partners are reserved for those with a premium Citi travel card, so if there’s a redemption you’re particularly keen on booking, you need a card like the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card.

5. Redeem Through CitiTravel.com

Points earned on your Citi Strata card can be redeemed directly through CitiTravel.com. Here, you can book flights, hotels, cruises, rental cars, sightseeing excursions, and experiences. You receive 1 cent per point in value on airfare when redeeming via the portal for travel.

6. Redeem for Other Purchases

You can also redeem ThankYou Points for cash-back as a statement credit, gift cards, or for purchases with select retailers, such as Amazon and Best Buy. However, these options aren’t the best use of your points, so we recommend using them for travel purchases, such as flights and hotels, instead.

Citi Strata Card Travel Benefits

7. No Limits on Points Earned

Some credit cards have limits on how many points you can earn, but not the Citi Strata card. There’s no limit to the number of ThankYou Points you can earn with the Citi Strata card, even in bonus categories such as travel and dining.

8. No Annual Fee

One of the most significant drawbacks to any travel rewards credit card is the annual fee. This is especially true if you’re juggling several cards with fees. Fortunately, the Citi Strata card has a $0 annual fee, making it a solid option to supplement other more expensive rewards cards.

9. Access to Citi Merchant Offers

You have access to Citi Merchant Offers with your Citi Strata card. While not as interesting as some of the card’s other benefits, Citi Merchant’s cash-back deals can save you money on shopping, dining, travel, and more. The deals are categorized into the following sections: travel, dining and entertainment, shopping, health and wellness, and other.

Hot Tip:

You can stack Citi Merchant offers with a coupon code or through other cash-back portals such as Rakuten.

10. World Elite Mastercard Benefits 

The Citi Strata card comes with World Elite Mastercard benefits. These include cell phone protection, car rental insurance, trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance, baggage insurance, Lyft benefits, Mastercard ID theft protection, priceless experiences, and more.

11. Access to Citi Entertainment

Your Citi Strata card includes access to Citi Entertainment. This is a platform where Citi cardholders can use their card to access presale tickets and exclusive experiences to music, sports, arts, and cultural events. This benefit can be particularly useful, especially for hard-to-get tickets.

Final Thoughts

Citi’s newest card, the Citi Strata card, is a solid, $0-annual-fee credit card. It offers a host of benefits, including a decent welcome bonus offer, fantastic earnings on travel and everyday spending, and other non-travel perks.

If you’re looking to start your travel rewards journey with a no-fee credit card or want a card that complements a premium Citi card, consider adding the Citi Strata card to your wallet!

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the Citi Strata card have an annual fee?

No, the Citi Strata card has a $0 annual fee.

How much does the Citi Strata card earn on travel?

The Citi Strata card earns 5 points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com.

Can I transfer Citi ThankYou Points on my Citi Strata card to travel partners?

Yes, you can transfer your points to Choice Privileges, JetBlue TrueBlue, and Wyndham Rewards.

Is the Citi Strata card available to new applicants?

On July 20, 2025, existing cardholders of the Citi Rewards+® Card will be automatically transitioned to the new Citi Strata card, which will be available to new applicants later this year.

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About Victoria M. Walker

Victoria holds a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism from the Howard University School of Communications and is an award-winning journalist, travel reporter, and the founder of the “Carrying On with Victoria M. Walker” newsletter.

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