Best Miles Credit Card Promotions in Singapore (2023)
Finding ways on how to pick the best air miles credit cards and to leverage on the best promotions? Here’s a quick guide on how to maximise the perks that your air miles credit card provides and to choose a card that has an annual fee which is worth paying for.
Why Should You Get An Air Miles Card
Besides getting to earn miles on your big ticket items’ purchases or even on your everyday spending, there are a myriad of benefits which you can enjoy and these include
Benefits Of Getting An Air Miles Credit Card
- Complimentary seat selection
- Booking flexibility waiver
- Priority boarding and check-in
- Flexibility in redemption
- Additional baggage allowance
- Complimentary access to airport lounges regionally or worldwide
- Perks through reward points or cashback
- Express upgrade of exclusive airline class
Best Credit Cards To Collect Air Miles
| Credit Cards | BEST FOR | MILES EARN RATE | ANNUAL FEE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles that don’t expire | Up to 10 miles for every $1 spent on selected online hotel and flight bookings | $194.40 | |
| Miles that don’t expire |
| $54 | |
| KrisFlyer Miles for frequent flyers |
| $340.20 | |
| Everyday local spending |
| $180 | |
| Highest mile per dollar spend ratio |
| $259.20 | |
| DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card | 25,000 bonus miles upon payment of annual fee |
| $594 |
| UOB KrisFlyer Card | Everyday local spending |
| $194.40 |
Singapore Credit Cards with Air Miles Promotion (2023)
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card
- for every S$1 spend on Transportation, Food Delivery & Online Grocery merchants. Capped at 3,000 Miles in a statement cycle
- S$1 = 3 Miles
- for all Eligible Foreign Spends
- S$1 = 2 Miles
- for all Eligible Local Spends
- S$1 = 1.2 Miles
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Stand to receive a MVST Trek Aluminium Carry-on Luggage (worth S$557) OR a MVST Trek Aluminium Large Luggage (worth S$796) when you meet the eligibility criteria! T&Cs apply!
Earn up to 35,000 Miles when you meet the eligible spends AND have your first year Annual Fee waived when you sign up for the Journey Credit Card. T&Cs apply.
OR, earn up to 45,000 Miles when you meet the eligible spends and pay your card's first year Annual Fee when you sign up. Click here to apply. T&Cs apply.
HSBC TravelOne Card
- on Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.2 miles
- on Foreign Currency Spend
- S$1 = 2.4 Miles
- Travel Insurance coverage, Airport Lounge visits
- Complimentary
OR choose to waive your first-year Annual Fee upon sign up with no welcome gift awarded.
American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.2 Miles
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2 Miles
- on Eligible Grab transaction, capped at $200 per month
- S$1 = 3.2 Miles
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DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.5 miles or 1.5% cashback
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2.2 miles or 2.2% cashback
- when you pay the Card's Annual Fee
- 25,000 Bonus Miles
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The American Express® Singapore Airlines Business Credit Card
- per S$1 spent on eligible Singapore Airlines and Scoot flights
- Earn up to 8.5 HighFlyer Points
- per S$1 spent on all eligible purchases (worth 1.8 KrisFlyer miles)
- Earn 1.8 HighFlyer Points
- when you spend S$15,000 with Singapore Airlines Group in the 1st year
- KrisFlyer Elite Gold status
PLUS enjoy a welcome offer of up to 74,400 HighFlyer points (worth S$708), a complimentary Accor Plus membership (worth S$418 offering a free night's stay every year), and up to 20,000 HighFlyer points (worth S$190).T&Cs apply.
6 Important Things To Look Out For In An Air Miles Credit Card
Miles Earn Rate
While some airline-specific cards will credit your earned miles directly into an established frequent flyer programme, certain miles credit cards award points in other types of “currency” such as DBS points or Citi Miles. Converting these points into an actual air ticket will take a longer time and may cost more.
Miles Redemption Programmes
Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles programme and Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer programme are some of the more popular ones in Singapore whereby you can earn miles with your regular spending through credit cards and redeem flights or even accommodation for free. So, if you fly often via a preferred airline, do remember to tap on such perks to offset some of your travel expenses.
Frequent flyer programme T&Cs
Always, always check the T&Cs of any frequent flyer programme for any unsavoury details the credit card issuer would rather you not know. These include when your miles will expire and whether there is a cap on the miles you can earn.
Annual fees
Most credit cards including airline-specific cards charge annual fees which are usually for the convenience of using the card to make your purchases as well the administrative costs of maintaining your credit card account.
You often get a free credit card replacement if your card is lost or stolen, or if it's damaged and you need a new one. All these costs add up and your annual fee is what goes into paying for them.
Many banks do offer a waiver of your annual fee but you'll need to call them up to make this request.
Conversion fees
There are often charges for converting the miles on your card into miles with a frequent flyer program and these are known as conversion fees. Several cards like Citi PremierMiles Card and UOB PRVI Miles Card have a conversion fee of $25 per conversion while other cards charge different rates.
Most credit cards are linked to more than just one frequent flyer program, so you'll get to pick from a wider range of countries to travel to.
Lifespan of earned miles
Cards like Citi PremierMiles Card, DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card and OCBC 90°N card offer earned miles that don't expire, which is a benefit that is important given uncertain situations like the COVID-19 pandemic that made travelling impossible at times.
If your card requires you to accumulate and then convert miles, remember to check the expiry date so you can convert them as late as possible.
Should you pay the credit card annual fee for miles?
If you are frustrated with how long it takes to accrue enough miles to redeem a free flight, it may be tempting to just pay your credit card’s annual fee to get hold of your bonus miles. Before you do so, it is worthwhile to compare the options. Since there is intense competition among miles cards in Singapore, do check out what other banks have to offer.
Credit card issuers typically offer better sign-up promotions and bonus miles “packages” for newcomers or those who have not owned a credit card for at least a year. If, after considering the options, you are still keen to pay the annual fee, do some simple maths to find the cost per mile and decide if it is worth it. This is of course a subjective decision, but many air miles bloggers deem that each mile should cost well under 2 cents. Any more than that, and you might as well pay for the flights with cash.
Best Credit Cards With Air Miles For Paying Your Annual Fee
Citi PremierMiles Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.2 Miles
- All Foreign Currency Spend including Retail and Online
- S$1 = up to 2 Miles
- Selected Online Hotel and Flight bookings
- S$1 = Up to 10 Miles
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PLUS stand a chance to win a MacBook Air M2 15-inch or an Apple iPhone 14 Pro or an Apple Watch Ultra today! T&Cs apply.
American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.2 Miles
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2 Miles
- on Eligible Grab transaction, capped at $200 per month
- S$1 = 3.2 Miles
The Amex KrisFlyer Ascend credit card is also for higher earners, with a minimum income requirement of S$50,000 per annum. And like the Standard Chartered X Card, it has a non-waivable annual fee that kicks in from the first year. However, if you pay the $340.20 annual fee, you’ll receive 21,500 worth of KrisFlyer Miles when you charge a minimum of SGD1,000 within the first month of card approval.
Note that American Express also has an entry-level version of this card, the Amex KrisFlyer Card, which has an annual fee waiver for the first year. This credit card also offers welcome miles for hitting a minimum spend, but without the need to pay the annual fee.
American Express The Platinum Card®
- for every S$1.60 spent with Singapore Airlines and Scoot
- Earn 5 Membership Rewards® Points
- for every S$1.60 spent with 10Xcelerator by Membership Rewards®
- Earn 20 Membership Rewards® points
- on Membership Rewards® Points
- No Expiry Date
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With 61,250 worth of MR® points when you charge a minimum of SGD3,000 within the first month of your Amex Platinum card approval, you’ll be able to convert these points for miles at a conversion rate of 450 points = 250 miles.
Unlike the HSBC Visa Infinite card, the Amex Platinum Card doesn’t charge you for converting points to air miles. Plus, it doesn’t have a spending limit.
DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.5 miles or 1.5% cashback
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2.2 miles or 2.2% cashback
- when you pay the Card's Annual Fee
- 25,000 Bonus Miles
This card has one of the best air miles giveaway, — up to 60,000 miles for new DBS cardmembers. However, this card does come with a hefty annual fee of $594 which is non-waivable for the first year.
However, you’ll be entitled to a waiver in the subsequent years if a minimum of S$60,000 worth of retail spend is made in the preceding card year. This makes this card great for high spenders as the rewards can be converted to miles or cashback every month.
DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.3 Miles
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2.2 Miles
- On Travel Spend at Expedia & Kaligo
- S$1 = Up to 10 Miles
- Local Spend
- S$1 = Up to 1.25 Miles
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = Up to 2.25 Miles
- Reward points at luxury boutiques
- 10X
With an even higher annual fee of S$656.08, as compared to the DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card, the HSBC Visa Infinite Credit Card rewards you with 2.25 miles for every $1 spent abroad. You’ll also get 35,000 air miles awarded in the form of 87,500 Rewards Points which you’ll have to pay a fee to convert the points to miles.
However, getting this card will have you covered with a complimentary travel insurance of up to US$2,000,000 (annual value worth S$988), complimentary green fees and worldwide golfers' insurance of up to $500,000.
HSBC TravelOne Card
- on Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.2 miles
- on Foreign Currency Spend
- S$1 = 2.4 Miles
- Travel Insurance coverage, Airport Lounge visits
- Complimentary
OR choose to waive your first-year Annual Fee upon sign up with no welcome gift awarded.
As one of the credit cards which has a generous air miles giveaway, you’ll get up to 20,000 miles (equivalent to a round trip air ticket to Bali) upon payment of an annual fee of S$194.40 and a minimum spend of S$800. However, annual fee waiver benefits are available if you spend more than S$25,000 per year.
Moreover, you can be entitled to up to 2.4 miles (6X Reward points) for every $1 spent overseas, plus there is no conversion fee when you redeem for air miles or hotel points for a wide range of airline and hotel bookings including Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Marriott Bonvoy and more, making this card ideal for high spenders and frequent travellers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which air miles programme is best?
- For most Singaporeans, air miles are synonymous with KrisFlyer miles. But, while Singapore Airlines' KrisFlyer frequent flyer programme is definitely the most popular here, Cathay Pacific's Asia Miles programme may also be worth considering. Of course, Singapore Airlines has the most destinations, but if you like to visit East Asia, Cathay Pacific operates a good number of direct flights as well.
How much are miles worth?
- The value of a mile is a subjective matter, and you will find entire blogs dedicated to arguing about it. Generally, most miles chasers are not willing to pay more than S$0.01 per mile when paying the annual fee. After that point, you may find yourself paying enough to afford the air fare in cash.
How many air miles do I need to fly for free?
- Miles award charts vary from frequent flyer programme to frequent flyer programme. For KrisFlyer miles, you should aim for at least 50,000 miles in order to redeem a free Economy flight to anywhere a good distance away. For example, it takes 50,000 miles to fly to Japan and 56,000 to fly to Sydney. If you want to fly Business class, expect about double the number of miles.
