How Long Do Citi ThankYou Points Transfers Take? (2021)

If you’re collecting miles & points through credit card spending, I always recommend doing what you can to accrue transferable points currencies.

That’s because these points are much more flexible than when you’re earning an individual airline or hotel points currency. You have the ability to transfer these points to all kinds of travel partners, and you’re safeguarded from a devaluation in a specific points currency.

With that in mind, in this post, I wanted to address all the basics of transferring Citi ThankYou points. How many partners does Citi ThankYou have, how long does it take for points to transfer, who can you transfer points to, etc.

How many airline partners does Citi ThankYou have?

As of now, Citi ThankYou has 15 airline transfer partners and 1 hotel partner.

How long does it take to transfer Citi ThankYou points?

Below is a chart with how long it typically takes to transfer ThankYou points:

As you can see, points transfers to about half of ThankYou partners are instant, while points transfers to the other partners take anywhere from hours to days.

I’d really appreciate if anyone has recent data points to either confirm the above transfer times. I’ve tried to keep the list updated based on feedback, but over time we do see more and more partners offer instant transfers. For example, Etihad Guest and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club transfers didn’t used to be instant, but are now.

Are there fees associated with transferring Citi ThankYou points

No, there are no fees associated with transferring Citi ThankYou points.

Can you transfer Citi ThankYou points to someone else’s Citi account?

Citi lets one transfer ThankYou points to anyone else’s ThankYou account, regardless of whether they’re related, live at the same address, etc. However, there are a few restrictions to be aware of:

• Shared points expire 90 days after they’re received, so you can’t “hoard” someone else’s points in your ThankYou Rewards account
• The recipient of shared points can’t share those same points with another member
• You can share at most 100,000 points per calendar year, and can have at most 100,000 points shared with you per calendar year

While there are some restrictions, this is an area where Citi ThankYou is more generous than other programs.

Can you transfer Citi points to someone else’s airline account?

No. While you can transfer your Citi ThankYou points to someone else’s Citi ThankYou account and then they can transfer it to their preferred loyalty program, you can’t transfer your ThankYou points directly to someone else’s loyalty program account.

The name of the Citi ThankYou account and loyalty program account have to match.

Can you combine Citi ThankYou accounts?

While Citi is generous in letting you transfer ThankYou accounts to someone else’s ThankYou account, the bank actually has a rather strict policy when it comes to combining your own ThankYou points accounts.

For example, let’s say you have both the Citi Premier^® Card (review) and Citi Prestige® Card. Now let’s say you close down one of those accounts. While you can combine the points, the points from the card that you shut down expire 60 days after the account is closed. So you have to transfer those points to a partner program within 60 days, or else the points will be forfeited.

What cards earn Citi ThankYou points?

The following two cards earn Citi ThankYou points that can be transfered directly to airline partners:

• The Citi Prestige® Card offers 5x points on air travel and restaurants, and 3x points on hotels and cruises; the card has a $495 annual, though offers a $250 travel credit every calendar year (which can be used at supermarkets and restaurants in 2021) that helps offset it
• The Citi Premier^® Card offers 3x points on hotels, air travel, gas stations, supermarkets, and dining; the card has a $95 annual fee

In addition to those two cards earning ThankYou points that can directly be transferred to airline partners, the following cards earn ThankYou points that can be transferred to airlines in conjunction with one of the above cards:

• The Citi Rewards+® Card (review) rounds up purchases to the nearest 10 ThankYou points, and offers 2x points at supermarkets and gas stations, for the first $6,000 spent every year (and then 1x); the card has no annual fee
• The Citi® Double Cash Card (review) offers 1% cash back when you make a purchase, and 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase, and rewards can be converted into ThankYou points at a ratio of one point per cent; the card has no annual fee
• The Citi Custom Cash℠ Card (review) offers 5x points in the category you spend most in each billing cycle, on up to $500 worth of spending

To give you a sense of how much value you can get out of maximizing rewards, read about my Citi card strategy, and read about the best credit cards for earning Citi ThankYou points. Personally, I think it’s hard to beat the combination of the Citi Premier and Citi Double Cash, as you’ll earn 3x points in five categories, and then 2x points on all other purchases.

Should you transfer Citi points to travel partners?

In general, the best use of Citi ThankYou points is to convert them into airline miles. Personally, my favorite transfer partners include Air France KLM Flying Blue, Avianca LifeMiles, Etihad Guest, JetBlue TrueBlue, Singapore KrisFlyer, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.

However, you only want to transfer points once you’ve figured out the award you want to book, have verified availability, and are sure you understand how that program works.

If you’re someone who prefers to redeem your points as cashback towards travel, points can generally only be redeemed for one cent each towards the cost of a travel purchase, which isn’t exactly great. Generally speaking, I think transferring Citi points to airline partners represents a better value.

Bottom line

To me, the value of Citi ThankYou points has grown significantly the past few years, thanks to additional transfer partners as well as useful transfer bonuses.

I think the combination of the Citi Premier^® Card and Citi® Double Cash Card is tough to beat, as this allows you to earn 2-3x ThankYou points on all purchases.

If you have any data points on how long Citi ThankYou points transfers have taken you, please share them below, so that I can keep the chart as accurate as possible!

Want to learn more about points transfer times? See our series about how long points transfers take with Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One, Chase Ultimate Rewards, and Citi ThankYou.