The best miles credit card in Singapore depends on the measure. As at November 2026, the highest rate on everyday spending with no cap is 1.5 miles per S$1, on the American Express KrisFlyer Ascend, which has a $397.85 fee; among cards with lower fees, UOB PRVI Miles leads at 1.4 miles locally and 2.4 overseas. The highest rate of all, 4 miles per $1, comes from specialised cards that pay it only on about $1,000 a month in set categories.
So most people who chase miles end up with two cards: a specialised card for one or two categories, and a general card for the rest. This guide compares 15 cards on both jobs, shows the yearly maths at $2,000 a month, and sets out the fees, expiry rules and exclusions that decide what you actually keep. We are not paid by any issuer.
How We Compared the Miles Cards
Which cards. We read the card pages, fee schedules and terms of DBS, UOB, OCBC, Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered and American Express, and kept consumer cards that earn airline miles, either on all eligible spending (general cards) or at about 4 miles per $1 on defined categories (specialised cards). Every figure below is from those pages, as at November 2026.
The measures. Miles per S$1 on local spend and on foreign currency spend; the bonus cap and its period; the annual fee and its waiver; the income requirement; the cost and size of a conversion; how long points last; and which airline programmes you can transfer to.
What we left out, and why.
- Maybank cards (including the Horizon Visa Signature, World Mastercard and XL Rewards). Maybank’s Singapore card pages did not load for us at the time of writing, and we do not take card terms from comparison sites. Check Maybank’s own site directly.
- Premium cards aimed at high earners or priority-banking customers, such as DBS Vantage, OCBC VOYAGE, Citi Prestige, Standard Chartered Beyond and the HSBC Premier Mastercard. Their fees run from about $500 to over $1,600, and they are covered on our bank pages.
- Sign-up gifts, welcome miles and limited-time bonuses, including hotel-booking link offers. They change often. Check the bank’s page for what is running.
A “mile” here is a KrisFlyer or Asia Miles mile at the bank’s standard conversion ratio. Where a bank converts at a worse ratio for KrisFlyer, we say so.
Quick Answers, by Measure
Each answer holds only on the stated measure. The same card can lead on one line and trail on another.
| Measure | Card(s) | Figure | The trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highest local rate, no cap | Amex KrisFlyer Ascend | 1.5 miles per $1 | $397.85 fee; no first-year waiver stated for the main card |
| Highest local rate, no cap, fee under $300 | UOB PRVI Miles | 1.4 miles per $1 | $261.60 fee after year one; UNI$ expire in two years |
| Highest overseas rate, no cap | UOB PRVI Miles; HSBC TravelOne | 2.4 miles per $1 (PRVI: 3 in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam) | TravelOne’s 2.4 is at the Asia Miles ratio; to KrisFlyer it is 2.0 |
| Highest rate on a category | Citi Rewards, DBS Woman’s World, UOB Lady’s, UOB Preferred Visa, HSBC Revolution, OCBC Rewards | 4 miles per $1 | Capped at roughly $600 to $1,111 of spend a month per category |
| Specialised card with no annual fee | HSBC Revolution | 4 miles per $1 (3.33 to KrisFlyer) | $65,000 income for most new HSBC customers |
| Points that never expire | DBS Altitude, Citi PremierMiles, OCBC 90°N, Standard Chartered Journey | No expiry stated | Once moved to an airline, the airline’s expiry applies |
| No conversion step or fee | Amex KrisFlyer cards, KrisFlyer UOB | Miles credited straight to KrisFlyer | KrisFlyer only, and the three-year KrisFlyer clock starts at once |
| Most transfer partners | HSBC (TravelOne, Revolution) | 16 airlines and 4 hotel groups | Ratios differ by partner |
| Lowest income stated | Most cards here | $30,000 for Singaporeans and PRs aged 55 and below | Amex states only the regulatory minimum; DBS Woman’s World needs $80,000 |
Best Miles Credit Card in Singapore: The Full Comparison
General-Spend Miles Cards
Annual fees include GST. Income is for Singaporeans and PRs aged 55 and below. “mpd” is miles per S$1.
| Card | Bank | Local mpd | Overseas mpd | Bonus cap | Annual fee | Min income | Conversion fee | Points expiry | Transfer partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRVI Miles (Visa, Mastercard, Amex) | UOB | 1.4 | 2.4; 3 in MY, ID, TH, VN | None | $261.60; first year waived | $30,000 | $27; 10,000-mile blocks | 2 years from end of quarter | KrisFlyer, Asia Miles |
| Altitude (Visa, Amex) | DBS | 1.3 | 2.2 | None | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27.25; 10,000-mile blocks | None | KrisFlyer, Asia Miles, airasia |
| 90°N (Visa, Mastercard) | OCBC | 1.3 | 2.1 | None | $196.20; first year waived; waived at $10,000 yearly spend | $30,000 | Not stated on card page | None | 6 airlines, 3 hotel groups |
| PremierMiles | Citibank | 1.2 | 2.2 | None | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27.25 | None | 10 airlines and IHG |
| TravelOne | HSBC | 1.2 (1.0 to KrisFlyer) | 2.4 (2.0 to KrisFlyer) | Not stated | $196.20; waived above $25,000 yearly spend | $30,000 or $65,000* | None at present | 37 months | 16 airlines, 4 hotel groups |
| Journey | Standard Chartered | 1.2; 3 on selected online categories | 2 | 3-mile rate on first $1,000 a statement cycle | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27.25 | None | KrisFlyer |
| KrisFlyer Credit Card | American Express | 1.3; 2 on SIA group | 1.3 (no separate rate) | None on base rate | $179.85; first year waived | Not stated as a figure | None (credited direct) | KrisFlyer: 3 years | KrisFlyer |
| KrisFlyer Ascend | American Express | 1.5; 2 on SIA group | 1.5 (no separate rate) | None on base rate | $397.85 | Not stated as a figure | None (credited direct) | KrisFlyer: 3 years | KrisFlyer |
| KrisFlyer UOB | UOB | 1.2; 3 on SIA group | 1.2 | None stated | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | None (credited direct) | KrisFlyer: 3 years | KrisFlyer |
*HSBC lists $30,000 for salaried existing customers with at least $50,000 at the bank, and $65,000 for new customers.
Specialised 4 Miles per Dollar Cards
| Card | Bank | 4 mpd on | Monthly cap on bonus | Other spend | Annual fee | Min income | Conversion | Points expiry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citi Rewards | Citibank | Online (not travel or mobile wallets); clothing, shoe, bag and department stores | 9,000 bonus points a statement month ($1,000) | 0.4 | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27.25; 11 partners | 60 months from approval |
| Woman’s World | DBS | Online spend | First $1,000 of online spend a month | 0.4; 1.2 overseas | $196.20; waiver not listed | $80,000 | $27.25 | 1 year from end of quarter |
| Lady’s Card | UOB | One category you choose from seven | 1,800 bonus UNI$ ($1,000) | 0.4 | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27 | 2 years from end of quarter |
| Lady’s Solitaire | UOB | Two chosen categories | $1,500 ($750 per category) | 0.4 | $414.20; first year waived | $120,000 | $27 | 2 years from end of quarter |
| Preferred Visa | UOB | Mobile contactless; selected online | UNI$1,080 bonus per category (about $600 each) | 0.4 | $196.20; first year waived | $30,000 | $27 | 2 years from end of quarter |
| Revolution | HSBC | Online and contactless at listed travel, shopping, dining and transport merchants | 9,000 bonus points a calendar month ($1,000) | 0.4 (0.33 to KrisFlyer) | None | $30,000 or $65,000* | None at present | 37 months |
| Rewards | OCBC | Listed fashion, department store and sporting codes; named merchants such as Shopee, Lazada, Amazon, Taobao, Watsons and Guardian | 10,000 bonus OCBC$ (about $1,111) | 0.4 | $196.20; first two years waived | $30,000 | $25 per KrisFlyer conversion | 24 months |
Two general cards also have a capped or conditional bonus. Standard Chartered Journey pays 3 miles per $1 on online transport, food delivery and online grocery spend, up to 3,000 miles a statement cycle, and not on Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay. KrisFlyer UOB adds 1.2 miles per $1 on dining, online shopping, online travel and transport, for 2.4 in total, but only if you charge at least $1,000 to Singapore Airlines group merchants in the membership year, and UOB credits the extra miles after that year ends.
The short version: No card wins on every measure. For capped categories, six cards pay 4 miles per $1 on roughly the first $1,000 a month. For everything else, the top uncapped rates are 1.5 (Amex KrisFlyer Ascend, $397.85 fee) and 1.4 (UOB PRVI Miles, $261.60 after year one). Expiry, conversion costs and your income bracket narrow the list further.
General-Spend vs Specialised Cards, and the Two-Card Set-Up
A general-spend card pays a modest rate, 1.2 to 1.5 miles per $1 here, on almost everything, with no cap and no categories to track. A specialised card pays 4 miles per $1, but only on a defined slice of spending and only up to a monthly cap. Above the cap and outside the category, it pays about 0.4, a third of a general card.
That is why the two are usually paired: the specialised card takes its category up to the cap, and the general card takes the rest, including overseas spend, where most specialised cards pay little.
Worked Example: $2,000 a Month, Three Ways
Illustration only, not a guarantee. An illustrative cardholder spends $2,000 a month: $500 online at shopping marketplaces and fashion sites, $300 at restaurants, $300 in foreign currency, and $900 on other local spending that earns points. All amounts are before per-$5 rounding, which lowers the UOB, DBS and OCBC totals slightly.
Plan A: one general card (UOB PRVI Miles). Local $1,700 × 1.4 = 2,380 miles; overseas $300 × 2.4 = 720 miles. Total 3,100 a month, 37,200 miles a year.
Plan B: Citi Rewards for online, PRVI Miles for the rest. Online $500 × 4 = 2,000 miles. Restaurants and other local $1,200 × 1.4 = 1,680 miles; overseas 720 miles. Total 4,400 a month, 52,800 miles a year.
Plan C: HSBC Revolution for online and restaurants, PRVI Miles for the rest. Online and restaurant spend, paid online or by tap, $800 × 10 points = 8,000 points a month, or 96,000 a year: 32,000 KrisFlyer miles (38,400 at the Asia Miles ratio). PRVI Miles: $900 × 1.4 + 720 = 1,980 a month, 23,760 a year. Total 55,760 KrisFlyer miles a year.
Now the costs. Assume, for illustration only, that a mile is worth 1.5 cents to you, and one conversion a year per bank.
| Plan A | Plan B | Plan C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles a year (KrisFlyer) | 37,200 | 52,800 | 55,760 |
| Conversion fees | $27 | $54.25 | $27 |
| Annual fees in year one | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Annual fees from year two, if charged | $261.60 | $457.80 | $261.60 |
| Value at 1.5 cents, year one | $531.00 | $737.75 | $809.40 |
| Value at 1.5 cents, with fees charged | $269.40 | $279.95 | $547.80 |
Three things stand out. In year one, adding a specialised card is worth $200 to $280 more in this example. Once both annual fees are charged, Plan B is barely ahead of Plan A, so the fee waivers matter as much as the earn rates. And Plan C depends on qualifying for HSBC Revolution, which needs $65,000 of income for most new HSBC customers.
For comparison, a flat 1.6% cashback card on the same $24,000 pays $384, with nothing to convert. All three plans also pay a foreign currency fee of about 3.25% on the $3,600 spent abroad, roughly $117 a year. Run your own numbers in the cashback vs miles calculator.
What a Mile Costs You, and What It Is Worth
A mile has two prices: what it cost you to earn, and what it is worth when you spend it. Miles only make sense when the second is higher than the first.
What each mile costs to earn. If you could have used a 1.6% cashback card instead, each mile cost you the cashback you gave up:
- at 1.5 miles per $1: 1.6 ÷ 1.5 = about 1.07 cents a mile
- at 1.4: about 1.14 cents; at 1.3: 1.23 cents; at 1.2: 1.33 cents
- at 4 miles per $1 on a specialised card: 0.4 cents
Overseas, the fee is the price. A 3.25% foreign currency fee divided by the miles earned gives the cost per mile against a card with no fee: 1.35 cents at 2.4 miles per $1, 1.48 cents at 2.2, and 2.5 cents on the Amex KrisFlyer card, which earns its standard 1.3 abroad. Our overseas spending card comparison works this through card by card.
Annual fees as a purchase of miles. DBS, Citibank, Standard Chartered and UOB (on KrisFlyer UOB) credit 10,000 miles when you pay a $196.20 fee. That is buying miles at about 1.96 cents each, and the miles are taken back if the fee is later waived. On the Amex Ascend, the extra 0.2 miles per $1 over the Amex KrisFlyer card costs $218 more in fees; at 1.5 cents a mile, you would need about $72,700 of yearly spend to recover it from miles alone.
What a mile is worth when redeemed. Use this sum on a real flight: (cash fare − taxes and charges you still pay on the award ticket) ÷ miles needed × 100 = cents per mile. Take the cash fare and the award price for the same flight, date and cabin from the airline’s own site. We have not quoted KrisFlyer award prices here because we could not confirm current award charts on Singapore Airlines’ site; our guide to miles vs cash for flights runs the method on two example fares. As a rule of thumb from that maths, miles stretch further on expensive long-haul or premium-cabin tickets, where the taxes you still pay are a small share of the fare.
The Cards, One by One
UOB PRVI Miles
UOB states 1.4 miles per $1 locally, 2.4 overseas and 3 in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, with no cap. The catch: UNI$ are awarded per $5 per transaction, UOB lists Shell stations, AXS and prepaid top-ups among exclusions, UNI$ expire two years after the quarter they were earned, and the $261.60 fee is the highest of the standard cards. It does not suit slow collectors or people who make many small payments.
DBS Altitude
1.3 miles per $1 locally and 2.2 in foreign currency, and DBS states that the points do not expire. The automatic fee waiver for $25,000 of yearly spend ended on 1 August 2026, and an overseas purchase charged in Singapore dollars counts as local spend. It does not suit someone after the highest local rate. Full detail in our DBS Altitude Card review.
OCBC 90°N
1.3 locally and 2.1 in foreign currency, uncapped, with miles that never expire and can also be taken as cashback. OCBC waives the fee at $10,000 of yearly spend and lists nine airline and hotel programmes. The catch: the card page does not state a conversion fee, its FAQ says the Visa and Mastercard versions “have different award rates” without explaining how, and one part of the page shows a different fee for the Mastercard. Check with OCBC before applying. It does not suit someone choosing mainly on overseas rate.
Citi PremierMiles
1.2 locally and 2.2 in foreign currency, uncapped, and Citi Miles do not expire. Citibank lists 11 transfer partners at one Citi Mile to one partner mile. It trails the leaders by 0.2 miles per $1 locally, so it does not suit someone who wants the highest flat rate. See our Citi PremierMiles Card review.
HSBC TravelOne
HSBC states up to 1.2 miles locally and up to 2.4 in foreign currency, from 3 and 6 points per $1. Those figures use the 25,000-points-for-10,000-miles ratio that applies to Asia Miles and several others; HSBC lists 30,000 points for 10,000 KrisFlyer miles, so KrisFlyer collectors get 1.0 and 2.0. HSBC charges no redemption fee at present, and the fee is waived only above $25,000 of yearly spend. It does not suit KrisFlyer-only collectors or applicants new to HSBC on less than $65,000.
Standard Chartered Journey
1.2 locally and 2 overseas, plus 3 miles per $1 on online transport, food delivery and online groceries up to 3,000 miles a statement cycle. Standard Chartered says the points never expire and converts to KrisFlyer at 25,000 points for 10,000 miles. The catches: mobile wallet payments do not earn the bonus, and the bank’s pricing guide shows a 3.5% foreign currency fee on the lowest overseas rate here. It does not suit people who spend mostly abroad.
American Express KrisFlyer Credit Card and KrisFlyer Ascend
Both credit KrisFlyer miles directly: 1.3 miles per $1 (KrisFlyer Credit Card, revised on 1 November 2026) or 1.5 (Ascend) on eligible purchases, and 2 on eligible Singapore Airlines and Scoot flights from Singapore, KrisShop and Pelago, paid in Singapore dollars. There is no conversion fee and no separate overseas rate, so a 3.25% foreign currency fee buys only the standard rate abroad. Amex states no income figure, only the regulatory minimum. They do not suit people who want Asia Miles or other airlines, or who spend heavily abroad.
KrisFlyer UOB
1.2 miles per $1 on most spend and 3 on Singapore Airlines group, Kris+ and Pelago, credited straight to KrisFlyer each month. Dining, online shopping, online travel and transport earn 2.4 if you spend $1,000 a year with the Singapore Airlines group, with the extra miles paid after the membership year. It does not suit someone who rarely books Singapore Airlines or Scoot, because the bonus then never applies.
The 4 Miles per Dollar Cards
- Citi Rewards: online and fashion spend up to $1,000 a statement month, but travel bookings and mobile wallet payments are excluded from the online bonus. Points last 60 months. Citi Rewards review.
- DBS Woman’s World: almost any online spend up to $1,000 a month, but it needs $80,000 of income and points last one year. Compared with UOB’s card in DBS Woman’s World vs UOB Lady’s Card.
- UOB Lady’s: one category of seven, chosen in advance and changeable once a quarter. It does not suit spending spread thinly. UOB Lady’s Card review.
- UOB Preferred Visa: mobile contactless and selected online spend, capped at about $600 per category a month. Contactless at Shell and SPC stations does not earn the bonus.
- HSBC Revolution: no annual fee, online and contactless at listed merchant types, but supermarkets and fast food are not on the list, and KrisFlyer converts at 3.33 miles per $1. HSBC Revolution review.
- OCBC Rewards: named shopping platforms and fashion stores, with the first two years’ fee waived. It does not suit dining, transport or travel spend, and OCBC$ last 24 months.
More on these cards side by side is on our best rewards credit cards page.
Fees and Catches That Cut Your Miles
Conversion fees and blocks. DBS, Citibank and Standard Chartered charge $27.25 per transfer, UOB $27, and OCBC’s programme terms list $25 for OCBC$ to KrisFlyer. DBS and UOB convert in blocks of 10,000 miles, so a balance just under a block waits. HSBC currently charges nothing, and the Amex and KrisFlyer UOB cards have no conversion step.
Points do not always pool. Citi Rewards points are kept separately from Citi Miles, so holding both means two transfers and two fees. HSBC’s terms say points cannot be moved to another card account, and are cancelled if you close the card. Plan to convert before you cancel any card.
Expiry, twice. Bank points can expire (one year on DBS Woman’s World, two years on UNI$, 24 months on OCBC$, 37 months at HSBC, 60 months on Citi Rewards). Once transferred, Singapore Airlines says KrisFlyer miles expire after three years for members below PPS Club. If your bank points do not expire, leaving them with the bank until you have a booking keeps both clocks on your side.
Exclusions. Most banks pay no points on insurance premiums, education, government payments, utilities, e-wallet and prepaid top-ups, and bill-payment services such as AXS or CardUp. Check the card’s exclusion list against your regular payees before counting them in.
Merchant codes decide. Category bonuses depend on how the merchant’s bank codes the shop, which you cannot see in advance. A restaurant coded as fast food, or a hotel booked through a travel agency, may miss the bonus.
Overseas fees. DBS, UOB, OCBC and Amex state 3.25% on foreign currency spend, Citibank up to 3.25%, HSBC 2.25% plus up to 1% from Visa or Mastercard, and Standard Chartered 3.5%. Paying in Singapore dollars abroad usually costs more and can drop you to the local earn rate; our guide to overseas card fees and DCC explains why.
Interest outweighs any miles. As at November 2026, the banks’ own pages state 27.8% a year on unpaid balances at DBS, UOB, HSBC and American Express, 27.78% at OCBC, and 27.9% at Citibank and Standard Chartered. One month’s interest on a $3,000 balance at 27.8% is about $70, more than the 4,200 miles that $3,000 earns at 1.4 miles per $1 are worth at 1.5 cents ($63). MoneySense explains how interest then applies to new purchases too. If you carry a balance, the debt payoff calculator comes before any miles card.
How to Choose a Miles Card
- Check that miles are for you. If you fly once a year on fixed dates or seldom redeem, read cashback vs miles first.
- Pick the programme. KrisFlyer-only cards (Amex, KrisFlyer UOB) suit Singapore Airlines loyalists. If you fly Cathay Pacific or want more choice, look at Citibank, OCBC and HSBC’s partner lists.
- Find your biggest category. Total three months of online, dining and fashion spend. If one is near $500 to $1,000 a month, a specialised card on that category earns most on it.
- Choose the general card for the rest. Weigh the local rate, the overseas rate if you travel often, expiry if you collect slowly, and the annual fee after year one.
- Count the costs. Annual fees, conversion fees and the foreign currency fee, against your own value per mile.
For lounge visits, travel insurance and booking rates, see our travel credit card guide. For each bank’s full range, see DBS, UOB, OCBC, Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered and CIMB, whose current cards pay cashback rather than miles.
What To Do Next
- Work out your own value per mile from one trip you would really take, using the method in miles vs cash for flights.
- Split three months of statements into online, dining, overseas and other spend, then run the numbers in the cashback vs miles calculator.
- Read the exclusion list and conversion terms on the bank’s own page before applying, and check for any current promotion there; promotions change often and are not counted here.
- Note your card anniversary and points expiry dates, and convert before closing any card.
- Compare across card types on the best credit cards in Singapore page.
