Citi Double Cash review 2024: A top 2% cash-back credit card

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Earning a total of 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24, the Citi Double Cash® Card is a great credit card for people who don’t want to track various spending categories. Plus, there’s a long introductory APR period on balance transfers. Our review will explain more.

Editor’s note: This article contains updated information from a previously published story.

Citi Double Cash® Card

BLUEPRINT RATING

Our ratings are based on specific use cases for each card. We compared this card to others in the same category and developed our rankings based on this criteria, along with our editorial input. Note that although we chose this card as the best in its category, the right card for you will depend on your own financial circumstances.

Rates & fees / Terms apply

Rates & fees / Terms apply

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BLUEPRINT RATING

Our ratings are based on specific use cases for each card. We compared this card to others in the same category and developed our rankings based on this criteria, along with our editorial input. Note that although we chose this card as the best in its category, the right card for you will depend on your own financial circumstances.

Welcome bonus

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

$200 cash back

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

19.24% – 29.24% (Variable)

Credit score

Credit Score ranges are based on FICO® credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.

Fair, Good, Excellent

Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. Plus, for a limited time, earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24.

Editor’s Take

Pros

• No annual fees.
• Introductory APR period on balance transfers.
• Excellent cash-back rewards.

Cons

• Charges foreign transaction fees.
• There’s a balance transfer fee.
• Few additional benefits.

The Citi Double Cash® Card is a top-notch choice for everyday use, due to its simple and generous rewards. Plus, the card’s lengthy introductory APR period on balance transfers makes it a great option for those who need to consolidate debt.

Card details

• Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus 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. To earn cash back, pay at least the minimum due on time. Plus, for a limited time, earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24.
• Balance Transfer Only Offer: 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 months. After that, the variable APR will be 19.24% – 29.24%, 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).

Citi Double Cash card basics

• Annual fee: $0.
• Welcome bonus: $200 cash back after spending $1,500 on purchases in the first six months of account opening.
• Rewards: Earn 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24.
• APR: 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the standard variable APR will be 19.24% to 29.24%. An intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3%, whichever is greater, applies to transfers completed in the first 4 months. After that, the fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5).
• Foreign transaction fees: 3%.
• Recommended credit score: Fair to excellent.
• Other perks and benefits: Issuer offers an online tool to check if you’re pre-selected for a Citi credit card.

Introduction

The Citi Double Cash was the original 2% cash-back card, before there were a plethora of imitators. With this card, you’ll earn a net 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24. There are no spending caps and no limit to the amount of cash back you can earn, and there’s no annual fee to carry the Double Cash.

The card’s simple reward structure makes it perfect for people who don’t like earning elevated rewards in some categories but subpar rates on other spending, as many cash-back cards do. And, the Double Cash doesn’t require you to keep track of rotating categories or spending caps.

In addition, anyone looking to pay off high-interest debt from a non-Citi credit card will appreciate the intro APR offer: 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the standard variable APR will be 19.24% to 29.24%. An intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3%, whichever is greater, applies to transfers completed in the first 4 months. After that, the fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5).

However, despite being a solid choice for consumers who want a flat-rate card, the Double Cash falls short in a few respects. For one thing, it just earns you 1% upfront and you’ll have to pay your bill in full to get the other 1%. The intro APR is also limited to balance transfers only and not purchases. Plus, it charges a 3% foreign transaction fee, so it’s not a good card to use when traveling outside the United States.

Still, the card has its benefits for those who typically pay their bill in full and on time, especially for those who carry another card that earns Citi ThankYou® points as the rewards from the Citi Double Cash can be combined with the points earned on another eligible Citi card.

The Citi Double Cash doesn’t always come with a welcome bonus. But right now it does.

Citi Double Cash Card pros

• Simple and unlimited rewards. With the Double Cash, there are no categories to track or earning limits in certain areas of spending, all purchases earn at the same rate.
• Multiple redemption options. Take your earnings as a statement credit, direct deposit or check. You can also redeem for gift cards or travel.
• There’s a balance transfer offer. If you’re looking to pay down some high-interest debt, a 0% APR offer like on the Double Cash can help you make headway.

Citi Double Cash cons

• No intro APR on purchases: Citi Double Cash doesn’t offer an intro APR on purchases, so if you’re going to use a balance transfer card, we’d advise you to pay off your transferred balance in full before making any purchases on the card.
• Lack of benefits: You won’t get perks such as cellphone protection, extended warranty protection or rental car insurance, which can be had on some other no-annual-fee credit cards.
• Other cards earn the 2% upfront. Many of the other cards that earn at the same rate as the Double Cash earn the 2% on every purchase, without splitting it like the Double Cash does.

Citi Double Cash Card rewards

The Citi Double Cash Card earns 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24. If you prefer to earn the full rewards after each purchase, you may prefer a different 2% card.

Though the Double Cash is marketed as a cash-back credit card, rewards come in the form of Citi ThankYou® Points. Points can be redeemed for cash back to a linked bank account with no minimum redemption amount required. You can also redeem points as statement credits to your card or take them as a paper check in the mail.

Additional redemption options include gift cards, charitable donations and shopping with points at participating online and in-store partners. However, if shopping with points, beware that you may get subpar value compared to redeeming for cash back. For example, if you redeem points when checking out at Walmart, the redemption rate is 1,250 points for $10. That comes out to a value of 0.8 cents per point, compared with 1 cent per point redeemed to a checking account.

Points can also be transferred to a limited selection of Citi’s travel partners. But if you also hold a Citi Premier® Card * The information for the Citi Premier® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. or a Citi Prestige® Card (this card is not currently accepting new applicants), you can transfer to Citi’s full list of travel partners.

Citi Double Cash Card rewards potential

Using government data and other publicly available information, we estimate that a household in the U.S. that would be in the market for this card has $25,087 in expenses they are likely to be able to charge to a credit card. We’ll use those numbers to determine what you might be able to earn in rewards using this card.

Since the Citi Double Cash is a flat-rate card, cardholders earn 2% cash back on purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, plus, for a limited time, 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24. With $25,087 in annual spending, that’s $501.74 per year in cash back rewards.

Of course, if you make use of the temporary elevated earning rate on eligible travel booked through Citi’s portal, you could earn even more cash back.

How the Citi Double Cash Card compares to other cash-back cards 

Citi Double Cash vs. Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card

The Wells Fargo Active Cash earns 2% cash rewards on purchases and charges no annual fee. It also offers a welcome bonus: a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first three months of account opening.

There’s also an intro APR on both purchases and balance transfers: 0% intro APR for the first 15 months on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, then a 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable APR applies thereafter. Balance transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate and fee of 3%. After that a fee of up to 5%, with a minimum of $5 applies.

You can get cellphone protection against damage or theft of up to $600 per claim (subject to a $25 deductible, up to two claims per 12-month period) when you pay your monthly phone bill with the Wells Fargo Active Cash.

The card also provides 24/7 access to the Visa Signature Concierge, as well as benefits when staying at a property in the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection (terms apply).

However, it’s worth noting the Active Cash does not offer any travel transfer partners.

Citi Double Cash vs. Citi Custom Cash® Card

The Citi Custom Cash charges no annual fee and comes with a unique rewards program. You earn 5% cash back on purchases in a top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent each month and 1% cash back on all other purchases. Plus, an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 6/30/25.

Categories eligible for the elevated rewards rate include restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs and live entertainment.

There’s also a welcome bonus: $200 cash back, in the form of 20,000 ThankYou® points, after spending $1,500 on purchases in the first six months of account opening. The Custom Cash is marketed as a cash-back card, but like the Double Cash rewards are earned in the form of Citi ThankYou Points, which means that if you also hold another eligible Citi Card you can combine your points between the two.

The card comes with a 0% intro APR for the first 15 months on purchases and from the date of the first transfer for balance transfers within the first four months. After that, the variable APR will be 19.24% to 29.24%. There is a balance transfer fee of 5% of each balance transfer with a $5 minimum.

Citi Double Cash vs. Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card * The information for the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The no-annual-fee Capital One Quicksilver earns 1.5% cash back on purchases and 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Its earning rate may be less impressive than that of a 2% cash-back card, but it comes with a couple advantages.

The Quicksilver offers a welcome bonus of a $200 cash bonus after spending $500 on purchases within the first three months of account opening. It also charges no foreign transaction fees, making the Quicksilver a good choice for your trip.

The Quicksilver charges no annual fee and comes with the following intro APR periods: 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, then a 19.99% to 29.99% variable APR. There is a 3% fee on each balance transfer in the first 15 months but no fee for amounts transferred at the purchase APR after the first 15 months.

Should you get the Citi Double Cash?

If you’re looking for a cash-back credit card with a simple, flat-rate earning structure, the Double Cash is an excellent choice. It’s also a solid option for anyone looking to do a balance transfer from a non-Citi card and pay off the transferred debt during a long intro APR period.

However, there are better cards to choose from if you want to earn your cash back upfront, rather than half after making a purchase and half after submitting a payment. And if you are looking to earn elevated cash back on specific spending or need a card to take abroad , other rewards cards will likely be a better fit for you.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)