How to Get Preapproved for a Citi Credit Card
Your credit score takes a temporary hit each time you apply for a new credit card — whether the card issuer approves you for the card or not. Wouldn’t it be nice to know if you’re likely to be approved before you apply? That’s what credit card preapprovals offer.
Card issuers may review your credit history to give you a “prescreened,” “prequalified” or “preapproved” offer. No matter the terminology, these offers indicate that you’re likely to be approved for a credit card if you apply. That said, preapprovals aren’t a guarantee that your application will be approved. Still, preapprovals may be the best way to avoid the double whammy of a rejection and a credit score hit.
Here’s what you need to know about Citi’s pre-qualification online tool and other ways of getting a Citi card preapproval.
Ways to prequalify for a Citi credit card
How to get preapproved for a Citi credit card
Potential Citi cardholders have four primary ways to get some sort of preapproval or prequalification — from using an online tool to visiting a Citibank branch to seeing if you’re targeted for a special offer.
Use the Citi preapproval tool
The easiest way for potential Citi cardholders to find out if they are pre-qualified for a Citi card is to use the online Citi prescreening tool.
1. To get started, go to the following URL: https://online.citi.com/US/ag/cards/pre-screen.
2. Scroll down to the form to enter your:
- First name
- Last name
- Email address
- Last four digits of your Social Security number
- Full address
3. Then, read through the authorization, agree to the terms and click the “See My Offers” button to see if you are prequalified for a Citi credit card.
This Citi prequalification tool performs a “soft inquiry” on your credit report. This won’t negatively affect your credit. However, if you move forward with applying for a new card, your credit report will be hit with a “hard inquiry” that may cause your credit score to temporarily drop.
Check for offers in your Citi account
Another way you might get a Citi card preapproval offer is by logging into an existing Citi account. Citi often displays promotions when cardholders log into their accounts, although these offers can skew more toward banking products.
- To see a full list of offers, browse to the Citi Offers For You page. Many of the offers listed here will be related to your existing cards — from Citi Merchant Offers to balance transfer offers.
- Click the “Filter offers” toggle under the “Featured Offer” box. Select “Citi product” from the list to narrow the page results to credit card offers. If you are preapproved for a credit card, it should appear on the page.
Reply to an offer from Citi
Another way that you may be preapproved for a Citi credit card is through a letter or email from Citi. If you’re hoping to get a special offer on a new Citi card — or a spending bonus on a current card — you should keep a close eye on these letters and emails. You’ll need an invitation code and your last name to apply online for any offer.
Keep in mind that you won’t get prequalified offers through this or other methods if you’ve opted out of getting prescreened offers through OptOutPrescreen.com
Visit your local Citi branch
Finally, you might get a special Citi credit card preapproval by visiting a Citibank branch. Branch bankers occasionally can offer elevated offers or have alternative ways to submit your information to see targeted offers.
Citi credit cards that you may be preapproved for
Let’s cut to the chase: There isn’t a public list of Citi prequalified credit cards. Even if we were able to get our hands on some secret list of which Citi credit cards are currently available through preapproval, the results would still vary based on your credit score and credit history.
Instead, here’s a list of all possible Citi credit cards you could possibly be preapproved for:
| Card | Sign-up bonus | Earning rate | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citi Strata Premier℠ Card | Earn 70,000 bonus ThankYou® Points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of account opening, redeemable for $700 in gift cards or travel rewards at thankyou.com. | 10x on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked through CitiTravel.com 3x -- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel and Other Hotel Purchases 3x -- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Restaurants 3x -- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Supermarkets 3x -- Earn 3 Points per $1 spent on Gas and EV Charging Stations 1x -- Earn 1 Point per $1 spent on All Other Purchases | $95 |
| Citi Double Cash® Card | Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back. | Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. To earn cash back, pay at least the minimum due on time. Plus, for a limited time, earn 5% total cash back on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on the Citi Travel℠ portal through 12/31/24. | $0 |
| Citi Custom Cash® Card | Earn $200 in cash back after you spend $1500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back. | Earn 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter. Also, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases. Special Travel Offer: Earn an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel℠ portal through 6/30/2025. | $0 |
| Citi Rewards+® Card | Earn 20,000 bonus points after you spend $1,500 in purchases with your card within 3 months of account opening; redeemable for $200 in gift cards at thankyou.com. Special offer: earn 5 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com through December 31, 2025. | Earn 2X ThankYou® Points at Supermarkets and Gas Stations for the first $6,000 per year and then 1X Points thereafter. Plus, earn 1X ThankYou® Points on All Other Purchases. | $0 |
Prequalified vs. preapproved: What’s the difference?
Each credit card issuer has its preferred term, but the idea is essentially the same. With both prequalifications and preapprovals, a card issuer has reviewed basic info from your credit profile to extend a special offer to apply for a card.
Citi generally uses the term “prequalification” or “prequalified” to indicate that it’s making you a personalized offer based on your credit profile. However, you may also see the term “prescreen” on Citi’s website.
What factors go into Citi credit card preapproval?
We can’t be sure what specific factors Citi uses for preapproval. Citi merely states that its preapprovals are “based on your credit profile.”
However, we can make some educated guesses based on the information Citi would have access to when making its decision. Citi performs a soft inquiry of your credit, meaning it could review your credit payment history, any collection activity, the number of recent hard credit inquiries and your number of credit accounts to make its decision on whether or not to preapprove you.
How to boost your preapproval odds for a Citi credit card
The best way to boost your Citi card preapproval odds is to focus on boosting your credit score. Try the following:
-
- See if you can be added as an authorized user of someone with an established credit history.
- Pay down existing credit card balances to lower your credit utilization.
- Ensure your credit reports aren’t locked or frozen.
- Review your credit report and request correction of any inaccuracies.
- Make at least minimum payments on all outstanding credit cards and loans.
- Wait until at least three months after your last hard credit inquiry to apply.
Frequently asked questions
When you apply for a Citi credit card, Citi will perform a hard pull of your credit report to determine if you meet the requirements for the card.
Some cards — like the Citi® Secured Mastercard® and Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card — are designed for consumers who need to build their credit, making these cards the easiest to get. Other Citi credit cards have more stringent credit requirements. The higher your credit score, the more likely Citi will approve you for a credit card.
Citi credit cards can be opened online, over the phone, in a Citibank branch or by responding to a Citi mailer. The best terms and offers may vary between these options, so it’s worth checking your options before applying.
Citi offers a “prequalification tool” that consumers can use to see if they are preapproved for a Citi card. Alternatively, you might get preapproved for a Citi card by mail or in a Citibank branch. Plus, existing Citi cardholders may see special offers when logging into their Citi account.
Citi doesn’t publish exact credit score requirements for each card. Instead, they offer a variety of cards targeted for different credit histories. For instance, the Citi® Secured Mastercard® is designed for consumers with little or no credit history. Meanwhile, the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card generally requires a good/excellent credit score.
Citi advertises the ability to “get a response in under a minute” on credit card applications, making Citi one of the top issuers for getting instant approval on credit cards. On select credit cards, you may even be able to get an instant credit card number.
The Citi® Secured Mastercard® is designed for consumers with little or no credit history, making it one of the easiest cards to qualify for. Just note that cardholders need to make a security deposit to qualify to use the card.