Review: OCBC 90°N Card

Here’s The MileLion’s review of the OCBC 90°N Card, the card that makes you wish that the standard QWERTY keyboard had a dedicated ° key.

OCBC was a relatively late entrant into the miles game, and when the bank finally unveiled a miles card of its own in 2015, it decided to take the premium route with the OCBC VOYAGE Card. It took a further four years before the mass-market OCBC 90°N Mastercard launched in August 2019, followed by the OCBC 90°N Visa in October 2021.

At launch the 90°N Cards had some sensational welcome offers (like an uncapped 4 mpd on overseas spending), and for a time, were wallet essentials. Sadly, however, they weren’t able to maintain that sort of momentum, and today they’re middling at best.

This is a card that could badly use a spark, and I don’t just mean the built-in LED. 

OCBC 90°N Card
🦁 MileLion Verdict
☐ Take It ☑Take It Or Leave It ☐ Leave It
What do these ratings mean?
The OCBC 90°N Card gets some things right, but poor transfer ratios and a lack of bonus categories make it hard to recommend.
👍 The good	👎 The bad
Choice of nine airline and hotel transfer partners Most transfers processed instantly 90°N Miles never expire Transfer blocks as small as 100 miles	S$5 earning blocks lead to lost miles from rounding No bonus spending categories Underwhelming transfer ratios for most partners except Flying Blue and KrisFlyer No lounge access No points pooling with non-90°N cards
💳 Full List of Credit Card Reviews

Overview: OCBC 90°N Card

Let’s start this review by looking at the key features of the OCBC 90°N Card.

Apply (Mastercard)
Apply (Visa)
Income Req.	S$30,000 p.a.	Points Validity	No expiry
Annual Fee	S$196.20 (FYF)	Min. Transfer	1,000 90°N Miles (1,000 miles)
Miles with Annual Fee	10,000	Transfer Partners	9
FCY Fee	3.25%	Transfer Fee	S$25*
Local Earn	1.3 mpd	Points Pool?	Yes
FCY Earn	2.1 mpd	Lounge Access?	No
Special Earn	7 mpd on Agoda	Airport Limo?	No
*Waived for all partners except KrisFlyer till 30 Sep 24
Cardholder Terms and Conditions

The OCBC 90°N Card is offered on both the Mastercard and Visa network. Historically, there were big differences between the two versions:

• the Visa had lower general spend rates, but enjoyed a bonus (insofar as 1.5 mpd can be called a bonus) on groceries, online food delivery and shopping
• the Mastercard had higher general spend rates, but lacked a bonus category

Both cards were harmonised in early 2023 and are now a single product, issued across two networks. Core benefits are identical, though OCBC is trying to nudge cardholders towards the Visa by running acquisition offers that aren’t available on the Mastercard (more on that below).

While initially issued on traditional horizontal cardstock, the 90°N Cards have now transitioned to the new portrait-style design that’s becoming increasingly common (portrait-style design supposedly allows for a smoother user experience, as it mimics how customers typically handle their cards when they tap to pay or dip the card into a chip reader).

And while we’re talking design, it would be amiss not to mention the so-unnecessary-yet-sort-of-cool LED light embedded in the °, that lights up upon making a contactless transaction.

I mean, come on. You have to applaud that on some level.

How much must I earn to qualify for an OCBC 90°N Card?

The OCBC 90°N Card has an annual income requirement of S$30,000 p.a., the MAS-mandated minimum to hold a credit card in Singapore.

If you earn below this threshold, it may be possible to get a secured version of the card with a S$10,000 fixed deposit. Contact OCBC customer service for further details. 

How much is the OCBC 90°N Card’s annual fee?

The OCBC 90°N Card has an annual fee of S$196.20 for the principal cardholder, and a S$98.10 fee per supplementary card. 

The first year’s fee is waived. Subsequent years’ fees are automatically waived if you spend at least S$10,000 in a membership year, though based on personal experience, you can get a fee waiver even if you spend less than this.

Cardholders will receive 10,000 miles every time they pay the principal card’s annual fee, which means buying miles at ~1.96 cents per mile.

They also have the option to upgrade their annual fee by paying an extra S$545, for which they’ll receive 22,000 miles (awarded as 90°N Miles). This represents a price of 2.48 cents per mile, which frankly speaking is way too expensive. You can buy miles for less through bill payment services like CardUp and Citi PayAll, so don’t waste your time here!

What welcome offers are available?

Applicants for the OCBC 90°N Visa have the choice of the following welcome gifts:

These gifts are only available for new-to-bank customers, defined as those who do not currently hold a principal OCBC credit card, and have not cancelled one within the past 12 months. 

Both offers are valid for applications submitted by 31 August 2024, but it is possible they’ll be further extended, so check the landing pages for more information. 

This offer is not available to applicants for the OCBC 90°N Mastercard.

How many miles do I earn?

SGD/FCY Spend

OCBC 90°N Cardholders earn:

• 6.5 90°N Miles for every S$5 spent in Singapore Dollars
• 10.5 90°N Miles for every S$5 spent in foreign currency (FCY)

1 90°N Mile is worth 1 KrisFlyer mile, so that’s an equivalent earn rate of 1.3 mpd for local spend, and 2.1 mpd for FCY spend.

While this is marginally better than most general spending cards at the S$30,000 income level, OCBC’s nasty rounding policy means you might be earning less than you think on smaller transactions (more on that below).

💳 Earn Rates for General Spending Cards (income req.: S$30K)
Cards	Local Spend	FCY Spend
UOB PRVI Miles	1.4 mpd	2.4 mpd
HSBC TravelOne Card	1.2 mpd	2.4 mpd
DBS Altitude	1.3 mpd	2.2 mpd
OCBC 90°N Card	1.3 mpd	2.1 mpd
Citi PremierMiles Card	1.2 mpd	2 mpd
StanChart Journey	1.2 mpd	2 mpd
AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend	1.2 mpd	2 mpd*
AMEX KrisFlyer Credit Card	1.1 mpd	2 mpd*
BOC Elite Miles	1 mpd	2 mpd
KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card	1.2 mpd	1.2 mpd
*In June and Dec only

All overseas transactions are subject to a 3.25% FCY fee. This means that using your OCBC 90°N Card overseas represents buying miles at 1.55 cents each.

Bonus Spend

Agoda x OCBC

OCBC 90°N Cardholders can earn bonus miles for Agoda hotel bookings made by 30 November 2024 and stayed by 31 December 2024:

• 7 mpd for foreign currency
• 6 mpd for Singapore Dollars

Bonus 90°N Miles will be credited to your account within two months of departure from the hotel.

Do note that bookings made through bank x OTA tie-ups like this can sometimes be more expensive than bookings made through the OTA site directly. I would strongly urge you to do comparison shopping to make sure you’re not paying over the odds.

When are 90°N Miles credited?

90°N Miles are credited when your transaction posts, which generally takes 1-3 working days. 

How are 90°N Miles calculated?

Here’s how you can work out the 90°N Miles earned on your OCBC 90°N Card.

Unfortunately, OCBC has joined UOB in adopting a punitive rounding policy that sees all transactions rounded down to the nearest S$5 before points are awarded. That means a S$14.90 transaction earns the same number of miles as a S$10 transaction, and a S$4.99 transaction earns no miles at all! 

You basically need to spend at least S$5 to earn any points at all on the OCBC 90°N Card, and because of this policy, the OCBC 90°N Card can be outperformed by a competitor card with a lower headline earn rate. Consider the following: 

	OCBC 90°N Card Earn rate: 1.3 mpd	Citi PremierMiles Earn rate: 1.2 mpd
S$5	7 miles	6 miles
S$9.99	7 miles	11 miles
S$15	20 miles	18 miles
S$19.99	20 miles	23 miles
S$25	33 miles	30 miles
S$29.99	33 miles	35 miles
S$35	46 miles	42 miles
S$39.99	46 miles	47 miles

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

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

• General Spending Cards
• Specialised Spending Cards

What transactions aren’t eligible for 90°N Miles?

A full list of transactions that do not earn 90°N Miles can be found in the T&Cs.

I’ve highlighted a few noteworthy categories below:

• Charitable Donations
• Education
• Government Services 
• Hospitals
• Insurance Premiums
• Prepaid Account Top-ups (e.g. GrabPay, YouTrip)
• Real Estate Agents & Managers
• SimplyGo (Bus/MRT transactions)
• Utilities

For avoidance of doubt, 90°N Miles will be awarded for CardUp transactions at a rate of 1.3 mpd. 

What do I need to know about 90°N Miles?

Expiry

90°N Miles earned on the OCBC 90°N Card do not expire, so long as the card remains valid.

Pooling

90°N Miles earned on the Mastercard and Visa versions of the OCBC 90°N Card pool together. However, 90°N Miles cannot be pooled with OCBC$ and VOYAGE Miles.

Truth be told, I really don’t understand why OCBC needs three different rewards currencies; life would be so much easier if they just stuck to one!

Partners and Transfer Fee

For the longest time, OCBC cardholders could only transfer points to KrisFlyer. However, after numerous delays, OCBC finally added eight new airline and hotel partners to its repertoire in mid-2023.

Frequent Flyer Programme	Conversion Ratio (90°N Miles : Miles)
	1,000 : 1,000
	1,000 : 1,000
	1,000 : 1,000
	1,000 : 1,000
	1,000 : 900
	1,000 : 900
	1,000 : 750
	1,000 : 700
	1,000 : 500

Unfortunately, the transfer ratios for the eight new partners leave a lot to be desired. 

I would at the very least have expected Asia Miles to enjoy the same conversion ratio as KrisFlyer. That’s the way it is for every other bank on the market, and it effectively eliminates Asia Miles as a viable transfer partner. After all, why on earth would you take a 25% haircut on the value of your OCBC points (and therefore your card spending rebate) when no other bank forces you to do that?

Likewise, it’s disappointing to see that there’s a 10% haircut for British Airways Executive Club and Etihad Guest, when Citibank and the HSBC TravelOne Card offer transfers to both at the same ratio as KrisFlyer. 

As for hotel partners, the ratios for IHG and Marriott Bonvoy aren’t that appealing when you factor in the opportunity cost- you’re basically forgoing 1 KrisFlyer mile (~1.5 SG cents) for every IHG (~0.5 US cents/0.67 SG cents) or Bonvoy (~0.7 US cents/0.94 SG cents)

What about Accor? This is an easier comparison since Accor works like a cashback programme where 2,000 points = €40. This implies an opportunity cost of 1.5 SG cents per KrisFlyer mile, which is marginal, really. I would only consider it if Accor brings back one of its conversion bonuses.

As for conversion blocks:

• Transfers to KrisFlyer must be in blocks of 1,000 90°N Miles
• Transfers for all other programmes must be a minimum of 1,000 90°N Miles, but subsequent conversions can be in blocks of 100 90°N Miles (e.g. you could transfer 1,200 or 5,900 miles)

The OCBC 90°N Card used to offer free points conversions, but this was nerfed in February 2023 and a S$25 fee now applies across the board. This fee is waived for all programmes (except KrisFlyer) until 30 September 2024.

Transfer Times

OCBC splits its partners across two different platforms:

• Transfers for KrisFlyer miles are done via the OCBC Rewards portal, and are usually processed within 24 hours

• Transfers for the other programmes are done via the STACK Rewards portal, under the Points Exchange tab. Transfers should be more or less instantaneous, because they’re powered by Ascenda Loyalty which has a direct API linkage with the airlines. 

Other card perks

1.5-2% fee with CardUp

OCBC 90°N Cardholders can enjoy a discounted admin fee of 1.5% (new) or 2% (existing) with CardUp, which reduces the cost per mile to as low as 1.14 cents apiece.

Card	Earn Rate	Cost Per Mile (1.5% fee)	Cost Per Mile (2% fee)
OCBC 90°N Visa/MC	1.3	1.14¢	1.51¢

New CardUp users (defined as those who have yet to make a first payment on the platform) can use the code OCBC90N15 to enjoy a 1.5% admin fee on their first payment of any kind. 

The payment must be scheduled on CardUp by 31 December 2024, 6 p.m (SGT), with a due date on or before 6 January 2025. No minimum payment is required, but the maximum payment you can make is S$10,000. Any amount in excess of S$10,000 will be charged at the prevailing fee of 2.6%. 

The code can be used either on a one-off payment, or the first payment of a recurring series.

Existing CardUp users can use the code OCBC90NV (for 90°N Visa) or OCBC90NMC (for 90°N Mastercard) to enjoy a 2% admin fee on any CardUp payment.

The payment must be scheduled on CardUp by 31 December 2024, 6 p.m (SGT), with a due date on or before 6 January 2025. No minimum payment is required, but the maximum payment you can make per month is S$10,000. Any amount in excess of S$10,000 will be charged at the prevailing fee of 2.6%. 

The code can be used either on a one-off payment, or the first payment of a recurring series. There is no limit on the number of times each account can use this code (though remember, you’re capped at S$10,000 per month). 

Bonus interest with OCBC 360 account

OCBC 90°N Cardholders who spend at least S$500 per month on their card will be eligible for a bonus 0.6% p.a. on the first S$100,000 in an OCBC 360 Account.

Assuming you keep the full S$100,000 inside, that works out to an extra S$600 interest per year- though you will need to consider the opportunity cost of the miles foregone by spending on the 90°N instead of on higher earning cards. 

Travel with OCBC portal

Travel with OCBC

OCBC 90°N Cardholders can use their 90°N Miles to pay for airfare and hotel bookings on the Travel with OCBC portal at the following rates:

This used to be much better in the past, where you could get up to 2.88 cents per 90°N Mile on First Class fares. Unfortunately, that valuation was nerfed, and while 1.45 cents per 90°N Mile might make sense in certain circumstances, it’s not something I’d heartily endorse.

Flexiroam package

OCBC 90N Mastercard Cardholders will enjoy a complimentary 3x 1 GB 5-day Flexiroam Data Plan once per calendar year. This provides mobile data in more than 200 countries, with both regular SIM and eSIM options available. 

For redemption steps, refer to this guide. 

Summary Review: OCBC 90°N Card

Apply (Mastercard)

Apply (Visa)

🦁 MileLion Verdict

☐ Take It ☑Take It Or Leave It ☐ Leave It

The OCBC 90°N Card launched with some really fantastic offers: an uncapped 4 mpd on foreign currency spending, 4 mpd on Singapore Airlines, Scoot, Air Asia and Jetstar bookings, 8 mpd on Airbnb, and there was even a time where you could buy Business Class tickets to Europe from just S$1,000 before Travel with OCBC got nerfed!

But it’s not reached the same heights ever since. Even though the 1.3/2.1 mpd earn rates are slightly above average, the annoying S$5 earning blocks offset the advantage on smaller transactions. Likewise, non-expiring points are great, but free transfers to KrisFlyer are no longer offered, and while there’s transfer partner variety, the conversion ratios come pre-nerfed for most programmes.

If you’re in the market for a general spending card, I’d reckon the Citi PremierMiles Card or HSBC TravelOne Card have a lot more to give, with better welcome offers, lounge access, and more transfer partners. So it’s just very hard to make the case for the 90°N Card, unless you really like the light-up feature.