3 GIRO Transactions: 1. Monthly payments for the UOB ONE card itself (yes, GIRO payments from the ONE account for the ONE card counts as a valid GIRO transaction). You can apply for this via the UOB online banking website; the mobile app does not have this option. 2. Tax payments to IRAS . This assumes that you have some form of tax to pay (individual income tax, property tax, etc.) and that you pay it via GIRO on a monthly basis. 3. Insurance premiums . Most insurance premiums that require monthly payments have a GIRO option. 4. Utilities & telco bills . I do not recommend that you pay these bills via GIRO because you can usually pay them via credit card instead (and have them count towards the monthly $500 credit card spend). But, they are an option. $500 credit card spend, a minimum of 5 transactions: 1. Grab Pay top-ups . UOB will almost certainly exclude Grab Pay top-ups at some point in the near future, but as of now, Grab Pay top-ups are still included. 2. Monthly subscriptions - Netflix, Spotify, gym memberships, etc. 3. Utilities & telco bills . In particular, some providers allow you to "overpay" or pay for your bills in advance. This is useful for evening out your spend across different months. 4. Grocery or shopping vouchers , such as Takashimaya vouchers (no expiry dates), NTUC vouchers, etc.

Many people are going to recommend the lobster thermidor. And like Aaron, many of them will also tell you it's overrated. Personally, I found the dish to be somewhat disappointing but that was largely because I never knew what a lobster thermidor was in the first place. FYI - it's chunks of lobster cooked separately, mixed with a cheesy filling and then placed back in the lobster shells and baked. It is NOT (as I had wrongly imagined based on the photos) a whole lobster tail baked whole in the shell with a cheese topping. My personal recommendation for Book the Cook is satay.

No. No. No. A thousand times no. It ties you to the issuing bank, making it harder for you to terminate the card even when you no longer need it. Once you're on an installment payment plan, it becomes extremely costly if you miss a single payment - for example, if you ever forget to pay your credit card bill on time even just once. And finally, anecdotal evidence suggests that banks are less likely to waive annual fees if you're on IPP.

The MileLion covered it in his article here: GrabRewards adds new KrisFlyer conversion options

Revolut top-ups get coded with one of the following MCCs: - 6012 (Financial Institutions – Merchandise, Services, and Debt Repayment) - 4829 (Wire Transfer Money Orders) AFAIK, most local banks exclude the above MCCs from earning miles. UOB, for example, excludes such spent for the computation of all bonus miles/cashback/points.

Mile hacking can still bring a lot of value even if you are an infrequent flyer. Redeeming your miles for a premium cabin ticket allows you to start your vacation from the ground in Singapore (think lounge access before the flight, and priority boarding at the gate). If you only take one overseas trip a year, such perks can help increase the enjoyment you get. Alternatively, if work or family commitments prevent you from planning for trips in advance, redeeming miles can be a great way to build in more flexibility for your travel dates. It is generally much cheaper to change dates for a redemption ticket than it is to buy a flexible ticket in the first place.

Ultimately, this depends on how much you value a premium cabin flight (i.e. in First or Business class). Would it be a dream come true for you to experience SQ's Suites in the sky? Or is such a perk irrelevant because (for example) you will be travelling as a family with an infant? I would suggest that you take a hybrid approach to optimizing your spending... For the first $500-$1000 of spend each month: Use this spend to qualify for bonus interest on your current account. I'm thinking of the UOB One account here, although there are similar account types from other banks. Besides the bonus interest, you'd also get a decent level of cashback from the card spend. For all other spend above that: Once you've hit the spending tier, focus all your discretionary spend after that on miles. If you're sticking with UOB, the Preferred Platinum is an easy way to earn miles at the rate of 4 miles per dollar - just use Apple Pay / Google Pay. There are also other cards with similar high earn rates depending on the category of spend.

That is not how I would look at it. The first questions you should ask are: "How much do I spend ?" and then "How can I optimize my spending to get the most bang for my buck?" Everyone benefits from getting more value back from their expenditure. But if you spend a lot, optimizing the value you get is all the more important. Mile hacking can still bring a lot of value even if you are an infrequent flyer. Redeeming your miles for a premium cabin ticket allows you to start your vacation from the ground in Singapore (think lounge access before the flight, and priority boarding at the gate). If you only take one overseas trip a year, such perks can help increase the enjoyment you get. If work or family commitments prevent you from planning for trips in advance, redeeming miles can be a great way to build in more flexibility for your travel dates. It is generally much cheaper to change dates for a redemption ticket than it is to buy a flexible ticket in the first place.