While I'm already dipping my toe back into the Bilt waters but this time with Cardless, I'm wondering between them and Citi and the Citi Trifecta, what could be the lesser of two evils. Of course we're only seeing problems with Bilt with the lead-up but there's been SO MANY issues that I don't know if it can scale and properly address genuine concerns. So much so that it feels like it can be lesser than that of CITI.
But who knows. Just wondering what you all think about this idea.
Sight Unseen – What's the Lesser Of Two Evils: CITI or Bilt 2.0/Cardless
byu/MichaelMidnight inCreditCards
Posted by MichaelMidnight
9 Comments
Citi IMHO
Citi is definitely a more stable and reliable issuer in general, despite having their own issues such as the CSE mess and poor Customer Service. At least it’s a big reputable bank.
That said get the card that’s best for you.
Citibank is a horrible lender.
I think citi has bad customer service, but BILT has bad customer service, straight up bait and switches, misleading marketing, serious security issues, terrible category flexibility with obsidian, and no reliable way to get 5x on spend
so, I’d personally avoid applying to either at this moment bc I like customer service, but gun to my head, I’d take Citi.
Bilt will be nerfed. They just swapped one unsustainable model for another. We know they don’t have exclusive relationships with their partners, so they are prolly paying out the ass for their points, not to mention huge transfer bonuses.
I’d say just keep your Citi cards away from things like purchase protection and insurances and chances are you’ll just earn your ass off without any issues.
I’m going with Citi. Churning all the strata subs then opening a CCC and CDC. I’ll eventually end up with 1 of 2 setups, either elite, strata, 2 CCC, CDC or premier, 3 CCC, CDC. I realize the latter is the more popular setup, but I also don’t think I eat out enough to make it that much better. I think the former might be better for me using the CCCs for gas/groceries and having the 6x Citi nights on the elite for restaurants and the strata to cover groceries at 3x when I go over the $500 monthly 5x spend.
Edit: also, I have never had a problem with Citi. I had a double cash as my first CC in 2016 that I stupidly decided to close a couple years ago since I didn’t use it anymore. No issues back then and I had to call today to activate my strata elite since the app wouldn’t let me and it went quick and smooth. Asked about mla benefits for military and they transferred me over to the cs reps that handle that right away and my questions were answered. In total spent less than 5 minutes on the phone and got what I needed.
Bilt/Cardless are clearly out of their depth here. I signed up for the Palladium to test it out but I don’t have high hopes
Citi has been reliable for me. The customer service is pretty good if you have any of their higher tier card. Although, I have had transaction denials due to their overly sensitive fraud system and a few times I had call them to un-block the card. Overall a great ecosystem, with huge earning potential and easy domestic transfer partners (choice for hotels, and AA for flights).
I had BILT 1.0 and have not pulled the plug on BILT 2.0 because of cardless and bilt’s botched launch. There’s huge value in BILT ecosystem but I’d say the risk is lot more than a big bank like CITI.
Citi is clearly better. I get that they have their own issues. But they know how to run a credit card business and are a large bank with huge financial backing.
Bilt is a startup. With 2.0 you are not just working with them but also Cardless and Column, 2 other small fintechs of unproved reputation. Plus everything with their recent rollout has been nothing but a dumpster fire. They might very well fold.