As you probably know after reading my Citi Double Cash Review, this 2% cash back credit card earns rewards at 1% for all purchases and the remaining 1% as you pay off those purchases. The astute readers may have noticed that at the close of the review, I mentioned there is a small caveat with the Double Cash card in that one doesn’t actually earn the full 2% when the cashback is redeemed as a statement credit.
Instead, one earns a cash-back rewards rate of approximately 1.98% when redeeming for a statement credit. Citi does not count the redemption as the cardholder making a payment towards their purchases so there is no cash back earned.
Some people might look at the math and think that missing 0.02% comes to a loss of $2 per $10,000 of spending and it’s not worth the mental gymnastics.
How does one earn the full 2% cash back with the Citi Double Cash or is the card a marketing gimmick?
Read more: What other credit cards offer 2% cash back or more for all purchases
Table of Contents
Ways to Redeem Your Double Cash Thankyou Points
There are four ways to get the cash back sitting in your account as Thankyou points.
- Redeem as a statement credit with no minimum amount
- Redeem for a gift card in various denominations with some as low as 1,000 points and most starting at 2,500 points
- Request a physical check by mail with a minimum redemption of 500 points
- Redeem for a direct deposit with no minimums to the bank account used to pay your Citi credit card
Best Way to Get the Citi Double Cash Full Cashback
Of the four ways listed above, methods #2, #3, and #4 allow you to get the full 2% in cash back.
Gift cards can make sense if they are for a store where you shop regularly. With e-gift cards, you do not even need to wait for a physical gift card to arrive in the mail. Additionally, there are occasional promotions offering up to a 10% discount on the gift card’s value.
Some people still prefer the old-fashioned method of receiving a physical check despite the inconvenience. First, you have to wait for the check to be printed. Then you wait some more as the check makes its way through the postal system while hoping it does not get lost or stolen. Finally, you have to deposit the check into your account. Hopefully, you are using your bank’s mobile deposit app and avoid a trip to the physical branch.
The best way to redeem your Double Cash rewards and get the full 2% is by requesting a direct deposit. It is a little more convoluted than redeeming for a statement credit, but you will get your money in your account within a couple of days.
The Math for 1.98% Actual Cash Back with Statement Credit
To make it easier to see the numbers, let’s assume you spend $10,000 every month on ice cream.
You will get 1% for the purchases or $100.
You request a statement credit for the $100 and pay $9,900 to pay off your credit card because paying interest is giving money to Citi that could have gone to buying your favorite dessert.
You get 1% of the $9,900 payment or $99 for the payment portion of the cash-back rewards for next month’s redemption.
You spend another $10,000 next month on ice cream and earn $100 again.
You request a statement credit for $199 and pay $9,801, generating a payment cash back of $98.01.
Repeat for next month. The statement credit will be $198.01 with the payment cash back of $98.02
Repeat this process continuously. It will eventually settle around $198.0198 in cash back.
See the table below for a longer tally of the cash-back rewards:
| Month | Spending | Purchase Cashback Earned | Statement Credit Amount | Payment Amount | Payment Cashback Earned | Total Cashback Percentage |
| 1 | $10,000 | $100 | $100.0000 | $9,900.0000 | $99.0000 | 1.000000% |
| 2 | $10,000 | $100 | $199.0000 | $9,801.0000 | $98.0100 | 1.990000% |
| 3 | $10,000 | $100 | $198.0100 | $9,801.9900 | $98.0199 | 1.980100% |
| 4 | $10,000 | $100 | $198.0199 | $9,801.9801 | $98.0198 | 1.980199% |
| 5 | $10,000 | $100 | $198.0198 | $9,801.9802 | $98.0198 | 1.980198% |
| 6 | $10,000 | $100 | $198.0198 | $9,801.9802 | $98.0198 | 1.980198% |
| 7 | $10,000 | $100 | $198.0198 | $9,801.9802 | $98.0198 | 1.980198% |
Closing $ense
While you may only get 1.98% instead of the full 2% when you redeem for a statement credit with the Citi Double Cash Card, the actual loss is only about $2 for every $10,000 in spending.
If you had requested a direct deposit for the cash-back rewards and then paid the $10,000 in full, you will get $200 in cash back instead of losing $2.
At such a minuscule amount, it isn’t worth the time to think too long about. Pick whichever redemption option works best and is most efficient for you.
Which method do you use to redeem your Citi Double Cash Card’s cashback and why?