So many options in the world, so many different types of credit cards. How would you know which one to choose? How do we weigh the pros and cons of a rewards credit card over cashback? It’s quite simple; it boils down to where you spend your money on.
You might be wondering as you sit there, comparing the many credit cards on sites like CompareHero, which credit card do I apply for? The gifts of luggage bags, vacuum cleaners, smartwatches and so on all tempt you too, but to which do you click "Apply"?
It’s almost too easy to overlook rewards credit cards like Standard Chartered’s Visa Platinum with promises of cashback and air miles (for frequent flyers), but it all comes down to where you spend most of your money on.
You dine out often
A rewards credit card will reward (pun intended) you more benefits if you’re dining out more often than you’re buying groceries. For example, Standard Chartered’s Visa Platinum has one of the highest multipliers for earning points when you’re dining out: You will earn 5X of points! Imagine that you’ve spent up to RM600 on dining in a single month, you will have earned at least 3000 rewards points!
Departmental stores are your go-to for shopping
Picking out some clothes for yourself, toys for the kids, towels for the bathroom, the occasional perfume – departmental stores make shopping convenient and with a rewards credit card, you can earn rewards points with every single purchase! While you may still be able to earn points shopping in other stores, you will get higher multipliers for your points in a departmental store.
You travel to shop
Nothing like taking a plane over to your favourite destination and going on a shopping spree, isn’t it?
An Air Miles card is limited to flight-related rewards with its Air Miles when purchasing flight tickets and shopping overseas, and a cashback card don’t usually offer cashback for shopping overseas either. A rewards credit card, however, will give you points for every spending done overseas, and you’ll even earn 5X the points with the Standard Chartered Visa Platinum card!
Groceries and petrol are low priorities
If you hardly buy groceries and pay for petrol, and instead spend more for other things like shopping, a rewards card would earn you better rewards. If you must buy groceries and pay for petrol occasionally, a rewards card can still earn you rewards points, but at a much lower rate compared to dining or shopping.
Earn bonus points when you spend above RM1,500
If you’re spending more than RM1,500 with Standard Chartered’s Visa Platinum credit card, you’ll be rewarded extra 5,000 bonus points every month! Not to mention that if you’ve applied for the card and are one of 250 persons to spend RM2,000 within 60 days of your approval date, you’ll receive a RM500 Grab voucher too.
When you apply for the Standard Chartered Visa Platinum rewards card in the month of February, and activate it, you’ll be able to get a FREE pair of Sony Wireless Headphones.