I'd believe it boils down to how much miles you can get off the extra 2%. Though my children are not college age yet, but I used to be' a college student myself, being on that end of the extra 2%.

That time, I only had US-based cards, giving 1 mile per US$1 spent, for 2% extra, that was not worth it (as at that time MR forum as giving deals <US$0.02 per mile, including BIS/status miles, with multiplication for RDMs).

Now that I'm back in SIN, and with more SIN cards, the ratio changes. With correct card, you can get up to 4 miles per S$1. That is like 5.2 miles per US$1. I've used them with UOB PRVI or Citibank PM, which is like 2 miles per S$1 or 2.6 miles per US$1 (going by US$1 = S$1.3). Is that 2% extra plus foreign currency exchange worth it, that will have to depend on each individual. But going by my own logic of S$0.01 per mile and under, it seems 2% is under the limit.

Yes that WILL certainly bring home the point! :D

Does DBS Altitude still allow you to pay an annual levy for unlimited conversions from points to KrisFlyer miles?

Nope. As of late 2016, they changed it to fee per conversion.

guys, so what's the latest card with the best miles accrual within short period of time? like I'm going to sign up, got bonus, and I spend like $1k+ in first purchase.. the best if I dont have to pay for annual or I can cancel after 6mths? any card like that? haha just asking..

Even if there is, s$1k of purchases isn't going to net you enough miles to make it worth the effort. Anyway I most recently took advantage of (using my wife's name) the Citi PM 42,000miles sign up bonus, but that needed a spend of s$10k ... and also expired last year.

Assuming you're in SIN - AMEX Krisflyer.

I actually can spend up to 10k.. but oh well expired last year. so maybe will wait for what's the new promotion for this year, hope it will be good. thanks!

I just realised that the citi expedia promo has a much smaller list of airlines participating this time round. Sadly, MH, WY are all not participating.

Any idea what happens if someone paid the annual fee earlier and should still be covered under "unlimited transfers?"

Are they just phasing it out or reimbursing people who have previously paid the higher amount?

you get to keep the unlimited transfers until it expires

IMO, the two best credit cards for KF points accrual are the UOB Privilege Reserve and the DBS Insignia Credit Card.

Both these cards give 1.6 miles for S$1 local spend. The usual benefits of travel insurance, unlimited Priority Pass, etc. are included.

UOB Privilege Reserve

Annual fee of $3852 and has the two unique features:

1) 100,000 welcome / renewal miles and another 100,000 miles if you spend more than $250K in a year. If you can hit the $250K spend, then that works out to 1.93 cents per mile.

2) The ability to purchase an unlimited amount of miles directly from UOB at the rate of 1.9 cents per mile. To my knowledge, no other card in Singapore has this feature.

If you are a person that travels a lot and needs a lot of miles but doesn't necessarily spend a lot on their credit card, then this card is perfect. No other card offers the ability to outrightly purchase miles.

DBS Insignia

Annual fee of $3210:

1) 100,000 welcome / renewal miles

2) 2 complimentary nights every year which you can choose from a great list of hotel brands such as Anantara, COMO, Taj Hotels, etc.

Full details at:

http://www.dbs.com.sg/personal/cards...-insignia.page

The DBS Insignia is my top pick because I feel the benefits you receive outweigh the annual fee you pay.

If you value a KF mile at 1.9 cents, then 100,000 miles is a $1900 benefit.

For the complimentary 2 nights, the smartest option is to use them at an expensive destination such as the Maldives. There are three properties you can choose from:

PER AQUUM Niyama, Maldives
The Residence Maldives
Anantara Dhigu Maldives Resort, Maldives

Maldives hotel room rates vary depending on the month, but it rarely ever goes below US$500 per night. At the time of writing this, one night in the Sunrise Beach Villa at Anatara Dhigu is USD 758. But let's be conservative and assume you are able to get a deal on a Maldives hotel at US$500 per night. Then these two complimentary nights are worth S$1420 at minimum.

($1900 + $1420) - $3210 = $110

So just based on these two benefits, you are already $110 ahead with the DBS Insignia card. In reality this number should be higher as rooms in Maldives at these resorts are priced closer to US$750 and not $500. And I still have not accounted for the other benefits of this card such as:

- Club at the Hyatt Membership
- Full use of the Grand Hyatt Singapore's Pool and Gym, and group classes for Yoga, Pilates, Circuit Training, and Zumba
- Unlimited Priority Pass
- Metal Card
- 1.6 miles for every $1.6 local spend

Once you include the benefits above, IMO this is the best card out there as it returns the most value in return for the annual fee. I am writing this post to 1) share with the community in case there are members who do not know about this card and 2) to see if there is someone out there who has found a better card than this, and if so, please share the details! :)

thanks for the summary DM007 !

*wonder when will I hit that status*

Both cards are alright for general spend, though with some management its possible to put a significant amount of daily spend though more achievable cards earning 4miles/$.
Personally I am not interested in trying to meet the AUM requirements too.

w4rd, which one would you recommend for the 4miles/$?