Does the thought of going to Muji or Uniqlo for the upteenth time spark intense joy? Do you “stop by” your neighbourhood shopping mall on the way home every day, without fail? And do you have crazy strong biceps from all the huge shopping bags you carry?
If you answered “yes” to answer of these, you’re a confirmed shopaholic. High five!
But before you head to Orchard Road, make sure you also arm yourself with the best credit cards for shopping in Singapore. These let you earn air miles, rewards points, vouchers or cash rebates every time you swipe your plastic.
7 best credit cards for shopping in Singapore
| Credit card | Benefits for shopping |
| Citi Rewards Card | $1 = 4 miles at dept stores & fashion |
| OCBC Titanium Rewards Card | $1 = 4 miles at dept stores, fashion, electronics, kidswear |
| UOB Lady’s Card | $1 = 4 miles fashion / beauty & wellness |
| UOB Preferred Platinum Card | $1 = 4 miles on contactless payment |
| Amex True Cashback Card | 3% cashback on first 6 months up to $5,000 |
| Amex CapitaCard | 3% to 8% rebates at CapitaMalls, free parking |
| OCBC Robinsons Credit Card | 5% rebate at Robinsons, Zara, Marks & Spencer, Royal Sporting House |
Citibank Rewards Card
Card Benefits
- 10X Rewards (10 points or 4 Miles) for every S$1 spent on Shoes + Bags + Clothes at Online, Retail or Department stores, locally and overseas
- Enjoy discounts of up to 50% at Foodpanda, Lazada, Zalora, Reebonz, and more
- S$1 spent = 1 Rewards point (All other spend)
The Citi Rewards Card is one of the best rewards cards out there for shopaholics – you get 4 miles for every $1 spent on fashion (clothes, bags and shoes) and department stores, both locally and overseas. (I say miles, but you can also choose to convert your rewards points to vouchers or gifts if you don’t fancy flying.)
There’s pretty high monthly cap of 10,000 points per month, which equates to $1,000 spent. That’s probably a reasonable limit for most people unless you have a serious penchant for designer clothing.
See the full review of the Citibank Rewards Card here.
OCBC Titanium Rewards Card
Card Benefits
- Supports Department, Retail & Online stores
- 10x OCBC$ (10 points or 4 Miles) for every S$1 spent on clothes, shoes, bags, department stores, kidswear, electronic gadgets, online, offline, locally and overseas
- 2% Cash Rebate when you spend at BEST Denki, on top of the existing 10 OCBC$ (worth 4 Miles) OCBC Titanium Rewards Cardmembers earn on a usual basis. Valid till 31 Jan 2019
The OCBC Titanium Rewards Card is perfect for young couples and new parents, because it gives you 4 miles per $1 spent at IKEA, Courts, baby/kidswear stores, electronics stores and even Mustafa Centre(!) on top of the usual department stores and fashion.
As a bonus, you get the same rewards earn rate online on all the major e-commerce sites: Lazada, Amazon, Shopee, Taobao and EZbuy.
Go ahead and charge all your baby and new home expenses to this because there’s no monthly cap – there’s just an annual cap of 120,000 points. That’s good for up to $12,000 of spending.
UOB Lady’s Card
Card Benefits
- 5X UNI$ on your shopping (local & overseas)
- UOB Lady's LuxePay Plan: 6 or 12-month installment plan with no interest or processing fees
- Up to 10% SMART$ rebate at over 400 participating merchant outlets
The UOB Lady’s Card definitely one of the more cringe-worthy cards out there… but as of 2019, it’s become one of my top recommendations for women (yes, it’s only for women) in Singapore.
Instead of being prescriptive (and borderline sexist), UOB has cleverly decided to let users chose their own favourite category in which to get 20 miles per $5 (i.e. 4 miles per $1) spent. Wise move! Shoppers can choose either beauty & wellness, or fashion, depending on your weakness.
Note that you only get points for every $5 spent, so if you buy a $39.90 shirt at Uniqlo, you only earn points for $35.
Read the full review of the UOB Lady’s Card here.
UOB Preferred Platinum Visa Card
Card Benefits
- Enjoy 2% rebate at Metro, World of Sports and Winter Time
- Enjoy 3% rebate at bYSI, ColorWash, Crocodile, DHL, and Sephora
- Enjoy 5% rebate at Tissot
If you’re not a big spender, but your retail therapy takes the form of “little bits of random stuff” (impulse purchases from Miniso, for example), a better option would be the UOB Preferred Platinum Visa Card.
This card lets you earn 20 miles per $5 when you pay by contactless payment, as well as online shopping. Since Visa PayWave is widely accepted at tons of retailers, this card covers just about everything. Bonus points are capped at 2,000 per month (= $1,000 spent).
See the full review of the UOB Preferred Platinum Card here.
American Express True Cashback Card
Card Benefits
- MoneySmart Exclusive - Bonus S$80 Cash
- 1.5% Cashback on any purchase you make, anytime
- 3% Cashback for the first 6 months up to $5000 spend
- Eligible for use with Apple Pay
If you’re looking for cash rebates instead of miles or rewards points, yet are dismayed by how restrictive most cashback cards are, try the Amex True Cashback Card instead.
It’ll give you 3% cashback on up to $5,000 for the first 6 months, after which the rate goes down to 1.5%. Best of all, there’s no need to fuss over any sort of special spending categories – it’s 3% on EVERYTHING. There’s also no minimum spend, which is just as well – no one needs additional incentive to spend money.
See the full review of the Amex True Cashback Card here.
American Express CapitaCard
Card Benefits
- S$1 = 5 STAR$ on all spend
- S$1 = 15 STAR$ at CapitaLand Malls on eligible purchases
- All STAR$ earned are credited directly into your CAPITASTAR account, capped at S$1,200 per calendar month
- 5,000 STAR$ = S$5 CapitaVoucher / 10,000 STAR$ = S$10 CapitaVoucher / 50,000 STAR$ = S$50 CapitaVoucher
I’m not a fan of retailer-specific credit cards (like the DBS Takashimaya Card and Metro-UOB Card) but the Amex CapitaCard is an exception, because I think most Singaporeans spend a lot of time and money at CapitaMalls.
How does it work? Spend money at CapitaMalls on this card to earn CapitaMall vouchers, so that you can spend EVEN MORE at CapitaMalls! Obviously.
You’ll get the equivalent of a 3% rebate at most CapitaMalls merchants, except preferred “Star-Xtra” merchants which get you 8% rebate.
Also, spend at least $1,200 on this card a month and you get free parking for 3 hours at CapitaMalls all day, every day. Meaning you can keep on shopping and dining at CapitaMalls to your heart’s content.
OCBC Robinsons Credit Card
Card Benefits
- 10% cash rebate with purchases above $5,000 at Robinsons, Marks & Spencer
- 5% cash rebate for purchases below $5,000 at participating 19 retail brands including Robinsons, Marks & Spencer, Royal Sporting House, Golfhouse, Lacoste, Nautical, Speedo, Vans and Quiksilver
- Receive a 25% Robinsons bonus discount letter with min. spend $500 at Robinsons, Marks & Spencer
The OCBC Robinsons Card sounds really auntie, and, well, it is lah. But I think it’s a pretty good standby card to have around if you shop at Robinsons, Marks & Spencer, Zara or Royal Sporting House.
It gives you an instant 5% rebate at retailers under the Robinsons Group. The rebate is unlimited and there’s no minimum spend or any other conditions you have to meet.
Do you have any money-saving shopping habits or strategies? Share it with us in the comments below.
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Tags: Credit Cards, Shopping
