There are some recent updates as the following and we are also working on updating several other card reviews.

• Barclays AA Aviator Business MasterCard now offers a historical high bonus - 75,000 AA miles, with an $95 annual fee. 
• Barclays AA Aviator Red MaterCard (personal) loses the 10% redeemed miles rebate (up to 10,000 miles per year) and $100 flight discount with $30K spending, and gains an annual $99 companion certificate with $20K spending.  Also it offers a fairly decent signup bonus now - 50,000 AA miles + an introductory $99 companion certificate.
• Citi AA Platinum Select MasterCard (personal) also loses the 10% redeemed miles rebate, and only gains an additional $25 flight discount (increased from $100 to $125) with $20K annual spending.
• Barclays Hawaiian Business MasterCard nows offers a historical high bonus - 70,000 Hawaiian miles plus a one-time 50% companion discount, with a $99 annual fee.  The personal version has a slightly less bonus (60K miles + one 50% companion discount), but is still a historical high.
• Citi Premier has increased the signup bonus from 50,000 points to 60,000 points; however, the $95 is no longer waived for the first year.

We have seen increased signup bonuses on a few credit cards this week:

• Wells Fargo Propel Amex has increased the signup bonus from 30,000 to 50,000 points.  Propel Amex is one of the best rewards cards, especially if you are not interested in redeeming points for airline miles or hotel points but rather choose fixed value travel rewards.  When you have another non-fee card Wells Fargo Visa Signature, you can transfer the points earned on Propel Amex to the Visa Signature and increase the points value from 1 cent to 1.5 cents per point.  In this way the 50K signup bonus of Propel Amex will be worth $750 in fixed value travel rewards.  Propel Amex is also a card to keep after the first year, as it returns 3x points (= 4.5% travel rewards if you have Wells Fargo Visa Signature) on travel, dining, gasoline, and streaming services.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited has been offering 15,000 points as signup bonus online for quite a while.  Now if you go to a Chase branch, you can apply for this card and receive a different signup bonus: 3x points on everything in the first year, up to $20,000 in purchase.  Note that as the card regularly earns 1.5x points, the maximum additional points considered as the signup bonus will be 30,000 points (when you spend $20K in the first year).  When you have a premium Ultimate Rewards card such as Sapphire Reserve (based on fixed value redemption or miles transfer) or Sapphire Preferred (based on miles transfer), these additional points will be worth $450 in our book.  In addition, Freedom Unlimited pairs really well with Sapphire Reserve, as it returns higher rewards for general spending, while you will use Sapphire Reserve for dining, travel, and foreign purchases.
• Chase Sapphire Preferred has a new signup bonus: 60,000 points after you spend $4,000 within 3 months of new account opening; however, the annual fee is NOT waived for the first year.  The previous signup bonus was 50K with the first year annual fee waiver.  As we value the additional 10K points at $150, more than the $95 annual fee, the new bonus is slightly better.

This week we have seen some elevated signup bonuses on a few credit cards (our value for the bonus minus first year annual fee is for your reference - your valuation may vary):

• Amex Gold Delta SkyMiles personal card ($95 annual fee, waived for the first year): 60,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs (Medallion Qualifying Mile) - our value $650
• Amex Gold Delta SkyMiles business card ($95 annual fee, waived for the first year): 70,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs - our value $750
• Amex Platinum Delta SkyMiles personal card ($195 annual fee): 75,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs + $100 statement credit - our value $705 (historical high) 
• Amex Platinum Delta SkyMiles business card ($195 annual fee): 80,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs + $100 statement credit - our value $755 (historical high)
• Amex Delta Reserve personal card ($450 annual fee): 75,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs - our value $350 (historical high)
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa ($95 annual fee): 100,000 points - our value $655 (historical high)
• Chase IHG Rewards Club Premier MasterCard ($89 annual fee): 120,000 points - our value ($390 (historical high) 

With the new name for the world's largest loyalty program unveiled, the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Card is finally rebranded as the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card.  Everything remains the same but the name - including (1) the $450 annual fee, (2) 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you spend $5,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening, (3) annual $300 credits at any Marriott portfolio hotels worldwide, (4) an annual free night at Marriott portfolio hotels or resorts with a redemption level of 50,000 points or less, (5) annual 15 night credits towards Marriott elite status,  (6) free Marriott Gold status and upgrade to Marriott Platinum status after $75K annual spending, and (7) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited airport lounge access for you plus two guests.

At the same time, the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Card from American Express is rebranded as the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card.  The only thing that changes other than the name is the annual fee - increased from $95 to $125 and NOT waived for the first year any more.  However, if you apply before  3/28/19, you will continue to receive the first annual fee waiver and your annual fee after the first year will be grandfathered in at $95.  You will also receive 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after spending $5,000 within the first 3 months.  If you have been thinking about applying for this card, you probably want to do it before March 28.

Since we covered the changes to Citi Prestige back in November, we have been waiting for the big moment of relaunch of this legendary high-end card.  As of January 4, 2019, the changes kicked in for the existing cardmembers; however, the card hasn't been available for new applications until the last day of January.  Now our review of Citi Prestige is updated.  Also updated is our Top 10 Best Credit Cards list - after two and a half years, Citi Prestige finally takes back the throne from the almighty Chase Sapphire Reserve!  As a result, Alliant CU Visa Signature falls off the Top 10 list.  Chase United MP Club Visa has surpassed Amex Platinum Card and Citi AA Platinum WEMC, as we have confirmed it retains two consumer protection coverages that are no longer available on most other Chase products - Price Protection and Return Protection.  Here are the before and after screenshots of the Top 10 list:

Here is the full updated review:
​
The Facts

• Annual Fee: $495 for primary holder and $75 for each additional user.  The primary annual fee is reduced to $350 for Citigold clients.
• Signup Bonus: 50,000 points ($500 in travel rewards, gift cards, etc., or 50,000 miles of Avianca, Singapore, Cathay Pacific, Flying Blue, JetBlue, Etihad, etc.) after you spend $4,000 within 3 months of new account opening.  The signup bonus won't be available if you have received a bonus from or closed any of these Citi cards: ThankYou Preferred, ThankYou Premier, Citi Premier, or Citi Prestige, within the past 24 months.  Historical best bonus of this card: 75,000 points with $7,500 spending requirement in July 2017; 60,000 points in 2014 and 2015 with $15,000 spending requirement.
• Application Landing Page
• Rewards: 5x airlines, travel agencies, and dining, 3x hotels and cruise lines, 2x entertainment (through 9/1/2019), and 1x everywhere else.
• Best Use of ThankYou points: ThankYou (TY) Rewards is Citi's rewards program and the points can be redeemed for cash, merchandise, gift cards, and travel, at up to 1 cent per point (note: cash rewards in form of statement credit or check have 0.5 cent value and in form of bill pay have 0.65 cent value).  In addition, as a premium ThankYou card, Citi Prestige offers an enhanced redemption option: you may transfer TY points to miles or points of several frequent traveler programs.  Please see our featured review Marriott vs. MR vs. UR vs. TY vs. CR for the programs that allow points transfer to frequent traveler accounts. 
• Annual $250 travel credit each calendar year.  Any travel category expense up to $250 a year will be automatically reimbursed.
• Priority Pass Select membership for you (primary cardholder or any authorized user) plus two guests for unlimited complimentary access to over 1,000 airport lounges around the globe (you don't need to fly with the airlines).  Note that Delta left Priority Pass in 2009; United/Continental has not been part of the Select program after September 2011; domestic American lounges never participated.  However, it may still be valuable, as it covers Alaska Airlines and some domestic lounges, plus many international lounges.
• Hotel Privileges: (1) MasterCard World Elite Luxury Hotels & Resorts: a collection of 500+ luxury hotels worldwide, through MasterCard's designated travel agency, Ten Lifestyle Group.  You will receive complimentary breakfasts for two, room upgrades upon availability, early check-in, late check-out, and a special amenity such as a certain amount of hotel credit up to $100 per stay, free internet, or welcome gift, etc.  The rates are usually the same as hotel's best available rates (refundable flexible rates).  Note that any World Elite MasterCard offers this benefit and you can book your hotels on MasterCard website.  (2) Complimentary Fourth Night: You will receive the fourth night free when you book a stay for at least four consecutive nights through ThankYou.com; you may use this benefit up to twice per calendar year, at any of the numerous participating hotels, from budget to luxury.  [You may use this benefit as many times as you want when you book hotels before 9/1/2019].
• Other Benefits: (1) Waived foreign transaction fees with an embedded EMV chip.  (2) Reimbursement for Global Entry ($100) or TSA PreCheck ($85) application every five years.  (3) Citi Private Pass Beyond for special access to entertainment and sporting events.  (4) While most credit card's Roadside Assistance service only dispatches a provider and you have to pay for the actual charge, Citi Prestige is among very few cards that cover towing up to 10 miles or other incidental charges, regardless of how far you are away from home.  (5) Citi Prestige also enjoys other standard World Elite MasterCard benefits such as MasterCard Travel & Lifestyle Services (savings on airfare, private jets, airport concierge, car rentals, chauffeured cars, cruise lines, tours, vacation packages, etc.), 10% discount with onefinestay (high-end home sharing service), complimentary ShopRunner membership (free two-day shipping and returns at participating stores), the Dining Program (special amenities at participating restaurants), the Nightlife Program (exclusive access to and recognition at participating night clubs), Priceless Cities, Priceless Surprises, Priceless Causes, Priceless Golf, etc.
• An authorized user also receives Priority Pass Select membership.  However, the $250 annual travel credit, $100 Global Entry credit, and even the two-time limit for the 4th night free benefit are shared by all card members within the same account.
• Protection: Citi Prestige WEMC offers the highest level of consumer and travel protection among Citi cards.
• Other Facts: since July 2017, Citi Prestige has received a metal design and is thus heavier than regular plastics.
• The History: To replace its prestigious Chairman Card, which was Amex Platinum's longtime archrival, Citi introduced ThankYou Prestige in late 2010 which received a lackluster review from us.  In 2013, Citi tweaked this relatively new product, reducing the annual fee by $100, enhancing its features, and renaming it simply as "Citi Prestige", hoping to gain more market share.  In early 2014, Citi increased the annual fee by $50 but also introduced a new redemption rate of 1.6 cent per point for American Airlines or US Airways flight and the free Admirals Club access, which made us praised it as the "king of high-end cards".  In July 2014, Citi made another dramatic revamp of the product effective October 19, 2014: seven airline partners were added to the transfer feature, which makes it actually useful; a new 3-2-1 rewards structure replaced the 2-1 rewards structure; annual airline credit was increased from $200 to $250; Airport Angel was replaced by Priority Pass Select, which makes more sense for most U.S. consumers; annual relationship bonus got tweaked; several valuable benefits such as flight points earning, annual complimentary companion ticket, and 15% airfare discount were removed.  In July 2017, Citi discontinued several valuable features (60% redemption bonus on American Airlines, 33% redemption bonus on other airlines, Admirals Club access, three rounds of complimentary golf).  The positive changes introduced are a new metal card design and the ability to use ICNHR 4th Night Free feature through ThankYou.com, which are minor compared to the loss.  In January 2019, Citi relaunched the Prestige Card after 6 months of unavailability, increasing the annual fee to $495, increasing airfare/travel agencies/dining earning to 5x, increasing cruise lines earning to 3x, reducing entertainment earning to 1x, expanding $250 annual credit from airlines to all travel categories, and limiting complimentary fourth night benefit to twice a year.  The overall enhancement has made this card once again the king of high-end cards, also regaining the #1 Best Credit Card title from Chase Sapphire Reserve.

The Math
After considering the easy-to-use $250 annual travel credit, the effective annual fee on this card is $245.  With that, this card offers an unmatched 5-3-1 rewards structure.  As our current valuation of TY points is 1.5 cents per point (based on the miles/points transfer feature), this card returns 7.5%, 4.5%, and 1.5%, for the 5-3-1 categories respectively.  It is not too hard to beat the $245 effective annual fee and the 2% cashback (from cards such as Citi Double Cash, Fidelity Visa), for example, when your annual spending in the 5x categories exceeds $4,455.  The more you spend on the 5x or 3x categories, your annual earning over 2% will be better.  Of course, for general spending, we still recommend looking somewhere else.  In addition, you enjoy the excellent travel perks and consumer protection for free.

Citi Prestige vs. Citi Premier: the difference in the annual fees might seem high at the first glance ($495 vs. $95), and Citi probably intends to offer Prestige only to the most affluent clients.  However, after considering the $250 annual travel credit, Prestige is merely $150 a year more than Premier, and its 5-3-1 rewards are generally much more than Premier's 3-2-1 rewards - Prestige offers 2 more points on airfare and travel agencies and 3 more on dining, but 2 less points on gas and travel other than airfare/travel agencies/hotels/cruise lines.  You may do your own math to see how easily Prestige comes out ahead, even with the $150 more in annual fees.  For example, based on 1.5 cents per point valuation, assuming your gain in airfare/travel agencies happens to offset your loss in gas and trivial travel categories, you just need to spend $3,333 in dining for Prestige to make more sense.  Of course, you receive better travel perks and consumer protection from Prestige on top of that.  The bottom line is that Prestige is generally a better card.

Citi Prestige vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve: First of all, both cards offer incredible rewards, perks, and protection.  (1) Similarity - both cards offer Priority Pass Select, waived foreign transaction fees, concierge service, and Global Entry application credit; their hotel privileges are also similar in our opinion: Citi has 4th Night Free and World Elite Luxury Hotel Collection, while Chase offers Relais & Chateaux privileges, LHRC, and Visa Infinite Hotels; our current valuation of both ThankYou and Ultimate Rewards points are the same at 1.5 cents per point.  (2) Citi's advantages - Prestige offers 2x additional points on airfare, travel agencies, and dining, as well as slightly better travel and consumer protection (including roadside assistance). (2) Chase's advantage - the effective annual fee after considering the annual travel credit is $95 cheaper on Sapphire Reserve; Chase offers 2x additional points on trivial travel categories (other than airfare/travel agencies/hotels/cruise lines); the rental car collision coverage is primary on Chase but secondary on Citi; even though 1.5 cents per point valuation for both currencies are based on frequent traveler miles/points transfer, Chase does offer better value for fixed value travel redemption (1.5 cents vs. 1 cent per point).  (4) Bottom Line: with the January 2019 revamp, you only need to spend $3,167 per year in dining, airlines, travel agencies minus trivial travel categories for Citi Prestige to be a better rewards card, even with a higher effective annual fee.  However, if you cannot achieve 1.5 cent value with miles/points transfer features and rely on fixed value travel redemption, Sapphire Reserve is still a great alternative.

To see how Citi Prestige competes with other cards with similar annual fees, ​please check out our featured review Comparing High-end Cards covering Amex Platinum Card, Amex Delta Reserve, Amex Hilton Aspire, Amex SPG Luxury, Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase United MP Club, Citi Prestige, Citi AA Executive, U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve, CNB Crystal, and MasterCard Black Card.

The Conclusion
Before its arch-rival Chase Sapphire Reserve came out in August 2016, Citi Prestige was the #1 Best Credit Card by Dr. Credit Card.  After outshined by Sapphire Reserve for more than two years, Citi Prestige has finally regained the precious title with the January 2019 relaunch and impressive performance in rewards (#3) and protection (tied #1).

© 2019 DrCreditCard.net  All rights reserved.

Since three weeks ago, there have been "rumors" about upcoming major changes to Citi Prestige, which has been temporarily discontinued to new applications since August.  It seems like Citi has learned a lot from Chase regarding this type of marketing strategies - remember two years ago before Chase unveiled Sapphire Reserve there had been all these down-to-details type of rumors about the new card circulating around for months.  When the "rumors", a.k.a. strategic sourcing of unofficial information, started three weeks ago, I called Citi and the custom service representatives did not disclose or confirm any of the information that was circulating around.  But I knew the information was highly likely to be accurate.  Now we finally have it - official words from Citi: existing Prestige cardmembers started receiving emails from Citi regarding the revamp and Citi now also have a dedicated page for this information at information.citi.com/prestige/intro.

The changes will start kicking in on January 4, 2019 when supposedly Citi Prestige will be back online for new applications.  I ran some quick numbers and it seems like as long as Citi offers at least 20K points signup bonus, Prestige will finally take the crown back from Sapphire Reserve as the #1 Best Credit Card by Dr. Credit Card, after about 2.5 years later.  We won't update the list until then, but let's first look at the changes.

• On January 4, 2019, Citi Prestige will offer 5x points on dining (up from 2x), airfare (up from 3x), and travel agencies (up from 3x), 3x points on hotels (the same as before) and cruise lines (up from 1x), 2x points on entertainment (which is the same, but will go way on 8/31/19), and 1x everywhere else.  Recently, we have seen Amex dramatically increased category bonuses on its personal Gold Card and Business Gold Card with introduction of some 4x categories (personal card now has groceries and dining as 4x and business card has two categories you spend most each month from six categories).  Now Citi pushes the bonus game even further with almost too-good-to-be-true type of bonuses.
• On January 4, 2019, the annual $250 airline credit will be expanded to cover all travel purchases, including airfare, hotels, car rentals, parking, ground transportation, etc.  This is similar to Sapphire Reserve's $300 annual travel credit and will make it much easier to effectively reduce the annual fees.
• The annual relationship bonus will be removed - you will receive your last relationship bonus on your next account anniversary.
• On May 1, 2019, cellphone protection will come to Citi Prestige.  Note that Prestige has already the best in industry consumer and travel protection, along with American Airlines Executive WEMC.
• Coming on September 1, 2019: annual fees will be increased to $495 (from $450) for primary cardmembers and $75 (from $50) for authorized users -  but if you are Citi Gold members, your annual fees will be kept the same at $350.; the Fourth Night Free feature will be capped at 2 times per year (now it is unlimited);  25% bonus ThankYou points when redeeming for flights will be removed - any travel redemption will have fixed value of 1 cent per point - however, the transfer feature that allows points to be transferred to frequent traveler miles/points remains the same, and thus our valuation of ThankYou points will remain 1.5 cents per point; 2x points earning on entertainment will be reduced to 1x points.

In general, with the already impressive perks and protection and the dramatic increase in category bonuses, Citi Prestige is surely on the way to take back the glorious #1 Best Credit Card spot.  As an existing cardmember who has been thinking about canceling Prestige after obtaining Sapphire Reserve, I can't wait 2019 to come!

Just about a month after revamping the personal Gold Card, Amex did it again with the new Business Gold Card with the following changes.

• The name is changed from "American Express Business Gold Rewards Card" to simply "American Express Business Gold Card".
• The annual fee is increased from $175 to $295; in addition, the first year annual fee is no longer waived.
• The signup bonus is changed from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to one year of G Suite Basic + one year of ZipRecruiter Standard (estimated to be over $3,000 if you take the value on paper).
• Bonus category changes: the old Business Gold Rewards Card offers 3x MR points on one category selected by cardmember from airfare, U.S. gas stations, U.S. shipping, U.S. advertising, and U.S. computer purchases, 2x the rest of the five categories, and 1x everywhere else; the new Business Gold Card offers 4x points on two categories you spend most each month from six categories (five as above plus newly added U.S. restaurants) and 1x everywhere else.
• In addition to the miles/points transfer feature,  Business Gold Card now offers a new redemption option - 25% points rebate with the "Pay with Points", essentially making MR points fixed value at 1.33 cents a piece, when buying First/Business Class tickets with any airline through amextravel.com, and Economy Class tickets with your selected airline also through amextravel.com.  While we value miles/points transfer feature a little higher at 1.5 cents a piece, we do think the 1.33 fixed value option is much easier to achieve for most consumers.

​
In general, even with the increased annual fees, the new card represents a major enhancement over the old card, especially considering that the non-fee Amex Blue Business Plus already offers very impressive 2x points on everything and the old Business Gold Rewards Card only returns one extra point on one single category which we have been criticizing as lackluster.  Now the new Business Gold Card pairs extremely well with Blue Business Plus by adding two extra points for two major categories.  You only needs to spend approximately $10K on 4x categories each year to beat the $295 annual fee, and everything beyond that will be your net earning with this card.  For example, if your business' annual 4x category spending is $30K, you will earn approximately $600 in addition to your Blue Business Plus.

In addition, you may even strategically add the personal Amex Gold Card to the mix and use it for 4x on groceries and dining while using Business Gold Card for 4x on airfare and gas (or other categories).  Of course, if you value the lucrative travel perks such as airport lounge access and luxury hotel privileges by having the personal or business Amex Platinum Card, you will have 5x points on airfare and can adjust your 4x categories accordingly.  The Amex MR ecosystem finally becomes internally harmonic and poses a great threat to the Chase UR ecosystem.  At least on paper, Amex seems leading the way.  We will have a separate post to compare two ecosystems.

Amex has just revamped its Premier Rewards Gold Card and rebranded it simply as Amex Gold Card.  The annual fee is increased from $195 to $250 and not waived anymore, but Amex adds $10 monthly dining credits (up to $120 per year) at participating restaurants - Grubhub, Seamless, The Cheesecake Factory, Ruth's Chris Steak House and participating Shake Shack locations (excluding Shake Shack locations in ballparks, stadiums, airports and racetracks).  While we consider the (unchanged) $100 annual airline credit as an effective annual fee reducer, we are not sure about the new dining credits - we would rather view them as extra perks.  The public signup bonus is now 50,000 points and up to $100 statement credits (20% return on U.S. restaurants capped at $100 in bonus).  Note that the 50K points bonus is not available if you have or had this card or Amex Premier Rewards Gold Card.  Amex is also upgrading the card material from plastic to metal.  Another interesting marketing trick is that Amex now offers a limited edition Rose Gold metal card design if you apply before January 9, 2019.

The biggest change comes in the rewards structure: the 3-2-1 structure is replaced by a 4-3-1 structure.  The 3x points on airfare remains the same; 2x on U.S. gas stations is eliminated; U.S. groceries and U.S. restaurants receive a bump from 2x to 4x (grocery spending has a $25K annual cap).  The last part is unexpectedly and crazily lucrative - for example, if you spend $7K in groceries and $8K in dining each year, you will receive an extra bonus of 30K Membership Rewards (MR) points compared to the old card (valued at $450 in our book)!  Considering the fact that the old PR Gold Card had already been pretty impressive in the bonus department, this move is HUGE.  We are excited to see its position on the Best Credit Cards for Rewards list jumps from #8 to #2, now just below Amex EveryDay Preferred.  Even though the Amex Gold Card still lags behind in Perks and Protection, it made a strong come up to our Top 10 Best Credit Cards list with a nice #5 finish.

How about the exiting Premier Rewards Gold cardmembers?  They have the best deals - the annual fees will be kept at $195 until April 1, 2019 and the 2x points on gas stations will be grandfathered in until October 4, 2019.  Amex is very generous in this regard.

Amex has increased welcome bonuses on the Hilton co-branded credit cards, for a limited time.  The landing page for all four cards is here.

Amex Hilton Aspire Card ($450) 150K + one free night @ signup
Amex Hilton Ascend Card ($95) 125K
Amex Hilton Business Card ($95) 125K
Amex Hilton Card ($0) 75K

Even with the highest annual fee, Amex Hilton Aspire Card, our #2 Credit Card for Perks, will be our recommendation as long as you stay at Hilton portfolio hotels a few times a year, because other than the signup bonus, it offers $250 annual airline credit, $250 annual Hilton resort credit, one annual free weekend night (Friday/Saturday/Sunday), complimentary Hilton Diamond status (their top-tier elite status), Priority Pass Select membership for airport lounge access, premium roadside assistance (better than your regular AAA membership), etc.  The free night can be redeemed at any Hilton portfolio hotels worldwide, and Hilton's most expensive hotels require 70,000 to 95,000 points or $400 to over $1,000 in cash per night.   Some examples of exceptional redemption for the weekend free nights: Conrad Maldives, Conrad Koh Samui, Conrad Bora Bora Nui, Conrad Tokyo, Hilton Seychelles Labriz, Hilton Seychelles Northolme, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, Grand Wailea A Waldorf Astoria Resort, and Waldorf Astoria Park City (in peak seasons).  

With the final integration of Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) programs, we have updated our Featured Review: Marriott Rewards vs. Membership Rewards (MR) vs. Ultimate Rewards (UR) vs. ThankYou (TY) vs. Club Rewards (CR).

In this review we will compare five most popular and versatile rewards programs in the market.  They are similar in that their points can be transferred into miles/points of a number of frequent traveler programs (airlines/hotels).

Marriott Rewards
Marriott Rewards is the frequent guest program of Marriott International whose hotel portfolio includes Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, Luxury Collection, JW Marriott, EDITION, W Hotels, Marriott, Renaissance, Delta, Gaylord, Autograph Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels, Courtyard, AC Hotels, Fairfield, SpringHill Suites, Protea, Moxy, Four Points, element, aloft, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Marriott Executive Apartments, and Marriott Vacation Club.  Marriott points can be valuable when redeemed for hotel stays in Marriott portfolio hotels.  Here we don't want to go into details of hotel redemption, please visit marriott.com for more information.

Marriott points can be extremely valuable when transferred into miles of 40+ frequent flyer programs, mostly at 3:1 ratio.  This ratio may seem low compared to other programs, but you have to understand this essentially represents the same value as the old Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) points which transfer to airline miles at 1:1 and to Marriott points at 1:3 before the final integration of Marriott Rewards and SPG programs.  In fact, with the merger, the number of airline partners actually further increased from 34 to 44.  As Marriott points are generally obtained more easily than the points in the other programs in this review, they do continue to represent great value.

• Aegean Airlines Miles+Bonus (3:1)
• Aeroflot Bonus (3:1)
• Aeromexico Club Premier (3:1)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (3:1)
• Air China Phoenix Miles (3:1)
• Air New Zealand Airpoints (200:1)
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (3:1)
• Alitalia MilleMiglia (3:1)
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club (3:1)
• American Airlines AAdvantage (3:1)
• Asiana Airlines Asiana Club (3:1)
• Avianca LifeMiles (3:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (3:1) 
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (3:1)
• China Eastern Airlines Eastern Miles (3:1)
• China Southern Airlines Skypearl Club (3:1) 
• Copa Airlines ConnectMiles (3:1)                                                                                             
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (3:1)
• Emirates Skywards (3:1)
• Etihad Guest (3:1)      
• Frontier Airlines EarlyReturns (3:1)                                                                            
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (3:1)     
• Hainan Airlines (3:1)                                                            
• Hawaiian Airlines (3:1)
• Iberia Plus (3:1)
• Japan Airlines Mileage Bank (3:1)
• Jet Airways JetPrivilege (3:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (6:1)
• Korean Air SkyPass (3:1)
• LATAM Airlines LATAM Pass (3:1)
• Miles and More (3:1)
• Multiplus (3:1)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (3:1)
• Qatar Airways (3:1)
• Saudi Arabian Airlines Alfursan (3:1)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (3:1)
• South African Airways Voyager (3:1)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (3:1)
• TAP Air Portugal TAP Victoria (3:1)
• Thai Airways International Royal Orchid Plus (3:1)
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles (3:1)
• United Airlines MileagePlus (3:1.1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (3:1)
• Virgin Australia Velocity (3:1)

Most importantly, if you transfer 60,000 points you receive a bonus of 15,000 points, i.e., 60K Marriott points = 25K miles, or 2.4 Marriott points = 1 mile of most partners.  You can transfer your Marriott points to a household member's Marriott account but there is paperwork you will have to do and sign.  However, you can only transfer your Marriott points to a frequent flyer account under your name.

In addition, you might redeem Marriott points for the Travel Packages (Hotel + Air Packages): your points will be converted to a certain number of frequent flyer miles plus a seven-night hotel certificate at a certain redemption level.  Marriott revamped the Hotel + Air charts in August 2018, with major devaluation.  The new travel packages do not represent good value compared to the simple miles transfer without the hotel certificate; for example, you might redeem 330K Marriott points for 100K miles plus a 7-night certificate at Category 1-4 hotels - you essentially only save 60K points for the hassle of finding a single hotel to stay for 7 consecutive nights.
                                                                                                                                                                     
Membership Rewards (MR) from American Express
On the earning side, you earn one extra point for each dollar spent on travel booked through MR (American Express Travel); however, Amex charges a booking fee on airfare or air-hotel packages ($6.99 per domestic ticket; $10.99 per international ticket) so most likely it is not a good deal.  Effective May 2015, Amex waives the booking fee for Platinum and Centurion cardmembers.  Amex used to have a shopping portal that allowed you to earn up to 10X bonus points; however, it was closed in 2013.

On the redemption side, MR points can be redeemed for merchandise, gift cards, travel (Pay with Points), and so on, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, some cards are eligible for a transfer feature that allows points to be transferred to over 20 frequent traveler programs.  Let's look at these two groups:

• Not eligible to transfer points: Blue ($0), Blue Business ($0), Zync ($25); however, if you have another card that has the transfer feature, all your MR points will be pooled together and all of them will be eligible to transfer points.
• Eligible to transfer points: EveryDay ($0), Blue Business Plus ($0), EveryDay Preferred ($95), Membership Rewards Business Card ($75), Green ($95), Business Green Rewards ($95), Gold ($125), Ameriprise co-branded Gold ($125), Premier Rewards Gold($175), Business Gold Rewards ($175), Mercedes-Benz Credit Card ($95), Platinum ($550), Business Platinum ($450), Mercedes-Benz co-branded Platinum, Ameriprise co-branded Platinum, Morgan Stanley co-branded Platinum, Goldman Sachs co-branded Platinum, Centurion ($2,500).

MR points can be transferred into miles or points of the following programs:

    Airline Partners

• AeroMexico Club Premier (1:1)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1)
• Alitalia MilleMiglia (1:1)
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club (1:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1)
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (1:1)
• EL AL Israel Airlines Matmid Club (50:1)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1)
• Etihad Guest (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Hawaiian Airlines (1:1)
• Iberia Plus (14:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (1.25:1)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

    Hotel Partners

• Choice Privileges (1:1)
• Hilton HHonors (1:2)
• Marriott Rewards (1:1)

Compared to airline miles transfer, hotel points transfer does not represent  good value.  Even though MR does not have the built-in 25% transfer bonus like Marriott, Amex runs limited-time transfer promotions on certain partners several times a year, so the value of MR points can be higher.  Another huge advantage of MR over Marriott is that the transfer to most partners is instantaneous rather than days or weeks.  This can be very useful when you find a particular award ticket available and want to grab it immediately before it is taken.  The downside of MR is that Amex charges 0.06 cent per point up to $99 for transfer to domestic airlines.  For example, if you transfer 100K points to 100K Delta miles, you will be charged $60 for the transaction.  You can not transfer your MR points to someone else's MR account.  However, you can transfer your MR points to your authorized user's frequent traveler accounts.

Three Ways of Using MR points for Airfare: In addition to the aforementioned two options to redeem MR points for airfare - Pay with Points (fixed value, 1 cent per point) and the transfer feature, Amex also offers certificates for economy tickets for the following airlines: Cathay Pacific, Swiss, Qantas, and South African Airways.  Note that they (except Swiss) are not transfer partners: you can't transfer MR points to their miles but you rather use a bulk of points in exchange for certificates that can be used for economy tickets (or companion tickets).  The use of certificates is not subject to capacity control and you can actually earn miles on them.  There is no certificates for business or first class tickets.

For example, using the certificate a round-trip economy ticket on Swiss from SFO/LAX to Europe costs 65K points no matter how much the revenue ticket actually costs.  If you use Pay with Points feature and the revenue ticket costs $1,000, you will need 100K points.  For comparison, if you want to use Swiss' own frequent flyer program - Miles and More, which by the way is a transfer partner of Marriott, it will cost 50K miles plus fuel surcharge (which can be as high as, say $400) and is subject to capacity control.

Ultimate Rewards (UR) from Chase
Chase  Ultimate Rewards (UR) is a knock-off of Amex Membership Rewards.  On the earning side, you earn one extra point for one dollar spent on airfare booked through UR, but unlike Amex, Chase does not charge a booking fee.  You also earn up to 10x points when shopping through UR.  

The regular UR program allows redemption for merchandise, gift cards, cash, and travel, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, premium UR cards including Sapphire Preferred ($95), Sapphire Reserve ($450), JPM Reserve ($450), and Ink Preferred ($95), have two premium redemption features: one is 25% bonus to travel redemption via UR (1 point = 1.25 cent); the other is to transfer points into miles/points of frequent traveler programs.  Just like MR, transfer from UR to miles/points is instantaneous.  Also like MR, if you have a regular UR card such as Freedom and another premium UR card such as Sapphire Preferred, you can pool all UR points together and enjoy the premium features.  You can transfer your UR points to the UR account or a frequent traveler account belonging to one household member.  Points transfer to third parties is prohibited.  Currently, UR has the following partners:

    Airline Partners

• Aer Lingus AerClub (1:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Iberia Plus (1:1)
• Korean Air SkyPass(1:1) - partnership ending 8/26/18
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (1:1)
• United Airlines MileagePlus (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

    Hotel Partners

• IHG Rewards Club (1:1)
• Marriott Rewards (1:1)
• World of Hyatt (1:1)

ThankYou (TY) from Citi
For several years, Citi's ThankYou Rewards (TY) had been lagging behind with only one transfer partner Hilton HHonors (this relationship ended in December 2017), and we were excited to see that Citi finally introduced several airline partners in July 2014.  Currently there is no points earning for shopping with Citi.

The regular TY program allows redemption for merchandise, gift cards, statement credit, and travel, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, premium TY cards including Citi ThankYou Premier ($95), Citi Prestige ($450), and Citi Chairman, have a transfer feature similar to Marriott, MR, and UR, that allows ThankYou points to be transferred to frequent traveler programs.  If you have a regular TY cards such as ThankYou Preferred, you may pool all your points together and the points earned through the regular TY cards become eligible for transfer.  You may share your TY points with someone else; however, the shared points will expire in 90 days.  You can only transfer your TY points to a frequent traveler account under your name.  TY partners include the following:

• Avianca LifeMiles (1:1)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1)
• EVA Air Infinity MileageLands (1:1)
• Etihad Guest (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Garuda Indonesia Frequent Flyer (1:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (1.25:1)
• Jet Airways JetPrivilege (1:1)
• Malaysia Airlines Enrich (1:1)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (1:1)
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club (1:1)
• Sears Shop Your Way (1:12)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus (1:1) 
• Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

Club Rewards (CR) from Diners Club
Club Rewards from Diners Club has always had the transfer feature that allows points to be transferred to miles/points.  Club Rewards points earned from Diners Club cards such as Diners Club Premier ($95) and Diners Club Elite ($300), both of which hasn't been accepting new applications since late 2014, can be redeemed for merchandise, gift cards, cash, travel, etc., at up to 1 cent per point.  In addition, CR points can be transferred to the following frequent traveler accounts, mostly at 1:1:
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​    Airline Partners

• Air Canada Aeroplan (1000:1000)
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (1075:1000)
• British Airways Executive Club (1000:1000)
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (1075:1000)
• El Al Airlines Matmid Club(1000:20)
• EVA Airways Infinity MileageLands (1000:1000)
• Hawaiian Airlines (1075:1000)
• Icelandair Saga Club (1000:1000)
• SAS EuroBonus (1000:1000)
• South African Airways Voyager (1000:1000)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (1613:1200)
• Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus (1000:1000)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1000:1000)

​    Hotel Partners

• Best Western Rewards (1250:3300)
• Choice Privileges (1250:2400)
• Hilton HHonors (1250:2000)
• Hyatt Gold Passport (1250:750)
• IHG Rewards Club (1250:1500)
• Marriott Rewards (1250:1500)

For the master comparison chart, please see the updated review.