Am I getting the best deal for earning Singapore Air Krisflyer points?

daoople on 27/02/2014 - 07:54

I want to know if anyone has a better deal for earning SIA Krisflyer points, and if so, how are they doing it?

I'm currently using a Westpac Singapore Airlines Krisflyer Platinum card which gives:
1.5 Krisflyers mile per $1 spent on the Amex
0.5 Krisflyers mile per $1 spent on the Visa

My primary travel is generally between Melbourne and Hong Kong (I don't mind the stopover).

To redeem a flight, any time of the year, a round trip is 50000 points. If you book online, you get a 15% discount, so you only require 42500 points. Both Qantas and Virgin (to my knowledge), is 60000pts with no online booking discount.

So to get 42500 Krisflyer points, assuming I put 70% of transactions on Amex, 30% on Visa, not using the x2 bonus of booking flights on singaporeair.com:
$35450 would mean:
10635 - spent on the visa = 5317 Krisflyer miles
24815 - spent on the Amex = 37222 Krisflyer miles

Total: 42539 points

Has anyone else got a better deal? Even if it's just using the Amex card to convert to Krisflyer points? I'm really interested to know what the cash spent amount equates to in Krisflyer miles (after converting from cash -> card points -> miles).

I'm not interested in cashing in on other stuff, like gift cards, goods and the like. Ozbargain is way better! Also, I know I'm paying a $250/yr annual fee for this (actually, I've negotated it to half each year for the past few years), but I'm interested to know what card/method you're using despite the fee.

Travel

Comments

  • tonester on 27/02/2014 - 10:46

    free-for-life citibank signature visa
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/123330

    1.5 or 4 citibank rewards points per $1 spent (1.5 domestic, 4 overseas) => 1.5 citi pts = 1 krisflyer mile

    ie. 1 or 2.67 krisflyer miles per $1 spent

  • tristanium on 09/10/2015 - 11:24

    I use Westpac Altitude Black & AMEX Plat Edge. I redeem all my points for Krisflyers as well.
    Altitude BLack:
    Per dollar on MCard = 1.25 Card points = 0.625 Kris, per dollar on AMEX = 3.0 card points = 1.5 Kris
    So slightly higher earn rate than the Westpac SA Kris Plat card you are using..
    Using your example of $10,635 spend on MCard = 6,647 Kris points. Same earn on AMEX - total 43,970 - about 3% more (not a lot in it though)
    I dont know what the fees for your card are, but the Black is fairly exxy (but comes with other benefits)
    AMEX PLat edge:
    I only use this one for supermarkets and petrol stations - as you (generally*) get 3 points per $ at coles/woolies/IGA, and 2/$ for fuel. This is both card points and Krisflyers (converts 1:1). This card also comes with free a domestic flight per year (economy Virgin). Have a look at the pointhacks guide for more info if you are interested..
    *sometimes there are promos and cashback offers available too which change from time to time

    I understand the Westpac Singapore Krisflyer card is one of the best for ATO spend (if you are self employed or have a company) but is no longer offered for new customers. This may have changed though as they tighten the screws on ATO spend.

  • daoople on 05/11/2015 - 23:48

    Just an update to this, I have just seen that for Citibank:
    For purchases in AU on Visa:
    $1 -> 1.5 Citi points -> 0.75 Krisflyer points. I originally thought it was 1 point (as above), but it must have changed as I'm not able to cash in at a rate of 0.66 (it is only 0.5).

    @tristanium, my fees are:
    Citibank Signature: $0
    Westpac Krisflyer $125 (was $250, but I keep calling each year and keep asking them to halve it and they do). I am disappointed that the card is not longer available as I think the Amex conversation to Krisflyer points is fantastic.

  • daoople on 09/04/2016 - 21:06

    Ok, so it's April 2016 and I have found a few things:
    1. From: http://www.ausbt.com.au/the-top-five-credit-cards-for-singap…

    There is the: https://www.americanexpress.com/au/content/business-credit-c…

    Which is 2pts=2miles/$. Drawbacks: $160/yr and not much else. But the earning rate is nice!

    1. There is also the Amex Platinum Edge card too which has an introductory offer and additional points with a secondary card, free travel insurance, free flight, and free first year:
      https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/242118

    There was also a deal with additional points if you add a secondary card to the Amex Platinum, but I can't find that link. The drawbacks are the bad earning rate for shops that are not mainstream (i.e not supermarkets/fuel stations). So even at Costco (and other shops that accept amex), you are getting 1pt=1mile/$.

    Has anyone weighed up these two cards? I know I'm almost 100% going to discontinue my Westpac card and take up one of these two. It's just a matter of which one.

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