Review: Citi Prestige Card

Here’s The MileLion’s review of the Citi Prestige Card, Citibank’s second most exclusive credit card after the invite-only Citi ULTIMA.

Even though the Prestige has been discontinued in the USA and the UK, it’s still going strong in Singapore, offering cardholders travel benefits like airport lounge access and limo rides, gourmet promotions, and lifestyle offers.

But with nerfs to Citi PayAll, one of its biggest trump cards, and earn rates that lag behind the competition, does it still justify its wallet-denting S$545 annual fee?

Citi Prestige
🦁 MileLion Verdict
☐ Take It ☑ Take It Or Leave It ☐ Leave It
What do these ratings mean?
The Citi Prestige remains a solid $120K card, though its lagging earn rates and nerfs to Citi PayAll have reduced its attractiveness somewhat.
👍 The good	👎 The bad
Unlimited lounge access with one guest Eight limo rides per year 4th Night Free benefit Points don’t expire 10 frequent flyer partners and one hotel World Elite Mastercard benefits	Earn rates lagging behind other $120K cards (and even some entry-level ones) 4th Night Free conditions get tighter and tighter each year Citi PayAll less lucrative with new 2.6% admin fee Points don’t pool
💳 Full List of Credit Card Reviews

Overview: Citi Prestige Card

Let’s start this review by looking at the key features of the Citi Prestige Card. 

Apply Here
Income Req.	S$120,000 p.a.	Points Validity	No expiry
Annual Fee	S$545	Min. Transfer	25,000 TY points (10,000 miles)
Miles with Annual Fee	25,000	Transfer Partners	11
FCY Fee	3.25%	Transfer Fee	S$27.25
Local Earn	1.3 mpd	Points Pool?	No
FCY Earn	2.0 mpd	Lounge Access?	Yes
Special Earn	N/A	Airport Limo?	Yes
Cardholder Terms and Conditions

The Citi Prestige comes in metal cardstock, but it’s actually one of the lightest metal cards on the market. In fact, it’s more of a hybrid, weighing in at 8 grams, just a hair over a standard plastic card’s 5 grams.

How much must I earn to qualify for a Citi Prestige?

The Citi Prestige has a S$120,000 p.a. income requirement, although it is also available to Citigold customers (min AUM: S$250K) who earn at least S$30,000 p.a.

If you don’t meet the income criteria, an alternative is to get the Citi Prestige as a secured credit card, with a deposit of at least S$15,000 (though a recent data point in the community suggests this may no longer be possible). Visit a Citi branch to make enquiries. 

How much is the Citi Prestige Card’s annual fee? 

The Citi Prestige has an annual fee of S$545. Supplementary cards are free for life.

Annual fee waivers are strictly not available for the Citi Prestige, so don’t even think about asking (Citigold has run very occasional acquisition promotions which waive the first year’s fee, but there’s nothing going on now to my knowledge).

Cardholders receive 25,000 miles for paying the annual fee each year, which works out to 2.18 cents per mile. That’s more than you should be paying, but remember, the other benefits like lounge access and airport limo rides have some value, which would lower the effective cost per mile. 

What sign-up bonus or gifts are available?

From now till 31 December 2024, the Citi Prestige is offering 50,000 bonus miles for cardholders who apply online and receive approval within 30 days of application. 

Cardholders will earn:

• 25,000 miles for paying the S$545 annual fee 
• 25,000 miles for spending S$2,000 by the end of the second calendar month following approval

This offer is open to individuals who have not cancelled a Citi Prestige Card in the 12 months prior to application. For avoidance of doubt, existing Citi principal cardholders are eligible.

The full details can be found below:

Extended: Citi Prestige Card 50,000 bonus miles welcome offer

How many miles do I earn?

SGD/FCY Spend

Citi Prestige Cardholders earn:

• 3.25 ThankYou points for every S$1 spent in Singapore Dollars
• 5 ThankYou points for every S$1 spent in foreign currency (FCY)

5 ThankYou points are worth 2 airline miles, so that’s an equivalent earn rate of 1.3 mpd for local spend, and 2.0 mpd for FCY spend.

There’s also a Relationship Bonus to factor in, which awards 5-30% more points depending on your tenure with Citibank, and whether you have Citigold status.

Contrary to popular belief, a 5% bonus does not mean you earn 1.3 * 1.05 = 1.365 mpd. Instead, the relationship bonus percentage is applied to your overall dollar spend amount to derive bonus points. For example, if you spend S$10,000 in a year with a 5% bonus, you get 5% * 10,000= 500 bonus points, or a paltry 200 miles. The bump in mpd is a mere 0.02!

Truth be told, the earn rates could certainly be improved. In terms of miles earning potential, the Citi Prestige Card ranks towards the bottom of the $120K pack.

💳 Earn Rates for S$120K Cards (sorted by sum of local and FCY earn rate)
Card	Local	FCY
SCB Visa Infinite	1.4 mpd#	3 mpd#
UOB VI Metal Card	1.4 mpd	2.4 mpd
DBS Vantage	1.5 mpd	2.2 mpd
OCBC VOYAGE	1.3 mpd	2.2 mpd
Citi Prestige	1.3 mpd^	2 mpd^
Maybank Visa Infinite	1.2 mpd	2 mpd
HSBC Visa Infinite	1 mpd	2 mpd
AMEX Plat. Reserve	0.69 mpd	0.69 mpd
^Additional 0.02 to 0.12 mpd awarded based on tenure with bank #With minimum S$2K spend per statement month. Otherwise 1 mpd for both

The main factors in its favour are its more flexible points (due to greater transfer partner variety) and its more favourable rounding policy (because it awards points per S$1 of spend, instead of S$5 blocks like some competitors).

All FCY transactions are subject to a 3.25% fee, which is par the course for the market.

With a 3.25% FCY fee, using your Citi Prestige Card overseas represents buying miles at 1.63 cents each.

You could pair this card with Amaze, but remember: since Amaze converts all transactions into SGD, you’d only be accruing miles at the local earn rate of 1.3 mpd, with an implicit FCY fee of 2%. The cost per mile here is slightly lower at 1.54 cents, however, so it might still be worth considering.

When are ThankYou points credited?

ThankYou points are credited when your transaction posts, which generally takes 1-3 working days. 

How are ThankYou points calculated?

Here’s how you can work out the ThankYou points earned on your Citi Prestige Card. 

Unlike some cards which award points for every S$5 spent (such as the OCBC VOYAGE and UOB Visa Infinite Metal Card), the Citi Prestige awards points for every S$1 spent. 

This means you lose fewer points through rounding, which can make a big difference on smaller transactions. For example, the Citi Prestige Card can outperform the ostensibly higher-earning UOB Visa Infinite Metal on certain transactions, as illustrated below.

	Citi Prestige Earn Rate: 1.3 mpd	UOB VI Metal  Earn Rate: 1.4 mpd
S$5	6.4 miles	6 miles
S$9.99	11.6 miles	6 miles
S$15	19.6 miles	20 miles
S$19.99	24.8 miles	20 miles
S$25	32.4 miles	34 miles
S$29.99	37.6 miles	34 miles

If you’re an Excel geek, here’s the formulas you need to calculate points: 

For the full list of formulas that banks use to calculate credit card points, do refer to these articles:

• General Spending Cards
• Specialised Spending Cards

What transactions aren’t eligible for ThankYou points?

A full list of ineligible transactions to earn ThankYou points can be found in the Citibank T&Cs, at point 2. 

I’ve highlighted a few noteworthy categories below:

• Charitable Donations 
• Educational Institutions
• Government Services
• Hospitals
• Insurance
• Professional Services and Membership Organizations
• Quasi cash transactions
• Real Estate Agents and Managers
• Top-ups to prepaid accounts like YouTrip and GrabPay
• Utilities

The main change from last year is the addition of hospitals from January 2024, which affects all Citi cards except the ULTIMA. 

For avoidance of doubt, the Citi Prestige Card earns points for CardUp spending. 

What do I need to know about ThankYou points?

Expiry

ThankYou points earned on the Citi Prestige Card do not expire, so long as your card remains open.

Pooling

Citibank points do not pool across cards.

If you have 12,000 ThankYou points on the Citi Prestige Card and 30,000 ThankYou points on the Citi Rewards Mastercard, you will have to pay two separate conversion fees. This also means that you’ll need to transfer all your points out before cancelling the card, or else forfeit them.

Transfer Partners & Fee

Citibank has the widest variety of transfer partners in Singapore, with 11 airline and hotel programmes to choose from.

More importantly, all three airline alliances are represented: Star (KrisFlyer, EVA, THAI, Turkish), oneworld (British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qantas, Qatar), and SkyTeam (Flying Blue). This means your points are intrinsically more valuable, since you’re hedged against any one particular programme carrying out a devaluation. 

Points transfer at a 5:2 ratio, with a minimum transfer block of 10,000 miles. 

Frequent Flyer Programme	Conversion Ratio (Citi: Partner)
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000
	25,000: 10,000

Transfers cost S$27.25 each, regardless of how many points are converted.

Transfer Times

Citibank tells customers that points transfers will take 14 business days, but in reality it’s usually 24-48 hours for KrisFlyer, or 2-4 working days for other programmes.

If you need your points credited instantly, you can move them via Kris+ at a rate of 10,000 ThankYou points = 3,400 KrisPay miles. KrisPay miles can then be instantly converted to KrisFlyer miles at a 1:1 ratio. 

S$5 for new Kris+ Users

Get S$5 (in the form of 750 KrisPay miles) when you sign-up with code W644363 and make your first transaction

There are pros and cons to this:

Pros

• Minimum conversion block is reduced to 10,000 ThankYou points, versus 25,000 ThankYou points if converting via Citibank’s rewards portal
• Transfers from Citi to Kris+ and Kris+ to KrisFlyer are instant

Cons

• Those 10,000 ThankYou points would normally be worth 4,000 KrisFlyer miles, so a 15% haircut is incurred

Should you choose to take this option, do note that it’s a two-step process. The first transfer is from Citi to Kris+, the second is from Kris+ to KrisFlyer. A big button will pop up after the first step, prompting you to make the second step. 

If you do not convert these points within 21 days, or spend any of the transferred miles, the balance will be “stuck” in Kris+, where they expire after six months, and are worth a mere 0.67 cents apiece.

Other card perks

4th Night Free on hotel stays

One of the biggest draws of the Citi Prestige Card is the 4th Night Free benefit, which allows cardholders to stay four nights at a hotel for the cost of three.

Here’s how it works: Citi Prestige Cardholders make a hotel booking through the Citi Prestige concierge of at least four nights. The average pre-tax rate of the first four nights will be refunded within two billing cycles (up to 90 days) from completion of full payment, which must be made at the time of booking.

In the example above, the cardholder receives a refund of S$118 (the average of S$100, S$130, S$160 and S$80). Since the refund is on the Citi side, elite credit and hotel points (if applicable) are earned on the full amount of spending.

A maximum of one free night can be enjoyed per stay, back to back stays will not be honoured. Back to back stays are defined as consecutive stays:

• In the same hotel, same city
• In a different hotel, in the same city

Consecutive stays are defined as any stay in which the check-in date is less than seven days from the previous check-out date. 

Only the principal cardholder is entitled to this benefit, and he/she must be staying at the hotel. The following stays are excluded:

• Full and half board room stays
• Single and multi-room suites
• Home & farm stays
• Serviced apartments
• Villas
• Packaged stay and member rates, such as air and hotel, hotel and car rental, hotel and meals bundled promotions

This means the concierge will not let you book an all-suites or all-villa hotel, even though I believe that wasn’t the original intention of the exclusions.

Only prepaid rates that are available on the hotel’s website (excluding member’s rates) or Expedia can be booked. If you book the former, you will be eligible to earn points for your stay in accordance with the loyalty programme’s usual T&Cs. 

As you can see, Citi has slapped a whole lot of restrictions on this benefit, so much so that existing cardholders complain it’s dying the death of a thousand cuts. You can still save money, sure, but you might drive yourself a little crazy trying to do it.

Complimentary airport limo

Once upon a time, spending just S$1,500 per quarter in foreign currency would unlock four free airport limo rides on the Citi Prestige Card. But in April 2019, Citi hiked the spending to S$20,000 per quarter while reducing the rides to two. That was an outrageous change, and the bank’s attempts to spin it as an “enhancement” didn’t help.

In February 2020, Citi walked back the changes somewhat. The minimum spend was reduced to S$12,000 per quarter, where it’s remained ever since.

💳 Airport Limo Benefits (income req.: S$120K)
Card	Qualifying Spend	Cap
HSBC Visa Infinite	S$2K per month for 1 ride*	24 per year
Maybank Visa Infinite	S$3K per month for 1 ride	8 per year
Citi Prestige	S$12K per quarter for 2 rides	2 per quarter
OCBC VOYAGE	S$12K per quarter for 2 rides	2 per quarter
AMEX Plat. Reserve	N/A	N/A
DBS Vantage	N/A	N/A
SCB Visa Infinite	N/A	N/A
UOB VI Metal Card	N/A	N/A
*First 2 (Regular customer) or 4 (HSBC Premier) per membership year are free

Quarters are defined as:

• Q1: 1 Jan to 31 Mar
• Q2: 1 Apr to 30 Jun
• Q3: 1 Jul to 30 Sep
• Q4: 1 Oct to 31 Dec

For avoidance of doubt, Citi PayAll spending will count towards the S$12,000 qualifying spend, provided the service fee is paid.

Rides must be booked in the same quarter they are earned, although the ride date can be outside the earning quarter. For example, on 3 May 2023 I charge S$12,000 in qualifying spend to my Citi Prestige Card. This earns me two complimentary limo rides, which I must book by 30 June 2023. The actual utilisation date can be beyond 30 June 2023.

Remember, limo rides are charged at the time of booking (not utilisation), so all that matters is the charge is reflected in the correct quarter.

Reimbursement for limo rides will take place in the following quarter. All bookings must be done via the Citi Prestige concierge at least 48 hours prior to pickup time. 

Another point worth noting is that the airport limo service can be used for both airport pick-ups and drop-offs, unlike some competing cards like the HSBC Visa Infinite where rides are only valid for airport drop-offs. 

Unlimited complimentary lounge visits

Citi Prestige Cardholders enjoy unlimited lounge visits via Priority Pass, along with one guest. This benefit only applies to the principal cardholder; supplementary cardholders do not receive access.

Registration is required, and instructions can be found here.

As far as cards in the $120K segment go, this is pretty competitive.

💳 Airport Lounge Benefits (income req.: S$120K)
Card	Lounge Network	Free Visits (Per Year)
		Main	Supp.
HSBC Visa Infinite	LoungeKey	∞	∞ Up to 5 supp. cards
OCBC VOYAGE	Plaza Premium	∞	∞
Citi Prestige	Priority Pass	∞ + 1 guest	N/A
UOB VI Metal Card	Dragon Pass	∞ + 1 guest	N/A
DBS Vantage	Priority Pass	10	N/A
SCB Visa Infinite	Priority Pass	6	N/A
Maybank Visa Infinite	Priority Pass	4	N/A
AMEX Plat. Reserve	N/A	N/A	N/A

What’s nice about the Citi Prestige is that unlike the Priority Pass issued by American Express, there are no restrictions on so-called “non-lounge experiences” like restaurants and spas. This means a cardmember could go restaurant hopping at Changi (or any other airport for that matter), enjoying multiple F&B credits at different eateries. 

Full list of Priority Pass & DragonPass restaurants at Changi Airport

Prestige Guest Chef Dining

Citi Prestige Cardholders receive periodic invitations to specially-curated dining experiences under the Prestige Guest Chef Dining programme.

These aren’t free, obviously, but can sometimes represent a small discount to the public price.

Buy miles with Citi PayAll

Citi PayAll

Citi PayAll is a platform that allows Citibank cardholders to pay various types of bills and earn rewards points. 23 different categories of payment are currently supported:

Here’s a simple example of how it works.

• Set up a S$10,000 insurance premium payment via Citi PayAll
• Citi PayAll will charge your Citi Prestige Card S$10,260 (S$10,000 + 2.6% admin fee)
• Citi Prestige Card will earn 13,000 miles (S$10,000 @ 1.3 mpd; no miles for admin fee)
• Cost per mile= 2 cents (S$260 admin fee / 13,000 miles)

The admin fee has to be paid, but historically speaking, Citi PayAll has run promotions that upsized the earn rate or threw in additional Grab vouchers, making it almost too good to be true- once upon a time we were buying miles at just 0.8 cents each!

Unfortunately, Citi has dialed back the generosity. Earlier in 2024, the admin fee for Citi PayAll was increased from 2.2% to 2.6%, which means that outside of a promotion, the cost is probably not worth considering. 

For what it’s worth, there is an ongoing promotion at the time of writing that upsizes the earn rate to 1.75 mpd till 28 February 2025, lowering the cost per mile to 1.49 cents. 

Citi PayAll launches 1.75 mpd promotion; buy miles at 1.49 cents

Citi PayAll transactions will count towards the minimum spend for welcome offers and other promotions, provided the service fee is paid.

I’ve written a comprehensive guide to Citi PayAll, so be sure to check out the article below. 

Citi PayAll Complete Guide: How to pay bills and earn miles

Complimentary golf games

Golf Bookings

Citi Prestige Cardholders enjoy six complimentary golf games per year, split into:

• Three complimentary games in Singapore
• Three complimentary games in the region

A maximum of one active golf booking per cardholder is permitted at any time, and you must complete the existing game before making another booking.

Games are valid at the following clubs.

Singapore

Region

Upgrade to Sands Lifestyle Prestige Tier

From now till 30 April 2026, Citi Prestige Cardholders can enjoy a complimentary 3-month membership upgrade to the MBS Sands Lifestyle Prestige tier. They can renew their membership for a further 9-month period by spending at least S$1,500 within the initial 3-month period, failing which they will be downgraded to the entry-level Lifestyle tier.

To upgrade their status, Citi Prestige Cardholders must visit one of the following locations in person

• Lobby, Hotel Tower 1
  Daily: 10am – 10.30pm
• The Shoppes, B1 (above Sampan Rides)
  Daily: 10am – 11pm
• The Shoppes, B2 (near Digital Light Canvas)
  Daily: 10am – 11pm

Sands Lifestyle Prestige members enjoy perks such as:

• Up to 20% instant Resort Dollars at over 250 outlets
• 10% savings on hotel room rate
• Preferential earning of up to 10% instant Resort Dollars at selected restaurants
• $4 Resort Dollar parking (with same-day spend)
• Complimentary tickets to Marina Bay Sands attractions (up to two tickets per day per attraction, capped at two per month)
  • Digital Light Canvas
  • Sampan rides
  • SkyPark Observation Deck 
• 1-for-1 ArtScience Museum exhibition tickets (up to four tickets per month)

The full list of perks can be found here, and the T&Cs here.

Complimentary travel insurance

Citi Prestige Cardholders enjoy two different insurance travel insurance policies: one from Citibank, and one from Mastercard.

From Citibank

Citi Prestige Cardholders receive complimentary travel insurance when they charge their round-trip air ticket to their card, underwritten by HL Assurance. 

This includes situations where tickets are redeemed with miles, and the taxes/surcharges paid with the Citi Prestige Card. However, the miles must be from one of Citi Singapore’s airline transfer partners. At the time of making a claim, you will need to show that the miles transferred from Citi are the same or more than the miles used to redeem the award ticket.

Cardholders are covered for up to S$1,000,000 for accidental death or dismemberment while traveling on a scheduled public conveyance, with S$50,000 coverage for medical expenses and S$100,000 for emergency medical evacuation. Flight delays, baggage delays and lost baggage are also covered.

Coverage includes the cardholder, spouse and children. 

From Mastercard

On top of the protection provided by Citibank, Citi Prestige Cardholders also enjoy additional coverage from Mastercard by virtue of World Elite Mastercard status. Like Citibank, Mastercard coverage is activated when you use your card to pay for your airfare (or taxes on an award ticket).

This features US$500,000 coverage for accidental death, US$500,000 coverage for medical expenses, plus US$7,500 for trip cancellation or curtailment. 

Coverage includes the cardholder, spouse and children. 

World Elite Mastercard benefits

The Citi Prestige Card is part of the World Elite Mastercard tier, which means that cardholders enjoy the additional perks such as hotel and rental car elite status.

Remember, Citi Prestige Cardholders enjoy all supplementary cards for free, so you can share these benefits with family members at no additional cost. They might not be able to enjoy Citi-offered perks like Priority Pass and the 4th Night Free benefit, but all the World Elite Mastercard benefits are still available.

Terms & Conditions

• Citi Prestige Card Information Sheet
• Citi Prestige Card T&Cs

Summary Review: Citi Prestige Card

Apply Here

The Citi Prestige Card continues to offer strong benefits for its weight class.

Those who carefully utilise the 4th Night Free benefit will find that a handful of bookings can help them recover their annual fee- even if the conditions attached to its use get tighter and tighter each year.

Likewise, the unlimited lounge visits are useful for the times you don’t fly First or Business Class, or if you just want to grab a meal at an airport restaurant (unlike AMEX cards, Citi does not exclude these “non-lounge experiences”). And since a guest is included, you can travel with a different person every time.

Where transfer partners are concerned, Citi may no longer be able to boast the widest variety (that crown has gone to HSBC), but 11 is still a solid number. 

On the other hand, Citi PayAll is no longer the miles printing machine it used to be, due to its increased 2.6% admin fee. Also, the Citi Prestige’s earn rates are starting to lag behind the competition- even the entry-level DBS Altitude Cards now outperform it!

All that said, the Citi Prestige Card still offers the easiest path to annual fee recovery among cards in the $120K segment (especially once you factor in the 25,000 annual miles), and if the rarefied air of the ULTIMA is out of reach, this might be a good consolation prize.