Citi Simplicity card review: One of the longest 0% APR periods for balance transfers makes this card a powerful tool for paying down debt

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Citi Simplicity® Card

Review: Is the Citi Simplicity the best credit card for you?

The credit cards available nowadays have never been more exciting. Banks continue to debut new, benefits-packed credit cards with large sign-up bonuses worth potentially thousands of dollars, and some existing rewards credit cards have added perks or improved their welcome offers.

But not all of us qualify for those cards for reasons like a low credit score or a significant amount of debt. In this case, the Citi Simplicity® Card may be a great fit for your situation. It doesn’t charge late fees, a penalty rate, or an annual fee.

There are three scenarios in which you should open the Citi Simplicity® Card:

• You’re trying to get out of credit card debt
• You expect a large purchase that you can’t immediately pay off
• Your credit score is less than perfect

If none of the above describes you, there are other more valuable credit cards that will serve you better. The Citi Simplicity® Card doesn’t come with many perks at all, and it offers zero rewards for spending. It doesn’t even come with a traditional welcome offer of bonus rewards.

Read more: The best credit cards with balance transfer offers

However, the card can be helpful to those carrying big balances on high-interest credit cards. The Citi Simplicity® Card can give you a chance to get ahead of crippling monthly interest fees by giving you a long 21-month introductory 0% APR on balance transfers, and a 0% APR on purchases for 12 months (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR).

Comparison: Citi Simplicity vs other Citi balance transfer cards

	Citi Simplicity® Card	Citi® Diamond Preferred® Credit Card	Citi® Double Cash Card
Annual fee	Citi Simplicity® Card	$0	$0
Rewards rate	None	None	Earn 1% back when you make a purchase and another 1% back when you pay it off (effectively 2% back)
Welcome bonus	None	None	None
0% intro APR offer	0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR) 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 21 months (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR)	0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months (then a Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card APR) 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 21 months (then a Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card APR)	0% APR on balance transfers for the first 18 months (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR)
Other fees	No late fees, no penalty APR	Late payment fee up to $40 Penalty APR up to 29.99%	Late payment fee up to $40 Penalty APR up to 29.99%
Review		Citi Diamond Preferred credit card review	Citi Double Cash review

Citi Simplicity vs other cash-back credit cards

	Citi Simplicity® Card	U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card	Wells Fargo Platinum Card
Annual fee	Citi Simplicity® Card	$0	None
Rewards rate	None	None	None
Welcome bonus	None	None	None
0% intro APR	0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR) 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 21 months (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR)	0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 20 billing cycles (then a 13.99% – 23.99% variable APR)	0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 18 months (then a 16.49% to 24.49% variable APR)
Other fees	No late fees, no penalty fees	Late payment fee up to $40	Late payment fee up to $40
Review		U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card review	Wells Fargo Platinum Card review

How to earn rewards from the Citi Simplicity card

The Citi Simplicity® Card doesn’t earn rewards. You will not earn points or cash back for spending on the card.

Benefits and features

0% intro APR on new purchases and balance transfers

In lieu of a sign-up bonus, the Citi Simplicity® Card offers generous 0% introductory APR windows for both new purchases and balance transfers: 

• 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from account opening (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR)
• 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 21 months from date of first transfer (then a Citi Simplicity® Card APR)

The ability to carry a balance for 21 months with zero interest puts the Citi Simplicity® Card at the top of the class in its category. As long as you make at least the minimum payment each month, 100% of your money goes toward paying off your balance.

Read more: Using a 0% APR credit card can save you money on interest, but be sure to avoid these pitfalls that could hurt you in the long run

This is a powerful tool to reduce debt, as many popular cards charge interest rates of more than 20%. Anyone who finds themselves in a lot of debt with one of these cards may transfer some or all of their balance to the Citi Simplicity® Card to keep it from snowballing.

Helpful account management tools

There are a few minor benefits that come with the Citi Simplicity to help you effectively manage your card:

• Ability to change your payment due date
• Citi Identity Theft Solutions (helpful if you’re a victim of identity theft)
• Account alerts that keep you up to date on things like upcoming payments and when you exceed your credit limit
• 24-hour customer support
• Free FICO score

No annual fee, late fees, or penalty rates

This card charges an annual fee of Citi Simplicity® Card, meaning you can keep it forever at no cost. No-annual-fee cards are important tools for building your credit score, as they will increase the length of your average credit history.

Just make sure you swipe it every once in a while to avoid Citi proactively canceling your card due to inactivity. Using your card for a purchase every six months is a good rule of thumb.

Read more: The best credit cards with no late fees

With the Citi Simplicity® Card, you won’t ever pay a fee for late payments (there is a fee of up to $40 for returned payments, however), and there’s no penalty APR like most cards charge if you have a late or returned payment. 

Citi Simplicity® Card

Fees and costs

If you plan to take advantage of this card’s 0% APR intro offers, be sure you pay off your balance before the introductory period ends or you’ll immediately begin incurring interest fees of Citi Simplicity® Card.

Also, note that there’s a balance transfer fee of 5% of your transfer amount or $5 — whichever is greater. For example, if you plan to transfer $6,000 to your Citi Simplicity® Card, you’ll pay a one-time $300 fee — and then be free of interest for the next 21 months. Again, you must at least make minimum monthly payments, but your full payment amount will go toward paying down your debt.

This initial fee isn’t ideal, but it can still save you many hundreds of dollars over slowly chipping away at your balance on a high-APR credit card. The Citi Simplicity® Card‘s lack of penalty rate also makes it customer-friendly. 

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