Citi Double Cash Review: Best-In-Class Cash Back

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer packs in up to 2% cash back on purchases (1% when you buy, 1% when you pay), which is the highest unlimited cash back rate we've come across. Plus, the card includes a long 0% intro APR for 18 months for balance transfers to help you pay off debt faster. This Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer review will take a detailed look at this cash back credit card to help you determine if it is worthy of your wallet.

This card is a good fit for: Cardholders wanting either a standout, high-earning option for a one-card wallet, or people wanting to pay off debt faster with a long balance transfer offer.

Top perks

Unlimited 2% cash back

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer has the highest potential flat rate for cash back. “Potential" is the operative word here, because you receive 1% cash back when you make a purchase, then receive the other 1% when you pay the bill by its due date (you just need to make the minimum payment). If you pay late, you lose the second half of your cash back. It's an interesting quirk that motivates you to pay your bill on time.

0% intro APR on balance transfers

The card has a 0% intro APR for 18 months on balance transfers. That's among the longer intro offers available, even compared to some of the best balance transfer credit cards. That makes this card perfect for paying off debt using balance transfer strategies. 

No annual fee

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer has a $0 annual fee. Many cash back cards have no annual fee, so this isn't a major advantage for this card. But it's still nice for your budget when you don't have to pay anything for your credit card.

Flexible redemption options

If you also have an eligible Citi travel card, such as the Citi Premier® Card or the Citi Prestige® Card, you can convert all the cash back you earn to Citi ThankYou points. You can then use those points for travel redemptions, including transfers to Citi's many travel partners.

This option makes the credit card a fantastic complement to a Citi travel rewards card. You can use the travel card for any purchases where it will earn you bonus points. For all your non-bonus spending, you can take advantage of the Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer and essentially earn 2 ThankYou points per $1 spent. It's a simple, effective way to maximize your credit card rewards.

This card also offers the flexibility of redeeming cash back rewards for statement credits, direct deposit, and even mailing a check. 

Learn more: Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards

Other benefits

The following Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer perks won’t make big headlines like the flagship features listed above, but they do add value for cardholders.

• Free FICO® Score: Citi credit cards include free access to your FICO® Score, which is a standout feature. While most credit cards offer credit score monitoring of some sort, Citi goes the extra mile to provide access to an official FICO® Score, which is what most credit lenders use to make a credit decision and will cost you money to review directly with MyFICO.
• Increase your credit limit in the mobile app: Cardholders can answer a few quick questions in the app to see about potential approval for a higher credit limit.
• Contactless payment: This valuable feature has become more important throughout the 2020 pandemic. The card is also available to use for services like Apple Pay and Google Pay

What could be improved

Balance transfer fee

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer includes an introductory 3% ($5 min.) balance transfer fee on transfers made within four months of account opening, 5% ($5 min.) thereafter. Worth noting, while it is a fee we’d rather see not charged, it is a competitive fee that beats many other competing balance transfer cards.

$25 cash back redemption minimum

You can only redeem cash back when you have $25 or more. That can be frustrating, especially since so many rewards credit cards have no redemption minimum. To be fair, Citi allows you to convert as little as $1 in cash back to ThankYou points, but that also makes you wonder why it also doesn't lower the minimum for cash back redemptions.

No 0% intro APR on purchases

Purchases aren't eligible for that intro APR offer, making other 0% intro cards a better choice if you need to finance anything. Potential applicants will want to consider the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card or Citi Simplicity® Card if wanting a 0% intro APR for purchases as well.

3% foreign transaction fee

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer charges a 3% foreign transaction fee. While the card certainly isn't alone in charging this fee, it will increase your travel expenses if you go out of the country and don't have another card to use.

Applicants for the Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer should aim for a FICO® Score of at least 670. Citi might approve you with a lower score, as that's not the only criteria the issuer uses when assessing your application. But a score over 670 will be a big help.

The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer is one of the best credit cards when you want your finances to be as uncomplicated as possible. It doesn't have much in the way of benefits, but the benefits it does have are very good and make it a standout among Citi credit cards. You should consider it if you're looking for any of the following in a cash back card:

• An unlimited flat rate of up to 2% cash back
• No annual fee
• A generous 0% intro APR period of 18 months for balance transfers

Read more: Best No Annual Fee Credit Cards