Citi Double Cash® vs Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card
Side-by-side comparison
| Citi Double Cash® | Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | No annual fee | No annual fee |
| Welcome offer | $200 cash back | $250 cash back |
| Dining | 2x | 2x |
| Groceries | 2x | 2x |
| Gas | 2x | 2x |
| Travel | 2x | 2x |
| Streaming | 2x | 2x |
| Everything else | 2x | 2x |
| Est. yearly rewards* | $583 | $583 |
| Points type | Pools with Citi → transferable | Cash back only |
| Network | Mastercard | Visa |
*Estimated yearly rewards on typical household spending, every point valued at a flat 1 cent. Verified August 2026. See your own numbers in the calculator.
Welcome bonus and value over time
| Over time | Citi Double Cash® | Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome bonus | $200 cash back | $250 cash back |
| To earn it | $1,500 in 6 months | $2,500 in 90 days |
| Est. first-year value* | $783 | $833 |
| Est. ongoing value / yr* | $583 | $583 |
This one splits by time horizon. In year one the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card is ahead by roughly $50, thanks largely to its welcome offer. But the Citi Double Cash® earns more every year after, so if you keep it, it overtakes the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card over the long haul. Chasing the sign-up bonus and open to canceling before the second annual fee? Take the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card. Planning to keep it for years? The Citi Double Cash® pulls ahead.
*First-year value counts the welcome bonus, estimated rewards, and annual credits, minus the annual fee; ongoing value is a typical year after. Every point at a flat 1 cent.
Perks, credits, and redemptions
| Perks | Citi Double Cash® | Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card |
|---|---|---|
| Lounge access | None | None |
| Annual credits | None | None |
| Points & redemptions | Transferable (paired with a premium card) | Cash back only |
On perks and redemptions, the Citi Double Cash® earns transferable points with a higher redemption ceiling, while the other is capped nearer a flat cent. Weigh those against the fee, since credits and lounge access only count if you will actually use them.
Transfer partners and point value
Only the Citi Double Cash® earns transferable points. Its Citi ThankYou move to American Airlines, Turkish, Avianca, and Air France-KLM, where a point can be worth several cents on a premium-cabin redemption, far above its cash value. The Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card pays flat cash back, worth about a cent, so its ceiling is nearer a penny per point no matter how you redeem.
The verdict
On a typical year of household spending, the Citi Double Cash® earns about $583 a year in rewards and the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card about $583, valuing every point at a flat 1 cent. The Citi Double Cash® has no annual fee, so its rewards are all profit. The Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card has no annual fee, so its rewards are all profit. These two are about as close as cards get: both pay a flat 2x on everything, neither charges an annual fee, and on that spending they finish within a few dollars of each other. The choice is not really about the rewards rate. The bigger difference is the ceiling: the Citi Double Cash® earns points you can move to travel partners for outsized value, while the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card pays plain cash back. Favor the Citi Double Cash® if you will use travel transfers, the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card if you want simplicity. One tiebreaker: the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card adds no foreign transaction fees, which the other does not. On the sign-up bonus, the Navy Federal cashRewards Credit Card currently has the larger welcome offer. A welcome bonus is a one-time event, so weigh it apart from the ongoing rewards.