What are the Citi Simplicity rewards?

The Citi Simplicity credit score requirement is 660-700 or better. There is no official minimum credit score needed for Citi Simplicity approval, to be clear. But most Citi cards require “good” credit or better, and most reports from people who got approved for the Simplicity Card suggest 660 is pretty much the cutoff.… read full answer

Then again, some users report approval with scores as low as 660, while others report denials for the Citi Simplicity with scores as high as 720. So you never can be 100% sure whether you’ll be approved just by credit score alone. Plus, your credit score is only one of the aspects Citi will look at when making a decision on your application. Your debt, annual income, and any past negative marks on your credit report will also matter.

The best you can do is check your score and only apply if it's 700+ in my opinion.

​Your Citi Simplicity credit limit will be at least $500, if you get approved. That’s the minimum limit listed in Simplicity’s terms and conditions. They don’t disclose a maximum, but you could definitely get a lot more. It all depends on your credit, income and debt.

For example, this comment from @jloughman1 has to give you some hope: “Great card and got a low rate!!! High credit line of $40000 too!!” And even though this other commenter (@engadget_hd) had a somewhat negative experience, he did get a $2K+ Citi Simplicity credit limit:… read full answer

“When I first applied for the card they only offered me a two thousand dollar credit limit. This seemed pretty useless to me since the Capital One card I already have, has a much higher limit and it wouldn't allow me to transfer my balance. After about a week of conversations with the their customer service and reaching out to higher level customer service members, I was finally able to reach someone that could assist in raising my credit limit.”

There could be a lesson in there about negotiating for a higher limit, too. And that’s not the only thing you can do to boost your chances of getting a larger line of credit.

Here are some tips for getting a higher Citi Simplicity credit limit:

1. Watch your utilization. If you already have a credit card, try to use just a fraction of your available credit. Most sources say the magic number is around 30% or less. This will show Citi you’re not desperate.

2. Make more & spend less. Income and assets are a high credit limit’s friends. Lots of existing debt is not.

3. Wait if you need to. Citi Simplicity requires good credit for approval, for one thing. So if you need some time to get your financial house in order before applying, take it.

If you get the Citi Simplicity card but not the credit limit you want, don’t worry too much. You can always ask for an increase later on. I’d wait at least 6 months, assuming you pay your bills on time.

The easiest Citi card to get is the Citi Secured Mastercard because it is the only one that will accept applicants with bad credit. The Citi Secured Card requires a $200+ refundable security deposit but has a $0 annual fee. It also helps build credit history with monthly reporting to the credit bureaus.… read full answer

Aside from the Secured Mastercard, which is designed for people with bad, limited or no credit, nearly all other Citi personal and business credit cards aren’t as easy to get. It takes either good credit (700-749 credit score) or excellent credit (750+) in order to get approved for cards such as Citi Double Cash or Citi ThankYou Premier.

However, there are a number of store cards that are among the easiest Citi cards to get. Some of the best include the Best Buy Store Card, Shell Store Card and Merchants Tire Card.

Citi store cards require at least fair credit (600-649 score) for approval. But purchases are limited to the affiliated merchant or its website. Best Buy and Shell are among the many store cards that also have a full-fledged version on either the Visa or Mastercard network, which can be used anywhere the network is accepted. Those cards aren’t as easy to get as the store versions, as they require at least good credit.

Here are some of the easiest Citi cards to get:

• Citi Secured Mastercard – Available with credit score below 640
• Best Buy Store Card – 640 credit score needed
• Shell Gas Card – 640 credit score needed
• Merchants Tire Credit Card – 640 credit score needed

The Best Buy Store card is only usable at Best Buy, but it’s one of the easiest Citi cards to get because it requires fair credit (score of 640+). It has a $0 annual fee and offers 0% deferred interest for 6 to 24 months on purchases of $199 and up (length depends on price) OR 5% back in rewards on purchases (6% for spending $3,500 on card in a year). Deferred interest means that if you pay in full by the end of the 0% period, you owe no interest. If you carry any balance after that, though, you owe interest all the way back from the purchase date at the card’s regular APR of 22.49% (V).

The Shell Gas card has a $0 annual fee and offers savings of 30¢/gallon (up to 20 gallons) on the first 5 Shell fuel purchases made by 6/30/2019. Plus, save 10¢/gallon (up to 20 gallons) at the pump every time. There’s a 10% rebate on non-fuel purchases, up to $1,200 per year. The card can only be used at Shell and requires fair credit.

Lastly, the Merchants Tire Credit Card has a $0 annual fee and offers % deferred interest for 12 months on purchases of $699 or higher. Its regular APR is 30.74% (V). It can only be used at Merchants Tire, Tire Kingdom, NTB and participating Exxon and Mobil stations. The card requires fair credit.

The easiest Citi cards to get come with limitations. They offer low minimum credit limits, high interest rates and few rewards and benefits. And with the Citi store cards, beware of deferred interest promotions. Deferred interest means that there’s 0% interest as long as the balance gets paid in full by the end of the promotion. If it’s not paid in full, the Citi charges interest on the original purchase amount from the date of purchase, at the card’s regular APR.

It may also be beneficial to look outside of Citi to some of the easiest cards to get from other issuers. The Discover it Secured card is just as easy to get as the Citi Secured Mastercard, and it even offers rewards.