Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Miles&Points > Airlines and Mileage Programs > Singapore Airlines | KrisFlyer
Reload this Page >

The 'Best credit cards for KF miles accrual' master thread

Community
Wiki Posts
Search
Old Oct 31, 2014, 6:05 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: lifeonthego_k
I'm going to update this first post as more info flows in to create a 'master list' of all credit cards that offer a decent way of accruing miles - so please help out!

If you know of and/or use any other cards (or the ones already mentioned), please share your thoughts.

***ALL VALUES BELOW IN SINGAPORE DOLLARS (SGD)***
============
In no particular order (apart from personal preference in terms of good-mileage opportunities):
============

1. UOB PRVI Miles VISA, MasterCard, AMEX

VISA:
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...iles_visa.html
MasterCard:
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...astercard.html
Amex:
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...amex_card.html
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...ard/microsite/



Mileage accrual:
The earn rate will be 1.4 miles for every $1 spent in multiples of S$10 (every multiple of S$5 gives 6 to 7 miles due to 3.5 UNI$ rounding off, every S$10 gives 14 miles), and 2.4 miles for every $1 spent OVERSEAS (every $5 gives 12 miles).

Requirements: min. income $80,000 (not strict).
Cost: First year free, then S$256.80 for main, first two supplementary always free. Annual fee waiver for Amex card if you charge $50,000 or more in a year.
Miles conversion fee: $25 per conversion. UNI$ are combined in 1 cardholder's name/FIN Number/NRIC together for all UOB cards which earn UNI$.

Pros: Best mileage accrual rates for overseas spend only. 20,000 bonus miles and annual fee waiver with spend of $50,000 per year (both only for Amex card). $45 1-way airport transfer voucher for $1,000 overseas spend in a given quarter (Amex only).
Cons: AMEX not always accepted by merchants. Points allocated on every $5 spent, rounded down to next $5. Transfer in blocks of 5000 UNI$ points = 10,000 miles. Points are valid for 2 years (transfer before expiry and they will subsequently be valid for a further 3 years from the date of transfer to KrisFlyer).

2. UOB Preferred Platinum Visa


http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards..._platinum.html
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...visa_card.html


Mileage accrual: Earn 4 miles for every $1 spent using ONLY MOBILE CONTACTLESS every $5 gives 10 UNI$ which equal 20 miles). Same incredible mileage-earning ratio for internet shopping with certain restrictions (travel-related, utilities, etc.). Earn 0.4 mile for every $1 for regular, signature-based payments AND ORPHAN SPEND DUE TO $5 ROUNDING OR EXCEEDING THE BONUS U$2000 SPEND (every $5 gives 1 UNI$ which equal 2 miles).

Earning 4 miles/$ is limited to the first S$1110 spent during the per calendar month (via Mobile Contactless). 2,000UNI$ refers to the extra 9UNI$ and does not include the normal 1UNI$.(Stop when you notice you earn 3UNI$ (1 + bonus 2) for the last S$5 transaction. ($1110/5)x9=1998UNI$, hence the last S$5 transaction will earn 2 bonus UNI$. The total bonus UNI$ awarded to you from qualifying spend on Selected Online Transactions and Mobile Contactless Transactions is capped at UNI$2,000 for each calendar month. THE CAP IS ON THE 9 UNI$ BONUS NOT 10UNI$ TOTAL YOU GET WITH BASE OF U$1 PER $ SPEND

Keep in mind that some merchants offer different, non-mileage accruing awards with UOB cards which are called SMART$. Some popular merchants include Cold Storage, Guardian and Giant Supermarket, ToastBox and Starbucks. A full list of merchants where Mobile contactless transactions will NOT earn miles can be found here:
http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...smartclub.html

Requirements: min. income $30,000 ($60,000 for foreigners).
Cost: First year free, then $192.60 for main and $96.30 for supplementary. Annual fee waived off easily.
Miles conversion fee: $25 per conversion, in blocks of 5000 UNI$=10,000 miles. UNI$ are combined in 1 cardholder's name for all UOB cards.

Pros: Incredible mileage accrual rates for Paywave transactions (not all merchants - some give SMART$ instead which are different rewards!) as well as internet transactions (some restrictions apply).
Cons: Points allocated on every $5 spent, rounded down to next $5. Transfer in blocks of 5000 UNI$ points = 10,000 miles. Points are valid for 2 years (transfer before expiry and they will subsequently be valid for a further 3 years from the date of transfer to KrisFlyer).

3. Citi PremierMiles MasterCard

https://www.citibank.com.sg/credit-cards/travel/premiermiles-card/?ecid=PSGONSGCCAENPM

Mileage accrual: Earn 1.2 miles for every $1 spent. Earn 2 miles for every $1 spent OVERSEAS. 10,000 bonus miles for each annual membership renewal.

Requirements: min. income $50,000 for VISA. Principal cardholder must be at least 21 years of age.
Cost: First year free, then $192.60 for VISA main, supplementary always free. Annual fee waiver available in exchange for forfeiting the 10,000renewal bonus.
Miles conversion fee: $25 per conversion.

Pros: Decent all-rounder, good for overseas spend. Points never expire. Bonus miles for annual card renewal. 11 frequent flyer programs & 3 hotel programs to choose from, including EVA Air - only 25,000 miles for 1 way Business Class within Asia!!
Cons: No miles awarded for EZ-Link & Transitlink transactions. Miles awarded per S$1. Cents not included. 1.2 miles/S$1. Transfer in blocks of 10,000 miles.

4. DBS Altitude VISA/AMEX

http://www.dbs.com/sg/personal/cards...e/default.aspx
http://www.dbs.com/sg/personal/cards...e/default.aspx



Mileage accrual: Earn 1.2 miles for every $1 spent (every $5 gives 3 DBS points which equal 6 miles). Earn 2 miles for every $1 spent OVERSEAS.

Requirements: min. income $80,000.
Cost: First year free, then $180 for main and $90 for supplementary. Annual fee waiver if you charge $25,000 or more in a year.
Miles conversion fee: S$26.75 per transfer, redeem 1700 DBS points to waive off.

Pros: Points never expire. No rounding down transaction amount to nearest $5 (calculation is done as follows: DBS points = 'transaction amount' divided by 5, multiply by 3, after that round down to nearest whole number. Minimum spend is S$1.67. Each DBS point = 2 miles). Earn 3 miles per S$1 spent on all online Flight and Hotel transactions (capped at S$5,000 per month). 10,000 miles renewal bonus if you have to pay card renewal fees.
Cons: All local spend now down to 1.2 miles/$ (since Dec 1, 2013). AMEX not always accepted by merchants. Transfer in blocks of 5000 DBS points = 10,000 miles (on the plus side points don't expire). Per transfer of S$26.75, redeem 1700 DBS points to waive off.

5. Maybank Horizon Platinum Visa

http://info.maybank2u.com.sg/persona...visa-card.aspx



Earn 3.2 air miles (8X TREATS Points) with every dollar spent on dining, petrol, taxi fares and hotel bookings at Agoda.com/horizon
Earn 2 air miles (5X TREATS Points) with every dollar spent on air tickets, travel packages and foreign currency transactions, with a minimal S$300 in a calendar month

Earn 0.4 mile for every $1 spent elsewhere (1 mile for every $2.50 spent).

Requirements: min. income $30,000 ($80,000 for foreigners).
Cost: $150 for main, supplementary always free. Unsure of any annual fee waiver conditions.
Miles conversion fee: In blocks of 5,000 points to 2000 Asia Miles or KrisFlyer. S$26.75 fee applies.

Pros: Great for ticket purchases and overseas spend. Complimentary access to selected VIP airport lounges when you charge a minimum of S$400 in a single transaction on air tickets or travel packages to your Card 3 months prior to the date of travel.
Cons: Great ONLY for ticket purchases and overseas spend. Points are valid for 1 year only, expire either on 30 June or 31 December of the same year if not Rewards Infinite member.

6. Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend AMEX

https://www.americanexpress.com/sg/s...nd-credit-card



Mileage accrual: Earn 1.2 KrisFlyer miles for every S$1 spent on all your eligible purchases with your Card

Earn 2 KrisFlyer miles for every S$1 equivalent in foreign currency spent overseas on eligible purchases during June and December

Requirements: min. income $50,000 ($60,000 for foreigners). Principal cardholder must be over 21 years of age.
Cost: First year free, otherwise $256.80 for main, 2 supplementary cards always free (more available at $80.25 each). Annual fee cannot be waived unless you spend alot.
Miles conversion fee: None - your KrisFlyer miles are transferred to your account directly with no conversion fees or charges.

Pros: None, except for welcome offers (4 complimentary airport lounge access vouchers, one complimentary night with Millennium Hotels and Resorts).

Cons: Simply nothing special - there are better cards available for all types of purchases, including flight tickets, even with all of the bonuses above applied. AMEX not always accepted by merchants.

7. Citibank Rewards Card

http://www.citibank.com.sg/gcb/credi...CACRENCCHOCALM



Earn 10X Rewards (10 Rewards Points or 4 Miles for every S$1 spent) when you shop for clothes, bags and shoes or at departmental stores or online shopping websites, including SingTel & M1 online bill payment!

Pros: Transfer to 11 FFPs & 3 Hotel programs in blocks of 25,000 points=10,000 miles; S$25 fee.

Cons: Points awarded per S$1 spend. Cents not included. Cannot combined Thank You Points across cards.

8. DBS Woman's World MasterCard® Card

http://www.dbs.com.sg/personal/cards...astercard-card



10X Rewards for Online Retail Purchases
T&C Here: https://www.dbs.com.sg/iwov-resource...s_card_tnc.pdf

Pros: Men also can get this card!! DBS points are combined in 1 cardholder's name. No rounding down transaction amount to nearest $5 (calculation is done as follows: DBS points = 'transaction amount' divided by 5, multiply by 10, after that round down to nearest whole number. Minimum spend is S$1. Each DBS point = 2 miles).

Cons: DBS points are valid for 1 year based on card anniversary date. The additional 9X DBS Points for online retail spend in a calendar month will be awarded on the 16th of the next calendar month. If the above days are not working days, the Points will be awarded on the next working day. The additional 9X DBS Points are only applicable to the first S$2,000 online retail spend every calendar month.

9. OCBC Titanium Rewards Card

https://www.ocbc.com/personal-bankin...astercard.html

10x OCBC$ on your shopping Local & Overseas Shopping Transactions, Local & Overseas Department Store Transactions and Local & Overseas Online Transactions.
The remaining 9 OCBC$ will be posted to the Card Account by the end of the next calendar month

https://www.ocbc.com/assets/pdf/card...ons.pdf?rand=1
10,000 KrisFlyer miles requires OCBC$ 25000, For each conversion of OCBC$ to KrisFlyer miles a fee of S$25 will be charged

10. UOB Lady's Card
https://www.uob.com.sg/personal/card...ard/index.page

============

Print Wikipost

The 'Best credit cards for KF miles accrual' master thread

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Mar 25, 2013, 11:56 am
  #1216  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
Originally Posted by vsepr
But the problem now with Maybank Horizon VISA is that it is very hard to get Rewards Infinite membership.
Just how hard is it? Is this a card that requires you to spend >25k in the previous year to get enrolled in RI?
aster is offline  
Old Mar 25, 2013, 6:54 pm
  #1217  
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 819
Originally Posted by aster
Just how hard is it? Is this a card that requires you to spend >25k in the previous year to get enrolled in RI?
All other Maybank Cardmembers, simply spend S$24,000 on your Maybank Credit Card in the preceding year to become a Rewards Infinite member.

http://info.maybank2u.com.sg/persona...-infinite.aspx
vsepr is offline  
Old Mar 25, 2013, 9:49 pm
  #1218  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
And then you still have to play this funny EZ top-up game with a home device?

What is the limit on an EZ-link transaction btw?
aster is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 12:08 am
  #1219  
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: SIN
Posts: 543
$50 + $0.25
luv_flying is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 1:28 am
  #1220  
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 143
Rewards Infinite is also complimentary to Maybank World Mastercard cardholders.

And you can set the EZ-Link card to auto-topup everytime the balance is not enough to pay the bill. There is a 25c charge for tha. The only limitation to this method is that it does not work at Cold Storage, Giant & 7-Eleven. Works fine for stuff like ERP and car park (at least those car parks which accept EZ-Link cards).
Archieflyer is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 3:34 am
  #1221  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
All in all I think the new UOB card that gives 4 miles/$1 for PayWave transactions is the best card out there. You can make purchases up to $100 using this contactless technology, and at least in my case all my supermarket spend would go via this card's PayWave feature. All other places where I could use this card would come as an added bonus.

For this reason this card absolutely destroys the old Citi Platinum card (that Citi even stopped issuing) when it comes to supermarket spend. Can't wait to get started.

Does anyone know what to do if I don't receive computerised payslips but UOB lists this as something they require? Would an extra Notice of Assessment going back further than they require be an adequate substitute?
aster is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 7:52 am
  #1222  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: SIN (LEJ once a year)
Programs: SQ, LH, BA, IHG Diamond AMB, HH Gold, SLH Indulged, Accor Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 7,741
Originally Posted by Archieflyer
Rewards Infinite is also complimentary to Maybank World Mastercard cardholders.

And you can set the EZ-Link card to auto-topup everytime the balance is not enough to pay the bill. There is a 25c charge for tha. The only limitation to this method is that it does not work at Cold Storage, Giant & 7-Eleven. Works fine for stuff like ERP and car park (at least those car parks which accept EZ-Link cards).
Agree. The annoying part about stores like Cold Storage, Guardian, etc. that accept payment via EZLink is that the auto-top up does not work. It works fine on bus/mrt and with confort/citycabs. So you need to keep track of the value in the card as max you can have around 50 SGD after a top up. I usually manage and may even pay part of my groceries up to balance on card and rest with Citi Plat . 4mls per $ are too good to pass.

I did manage the 24K spend easily last year due to lots of biz travel (expe ses, hotels abroad etc.) so am good till 06/14 on rewards infinte, but this year will consider to convert to the World Mastercard to avoid the hassle in the future.

Last edited by demue; Mar 26, 2013 at 7:58 am
demue is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 7:54 am
  #1223  
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 143
Originally Posted by aster
All in all I think the new UOB card that gives 4 miles/$1 for PayWave transactions is the best card out there. You can make purchases up to $100 using this contactless technology, and at least in my case all my supermarket spend would go via this card's PayWave feature. All other places where I could use this card would come as an added bonus.

For this reason this card absolutely destroys the old Citi Platinum card (that Citi even stopped issuing) when it comes to supermarket spend. Can't wait to get started.

Does anyone know what to do if I don't receive computerised payslips but UOB lists this as something they require? Would an extra Notice of Assessment going back further than they require be an adequate substitute?
There has been reports that using this card at Giant does not earn UNI$, but SMART$. I checked the UOB website and Giant is not listed as a SMART$ merchant, but you might want to check this before using the card at Giant.
Archieflyer is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 9:46 am
  #1224  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
Originally Posted by Archieflyer
There has been reports that using this card at Giant does not earn UNI$, but SMART$. I checked the UOB website and Giant is not listed as a SMART$ merchant, but you might want to check this before using the card at Giant.
How does this work? If a merchant has SMART$ then you cannot get the 4 miles/$1 for using PayWave with them?

All my shopping is at Meidi-Ya and Cold Storage, though I do pop in to Giant from time to time.

P.S. RIP Carrefour Singapore. The best supermarket by far (by lightyears in fact) chose to leave for one reason or another...
aster is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 11:23 am
  #1225  
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: SIN
Programs: JL GC | Marriott LT Silver | Global Entry | SQ Silver
Posts: 6,820
Originally Posted by aster
How does this work? If a merchant has SMART$ then you cannot get the 4 miles/$1 for using PayWave with them?

All my shopping is at Meidi-Ya and Cold Storage, though I do pop in to Giant from time to time.

P.S. RIP Carrefour Singapore. The best supermarket by far (by lightyears in fact) chose to leave for one reason or another...
Yeah, someone mentioned about it at HWZ that Giant and CBTL earns SMART$ only. There was an error in the advert.

So for CBTL, use Preferred Amex.
lcpteck is offline  
Old Mar 26, 2013, 8:56 pm
  #1226  
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 143
Originally Posted by aster
How does this work? If a merchant has SMART$ then you cannot get the 4 miles/$1 for using PayWave with them?

All my shopping is at Meidi-Ya and Cold Storage, though I do pop in to Giant from time to time.

P.S. RIP Carrefour Singapore. The best supermarket by far (by lightyears in fact) chose to leave for one reason or another...
It's in the T&Cs for SMART$. If the merchant issues SMART$, you do not get UNI$, so no 4 miles/$ for using Paywave.

I didn't really like Carrefour actually. I found the place to always be in a bit of a mess, even if you could find absolutely everything there.
Archieflyer is offline  
Old Mar 28, 2013, 10:41 pm
  #1227  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
Thanks guys. Does UOB list your earned UNI$ similarly to DBS's points in that you only see how much you've accumulated in a given statement period, or can you get more detailed info?
aster is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2013, 12:25 am
  #1228  
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: SIN
Programs: JL GC | Marriott LT Silver | Global Entry | SQ Silver
Posts: 6,820
Originally Posted by aster
Thanks guys. Does UOB list your earned UNI$ similarly to DBS's points in that you only see how much you've accumulated in a given statement period, or can you get more detailed info?
As far as I can see, UNI$ earned is shown in the rewards page as an accumulative amount of all cards combined.

It does not show how much UNI$ is earned in each transaction or in a statement period.
lcpteck is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2013, 6:35 am
  #1229  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Singapore, Warsaw, Surfers Paradise
Programs: KrisFlyer Gold>>>Silver>>>Blue, Finnair Silver, Royal Caribbean Diamond
Posts: 5,174
Originally Posted by Archieflyer
It's in the T&Cs for SMART$. If the merchant issues SMART$, you do not get UNI$, so no 4 miles/$ for using Paywave.
Quite a few places are part of this SMART$ scheme, though there might be some more unlisted ones as UOB doesn't mention Giant in this listing:

http://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards...martclub.html#
aster is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2013, 11:42 pm
  #1230  
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 819
ANZ Travel Visa Signature Card

Sign up now to enjoy 2.8 air miles* for every S$1 spend overseas till 30 April 2013. Promotion does not apply to existing ANZ Travel Credit Cardmembers.

http://www.anz.com/singapore/en/reso...34a5b707451b78
vsepr is offline  


Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.