The Best Cards to Use
The road to chasing credit card rewards can be fraught with merchant category codes, misleading marketing, and endless debates about miles vs cashback. Below is thus a compilation of all the best cards to use for your different types of spend:
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Finding out Merchant Category Code (MCC)
Different categories of spend are usually defined by this thing called Merchant Category Code (MCC). MCC is a 4-digit number assigned to each credit card transaction depending on the nature of the business. For instance, if you are shopping at a groceries store, 5411 would very likely be the code assigned to the transactions performed at the store.
However, MCCs can be very different from what’s expected. A good example of this would be dining establishments that look (and have prices) like restaurants but are yet coded as 5814 for Fast Food Restaurants as opposed to 5812 for Eating Places and Restaurants. Checking the MCC is thus important when using many credit cards and you can find out how here:
What if I find that troublesome?
When it comes to things like credit card rewards, the amount of rewards one can get is usually proportional to the amount of work put in.
You can, however, consider using a card that are more for general spending and are not restricted to specific spending categories:
You also need to know what kind of rewards you are after
If you are looking at the best cards separate by rewards given, here are the articles for best cashback and miles cards:
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Seth Wee was a licensed financial adviser representative from 2009 to 2025, with over 16 years of experience in Singapore’s financial advisory industry.
He started Sethisfy.com in 2019 to share practical insights on credit cards, banking products, and miles strategies, helping readers identify financial products that deliver the best value. Seth has been featured in CNA, Channel 8, Today, and a host of other publications. In 2025, he was also part of a panel at CPF’s Ready For Life festival.
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Education?
Oh right, I actually have an article and forgot to put it into the table. Here you go: https://sethisfy.com/best-credit-cards-school-fees/
Thanks!