How to transfer your Citi Rewards points to Flybuys

Up until 2019, the only way to send Citibank Rewards points to Velocity was via a direct transfer through the Citibank Rewards site. However, with Flybuys now being a transfer partner for both Citibank Rewards and Velocity Frequent Flyer, there are more possibilities.

This guide will explore how to transfer Citi Rewards points to Flybuys, and why you might do so.

What is Citi Rewards?

Citibank Rewards is a flexible rewards program, allowing members to transfer their Citibank Rewards points to loyalty programs at a time of their choosing, with Flybuys and Velocity Frequent Flyer being two such examples of partner programs.

How do I transfer Citi Rewards points to Flybuys?

Here are the steps to transfer points from your Citi Rewards account to Flybuys:

1. Head to the Points Transfer page and sign in to your Citibank Rewards account
2. Check the Flybuys transfer rate and click ‘Transfer Now’
3. Follow the prompts to choose how many points to send to Flybuys

A quirk of the Citi Rewards program is that different card types will have different transfer rates. Here are the different transfer rates to Flybuys:

• Citi Premier and Citi Prestige: Currently 1 Citi reward point equals 1 Flybuys point.
• Citi Rewards: Currently 1.33 Citi reward points equals 1 Flybuys point.

What do I do with Flybuys points?

Not sure what to do with Flybuys points? Read our starter guide to the Flybuys program, where we go over the different reward options including money off at the checkout or further converting it to Velocity Points.

If you do choose the latter, 2,000 Flybuys points will equal 870 Velocity Points, unless there are bonus transfer offers on which might increase this by 15-20%. 

Should I transfer Citi Rewards points direct to Velocity Frequent Flyer or go via Flybuys?

Citi Rewards members are usually able to send their points directly to Velocity. But is there any benefit of first sending Citi Rewards points to Flybuys and then again through to Velocity Frequent Flyer?

In short, the answer is no, unless there are very specific bonus transfer promotions that might make it slightly more worthwhile. 

Transferring directly to Velocity Frequent Flyer

Citi Rewards members can transfer their points directly to their Velocity account by logging into the Citi Rewards site and choosing the Velocity Frequent Flyer option. Once again, your transfer rate will depend on which type of Citi card that you hold.

• Citi Premier and Citi Prestige: Currently 2 Citi reward points equals 1 Velocity Point.
• Citi Rewards: Currently 2.5 Citi reward points equals 1 Velocity Point.

Transferring to Velocity via Flybuys

The alternate method is to first transfer your Citi Rewards points to Flybuys using the method above, then converting your Flybuys points to Velocity Points through the two program’s partnership.

The table below summarises the options you have, with transfer rates for 60,000 Citi Rewards point:

Without bonuses	Direct to Velocity	Direct to Flybuys	To Velocity via Flybuys
Citi Premier & Prestige	30,000	60,000	26,100
Citi Rewards	24,000	45,000*	19,575*

* Technically, Flybuys points must be exchanged in multiples of 2,000, so these figures may be rounded down in real life

Thus, in a majority of cases, it is more valuable to transfer your points directly to Velocity rather than going through Flybuys, as you’ll lose a small proportion comparatively.

But what if your lucky stars aligned, and Citi Rewards offered a 15% bonus transfer to Flybuys, while Flybuys simultaneously offered a 15% bonus transfer to Velocity? Then the numbers could look like this:

With 15% Flybuys bonuses	Direct to Velocity	Direct to Flybuys	To Velocity via Flybuys
Citi Premier & Prestige	30,000	69,000*	34,517*
Citi Rewards	24,000	51,750*	25,887*

* Technically, Flybuys points must be exchanged in multiples of 2,000, so these figures may be rounded down in real life

Summing up

Flybuys is a solid transfer partner for Citi Rewards, as the exchange rates are quite decent and the Flybuys program has a wide catalogue of rewards.

With 60,000 Citi Rewards points potentially equal to 60,000 Flybuys points, you could get $300 off your shop at a minimum. There’s also the option to transfer Flybuys points to Velocity Points as well.

Unless there are good transfer bonuses, it makes sense to simply swap Citi Rewards points directly to Velocity Frequent Flyer when needed, and only use Flybuys when you actually want to redeem for other Flybuys rewards.