Review: KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card may not top its class in each category, but its uncapped bonuses could come in very handy for big spenders.

Here’s The MileLion’s review of the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card, a Singapore Airlines cobrand card for those who need wider acceptance than what American Express has to offer. 

While its debit card brethren was decidedly dead-on-arrival, this card fares much better thanks to its bonuses on dining, food delivery, online shopping, travel and transport. While it’s not the absolute best to use in each category, it can be a decent option for those who (whisper it quietly) just want a single card solution.

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card
🦁 MileLion Verdict
☑ Take It
☐ Take It Or Leave It
☐ Leave It

What do these ratings mean?
The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card may not top its class in each category, but its uncapped bonuses could come in very handy for big spenders.
👍 The good👎 The bad
  • No conversion fees
  • Uncapped 3 mpd on SIA and Scoot tickets, Kris+, dining, food delivery, online shopping & travel, and transport
  • Periodic discounts on KrisFlyer Experiences
  • Bonus miles delayed by up to 14 months
  • More Scoot privileges than Singapore Airlines
  • No foreign currency spending bonus
💳 Full List of Credit Card Reviews

Overview: KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card

Let’s start this review by looking at the key features of the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card

Apply
Income Req.S$30,000 p.a.Points Validity3 years
Annual FeeS$194.40
(First Year Free)
Min.
Transfer
N/A
Miles with
Annual Fee
10,000Transfer
Partners
  • SIA
FCY Fee3.25%Transfer FeeN/A
Local Earn1.2 mpdPoints Pool?N/A
FCY Earn1.2 mpdLounge Access?No
Special Earn3 mpd on SIA Group, dining, online shopping & travel, transportAirport Limo?No
Cardholder Terms and Conditions

Be careful not to confuse the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card with the KrisFlyer UOB Debit Card. The two sport similar designs and names, but the value proposition is altogether different.

 Credit CardDebit Card
Min Income Req.S$30,000N/A
Annual Fee$194.40S$54
Base Earn Rate1.2 mpd0.4 mpd
Requires KrisFlyer UOB Savings Account?NoYes

Simply put: if you earn enough to qualify for a credit card, there’s very little reason to even consider the debit card option.

How much must I earn to qualify for a KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card?

dbs altitude income requirement

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card has an entry-level income requirement of just S$30,000 per year.

Sign-up offer

More Details

From now till 30 September 2023, new KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card applicants will receive a 25,000 miles sign-up bonus (plus up to 6,000 base miles) when they spend at least S$2,000 in the first 60 days. 

This is broken down into:

BonusMin. SpendCap
5,000 milesS$5 on first trxn.No cap
20,000 milesS$2,000 in 60 daysNo cap

5,000 miles will be awarded to cardholders who make their first spend of at least S$5. 

20,000 miles will be awarded to applicants who spend at least S$2,000 within the first 60 days of approval. 

This offer is valid for customers who do not currently hold a principal UOB credit card, and have not cancelled one in the 6-month period before 1 August 2023.

How much is the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card’s annual fee?

 Principal CardSupp. Card
First YearFree1st free, S$97.20 for 2nd onwards
SubsequentS$194.401st free, S$97.20 for 2nd onwards

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card has an annual fee of S$194.40 for the principal cardholder, which is waived for the first year. The first supplementary card is free, but the second onwards will cost S$97.20 each.

Paying the principal card’s annual fee nets you 10,000 miles, which means buying miles at ~1.94 cents each.

How many miles do I earn?

🇸🇬 SGD Spend🌎 FCY Spend➕ Bonus Spend
1.2 mpd1.2 mpd3 mpd on SIA Group, dining, online shopping, online travel, transport

SGD/FCY Spend

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card members earn:

  • 6 KrisFlyer miles for every S$5 spent in Singapore Dollars
  • 6 KrisFlyer miles for every S$5 spent in foreign currency (FCY)

That’s an equivalent earn rate of 1.2 mpd for both.

It’s a bit unusual to see a general spending card without an FCY spending bonus (although to be fair, the AMEX KrisFlyer cobrand cards don’t offer it for 10 out of 12 months!), and that puts it at the bottom of the pack. 

CardsLocal MPDFCY MPD
UOB PRVI Miles1.42.4
OCBC 90°N Card1.32.1
Citi PremierMiles1.22.0
DBS Altitude1.22.0
AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend1.22.0*
AMEX KrisFlyer Credit Card1.12.0*
BOC Elite Miles1.02.0
KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card1.21.2
*June and Dec only, otherwise 1.1 mpd

Do note that you will not earn any KrisFlyer miles when spending at UOB$ merchants, such as Cold Storage and Giant. However, by pairing the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card with Amaze, you can circumvent this restriction. 

⚠️UOB$ Merchants
List is subject to change, refer to website for latest info
Dining
  • 8 Degrees Taiwanese Bistro
  • Aburi-EN Grand (Paragon)
  • Baker & Cook
  • Bee Cheng Hiang
  • BreadTalk
  • Canteen by Trapeze Rec. Club
  • Cellarbration
  • CHICA San Chen
  • Co Chung
  • Crystal Jade Group (ex. Changi Airport)
  • Famous Kitchen
  • Famous Palace
  • Fatburger & Buffalo’s
  • Feng Tian Xiao Chu
  • Hard Rock Cafe
  • Indian House
  • I.N.U Cafe & Boutique
  • Mr Coconut
  • Mun Zuk
  • Nam Kee Chicken Rice Restaurant
  • PastaGo
  • Patisserie G
  • Polar Puffs & Cakes
  • Potato Corner
  • Prince Kitchen
  • Q-WA Izakaya
  • Starbucks (ex. Jewel and Changi Airport)
  • Tangmen Restaurant
  • Tian Tian You Yu
  • ToastBox
  • Wangzi Music Restaurant
  • Xiu Jie Shan Cheng Fish
  • Yuan Cuisine Group
Gourmet Dining
  • Bincho at Hua Bee & Min Jiang
  • Marguerite
  • Hortus
  • Kotuwa
  • Majestic Bay
  • Meatsmith Little India & Telok Ayer
  • Restaurant Majestic
  • The Market Grill & Wine 90
Groceries
  • Cold Storage (includes CS Fresh, Market Place, Jasons, Jasons Deli)
  • Giant
Retail and Services
  • agnes B
  • Buff’d Nail Spa
  • bYSI
  • Crocodile
  • Delta Dental Surgeons
  • DermaCurate
  • EMW Physiotherapy & TCM
  • Gordon Max
  • G-Star Raw
  • Guardian
  • Honey World
  • iRUN
  • Limited Edt Underground
  • Maco Nail Spa
  • Miniso
  • MissFit
  • Mr Jeff
  • New Era
  • Optique Paris Miki
  • Perky Lash
  • Picota Nail Spa
  • Pixie Nail Spa
  • Qoosh Nail Spa
  • Replay
  • Salivan Beauty Clinic
  • Sports Fashion
  • Winter Time
  • Weston Corp
Travel and Entertainment
  • Cathay Cineplexes
  • City Tours

All overseas transactions on the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card are subject to a 3.25% fee.

SIA Group

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders will earn 15 KrisFlyer miles for every S$5 spent (3 mpd) on SIA Group transactions (both online and offline), defined as: 

  • Singapore Airlines
  • Scoot
  • KrisShop
  • Kris+

This includes using your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card to pay for taxes and surcharges on an award flight booked via KrisFlyer, or for add-on services with Scoot.

No minimum spend is required, and there is no cap on the maximum bonus that can be earned.

Other bonuses

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders who spend at least S$800 on SIA Group transactions (excluding Kris+) in a membership year will earn 15 KrisFlyer miles for every S$5 spent (3 mpd) on the following transactions:

CategoryMCCs/ Transaction Description
Dining & Food Delivery5812, 5813, 5814
Online Shopping4816, 5262, 5306, 5309, 5310, 5311, 5331, 5399, 5611, 5621, 5631, 5641, 5651, 5661, 5691, 5699, 5732, 5733, 5735, 5912, 5942, 5944-5949, 5999, 7278 (only for Shopee, Lazada and Qoo10)
Online TravelAgoda, Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com, Kaligo, Traveloka, Trip.com, UOB Travel
TransportBUS/MRT, 4121
Bonuses apply to both local and FCY spending

While you could earn 4 mpd on most of these transactions with other cards, the key advantage of the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card is the absence of a cap. This makes it ideal for big ticket purchases that would bust the cap of other cards like the DBS Woman’s World Card or UOB Lady’s Card.

⚠️ Evolution of minimum SIA Group spend

The minimum SIA Group spend required to trigger the bonus earn rate has changed several times in the past. 

  • Membership year ending April 2021 to August 2022: S$300
  • Membership year ending September 2022 to March 2023: S$500
  • Membership year ending April 2023 onwards: S$800

If you’re unsure of your membership year, simply check the expiry date on your card. The month refers to the month your membership year begins; if the expiry date shows 02/25, for example, your membership year runs from 1st February to 31st January each year. 

Dining & Food Delivery

MCCExamples
5812: Eating Places and RestaurantsCrystal Jade, Imperial Treasure, Paradise Dynasty, Deliveroo*, Food Panda*, GrabFood*
5813: Bars, Cocktail Lounges, Discotheques, Nightclubs and TavernsBrewerkz, Harry’s, Jigger & Pony
5814: Fast Food RestaurantsBurger King, KFC, McDonald’s, Subway, 
*Deliveroo, Food Panda and GrabFood may also code as MCC 5814

Dining is defined as restaurants, bars, and fast food outlets. The bonus also applies to food delivery platforms such as Deliveroo, Food Panda and GrabFood.

Do note the exclusion of MCC 5462 (Bakeries) and 5499 (Misc. Food Stores), which would exclude some options like Boost Juice Bar, Crave, Chalk Farm, Famous Amos, and Grain. Restaurants within hotels may also not qualify for this bonus.

Online Shopping

MCCExamples
4816: Computer Network/ Info ServicesGodaddy, Twitch, Peatix
5309: Duty Free StoresDFS, KrisShop, The Shilla
5310: Discount StoresN/A
5311: Department StoresTaobao, Isetan, Marks & Spencer
5331: Variety StoresMuji, Mustafa, Miniso
5399: Misc General MerchandiseIuiga, Japan Home, Comgateway
5611: Men’s ClothingBenjamin Barker, Dockers, Superdry
5621: Women’s Ready to WearbYSI, Coast, Forever21
5631: Women’s AccessoriesBimba Y Lola, Chomel, Coach
5641: Children’s and Infants’ WearAbercrombie Kids, Cotton On Kids, Kidstyle
5651: Family ClothingASOS, Bossini, Desigual
5661: Shoe StoresALDO, Bata, Birkenstock
5691: Men’s and Women’s ClothingPrada, G2000, Ezbuy
5699: Accessory and Apparel LeSportsac, Crumpler, Esprit
5732-5735: Electronics, Music Stores, Computer SoftwareApple, Audio House, MealPal
5912: Drug Stores and PharmaciesGuardian, NTUC Unity, Watsons
5942: Book StoresBook Depository, Kinokuniya, Books Actually
5944-5949: Jewelry, Watches, Toys, Camera, Gift Cards, Leather Goods, SewingCartier, Action City, Canon
5999: Misc and Specialty RetailBanana Republic, Amazon, eBay

Online shopping will cover almost every major e-commerce merchant out there- Amazon, Ezbuy, Lazada, Qoo10, Shopee, and Taobao for instance. 

You can also expect most major fashion retailers to be on this list, along with some unexpected ones like MealPal and hosting providers. 

If there’s a merchant you like that doesn’t offer online shopping, one option would be to pair the card with Amaze, since Amaze turns all offline transactions into online ones. That could come in particularly handy if you’re buying an expensive handbag, for example (Louis Vuitton’s MCC is 5948). 

Online Travel

MCCExamples
Online TravelAgoda, Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com, Kaligo, Traveloka, Trip.com, UOB Travel

While online shopping is broadly defined, online travel is relatively narrow. 

UOB has a specific whitelist of OTAs which are eligible for 3 mpd, which includes all the usual heavy hitters like Booking.com and Trip.com. For obvious reasons, the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card can’t explicitly let you earn bonus miles with any airline outside the SIA Group, but a simple workaround is to book via Expedia or UOB Travel.

Transport

MCCExamples
4111: Local Commuter TransportBUS/MRT only
4121: Taxi and LimoGrab, Gojek, Comfort

Transport refers to Grab, gojek, Comfort and other taxi operators. It also includes SimplyGo transactions made on buses and the MRT. 

Do note that you won’t earn any bonus miles (or base miles for that matter) if you use your card to top-up your EZ-Link balance, or pay at the General Ticketing Machines. You must tap your card (or phone, if you’ve added your card to your mobile wallet) at the gantry in order to qualify for the bonus. 

No bonuses if you do this

When are KrisFlyer miles credited?

Base miles, and bonus miles from SIA Group transactions will be directly credited to your KrisFlyer account once per month.

It’s a very different story for the bonus miles from dining, food delivery, online shopping, online travel and transport transactions. Of the 15 KrisFlyer miles per S$5 spent:

  • 6 KrisFlyer miles per S$5 (1.2 mpd) will be credited at the end of each calendar month
  • 9 KrisFlyer miles per S$5 (1.8 mpd) will be credited two months after the end of the membership year, assuming you hit the specified minimum spend on SIA Group transactions

UOB calls the 1.8 mpd portion, with no small sense of irony, “Accelerated Miles”, and it’s one heck of a catch. It means you could be waiting up to 14 months to receive your bonus!

This delayed crediting arrangement gives rise to four problems. I’ve expounded on them in this post, but to summarise:

  1. You’re locked into the card, because all pending bonus miles are forfeited if you cancel.
  2. Reconciling bonus points will be a nightmare. It’s already hard enough to check transactions on a month to month basis. Imagine doing it for an entire year’s worth.
  3. Because your pending bonus miles take anywhere from 2-14 months to reach you, you’re especially exposed to devaluation risk. If Singapore Airlines announces an award chart devaluation, other cardholders can rush out to burn their miles before it happens. You can’t, because they’re in limbo.
  4. Your miles will age at different rates. Some will be credited each month and start their 3-year expiry countdown immediately, the rest will follow in 2-14 months

UOB will argue that this is necessary because there’s no way of knowing, at the point of transaction, whether the cardholder will go on to hit the specified minimum spend required for the bonus. But there surely has to be a better way of doing this, because the current mechanism holds you hostage- cancel your card early, and lose your bonus! 

Now all that having been said, there was a pleasant surprise for KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card members in May 2020, when many found their bonus miles crediting ahead of schedule.

krisflyer uob credit card accelerated miles
This cardmember was approved in June 2019, and should have received his bonus miles in August 2020. Instead, he received them in May 2020

I can’t say if this was accident or design, or whether cardholders can expect this to happen every year. All I’ll say is this isn’t a card for those who want their miles sooner rather than later. 

How are KrisFlyer miles calculated?

Here’s how you can work out the KrisFlyer miles earned on your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card. 

Local & FCY SpendRound down transaction to nearest S$5, then divide by 5 and multiply by 6
Bonus ComponentRound down transaction to nearest S$5, then divide by 5 and multiply by 9

Since all transactions are rounded down to the nearest S$5, the minimum spend required to earn miles is S$5. Anything less than that earns nothing!

A simple illustration. Suppose you spent S$9 on your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card. You might figure that’s 10.8 miles (@ 1.2 mpd), but in reality:

  • The S$9 is rounded down to S$5
  • S$5 is divided by 5 and multiplied by 6 to yield 6 miles

You actually earn 6 miles, yielding a mere 0.67 mpd.

This is an extreme example, of course, and the effect of rounding gets smaller as your transaction size increases. But it’s exactly why you should think twice about using your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card for small transactions that aren’t in S$5 blocks.

To show how rounding affects you, let’s compare the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card to the Citi PremierMiles Card. On paper, both of them earn the same 1.2 mpd on all local spending. In reality, however, the Citi PremierMiles performs much better because of its favourable rounding policy. 

 KrisFlyer UOB
Earn rate: 1.2 mpd
citi premiermiles card reviewCiti PremierMiles
Earn rate: 1.2 mpd
S$56 miles6 miles
S$9.996 miles11 miles
S$1518 miles18 miles
S$19.9918 miles23 miles
S$2530 miles30 miles
S$29.9930 miles35 miles
S$3542 miles42 miles
S$39.9942 miles47 miles

If you’re an Excel geek, here’s the formulas you need to calculate points: 

Local & FCY Spend=ROUNDDOWN (X/5,0) *6
Bonus Component=ROUNDDOWN (X/5,0) *9
Where X= Amount Spent

For the full list of formulas that banks use to calculate credit card points, do refer to these articles:

What transactions aren’t eligible for KrisFlyer miles?

A full list of transactions that do not earn KrisFlyer Miles can be found in the T&C. I’ve highlighted a few noteworthy categories below:

  • Charitable Donations
  • Education
  • Government Services 
  • GrabPay top-ups
  • Insurance
  • Real Estate Agents & Managers
  • SPC Service Stations
  • Utilities

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card will earn miles for CardUp transactions, but not ipaymy. 

What do I need to know about KrisFlyer miles? 

❌ Expiry↔️ Pooling✈️ Transfer Fee
3 yearsN/ANone
⬆️ Min. Transfer✈️ No. of Partners⏱️ Transfer Time
N/A1Automatically transferred each month

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card credits KrisFlyer miles directly to your account on a monthly basis, with no conversion fees. 

This is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, you save on the usual S$25 conversion fee that most banks charge. On the other, direct crediting means the 3 year expiry countdown starts immediately. Contrast this to non-cobrand cards where you enjoy “two validities”: one on the bank side, and one on the airline side. 

In case you were worried, cancelling your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card has no impact on KrisFlyer miles already in your account. 

Other card perks

Instant KrisShopper Insider status

KrisShopper Insider status

KrisShopper is KrisShop’s free-to-join loyalty programme, and awards a bonus of 2-4 mpd on KrisShop purchases depending on membership tier. 

From now till 31 January 2024, KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders can enjoy instant KrisShopper Insider status, which awards a bonus 2.5 mpd on all KrisShop purchases. Be advised, however, that this is only possible if you have not already signed up for KrisShopper. 

KrisShopper TierQualifying SpendEarn Rate
Non-KrisShopperN/A1.5 mpd
MemberN/A2 mpd
InsiderS$5,0002.5 mpd
IconS$10,0003 mpd 
AmbassadorS$15,0004 mpd
*Qualifying spend includes purchases on KrisShop.com, KrisShop on Kris+, KrisShop on KrisWorld, Inflight purchases on Singapore Airlines. Excludes GST, duties and delivery charges

Registration is required, and can be done via this link. Status will be upgraded within three months of registration, and valid for a 12-month period following that. You will subsequently need to requalify through regular means, i.e. spending S$5,000 on KrisShop within a membership year.

The T&Cs of the status match can be viewed here. 

Discounts for KrisFlyer Experiences

KrisFlyer Experiences is a platform that allows members to redeem their KrisFlyer miles for money-can’t-buy-experiences. We’ve seen F1 Sky Suites, a KrisFlyer cruise-to-nowhere and a specially-chartered points plane to Langkawi.

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card members occasionally enjoy a 10% rebate on the number of miles required, which can be substantial depending on the experience. This is normally offered in limited quantity, so subscribe to The MileLion’s Telegram Channel and get alerted when new deals go live. 

Miles extension perk

If you ever wanted an example of UOB’s fetish for complicated T&Cs, look no further than the miles extension perk.

Simply put, KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders can enjoy a one-time 12-month extension for KrisFlyer miles earned between 1 January to 31 December 2021. 

Not so simply put, they’ll have to jump through a whole lot of hoops. This involves sending a registration SMS from August 2023 to December 2024 (yes, 2023 and 2024!), and calculating how many of expiring miles came from the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card specifically. 

Earn MonthExpiry MonthSMS submission period
Jan 2021Jan 2024Aug 2023 to Jan 2024
Feb 2021Feb 2024Sep 2023 to Feb 2024
Mar 2021Mar 2024Oct 2023 to Mar 2024
Apr 2021Apr 2024 Nov 2023 to Apr 2024
May 2021May 2024Dec 2023 to May 2024
Jun  2021Jun 2024Jan 2024 to Jun 2024
Jul 2021Jul 2024Feb 2024 to Jul 2024
Aug 2021Aug 2024Mar 2024 to Aug 2024
Sep 2021Sep 2024Apr 2024 to Sep 2024
Oct 2021Oct 2024May 2024 to Oct 2024
Nov 2021Nov 2024Jun 2024 to Nov 2024
Dec 2021Dec 2024Jul 2024 to Dec 2024

Keep in mind, this benefit is only available for up to 60,000 miles!

I’ll spare you the details, but if you want to understand just how convoluted this is, refer to the article below.

Explained: KrisFlyer UOB’s absurd miles extension perk

KrisFlyer UOB Account

krisflyer uob deposit account

The supposed “killer feature” of the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card is its ability to earn a bonus 5-6 mpd when paired with the KrisFlyer UOB account. This sounds phenomenal, but I’d strongly advise you against it.

First of all, this account pays a measly 0.05% interest. With interest rates on the rise, that’s an almost derisory rate.  

krisflyer uob interest rates

If you think you’ll make up the difference with miles, you should know that the KrisFlyer UOB account caps the bonus miles you can earn at a mere 5% of your monthly average balance.

For example, if you put S$50,000 inside the account, the maximum bonus miles you could earn each month is just 2,500 (5% of 50,000), which you’d hit after spending just S$500 on your KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card.

This means that unless you have a ridiculously high miles valuation figure, the opportunity cost is simply too high to be worth considering. 

Fast track to KrisFlyer Elite Silver

The AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend has a fast track to KrisFlyer Elite Gold, but KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card members will have to settle for KrisFlyer Elite Silver. 

Cardmembers who open their cards from 1 May 2022 and spend a minimum of S$5,000 on SIA Group transactions (excluding Kris+) within the first card membership year will receive an upgrade to KrisFlyer Elite Silver.

This is referred to as a “fast track”, but in reality is anything but. Qualifying cardholders will receive their status upgrade within 6 weeks from the last month of the first membership year. You could hit the qualifying spend on your first day, and still have to wait 13+ months to get your status!

Status earned through this “fast track” scheme is only valid for the first year; subsequently, you’ll have to requalify by flying at least 25,000 elite miles in a 12-month membership period.

All in all, it’s much ado about nothing because KrisFlyer Elite Silver has extremely weak benefits. Members receive:

  • A 25% bonus on KrisFlyer miles
  • Complimentary Standard Seat selection on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir
  • Priority reservation waitlist
  • Priority airport standby
  • Discounted service fees

Forget about lounge access, priority boarding, priority check-in or additional luggage allowances. This is as basic as it gets. 

Scoot Privileges

scoot cabin

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card members enjoy the following benefits when flying Scoot: 

 For principal cardholderFor companions
(on same itinerary)
Complimentary priority check-in and boarding
Additional 5kg luggage allowance with purchase of any baggage fare bundle 
Complimentary standard seat selection 
One-time booking flexibility waiver

None of these are anything to get excited about, really. There’s no free checked bag, only a 5kg upsize when you purchase a bag allowance, and even though the complimentary seat selection could have been useful, it’s limited to the principal cardholder only and not his/her travel companions.

I’d say the most useful benefit is the one-time free booking change, which can be made online up to 4 hours before departure. Fare differences may apply.

To enjoy these benefits, be sure to book your Scoot tickets via this dedicated portal.

KrisShop Privileges

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders enjoy a single-use promo code KFUOBKS2023 that gives S$20 off a minimum spend of S$120 (before GST). Unfortunately, there is an extensive brand exclusions list.

2x S$15 Grab voucher to/from Changi Airport

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders will receive a biannual S$15 Grab voucher valid for rides to/from Changi Airport.

This can be redeemed once per half yearly (i.e Jan to Jun/ Jul to Dec), with the promo code KFUOBCC. Redemptions are capped at the first 1,000 uses per month. 

2x S$15 off Changi WiFi

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders will receive a biannual S$15 ChangiWiFi voucher.

This can be redeemed once per half yearly (i.e Jan to Jun/ Jul to Dec). Cardholders can generate a e-redemption code by SMSing KFUOBCC<space>16-digit card number to 77862. 

Redemptions are capped at the first 1,000 uses per month. 

Complimentary travel insurance

Accidental DeathMedical BenefitsTravel Inconvenience
S$500,000S$50,000 for medical evacuationNone

Many cards offer complimentary travel insurance, but not all policies are made equal. I’ve done the analysis previously, and UOB’s policy is as bare bones as they come.

You have S$500,000 coverage for accidental death or disablement, and S$50,000 for medical evacuation. There’s no coverage for medical expenses, or even travel inconvenience. Lost your luggage? Flight delayed? This policy won’t pay anything.

Since it’s woefully inadequate as your primary cover, you’ll almost certainly need to get separate travel insurance.

Summary Review: KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card

Apply

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card is most suited for:

  1. Those who want to use one card for everything
  2. Those who make big ticket spend

Regular readers will know I’m staunchly against (1), though if you insist on doing this nonetheless, then this would be the best card to do so. I can’t think of any other general spending card with so many different bonus categories: dining, food delivery, online shopping & travel and transport will cover the bases for a lot of people.

With regards to (2), a no-cap 3 mpd earn rate can be quite powerful indeed, especially if you’ve exhausted the cap on other 4/6 mpd cards (just be aware that of the 3 mpd you earn, 60% of it (1.8 mpd) will only arrive 2-14 months later). Just imagine earning an uncapped 3 mpd on an expensive electronics, jewellery or luxury goods purchase!

That, together with the opportunity to save a big chunk of miles on a KrisFlyer Experiences redemption, is enough to bump it into the Take It pile for me. 

🦁 MileLion Verdict
☑ Take It
☐ Take It Or Leave It
☐ Leave It

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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Adam

Interesting point about the Krisflyer UOB account. It does link with the UOB PRVI too if you use that as your general spend card. I did some calculations and assuming a valuation of 1.8 cpm, your breakeven point for the Krisflyer UOB account is actually just over 1% interest p.a. (meaning to say, if your interest in your bank account is less than 1%, you could potentially earn enough miles with the Krisflyer UOB account to make up for it). At this falling interest rate environment, this could look more and more enticing. Calculations (I’m assuming you hit the 5%… Read more »

Mukkul

Isn’t the most important value of the UOB Deposit account that you get 5mpd on total annual card spend, if you maintain a balance of S$1000 per month? Yes the interest is tiny but the 5mpd on total annual card spend is >> than anything else I’ve seen period for losing interest on $1000 only — seem like the best miles deal. But I may be missing something?? https://www.uob.com.sg/personal/krisflyer-uob/credit/account.html?i_cid=pfs:sg:owned:int:site:na:li:na:na:na-evergreen:direct:na&vid=none

Fernando

Hi Aaron,

If I link this Krisflyer Card to Amaze Card, would I still get the 3mpd if I use it for dining overseas (FCY)? This is because the dining spent would have been converted to “Online Spending”.

And I assume paying for hotels & car rental overseas (FCY) would also not get us the accelerated bonus miles of 3mpd?

Thanks

Matthew

Regarding rounding, in my experience with the card, it’s at the calendar month level and not at the transaction level, regardless of what the T&Cs say. This applies at least for base miles – my accelerated miles are not in yet.

Miles are awarded based on the sum of all transactions posted in a calendar month, rounded down to the nearest $5, then divided by 5 and multiplied by 6.

Matthew

That actually did happen, thanks in part to CB since I mainly use this card for SimplyGo. I had a few SimplyGo transactions last month, each individually less than $5, but in total more than $5. Miles still awarded.

skywords

KF UOB Credit Card: Terrible proposition made worse by UOB’s poor customer support. My wife has been struggling to get her bonus miles. After 3 calls and paying the annual renewal fee, 2 months later they “manually adjusted” 3000 bonus miles against what CS confirmed was a 18,000+ eligible spend. Here’s the problem with deferred bonuses when the system doesn’t work and CS is rubbish! 3 calls x 20 mins each, frustration of having to walk a different through the problem each time and despite promises to get back, no one does. Not worth the effort. Any suggestions on what… Read more »

Last edited 3 years ago by skywords
cheesecake

Regarding the $20 rebate for Krisshop, I had to endure a horrific month to chase for it. At the time when I got my card and made the Krisshop spend, the terms were exactly as you quoted: “Cardholders enjoy an annual S$20 rebate on KrisShop purchases with a minimum spend of S$100 nett in a single transaction.” (I fortunately had kept a copy of the actual terms as proof). My spend fully met this condition. After making the purchase but before my rebate was credited, UOB (presumably at the behest of KF) unilaterally changed the qualifying spend to “S$100 nett… Read more »

Aspiring Miles Millionaire

Hi Aaron – on the “online shopping” qualifying spend, am I right in thinking that this must relate to “fashion” websites only falling within the merchant codes, rather than just general shops within the merchant codes (although hard to see how fashion falls into some of the merchant codes), so might exclude things like Amazon and Lazada? Reason being that the T&Cs define “Online Shopping Card Transactions” as those “Card Transaction(s) made at fashion websites that sells clothes, shoes, jewellery, accessories and bags as its main business activity including card-not-present transactions like ecommerce/mail/phone order transactions in local and foreign currencies,… Read more »

Aspiring Miles Millionaire

ok cheers!

AmazingCards

Wondering if the amaze card does “convert” the spending at offline retail shops to online for UOB KF card?

Jay Tee

I’m interested to know too about pairing Amaze and UOB KF. This is in the T&C: W.e.f. 1 March 2022, please be informed that transactions with transaction description “AMAZE* TRANSIT*” will be excluded from the awarding of KrisFlyer miles on the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card.

LOL

Clearly *TRANSIT* is there, don’t you see ? Only exclude MRT transaction through Amaze.

Mukkul

Isn’t the most important value of the UOB Deposit account that you get 5mpd on total annual card spend, if you maintain a balance of S$1000 per month? Seems like the best miles deal (if you can spend $800 on SIA stuff + maintain $1000 balance on trivial interest). But I may be missing something?? https://www.uob.com.sg/personal/krisflyer-uob/credit/account.html?i_cid=pfs:sg:owned:int:site:na:li:na:na:na-evergreen:direct:na&vid=none

Stan Adams

Is the UOB application process so pathetically slow? I applied more than 3 weeks ago and have heard nothing since.

Louie

I thought i was the only one… sigh.. I applied on 01 March and no card yet. 3 weeks later I received an SMS saying due to high volume of application, the review is delayed. hopefully i receive the card before 30APR so I can join the current pormo..

Vince

I applied for one last week, on Tuesday this week I got an SMS to say my application is successful. But nothing has happened since. I’m still waiting for an email or a physical letter with the credit card.

Ben

Can we earn 3mpd on hotels like marriott and hilton?

Fernando

I would like to know as well, especially if I link this card with Amaze. Thanks

Sherin

Hi for hotel wedding banquet, will it be considered as part of the spend or excluded? Thank you

Adrian

For the UOB Travel part, does it have to be with UOB Travel online booking only OR can it be via Phone/email booking as well?

Man

Hi,
For the minimum SIA group spend, in 2023 does everyone has the same to fulfill the min $800 regardless of your card membership year ending??
Thanks to confirm

Derek

So if i use the Amaze card (linked to kf uob credit card) on Kris+ at Harvey Norman does that mean i get for each dollar spent:

1.2 mpd for local spend
3 mpd for kris+ spend
1 mpd for Harvey Norman earn partner
3 mpd for online mcc 5732

For a total of 8.2mpd?

Richard

Does anyone know if bonus categories earn the 3mpd rate if the transaction is in foreign currency, or is it just local spend? For instance if I book SQ flights in USD or if I order online fashion in GBP will that earn the base 1.2mpd for FCY spend, or the 3mpd for bonus categories? Thanks

Jim

re “5309: Duty Free StoresDFS, KrisShop, The Shilla” , apparently when making payment online (so via ichangi) the mcc is “MCC 4582 – Airports, Airport Terminals, Flying Fields” which is not covered. It is only 5309 when making payment offline physically at the store, but then it’s not considered online transaction. Does that mean actually there is no way to get the 3 MPD at duty free stores using this card?

Jjj

You can use Amaze card to convert physical payments to an online transaction. It is mentioned in the article.

Jay

Is this sign up offer for new to UOB cards or for those who are new to UOB Krisflyer card?

ccc

Hi, do we earn 3mpd if we pair it with Amaze and spend on dining, be it in Singapore or overseas? Or does the 3mpd on dining can only be using the actual card itself?

Will

Hi Aaron, I’ve been going through your reviews on various cards such as this one, AMEX Plat, UOB VS, UOB Ladys, AMEX PPS, with the goal of identifying a card which can maximise earn rate on multiple sizeable single charges on SQ. For instance, if one had to purchase return SQ J fares SIN-LHR or SIN-EWR multiple times a year at S$8-10k per txn. Most of the 4-6mpd have caps which max out at 2-3k per month (with measly 0.4mpd thereafter), and out of the general spend cards it seems like the AMEX Plat Charge offers the best at 1.95… Read more »

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