Editor’s word: Citi is a TPG promoting associate.

The Citi Premier® Card undoubtedly receives much less consideration than different journey rewards bank cards, particularly once you examine it to premium bank cards. It additionally misplaced nearly all of its client protections and insurance coverage advantages again in 2019.

With that in thoughts, you would possibly ponder whether the $95 annual charge on the Citi Premier card is value it. Let’s have a look.

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Welcome bonus

In analyzing whether or not the cardboard is value it, let’s begin with the introductory bonus provide.

With the Citi Premier, you’ll be able to earn a sign-up bonus of 80,000 ThankYou® Factors factors after you utilize your new card to make $4,000 in purchases throughout the first three months from account opening. TPG values these factors at 1.8 cents every, so the bonus is value $1,440.

Citi ThankYou Factors have elevated in worth over the previous two years due to its switch companions. A superb instance is Etihad Visitor, which you’ll be able to usually use to e-book American Airways award flights cheaper than reserving straight with American Airways’ personal AAdvantage program. You may as well use Turkish Airways Miles&Smiles miles to e-book lie-flat enterprise class awards to Hawaii for simply 12,500 miles per individual every method.

On the lodge aspect, you’ll be able to switch your factors at a 1:1 ratio to Wyndham Rewards and at a 1:2 ratio to Selection Privileges. These packages can each present glorious worth not simply at price range properties but additionally when touring close to holidays, when money charges are excessive however factors charges aren’t liable to fluctuation.

Associated: 5 of the most effective Citi ThankYou Rewards redemption candy spots

Strong factors incomes

Whereas many different playing cards discover their strengths within the perks and advantages they provide — suppose reimbursement on your International Entry software charge or lounge entry memberships — the Citi Premier does not provide these advantages. However it additionally does not have a $400-plus annual charge like bank cards that have a tendency to supply these advantages.

As an alternative, in the event you ask individuals what they like in regards to the Citi Premier card, the commonest reply could also be that it earns factors in in style spending classes.

Cardholders earn 3 factors per greenback on air journey, accommodations, gasoline stations, supermarkets and at eating places (together with takeout). Since TPG values these factors at 1.8 cents apiece, this represents a 5.4% return on spending. Plus, these bonus classes apply worldwide, versus some playing cards that solely provide these bonus factors on purchases throughout the U.S.

Outdoors of those classes, you will earn 1 level per greenback on all different purchases. That is a 1.8% return on spending.

Associated: How one can redeem Citi ThankYou factors for optimum worth

$100 annual lodge credit score

Whereas this profit sounds promising and is likely to be nice when staying at boutique, impartial properties, it might not result in the $100 in financial savings you count on from the profit’s identify.

When testing out the $100 lodge credit score on the Citi Premier, TPG discovered that the profit usually was considerably lower than $100. That is as a result of Citi’s journey portal does not all the time have the bottom charge — particularly once you think about members-only charges on your favourite lodge chain.

The $100 lodge credit score can be utilized as soon as per yr on a lodge keep that prices $500 or extra, and the keep have to be booked by way of thankyou.com — Citi’s journey portal.

Associated: The Citi Journey portal is getting an entire makeover: Right here’s what to anticipate

Cardmember protections

Whereas the cardboard has misplaced quite a few protections over the previous few years, it retained two that may be invaluable: prolonged guarantee safety and harm and theft safety.

The prolonged guarantee safety on the Citi Premier provides an extra 24 months to a producer’s guarantee. The harm and theft safety profit can present for the restore or substitute of an merchandise that is broken or stolen inside 90 days of buy (as much as $10,000 per merchandise and a $50,000 annual restrict).

World Elite Mastercard advantages

As a World Elite Mastercard, you’ll be able to get pleasure from a number of advantages and perks. These embody cellphone safety and International Emergency Providers, a $5 Lyft credit score once you take at the very least three rides in a month and a ShopRunner membership that gives free two-day delivery for quite a few on-line purchases. You may additionally get rental automotive elite standing and advantages with Avis, Nationwide and Sixt.

Leisure perks

Whereas not explicit to the Citi Premier card, anybody with a Citi bank card can entry Citi Leisure. This could present entry to unique occasions, and precedence entry or advance ticket gross sales to live shows, reveals and performances, movie festivals and extra.

Backside line

Whereas it may not be the most effective card for on a regular basis spending, there’s loads of worth available with the Citi Premier card. Not like different bank cards with luxurious advantages and computerized elite standing, this card tends to supply its worth by way of the factors you earn when utilizing the cardboard in its bonus classes.

To be trustworthy, you seemingly will not obtain sufficient worth from the $100 lodge credit score perk to offset the $95 annual charge. Nevertheless, if you’ll be able to lower your expenses with the cellphone protection or cardmember protections, these alone can present a whole bunch of {dollars} in financial savings.

If not, the query of whether or not or not the Citi Premier’s annual charge is value it is going to come all the way down to the factors you earn, the way you worth them and which different playing cards in your pockets earn factors in the identical classes.

Official software hyperlink: Citi Premier® Card with an 80,000-point welcome bonus after you spend $4,000 in your card inside three months of account opening.