![Southwest Companion Pass: A Guide to Earning It For Two Years [2026-2027]](https://yourbestcreditcards.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/southwest-rapid-rewards-premier-credit-card.jpg)
* Suggested credit score ranges for credit cards are supplied by QuinStreet, not from the issuers, and are guidelines, not a guarantee of approval.
* Suggested credit score ranges for credit cards are supplied by QuinStreet, not from the issuers, and are guidelines, not a guarantee of approval.
Citi ThankYou Points® don’t get the attention they deserve. Often overshadowed by more popular point currencies like American Express Membership Rewards®, Chase Ultimate Rewards®, and Capital One Miles, it’s easy to underestimate the value of a Citi ThankYou Point.
However, with the addition of a premium credit card and American Airlines AAdvantage® as a 1:1 transfer partner, Citi deserves a spot on your radar. Here’s everything you need to know about Citi ThankYou Points, including how to earn, redeem, maximize, and share them.
Overview
Citi ThankYou Points are earned with select Citi credit cards, ranging from no-annual–fee cards to premium cards with a hefty price tag. As a cardholder of a Citi card, you can expect a solid earning potential and some decent benefits. Where Citi often falls short is in its travel protections, which are significantly less robust than those offered by Chase or American Express.
Still, Citi has exclusive access to American Airlines as a transfer partner and lists several other fantastic partners, including Avianca LifeMiles, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
How To Earn ThankYou Points
If you want to earn Citi ThankYou Points, you’ll need to apply for one of Citi’s six ThankYou Points-earning credit cards. Note that this list doesn’t include cards that have been discontinued and are no longer open to new applications, such as the Citi Prestige®, Citi ThankYou® Preferred, and AT&T Access More.
Citi Strata Elite℠: Best for premium benefits
This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of Your Best Credit Cards alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.
Citi Strata Elite℠
(3.88) Our Review
- Citi's ThankYou points now transfer to the American Airlines AAdvantage® program
- Earn 12 points per dollar spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com
- Receive 4 American Airlines Admirals Club® Lounge Access Passes each year
- Citi's ThankYou points now transfer to the American Airlines AAdvantage® program
- Earn 12 points per dollar spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com
- Receive 4 American Airlines Admirals Club® Lounge Access Passes each year
Pros
- Citi's ThankYou points now transfer to the American Airlines AAdvantage® program
- Earn 12 points per dollar spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com
- Receive 4 American Airlines Admirals Club® Lounge Access Passes each year
Cons
- High annual fee
- No bonus multipliers on travel not booked in Citi's travel portal
- 6X points on dining is limited to two 12 hour periods each week
-
3x-6x
Dining Out / Food Delivery
-
1.5x-12x
Hotels
-
1.5x-12x
Car Rentals
-
1.5x-6x
Airfare
-
1.5x
Everything Else
The Citi Strata Elite℠ is Citi’s newest premium credit card, offering a suite of statement credits and perks in exchange for a $595 annual fee. However, if you know how to maximize your benefits, you can unlock nearly $1,500 in value from the card. Here’s how:
- Up to $300 annual hotel benefit: Each calendar year, you’ll receive up to $300 off a hotel stay of two nights or more through Citi Travel.
- Up to $200 Annual Splurge Credit℠: Earn up to $200 in statement credits each year on your choice of up to 2 of the following brands: 1stDibs, American Airlines, Best Buy®, Future Personal Training, and Live Nation.
- Up to $200 Annual Blacklane® Credit: Earn up to $100 on Blacklane purchases January through June and up to $100 July through December.
- Priority Pass™ Select membership: Receive access to more than 1,500 airport lounges worldwide.
- American Airlines Admirals Club® Lounge Access Passes: Each year, you’ll receive four Admirals Club® Citi Strata Elite℠ Passes, giving you access to nearly 50 Admirals Club lounges.
- Up to $120 Global Entry® or TSA PreCheck® Application Fee Credit:Receive a statement credit for the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee once every four years.
Although the benefits of the Strata Elite are fantastic, the earning potential leaves a lot to be desired. You’ll earn the following, per $1 spent on purchases:
- 12X on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel
- 6X on flights booked through Citi Travel
- 6X at restaurants during Citi Nights℠ (Friday and Saturday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. ET)
- 3X at restaurants, all other times
- 1.5X on all other purchases
If you don’t mind booking through a travel portal, you can easily add to your Citi ThankYou Points balance. However, unless you frequently eat out on Friday and Saturday nights and live on the East Coast, you’ll primarily earn 1.5 points per dollar on purchases. Other cards, like the Capital One Venture X, earn 2 miles per dollar on all purchases.
When you’re ready to redeem your points, you’ll be able to take advantage of the best transfer ratios to some of the best hotel and airline partners out there.
Citi Strata Premier®: Best for earning potential
This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of Your Best Credit Cards alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.
Citi Strata℠ Premier Credit Card
(4.45) Our Review
- Earn triple points from five distinct spending categories from air travel and hotels to restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations
- Trip Protection and Extended Warranty benefits
- Citi ThankYou® points are extremely flexible, with the ability to utilize an array of more than 15 airline and two hotel transfer partners to get the most bang for your buck on travel
- Earn triple points from five distinct spending categories from air travel and hotels to restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations
- Trip Protection and Extended Warranty benefits
- Citi ThankYou® points are extremely flexible, with the ability to utilize an array of more than 15 airline and two hotel transfer partners to get the most bang for your buck on travel
Pros
- The $95 annual fee can be completely offset by the $100 hotel credit
- Redeem Citi ThankYou® points for a variety of travel, including the ability to transfer points to more than 15 airline and hotel programs
- Trip Protection and Extended Warranty benefits
Cons
- Citi ThankYou® points doesn't have any domestic airline partners, but does have a unique range of airline and hotel partners.
- Weaker on travel perks, with no airport lounge access or TSA PreCheck/Global Entry reimbursement
- No domestic airline transfer partners
-
3x
Airfare
-
3x
Gas Stations
-
3x
Dining Out / Food Delivery
-
3x-10x
Hotels
-
3x
Supermarkets
-
3x
EV Charging
-
1x-10x
Car Rentals
-
1x
Everything Else
In my opinion, the Citi Strata Premier® is one of the most underrated cards on the market. It has a $95 annual fee, making it a direct competitor for more popular cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Capital One Venture. However, its earning potential is much better:
- 10X points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel
- 3X points per $1 spent on air travel, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, gas, and EV charging stations
- 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases
This is one of the best cards to use for flights and hotels booked directly with the provider. You’ll also receive $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more booked through Citi Travel each year, which can easily cover your annual fee.
Citi Strata℠ Card: Best for no-annual-fee
This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of Your Best Credit Cards alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.
Citi Strata℠ Card
(3.5) Our Review
- You can select your own bonus earning category from a list of options
- Your points earned can be transferred to a variety of hotel and airline transfer partners
- You won't pay an annual fee, making it an affordable option to have in your wallet
- You can select your own bonus earning category from a list of options
- Your points earned can be transferred to a variety of hotel and airline transfer partners
- You won't pay an annual fee, making it an affordable option to have in your wallet
Pros
- Impressive earning potential
- Low intro APR on purchases and balance transfers
- Decent welcome bonus
Cons
- Charges foreign transaction fees
- No insurance coverage
- Transfer points to partners at a lower ratio than other Citi cards
-
3x
Supermarkets
-
3x
Gas Stations
-
3x
EV Charging
-
2x
Dining Out / Food Delivery
-
1x
Everything Else
If you don’t want to pay an annual fee, look no further than the Citi Strata℠ Card. While it’s light on benefits, it has an earning potential that more than makes up for it:
- 5X points per $1 spent on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through Citi Travel
- 3X points per $1 spent at supermarkets, select transit, gas stations, EV charging stations, and in a self-select category of your choice
- 2X points per $1 spent at restaurants
- 1X points per $1 spent on all other purchases
For the self-select category, you can choose fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salons, or pet supply stores.
Citi Double Cash® Card: Best for everyday spending
This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of Your Best Credit Cards alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.
Citi® Double Cash Card
(4.4) Our Review
- 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.
- No annual fee
- Can be combined with a Citi Strata℠ Premier Card to transfer points to airline and hotel partners
- 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.
- No annual fee
- Can be combined with a Citi Strata℠ Premier Card to transfer points to airline and hotel partners
Pros
- 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.
- No annual fee
- Can be combined with a Citi Strata® Premier Card to transfer points to airline and hotel partners
Cons
- No bonus categories
- No trip protections
- Charges a foreign transaction fee
-
2x
Everything Else
Although the Citi Double Cash® Card is marketed as a cash-back card, it actually earns Citi ThankYou Points. The earning potential is straightforward — you’ll earn 1% cash back on every purchase, and an additional 1% cash back when you pay off your purchase, for a total of 2% cash back. There aren’t many no-annual-fee cards that earn a transferable point currency and offer 2X points on all day-to-day purchases.
Citi Custom Cash℠ Card: Best for bonus earnings
(Note: The Citi Custom Cash℠ is no longer available to new applicants)
The Citi Custom Cash℠ Card is a popular option thanks to its lucrative earnings. You’ll earn 5% cash back on your top eligible spend category each month, up to $500 spent. In other words, you can earn up to $25 bonus cash back on your top spending category each month. All other purchases earn 1% cash back.
Eligible categories include restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, travel, transit, streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment. It could be very easy to spend $500 a month at the grocery store, so you shouldn’t have a problem maximizing your earnings.
Just like the Double Cash, although it’s marketed as a cash-back card, you earn Citi ThankYou Points.
AT&T Points Plus Card: Best for AT&T users
Surprisingly, the AT&T Points Plus Card actually earns Citi ThankYou Points. You’ll enjoy a tiered earning structure:
- Earn 3 ThankYou® Points for every $1 spent at gas and EV charging stations.
- Earn 2 ThankYou® Points for every $1 spent at grocery stores, including grocery delivery services.2
- Earn 1 ThankYou® Point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
If you notice anything strange, it’s that you don’t earn bonus points on AT&T purchases. However, you can earn $20 back as a statement credit toward your AT&T Wireless bill after spending $1,000 on your card within a billing cycle. Or, you can earn $10 back after spending between $500 and $999.99.
This certainly isn’t the most popular ThankYou Points-earning card, but it could be a decent option for AT&T subscribers who want to discount their monthly bill. As you’ll see shortly, cardholders have access to all Citi transfer partners except American Airlines AAdvantage.
Citi Trifecta Strategy
Combining cards unlocks access to better transfer ratios, cash back rates, and more points earned per dollar spent. If you are looking to earn Citi ThankYou Points, you can apply for a few of the cards above to earn 2 to 10 points per dollar spent.
First, apply for the Citi Strata Premier card to unlock 3X points on air travel, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, and gas stations. You’ll also earn up to 10X on select bookings through Citi Travel.
Then, you’ll want the Citi Double Cash Card, which allows you to earn a base 2% back on all of your purchases. This is an excellent rate for day-to-day spending.
Finally, you’ll apply for the Citi Custom Cash, which allows you to earn 5% back on up to $500 spent in your top eligible category each month. You should decide on your category in advance and then use your Custom Cash exclusively for purchases in this category.
When you hold these three cards, you earn 2X on your everyday spending, 3X on popular categories, 5X up to $500 spent in one category, and up to 10X on travel through Citi Travel. Plus, you can combine your rewards earned from the cash back cards with your Citi Strata Premier to unlock the best transfer ratios to travel partners.
Citi Application Rules
Every credit card issuer has its own application rules. Many Citi cards are impacted by a 48-month rule, which states that you are not eligible for a welcome bonus if you’ve earned one on that card in the past 48 months. So, if you apply for a card, earn a welcome bonus, and decide to cancel or downgrade your card after a year or two, you won’t be eligible to earn another bonus until 48 months after the initial application. Each of the cards in this guide is impacted by the 48-month rule.
In terms of actual eligibility, Citi has an 8/65 rule, which means you can’t apply for more than one card in eight days and no more than two cards in 65 days. If you apply for more than this, your application will be denied or flagged as fraudulent.
Although Citi doesn’t place a cap on the number of cards you can have, it will limit the amount of credit extended to you. If you’ve encountered this issue but still wish to obtain a new card, you can contact Citi to inquire about reallocating your credit limit to accommodate the new card.
How To Redeem ThankYou Points
When you’re ready to redeem your rewards, you have several options, including transferring to airline and hotel partners, cash back, and travel.
Citi ThankYou Airline and Hotel Transfer Partners
Citi has 14 airline transfer partners. Your transfer ratio depends on your credit card. The most notable transfer partner is American Airlines — no other credit card currency lists American as a transfer partner.
Citi’s list of hotel partners is significantly smaller than its list of airline partners, but there are a few notable programs worth being aware of. As you’ll see, the transfer ratios are quite different from those you find on the airline partners list.
The ratios of Choice Privileges and Preferred Hotels & Resorts are particularly notable, allowing you to stretch your Citi points as far as possible.
| Citi ThankYou Transfer Partners | Transfer Ratio for Citi Strata EliteSM, Citi Strata Premier®, Prestige®, AT&T Acccess More Cardmembers | Transfer Ratio from a Citi ThankYou® Preferred, Citi Strata℠ Card, Citi Double Cash® Card, Citi Custom Cash® Card, Citi ThankYou® Mastercard®, AT&T Universal Rewards World, AT&T Universal Savings and Rewards, AT&T Universal Rewards, AT&T Points Plus℠ Card from Citi, or AT&T Access card | Approximate Transfer Time (our estimate / not a guarantee) |
|---|---|---|---|
| AeroMexico | 1:1 | 1:0.7 (1,000 ThankYou = 700 Aeromexico Rewards) | Generally instant |
| Air France Flying Blue | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant |
| American Airlines AAdvantage® | 1:1 (Strata Elite, Strata Premier, and Prestige) | 1:0.7 (Citi ThankYou® Preferred, Citi StrataSM Card, Citi Double Cash® Card, Citi Custom Cash® only) | Within 24 hours generally, in practice should be <1 hour. |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant |
| Cathay Pacific AsiaMiles | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant |
| Etihad Guest | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant |
| Emirates | 1:800 | 1:0.56 (1,000 gets 560) | Instant |
| Eva Air | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | ~1-3 days |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant |
| Qantas | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant to 1 day |
| Qatar Privilege Club | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | ~2 days |
| Singapore Airlines | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | ~1-2 days |
| Thai Orchid Plus | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | ~3-7 days |
| Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | 1-2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | Instant to 2 days |
| Hotels | |||
| Choice Hotels | 1:2 | 1:1.4 | Instant |
| Wyndham Rewards | 1:1 | 1:0.7 | TBD |
| Leaders Club | 5:1 | 1:0.014 (1,000 gets 140) | TBD |
| Preferred Hotels and Resorts "I Prefer" | 1:4 | 1:2.8 | TBD |
| Accor Live Limitless | 1:0.5 | 1:0.35 (1,000 gets 350) | TBD |
Cash Back
You can redeem your rewards as a statement credit, via direct deposit, or by having a check mailed to you. We strongly advise against doing so. If you are a cardholder of the Citi Strata, Citi Strata Premier, or Citi Strata Elite, you’ll get a valuation of 0.75 cents per point.
If you are a cardholder of a cash back card, you’ll get the full 1 cent per point valuation, but you can still do much better than this.
Through Citi Travel
You can redeem your rewards for hotels, flights, car rentals, and attractions through Citi Travel. However, this isn’t the best use of your miles and is generally not recommended.
If you’re in a pinch and desperately need to make a travel booking, but you don’t want to pay cash, you can redeem ThankYou Points at a flat rate of 1 cent per $1. Keep in mind that you can get substantially higher value from your points when you transfer them to travel partners.
If you are using a hotel credit through the Citi Strata Premier or Citi Strata Elite, you’ll need to book through Citi Travel, but pay in cash. If you want to book through the travel portal to earn bonus points, feel free, but keep in mind you may not receive elite benefits or earn points or miles with the provider.
How To Maximize Your Citi ThankYou Rewards
Oneworld
Since Citi is the only credit card issuer that lists American Airlines AAdvantage as a transfer partner, this is our favorite sweet spot. Although American Airlines employs dynamic pricing, you can still find some fantastic deals on award tickets.
A short flight from Wilmington, North Carolina (ILM) to New York (LGA) might only cost 5,000 AAdvantage miles, plus $5.60 in taxes and fees, each way.
Since you can transfer your points from your Citi Strata Premier or Citi Strata Elite at a 1:1 ratio, you know precisely how many ThankYou Points it’ll take to book your flight.
You can also find some transcontinental flights, like from Boston (BOS) to Los Angeles (LAX) for just 11,500 miles each way in economy or only 29,500 miles in business.
Even on one of American’s longest routes — Dallas (DFW) to Brisbane (BNE), which is 8,300 miles in distance, you won’t be charged an arm and a leg for a seat in the main cabin or premium economy. It’s not often you can fly halfway across the world for just 35,000 miles.
You can also find some excellent deals on flights operated by Oneworld partners, like the ticket below, which charges just 60,000 miles for a one-way flight in Japan Airlines business class from Dallas (DFW) to Tokyo (HND).
You can often find equally good deals on flights across the Atlantic with other Oneworld partners.
Star Alliance
If you prefer to fly with United Airlines, you have several options. As a full-time digital nomad who spends a good chunk of the year in Latin America, I’m partial to the Avianca LifeMiles program. You can score some fantastic deals when booking through LifeMiles, especially if you’re a member of LifeMiles+.
For instance, you can book a transcontinental United flight from Los Angeles (LAX) to Newark (EWR) for as low as 13,500 LifeMiles, plus $5.60 in taxes and fees.
Similarly, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer can be a great way to utilize your Citi ThankYou Points, both on Singapore Airlines-operated flights and flights operated by fellow Star Alliance partners.
You can fly one-way from San Francisco to Honolulu on a United-operated flight for just 20,500 KrisFlyer miles.
On the other end of the spectrum, you can test out Singapore Suites from New York (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) with a layover in Frankfurt (FRA) for around 150,000 KrisFlyer miles — if you can find availability.
SkyTeam
If you’re a fan of Delta Air Lines, but you don’t see Delta listed as a transfer partner, don’t worry. Delta is a member of the SkyTeam Alliance, which also includes Virgin Atlantic and Air France-KLM, both of which are Citi transfer partners.
Virgin Atlantic posts an award chart for Delta-operated flights, so you know exactly how many points you’ll need to book a flight. The award charts are divided into three categories: flights to/from the UK, flights to/from the rest of Europe, and all other flights. Below is the award chart for all other Delta-operated flights.
One thing to note is the low pricing for flights under 500 miles — you’ll pay just 7,500 points in economy or 21,000 points in first class. That’s often far less than what Delta charges, so you can transfer your Citi points to Virgin Atlantic and know you’re getting a great deal.
Important note: Delta only makes a fraction of its flights available to partners, so just because you can book for miles on Delta’s website (which allows you to book any flight using a dynamic pricing mechanism), doesn’t mean it’s available elsewhere. Check before transferring points!
If you want to fly on Virgin’s own metal, you can use the reward seat checker to find deals to the UK in Upper Class for as low as 33,000 points each way.
Choice Privileges
Choice Hotels aren’t nearly as popular as competitors like Marriott or Hilton, but you can actually find some fantastic properties in the portfolio. Award nights start as low as 6,000 Choice points per night, but given Citi’s 1:2 transfer ratio, you’ll spend just 3,000 Citi ThankYou Points per night.
You can book a two-bedroom suite at the Radisson Blu Aruba, which just won a spot in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hotels List, for just 30,000 Choice points, or 15,000 Citi ThankYou Points, a night. A three-night stay would run just 45,000 Citi ThankYou Points.
If you paid in cash, you’d spend $534 per night, or a total of $2,068.14 for a three-night stay after factoring in taxes and fees. Thanks to the transfer ratio, you’re getting a valuation of almost 4.6 cents per point.
Preferred Hotels and Resorts
Preferred Hotels and Resorts is a small collection of independent luxury hotels around the world. Award nights start at just 15,000 I Prefer points per night. Given Citi’s 1:4 transfer ratio, you can book a night for as low as 3,750 Citi ThankYou Points.
A six-night stay in a premium room at The Landmark Bangkok, a 5-star hotel, would cost just 22,500 Citi ThankYou Points, plus $39.78 in taxes and fees. Paying cash, you’d spend $882.12, giving you a valuation of over 3.7 cents per point.
How to Keep Points Alive When Downgrading a Card
Luckily, your Citi ThankYou Points won’t expire as long as your account is open. However, if you cancel your card, your rewards will expire 60 days after the date your account is closed. To keep your rewards, the best option is to downgrade to a no-annual-fee card that earns ThankYou Points, such as the Citi Strata Card.
However, as we’ve seen, not all cards transfer to partners at the same ratio. Be aware that downgrading to a different card could result in a lower value for your points. If you aren’t in a rush to cancel your card, you could always use your points before requesting a downgrade.
How to Share Citi ThankYou Points
Until May 16, 2026, Points Sharing is a unique feature for Citi cardholders that allows you to give your ThankYou Points to another cardmember. The points you receive are valid for 90 days from the date you received them, so be sure to have a plan for how you’ll use them. You’re able to send and receive no more than 100,000 points in one calendar year. This feature will not be available after May 16, 2026.
To share your points, simply log in to your account, go to the redemptions section, and click “point sharing.”
Then, enter the name of the person you wish to send points to, their ThankYou account number or credit card number, enter the number of points you want to share, accept the terms and conditions, and then press send.
Bottom Line
Although often underrated, Citi ThankYou Points can be an incredibly powerful point currency. When you hold a card that earns ThankYou Points, you have exclusive access to American Airlines AAdvantage®, along with a variety of other airline and hotel partners. Plus, there are so many fantastic cards that earn ThankYou Points, making it easier than ever to add to your balance.
![Southwest Companion Pass: A Guide to Earning It For Two Years [2026-2027]](https://yourbestcreditcards.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/southwest-rapid-rewards-premier-credit-card-768x256.jpg)
