Now Live: Positive Citi Double Cash Card Changes

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The Double Cash Card will be changed as of this spring. The implications for most people shouldn't be that big, but I still think these are positive developments.

The Citi Double Cash Card changes are live as of today. Let's go over the details of the changes to how the account looks.

Why the Citi Double Cash Card is awesome

The Citi Double Cash Card is a no annual fee card that has historically offered 1% cash back when you make a purchase, and 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase.

Cash back rewards could be converted into ThankYou points with this card. You could earn 2x Citi ThankYou points per dollar spent if you converted at the rate of one cent per point. It's one of the best cards for everyday spending because of its 3.4% return.

This card now earns ThankYou points. This is noteworthy, but not as consequential as you might think.

What changed about the Citi Double Cash Card

Changes have been made to the Citi Double Cash Card.

• There’s no longer a minimum cash back balance required to redeem rewards, while previously there was a $25 minimum; this is good for those who have the card but don’t spend all that much
• The card now earns ThankYou points rather than cash back; that means you earn one ThankYou point when you make a purchase, and one ThankYou point when you pay for that purchase
• You continue to have the option to redeem rewards as cash back at the same rate, but you also have access to other Citi ThankYou redemption options, including for gift cards, for booking flights and hotels, and more

The implications for maximizing rewards are limited.

• While the Citi Double Cash Card now earns ThankYou points, those points can’t be converted into airline miles or hotel points with most partners unless you have a “premium” card earning ThankYou points in conjunction with it; the exceptions are that you are able to transfer points directly to JetBlue TrueBlue, Choice Privileges, and Wyndham Rewards (more details on that below)
• Aside from being able to transfer points to airline & hotel partners, most other Citi ThankYou redemptions offer at most one cent of value per point, in which case you’re better off just getting cash that you can spend however you’d like
• In theory this could be useful if you wanted to downgrade another card earning Citi ThankYou points, as this would allow you to maintain your points, though the points still expire 60 days after you close an account, and there’s not really any benefit to keeping those points rather than cashing them out
• One important thing to keep in mind is that Citi ThankYou points issued through various cards have different redemption options, and the ThankYou points issued through the Citi Double Cash continue to be redeemable for one cent cash back each

Are the Citi Double Cash Card changes as expected?

Many people were skeptical about the changes to the Citi Double Cash Card when I posted about them earlier this year. One reader commented.

I have now read FOUR articles on this change, and I believe every single one of them is an unadvertised-as-such paid-for promotion. Because let’s look at what they’re really doing. They are TAKING AWAY the actual U.S. dollar money you got back in exchange for … NOTHING. Nothing you couldn’t already CHOOSE to do IF YOU WANTED TO. They are TAKING AWAY an option in exchange for NOTHING.

Hopefully people will believe once and for all that this wasn't a devaluation with these changes now live. You can still cash out your rewards even though nothing is being taken away. What has changed?

I see my total ThankYou points when I log into my account, rather than the total cash back. The marketing has been updated to reflect that you can earn ThankYou Points twice.

When it comes time to redeem, you are in a better spot than before. You can convert your ThankYou points into cash back at a rate of one cent per point. 100 ThankYou points could be converted into $1 cash back.

It is now possible to convert ThankYou points into three airline and hotel currencies.

• Convert ThankYou points into Choice Privileges points at a 1,000:1,500 ratio
• Convert ThankYou points into JetBlue TrueBlue points at a 1,000:800 ratio
• Convert ThankYou points into Wyndham Rewards points at a 1,000:800 ratio

You will get a better transfer ratio if you have the card in conjunction with the Citi Premier Card.

Bottom line

The changes to the Citi Double Cash Card are as expected. I think these adjustments are more about marketing than anything else. The ThankYou points can be redeemed at the same rate as before for statement credits, cash back, etc., though the card now earns ThankYou points rather than cash rewards.

The goal is to make this a more versatile card that can earn travel and other rewards, rather than just a cash back card. You can't transfer points to ThankYou partners unless you also have another premium card that earns ThankYou points.

If you're looking to earn cash back, these changes aren't negative. Nothing has changed for the worse. You can accrue cash back at the same rate, and you can even cash out without a minimum.

What do you think about the changes to the Citi Double Cash Card?