For the uninitiated, there are mainly 5 unlimited cashback cards in Singapore’s credit card scene. Of these, I consider only 4 to be truly “unlimited” both in terms of cashback amount and cashback categories: the Standard Chartered Simply Cash Card (1.5% cashback), AMEX True Cashback Card (1.5% cashback), Citi Cash Back+ Card (1.6% cashback), UOB Absolute Cashback Card (1.7% cashback). The fifth contender is the CIMB World Mastercard, which offers 2% cashback but only with a minimum spend of $1,000 each month and only on selected categories like Wine & Dine, Online Food Delivery, and Luxury Goods.
Now, there’s a sixth unlimited cashback card in town. OCBC has rolled out their OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card, which offers 1.6% in unlimited cashback with an additional 0.2% limited-time bonus for new customers to stack for a total 1.8% cashback.
Does the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card bring something new to the table, or is it just another unlimited cashback credit card? How does it compare to its rivals? Let’s put it to the test.
OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—MoneySmart Review 2024
- OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Summary
- OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Cashback exclusions
- OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—How does the cashback work?
- OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Benefits and privileges
- Should I get the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card?
- How does the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card compare to other unlimited cashback cards?
- OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Sign-up promo
- Alternatives to the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card
| OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Is it MoneySmart? | |||||
Overall: ★★★☆☆ (3.3/5) |
|||||
| Pros—What we like | Cons—What we don’t like | ||||
| – No minimum spend – Unlimited cashback – Wide range of categories eligible for cashback. – Seamless cashback mechanism—cashback is automatically offset in the same month’s statement. |
– Insurance, healthcare, education and utilities don’t earn you cashback—unlike with the AMEX True Cashback and UOB Absolute Cashback Card. – Advertised 1.8% cashback is only for a limited time. |
||||
| The OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card | |||||
| Category | Our rating | The deets | |||
| Earn rates: Cashback | ★★★★☆ | – 1.6% unlimited cashback with no minimum spend – Bonus 0.2% cashback for a total of 1.8% cashback for the first $3,000 spend during the first 6 months. Only for the first 2,000 cardmembers who successfully apply for this card each month. – Exclusions include healthcare, insurance, taxes, education and utility bills, |
|||
| Earn categories | ★★★★☆ | ||||
| Annual fees and charges | ★★★★☆ | S$196.20 (principal) / S$98.10 (supplementary). Waived for the first year for both main and supplementary cards. | |||
| Accessibility | ★★★★☆ | Minimum income requirement: $30,000 (Singaporeans and PRs) / $45,000 (Foreigners) | |||
| Extras/periphery rewards | ★★☆☆☆ | – Mastercard Priceless experiences: Special offers on travel and lifestyle experiences around the world. – One Dines Free with Mastercard: Complimentary main course at selected restaurants across Asia Pacific. – E-commerce protection: Worldwide coverage (up to 200 USD) for online purchases. |
|||
| Sign-up bonus | ★★☆☆☆ | Welcome gift A: De’Longhi Icona Vintage Kettle and Toaster set (worth $298) Minimum spend: $250 within 30 days of card approval date. Welcome gift B: 28″ Samsonite MINTER Luggage (worth $640) or $168 Cashback Minimum spend: $500 within 30 days of card approval date.Both promotions are valid until 31 Jan 2024. |
|||
See our credit card ranking rubric to find out how we rank credit cards.
1. OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Summary
The OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card is an entry-level unlimited cashback credit card. It’s accessible to those aged 21 years old and above with an income of at least $30,000 per year (Singaporeans and PRs) or $45,000 per year (foreigners). These are pretty much the most accessible basic income requirements for a credit card.
| OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card | |
| Annual Fee (Principal Card) | S$196.20 (including GST) |
| Supplementary Card Annual Fee | S$98.10 (including GST) |
| Annual Fee Waiver | Waived for the first year for both main and supplementary card. Fee will be automatically waived if you spend a minimum of S$10,000 in one year. |
| Interest Fee Period | 23 days |
| Annual Interest Rate | 27.78% |
| Late Payment Fee | $100 |
| Minimum Monthly Repayment | 3% or $50, whichever is higher |
| Foreign Currency Transaction Fee | 3.25% |
| Cash Advance Transaction Fee | 6% or S$15, whichever is higher |
| Overlimit Fee | NA |
| Minimum Income | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR) or $45,000 (Foreigner) |
| Card Association | Mastercard |
| Contactless Payment | Apple Pay, Google Pay, Mastercard Contactless |
With no minimum spend requirement or maximum cashback limit, the OCBC Infinity Cashback Card is fuss-free and doles out 1.6% cashback on almost everything. From now till 31 Mar 2024, be among the first 2,000 each month to successfully apply for the OCBC Infinity Cashback Card to enjoy an additional 0.2% cashback on the first $3,000 charged to your card each month for the next 6 months. That puts your total cashback at 1.8% for half a year, which is the highest rate among the other unlimited-category and unlimited-amount cashback credit cards.
Like most other unlimited cashback credit cards, the usual cashback exceptions apply to the OCBC Infinity Cashback Card. You know, things like utilities, medical and dental fees, insurance, taxes, and education. Let’s take a closer look.
Back to top
2. OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Cashback exclusions
Banks don’t like to blatantly state what spend categories your cashback credit card will not earn you cashback. So I dug through the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card’s T&Cs’s to fish out the details for you. You can find the full list on page 2 of their T&Cs, but here are some key exclusions:
- Insurance services
- Property rentals
- Purchasing or topping up stored value cards
- Cleaning services
- Court costs
- Parking charges
- Utilities
- Medical, dental and hospital charges
- Cigars, stores and stands
- Gambling
- Education
- Religious, charitable and political organizations
- Fines
- Tax payments
- Government services
These spend exclusions are similar to those for the Standard Chartered Simply Cash Card and Citi Cash Back+ Card. The UOB Absolute Cashback Card and AMEX True Cashback Card are impressive because they even earn cashback on education fees, insurance, healthcare, utilities and telcos. Granted, the AMEX True Cashback Card also comes with a S$174.40 annual fee that you likely can’t waive after the first year—but that’s a story for another blog article.
Back to top
3. OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—How does the cashback work?
So, we know the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card gives you 1.6% unlimited cashback on almost every spend category out there. But how will you receive the cashback? Must you redeem it, withdraw it, or just let it offset your next credit card bill?
The cashback you earn on your OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card will appear in your billing statement each month. OCBC will use it to automatically offset that month’s credit card bill, and you don’t need to do anything for this to happen. If you have a supplementary card, the cashback earned on that card will also be credited to your card account as the principal cardmember.
Personally, I’m a fan of this automatic system. It means that you enjoy an immediate discount on your credit card bill. With credit cards that earn you points to be redeemed as cashback, you may run into the problem of your reward points expiring. With the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card, it’s as simple as you can get. The cashback will fall right into your lap every month and you can pretty much completely forget about how it works after you get your card.
I have the Citi Cash Back+ Card myself, which I got before the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card was released. With this card, you’ve got to redeem the cashback in your Citibank SG App to offset your current credit card balance. It’s not difficult, but it’s still an extra step. Plus, you can only redeem the cashback in blocks of $10—a problem you won’t face with the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card’s automatic cashback mechnaism.
Back to top
4. OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card—Benefits and privileges
On top of its unlimited cashback mechanism, the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card comes with several Mastercard privileges:
- Mastercard Priceless experiences: Get special prices and offers on experiences around the world in these categories: Entertainment, Arts and Culture, Sports, Culinary, Travel, Shopping, and Health and Wellness.
- One Dines Free with Mastercard: Get a complimentary main course at selected restaurants across the Asia Pacific region—Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, Australia, Philippines, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Taiwan and New Zealand.
- E-commerce protection: Worldwide coverage (up to 200 USD) for online purchases if the delivery is incomplete, the wrong item was delivered, the item is damaged, or the item is not delivered after 30 days of its scheduled delivery.
Back to top
5. Should I get the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card?
There’s more to like than dislike about the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card:
| OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card pros—What I like about it | OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card cons—What I don’t like about it |
|
|
This isn’t really a disadvantage, but do note that the advertised 1.8% cashback is only for the first $3,000 in qualifying spend for the first 6 months. It’s also only granted to the first 2,000 new cardmembers who apply for the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card each month from now till 31 Mar 2024. So while we always welcome bonus cashback, we don’t want you to think that it’s a permanent feature everyone can enjoy.
Perhaps a better question to ask then “should I get the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card?” is “should I get the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card over other unlimited cashback cards?” Let’s take a look.
Back to top
6. How does the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card compare to other unlimited cashback cards?
I started this article talking about the 5 (now 6) main unlimited cashback credit cards in Singapore. Now, let’s compare their cashback, eligibility criteria and fees to see which card emerges as the winner.
| Unlimited cashback credit card | Cashback amount and categories | Eligibility and fees | Cashback mechanism |
| OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card | 1.6% on everything except insurance, healthcare, utilities, education, etc. 1.8% (on first $3,000 for the first 6 months) for the first 2,000 new cardmembers each month from now till 31 Mar 2024. | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR) or $45,000 (Foreigner). Annual fee: $196.20 (waived for the first year). |
Cashback is automatically offset in the same month’s statement. |
| AMEX True Cashback Card | 1.5% on everything including insurance, healthcare, utilities, and education. 3% on the first $5,000 spend in the first 6 months. | AMEX doesn’t state the exact income requirements or what they look out for in their internal assessment. Annual fee: $174.40 (waived for the first year, and you may not be able to waive it thereafter). |
Cashback is automatically offset in the same month’s statement. |
| CIMB World Mastercard | 2% (with $1,000 minimum spend each month) on Wine & Dine, Online Food Delivery, Movies & Digital Entertainment, Taxi & Automobile, Luxury Goods. 1% on all other spends. | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR). No annual fees. |
Cashback is credited to your account in the following month and offsets that month’s bill. |
| Citi Cash Back+ Card | 1.6% on everything except insurance, healthcare, utilities, education, etc. | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR) or $42,000 (Foreigner). Annual fee: $196.20 (waived for the first year). |
Redeem cashback earned via Citibank SG app. It will offset your current credit card balance. |
| Standard Chartered Simply Cash Card | 1.5% on everything except insurance, healthcare, utilities, education, etc. | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR) or $60,000 (Foreigner). Annual fee: $196.20 (waived for the first year). |
Cashback is credited to your account in the following month and offsets that month’s bill. |
| UOB Absolute Cashback Card | 1.7% on everything including insurance, school fees, healthcare, utilities and telco bills. | $30,000 (Singaporean/PR) or $40,000 (Foreigner). Annual fee: $196.20 (waived for the first year). |
Cashback is credited to your account in the following month and offsets that month’s bill. |
| My pick for each category | UOB Absolute Cashback Card—the highest cashback rate and any spend category is included, even insurance and healthcare. | CIMB World Mastercard—No annual fees for life! Saves you the trouble of getting the annual fee waived every year. | OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card or AMEX True Cashback Card—I like that these cashback mechanisms are the most immediate (offsets the same month’s bill) and the least fuss. |
The OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card does not excite me, but it’s still a good unlimited cashback credit card and certainly a fair contender among the others. It just doesn’t emerge as the clear winner. At the end of the day, the best unlimited cashback card for you will depend on what you prioritise.
If you just want the absolute highest cashback rate with the most number of cashback categories, you’re looking at the UOB Absolute Cashback Card. One could argue that the AMEX True Cashback Card gets you 3% on the first $5,000 spend in the first 6 months, but in that case my answer is the AMEX True Cashback Card only for 6 months.
Do you despise annual fees and requesting to get them waived? The CIMB World Mastercard has no annual fees forever and ever. However, it requires you to have a minimum spend of $1,000 a month to qualify for the 2% cashback, and this 2% cashback’s applicable categories also pale in comparison to the 2 cards we just talked about above. You only get a meagre 1% cashback on other purchases or if you don’t hit the $1,000 spend each month.
If you want the most fuss-free cashback mechanism that offsets your bill automatically for you, choose any card but the Citi Cash Back+ Card. The OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card and AMEX True Cashback Card do this for you within the same statement month. On the other hand, if you want the shiok feeling of accumulating cashback and redeeming a big sum at one go, you can only choose the Citi Cash Back+ Card.
Back to top
There are 2 ongoing OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card promos:
- De’Longhi Icona Vintage Kettle and Toaster set (worth $298) with S$250 qualifying spend within 30 days.
- 28″ Samsonite MINTER Luggage (worth $640) or S$168 Cashback with S$500 qualifying spend within 30 days.
Both promotions are valid until 31 Jan 2024.
Back to top
8. Alternatives to the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card
If the OCBC INFINITY Cashback Card comes close to what you’re looking for but doesn’t quite hit all your requirements, here are the cards I think you should get.
For more cashback, get the UOB Absolute Cashback Card. This card earns you 0.1% more cashback (which doesn’t sound like a lot) on more categories, including insurance payments, utilities, and healthcare. Now that’s a big deal!
If you want to control when your cashback is used to offset your credit card bill, get the Citi Cash Back+ Card instead. It earns you the same cashback rate of 1.6%, but its cashback mechanism just works differently.
What if you want to use your credit card spending to redeem vouchers, gifts and discounts instead of cashback? You’re looking for a rewards credit card. The HSBC Revolution Card lets you choose your reward from their online rewards redemption catalogue. You’ll also enjoy no annual fees and an earn rate of S$1 = 10X Points on online spend and contactless payments.
Alternatively, the UOB Lady’s Card lets you choose up to 2 reward categories on which you can earn 15X UNI$ (or 30 miles) per S$5 spent. And yes, both ladies and gentlemen can apply for it.
Back to top
P.S. Here’s our MoneySmart credit card ranking rubric
In case you’re wondering, here’s how we decide on our credit card rankings.
| Is that credit card MoneySmart? Our MoneySmart credit card ranking rubric | |
| Category | Our rating |
| Overall | The average rating for the credit card on the whole, calculated from the ratings for the individual categories below. Plus, we’ll give you a one-liner on who we think the credit card is best suited for. |
| Earn rates: Air miles / Cashback / Rewards points | Air miles ✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️ / Cashback / Rewards points . This category looks at the depth rather than breadth of earn rates.
|
| Earn categories | This category looks at the breadth rather than depth of your earnings.
|
| Annual fees and charges |
|
| Accessibility | Minimum income requirements:
Exclusivity: We dock 1-2 stars if there is/are another category/categories that make the card exclusive and very specific to a certain clientele. |
| Extras/periphery rewards | These include:
We count the number of benefits and award between 0.5 to 2 stars for each, depending on how good the perk is. |
| Sign-up bonus |
|
Check out our ultimate list of credit card reviews for the low-down on credit cards in Singapore.
Found this article useful? Share it with your family and friends!