Citi PayAll hikes service fee to 2.6%

Back in April 2023, Citi PayAll hiked its admin fee from 2% to 2.2%, while simultaneously  launching a 2.2 mpd promotion on all payments. The promo ended, but the 2.2% fee remained- perhaps the best example of “give chicken wing, take back whole chicken.”

And it looks like the chickens haven’t finished coming home to roost yet, because Citi has just unveiled a second fee hike in as many years: a 2.6% service fee, effective immediately.

As expected, there’s another promo to soften the blow— 2 mpd on tax payments and 1.6 mpd on non-tax payments — but that again is a limited-time offer, while the increased fees are here to stay.

Citi PayAll hikes service fee to 2.6%

Citi PayAll

Effective 22 April 2024, 10 a.m, Citi PayAll has increased its service fee from 2.2% to 2.6%. The new service fee is already reflected in the Citi Mobile App. 

As was the case during the previous fee hike, Citi will be grandfathering in the payments set up before the cutoff, whether one-time or recurring:

• Any Citi PayAll payment setup prior to 22 April 2024, 10 a.m (SGT): 2.2% fee
• Any Citi PayAll payment setup from 22 April 2024, 10 a.m (SGT): 2.6% fee

Here’s how the cost per mile increases for Citi cards with a 2.6% service fee.

Card	Earn Rate	Cost Per Mile  (@ 2.6% fee)
Citi ULTIMA	1.6 mpd	1.38¢ 1.63¢
Citi Prestige	1.3 mpd	1.69¢ 2.00¢
Citi PremierMiles	1.2 mpd	1.83¢ 2.17¢
Citi Rewards	0.4 mpd	5.5¢ 6.50¢

As you can see, the cost per mile has increased from 1.38-5.5 cents to 1.63-6.5 cents. Since the ULTIMA is reserved for a select few, most cardholders will be looking at paying at least 2 cents per mile outside of promotions, which I reckon is too high. 

For what it’s worth, fee-paying Citi PayAll transactions will continue to count towards the minimum spend for:

• Welcome offers
• Limo rides on the Citi Prestige Card
• Relationship Bonus on the Citi Prestige Card

CardUp is now the cheaper option!

One big implication of the revised 2.6% service fee is that going forward, in the absence of a promotion, CardUp (2.25% fee) now becomes a cheaper option for paying bills than Citi PayAll- even for Citi cards.

Card	CardUp (2.25% fee)^	Citi PayAll (2.6% fee)
Citi ULTIMA	1.38¢	1.63¢
Citi Prestige	1.69¢	2.00¢
Citi PremierMiles	1.83¢	2.17¢
Citi Rewards	5.5¢	6.50¢
Note: With CardUp, both the admin fee and amount paid earn miles. With Citi PayAll, only the amount paid earns miles ^Use code GET225 for 2.25% fee

Don’t forget that CardUp has already launched its income tax promotions for this year, which offer a fee of 1.75% (Visa) or 1.99% (Mastercard). 

Conclusion

Citi PayAll has hiked its service fee from 2.2% to 2.6%, the second increase in as many years. This raises the cost per mile to at least 2 cents for the vast majority of cardholders, and at that price, I’m not a buyer.

Even though we all knew from the start that Citi’s insane PayAll spending spree couldn’t last forever, that doesn’t make it any less painful. It was just two years ago that we were basking in 2.5 mpd promos with 2% admin fees!

I’ve covered the details of the just-announced Citi PayAll promotion in a separate post, so be sure to have a read of that as well. 

Citi PayAll offer: 2 mpd on tax payments, 1.6 mpd on non-tax payments