Credit Cards Travel Credit Cards

Citi Strata℠ Card Review [2025]: Earn on Gas and Groceries, Redeem for Travel

While travel perks are limited, this card's a good place to start for anyone looking to try out Citi ThankYou points for rewards travel. (Citi is a Financebuzz partner.)

Updated Aug. 4, 2025
Fact check checkmark icon Fact checked

Citi Strata℠ Card

Citi Strata℠ Card
4.5
info

OUR VIEW

New to Citi’s Strata family of rewards cards, the Citi Strata℠ Card(Rates and fees) is a refresh of the Citi Rewards+® Card card and a marked improvement at that. It offers an enhanced suite of no-cap earn rates on common spending categories, packing a fair-bit-of-earnings punch for a card with a $0 annual fee.

The Strata also features an intro annual percentage rate (APR) period on purchases and balance transfers, making it a good choice for anyone looking to finance a large purchase or pay down some debt while enjoying reward rates that you won’t find on many balance transfer cards.

Like its sister cards, the new Strata goes out of its way to appeal to travelers, granting cardholders access to all but one of Citi’s travel transfer partners rather than the notably limited number available to Rewards+ cardholders. It also features a 5X earn rate on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com.

Pros

Earn 30,000 bonus Points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening
$0 annual fee
Earn 5X points on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com
Earn elevated points on purchases at supermarkets, gas and EV charging stations, and in an eligible category of your choice

Cons

No elevated points on airfare purchases via cititravel.com
Highest travel rewards only available by booking through cititravel.com
Foreign transaction fee
How we evaluate products

Card basics

Card type Travel
Card issuer Citi
Credit card network Mastercard
Annual fee $0
Welcome offer Earn 30,000 bonus Points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening
Reward rate Earn 3 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent in an eligible Self-Select Category of your choice (Fitness Clubs, Select Streaming Services, Live Entertainment, Cosmetic Stores/Barber Shops/Hair Salons, or Pet Supply Stores). Choose your eligible Self-Select Category on Citi Online or by calling customer service. The default Self-Select Category is Select Streaming Services. Earn 5 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals and Attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com; earn 3 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent at Supermarkets, on Select Transit purchases, and at Gas & EV Charging Stations. Earn 2 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent at Restaurants; earn 1 ThankYou® Point for each $1 spent on All Other Purchases.
Recommended credit score Excellent, Good
Foreign transaction fee 3%

Who should get the Citi Strata℠ Card?

People who make frequent purchases at gas stations and supermarkets

If you spend frequently on gas or at supermarkets or if you have an electric vehicle, you'll stand to benefit from carrying the Strata. Cardmembers earn 3X points per dollar spent at supermarkets, on select transit purchases, and at gas & EV charging stations.

People who want a convenient self-select bonus category

Not everyone wants a card with a rotating bonus category, especially one that you have to self-select. Many issuers make it a bit of a hassle to manage flexible earning categories, but that's not the case here.

The Citi strata earns 3X on an eligible self-select category of your choice (fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salons, or pet supply stores), but the category requires no opt-in and automatically defaults to streaming.

As soon as you open your Strata card, you'll earn on any spending with streaming services until you update your self-select category via your account page online or over the phone. You can change your category once per quarter. Your selection will carry over if you don't want to change it, so there's no need to reset it each quarter.

People who want a 0% intro APR on balance transfers and purchases

Do you have a balance hanging around on a high-interest credit card? Then this Citi card may be a great option for you. It offers a 0% introductory APR on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months (then 19.24% - 29.24% (Variable) APR); balance transfers must be completed within four months of account opening.

There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5) completed within the first 4 months of account opening. And while 15 months isn't the longest intro APR period out there, there aren't many balance transfer cards that will deliver the level of rewards earning you'll get with the Strata, so the card's worth considering for this use.

Citi Strata℠ Card's top benefits

In replacing the Rewards+ card with the Strata, Citi cut two valuable perks: the points round-up feature, which rounded all purchase earnings up to the nearest 10 points, and the 10% points-back perk on redemptions.

While these were certainly useful benefits, the new Strata card comes with enough earning power and fringe benefits to make it even more attractive.

Easy-to-earn welcome offer

While it's not the biggest offer on the market, the Strata's welcome offer will bank you a decent chunk of Citi ThankYou Points for a relatively low minimum spend, as cardholders earn 30,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.

Elevated earn rates for travelers

Like the Citi Strata Elite℠ Card and the Citi Strata Premier® Card, the Strata was designed with travelers in mind. Cardholders earn 5X points per dollar on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com.

Globetrotting foodies can earn 2X points per dollar spent at restaurants, which includes cafes, bars, lounges, fast-food, delivery, and takeout, so you'll get a little back as you sample the local fare.

Drawbacks: Why you may want a different card

No bonus on general travel spending

The Strata seems to be tiptoeing toward travel card territory, granting cardholders access to the Citi travel portal and a broad range of airline and hotel transfer partners, but it comes up short for big-time travelers in a pretty significant way.

The Strata doesn't earn an elevated rate on direct spending with airlines, hotels, or rental car companies, and airlines aren't included in the bonus category for portal spending.

Issuer travel portals can be convenient and deliver a little extra value on your spending, but some prospective cardholders might be looking for a little more flexibility in how they earn on travel expenses.

Foreign transaction fee

While you may be able to earn extra rewards on some travel spending through the Citi portal, the Strata does come with a 3% foreign transaction fee, which means its not ideal for use abroad once you actually get to your destination.

Earning and redeeming Citi ThankYou Points

Potential earnings in years one and two

Here's a look at how your ThankYou Points can add up with the Citi Strata Card. To calculate these values, we used a valuation of one cent per point.

Remember, this is an estimation. Your actual earnings will vary depending on your spending overall as well as in specific categories.

Year one earnings: $1,120

Year two earnings: $820

These values are based on the FinanceBuzz Credit Card Rewards Valuation Model, which takes a look at points earned via spending, the welcome bonus, and the annual fee.

Best ways to earn

Earning ThankYou points with the Citi Strata may look complex, but the card's earning structure is actually fairly simple. Cardmembers can earn 3 thankyou® points for each $1 spent in an eligible self-select category of your choice (fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salons, or pet supply stores). choose your eligible self-select category on citi online or by calling customer service. the default self-select category is select streaming services. earn 5 thankyou® points for each $1 spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked on citi travel® via cititravel.com; earn 3 thankyou points for each $1 spent at supermarkets, on select transit purchases, and at gas & ev charging stations. earn 2 thankyou® points for each $1 spent at restaurants; earn 1 thankyou® point for each $1 spent on all other purchases..

You don't need to be aware of which specific supermarkets qualify for extra points. The restaurants category includes pretty much every type of dining establishment you could think of, and you don't even need to select the self-select category if you don't want to — it will default to streaming at card opening and remain such if you don't make any changes.

Categories Rewards rate
Hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com 5X
Supermarkets, on select transit purchases, and at gas & EV charging stations 3X
An eligible self-select category of your choice (fitness clubs, select streaming services, live entertainment, cosmetic stores/barber shops/hair salons, or pet supply stores) 3X
Restaurants 2X
All other purchases 1X

Portal redemptions and transfer partners

You have plenty of options for redeeming your rewards points, but a great way to maximize redemptions is by booking travel through the Citi Travel portal. You'll get one cent per point this way, so 10,000 points would be worth $100. You can book flights, hotels, cruises, and rental cars.

You can also explore transfer options to Citi's partner loyalty programs for airlines and hotels.

Strata cardholders get access to nearly the full range of Citi's travel transfer partners, albeit at less favorable transfer ratios than you'd get with the Strata Elite or Strata Premier and with one notable exception: American Airlines.

Travel partner Airline Alliance Min. Points Transfer Transfer Ratio
Aeromexico SkyTeam 1,000 1:0.7
Air France SkyTeam 1,000 1:0.7
ALL Accor Live Limitless N/A 1,000 1:0.35
Avianca Star Alliance 1,000 1:0.7
Cathay Pacific Oneworld 1,000 1:0.7
Choice Privileges N/A 1,000 1:1.4
Emirates None 1,000 1:0.56
Etihad None 1,000 1:0.7
Eva Air Star Alliance 1,000 1:0.7
Leading Hotels of the World Leaders Club N/A 1,000 1:0.175
JetBlue None 1,000 1:0.7
Preferred Hotels & Resorts N/A 1,000 1:2.8
Qantas Oneworld 1,000 1:0.7
Qatar Airways Oneworld 1,000 1:0.7
Singapore Airlines Star Alliance 1,000 1:0.7
Thai Royal Orchid Plus Star Alliance 1,000 1:0.7
Turkish Airlines Star Alliance 1,000 1:0.7
Virgin Atlantic SkyTeam 1,000 1:0.7
Wyndham Rewards N/A 1,000 1:0.7

FAQs

Is Citi Strata hard to get?

While approval likelihood varies from applicant to applicant, the Citi Strata generally requires good to excellent credit to get approved.

If you'd like to improve your credit and increase your chance of getting approved for the Strata, consider using a tool like Experian Boost to give your score a little bump.

How much is the Citi Strata annual fee?

The Citi Strata charges a $0 annual fee, making it an appealing choice for anyone who doesn't want to worry about using enough benefits to justify a high fee.

Can I use the Citi Strata card before it arrives?

Yes, you'll be able to access your Citi Strata line of credit immediately upon approval. While it will take some time for the physical card to arrive, you can begin spending (and earning) on your Strata once you're approved.

Bottom line

Overall, you could do a lot worse on a no-annual-fee card than the Citi Strata, especially if you've got a mild case of wanderlust.

You'll miss out on the statement credits and travel perks that come with the other, higher-fee Strata cards, but you'll still earn extra on some portal bookings and can potentially squeeze more value out of your rewards through partner transfers.

The card's solid earning potential across a range of categories — including the customizable self-select category — make it a good choice for anyone interested in having a low-risk go at earning and redeeming points in the Citi ThankYou program.

For similar cards, check out our list of the best cards without an annual fee.

Elevated rewards
4.5
info

Citi Strata℠ Card

Current Offer

Earn 30,000 bonus Points after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.

Annual Fee

$0

Rewards Rate

Earn 3 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent in an eligible Self-Select Category of your choice (Fitness Clubs, Select Streaming Services, Live Entertainment, Cosmetic Stores/Barber Shops/Hair Salons, or Pet Supply Stores). Choose your eligible Self-Select Category on Citi Online or by calling customer service. The default Self-Select Category is Select Streaming Services. Earn 5 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals and Attractions booked on Citi Travel® via cititravel.com; earn 3 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent at Supermarkets, on Select Transit purchases, and at Gas & EV Charging Stations. Earn 2 ThankYou® Points for each $1 spent at Restaurants; earn 1 ThankYou® Point for each $1 spent on All Other Purchases.

Benefits and Drawbacks
Card Details