The card has 250,000 bonus Citi reward Points on offer for new cardholders – currently equivalent to 125,000 Velocity Points or 100,000 Krisflyer/Asia Miles when transferred.

The Citi Prestige Card is for the aggressive Points collector—the card has an ongoing annual fee of $700—but with a large number of frequent flyer program transfer partners and a vast range of travel perks.

The most valuable benefits on offer with the Citi Prestige credit card are unlimited complimentary airport lounge passes courtesy of Priority Pass(TM) for you and a guest, a “4th Night on Us” benefit when you book 4 consecutive nights or more with Luxury Escapes and receive a credit back for one night (capped at $1,000 credit per booking) and one complimentary airport transfer per year up to the value of $100.

A minimum spend requirement of $10,000 on eligible purchases within the first 90 days is required to receive the 250,000 bonus Citi reward Points.

The bonus is only available for new cardholders are approved for the Citi Prestige credit card.

Digging into the details of the Citi Prestige credit card

Card Details

CardCiti Prestige credit card
Loyalty programCiti Rewards
Earn rates3 Citi reward points per $1 for Eligible Transactions made directly with major airlines, hotel chains and restaurants in Australia, and International Spend

2 Citi reward Points per $1 on Eligible Transactions made directly with major supermarkets, petrol outlets and national retailers

1 Citi reward Point per $1 spent everywhere else on Eligible Transactions
Points capNone
Earns points at ATONo
Minimum credit limit$30,000
Travel benefits4th Night on Us - receive a credit back for 1 night when you book 4 consecutive nights with Luxury Escapes, up to 4x a year
One airport transfer in selected cities in Australia up to $100 per year
Priority Pass membership
Personal Concierge
Included insurancesPurchase Cover Insurance
International Travel Insurance
(PDS)
Overseas transaction fee3.40% of the converted amount
Mobile walletApple Pay, Google Pay & Samsung Pay
Annual fee$700

The effective Points earn rate on spend when transferring out to the key partner programs are as follows:

Effective Frequent Flyer Program Point Earn Rates

Frequent Flyer ProgramMajor restaurants,
hotels and major
airlines		Major petrol stations,
supermarkets and
national retailers		All other eligible spendInternational Spend
Velocity Points1.5 point / $1 point / $0.5 point / $1.5 points / $
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles1.2 miles / $0.8 miles / $0.4 mile / $1.2 miles / $
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles1.2 miles / $0.8 miles / $0.4 mile / $1.2 miles / $

Guide to the Citi Prestige credit card

The Citi Prestige Card, like Citi’s slightly less expensive Citi Premier, earns Points on spend into the Citi Rewards program.

In brief, the Citi Rewards program lets you transfer your Citi reward Points over to a range of participating frequent flyer program partners. Citi reward Points are transferred out at different rates as detailed below:

  • Virgin Australia Velocity (2 Citi reward Points to 1 Velocity point)
  • Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (2.5 Citi reward Points to 1 Asia Mile)
  • Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (2.5 Citi reward Points to 1 KrisFlyer mile)
  • Etihad Guest (3:1)
  • Qatar Airways Privilege Club (3:1)
  • Flybuys (1:1)

The minimum number of Citi reward Points required to make a transfer varies depending on the partner program, which you will be able to see when you login to your online account.

Any balance less than the minimum is ineligible to be transferred to frequent flyer programs until the minimum threshold is reached.

Earning Points from spend on the Citi Prestige credit card

The Points earn on eligible spend for the Citi Prestige Card are tiered, with eligible spend on a range of major: restaurants, restaurant chains, major hotel chains and flights booked directly with major airlines (flights only) and international spend earning 3 Citi reward Points per $1. Then 2 Citi reward Points per $1 at major: petrol stations, supermarkets and retailers and 1 Citi reward Point per $1 spend everywhere else.

This card can yield a good Points haul if you are going to pump a decent amount of spend through it, with the most potential value equating up to 1.5 Velocity Points or 1.2 KrisFlyer miles per $1 spent, and with no annual or monthly cap.

On eligible international spend, you’ll earn 3 Citi reward Points per $1 but will incur a 3.4% surcharge on non-Australian Dollar transactions. This equates to 1.2 KrisFlyer miles or 1.5 Velocity Points per dollar spent on eligible international spend.

The high earn rate on certain categories means that big spenders who can fully utilise these could well justify keeping the card each year just for the Points alone.

If you’re going for Velocity Points, the $700 annual fee may well pay for itself with the Points earned—the transfer rate to KrisFlyer and Asia Miles is not as valuable.

Citi reward Points benefits and considerations

Citi reward Points do not expire for the lifetime as long as the card remains in good standing, and there is also no Points cap. This is one of the major benefits of the card—with unlimited Points earning at excellent rate for Velocity Points and a relatively decent rate for KrisFlyer and Asia Miles.

The Citi Prestige Card offers a great Points earn rate for a Mastercard, on most eligible spend, to earn Velocity Points.

Other travel benefits of the Citi Prestige credit card

The Citi Prestige Card also offers a number of travel benefits, including Priority Pass(TM) lounge access and “4th Night on Us” benefit.

“4th Night on Us” benefit

If you are a Citi Prestige cardholder you’ll get a credit back for one night (up to $1,000 credit per booking) when you book four consecutive nights or more at a range of hotels with Luxury Escapes, up to 4 times per calendar year.

Priority Pass(TM) Lounge Access

Enjoy complimentary Priority Pass(TM) membership and unlimited airport lounge visits for you and a guest.

Insurances

There is also a range of complimentary insurance:

  • Purchase Cover Insurance
  • International Travel Insurance

You should read the PDS to assess if these insurances meet your individual needs and have significant value to you.

This guide references some of the benefits of insurance policies provided with this card. You should read the PDS and obtain independent professional advice before obtaining this product.

Citi PayAll

Earn Citi reward Points on everyday expenses from rent to education fees and more with Citi PayAll. Offers are subject to eligibility and are only available if your account is in good standing.

Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay support

Citi cards support Apple Pay, Google Pay & Samsung Pay, meaning you can use this card on your smartphone for easier payments.

Summing up: the Citi Prestige credit card

The Citi Prestige credit card is positioned as a high-end card with a vast array of benefits, and at a cost that is $750 less per year than the most similar card out there, e.g. the American Express Platinum Card.

One of the biggest reasons to hold and use this card is for the good Points earn rates on eligible domestic and international spend, along with a number of good participating Points transfer partners. However, you’ll need to assess if the category bonuses fit your spending habits and will work to your advantage in the long run.

The large sign-up bonus, ability to earn Points quickly with no Points cap and complimentary unlimited Priority Pass(TM) lounge access are all solid benefits too.

There is a place in the market for this high-end Mastercard as a less expensive alternative to the American Express offering.

The Citi Prestige credit card is not for everyone but it could work for high spenders, especially those who spend internationally or direct a lot of their spend into the bonus categories.

Important information

National Australia Bank Limited (ABN 12 004 044 937, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 230686) (“NAB”) is the credit provider and issuer of Citi branded credit products. NAB has acquired the business relating to these products from Citigroup Pty Limited (ABN 88 004 325 080, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 238098) (“Citi”) and has appointed Citi to provide transitional services.

Our/us/we means NAB unless the context otherwise requires it.

“Citi”, “Citibank”, “Citigroup”, the Arc design and all similar trade marks and derivations thereof are used temporarily under licence by NAB from Citigroup Inc. and related group entities.

* Complimentary Insurance *

AWP Australia Pty Ltd ABN 52 097 227 177 AFSL 245631 (trading as Allianz Global Assistance) under a binder from the underwriter, Allianz Australia Insurance Limited ABN 15 000 122 850 AFSL 234708 (Allianz) has issued a Complimentary insurance group policy to National Australia Bank Limited (ABN 12 004 044 937, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 230686) (“NAB”) which allows eligible NAB account holders and cardholders to claim under it as third party beneficiaries by operation of s48 of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth).NAB is the credit provider and issuer of Citi branded credit cards. NAB has acquired the business relating to these products from Citigroup Pty Limited (ABN 88 004 325 080, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 238098) (“Citi”). Citi has agreed with NAB to provide transitional services in relation to the transferred business. Any advice on insurance is general advice only and not based on any consideration of your objectives, financial situation or needs. The terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and applicable sub-limits of the group policy are set out in the Citi Credit Cards Complimentary Insurance Policy Information Booklet which may be amended from time to time. Neither NAB nor Citi nor any of its related corporations guarantee this insurance.

250,000 bonus Citi reward Points—equivalent to 125,000 Velocity Points—with the Citi Prestige Credit Card was last modified: October 28th, 2024 by Daniel Sciberras