UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card: Benefits and MAB Calculator

The UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card, when paired with the KrisFlyer UOB Account, offers an excellent way to earn Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles on your everyday spending. Unlike credit cards, this debit card allows you to earn miles directly from your account balance, making it a great option for those who prefer to spend within their means.

Also, being a miles chaser, there's always some small expenses below $5 that could not fit into the minimum transaction for UOB PPV, which leads me to charge to Citi PremierMiles at 1.2 miles per dollar seem like a waste. UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card would be a good card to solve these small ticket items.

Key Benefits of the UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card

1. Base Miles Earning

• 0.4 KrisFlyer miles per S$1 spent on all eligible transactions
• No minimum spend required to earn base miles (though there's a minimum spend requirement to earn bonus miles)

2. Bonus Miles Based on Monthly Average Balance (MAB) in Krisflyer UOB Account

The bonus miles you can earn depend on your Monthly Average Balance in your KrisFlyer UOB Account.

The total bonus miles you can earn each month are capped at 5% of your Monthly Average Balance. This means if you have a high spending amount, you may need to maintain a higher MAB to fully benefit from the bonus miles tier.

3. Additional Benefits

• Salary Credit Bonus: Crediting your salary (minimum S$1,600 monthly) into your KrisFlyer UOB Account can increase 1 additional bonus mile to 6 bonus miles per S$1 spent
• Direct Account Linking: Miles are credited directly to your KrisFlyer account, which also mean it is valid for 3 years after it's credited to your Singapore Airlines Krisflyer Account.
• Insurance Charges: Charges on insurance premiums such as Prudential (for me) are eligible. So another reason for me to make sure I can maintain the MAB required to hit the bonus miles.

Understanding Monthly Average Balance (MAB)

Monthly Average Balance is calculated by taking the sum of your end-of-day balances for each day in the month and dividing by the number of days in that month. This means:

• Your balance at the end of each day matters (beware of cut off timing)
• Withdrawals and deposits throughout the month will affect your MAB

For more details on how MAB works, check out my Monthly Average Balance Calculator. I also build one for my own usage where you download the csv and attach. Here's the external link to the UOB Average Daily Balance Calculator.

Calculating Your Required MAB

To maximize your miles, you need to determine the right Monthly Average Balance based on your spending. The key consideration is the 5% cap on bonus miles.

Here's how it works:

1. Calculate your potential bonus miles based on your spending and desired tier
2. Check if it exceeds the 5% cap of your current or target MAB
3. Adjust your MAB if needed to ensure you can earn all the bonus miles you're entitled to

Example Calculation

Let's say you spend S$2,000 per month on your UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card.

• Maximum bonus miles you can earn in a month is 5% of your Monthly Average Balance (MAB).
• To calculate the MAB needed to fully earn your potential bonus miles:
  • Determine your potential bonus miles (e.g. S$2,000 spend × [bonus miles rate] per S$1).
  • Required MAB = Bonus miles you want to earn ÷ 0.05.

For example, if you want to earn 6,000 bonus miles in a month, you would need an MAB of S$120,000 (since 6,000 ÷ 0.05 = 120,000).

If your MAB is lower, the number of bonus miles you can receive will be capped at 5% of your MAB for that month.

Interactive MAB Calculator

Use the calculator below to determine the Monthly Average Balance you need to maintain based on your monthly spending:

Comparison with Other Miles Cards

The UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card is unique because:

• No credit required: You're spending your own money, not borrowing
• Direct account integration: Miles are automatically credited

However, it does require maintaining a significant balance to maximize benefits, which means you're tying up capital that could potentially earn interest elsewhere.

Conclusion

The UOB KrisFlyer Debit Card offers a compelling way to earn miles, especially for those who:

• Prefer debit cards over credit cards
• Can maintain a high Monthly Average Balance
• Want to earn miles on everyday spending
• Are willing to optimize their MAB based on spending patterns

Use the calculator above to determine the optimal MAB for your spending level, and remember to consider the 5% bonus miles cap when planning your strategy.

Related Tools

• Monthly Average Balance Calculator - Calculate your MAB from daily balances