Best Credit Cards for In-Person Shopping (Miles vs Cashback)

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$30,000 – S$65,000 ^{Income requirement depends on your Total Relationship Balance (TRB) with HSBC. S$30,000/year if TRB is S$50,000 and above; S$65,000/year if TRB is below S$50,000.}
• Foreigner: S$65,000Annual fee: Nil

 Earn 4 mpd on selected contactless and online spending, up to S$1,000 per calendar month ^{Earn 4 mpd on contactless and online transactions, on a wide range of spending categories like retail shopping (online and in-person), dining, flights (direct with airlines only), hotels (excl. online travel agencies like Agoda, Trip.com etc.), food delivery and ride-hailing.}
 Boost bonus earn rate to 8 mpd (up to S$1,200 per calendar month) with a minimum deposit of S$50,000 ^{HSBC customers with a minimum deposit of S$50,000 in the HSBC Everyday Global Account can enjoy an earn rate of 8 mpd (instead of 4 mpd) on selected contactless and online spending.}
 No minimum spending
 3-year miles expiry term
 7 useful miles transfer partners
 Free miles transfers to frequent flyer programs
 Instant miles transfers
 No annual fee, ever

⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ Poor transfer ratio to KrisFlyer ^{Due to inferior transfer ratio, if/when the points earned on this card are converted to KrisFlyer miles, the bonus earn rate would effectively be 3.3 mpd, instead of 4 mpd.}
⚠️ Bonus categories are MCC-sensitive
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$15,000 – S$30,000 ^{S$30,000/year if aged 55 and below; S$15,000/year if aged 56 and above.}
• Foreigner: S$40,000Annual fee: S$196.20 (first year waived; request waiver every year)

 Earn 4 mpd on two bonus categories, up to S$600 per calendar month each (total S$1,200):1) Mobile Contactless (e.g. Google Pay, Apple Pay)
2) Online Spending (selected MCCs only) No minimum spending

⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ Online Spending category is MCC-sensitive
⚠️ S$5 earning block ^{Transactions under S$5 earn zero miles.}
⚠️ 2-year miles expiry term
⚠️ Only 2 useful miles transfer partners
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

More information on the

UOB Preferred Visa Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you a strong earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on the following spending categories:

1. Mobile Contactless (e.g. groceries, public transport, dining, shopping, hotels, overseas)
2. Online (e.g. online shopping, food delivery, ticketing)

No minimum spend is required to earn 4 mpd on both categories, but this bonus earn rate is capped at S$600 worth of spending per category, per calendar month (max. total of S$1,200).

The Mobile Contactless category covers a wide range of spending categories, while the Online Spending category is MCC-sensitive.

Take note that cardholders will only earn 0.4 mpd on other categories and spending above the monthly bonus cap.

Before converting UOB UNI$ to miles for the first time, you’d need to enrol in the UOB Rewards Frequent Flyer Conversion programme. It’s best to do this early to avoid delays on your future miles conversions.

“Mobile Contactless” refers to Google Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Fitbit Pay. Cardholders will not earn 4 mpd by using the physical card.

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💸 Annual fee
S$196.20
(First year waived, request waiver every year after that)

💼 Income requirement
S$30,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 55 and below),
S$15,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 56 and above),
S$40,000/year (Foreigner)

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

⏰ Miles expiry
2 years from transaction

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer and Asia Miles

💯 Transfer ratio
1 UNI$ = 2 miles

🧮 Transfer block
5,000 UNI$ (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
S$27 per transfer

🤗 Points pooling
UNI$ from this card can be combined with those from other UOB cards and transferred out together at once.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 1 base UNI$ per S$5 spent, plus 9 bonus UNI$ for eligible online and mobile contactless transactions (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base and bonus points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted.

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$15,000 – S$30,000 ^{S$30,000/year if aged 55 and below; S$15,000/year if aged 56 and above.}
• Foreigner: S$40,000Annual fee: S$218 (first year waived; request waiver every year)

 Earn 4 mpd on two bonus categories, up to S$1,200 per statement month each (total S$2,400):1) Overseas (incl. online in foreign currencies)
2) Local Contactless (e.g. PayWave, Google Pay, Apple Pay), SimplyGo (Public Transport), Fuel

⚠️ Minimum category spend (not card spend) of S$1,000 per statement month required for bonus earn rate
⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ 2-year miles expiry term
⚠️ Only 2 useful miles transfer partners
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

More information on the

UOB Visa Signature Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you a strong earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on two categories:

1. Overseas (incl. online in foreign currencies)
2. Local Contactless (e.g. PayWave, Google Pay, Apple Pay), SimplyGo (bus/mrt), Fuel (excl. SPC, Shell)

To receive the bonus earn rate, a minimum spending of S$1,000 per statement month is required on that particular category, with a category cap of S$1,200 in the same period. You may also enjoy the bonus earn rate on just 1 category in any statement period.

These categories offers broad coverage on spendings like shopping (in-person and online), foreign currency (in-person and online), dining, groceries, flights, hotels, food delivery and ride-hailing.

However, the huge catch is the minimum spending amount that has to be met on that particular bonus category (not general card spend like other cards). For example, if you want to earn 4 mpd on foreign currency spending, you have to spend at least S$1,000 per statement month on foreign currencies.

All other spending earn just 0.4 mpd (uncapped).

Before converting UOB UNI$ to miles for the first time, you’d need to enrol in the UOB Rewards Frequent Flyer Conversion programme. It’s best to do this early to avoid delays on your future miles conversions.

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💸 Annual fee
S$218
(First year waived, request waiver every year after that)

💼 Income requirement
S$30,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 55 and below),
S$15,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 56 and above),
S$40,000/year (Foreigner)

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

⏰ Miles expiry
2 years from transaction

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer and Asia Miles

💯 Transfer ratio
1 UNI$ = 2 miles

🧮 Transfer block
5,000 UNI$ (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
S$27 per transfer

🤗 Points pooling
UNI$ from this card can be combined with those from other UOB cards and transferred out together at once.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 1 base UNI$ per S$5 spent, plus 9 bonus UNI$ for eligible online and contactless transactions (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base and bonus points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted.

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$30,000
• Malaysian: S$45,000
• Foreigner: S$60,000Annual fee: S$87.20 (first 2 years waived; request waiver every year)

 Earn 4 mpd on five bonus categories, up to S$1,000 per calendar month:1) Dine (e.g. restaurants, bakeries, food delivery)
2) Shop (e.g. apparels, departmental stores)
3) Travel (e.g. airlines, hotels, travel agencies)
4) Play (e.g. bars, cinemas)
5) Foreign Spend (e.g. almost anything in foreign currencies)

⚠️ Only available to those aged 21 – 39 years
⚠️ Minimum card spend of S$500 per calendar month required for bonus earn rate
⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ 1-year miles expiry term (no expiry with Maybank’s Rewards Infinite Programme)
⚠️ Only 3 useful miles transfer partners
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$15,000 – S$30,000 ^{S$30,000/year if aged 55 and below; S$15,000/year if aged 56 and above.}
• Foreigner: S$45,000Annual fee: S$196.20 (first 2 years waived; request waiver every year)

 Earn 4 mpd on shopping (online and in-person), up to S$1,000 per calendar month
 No minimum spending

⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ S$5 earning block ^{Transactions under S$5 earn zero miles.}
⚠️ 2-year miles expiry term
⚠️ Only 2 useful miles transfer partners
⚠️ Bonus category is MCC-sensitive
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

More information on the

OCBC Rewards Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you a strong earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on online and in-person shopping at places with specific merchant categories (mainly clothing/shoes, toys, duty free, luggage etc.), up to S$1,000 per calendar month, with no minimum spending requirement.

Cardholders will only earn 0.4 mpd on other spending.

At the moment, OCBC only has 2 transfer partners with decent transfer ratios; KrisFlyer and Flying Blue. As flexibility is very important in the Miles Game, I recommend maximizing the limits of other 4 mpd cards first, before using this one.

Not into Miles or travel-hacking? Redeem your points for 2.78% cashback instead, on the aforementioned spending categories.

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💸 Annual fee
S$196.20
(First 2 years waived)

💼 Income requirement
S$30,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 55 and below),
S$15,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 56 and above),
S$45,000/year (Foreigner)

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

⏰ Points expiry
2 years from transaction

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer, Flying Blue

💯 Transfer ratio
2.5 OCBC$ = 1 mile

🧮 Transfer block
25,000 OCBC$ (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
S$25 per transfer

🤗 Points pooling
OCBC$ from this card cannot be combined with those from other OCBC cards.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 5 base point per S$5 spent, plus 45 bonus points for eligible shopping transactions (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted, while bonus points are credited by the end of the following calendar month.

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$30,000
• Foreigner: S$42,000Annual fee: S$196.20 (first year waived; request waiver every year)

 Earn 4 mpd on online spending, selected in-person shopping and in-person overseas spending (via Amaze ^{For in-person overseas spending, the trick is to link the Citi Rewards Card to Amaze, then use the Amaze Card to spend. Such transactions will be seen as 'online' by Citibank, earning you the bonus earn rate.}), up to S$1,000 per statement month
 No minimum spending
 5-year miles expiry cycle ^{Miles/Points expire in 5-year cycles (plus 3 months grace period) from your card approval date. As such, points earned near the end of a cycle will have a shorter expiry term.}
 9 useful miles transfer partners

⚠️ 0.4 mpd earn rate on non-bonus spending
⚠️ Travel-related spending (e.g. flights, hotels) excluded from bonus earn rate
⚠️ In-person shopping bonus earn rate (without Amaze linkage) is MCC-sensitive
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee (save ~1% via Amaze)
⚠️ Amaze linkage for SGD spending comes with a 1% fee

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$15,000 – S$30,000 ^{S$30,000/year if aged 55 and below; S$15,000/year if aged 56 and above.}
• Foreigner: S$45,000Annual fee: S$196.20 (first year waived; request waiver every year)

 Get 6% cashback on two bonus categories:1) Shopping (up to S$833 per calendar month) ^{Shopping spend includes in-store and online retail transactions classified under apparel, department stores, electronics, home furnishings, personal services, specialty retail and watches & jewellery.}
2) Transport (up to S$333 per calendar month) ^{Transport spend includes public transport, ride-hailing and taxis.} 3.25% cashback on FX fees for overseas in-store spending in selected countries <sup>FX fees (3.25%) offset by 3.25% cashback, up to S$1,538 per calendar month. Applies to in-store point-of-sale transactions only (no mobile wallet).

Selected countries: Brunei, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam.</sup>

⚠️ Minimum card spend of S$800 per calendar month required for bonus cashback
⚠️ Bonus categories are MCC-sensitive
⚠️ 0.3% cashback on non-bonus spending
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

More information on the

DBS Live Fresh Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
Spend at least S$800 per calendar month to unlock 6% cashback on 2 bonus categories:

1. Shopping (in-store and online), up to S$833 per calendar month
2. Transport (public transport, ride-hailing, taxis), up to S$333 per calendar month

Both categories are MCC-sensitive. All other eligible spend earns 0.3% cashback with no cap.

Additionally, in-store overseas spending in selected Asia currencies earns 3.25% cashback to offset FX fees (effectively zero FX fees), up to S$1,538 per calendar month. This applies to in-person point-of-sale transactions only (not online or mobile wallet payments).

Selected currencies for 3.25% FX fee cashback:

• Brunei Dollar (BND)
• Cambodia Riel (KHR)
• Chinese Renminbi (RMB)
• Hong Kong Dollar (HKD)
• Indonesian Rupiah (IDR)
• Japanese Yen (JPY)
• Laos Kip (LAK)
• Malaysian Ringgit (MYR)
• Mongolia Tugrik (MNT)
• Myanmar Kyat (MMK)
• Philippine Peso (PHP)
• South Korean Won (KRW)
• Taiwanese NT Dollar (TWD)
• Thai Baht (THB)
• Vietnamese Dong (VND)

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💸 Annual fee
S$196.20
(First year waived, always request for a waiver after that)

💼 Income requirement
S$30,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 55 and below),
S$15,000/year (S’porean/PR aged 56 and above),
S$45,000/year (Foreigner)

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$30,000
• Malaysian: S$45,000
• Foreigner: S$60,000Annual fee: S$87.20 (first 2 years waived; request waiver every year)

 Get 5% cashback on five bonus categories, up to S$1,600 per calendar month:1) Dine (e.g. restaurants, bakeries, food delivery)
2) Shop (e.g. apparels, departmental stores)
3) Travel (e.g. airlines, hotels, travel agencies)
4) Play (e.g. bars, cinemas)
5) Foreign Spend (e.g. almost anything in foreign currencies)

⚠️ Only available to those aged 21 – 39 years
⚠️ Minimum card spend of S$500 per calendar month required for bonus earn rate
⚠️ 0.2% cashback on non-bonus spending
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

Mini review of the

Maybank XL Cashback Card

Suitesmile rating:

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This card gives you a strong 5% cashback on selected spending categories like flights, hotels, dining, shopping (in-person & online), food deliveries, entertainment and foreign currencies (overseas & online), when spending at least S$500 and up to S$1,600 per calendar month.

But oldies beware, this card is only available to those aged 21 to 39 years old.

Qualifying transactions:
Only whitelisted Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) for each spending category qualify for the bonus earn rate. Unsure about the MCC? Check before making the payment.

However, if you’re spending in a foreign currency, it doesn’t matter what the MCC is, provided it doesn’t fall under the general exclusions stated in the t&c. What’s great is that typically-excluded spending categories like Utilities, Medical and Education qualify for 5% cashback, when paying in a foreign currency.

All other transactions earn just 0.2% cashback (uncapped).

Cardholders can reduce the foreign currency fee by about 1% by pairing this card to Amaze. IMPORTANT: Only do this for the non-foreign currency bonus categories (flights, hotels, dining etc.) made in foreign currency (not SGD).

If you’re into the Miles, check out the highly-rated Maybank XL Rewards Card.

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💸 Annual fee
S$87.20
(First 2 years waived)

👶 Age requirement
21 to 39 years old

💼 Income requirement
S$30,000/year (S’porean/PR),
S$45,000/year (Malaysian),
S$60,000/year (Foreigner)

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

❓When cashback is credited
Cashback amount will be credited to the card at the end of the next calendar month.

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo

Ease of use ^{A rating (out of 5 stars) of how easy it is to achieve the maximum earn rate and other benefits advertised by this card.}:
Minimum annual income:• S’porean/PR: S$30,000 – S$65,000 ^{Income requirement depends on your Total Relationship Balance (TRB) with HSBC. S$30,000/year if TRB is S$50,000 and above; S$65,000/year if TRB is below S$50,000.}
• Foreigner: S$65,000Annual fee: S$196.20 (first year waived; request waiver every year)

 Get 5% cashback on dining, shopping and entertainment spending, up to S$5,000 per calendar quarter ^{Cashback capped at S$250 per quarter (equivalent to S$83.33 per month).}

⚠️ Minimum card spend of S$600 per calendar month, for 3 consecutive months in a calendar quarter required for bonus cashback
⚠️ 0.3% cashback on non-bonus spending
⚠️ Bonus categories are MCC-sensitive
⚠️ 3.25% foreign transaction fee

📄 Quick review

More information on the

HSBC Live+ Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you 5% cashback on Dining, Shopping and Entertainment when spending at least S$600 per calendar month, for 3 consecutive months in a calendar quarter.

This cashback amount is capped at S$250 per quarter — equivalent to S$5,000 in spending per quarter, or an average of S$1,667 per month.

New HSBC Live+ cardholders can enjoy +3% cashback (total 8%) on the above bonus categories in the first 2 calendar quarters from card approval date.

Cardholders also get complimentary access to the ENTERTAINER with HSBC app, where there are over a thousand 1-for-1 deals on dining, entertainment and hotels.

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💸 Annual fee
S$196.20
(First year waived)

💼 Income requirement
S’porean/PR: S$30,000 – S$65,000
Foreigner: S$65,000

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

❓How/When cashback is credited
Bonus cashback amount is credited into the card within 2 months, after the end of each calendar quarter.

📜 Terms & conditions

🎁 Sign-up promo