Nerfed: Citi Cash Back’s Groceries Earn Rate to Drop to 6% From 1st April

Citi Cash Back has been a stellar credit card since its revamp in November 2020, giving as much as 8% for petrol and groceries and 6% for dining. All you had to do was to hit a minimum spend of S$800, watch out for its S$10 redemption blocks, and the generous earn rate was all yours.

From 1st April 2024, however, Citi is dropping the earn rate to 6% specifically for groceries. At the same time, they are adding a new category of “Private Commute” which means cardholders can earn 8% cashback for taxi rides. I suppose it’s not an entirely bad change if you do spend quite a bit on cabs and ride-hailing apps, but most would probably agree with me when I say that this has been an overall nerf.

An easy 8% groceries card

In its heyday, Citi Cash Back was the groceries card to beat. All one had to do was to waltz into any supermarket and buy between S$800 to S$1,000 of vouchers and get an easy 8% cashback. It’s a very simple concept that I share with people who aren’t typically into chasing for card rewards. Getting 8% off your groceries is surely a way to cope with high cost of living (something I even shared on national television some time back).

Until 1st April, you can still do so and make sure to spend S$875 or S$1,000 if you are solely using the card for supermarket vouchers. This will net you either S$70 cashback (8% of S$875) or S$80 cashback (8% of S$1,000). You can read the review to learn more about why we try to aim for these numbers.

Is 6% still good for groceries?

To be fair, 6% isn’t terrible and you can continue to waltz (or tango) into any supermarket to do a voucher run. The magic numbers to note will now be:

• S$833.34 of spend for S$50 of cashback
• S$1,000 of spend for S$60 of cashback
• S$1,116.67 of spend for S$70 of cashback
• S$1,333.34 of spend for S$80 of cashback

What you may wish to consider, however, is that 6% cashback may be good for most spend, but groceries expenses tend to get a very high rate from credit cards. Looking at the list of cards that are great for groceries, we see DBS yuu offering 17.5%, UOB One offering 8.33% and Maybank Family and Friends offering 8% cashback.

These cards are arguably less easy to use than Citi Cash Back – UOB One requires consistent monthly spend across 3 months while Maybank Family and Friends cap your grocery spend to to S$312.50 but requires a minimum spend of S$800. DBS yuu is arguably the most straightforward competitor to Citi Cash Back, though even then you need your marketing to be done at Dairy Farm supermarkets (e.g. Giant, Cold Storage etc).

8% cashback for cabs and ride-hailing

To avoid this revision to be a “strictly worse” change, Citi Cash Back will now feature 8% cashback for taxis, namely:

• Grab
• Comfort/CityCab
• Gojek
• CabCharge Asia
• TADA
• Ryde
• TransCab
• Premier Taxis
• Strides Taxi

It’s great news for those who spend heavily in this category – you now have a 8% card you can spend entirely on your cab rides. Those with more mixed types of spend across dining, groceries, taxis etc. may wish to look at the Maybank Family and Friends instead.

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While this nerf stings a bit, I have to say that my Citi Cash Back has been left dormant for as long as DBS yuu has reigned over the past year. Those who shop at supermarkets outside of Dairy Farm ones, however, would no doubt feel the pain a little more.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the only nerf that is happening right now. Stay subscribed for more updates and ways to navigate the ever-changing credit card rewards landscape.

Seth Wee was a licensed financial adviser representative from 2009 to 2025, with over 16 years of experience in Singapore’s financial advisory industry.

He started Sethisfy.com in 2019 to share practical insights on credit cards, banking products, and miles strategies, helping readers identify financial products that deliver the best value. Seth has been featured in CNA, Channel 8, Today, and a host of other publications. In 2025, he was also part of a panel at CPF’s Ready For Life festival.

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