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Citi’s refreshing its Citi Rewards+® Card*, and for once, the card changes are actually customer-friendly. Not to be confused with the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card, this card is relaunching as the Citi Strata℠ Card* in summer 2025 and will slide seamlessly into Citi’s ThankYou Points line with fantastic new earning opportunities. Citi is a Forbes Advisor partner.
Note: While the Citi Strata℠ Card* is expected to be available for application on Citi’s website in summer 2025, the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card is available for application via the link below.
Citi Strata Card—Impressive Earning Rates With No Annual Fee
While there’s no shortage of no-annual-fee rewards cards on the market, the Strata card will stand out for its varied bonus categories. Cardholders will earn:
- 5X ThankYou points per dollar spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked through Citi Travel
- 3X points at supermarkets, select transit and at gas and EV charging stations
- 3X points on an eligible self-select category of your choice, such as fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores or pet stores
- 2x points at restaurants
- 1X point on all other eligible purchases
The self-select categories include your choice of fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores (including barber shops and hair salons) and pet supply stores. A Citi representative confirmed that there are no spending caps in this or other categories.
Most other credit cards with custom earning categories have spending limits, which makes the Strata stand out.
Citi Rewards+ Cards To Be Converted to Strata Cards
If you currently hold a Citi Rewards+® Card*, it will automatically be converted to a Citi Strata℠ Card* on July 20, 2025. For most customers, the new earning rates will be a major upgrade.
However, one of the Rewards+ card’s most loved benefits was the ability to receive a rebate worth 10% of your redeemed points (up to 100,000 points per year). Unfortunately, that benefit will disappear when the Rewards+ is fully phased out.
The new Strata card doesn’t have any major headlining perks, though it will be eligible for standard World Elite Mastercard benefits.
Combining Multiple Citi Credit Cards
The Citi Strata℠ Card* will serve many people well as a stand-alone card, but customers willing to juggle multiple cards can maximize their earnings potential in several spending categories and then combine ThankYou Points into a single account for ultimate flexibility when redeeming.
Any or all of these cards could make excellent companions for the Strata:
Citi Double Cash® Card: Earn 2% cash back on all purchases—1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off, and earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked with Citi Travel, making this card a good option for transactions that aren’t treated as bonus categories on the Strata.
Citi Custom Cash® Card*: Earn 5% cash back on purchases in a top eligible spend category up to the first $500 spent each billing cycle, 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel portal through 6/30/2026 and 1% cash back on all other purchases. The Custom Cash features different purchase categories than the Strata, such as home improvement and drugstores.
Citi Strata Premier℠ Card: Offering overlapping earnings in some categories (such as 3X in groceries and gas), this $95-per-year card increases your earnings potential on other types of purchases, particularly travel.
The Strata card won’t accept applications until later this summer, but you can apply for any of the above cards now. However, keep in mind that Citi typically only approves applicants for a maximum of two cards in a rolling 65-day period, so if you hope to obtain multiple cards, you may need to spread out your applications over time.
Bottom Line
Whether you’re a current Rewards+ cardholder or looking for a powerful no-annual-fee credit card, the Citi Strata℠ Card* is poised to become a serious contender in the rewards card landscape. Offering triple rewards in a large breadth of categories—including one category of your choice—the upcoming Strata card offers a compelling way to maximize your ThankYou Points and rethink your wallet.