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finder.com’s rating: 4.6 / 5
★★★★★
$0
Annual fee
0%
Intro purchase APR
for the first 12 months (then 15.99% to 26.74% variable)
0%
Intro balance transfer
for the first 21 months (then 15.99% to 26.74% variable)
15.99% to 26.74%
Balance transfer APR (variable)
Annual fee | $0 |
---|---|
Welcome offer | N/A |
Rewards | N/A |
Purchase APR | 0% intro for the first 12 months (then 15.99% to 26.74% variable) |
Balance transfer APR | 0% intro for the first 21 months (then 15.99% to 26.74% variable) Balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater |
Minimum credit score | 670 |
Issuer | Mastercard |
Review by
Kevin Joey Chen was a credit cards, banking and investments writer for Finder. His work and analysis have appeared on CNN, U.S. News & World Report, Business.com, Lifehacker and CreditCards.com.
The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card is a $0-annual-fee balance transfer card, and one of the premier cards on the market for saving on interest. It offers a 0% intro APR for 21 months on balance transfers from the date of your first transfer, then 15.99% to 26.74% variable. It also comes with a 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases, then 15.99% to 26.74% variable.
As you might expect from a card designed exclusively around introductory APRs, its purchase and balance transfer intro APRs are excellent. This gives you a strong level of financial flexibility: if you pay off your balance transfer debts within eight months, for example, you still have 4 months of your purchase APR left over which can help you save further. It’s also more difficult to find a balance transfer card on the market that possesses a purchase AND balance transfer offer than it was prior to the start of the pandemic.
The card is otherwise without bells and whistles. It doesn’t require an annual fee and doesn’t earn rewards on purchases. That means once you’ve squeezed the savings out of the card’s intro APR, you’re left with a simple credit card for making purchases – nothing more and nothing less.
Don’t let that stop you if you need to save on interest though. While there’s a card on the market with slightly larger APR intro period (the U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card,) it’s from a bank with a smaller footprint than Citi. Once you’re done saving on interest, you have plenty of other strong Citi credit cards to move on to afterward.
You typically have better odds of getting a balance transfer credit card with a good to excellent credit score of 670 or higher. This is a good rule of thumb if you’re thinking about applying for the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card. However, remember that approval is never guaranteed no matter what your credit score is.
The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card doesn’t offer many benefits, but it’s an excellent card for intro APRs. Here are the main perks to look into.
Before applying for this card, determine if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. Here are a few factors to keep your eyes peeled for.
Compare the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card vs. Chase Freedom Unlimited® vs. Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card. While the three cards are similar, they have varying features such as purchase APRs and rewards rates. Find the card that’s right for you.
Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card |
Chase Freedom Unlimited® |
Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card |
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★★★★★ |
★★★★★ |
★★★★★ |
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Minimum credit score 670 |
Minimum credit score 670 |
Minimum credit score 670 |
Annual fee $0 |
Annual fee $0 |
Annual fee $0 |
Purchase APR 0% intro |
Purchase APR 0% intro |
Purchase APR 0% intro |
Balance transfer APR 0% intro for the first 21 months (then 15.99% to 26.74% variable) Balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater |
Balance transfer APR 0% intro for the first 15 months (then 19.24% to 27.99% variable) $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater in the first 60 days |
Balance transfer APR 0% intro for the first 15 months (then 19.24% - 29.24% variable) 3% fee on the amounts transferred within the first 15 months |
Rewards None |
Rewards Up to 6.5% cash back |
Rewards Up to 1.5% cash back |
Welcome offer N/A |
Welcome offer Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back |
Welcome offer $200 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening |
Compare even more credit cards
Jon Brodsky
Former CEO, Finder US
I got my Citi Diamond Preferred card solely as a balance transfer card to help me consolidate and pay down debt I’d accumulated renovating my home. As with other cards, it took me about 15 minutes to fill out the form, approval was close to instant, and my balances were transferred within a few days.
The thing that has kept this card as a go-to in my wallet is that Citi regularly sends me low or 0% APR offers generally reserved for new cardholders. Though I’m trying really hard to stop spending money I don’t have, it’s nice to know these offers are available should I need them. It saves me the trouble of applying for a new card.
Citibank is not accredited with the Better Business Bureau and sports a rating of F as of June 2022. Customer reviews on the BBB site give the bank a 1.05 out of 5, citing poor communication and billing issues as a frequent complaint.
Citibank doesn’t fare much better on Trustpilot, earning a 1.4 out of 5 based on customer reviews as of June 2022, with poor customer service a frequent complaint.
The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card is a premier choice if you want to save interest on existing debt and a solid choice if you want to save interest on new purchases. If saving is your main concern, you won’t mind that the card lacks other benefits, such as rewards.
Of course, the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card isn’t the only card in town. There are plenty of other balance transfer cards that are worth a look, too, including Citi’s own Citi Double Cash, which offers a smaller balance transfer offer and no purchase intro APR, but unlimited 2% cash back on purchases.
Images: Citi.com
★★★★★ — Excellent
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★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
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