Premium credit cards come with all the perks and benefits of regular credit cards, plus a few extra bells and whistles. Designed especially for affluent Singaporeans who make at least S$120,000 a year, they naturally also come with hefty annual fees.
Premium credit cards are certainly more exclusive and offer a plethora of lifestyle, dining and travel perks all year round. So if you’re a high-income earner, or are aspiring to be one, here’s what you can look forward to if you’re planning to get a premium credit card.
Perks for Premium Cards
Miles
Though many cards can earn miles at competitive rates, premium cards often separate themselves from the pack by not having an expiry date on the miles that you earn. This allows you to spend more time accruing miles for a bigger reward, rather than being forced to spend them as they are about to expire lest they lose their value.
Travel Benefits
Many premium cards are geared towards overseas spend, and therefore come with travel benefits and perks to complement this preference for overseas spending. Some of these benefits can include free travel insurance, priority passes, lounge access, and even free hotel nights.
Lifestyle Privileges
Premium cards also can come with lifestyle privileges, such as dining, retail, golfing benefits, and more. These may come in the form of discounts with specific brands, green fees, spa privileges and dining benefits.
Exclusive Benefits
There are yet other cards that provide exclusive benefits that can’t be found elsewhere. These can include anything from exclusive dining invites to exclusive memberships at hotels and airlines.
Disadvantages of Premium Cards
Such luxurious benefits and perks do come with a downside, though. Most, if not all, premium cards come with a hefty annual fee. Though some cards do allow a waiver of this payment, there are usually rather high minimum spend conditions attached to that waiver. Another condition that may be difficult to meet is if the card in question has a minimum spend to access some of the more exclusive benefits. In such cases, if you are unable to consistently meet the spending requirement of your card, its remaining benefits may not be worth the annual fee. In the same vein, another requirement that these cards often have is a minimum income requirement, which some individuals may find prohibitive.
Premium Cards to Consider
The DBS Altitude Visa Card is by far the cheapest card here, with its S$192.60 annual fee. You are able to waive this fee and earn 10,000 bonus miles with S$25,000 annual spend on the card. Despite this modest fee and spend requirement, the DBS Altitude Visa Card provides some top-of-the-line luxury perks, including travel insurance, two lounge visits, as well as golfing and dining privileges. Alongside the perks, the DBS Altitude Visa Card earns you 1.2 miles per dollar for local spend, 2 for overseas spend, and 3 miles per dollar for online shopping, flights and hotels. Furthermore, miles earned on this card never expire. The DBS Altitude Visa Card is therefore one of the most accessible ways to access luxury benefits from a credit card.
Citibank’s Citi Prestige MasterCard provides a host of travel benefits and privileges, making it an excellent choice for the affluent traveller. Its best features include unlimited lounge access, travel insurance, and free hotel nights. It also offers 1.3 or 2 miles per S$1 spent locally or overseas, respectively. Additionally, these miles do not expire. Alongside the travel perks, this card also offers six complimentary golf games at courses across Asia, at participating golf courses in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and China. However, these fantastic perks and benefits come at a cost, that cost being a substantial S$535 annual fee that cannot be waived, as well as a S$120,000 minimum annual income requirements.
The Standard Charted Visa Infinite X standout feature is its 30,000 miles signup bonus. Alongside that, the card offers complimentary travel insurance, as well as 2 visits to priority pass lounges. This card earns 1.2 and 2 miles per S$1 local and overseas spend, respectively. It also has a S$695.50 annual fee, without a waiver, as well as an S$80,000 minimum income requirement.
The OCBC Voyage card offers an alternative to other more travel-oriented luxury cards for affluent Singaporeans who prefer to spend locally. It allows cardholders to accrue miles over a long period, as the miles earned by this card do not expire. The OCBC Voyage card earns miles at a rate of 2.2 miles per S$1 for overseas spend, and 1.2 miles per S$1 for local spend. This rate is much better for local spending compared to competing cards (which are much more favourable towards overseas spending), making this card much more attractive to local spenders. In addition to the good miles-earning rate for local spend, this card also offers transport benefits such as up to 19% discount at Caltex and lifestyle benefits including two complimentary limo transfers/month with a minimum spend of S$5000, as well as eCommerce purchase protection. This card is no slouch when it comes to travel privileges either, offering unlimited lounge access and VISA Infinite Exclusive Benefits. Unfortunately, there are a few barriers to entry: a S$488 annual fee that cannot be waived, as well as a S$120,000 minimum annual income requirements.
The AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend card is an alternative for local spenders, particularly for those who prefer flying with SIA. This card allows you to spend and accrue miles locally, but still have access to luxury perks when you travel overseas. With a miles rate of 1.2 miles per S$1 general local spend that can be boosted with 3.2 miles when spending with Grab, Deliveroo, Food Panda, McDonald’s, Starbucks and more, this card allows you to quickly accrue miles while spending at home. When travelling, the miles rate is increased to 2 miles per S$1 with SIA brands. This card also comes with several travel benefits, a free hotel night and four lounge visits per year, as well as travel insurance. The most unique benefit from the AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Card, however, is its exclusive to Hilton Honours Silver and KrisFlyer Elite Gold status. This extensive list of perks comes with a fairly modest annual fee of S$337.05 and an income requirement at S$50,000 for citizens and PRs, and S$60,000 for foreigners. The income requirements are low compared to other cards in the market, making the AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend card extremely competitive for SIA loyalists.
The AMEX Platinum Card is a card specifically targeted at affluent Singaporeans who spend a lot on dining and shopping. While general spending earns a low miles rate at just 0.69 miles per S$1 spend, the rate is boosted to 3.44 miles per S$1 spend with Platinum EXTRA Partners, most of these being designer watch, jewellery, fashion and auto brands. The AMEX Platinum Card also stands out for its exclusive perks at high-end spas, APAC, Singaporean bars, restaurants, hotel buffets and more. These shopping benefits make this card an attractive offer for affluent Singaporeans, despite the S$321 annual fee with no waiver option and its S$80,000 income requirements.
The Maybank World MasterCard is the best miles-earning golf card on the market. Cardholders receive two green fees/month at 100 fairways across 19 countries. The mile rates are good too, at 4 miles per S$1 on dining and retail at select merchants. Furthermore, this card’s S$240 annual fee can be waived with an annual spend of S$24,000.
DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card
The DBS Vantage Visa Infinite Card is a card that provides an enormous amount of value to the cardholder. First of all, it comes with a complimentary Accor Plus Explorer Membership, which includes a free night’s stay at over a thousand restaurants and 50% off at more than 1,400 restaurants. On top of that, you will receive 12,500 renewable DBS points when you pay the annual fee for this card. These rewards amount to S$783 in value, well above the S$550 annual fee for the card. The annual fee can also be waived with a S$60,000 annual spend. In addition, this card also provides complimentary and discounted lifestyle perks, as well as Priority Pass privileges and Dining City collaboration deals.
Conclusion
In all, premium credit cards not only provide you with access to better miles rate bonuses for specific purchases but also often provide exclusive bonuses to affluent spenders. So whether you are a frequent traveller or enjoy indulging in shopping and dining, there’s sure to be a premium card suitable for you.
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