How to Upgrade, Downgrade or Change Your Citi Credit Card

There are instances when Citi gives existing cardholders the option to upgrade to other cards through targeted offers sent via email. In this case, you may complete the process online. If you're wondering how to upgrade a Citi credit card on your own, you need to call the number on the back of your card. If you're outside of the country, you may call collect at 605-335-2222.

People who feel their existing Citi credit cards come with poor reward rates or not enough perks may consider opting for upgrades. If you, on the other hand, don't use your card's perks enough to justify its annual fee, a downgrade might be in order. Typically, you may qualify for an upgrade after using your card for at least a year, although some cardholders may receive upgrades even earlier.

If you have a co-branded rewards card from Citi, it might make sense to upgrade or downgrade to a card linked to the same program, as this would let you hang on to your rewards. For example, if you have the no-annual-fee American Airlines AAdvantage MileUp Mastercard and wish to take advantage of more airline-specific benefits, upgrading to the Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard might work well for you.

A few rules and guidelines affect not just which card you may switch to but also what happens after you switch. For instance, there's a good chance you won't be able to get the new card's welcome bonus.

• Your existing Citi credit card is at least 12 months old (exceptions might apply).
• Your account is in good standing.
• The process usually takes around 7 to 11 business days, although it might take as long as two months.
• Your new card might come with a different APR.
• If your new card comes with a new account number, you won't qualify for its welcome bonus.
• You might lose your existing card's rewards if you switch to a different family of cards.
• Citi might issue a prorated refund of your existing card's annual fee and charge a prorated annual fee for the new card.
• You cannot upgrade, downgrade or change Citi business cards.

What happens to your reward points/miles after a Citi product change depends on the card you have and the card you wish to get. If both come linked to the same rewards program, your points/miles stay in place. For example, switching from a card that offers ThankYou points to another that does as well doesn't impact your points balance. This also applies to cards linked to the AAdvantage program.

However, you might have to use your points/miles within a specific time frame or even forfeit them if you switch to a card linked to a different rewards program. For example, if your only Citi card earns ThankYou points and you switch to an AAdvantage card, you lose your ThankYou points immediately. However, if you have another card linked to the ThankYou Rewards program, you get 60 days to redeem the points from the card you close.

If you plan to switch from an AAdvantage card to one not linked to the program, your miles will expire if there's no activity in your AAdvantage account for 24 consecutive months.

There are a few different scenarios in which you may want to consider upgrading your Citi card.

• Better rewards/perks: Some cardholders decide to upgrade to earn rewards faster or take advantage of special benefits.
• Improvement in credit score: If you could not qualify for a particular Citi credit card in the past due to your credit score but have improved your score considerably since then, it may be time to consider upgrading.
• College graduates: Individuals who have recently graduated from college and have started earning regular incomes may also consider upgrading their existing Citi credit cards.

If you wish to upgrade a Citi credit card, you have numerous options. While most card issuers let you upgrade only within the same family of cards, this is not the case with Citi, which allows you to choose from any of the cards it offers.

Citi Simplicity Credit Card to Citi Premier Credit Card
If you got the Citi Simplicity Credit Card for its intro APR offer, which you've now used, you might consider upgrading to the Citi Premier Credit Card. Since the former does not come with a welcome bonus, you can earn the one the latter offers. You also can earn bonus reward points through category-based spending.

Citi Diamond Preferred Card to Citi Custom Cash Card
People who have finished using the Citi Diamond Preferred Card's intro APR offer may consider switching to the Citi Custom Cash Card to start earning cash back. While both cards come with no annual fees, the latter lets you earn 5% cash back on your card's highest eligible spend category on up to $500 spent each billing cycle.

You may consider looking at Citi downgrade options if you feel you're not using your existing card well enough to offset its annual fee. Alternatively, people who carry forward balances on their cards may want to consider downgrading to cards with lower APRs. Opting for a downgrade or a change might also work well for you if you're not spending enough on your existing card's bonus categories.

If you don't want to keep paying an annual fee or are looking for a card with a lower annual fee, you may benefit from a downgrade or a Citi card product change. You might also want to consider it if you wish to earn points/cash back faster through bonus categories that differ from the ones your current card offers.

Citi Premier Credit Card to Citi Double Cash Credit Card
You may downgrade a Citi Premier Credit Card to a Citi Double Cash Credit Card if you don't want to keep paying its $95 annual fee. The latter is a no-annual-fee card that lets you earn up to 2% cash back on all purchases: 1% when you make a purchase and 1% more when you make your payment.

Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard Credit Card to Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard Credit Card
People who have the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard Credit Card and can no longer justify paying its steep $450 annual fee may consider downgrading to the Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard Credit Card. This card comes with a $99 annual fee that you don't need to pay for the first year. It offers 2X miles per dollar on a few bonus categories.

You may want to reconsider canceling your Citi credit card because doing so might hurt your credit score by bringing down the average length of your credit history and increasing your credit utilization ratio. However, canceling your card might be the way to go if you don't want to keep paying an annual fee and the card is relatively new. You might also think about canceling your card if you're worried about using credit indiscriminately.

If you're wary about the effect that closing a card might have on your creditworthiness, you may be able to find advice about changing to a different product instead.

Depending on your situation, there are a few alternatives to canceling your Citi credit card.

• Downgrade. If you no longer wish to keep paying an annual fee, you may be able to downgrade to a no-annual-fee card instead.
• Change. A Citi product change might work well for you if your existing card does not offer rewards/cash back or if you wish to earn rewards/cash back faster through specific categories.
• Request a lower APR. If you wish to cancel your existing card because of its high APR, consider contacting Citi customer service to request a lower APR.
• Transfer balance. If you have a balance on the card you are considering canceling, you might consider transferring the outstanding balance to a balance transfer card instead. The intro APR offer may help you save on interest charges. You may then continue to use your existing card sparingly.

Check answers to other commonly asked questions about Citi card upgrades, downgrades and product changes to determine which option might work best for you.

If you're unsure whether to upgrade, downgrade or change your Citi card, you might also consider hanging on to it and getting a new card from a different issuer according to your specific requirements. For example, you could look at what the top low-interest cards or rewards cards have to offer.