Best Air Miles Credit Card in Malaysia - Compare fees, benefits and eligibility to find out which card is best for you

Looking for the best air miles credit card in Malaysia? This guide is for you. There are plenty of good air miles cards in Malaysia, from a selection of different banks. This guide introduces 5 top picks.

It’s good to know that if you’re looking for the best card for overseas spending in Malaysia, you may actually be better off leaving the credit card at home entirely. Using a credit card overseas can mean extra fees - so as a bonus we’ve also included a quick look at the Wise card - an international debit card which offers overseas spending with mid-market rates and no foreign transaction fee to worry about¹.

What to consider when choosing an airline miles credit card in Malaysia?

Most Malaysian air miles cards have their own reward point system, and then allow conversion to airline miles alongside other options like redeeming points for gifts or as cash back. Other cards allow you to earn specific airline miles directly. This guide looks at different options so you can weigh up the best one for you.

Earning bank miles/points for conversion to airline miles

Picking the best miles credit card in Malaysia will need a bit of research. Different cards work in their own way in terms of earning and converting or redeeming rewards, so you’ll need to pick the card that offers best value for your specific situation. Let’s take a look at 5 of the best air miles credit cards in Malaysia to give you a flavour of your options. We’ll start with cards which let you earn bank rewards which you can then convert to miles - or something else if you spot an alternative you prefer:

HSBC TravelOne

The HSBC TravelOne credit card² lets you redeem points with 15+ partner airlines, at varied redemption rates based on the specific airline selected

This card option allows you to earn reward points more quickly when you spend overseas - but you’ll also pay a 1% foreign transaction fee which does push up your costs overall. Point earning rates run from 1x to 5x on local spending, and 8x on foreign currency spend - you can redeem points for airmiles with popular airlines including Air Asia, Malaysian Airlines, British Airways and Singapore Airlines. Redemption rates can vary quite significantly depending on the airline selected.

UOB PRVI Miles

UOB partners with multiple airlines to offer miles redemption - with the UOB PRVI Miles credit card⁵ you can redeem UNIRinggit points with options including Air Asia, Malaysian Airlines and Singapore Airlines

With this card you’ll earn extra rewards on travel and overseas spending, which you can then collect and convert to airmiles with several popular local airlines. There’s an extra foreign transaction fee to pay when spending in foreign currencies, which means that although you earn more, you’ll also pay more when spending while you’re abroad. Redemption for miles is offered online, but you’ll need to amass at least 12,000 UNIRinggit points before you can redeem them for airmiles.

Standard Chartered Journey

With the Standard Chartered Journey card⁸ you can redeem your SC points at the rate of one air mile for 2 reward points, with a selection of partner airlines

You’ll be able to earn 5x rewards on categories including foreign currency spending, dining and travel - but it’s useful to note that you’ll pay an additional 1% foreign transaction fee if you use this card for overseas spending. You’ll need to factor in this extra fee when you decide if this is the right card for your needs.

👀 Looking for a travel card to maximise your overseas spending? See how Wise compares with other multi-currency cards like BigPay and MAE in Malaysia.

💳 Click here to order a Wise card

Earning airline miles directly

If you’re looking for the best miles credit card in Malaysia and don’t want the hassle of converting bank reward points to miles, you can also choose a card which earns air miles directly. This limits your choices on redemption as you won’t be able to elect to redeem your rewards for other things - but can be more convenient if you’re specifically looking to boost your miles. Here are a couple of good local options:

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer American Express Platinum

Earn KrisFlyer miles to spend on flights with SIA with the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer American Express Platinum⁹

This card offers some strong benefits including extra miles on overseas and online spending. Bear in mind that overseas spending also incurs a fee of 2.5% which pushes up the costs overall. Other perks include dining privileges and airport lounge access, making this a good card for travellers looking for varied lifestyle benefits.

HLB Visa Infinite

There’s no annual fee for the HLB Visa Infinite card¹¹, but you will need to have a high minimum income - points earned can be automatically converted to Enrich Miles for Malaysia Airlines

You’ll earn points which you can convert automatically to 1 Enrich Mile for every 3.5 MYR on local spend, or every 2.2 MYR on international spend, with no annual fee to worry about. One downside of this card is that the minimum income is on the high side at 150,000 MYR a year - the foreign transaction fee is also pretty steep at 2%. This fee is added to all overseas spending which pushes up costs.

What else to look out for when choosing a credit card?

Getting air miles directly or through point conversion can be a great perk which helps you get cheaper trips away in future. However it’s worth giving a bit of thought to the following points before you decide which card is right for you:

• Eligibility - double check you meet the income requirements and can provide all the necessary documentation
• Annual fees - these vary a lot between cards, and can be pretty high
• Interest costs - which usually vary depending on how promptly you repay
• Additional benefits - as well as air miles some cards offer extras like lounge access, cash back or discounts for example
• Other card transaction fees - extra costs can apply, particularly foreign transaction fees which are added whenever you spend abroad - you may be able to save on foreign transaction costs with an international debit card instead

Travelling soon? Bring along the Wise card to maximise your foreign currency transactions

Using an air miles credit card is a good way to get rewarded as you spend, with miles you can redeem against future trips. But foreign transaction fees and cash advance costs can mean that spending overseas with a credit card costs you more.

Try a Wise card instead, to make spending in foreign currencies seamless, secure and cheap.

Hold and exchange 40+ currencies in your Wise digital account, with no foreign transaction fee to worry about. All currency conversion uses the mid-market rate, with low fees from 0.43%. You can also get some free ATM withdrawals every month to make it easier and cheaper to get cash while you’re away from home. Just top up in MYR and you’re ready to spend globally.

💳 Order your very own Wise card

Using a credit card to earn air miles as you spend can mean you cut the costs of flights in future. But spending abroad with your credit card might cost you extra. Keep your credit card in your pocket next time you’re away, and choose a Wise card instead, to save on currency exchange while you’re away.