How To Maximise The Miles Earned On Big Ticket Spending
updated: Dec 18, 2024
Renovation, wedding or some other major life event happening in 2023? Here’s how to get the most miles out of your big ticket spending.
written_by Aaron Wong
The Milelion
Major life events like renovations or weddings can take a big bite out of your wallet, no two ways about it. While many do well to set a budget, far too few stop to consider how they can get the most rebates on their spending by using the right credit cards.
After all, credit cards earn you miles or cashback. If your vendor accepts credit cards and you pay with cash, debit cards or bank transfers, you’re just leaving money on the table.
In this post, we’ll look at how you can maximise the miles you earn from your big ticket spending this year.
Maximise sign-up bonuses
Sign-up bonuses are one-time offers for new-to-bank customers, typically defined as those who do not currently hold any principal credit cards with a given bank, and have not cancelled one in the past 12 months.
In their general form, customers who spend S$X within the first Y months of approval will receive Z bonus miles. While there are some exceptions (e.g. insurance premiums, government transactions, utilities bills, certain hospital bills- consult the T&Cs for the full details) you can meet the minimum spend with most types of retail spending including renovation charges and wedding expenses.
Here’s a brief summary of the current offers on the market:
|
Card |
Min. Spend |
Bonus Miles |
Offer Ends |
|
Citi Prestige |
S$800 |
48,000 |
31 Mar 23 |
|
Citi PremierMiles Card |
S$800 |
30,000 |
31 Mar 23 |
|
Citi Rewards Card |
S$800 |
16,000 |
31 Mar 23 |
|
DBS Altitude AMEX |
S$2,000 |
31,000 |
30 Jun 23 |
|
DBS Altitude Visa |
S$2,000 |
25,000 |
30 Jun 23 |
|
DBS Vantage Card |
S$4,000 |
60,000 |
30 Jun 23 |
|
KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card |
S$2,000 |
25,000 |
30 Apr 23 |
|
OCBC Titanium Rewards |
S$100 |
11,520 |
30 Apr 23 |
For example, if your renovations involve buying S$5,000 worth of appliances, you could sign up for a DBS Altitude AMEX (Spend S$2,000, get 31,000 bonus miles), KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card (Spend S$2,000, get 25,000 bonus miles) and Citi PremierMiles Card (Spend S$800, get 30,000 bonus miles) and have a total of 86,000 bonus miles to show for it.
A few important points to note.
First, sign-up bonuses are dynamic, and by the time you read this post, the bonuses or terms may have changed. Always refer to the relevant websites for the latest updates before applying.
Second, your new-to-bank status is only valid for the first card you apply for. If you apply for both the Citi PremierMiles and Citi Rewards Cards, for instance, you will only enjoy the bonus on the first approved card (subsequent to which you count as an existing customer).
Third, since sign-up bonuses are generally reserved for new-to-bank customers, you should take stock of the current cards you have, and consider cancelling unused ones. This way, you can “start the clock” on the countdown until you’re considered new-to-bank again.
Fourth, consider the timing of your purchases and apply for cards accordingly. Different sign-up bonuses have different windows for spending- some as little as 30 days, some as much as 90 days. It helps to sit down and plan when each of your payments will take place, and match that period to the relevant card.
Fifth, don’t forget that sign-up bonuses apply on a principal cardholder level. If you and your spouse each apply for a principal card and meet the minimum spend, you can effectively double the bonus miles you earn. On the other hand, if your planned expense is relatively smaller, you can apply for a principal card and give your spouse a supplementary card instead. This way, your combined spending will be taken into account when determining whether the minimum spend has been met.
Maximise category bonuses
Unlike sign-up bonuses, category bonuses are recurring offers for cardholders who spend on certain categories.
For example, if you’re planning a wedding and your venue is a hotel, you can consider using the following cards to maximise your miles.
|
Card |
Earn Rate for Hotels |
Cap |
|
HSBC Revolution |
4 mpd |
S$1,000 per month |
|
UOB Lady’s Card |
4 mpd* |
S$1,000 per month |
|
UOB Lady’s Solitaire Card |
4 mpd* |
S$3,000 per month |
|
*The UOB Lady’s Card requires you to choose a quarterly bonus category. For hotel spending, choose “travel” |
||
Note how each of these cards has a monthly cap- banks can’t afford to give out 4 mpd willy-nilly! Because of this, you should try and work out the payment schedule with the venue such that you can max out each month’s cap nicely.
If you’re planning a wedding and your venue is a restaurant, you can consider using the following cards to maximise your miles:
|
Card |
Earn Rate for Dining |
Cap |
|
Maybank Horizon Visa Signature |
1.2 mpd^ |
40,000 TREATS Points (TP) per month |
|
Amaze + Citi Rewards Card |
4 mpd# |
S$1,000 per month |
|
HSBC Revolution |
4 mpd |
S$1,000 per month |
|
UOB Lady’s Card |
4 mpd* |
S$1,000 per month |
|
UOB Lady’s Solitaire Card |
4 mpd* |
S$3,000 per month |
|
^A minimum monthly spend of S$300 is required *The UOB Lady’s Card requires you to choose a quarterly bonus category. For restaurant spending, choose “dining” |
||
Unfortunately, there are no cards offering bonuses for payments to renovation firms, but to the extent that the company has a physical credit card terminal and accepts contactless payments, you can earn bonus miles with the following cards:
|
Card |
Earn Rate for Contactless Spending |
Cap |
|
UOB Preferred Platinum Visa |
4 mpd* |
S$1,110 per month |
|
UOB Visa Signature |
4 mpd^ |
S$2,000 per month |
|
*Must use mobile payments; tapping the physical card will not qualify ^A minimum spend of S$1,000 is required, caps and minimum spend are based on statement month, not calendar month |
||
Obviously, you can use the above two cards for payments at hotels and restaurants for weddings too!
What if your vendor doesn’t take credit cards?
Credit card payments shave precious points off the merchant’s margin, so some vendors may only accept PayNow or bank transfers.
Not all is lost, however. Provided you’re OK with paying a small fee, you can still earn credit card miles on such transactions via bill payment services like CardUp and Citi PayAll.
How this works is you submit your vendor’s details to CardUp/Citi PayAll. Cardup/Citi PayAll will then pay the vendor via bank transfer, and charge your credit card for the amount due plus an admin fee.
For example, CardUp offers a year-round admin fee of 2.25% for one-time general payments (use the code GET225), with even lower fees for rent or recurring payments. Based on this fee, your cost per mile varies as follows:
|
If your card earns… |
Your cost per mile with a 2.25% fee is… |
|
1.6 mpd |
1.38 cents |
|
1.5 mpd |
1.47 cents |
|
1.4 mpd |
1.57 cents |
|
1.3 mpd |
1.69 cents |
|
1.2 mpd |
1.83 cents |
Obviously, the higher your card’s earn rate, the lower the cost per mile. That’s why I’d recommend using the UOB PRVI Miles (1.4 mpd) or DBS Vantage (1.5 mpd) to pay bills via CardUp (there are cards which earn 1.6 mpd, but these are generally reserved for private/privilege banking customers or high income earners).
Citi PayAll charges a flat 2% fee for all payments, which results in the following cost per mile figures.
|
If you have… |
Your cost per mile with a 2% fee is… |
|
Citi ULTIMA (1.6 mpd) |
1.25 cents |
|
Citi Prestige (1.3 mpd) |
1.54 cents |
|
Citi PremierMiles (1.2 mpd) |
1.67 cents |
|
Citi Rewards (0.4 mpd) |
5 cents |
Citibank runs tier-up promotions throughout the year, which either increase the earn rate or lower the admin fee. Recent offers we’ve seen have upsized the earn rate to as high as 2.5 mpd, or offered Grab and eCapitaVouchers to offset the cost of the admin fees.
Conclusion
While big ticket expenses are hard to swallow, earning a good rebate through your credit card can make it much more palatable.
As always, remember to pay your bills in full and on time, and avoid carrying a balance on your card. We use credit cards to avoid leaving money on the table, not to put even more down!
Best Miles & Travel Credit Cards
Maximise your budget holiday spend even further with the best air miles credit cards and best credit cards for travelling in Singapore. Get rewarded whenever you spend locally or overseas, plus access awesome perks like airport lounges, discounted travel insurance rates, and even free gifts for first sign ups!
| Credit Card | Best for/Benefits | Details | Min. Annual Income |
|
Citi PremierMiles Card |
- S$1 = 10 miles on Bookings at Kaligo - S$1 = 7 miles on Hotel Bookings at Agoda - S$1 = 2 miles on Foreign Spend- S$1 = 1.2 miles on Local Spend- 2 free airport lounge visits per year with Priority Pass - Up to S$1 million complimentary Travel Insurance coverage when you charge travel tickets to card |
- Miles awarded as Citi Miles, which never expire - S$27 per redemption - Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner: S$42,000 |
|
DBS Altitude Card |
- S$1 = 3 miles on Agoda Bookings
- S$1 = 1.3 miles on Local Spend
- 2 free airport lounge visits per year with Priority Pass |
- Miles awarded as DBS Points, which never expire
- 5,000 DBS Points = 10,000 KrisFlyer Miles - Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner: S$45,000 |
|
OCBC 90°N Miles Card |
- S$1 = 1.3 miles on Local Spend
- S$1 = 2.1 miles on Foreign Spend
- S$1 = 7 miles on Agoda Bookings in Foreign Currency
- S$1 = 6 miles on Agoda Bookings in Local Currency |
- 90°N Miles never expire
- 1 90°N Mile = 1 KrisFlyer Mile
- 90°N Miles can be redeemed per blocks of 1,000 Miles
- Exchange 90°N Miles for cash rebates, vouchers, or offset travel costs too
- Annual fee: S$196.20 (Frist year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner = S$45,000 |
|
Maybank Horizon Visa Signature Card |
- S$1 = 2.8 miles on Overseas Spend and Air Tickets (All Airlines)*- S$1 = 1.2 miles on Local Retail Spend^ on Shopping, Dining, Food Delivery, Supermarket, Transport, Hotels, Cruises, Travel Packages, Car Rentals- S$1 = 0.25 miles on Utilities, Education, Insurance, and Medical expenses- Complimentary access to Selected VIP Airport Lounges- Up to S$1 million Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage |
- Min. S$800 spend per month required, otherwise 1.2 mpd only
- Miles awarded in the form of TREATS Points
- *Capped at 40,000 Bonus TREATS Points per calendar month for Air Tickets. Up to 3.2 mpd for a limited time only. T&Cs apply.
- ^No min. spend, no cap - Annual fee: S$196.20 (First 3 years free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Malaysian Citizen: S$45,000 - Foreigner: S$60,000 |
|
UOB PRVI Miles Card |
- S$1 = 6 miles on Selected Online and Flight Bookings at Agoda, Expedia, and UOB Travel - S$1 = 2.4 miles on Overseas Spend - S$1 = 1.4 miles on Local Spend - Up to S$500,000 complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage |
- Miles awarded as UNI$
- S$25 per redemption - Annual fee: S$261.60 (First year free)
|
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner: S$40,000 |
|
HSBC TravelOne Card |
- S$1 = 2.4 miles on Foreign Spend - S$1 = 1.2 miles on Local Spend - 4 Complimentary Airport Lounge Visits per year (Primary cardholders only) - Up to US$100,000 Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage (including COVID-19) |
25,000 Rewards Points = 10,000 Miles
5 free supplementary cards
No conversion fee for air miles or hotel points (Until 31 May 2024)
Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner/Self-Employed: S$40,000 |
|
Standard Chartered Journey Card |
- S$1 = 2 miles on Foreign Spend - S$1 = 1.2 miles on Local Spend - S$1 = 3 miles on Select Local Online Categories like Transportation, Grocery, and Food Delivery* - 2 Complimentary Priority Pass Airport Lounge Visits per year - Up to S$500,000 Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage |
- Rewards Points never earned from SC Journey Card never expire
- 25,000 Rewards Points = 10,000 KrisFlyer Miles
- *Capped at S$1,000 spend per statement month
- 45% off MSIG TravelEasy Travel Insurance (Single Trip) (Valid till 30 Jun 2024)
- Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 |
|
KrisFlyer UOB Card |
- S$1 = 3 miles on Everyday Spend (e.g. Dining, Online Food Delivery, Online Shopping, Online Travel, Local Transport)* - S$1 = 3 miles on Singapore Airlines, Scoot, KrisShop, and Kris+ purchases - S$1 = 1.2 miles on All Other Spend - Up to S$500,000 Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage - Fast track to KrisFlyer Elite Silver Status - Other Membership Privileges on Scoot |
- *Min. S$800 annual spend on Singapore Airlines, Scoot, and KrisShop required
- Earn KrisFlyer Miles directly to KrisFlyer Membership Account
- No cap on miles earned but only credited within 2 months of paying annual fee
- Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner: S$40,000 |
|
AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Credit Card |
- S$1 = 1.1 miles on Local Spend- S$1 = 2 miles on Foreign Spend during June and December- S$1 = 2 miles on Singapore Airlines-Related Spend- S$1 = 3.1 miles on Grab Singapore Transactions, capped at S$200 per month-S$1 = 0.5 miles on Singapore Airlines Instalment Plans via PaySmall for eligible purchases- Up to S$350,000 Complimentary Travel Insurance coverage- Exclusive Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Loyalty Programme Perks |
- Earn KrisFlyer Miles directly to KrisFlyer Membership Account
- Annual fee: S$179.85 (First year free) |
Subject to American Express' approval |
|
AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Credit Card |
- S$1 = 1.2 miles on Local Spend- S$1 = 2 miles on Foreign Spend during June and December- S$1 = 2 miles on Singapore Airlines-Related Spend- S$1 = 3.2 miles on Grab Singapore Transactions, capped at S$200 per month- Up to S$1 million Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage- Exclusive Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Loyalty Programme Perks |
- Earn KrisFlyer Miles directly to KrisFlyer Membership Account
- Annual fee: S$343.35 (First year free) |
Subject to American Express' approval |
|
HSBC Revolution Card |
- S$1 = 4 miles on Online and Contactless Spend (e.g.Shopping, Groceries, Dining, Food Delivery, Ride-hailing)- S$1 = 0.4 miles on All Other Spend- Up to S$300,000 Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage |
- Capped at S$1,000 spend / 9,000 Bonus Rewards Points per calendar month
- No annual fee |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner/Self-employed: S$40,000
|
|
Citi Rewards Card |
- S$1 = 4 miles on Selected Online Transactions (e.g. Shopping, Ride-hailing, Food Delivery, Groceries) and In-Store Shopping- S$1 = 4 miles on All Other Retail Spend- Up to S$1 million Complimentary Travel Insurance Coverage |
- Capped at S$1,000 spend / 9,000 Bonus Rewards Points per statement month
- Annual fee: S$196.20 (First year free) |
- Local/PR: S$30,000 - Foreigner: S$42,000
|
about_the_author
Aaron Wong
Aaron founded The Milelion to teach people how to travel better for less, with credit cards, airline and hotel loyalty programmes. With 500,000 miles flown and counting, he’s keen to debunk the myth that you can’t travel in style without breaking the bank.