What Credit Cards I Hold & Why: Part 3 – Citibank

Note: There are a number of links to Credit Cards in the blog post but there are no affiliate links. Any links to credit card products in this article are purely for information only and do not constitute a recommendation.

I get quite a few messages from readers and Twitter followers asking what credit cards I like to hold and which ones I recommend so I thought a walk-through of the cards I hold (and why I hold them) could be helpful.

I have a pretty extensive list of credit cards and there are way too many for a single blog so I’ve divided them up into more manageable groups:

• American Express Credit & Charge Cards
• Chase Credit Cards
• Citibank Credit Cards
• Other US Credit Card Issuers

Citibank Cards

Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard

Annual Fee: $450

Foreign Transaction Fees: No

Benefits most useful to me:

• No foreign transaction fees
• Admirals Club Membership

Other benefits:

• 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles after $40,000 spent in purchases each calendar year
• $100 credit towards Global Entry fees
• Priority check-in and boarding on American Airlines
• 25% saving on in-flight purchases on American Airlines
• Free checked bag on American Airlines
• Worldwide travel accident insurance
• Lost baggage protection
• Trip cancellation & interruption insurance
• Extended warranty protection
• Purchase protection (first 120 days)
• Concierge service
• Access to reduced mileage awards

Points Earned:

• Everyday spending – 1 AAdvantage Mile/dollar
• American Airlines spending – 2 AAdvantage Miles/dollar

Why I hold the credit card:

I’ve held this card since it was first introduced and I originally got it, primarily, for the 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQM) benefit. However, over the past couple of years the amount of traveling I do has increased and I haven’t needed those EQMs to push me over the AAdvantage Executive Platinum threshold, so this card has become less useful to me.

The Admirals Club membership comes in useful for all my domestic flights in the US but, if I’m honest, the rest of the benefits that come with this card don’t really do much for me. My Amex Platinum card covers my Global Entry fee, my American Airlines status gets me all the benefits that this card offers on the airline and I have a number of other cards that offer most of the other benefits that this card does.

Even though having a credit card that earns AAdvantage Miles could become more useful as the miles get harder to earn by flying the 2 miles/dollar earning ratio isn’t exactly stellar and I’m struggling to justify the $450 annual fee.

For the past few years Citi have offered me a retention bonus of 1000 miles/month for every month that I spend $1,000 on the card (I value that at around $216/year), so that’s helped to offset the cost of the card a bit..but I think this card’s days are numbered.

Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select MasterCard

Annual Fee: $95 ($0 first year)

Foreign Transaction Fees: No

Benefits most useful to me:

• Earn 10% of redeemed AAdvantage miles back per year (capped at 10,000 miles)

Other benefits:

• Group 1 boarding on American Airlines
• 25% saving on in-flight purchases on American Airlines
• Free checked bag on American Airlines
• No foreign transaction fees
• Lost baggage protection
• Trip cancellation & interruption insurance
• Extended warranty protection
• Purchase protection (first 120 days all states except NY where it’s 90 days)
• Access to reduced mileage awards

Points Earned:

• Everyday spending – 1 AAdvantage Mile/dollar
• American Airlines spending – 2 AAdvantage Miles/dollar

Why I hold the credit card:

This is yet another credit card that I took out specifically for a benefit that it bestows – the 10% rebate on AAdvantage Miles redeemed in a year. I don’t need it for anything else as my Citi AAdvantage Executive Card has me covered for all the other benefits (and more).

I easily redeem over 100,000 AAdvantage Miles every year so I get the full 10,000 mile rebate thanks to this card (which I value at around $180) and that offsets the annual fee.

However, just like my Citi AAdvantage Executive Card, this credit card is almost certainly for the chop when the annual fee comes due.

It’s probably one of the weakest cards I have in terms of benefits and earnings and it is only the 10% rebate that has kept it in my credit card portfolio this long. However, as of this year, I have another credit card that gives me the same 10% rebate on my redeemed miles (more on that in part 4 of this series) so this card has run its course.

The future looks bleak for my two Citi AAdvantage cards. With American Airlines devaluing the AAdvantage program and new cards coming to the market at similar price points and with better benefits, these cards are being left behind…and I don’t see much reason to hang on to either.

Next up are the remaining credit cards I hold.