With up to 8% cashback on food and petrol worldwide, the Citi Cash Back Card ranks as one of the best cashback cards for Singapore.
Better yet: there are no cashback caps per category. Want to spend your entire month’s budget on gourmet groceries (and get 8% rebate in the process)? You’re free to do so.
But what else does this card have to offer?
Read on to find out more about the Citi Cash Back Card:
- Citi Cash Back Card vs Citi Cash Back+ Card
- Eligibility requirements
- Fees and charges
- Cashback, discounts, and other benefits
- Downsides of the card
- Who would benefit the most from this card
Citibank Cash Back Card vs Citi Cash Back+ Card
Here’s a quick rundown of the two cards:
| Citibank Cash Back Card | Citi Cash Back + Card |
|---|---|
|
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| Click to apply | Click to apply |
Both cards have the same annual fee and income requirement.
You can also have both at the same time:
- Use the Citi Cash Back Card for between S$1,000 to S$1,333 worth of dining, grocery, and petrol expenses. This gets you the max of S$80 cashback monthly.
- Afterwards, switch to the Cash Back+ Card to earn 1.6% cashback on all expenses past the spending cap.
If you have to choose one over the other, the Citi Cash Back Card is more suitable if you can spend at least S$800 per month to fulfil the minimum spend. Those who spend less than S$800 or more than S$5,000 may prefer the Cash Back+ Card.
Eligibility Requirements for the Citi Cash Back Card
| Age | 21 and above |
| Income Requirement |
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You can apply via Citibank’s website using Singpass MyInfo if you’re a Singaporean or SPR. Foreign applicants may also apply online with digital copies of supporting documents.
Fees and Charges
| Annual Fees | S$194.40 (inclusive of GST) for a principal card with a first-year fee waiver. S$97.20 for a supplementary card |
| Effective Interest Rate | 26.90% per annum |
| Late Payment Charges | S$100 |
| Minimum Monthly Payment | 1% of outstanding balance plus 1% of outstanding unbilled instalments plus interest plus late payment charges or S$50, whichever is higher |
| Branch Service Fee | S$10.70 (inclusive of GST) for each payment made over the counter |
| Overlimit Fee | S$40 |
| Foreign Currency Transaction Fee | Up to 3.25% |
| Cash Advance Interest and Fees | 6% of the amount withdrawn or S$15, whichever is higher |
| Points Transfer Fee | S$ 26.75 (inclusive of GST) for each conversion |
| Citiphone Redemption Fee | 600 Points chargeable for each item redeemed |
Similar to other Citibank cards, the Citi Cash Back Card imposes an extra 600 Points for redemption via phone and a $10.70 fee for over-the-counter credit card bill payment. Best to keep your activities online when making redemptions or payments.
Cashback, Discounts, and Other Benefits
| Cashback | Groceries, in-store or online worldwide: 8% Petrol: 8% at all petrol kiosks worldwide and up to 20.88% savings at Esso and Shell Dining worldwide: 6% All other retail spending: 0.25% |
| Minimum Spend | $800 |
| Monthly Cashback Cap | $80 |
Monthly Cashback Cap
First thing to note is the total monthly cashback cap of S$80. Unlike other cards, there’s no cashback cap per category – you’re free to fulfill the S$800 minimum spend entirely with groceries or petrol, if you wish.
Don’t cook at home or drive? Then you’ll have to dine out a lot to optimise this card’s cashback. Otherwise, you might consider alternatives such as:
- Bank of China Family Card: Offers 10% on dining and movies among others, but caps it at S$25 per category, S$100 overall cashback per month
- Maybank Family & Friends Card: Offers 8% on your choice of 5 categories from 10 available options (including dining & food delivery, groceries, and transport) but caps it at S$25 per category as well
- CIMB Visa Signature: Offers 10% on groceries, online shopping, pet retail, beauty & wellness, veterinary services, and cruises. Capped at S$20 per category
Read also: 9 Best Cashback Credit Cards for Singapore
Complimentary Travel Insurance
When you charge your airfare to the Citi Cash Back Card, you’ll get insurance coverage of up to S$1,000,000 (S$50,000 for accompanying children).
But charging your travel expenses to the card earns just 0.25% instead of 8% cashback. You may be better off with air miles credit cards like the Citi PremierMiles Card, which offers airport lounge access on top of free travel insurance coverage.
Downsides of the Citi Cash Back Card
Here are some areas that you should take to note of while spending with it:
Cumbersome Cashback Redemption
Oddly, Citi seems to have antiquated systems in place: redeeming cashback requires you to message a code to the bank. What makes it even more complicated is that you have to redeem your cashback in blocks of S$10, so you’ll have to wait and accumulate a sum before withdrawing.
If you happen to own a Citi Cash Back+ Card as well, you can stack the rebates from both cards for easier redemption.
No Travel Privileges
Even though you can earn cashback worldwide with this card, it doesn’t seem like a great card to use for travel. Besides the sad 0.25% cashback you get from charging travel expenses to this card, there are none of the usual perks like airport lounge access or free hotel stays.
Read also: Best Multi-Currency Accounts for Singapore
Who Would Benefit From This Card?
- Foodies who love to scour the country – and the world – for great cuisine (and who charge those meals to this card)
- Those who drive, since this card offers excellent petrol discounts
- Those who frequently cook at home
- Private hire drivers (Grab, Gojek) who can benefit from the 8% cashback and petrol discounts