In the right hands, credit cards can be a source of tons of freebies. I especially love cash back credit cards since you get back a bit of the money you spend, and who doesn’t love money, amiright?
If you’re an auntie, however, the thing that really pushes you to apply for a new card could be the sign up bonus of a free suitcase. To each his own.
Here are some of the best credit card sign up bonuses the banks are dangling right now… even if you don’t end up using the card, there’s no harm collecting these goodies.
Cashback
HSBC Visa Platinum Card and HSBC’s Revolution Card
- Cash Back on Dining, Groceries, Petrol
- 5%
- Cash Back Cap per quarter
- S$250
- Min. Spend per month, per quarter
- S$600
- Rewards
- S$1= 10 Points
- Rewards
- S$1= 4 Miles
- Min. Spend
- S$0
There’s no better time to be a HSBC credit card holder. Sign up for the HSBC Visa Platinum Credit Card or HSBC’s Revolution Card and you could earn up to $180 cash back. You must spend at least $300 a month within the first three months to qualify. Just like that!
Here’s how it works: If you’re new to HSBC credit cards – that is, you’ve not got an existing HSBC credit card and you didn’t cancel any HSBC credit cards in the past 12 months – you qualify for $140 cash back. If you’re an existing HSBC cardholder – that is, you’ve had your HSBC credit card for at least 2 years and you haven’t cancelled any HSBC credit cards in the past 12 months – you qualify for $60 cash back.
If you also apply for one or more Supplementary Cards, you get an additional $20 cash back, and if you apply online (and agree to receive direct marketing and promotions from HSBC by indicating on the Letter of Instruction), you also get an extra $20 cash back.
The above offer is valid till 30 April 2017. If you’re interested in the HSBC Visa Platinum Card, click to apply here. If you’re interested in HSBC’s Revolution Card instead, click to apply here.
Citi Cash Back Card
- Cash Back on Dining, Groceries & Petrol
- 8%
- Cash Back Cap per category, per month
- S$25
- Min. Spend per month
- S$888
From now till 30 April 2017, apply for a Citi Cash Back Card through MoneySmart and receive a $150 Qoo10 Gift Card. This is only valid for new Citibank cardmembers, so if you already have a Citibank credit card, tough luck.
If you used to have a Citibank credit card but cancelled it, you are eligible if the termination of your card happened more than 12 months ago.
Of course, there’s a catch. Not only do you have to apply online through MoneySmart, you’ll also have to charge $150 to the card within 30 days of approval. The $150 Qoo10 Gift Card will be given to you within 8 weeks after you’ve charged $150.
If you are interested in the Citi Cash Back Card, click to apply here.
Air miles
Citibank PremierMiles Visa Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = Up to 1.2 Miles
- All Foreign Currency Spend including Retail and Online
- S$1 = 2 Miles
- Selected Online Hotel Bookings
- S$1 = Up to 10 Miles
This card offers one of the more generous freebies out there. You get up to 42,000 Citi Miles when you apply and manage to spend the requisite amount.
Here’s how it works: So long as you use your card within the first 3 months, you get 15,000 miles. If you manage to spend $10,000 within the first 3 months, you get an additional 15,000 miles. If this $10,000 was spent locally, you get an additional 12,000 miles, since you’re supposed to get 1.2 miles per S$1 anyway.
If you’re an existing Citibank card holder, you’ll have to pay the annual fee of $192.60, otherwise the fee gets waived for a year.
The offer is valid till 31 March 2017. If you are interested in the Citibank PremierMiles Visa Card, click to apply here.
American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Credit Card
- Local Spend
- S$1 = 1.1 Miles
- Overseas Spend
- S$1 = 2 Miles
- Grab rides
- S$1 = 3.1 Miles
If you’re a KrisFlyer member, it’s a good idea to sign up for this card, since you get a bonus of 5,000 KrisFlyer miles the minute you make your first transaction with the card.
If you spend $700 in the first 6 months upon card approval, you receive an additional 3,000 Krisflyer miles.
If you are interested in the American Express Singapore Airlines Krisflyer Card, click to apply here.
Standard Chartered Visa Infinite Credit Card
Choose between receiving 35,000 miles OR 25,000 miles + $100 Uber credits when you apply for this card. Now that’s a hell of a lot of miles.
The catch is that you have to pay the annual fee of $588.50. This might sound hefty, but when you consider that 35,000 KrisFlyer miles can get you a one way ticket to Europe or the West Coast of the USA, or a return ticket to Beijing and Shanghai on Singapore Airlines, it doesn’t sound that bad of a deal. The offer is valid till 31 December 2017.
Freebies
American Express Platinum Credit Card
- at participating Platinum EXTRA Partners
- S$1.60 = 10 Points
- on All Other Spend
- S$1.60 = 2X Points
- Rewards to Miles Conversion
- 1 Point = 0.55 Miles
How many freebies do you think you deserve for signing up for a credit card? One? Two? How about three? Apply for an American Express Platinum Credit Card and you can get a Philips 32″ Slim LED worth $529, a B&O Play H5 worth $379 and a Samsonite Sigma 76cm Expandable Spinner worth $600.
Okay, now take your jaw off the floor. Here’s the catch: For the Philips LED, you need to pay the first year annual fee of $321. For the B&O Play H5, you need to spend $5,000 within the first 6 months of card approval. And for the Samsonite luggage, you need to spend an addition $2,500 within the same 6 months.
But if you don’t think you’re up for those three freebies, you can opt instead for the first year annual fee waiver offer and get a Samsonite Armet Spinner 57cm worth $380 if you spend $7,500 within the first 6 months.
The promotion ends on 31 March 2017. If you are interested in the American Express Platinum Credit Card, click to apply here.
Are you planning to sign up for any of the above credit cards? Tell us which ones in the comments!