The Citi Strata℠ Card (see charges and charges) is a well-liked starter card with no annual charge and a very good entry level into the Citi ThankYou Rewards ecosystem.
Paying the annual charge on the Citi Strata Premier® Card (see charges and charges) might be value it if you wish to elevate your journey. The cardboard gives increased incomes charges in key bonus classes and higher entry to Citi’s airline switch companions.
Contemplate the next causes as to why you need to improve from the Citi Strata to the Strata Premier.
Earn extra ThankYou Rewards factors
As a no-annual-fee card, the Citi Strata earns:
- 5 factors per greenback spent on points of interest, automobile leases and accommodations booked by Citi Journey
- 3 factors per greenback spent on electrical automobile charging stations, fuel stations, choose transit and supermarkets
- 3 factors per greenback spent on an eligible self-selected class (which you’ll change quarterly)
- 2 factors per greenback spent at eating places
Nonetheless, the Strata Premier gives increased incomes charges and barely completely different bonus classes. They embody the next:
- 10 factors per greenback spent on points of interest, automobile leases and accommodations booked by Citi Journey
- 3 factors per greenback spent on air journey, EV charging stations, fuel purchases, accommodations (booked exterior of Citi Journey), eating places and supermarkets
The Strata Premier is a extra travel-centric card. It earns extra on choose Citi Journey purchases, plus airfares and accommodations booked exterior of Citi Journey. Frequent vacationers might discover the Citi Strata much more rewarding.
Upgrading additionally bumps up bonus-earning on eating places to three factors per greenback spent from 2 factors per greenback spent, which might add up over the 12 months.
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Associated: Do you have to e-book accommodations by Citi Journey?
Your ThankYou factors are extra invaluable
By upgrading the Citi Strata, you’ll be able to earn extra ThankYou factors and unlock higher worth in your hard-earned factors.
Each playing cards can switch ThankYou factors to Citi’s 22 switch companions, together with high-value choices like American Airways AAdvantage, Qatar Airways Privilege Membership and Virgin Atlantic Flying Membership. The Strata Premier has a slight benefit; it will probably switch factors to most companions at a ratio of 1:1.
The Citi Strata can solely switch at a ratio of 1:0.7 for many companions. Whatever the associate you are contemplating, the Strata card will all the time have a worse switch ratio than the Strata Premier.
This makes an enormous distinction when contemplating transferring tens of 1000’s of factors to safe a sought-after business-class ticket.
When leveraging switch companions with the Strata Premier, you will get greater than 1.9 cents per level (based mostly on TPG’s September 2025 valuations). I persistently get between 4 and 9 cents per level when transferring factors to a associate airline for a business-class redemption.
Associated: Strata, Premier or Elite: How to decide on a Citi Strata bank card
Extra invaluable advantages
Even with the $95 annual charge, the Strata Premier gives further advantages that assist justify its price yearly. Two vital advantages you’ll be able to maximize are:
- $100 annual resort credit score: A $100 credit score as soon as per 12 months for single-stay resort bookings of $500 or extra (excluding taxes and charges) made by Citi Journey
- World Elite Mastercard advantages: The Citi Strata Premier gives a number of travel-related perks, together with a $5 month-to-month Lyft credit score after taking three rides in a calendar month (provide ends Jan. 31, 2026), a three-month trial of Instacart+ with a brand new subscription and $10 off your second eligible Instacart buy every month (provide ends Jan. 31, 2027) and entry to the Mastercard luxurious accommodations and resorts portfolio for on-property perks like complimentary breakfast and room upgrades (upon availability)
Because the Strata Premier is a extra premium card than the Citi Strata, you additionally get entry to Citi’s curated assortment of accommodations and can obtain elitelike advantages when reserving by Citi Journey.
As a Strata Premier cardholder, you will obtain the next journey protections:
- Automobile rental protection
- Misplaced or broken baggage safety
- Journey cancellation and interruption insurance coverage
- Journey delay protection
That is extra complete protection than you will obtain from the no-annual-fee Strata card.
Associated: Citi’s Resort Assortment and The Reserve: Get free breakfast and premium perks
Contemplate making use of reasonably than upgrading
If you happen to actually need to maximize your points-earning, take into account making use of for the Strata Premier as a substitute of upgrading from the Citi Strata card.
For starters, new Strata Premier cardholders earn 60,000 bonus factors after spending $4,000 within the first three months of account opening. Based mostly on TPG’s valuations, the welcome provide is value $1,140.
If you happen to improve a Citi Strata card, you’ll not earn a welcome provide. This card’s welcome bonus can be not obtainable in the event you’ve acquired a brand new account bonus for a Citi Premier or Citi Strata Premier account prior to now 48 months.
You additionally will not be capable to earn it in the event you’ve transformed one other Citi bank card account on which you earned a brand new account bonus within the final 48 months right into a Premier or Strata Premier card.
So long as you’ll be able to qualify for the Strata Premier’s welcome bonus, it is value contemplating whether or not making use of for the cardboard is a greater technique than getting it by an improve.
By conserving the Strata card as a substitute of upgrading it, you should use the Strata and Strata Premier collectively to maximise points-earning throughout extra classes.
For instance, you’ll be able to put choose transit and eligible self-selected class purchases on the Citi Strata and all different journey and restaurant purchases on the Strata Premier card.
Backside line
The advantages and incomes potential of the Strata Premier will most probably outweigh the price of the annual charge and current higher long-term worth than the Citi Strata card.
Basically, the most effective advantages you will obtain are the flexibility to switch factors to nearly all of companions at a 1:1 ratio and travel-focused bonus classes.
Consider what’s in your pockets to make sure that you are all the time getting the utmost worth potential, which can imply an improve is on the horizon.
To study extra, learn our full assessment of the Citi Strata and Strata Premier.
Apply right here: Strata Premier
