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2025 Edition: Best Cards for Overseas Spending

Using your credit card overseas means additional fees, but also additional miles. Which cards keep the cost per mile as low as possible?

While itโ€™s โ€œfreeโ€ to use your credit card in Singapore (unless the merchant imposes a surchargeโ€” which theyโ€™re not supposed to!), using it overseas incurs an explicit cost due to the foreign currency (FCY) transaction fees imposed by banks.

And yet, many credit cards offer an upsized earn rate on FCY transactions. For example:

  • Citi PremierMiles cardholders earn 1.2 mpd for all SGD spending, but 2.2 mpd for FCY spending
  • DBS Altitude cardholders earn 1.3 mpd for all SGD spending, but 2.2 mpd for FCY spending

So the question is whether itโ€™s worth using your card overseas, and the answer depends on:

  1. How much you value a mile
  2. How much youโ€™re paying for miles when you use your card overseas

(1) is a subjective measure, which Iโ€™ve addressed in this article (my personal value is about 1.5 cents). (2) is much more objective, and the focus of the discussion below.

๐Ÿ’ณ Whatโ€™s the Best Card forโ€ฆ
โ“ Overall Guide
โœˆ๏ธ Air Tickets
๐ŸŒŽ Amaze  ๐Ÿ’ฐ CardUp
๐Ÿš— Car Rental ๐Ÿ’— Charity
๐Ÿฝ๏ธ Dining
๐Ÿซ Education โšก EV Charging ๐Ÿฅก Food Delivery
๐Ÿจ Hotels โ˜‚๏ธ Insurance ๐Ÿ“ฑ Kris+
โš•๏ธ Medical ๐Ÿ–๏ธ Overseas ๐Ÿ’Š Pharmacies
โ›ฝ Petrol ๐Ÿš Public Transport ๐Ÿ›’ Supermarkets
๐Ÿšฐ Utilities ๐Ÿ’’ Weddings  

How much do banks charge for FCY transactions?

When you make a credit card transaction in a currency other than Singapore Dollars, what typically happens is the amount is first converted to USD, and then into SGD (based on rates provided by Mastercard or Visa).

๐Ÿ’ณ Example: DBS Bank
โ€œVisa/Mastercard transactions in US Dollar shall be converted to Singapore Dollar on the date of conversion. Transactions in other foreign currencies will be converted to US Dollar before being converted to Singapore Dollar.โ€

Thereโ€™s some spread involved here (usually <0.5%), but the biggest expense is the FCY transaction fee charged by the bank.

๐Ÿ’ณ FCY Fees by Issuer and Card Network
Issuer โ†“ MC & Visa AMEX
Standard Chartered 3.5% N/A
American Express N/A 3.25%
Citibank 3.25% N/A
DBS 3.25% 3%
HSBC 3.25% N/A
Maybank 3.25% N/A
OCBC 3.25% N/A
UOB 3.25% 3.25%
BOC 3% N/A
CIMB 3% N/A

Youโ€™d think that with competition from alternatives like YouTrip and Revolut, banks would be moderating their FCY transaction fees. 

Fat chanceโ€” if anything, theyโ€™ve been edging upwards over the years. When I first started this blog in 2015, fees were in the range of 2.5-2.8%. Now, almost all the banks are at 3.25%, with Standard Chartered at 3.5%.

Summary of FCY Fee Changes, 2018 to Present

Donโ€™t forget that the FCY transaction fees are charged on top of the implicit spread in the Mastercard or Visa exchange rate. For example:

  • A US$100 transaction charged to a Mastercard would cost S$134.81, assuming no FCY transaction fees (spot rate: S$134.12)
  • Once a 3.25% FCY transaction fee is factored in, the amount becomes S$139.19
โ“ How much will my overseas transaction cost?
If you want to know how much a given FCY transaction will cost, you can use the Mastercard or Visa currency converter calculators. All you need to enter is the bankโ€™s FCY fee, which you can find in the table above.
Mastercard Calculator
Visa Calculator

Whatโ€™s the cost per mile?

No one likes to pay more than they have to, but do the miles earned for overseas transactions justify the costs?

Generally speaking: yes, although some cards represent better options than others.

General Overseas Spending

The following cards offer bonuses on all foreign currency transactions, regardless of MCC (except those in the general exclusions list like charitable donations and cryptocurrency). 

Card
(FCY Fee)
FCY Earn Rate Cost Per Mile
UOB Visa Signature
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd1 0.81ยข
StanChart Beyond
3.5%

Apply
PP: 4 mpd
PB: 3.5 mpd
Regular: 3 mpd
No cap
PP: 0.88ยข
PB: 1ยข
Regular: 1.17ยข
Maybank World Mastercard
3.25%

Apply
3.2 mpd2
No cap
1.02ยข
Maybank Visa Infinite
3.25%

Apply
3.2 mpd3
No cap
1.02ยข
Maybank Horizon
3.25%

Apply
2.8 mpd4
No cap
1.16ยข
SCB Visa Infinite
3.5%

Apply
3 mpd5
No cap
1.17ยข
SCB Rewards+
3.5%

Apply
2.9 mpd6
1.21ยข
DBS Treasures Black Elite
3%

2.4 mpd
No cap
1.25ยข
HSBC TravelOne
3.25%

Apply
2.4 mpd
No cap
1.35ยข
UOB PRVI Miles
3.25%

Apply
3 mpd
(IDR, MYR, THB, VND)
2.4 mpd
No cap
1.08ยข
(IDR, MYR, THB, VND)
1.35ยข
UOB VI Metal
3.25%

Apply
2.4 mpd
No cap
1.35ยข
DBS Altitude AMEX
3%

Apply
2.2 mpd
No cap
1.36ยข
OCBC VOYAGE (Premier, PPC, BOS)
3.25%
2.3 mpd
No cap
1.41ยข
OCBC Premier Visa Infinite
3.25%
2.24 mpd
No cap
1.45ยข
DBS Vantage
3.25%

Apply
2.2 mpd
No cap
1.48ยข
DBS Altitude Visa
3.25%

Apply
2.2 mpd
No cap
1.48ยข
OCBC VOYAGE
3.25%

Apply
2.2 mpd
No cap
1.48ยข
Citi Premier Miles
3.25%

Apply
2.2 mpd
No cap
1.48ยข
OCBC 90ยฐN Card
3.25%

Apply
2.1 mpd
No cap
1.55ยข
Citi Prestige
3.25%

Apply
2 mpd
No cap
1.63ยข
HSBC Visa Infinite
3.25%

Apply
2 mpd
No cap
1.63ยข
SCB Journey
3.5%

Apply
2 mpd
No cap
1.75ยข
Not showing options earning <2 mpd
*Fee refers to the FCY transaction fee imposed by banks, and does not include the spread charged by Mastercard or Visa, which can add an additional 0.3-0.5% depending on currency
1. Min. spend S$1,000 in FCY per statement month, cap at S$2,000 per statement month
2. Min. spend S$4,000 per calendar month. 2.8 mpd with min. spend S$800 per calendar month. 0.4 mpd otherwise

3. Min. spend S$4,000 per calendar month. 2 mpd otherwise
4. Min. spend S$800 per calendar month. 1.2 mpd otherwise
5. Min. spend S$2,000 per statement month. 1 mpd otherwise
6. Capped at S$2,222 per membership year

I want to highlight the trio of Maybank cards (Visa Infinite, World Mastercard, Horizon) because of their lack of exclusion categories. 

If you were to charge donations, education, utilities or insurance premiums (Horizon and Visa Infinite only) in FCY, you will earn 2.8-3.2 mpd, subject to meeting the monthly minimum spend. That could be very lucrative for anyone with overseas tuition bills to pay, for example. 

Specific Overseas Spending

If youโ€™re clocking FCY spend on particular categories, the cards below can also be options.

Card
(FCY Fee)
FCY Earn Rate Cost Per Mile
UOB Ladyโ€™s Card
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd1 0.81ยข
UOB Ladyโ€™s Solitaire Card
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd2 0.81ยข
Citi Rewards
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd3 0.81ยข
DBS WWMC
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd4 0.81ยข
OCBC Rewards
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd5 0.81ยข
UOB Pref. Plat. Visa
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd6 0.81ยข
HSBC Revolution
3.25%

Apply
4 mpd7
0.81ยข
KrisFlyer UOB Card
3.25%

Apply
3 mpd8 1.08ยข
*Fee refers to the FCY transaction fee imposed by banks, and does not include the spread charged by Mastercard or Visa, which can add an additional 0.3-0.5% depending on currency
1. Pick 1: Beauty & Wellness, Dining, Entertainment, Family, Fashion, Transport, Travel. Capped at S$1,000 per calendar month (T&Cs)
2. Pick 2: Beauty & Wellness, Dining, Entertainment, Family, Fashion, Transport, Travel. Capped at S$2,000 per calendar month (T&Cs)
3. Department store, apparel, or online transactions (excluding travel). Capped at S$1,000 per statement month (T&Cs)
4. Online transactions. Capped at S$1,500 per calendar month (T&Cs)
5. Department stores, apparel, electronics. Capped at S$1,110 per calendar month (T&Cs)
6. Apparel, electronics, dining, food delivery, entertainment. Also applies to overseas mobile payments. Capped at S$1,110 per calendar month (T&Cs)
7. Online transactions with department stores, apparel, transport. Capped at S$1,000 per calendar month (T&Cs)
8. Dining, online shopping, online travel, transport. Min. S$800 spend on SIA Group in a membership year (T&Cs)

How do banks define overseas transactions?

For most banks, an โ€œoverseas transactionโ€ is simply any transaction processed in a currency other than Singapore dollars.

But Bank of China and UOB add another condition: the payment gateway must be outside of Singapore. For example, if you were to book through the Hotels.com Singapore website and pay in Euros with your UOB PRVI Miles Card, youโ€™d earn 1.4 mpd instead of 2.4 mpd because the payment is processed in Singapore. 

How do you know where the payment gateway is located? You donโ€™t. Thatโ€™s the worst thing about such a rule: it puts the onus on the customer to find out information thatโ€™s not readily available.

If itโ€™s any consolation, this is only an issue for online transactions. If youโ€™re physically overseas when using your card, you donโ€™t need to worry about where the payment gateway is located. 

Amaze Card

If you want to strike a balance between cost and rewards, Amaze would be the right option to use.

With Amaze, youโ€™ll pay a 1.8-2% markup over Mastercard rates (partially offset by a rebate of up to 0.5% via InstaPoints), while continuing to earn regular credit card rewards of up to 4 mpd. This makes it a superior option to any traditional credit card, but only within the bonus caps.

Apply here
Use code 7HK2A2 for 225 bonus InstaPoints
๐Ÿ’ณ tl;dr: Amaze Card
  • Link up to five Mastercard credit/debit cards
  • Overseas transactions are converted into SGD (no FCY transaction fees, but subject to FX spread) and charged to the underlying credit/debit card
  • Transaction MCC remains the same, offline transactions charged to Amaze become online transactions for the underlying credit/debit card
  • Earn 0.5 InstaPoints per S$1 spent on FCY transactions of at least S$10 (except exclusion categories), capped at 500 InstaPoints per month
  • Redeem InstaPoints for cashback in blocks of 2,000 InstaPoints= S$20
  • Does not earn points with DBS or UOB cards

The miles earned are limited only by the credit card linked to the Amaze, and the following pairings are recommended. 

๐Ÿ’ณ Recommended Amaze Pairings
Card Earn Rate Cap
Citi Rewards
Apply
4 mpd1 S$1K per s. month
OCBC Rewards
Apply
4 mpd2 S$1.1K per c. month
1. 1. All online transactions except travel (airlines, hotels, rental cars, tour agency, cruises etc.)  and in-app mobile wallet (T&Cs)
2.  Clothes, bags, shoes and shopping (T&Cs)

A brief reminder of the ground rules for Amaze:

  • Amaze transactions code as online
  • Amaze transactions will be billed in SGD
  • Amaze transactions retain the original MCC of the underlying transaction
  • Amaze transaction descriptions are changed to AMAZE*merchant name
  • Amaze can be paired with up to five Mastercard credit or debit cards
  • DBS/POSB and UOB no longer award points for Amaze transactions
  • Citi excludes certain Amaze transactions, but so long as you avoid transit-related transactions (i.e. bus/MRT/EZ-Link) you have nothing to be concerned about

It generally doesnโ€™t make sense to pair Amaze with general spending cards, because you could derive a lower cost per mile by using non-Amaze options like the Maybank World Mastercard or DBS Womanโ€™s World Card. 

Refer to this article for more details.

Beware of DCC!

Hereโ€™s my customary warning about the scam known as Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC).

Example of DCC in India: How much I would have been charged had I opted for it, versus how much I was actually charged

For the uninitiated, DCC is a โ€œserviceโ€ provided by merchants which converts the transaction into your cardโ€™s local currency, at a fee thatโ€™s much more than what your bank would charge. The merchant pockets part of the profit, so some unscrupulous places will instruct staff to select it by default, without the consent of the customer. 

Be alert, and always, always emphasise that you want to be billed in the local currency. If you want to avoid the scourge of DCC altogether, use an American Express card, since AMEX does not support DCC.

What about zero FCY fee cards?

If you donโ€™t care about credit card rewards and just want to minimise the cost of your transaction, then you can consider โ€œzero FCY feeโ€ cards such as:

  • Chocolate Visa Card
  • Trust Cashback Card
  • Trust Link Card
  • Revolut
  • YouTrip

These cards offer better rates compared to bank credit cards, but the catch is that you either earn no rewards (Revolut/YouTrip), or minimal rewards (Trust Link/Trust Cashback).

Chocolate Visa Card
Apply here

A noticeable exception is the Chocolate Visa Card, which earns: 

  • 2 Max Miles per S$1 on the first S$1,000 of spend per calendar month
  • 0.4 Max Miles per S$1 on all spend above S$1,000 per calendar month

There are almost no exceptions; charitable donations, education, government services, hospital bills, insurance premiums and utilities are all included too!

Of course, if youโ€™re dealing with a scenario where rewards canโ€™t be earned even with bank credit cards, such as education or charitable donations, then itโ€™s simply a question of โ€œdamage minimisationโ€. In that case, the zero FCY fee cards would be the smart option, since thereโ€™s no reason to pay an FCY transaction fee when thereโ€™s no rewards in the picture. 

โ“ Is it really a no-rewards situation!

Donโ€™t be so quick to conclude that a given category is โ€œunrewardableโ€! For example:

  • The Maybank Horizon Visa Signature, Maybank Visa Infinite and Maybank World Mastercard will earn 2.8-3.2 mpd on charitable donations, education, insurance premiums (Horizon and Visa Infinite only) or utilities bills in FCY
  • The UOB Visa Infinite Metal Card will earn 2.4 mpd on education transactions in FCY

Credit card or multi-currency debit card?

 
  Trust Link / Cashback Card Multi-Currency Debit Cards
Pros
  • Better fraud protection
  • Spending limits are determined by credit limit alone
  • Better cash flow
  • Better choice for rental cars and hotels
  • Can lock in current rates for future spend
  • Generally better rates than Visa/MC
Cons
  • Cannot lock in rates for future spend
  • Have to pay Visa spread
  • Fraudulent transactions lead to immediate withdrawals from wallet
  • Maximum wallet limits and annual spending limit apply
  • Not ideal for rental cars, hotels, or other authorisation hold situations

If youโ€™ve decided to go with a zero FCY fee card, the next question is whether you should choose the Trust credit cards, or a multi-currency debit card like Revolut or YouTrip.

Historically speaking, multi-currency debit cards were at a disadvantage because the MAS-imposed transaction limits restricted customers to keeping S$5,000 in a wallet at any time, and spending S$30,000 per year. These restrictions meant that customers wanting to make big ticket purchases would have to use a credit card instead.

But at the start of 2024, YouTrip became the first e-wallet to increase its stock limit (the amount that can be kept in the wallet) to S$20,000, and the flow limit (the amount that can be spent per 12-month period) to S$100,000. Revolut followed suit in the middle of 2024.

Therefore, multi-currency cards are at less of a disadvantage now, though if you were making a truly massive transaction then a credit card would obviously be the better choice. 

The key advantage of multi-currency debit cards is that youโ€™ll enjoy better rates than Visa, assuming itโ€™s not the weekend (where rates can be worse).

Amount YouTrip Visa Spread
US$100 S$135.24 S$135.26 ~0%
A$100 S$89.21 S$89.77 0.6%
ยฅ10,000 S$86.13  S$86.42 0.3%
โ‚ฌ100 S$146.20 S$146.95 0.5%
ยฃ100 S$171.67 S$172.46 0.5%

Moreover, a multi-currency debit card allows you to lock in todayโ€™s rates for future spend. For example, if you feel the JPY/SGD rate today is good, you can go ahead and buy JPY for your trip six months down the road (keep in mind thereโ€™s still the opportunity cost of funds to consider, since your YouTrip balance earns no interest).

In contrast, Trust credit cardholders can only take advantage of the prevailing rate at the time the transaction is processed. 

So why consider Trust? Well, if youโ€™re making a very big transaction that would bust even the increased YouTrip limits, then you might not have a choice. As a credit card, Trust is capped only by the assigned credit limit, and in my experience theyโ€™re very generous with this. 

Then thereโ€™s fraud considerations. As a debit card, any transactions charged to your Revolut or YouTrip, whether fraudulent or legitimate, are immediately deducted from your account. There was a recent feature in CNA about the pitfalls of multi-currency card fraud prevention, including the horror story of a customer who found her YouTrip wallet drained by 31 unauthorised transactions in quick succession and had to wait months to recover her funds. 

There are ways of protecting yourself, however, such as locking your multi-currency card whenever itโ€™s not in use. If youโ€™re only taking that trip a few months down the line, thereโ€™s no reason to leave your card unlocked in the interim.

In contrast, if your credit card gets hit by a fraudulent transaction, there is no immediate deduction of funds. You can spot the fraudulent transaction on your statement and open a dispute with the bank, and in the majority of cases you should receive a temporary credit to offset the disputed amount while investigations are carried out.

๐Ÿง ATM withdrawals

While cash-based transactions arenโ€™t really the focus of this article, I should highlight that Trust has the upper hand when it comes to this.

Trust allows you to make unlimited fee-free withdrawals from overseas ATMs, while YouTrip only offers S$400 of free withdrawals per month, after which a 2% fee applies. Revolut allows up to S$350 or five withdrawals per month on the Standard plan, after which a 2% fee applies.

Do note that the overseas bank operating the ATM may impose a fee of its own, but thatโ€™d be the same whether you used Trust or Revolut/YouTrip.

Also, when using Trust for ATM withdrawals, be sure to toggle it to debit card mode (on the app, switch the source to โ€œpair with savings accountโ€). You want to make a withdrawal from your Trust savings account (free), not a cash advance from Visa ($$$).

On a similar note, debit cards do not support so called โ€œauthorisation holdsโ€, the type required when you rent a car or check in to a hotel. This means that the hold amount is automatically deducted from your available funds, leaving you with less money on hand. For instance, if you have a YouTrip balance of US$1,000 and use the card to rent a car, and the rental car company puts a US$400 hold, you only have US$600 left to spend. If you used the Trust Card, thereโ€™d be no deduction of funds because itโ€™s a credit card. 

Finally, as a credit card, Trust allows you to stretch your cashflow. While multi-currency debit cards involve an immediate deduction from your account, transactions on the Trust Card are only due later when the statement amount becomes payable.

Between the Trust Link and Trust Cashback Card, the latter would be the better pick because it offers 1% cashback on overseas spend (though I feel dirty recommending it because its claims of 15% cashback border on fraudulentโ€ฆ).

Conclusion

While using your credit card overseas incurs extra costs because of foreign currency transaction fees, it can still be worthwhile, especially if you prioritise cards that earn 3-4 mpd, or if you can reduce those fees through Amaze.

I personally would be OK with options that keep the cost per mile below 1.5 cents, though the threshold will vary from person to person. 

Of course, if your priority is minimising the total cost of the transaction, then a zero FCY card  like Trust or Revolut would be the better option, since these offer superior exchange rates at the expense of earning rewards.

Aaron Wong
Aaron Wong
Aaron founded The Milelion to help people travel better for less and impress chiobu. He was 50% successful.

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SH Lim

Does DBS WMC still give 4mpd when paired with Amaze? Some of the comments seem to suggest otherwise.

OJW

As of last monthโ€™s points crediting (transactions from Sepโ€™21), I got my 4 mpd with DBS WWMC on 15th Oct for all my Amaze transactions, except the ones made on CardUp using my Amaze card.

bent

Should HSBC revo be added to the list given it offers 4mpd albeit not on all categories and only 2.8% FCY fee? But most of what a general person would spend overseas would be on the categories that HSBC whitelists anyway e.g. airline, hotel, car rental, dining, travel agencies, supermarket, department stores, even uber (transport)?

Bent

Thanks! Must have missed it. Think itโ€™s the most attractive one for me given the low cpm

Tony

Thanks to your kind introduction of the Amaze card. It is now my default card for overseas expenditures.

Jake

How about pairing OCBC Titanium Rewards with Amaze? It does earn 4 mpd for shopping?

lemon

following. but my understanding from the other article seems to suggest so.

Iโ€™d also like to know if i charge foreign currency through amaze to ocbc 90n mc, is it considered foreign currency or sgd? because 90n gives 1.2mpd for local spend but 2.1mpd for forex, so it might actually be worth it to charge as forex despite the 3.25% fcy.

KCH

Does Amex Krisflyer card only earn 2MPD during the months of Jun and Dec?

Josie

Hi Aaron, is the CPM for the American Express Platinum Charge Card also 0.98 cpm? Thanks!

Anon

What if a merchant charges DCC without giving me a choice (aka press yes and print for me to sign). what can I do?

Sean

Check before signing and ask them to reverse then charge in local currency.

Anon

What if they โ€œrefuseโ€?

Zaos

Donโ€™t sign. OR write DCC refused.

Lifshitz

Dispute. No DCC gives only the SGD value for you to sign. Itโ€™s either FCY (in which case you can dispute) or FCY and SGD with boxes (in which case you tick the FCY box). Without a signature indicating your agreement, your bank will not honour thew charge. Had this several times with an StRโ€ฆ

Aloy

Hi Aaron, should Amaze cashback be reflected as 0.5% in the conclusion?

Jtks

Itโ€™s 1% for overseas spend

Freddy

I just came back from a 10-day trip and had been using Visa paywave (Apple Pay or the credit card directly). I was quite surprised that I wasnโ€™t hit by DCC at all. All transactions were processed in the local currency without me even asking. Not sure if it was because DCC was not supported by contactless payments, or DCC was banned in that country?

Candy

Thanks for the review! I used the Amaze card with DBS WWMC for my entire UK trip! I wonโ€™t be applying for the CitiRewards card though, as I have too many cards. Pity that from 1 June, DBS WWMC will no longer be useful when tagged to the Amaze card for miles. I would be using ICBC Global travel mastercard instead (though this one no miles but has 3% cashback on overseas spend).

AMEX CPM calculation

May I know why the Amex CPM is 0.98 for the krisflyer cards? it looks like it should be 2.95/2 = 1.475?

Hailey

Sorry new to all this. For hsbc revolution, if I were to use pay wave overseas at a restaurant, will it be counted as 4mpd? Does this work by categories regardless if local or overseas? Sorry for the many questions. Thanks

yct

Hi Aaron, itโ€™s probably time for an Amaze update. I find Iโ€™m getting charged ~2% spread for FCY transactions. Tested in TH, TW, MY in the last 2 months

Avi

its more than 2% โ€“ used Amaze in Japan this month and its 2.2% on FCY transactions. Saw the same for Euro transactions,

Thomas Lee

Which card should I use for big ticket (5-figure) overseas spending? I noticed that all the cards mentioned above have a 1-2k monthly limit, except maybe for OCBC Titanium Rewards with a S$13,335 limit for the first year.

John

good point. Im asking the same too especially 1 branded bag already cost 30K

Kai

Just calculate the theoretical average mpd on your big ticket purchase and measure it against using a general spending card with no cap?

Derek

I would use the UOB Krisflyer since they have no cap and use Amaze to qualify as an online transaction.

Shawn

Hey guys, anyone has any tips to spend $800 on reasonable items on KrisShop to hit the SIA Group Spend? Thank you!

Falco

Having just made a big fuss with Amazon JP on the constant auto-DCC, I was surprised that my side by side purchases ended up cheaper on the Amazon DCC, though when taking the Amaze cashback into account, Amaze still beat out Amazon by a whisker. So so will continue to manually switch to local currency, but at least Amazon seems to offer a much more reasonable conversion now.

Achen

Amex converts to USD before converting to SGD. So on paper it is 2.95%, but you get hit with their FX spread twice, which usually leads to a worse outcome than any card with a 3.25-3.5% headline charge

Smeedee

UOB converts non-USD, non-AUD and non-SGD to USD before converting to SGD. So AUD and USD are the exception that gets converted to SGD directly. See https://www.uob.com.sg/personal/cards/credit-cards/terms-and-conditions.page

Achen

maybe I should rephrase, with other cards you pay the masterard/visa spread which is typically around 0.5% above mid-market. with amex you just get a really poor fx outcome, which is sad, since they control the entire chain. so lowest fee, but also poorest (typically) fx rate.

most of the times i have tracked, i have always received poorest SGD outcome with amex. so based on personal datapoints, i only use my amex when the final SGD figure is not my main concern

John

Does HSBC Evo give 4mpd for contactless overseas dining?

Pskin99

Citi Premiermiles is also running a 4mpd for till end June!

Tate

Hi Aaron, if I link the Lady Solitaire card to Amaze, which Solitaire bonus category should I pick for overseas spending using Amaze? Thank you for all the great tips so far!

Lele

Hi, May I check does HSBC TravelOne earn 1.2mpd for stacking with amaze too? Thank you

Livelifefreely

Stumbled here for the first time. Never really thought that one can benefit from credit card spending but learnt quite a bit here.

However, for a noob, I thought o just ask one question. I am going to make an overseas payment to Thailand which is equivalent of around $24k sgd and these visa fees payment

Which miles card would be best?

Any suggestions welcome.

Thanks in advance

Tony

Hard to monitor and I think I just stick to cards that charge the minimum forex fees. Almost everyone I met on private trips have switched to Youtrip, Revolut etc instead of paying the 3.25 per cent forex trip. The banks are not doing anything about it so I guessed they do not value the individualโ€™s business.

Last edited 10 months ago by Tony
roger

for HSBC revolution, overseas dining is also 4mpd right?

Tania

Hi hi, does Amaze x Krisflyer UOB card earn miles if I were to use it for Uber or Lyft overseas? Is it considered a โ€œTransitโ€ transaction?

And I assume using it to tap on metro/subway would register as a โ€œTransitโ€ transaction..?

Dennis C

Aaron, think you should revise the cpm tables to assume there is at least a 0.5% spread on Visa/Mastercard rate, and even better if you assume two different spreads because Mastercard is known to have a lower spread. I was confused the first few times I read this article because you discuss the Visa/Mastercard spread but your examples do not include this spread. Itโ€™s very important because if you assume a 0.5% spread, then anything lower than 2.4 mpd (UOB PRVI Miles) is higher than 1.50 mpd or your personal miles valuation. In reality, using a Visa like Visa Signatureโ€ฆ Read more ยป

Jean

Hi Aaron, does Amaze pairing to pay something in foreign currency (in my case, recurring monthly bills in USD) work for online FCY transaction too? By โ€œworkโ€ I mean, I can still earn the miles from my CC as well as save on FCY fees. Or does it strictly work for in-person oversea transaction? Thanks

Ben Jamin

Beware of the recent MCC 8999 exclusion by UOB. I spent $$$ in FCY at overseas locations which in no way should be classified as 8999. Iโ€™m guessing they slipped under my radar before as I never had these transactions excluded in the past. With more and more MCCs excluded any MCC misclassification will be more likely to have an impact.

Rob

By the way Revolut does offer rewards now (RevPoints) which can be converted to avios and others.
Do note I think itโ€™s not available in Singapore yet but is available in select EU countries

Not fit for purpose

Be very careful with the UOB Lady Card โ€“ especially overseas. I had the dining and travel categories selected. However around 50% of the time, the dining category does not work. So you end up really with more like 2mpd (if you are lucky). Using an MCC doesnโ€™t work far too often. I have stopped using this card and told UOB it is not fit for purpose.

Not fit for purpose

Yes, Japan was one country. But also similar issues with other countries. As you point out, UOB say, correctly, the MCC assignment is out of their control and therefore it is just unfortunate. My point is that it out of the customers control too, and UOB is relying on a method that simply fails too often โ€“ they need to come up with a better way, and until they do, in my opinion, the card is not fit for purpose.

Ben Jamin

I notice that Visa chargeback code 12.2 includes โ€œIncorrect merchant category codeโ€. If the MCC error is egregiously wrong I wonder if you can try to do a charge back otherwise the consumer seems to be SOL. (BTW UOB doesnโ€™t care as it helps their bottom line until they lose business by annoying too many customers).

Ben Jamin

Yes as said above UOB does not assign the MCC. But UOB does use the MCC to deny rewards. UOB is obviously aware that MCCs can be incorrect and knowing this UOB is complicit in using them and giving their customers no avenue for appeal.

Last edited 9 days ago by Ben Jamin
Tony

I just stick to Trust Cashback card with its 1 percent cashback so 4.25% difference with other Singapore bank issued cards. Hard to monitor the various MCC. Trust Cashback, I found is less sticky with MCC. I think better to have lower cost than miles especially regular downgrading of what each mile can get you. Keep the money and you still get interest. However, I noted that for example Malaysian banks seems to charge a lower FCY fee. Perhaps Singapore banks charge one of the highest in the world averaging 3.25 percent.

V L

Wondering whatโ€™s your thought now that Chocolate Finance Visa card with 0% fees as youโ€™ve mentioned in Chocolate Visa Card: Earn 2 Max Miles per S$1 on virtually everything. It can be consider a slower earn rate at zero cost, while have the benefits of HeyMax partners, where would you rank it amongst the other cards? (though itโ€™s debit v.s. credit; not sure if that or other factors matter)

Jackie

Doesnโ€™t UOB PPV gives 4mpd on mobile transactions? Or it excludes foreign transactions