Stacking Chope, Mileslife and the right Credit Card for Maximum Miles and Cashback on Dining

Using the right credit card that will earn you a lot of miles which you can then redeem for free flights is infinitely satisfying. While the HSBC Advance Platinum Visa Credit Card no longer offers 4 miles per dollar (it now offers up to 3.5% cashback) on local dining spend, there are various ways you can still earn a decent amount of miles when you use the right card and double-dip (or even triple-dip) with a number of other promotions! One easy way to do so in Singapore is to combine the use of Chope, Mileslife and the right credit card.

Make Reservation for Free, Earn Chope-Dollars

Albeit necessary, dining out can be an expensive affair and this is especially so for diners who prefer to go to fine dining establishments. As I have advocated before, Chope is a great way to make restaurant reservations (even outside of Singapore!) and at the same time be rewarded for simply going to a place that you were already intending to go. Click HERE to sign-up for Chope and you will automatically receive a S$10 dining voucher for completing your very first reservation. Subsequently, you will be able to earn at least 100 Chope-Dollars (equivalent to S$3) per fulfilled reservation. These Chope-Dollars can then be exchanged for a Chope gift card, restaurant vouchers or even Capitaland Vouchers. Once again, there is no cost in doing so and it would be unwise not to. 

Photo Credit: Mileslife

Supercharge Your Miles with Mileslife

As mentioned previously, Mileslife has recently soft-launched in Singapore and is currently offering up to 9 miles per dollar on top of your credit card points at participating restaurants. While the list is quite small at the moment (especially considering how it is not officially launched yet), it is expected to grow significantly over time. If you are spending up to S$2,000 each month on dining, you can earn up to 18,000 miles (there is no cap to the number of miles you can earn) every month - this will take you from Singapore to Bali on Singapore Airlines Business Class for free and with some miles to spare. 

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Getting the Right Credit Card for Dining

The best cards for dining right now is probably the UOB Preferred Platinum American Express (which you probably cannot apply for anymore as it has been discontinued), Maybank Horizon Visa Signature Card or the OCBC VOYAGE Card (which has just gotten some improved benefits!). 

Trilogy of Miles Earning from Dining (Chope + Mileslife + Credit Card)

While this method of earning does not apply to every single restaurant and to be honest, there is probably only a few restaurants that offer such an opportunity right now, you could essentially be turning every single dining moment into a miles-generating factory. Let's take Cassia at the Capella Singapore for example - Mileslife is currently offering an earn rate of SGD 1 to 3 Miles at this restaurant. In addition to that, it is also offering a triple miles promotion until 20 June 2017 which means that you could be walking away with 9 miles per dollar on top of what you would typically earn with you credit card. Since Cassia is located within the Capella Singapore and most probably does not have a dining or F&B merchant category code, your dining credit cards will probably not earn you 4 miles per dollar here - you are best off with a general spend card like the ANZ Travel Visa Signature Credit Card or any one of the UOB PRVI Miles credit cards.

For the sake of comparison, let's assume a S$1,000 (before GST and service charge) bill at Cassia. 

Methods	Credit Card	Mileslife	Chope
Regular Method	Spend Amount: S$1,000++ Best Case Scenario: 4,700 Miles (UOB Preferred Platinum AmEx) Worst Case Scenario: 1,645 Miles (UOB PRVI Miles Card)	-	-
Combination Method	Spend Amount: S$1,000++ Best Case Scenario: 4,700 Miles (DBS Woman's World MasterCard) Worst Case Scenario: 1,645 Miles (UOB PRVI Miles Card)	Spend Amount: S$1,000++ Mileslife Base: 3,000 Miles Triple Miles Bonus: 6,000 Miles	Spend Amount: N/A Best Case Scenario: 400 Chope-Dollars (S$12) Worst Case Scenario: 100 Chope-Dollars (S$3)

The best possible scenario with a regular method where you go into the restaurant and pay for your bill using the right credit card is 4,700 miles (assuming that Cassia does indeed have an F&B MCC which I personally doubt it). Using the combination method however, you could be walking away with 13,700 miles instead with even enough Chope-Dollars to exchange for a restaurant voucher in future. Here are some caveats you probably need to know: 

• The MCC for Mileslife is currently listed as 'Professional Services' which means your DBS WMC will not give you 4 miles per dollar. This is expected to change in the future. 
• Even though the transaction will be charged in SGD, you may be eligible to pay Cross Border Fees of 0.8% (approximately S$9.42 in this transaction) since the payment gateway is located outside of Singapore. Once again, this is expected to change in the future.