With the COVID-19 still prevalent, frequent flying isn’t exactly practical right now. But loyalty programs are offering better rewards as airlines try to keep customers and generate more revenue. That said, if you’re looking into air miles credit cards in Singapore, you have plenty of good options.
Air miles credit cards are considered one of the most glamorous types of credit cards. This type of credit card converts your credit card spend into miles or points that can be swapped for miles. Think of it like a rewards points system.
So when borders finally start to reopen, you can exchange your miles points for a free ticket. But not all air miles cards are created equal. Here are some of the best miles credit cards in Singapore.
Read 10 other Credit Card Benefits That You Can Enjoy.
Best Miles Card Singapore
| Card Type | Annual Fees | Miles Earned | Bonus Miles | Redemption Fees | Promotions |
| Citi PremierMiles Card | S$192.60 | S$1=Up to 1.2 Citi Miles (local spend)
S$1=Up to 2 Citi Miles (overseas spend) | Enjoy a renewal bonus of 10,000 Citi Miles every year* on your anniversary.
*upon renewal of your annual membership and payment of the annual fee | S$25 per redemption | Earn 10 Citi Miles per S$1 spent on Kaligo. This promo is valid till 31 December 2021 Earn 4 Citi Miles per S$1 spent on food delivery and home entertainment. Promo valid now until 31 August 2021
Earn up to 7 Citi Miles per S$1 spent on Agoda |
| DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card | S$192.60 | S$1= 1.2 miles (local spend)
S$1= 2 miles (overseas spend)
S$1= 3 miles on online flight & hotel transactions (capped at S$5,000 per month)
| Receive 10,000 bonus miles (5,000 DBS points) when the annual fee of S$192.60 (including GST) is charged to your card. | S$26.75 per redemption | Get S$200 cashback or up to 38,000 miles when you sign up for DBS Altitude Card. Promo until 30 September 2021 |
| American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | S$176.55 | S$1= 1.1 KrisFlyer miles (local spend)
S$1= 2 KrisFlyer miles (overseas spend during June and December)
S$1= 3.1 KrisFlyer miles (on eligible Grab Singapore transactions, up to S$200 spend on each calendar month)
| Receive 5,000 KrisFlyer miles with a minimum spend of S$3,000 on your first 3 months
| N/A | |
| UOB PRVI Miles | S$257 | S$1= 1.4 miles (local spend)
S$1= 2.4KrisFlyer miles (overseas spend)
S$1= 6 miles (on selected hotel and flight bookings)
| Receive 20,000 loyalty miles with min. spend of $50,000 per year | S$25 per redemption | Enjoy up to 4.4 miles per S$1 spend (UNI$11 per S$5 spend) on online dining and food delivery! No minimum spend required. Promo period from 21 June to 31 August 2021. |
| OCBC 90°N Card | S$193 | S$1= 1.2 miles (local spend)
S$1= 2.1 miles (overseas spend)
1.2% cashback on eligible spend | Receive 10,000 bonus miles upon renewal of card membership and payment of annual fees. | OCBC 90°N Card Mid-Year Top Spenders Promotion. Grand prize for top 4 spenders – 2D1N staycation package at The Barracks Hotel Sentosa (worth S$885). Promo period from 9 July to 31 August 2021. |
1. Citi PremierMiles Card – Best All-Rounded Air Miles Card
Need a credit card with miles points that don’t expire? Citi PremierMiles Card is a great choice for slowly accumulating miles. It offers an attractive earn rate of 1.2 Citi Miles for every S$1 local spend and up to 2 Citi Miles for every S$1 spent on foreign currency transactions.
The best part? You can also earn 4 Citi Miles per S$1 spent on food delivery and home entertainment. The card also offers a generous 10,000 Citi Miles upon renewal and charges an annual fee of S$192.60.
Annual Interest Rate: 26.90%
Annual Fee: S$192.60
Minimum Income Requirement:
- Singaporean/Permanent Resident: S$30,000
- Foreigner: S$42,000
2. DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card – Best For Online Flight and Hotel Transactions
Love to spend while traveling? DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card offers 3 miles per S$1 spent on online flight and hotel transactions. On top of that, you’ll also receive 1.2 miles for every S$1 local spend and 2 miles for every S$1 spent on foreign currency spending.
Best of all, air miles accumulated from DBS altitude never expire. This card is perfect for travel bookings and overseas spending. It charges an annual fee of S$192.60 but if you choose to pay the annual fee and renew your card, you’ll earn a generous 10,000 bonus miles.
Annual Interest Rate: 26.80%
Annual Fee: S$192.60
Minimum Income Requirement:
- Singaporean/Permanent Resident: S$30,000
- Foreigner: S$45,000
3. American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Card – Best Card For Earning KrisFlyer Miles With No Redemption Fee and Low Annual Fee
This card is the best choice for accumulating KrisFlyer miles for Singapore Airlines. No need to redeem your points. All your miles are automatically credited to your KrisFlyer account. But keep in mind that KrisFlyer miles have a 3-year expiration.
You can earn 1.1 KrisFlyer miles for every S$1 spent on local purchases and 2 KrisFlyer miles for every S$1 spent on foreign currency. The best part? You can now earn 3.1 KrisFlyer miles on eligible Grab Singapore transactions – valid for up to S$200 worth of spending every month.
Annual Interest Rate: 26.90%
Annual Fee: S$176.55 – First year fee waiver
Minimum Income Requirement: S$30,000
4. UOB PRVI Miles – Best Miles Earn Rate On Flight and Hotel Bookings
With an earn rate of 6 miles per S$1 spent on selected hotel and flight bookings, UOB PRVI Miles is one of the best cards for travel enthusiasts. It also offers 1.4 miles for every S$1 local spend and 2.4 miles per S$1 spent overseas.
Additionally, you can also enjoy up to 4.4 miles for every S$1 spent on online dining and food delivery. No minimum spend required! This is one of the best ways to earn miles during this time. The downside is that it charges one of the highest annual fees at S$257.
Annual Interest Rate: 25.90%
Annual Fee: S$257
Minimum Income Requirement:
- Singaporean/Permanent Resident: S$30,000
- Foreigner: S$40,000
5. OCBC 90°N Card – Best For Overseas Online Shopping
Looking for a non-expiring air miles card which you can use for overseas online shopping? With OCBC 90°N Card, you’ll earn 2.1 miles for every S$1 spent in foreign currency. This is the highest earn rate for foreign currency spending on the list.
On top of that, you’ll also earn 1.2 miles for every S$1 spent locally. The downside is that it doesn’t have bonus miles for travel bookings other than on Agoda. The card’s annual fee is S$193 and you’ll earn 10,000 bonus miles upon renewal.
Annual Interest Rate: 26.88%
Annual Fee: S$193
Minimum Income Requirement:
- Singaporean/Permanent Resident: S$30,000
- Foreigner: S$45,000
Verdict – Which Is The Best Air Miles Credit Card?
The best air miles card will depend on your preferences and spending habits. More on that in the next section.
But one way to compare between different credit cards is to check their miles earn rate. This refers to the number of miles you get for each dollar spent. That said, you also need to take into account whether you spend more on local purchases or using foreign currency.
For instance, OCBC 90°N Card offers the highest earn rate for foreign spending. However, if you don’t shop on foreign websites that much, then this card won’t benefit you as much.
American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer is also a great option since they are now offering 6 miles per S$1 spent on eligible Grab Singapore transactions. This is a great way to earn air miles since travel and hotel bookings aren’t possible at the moment.
Factors To Consider When Choosing The Best Miles Credit Card
As previously mentioned, choosing the best air miles credit card depends on several factors. For instance, take into account how often you travel. Which airlines do you usually use? What benefits or bonuses are most important to you?
1. What Airline Do You Usually Fly With?
It’s important to note that you can only use air miles for flights with a specific airline or its partners. Take for example the American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer. You can use your KrisFlyer miles when you fly with Singapore Airlines. That said, consider the airline you usually fly with or the routes they fly.
2. Miles Expiry Date
With the world as it is, we can’t be sure when we’ll be able to freely travel again. So it’s important to know the expiry date of your accumulated miles. KrisFlyer has a 3-year shelf life while Citi Miles and DBS Altitude Card, and OCBC 90°N miles have no expiry date.
3. Redeem Miles For Other Rewards
If for some reason, you don’t want to redeem miles, you might want to convert them to something else. For instance, check whether you can redeem other rewards or convert them to cashback. If you’re under the KrisFlyer program, you can use your KrisFlyer miles to buy at their online KrisShop.
4. Earn Miles Without Travelling
There are plenty of air miles cards that offer a generous earn rate when you spend overseas. However, with the current pandemic, this isn’t particularly ideal. So consider getting a miles card that offers a better earn rate for local spending or online shopping.
There are also credit cards that offer miles when you spend on Grab Singapore, online food delivery, and more.
Tips To Accumulate Miles, Fast
Depending on the card you choose and your spending habits, you can earn air miles fast. When you spend using an air miles credit card, you can accumulate flyer miles – either through miles points or rewards which can be converted to miles.
Here are a few tips to accumulate miles, fast.
1. Have A Goal In Mind
When borders start to open up, where do you want to fly? Maybe you want a business class ticket to Seoul, South Korea. If so, focus on how much you need to spend to achieve your miles redemption target.
2. Maximize Spend
You can use multiple cards to accumulate miles. Use credit cards that are best suited to your spending habits. However, make sure not to overspend and pay the monthly charges in full. Air miles cards are just like any type of credit card with interest rates and late fees.
3. Use Your Credit Cards Locally
Since you can’t travel overseas, you can use your credit card for local spending. Use it to pay for your grocery, daily coffee, and more. Just make sure to keep track of your transactions and pay your monthly charges on time.
4. Offers With High Earn Rate
Look for offers with a high earn rate. For instance, there are credit cards that offer 4 miles for every S$1 spent on food delivery.
5. Maximize Sign Up Bonuses
Planning a big purchase or need to pay for a once-in-a-lifetime event? You can pay for it using a new credit card. Choose a credit card that offers bonus sign-up miles.
6. Pay the Annual Fee
Most credit cards have the option to waive the annual fee, especially when you use your card on a regular basis. But if you have extra cash to burn, consider paying for the annual fee. You earn air miles when you do that.
There are other ways to accumulate miles. For instance, you can pay for travel and hotel bookings using your miles credit card. There are also mobile apps and websites that help you earn miles through rental payments, car loans, or insurance.
Alternative: Use Rewards Credit Card As A Miles Card
It’s a good idea to combine multiple credit cards that offer different types of rewards. For instance, you can use air miles cards and points credit cards together. Points credit cards are more flexible and you can use your accumulated points for cash rebates or convert them into miles.
That said, before you sign up for an air miles card, consider using your rewards credit card as an alternative.
The points-collecting system is the same. However, with an air miles card, the earn rate is higher when you spend on travel-related things such as travel and hotel bookings.
With a rewards card, you can get rewards points through general local spending. For example, some credit cards allow you to earn 4 miles for every S$1 spent on online shopping. That said, you can accumulate points faster when you use your credit cards for groceries, online shopping, food delivery, and more. Then you can convert these points to miles.
The best credit card, or combination of cards, will depend on your lifestyle and spending habits.
Should You Get A Miles Credit Card or A Cashback Card?
For most people, cashback credit cards offer more value than a standard miles card. However, it really depends on your lifestyle and other factors. Here are a few questions to consider:
- How often do you travel? Do you travel because of business? When borders start to open again, would you like to visit other countries?
- Can your spending habits help you earn enough miles to redeem free flights?
If you can’t relate to these two questions, then you may want to consider a cashback card instead. In fact, you can also use your savings to offset the cost of a flight ticket.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Should I Get An Air Miles Credit Card?
Do you travel frequently? Whether you travel for business or pleasure, it’s a great idea to get miles credit cards. This type of credit card will make it easy to accumulate miles or points with overseas spending. Some cards even offer a higher earn rate for travel-related purchases.
However, miles credit cards have higher income requirements. There are entry-level cards, like the ones listed here, but premium air miles cards tend to have higher requirements and higher annual fees.
2. What Features Should I Watch Out For When Choosing A Miles Credit Card?
- How you can earn more miles per dollar. For instance, the earn rate between local and overseas spending.
- Bonus welcome miles
- Bonus miles earned through other categories, such as online food delivery, hotel bookings with partnered sites, etc.
- Types of miles earned
- Miles conversion fee
- Annual fee
3. How To Redeem Air Miles?
If your credit card directly credits your accumulated air miles into a frequent flyer program, you can simply log into the airlines’ website to view your miles.
For example, if you earn KrisFlyer miles, you can log into your KrisFlyer account. From there, you can check how many miles you have accumulated. And you can also redeem the miles when purchasing air tickets on the website.
In case of converting reward points on your credit card, you can exchange them for air miles by making the redemption through the methods specified by your card provider. For instance, you can redeem them online or over the phone.
Once your points are converted to miles, you can view and redeem your frequent flyer miles on the FFP website.
Conclusion
Key Takeaways:
- With air miles credit cards, you can accumulate air miles which you can use to redeem for flights with a specific airline or its partners.
- Different air miles credit cards offer different miles earn rates per category. They also have different annual fees, sign-up bonuses, and perks.
- A rewards credit card is a good alternative if you want more flexibility. You can convert your rewards points into miles.
When borders start to open again, it’ll be great to have air miles which you can redeem for free air tickets. However, it requires significant spending to accumulate the miles needed for your travel goals.
And because credit cards are considered short-term loans, you need to pay off your bills on time. Making minimum payments every month can lead to interest charges. This could lead to debt accumulation. So be smart about using your air miles credit cards.
When you need extra cash, you can always turn to licensed moneylenders in Singapore. Loan Advisor allows you to compare the loan terms of the top licensed moneylenders. Request up to three loan quotes to find the best deals.
