I receive compensation for content and many links on this blog. Citibank is an advertising partner of this site, as is American Express, Chase, Barclays and Capital One. Any opinions expressed in this post are my own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by my advertising partners. I do not write about all credit cards that are available -- instead focusing on miles, points, and cash back (and currencies that can be converted into the same). Terms apply to the offers and benefits listed on this page.
Citi Strata EliteSM Card (See rates and fees.)
The Citi Strata Elite Card is Citi’s brand new entry into the premium rewards credit card space. It’s already a crowded field, so they had to make a splash. This is a $595 annual fee card – priced below Sapphire Reserve and Amex Platinum – but comes packed with a lot of value and I jumped on the opportunity. The value from this card in the first year is huge.
Here are 8 reasons to consider applying for the Citi Strata EliteSM Card if you haven’t already done so.
- Initial bonus: 100,000 points after spending $6,000 in the first three months. Note that this is marketed as a limited time offer, but the end date hasn’t been revealed.
- Lots of reports of approvals Readers share overwhelming success. I received instant approval for the Citi Strata EliteSM Card – as soon as I hit apply.
That surprised me, since Citi already extends me quite a lot of credit and since Chase had just rejected me for one.
- More perk value than the cost The card comes with up to a $300 annual hotel credit for a minimum two night stay booked via Citi travel; up to a $200 credit each year with retailers like American Airlines or Best Buy; up to $200 annual credit with Blacklane (car service).
Those alone are $700 against a $595 annual fee. Citi promotes over $1,500 in value. But note that the annual hotel credit and $200 ‘splurge credit’ are calendar year offers, which means that you can benefit from them twice in the first cardmember year for $1,000 in value [using each before the end of this year if approved now, and again at the start of 2026].
- Points transfers Citi has just added American Airlines AAdvantage as a points transfer partner, and with rich accelerator earn categories the card earns faster than an American Airlines co-brand card. Plus, you have the flexibility to transfer plenty of other places too.
Points can be transferred to:
- oneworld: American Airlines AAdvantage, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Malaysia Airlines Enrich, Qantas Frequent Flyer, Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Star Alliance: Avianca LifeMiles, EVA Air Infinity MileageLands, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus, Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles
- SkyTeam: Aeromexico Club Premier, Air France KLM Flying Blue, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- Non-alliance: Emirates Skywards, Etihad Guest, JetBlue TrueBlue
- Hotels: Leading Hotels of the World Leaders Club, Accor ALL – Accor Live Limitless, Choice Hotels Choice Privileges, Preferred Hotels I Prefer, Wyndham Hotels Wyndham Rewards
Cathay Pacific First Class
Cathay Pacific First Class - Spending bonus categories up to 12x The card offers more points for travel portal spend at the top level than any other, plus weekend night 6x on dining which tops other products, and you’re never earning just one point per dollar.
- 12 points per dollar spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com
- 6 points per dollar spent on Air Travel booked on cititravel.com
- 6 points per dollar spent at Restaurants on “Citi Nights” purchases, Friday and Saturday from 6 PM – 6 AM Eastern
- 3 points per dollar spent at Restaurants any other time
- 1.5 points per dollar spent on All Other Purchases
- 12 points per dollar spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com
- Unlimited Priority Pass Select lounge visits The card offers a Priority Pass Select membership for the primary cardmember and any authorized users (which are $75 each), valid for unlimited visits and including up to two complimentary guests.. It does not cover credits at restaurants and similar non-lounge offerings like markets that are linked to Priority Pass.
You don’t need to have your physical or even digital Priority Pass membership for access – rather uniquely lounges are supposed to accept your Strata Elite card as the Priority Pass card itself. That means, unlike other issuers, you don’t have to activate Priority Pass membership.
Marco Polo Lounge, Venice - Admirals Club Passes The card comes with 4 Admirals Club passes per calendar year (so twice in cardmember year one, for eight passes total). Each set of four has to be used during the calendar year in which they’re issued, and expire if unused.
They are available to the primary cardmember and include one guest 18 years or older plus up to 3 children under 18. They can be redeemed for additional adult companions as well. Access requires same day boarding pass (departing or arriving) for an American or oneworld partner airline flight.
Access is valid for 24 hours, and can be used at multiple lounges on the same day. The passes are deposited to your AAdvanage wallet and can be scanned by the Admirals Club front desk for entry. If you cancel the card, unused passes are forfeit.
Admirals Club Washington National Airport E Concourse - Pairs With Citi Double Cash 1.5 points per dollar on all your spending that doesn’t earn a bonus is great. You never want to earn just one point per dollar. But if you are approved for a no annual fee Citi Double Cash card later, that card earns 2 points per dollar on all spend, and those points can be combined with Citi Strata Elite’s and become transferrable just like Strata Elite points.
Citi’s new premium card is pretty incredible in the first year, not just because of the strong initial bonus but also because of credits that are timed to calendar year rather than cardmember year. (Calendar year credits can be claimed twice in cardmember year one.)
Honestly, I feel like this was a strategic error on Citi’s part. They’ve constructed a card that is a no-brainer to get. There’s just so much value to the customer up front. I’m not sure if it’ll be a keeper long-term or a card that’s best for your everyday spend (although it is very good).
My take: apply for this card, reap the maximum benefits in year one, and then consider whether it’s right for you in the long-term. And apply now to give yourself plenty of time to use calendar year credits before end of year.
Gary, we get, the deal is good, but with a title like that, you’re starting to sound like ‘Ants-In-My-Eyes Johnson’… “Hi, I’m Citibank…and I can’t see anything…our prices, I hope, aren’t too low!”
Can the AC passes be transferred to someone else for use?
And they have to pay Gary for his affiliate links! Citi really did not think this through.
Yes, sign up for the SUB and Year 1 bonus, it’s excellent value, and use the links provided.
But let’s be transparent. For many years Citi’s competitors were able to increase the credit quality of their offerings of asset based securities that were securitized by credit card receivables because they had a premium credit card program that produced premium credit card receivables. Citi was a pioneer of this securitization practice, but somehow over the last 10 years or so, it stood still while its competitors raced to acquire more HNWIs for this purpose and so that they had a better network of HNWIs to provide banking services to. Citi stood still (yes it had the Prestige – fan favorite but no broad mass market appeal) and relied too heavily on the strength of its industry specific banking groups to continue to access HNWIs.
What Citi failed to take into account was that everyone is a free agent today! You can bank at many banks at the same time! And so when others like Chase started dangling fancy premium cards and lounges, HWNIs paid for their card services because they perceived those services as valuable. It’s really that simple.
Citi was obviously not very successful in launching the Elite. How could it be when its primary competitors actually offer lounges to access and not just a priority pass. Amex has been offering access to Delta lounges for years and the Centurion lounges are everywhere. Chase handed out points like candy with the CSR and built their own lounges. C1 now has a compelling points and lounge program and is growing. Citi… uh… well, you can have 4 passes to the Admirals Club! How… Elite!
Citi even said to its private bank clients (many of whom get free private banking services because Citi provides loans to their employers) here you go, first year is free! Citigold client – here’s a hefty discount! And they still can’t get people to sign up because it’s just not that interesting of a product, and HNWI individuals that may be incentivized by access to bank branded lounges have better things to do with their time than play with a coupon book.
So here we are and now they have to turn to traditional marketing. Gone is the 100k only through the bankers – hello 100k for everyone! Howdy to Kristen Bell (funny stuff FWIW, and they can spin this as “we always planned this phase 2 marketing campaign” all they want, but I’m sure we all know better). And an incredibly generous affiliate referral program. Citi is overpaying everyone right now — including potential customers — so that this launch is less of an embarrassment than it already is. At least the people who screwed up the CSR’s relaunch can point to Citi’s track record when they are fighting to keep their jobs this Christmas.
So yes, take advantage of Citi’s bungling here and get this offer! It’s… good! Operators are standing by. And for your points earning needs, the Strata Premier, Strata Regular and DoubleCash are simply fantastic low/no fee cards with an incredible breadth of points earning categories, and you can transfer to AA and others at a 1:1 ratio as long as you hold the $95 Premier ($0 if you’ll use the $100 credit).
Citi must really be handing out bonuses to bloggers who shill their card.
Gary – you almost hitting TPG levels of shilling with how much you are pushing this card. BTW – doesn’t work for me. Have the Amex Platinum and CSR so have more benefits than I can use plus have the Citi Strata Premier so can earn points and transfer to AA. Frankly don’t understand, outside of using first year benefits, why anyone would prefer this card of the Platinum or CSR.
BTW probably downgrading CSR to CSP before my next annual fee in August. Love the Amex benefits and some of the CSR ones are great but the Edit is WAY too limited and there are no restaurants that qualify for the $300 credit at all in the state I live in (which is NC with the 15th or 16th largest city, a dynamic area around Raleigh and the Asheville brewery/culinary scene) and that is disappointing.
Once again: @Peter gets it. Mah man! Ring that (Kristen) Bell! So much ‘bungling’!
How many different ways can you tell us how much you love this card (and the fees it must be generating for you, Gary?). Oh wait, its usually just the same exact blog post but with a new and even more breathless title!!
Citi didn’t think this through, just like I think Chase and Amex haven’t fully thought this through . . . but in a different way than stated above. A large percentage of people who pay $800 for a credit card are not paragons of financial responsibility and present a higher credit risk than the typical card holder. It’s great collecting all of those $800 Annual Fees upfront, but it slaps you in the face when these people make other bad financial choices and can’t pay their credit card bills. The writeoffs will be down the road in some unknown time and place, but they will come and they will hurt. We’ve all been down this road before in only slightly different contexts.