Best Credit Cards of the Year 2025
2025 hasn’t been a great year for credit card rewards with the many nerfs that happened, but here are a few cards that stood out among the rest.
🏆 Best Card of the Year: DBS yuu
There is probably no surprise here that I’m giving my pick of Best Card of the Year 2025 to DBS yuu. Personally speaking, the only surprising thing, really, is how long the card has kept up its eye-watering 18% rebate or 10 miles per dollar earn rate.
While the card did see a revision in late 2025, the changes can be seen to be as much of a buff as they are a nerf. Nobody likes a higher minimum spend of S$800, but the changes also increased the spend cap for DBS yuu’s generous earn rate from S$600 to S$822 and SimplyGo added as an eligible category for its high earn rates.
DBS yuu has won this award for a third consecutive year now after winning in 2023 and 2024, and all it needs to do to win in 2026 is simply to remain unchanged.
DBS yuu Card
DBS yuu Card is an excellent card that gives up to 18% cash rebates or 10 miles per dollar (in conjunction with the yuu app)
🎁 New Cardholders
Apply as a new cardholder by 31st August 2026, use promo code SINGSAVER, and fill up the SingSaver Rewards Form to choose your gift¹:
HeyMax account required for Max Miles. You can also top up for more gift options. Tap Apply to see more details on the landing page.
Minimum spend of S$500 within 30 days from card approval is required to be eligible for rewards.
⚠️ Important Steps
- Make sure to apply with the promo code and fill up the SingSaver Rewards Redemption Form. No form means no reward, so do not miss this step.
- Maintain valid DBS PayLah! account by the end of the Qualifying Spend period to be eligible for the reward.
- Make a minimum spend of S$500 within 30 days of card approval.
Terms and Conditions: [1]
For reference only; refer to exact details in terms and conditions
✈️ Best Miles Card: HSBC Revolution
This year, we saw many popular miles cards get nerfed, some significantly so. HSBC Revolution, however, bucked the trend in a big way. Reversing many decisions the bank made in 2024, the HSBC Revolution reinstated the card’s 4 miles per dollar earn rate for contactless payments and travel-related expenses again. The card even saw an increase in its spend cap to S$1,500 per month, something that made the card particularly good when you consider the trend of decreasing spend caps over the past year.
HSBC did worsen the conversion ratio of HSBC points for KrisFlyer miles in early 2025, but I view HSBC points as being too valuable to be… wasted on Singapore Airlines’ programme anyway. Unlike quite a few banks, HSBC points can go to a variety of airlines which can drastically increase the value you receive. For instance, it is possible to redeem certain popular routes via EVA Air’s programme instead for as much as 26% fewer miles (and these are for Singapore Airlines flights)!
Get S$450 or 26,000 Max Miles upsized S$500 or 28,000 Max Miles with HSBC Cards! Limited time only, tap here to see eligible cards
💰 Best Cashback Card: Maybank Family & Friends
Awarding Maybank Family & Friends the best Cashback Card of 2025 is a little awkward given its impending nerf on 1st January 2026, but it’s hard to think of another suitable winner. With 8% cashback and highly customisable categories to pick from, Maybank Family & Friends has been an excellent cashback card to use for many.
The doubled minimum spend for 8% cashback makes the card a lot less attractive when the new year hits, and a 6% earn rate for the usual S$800 minimum spend just doesn’t feel as attractive. I’ll have to rethink the Maybank Family & Friends’ position as my primary card to use so stay subscribed for updates.
Maybank Family & Friends
High 8% cashback on 5 of your chosen categories like groceries, telco, and more! Read the review here
New Cardholders
Receive a light weight (3.3kg), expandable and matte scratch-resistant Samsonite RESTACKD Spinner 68/25 EXP (worth S$520) with 2 complimentary packing cubes when you apply for a new Maybank Credit Card (not applicable for Maybank XL Credit Cards) and charge a minimum of S$1,300 within the first two months of card approval.
⚠️ Important Steps
- Apply for the card with link provided (you may need to turn off content blockers)
- Make S$1,300 in qualifying spend in the first 2 months from card approval
- Maybank will send an SMS about a week after conditions are met
For reference only; refer to exact details in terms and conditions
Best Cards for Each Situation
There is no one card to rule them all (well, long dead anyway) so it highly depends on what kinds of spend make up your expenses. Here are different lists of great cards you can use for different areas of spending:
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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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