Tag Archives: Citi ThankYou Points

a close-up of a logo

Citi ThankYou Points Cyber Monday Gift Card Sale (Redeem 20% Fewer TYPs on Nov 30)

Posted on by . 6 Replies

Updated on 11/29/20 at 11pm PT: According to the Citi ThankYou Gift Card page, it looks like this 20% discount only applies to Apple, Happy Dining, Fandango, Petsmart, and Top Golf gift cards.  All other gift cards are at the same price.

Good morning everyone, happy Friday!  I just received an email from Citi about their upcoming Cyber Monday Gift Card Sale.  If you redeem Citi ThankYou Points (TYPs) on November 30 between 12:00am ET and 11:59pm ET, you will be able to redeem 20% fewer TYPs.  For example, a $25 gift card normally costs 2,500 TYPs (1.0 cents per point), but during this promo, you will only need to redeem 2,000 TYPs (1.25 cents per point).  The 1.25 CPP rate is the same value you would get if you redeemed TYPs for travel.  You may be able to get more than 1.25 CPP if you transfer your TYPs to transfer partners, so keep that in mind.

a screenshot of a web page

Continue reading →

a black and white credit card

Keep, Cancel, or Convert: Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card ($450 Annual Fee)

Posted on by . 13 Replies

Buenos días everyone! I know it’s been a long time since you’ve heard from me – I’ve got a couple of things in the works, but for now, I thought I’d hop on to Grant’s Keep, Cancel, or Convert? Series with my thoughts on the Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card.

The CSR has had a spot in my wallet since it was first released, but over time, it’s been losing its luster for me as other cards have caught up with it. When Chase announced that the annual fee would be rising to $550, I knew its days in my wallet were numbered. Here’s why:

  • I opened the JPMorgan Chase Ritz Carlton Credit Card right before Chase stopped offering the card to new applicants, which offers the same travel protections as the CSR and a better Priority Pass membership.
  • Late last year, I opened a Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Card, which earns 3x on travel and allows me to transfer my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to airline and hotel partners.
  • Earlier this year, I opened a Citi Premier Credit Card, which earns 3x Citi ThankYou Points on restaurants and most travel purchases.
  • My Chase Freedom Credit Card and Chase Freedom Unlimited Credit Card now earn 3x Chase Ultimate Rewards Points at restaurants (though both cards have foreign transaction fees, so I won’t be using them in Mexico).

Continue reading →

a black letter on a white background

Why I Redeemed 1/3 of my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points with the Pay Yourself Back Feature

Posted on by . 37 Replies

Good morning everyone, I hope your weekend is going well.  I recently had a change of heart and decided to redeem 1/3 of my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points with the Pay Yourself Back feature.  Chase introduced the Pay Yourself Back feature on May 31 and I wrote How to Redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards Points via Pay Yourself Back (1.5 Cents Per Point for Restaurants, Grocery Stores & Home Improvement).  Initially, I was not very excited about the new feature, since I convinced myself that I could use my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points in other ways and get more than 1.5 cents per point.

After realizing that I had no concrete travel plans remaining in 2020 (I recently cancelled trips to Boston & New York along with a big trip to Africa), I figured that my stash of Chase Ultimate Rewards Points would probably not be used much this year.  Before redeeming 1/3 of my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points, I looked at Chase’s travel partners to see if there were any major reasons to keep my Chase Ultimate Rewards Points.  Chase has 13 airline and hotel partners, but only has 4 exclusive partners (Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, IHG, and Hyatt), the remaining 9 travel partners are accessible with American Express Membership Rewards Points, Citi ThankYou Points, and Capital One Miles.

My wife and I have ~58,000 Southwest Airlines points and ~$150 in travel credit, so I would not need to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to Southwest Airlines.  I am not a huge fan of United Airlines and can usually book Star Alliance flights with other travel programs, plus I have ~$178 travel credit from a cancelled United flight.  IHG points are worth ~0.5 cents per point and I have ~222,000 IHG points in my account.  Last but not least, Hyatt is the only travel partner that stands out from the list.  I decided to save at least 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points just in case we stay at a Hyatt later this year).

I figured that normal spending on our Chase Ink Cash Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card, and Chase Freedom Credit Card this year would replenish our Chase Ultimate Rewards Points balance by the end of 2020.

Continue reading →

a credit card with a picture of people and a credit card

Citi Rewards+: 2,500 Bonus ThankYou Points Posted to TYP Account, Not Credit Card Statement

Posted on by . 6 Replies

Good afternoon everyone.  Last month, I received a targeted spend offer on my Citi Rewards+ Credit Card where I could earn 10x Citi ThankYou Points up to 2,500 TYPs for online purchases.  Doctor of Credit wrote about the offer.  Spending $250+ online in a month seemed pretty easy and 2,500 TYPs is worth $31.25 toward TYP travel redemptions, so I activated the offer, made the online purchases, and waited for the TYPs to post.  My credit card statement closed yesterday, so I downloaded the statement and looked at the TYP earning section, but I didn’t see the 2,500 TYPs.  I did some digging and found that the 2,500 TYPs posted directly to my TYP account instead.  I will share my findings below.

a screenshot of a website

Continue reading →

a close-up of a logo

PSA: Don’t Cancel Airline Reservations through Citi ThankYou Portal; Cancel Directly with the Airline

Posted on by . 12 Replies

Good morning everyone, happy Friday!  A few months ago, I used Citi ThankYou Points to book an Alaska Airlines flight from San Francisco (SFO) to Orange County (SNA) for Mother’s Day Weekend.  Fast forward to Tuesday April 28 when I received this email regarding my airline reservation.  Due to the coronavirus pandemic, there was a schedule change to my Alaska Airlines flight.  I knew for the last several weeks that I was not going to fly down to Orange County, but I was hoping Alaska Airlines would cancel the flights and provide a full refund.  In this post, I will show what would happen if I cancelled the airline reservation through the Alaska Airlines website vs. cancelling through the Citi ThankYou Portal (which is what I did) and explain why you SHOULD NOT cancel through the Citi ThankYou Portal.

a screenshot of a website

Continue reading →