Review: Amex CapitaCard – 1.5% to 8% Rebate at CapitaLand Malls
Updated 13/11/2021 to reflect changes to earn rate and nerf of SP GreenUP
There are so many types of credit cards available that it can be overwhelming. Broadly, there are two main types of rewards – miles/points, and cashback. Then, they can be further categorised into conditional and unconditional cards.
The Amex CapitaCard actually falls into a third category. Most points card are used to redeem miles, but CapitaCard gives CapitaStar STAR$ – points for CapitaLand’s rewards programme. You can technically convert them into miles under the As far as conditions go, CapitaCard is pretty simple to get, but I would say it really shines as a situational card, because I recently got such a greal deal out of this, but more on that later.
| Provider | American Express |
| Type | Conditional Earns CapitaStar STAR$ |
| Earn Rate | – 5 STAR$ per $1 outside participating CapitaLand Malls (0.5% rebate) – 15 STAR$ per $1 spent on eCapitaVouchers (1.5% rebate) – 20 STAR$ per $1 spent in Heartland Malls (2% rebate) – 30 STAR$ per $1 in Town Malls (3% rebate) – 65 STAR$ per $1 in participating merchants (6.5% to 9.28% rebate*) |
| Conditions | – Spend at participating merchants at CapitaLand Malls |
| Limits | – Spend above $1,200 per month only gets 5 STAR$ (0.5% rebate) |
How much is 1STAR$ worth?
There are two ways to make use of your STAR$.
- You can simply spend your STAR$ at participating CapitaLand merchants
- You can redeem it for various merchant vouchers, including eCapitaVouchers
When you do (1), your STAR$ are worth 0.1 cents each.
When you do (2), your STAR$ vary in value depending on what you redeem it for.
Complete your SP GreenUP!
Update 30/08/2021: SP announced a huge change which severely limits the utility of SP GreenUP. The below calculation still stands, but the maximum number of redemptions is now a paltry 3 times (it was previously unlimited).
If you haven’t already completed SP GreenUP, it’s a bit of a hassle to achieve, but it supercharges this card and any STAR$ you will earn under the CapitaStar programme or through things like converting your Grab points. Read my guide here to complete GreenUP.
| Using Star$ Directly | Redeeming for eCapitaVoucher | |
| Value of each STAR$ | 0.1 cents | |
| Conditions | No minimum | Need to redeem in blocks of |
Completing GreenUP supercharges your STAR$ to as much as 0.143 cents each, allowing you to convert 3,500 STAR$ into $5 eCapitaVoucher, instead of the usual 5,000 STAR$.
It is also worth noting that there may be other redemptions on GreenUP’s catalogue that may catch your fancy. I recently redeemed $5 voucher for an eatery I like for 3,150 STAR$, which further increases the value of my STAR$.
Different earn rates
There are currently 5 different earn rates for this card:
Tier 1: Spending outside CapitaLand Malls (1X STAR$ = 5 STAR$ = 0.5% rebate)
Just don’t bother with using this card outside of CapitaLand Malls. 5 STAR$ per $1 spent translates into 0.5% rebate at best. Even some debit cards have higher earn rates.
Tier 2: Buying eCapitaMall vouchers (3X STAR$ = 15 STAR$ = 1.5% rebate)
Although it is confusingly named 3X STAR$, you get 15 STAR$ per $1 spent at participating CapitaLand Malls (see list here).
This is equivalent to a 1.5% rebate (in form of STAR$). Most cards aside from Amex True Cashback and UOB Absolute cards don’t give rewards for this category of spend (likely MCC 6540 which is excluded by virtually every card).
Tier 3: Spending at CapitaLand Malls in the heartlands (4X STAR$ = 20 STAR$ = 2% rebate)
When you spend on CapitaCard at heartland malls, you get 20 STAR$ per $1 spent. This is equivalent to 2% rebate which isn’t the best, but there is no more minimum spending now (you previously had to spend at least $20 per transaction). This is also a boost from the previous earn rate of 15 STAR$ per $1 spent.
This is for participating merchants in the following CapitaLand Malls:
- Bedok Mall
- Bukit Panjang Plaza
- IMM Mall
- JCube
- Junction 8
- Lot One
- Singpost Centre
- Tampines Mall
- Westgate
Tier 4: Spending at CapitaLand Malls in town (5X STAR$ = 30 STAR$ = 3% rebate)
When you spend at CapitaLand Malls in town with your CapitaCard, you get 30 STAR$ per $1 spent which is equivalent to 3% rebate. This is doubled from the previous earn rate of 15 STAR$ per $1 spent.
This is for participating merchants in the following CapitaLand Malls:
- Bugis Junction
- Bugis+
- Clarke Quay
- Funan
- Plaza Singapura
- Raffles City
Tier 5: Spending at selected merchants (additional 10X STAR$ = additional 50 STAR$ = additional 5% rebate)
This is where the earn rate goes to an impressive 8% if you spend on a participating merchant at a CapitaLand Mall in town, and 6.5% in heartland malls. Unfortunately, the list of selected merchants is really short and doesn’t seem to include many common merchants. Nonetheless, this earn rate is quite hard to beat and could perhaps be very useful if you have stuff to buy from Eu Yan San 🤷🏻♂️ Just make sure it’s the branch located in one of the town malls.
Remember to scan your CapitaLand Mall receipts
These are all on top of the STAR$ you’ll earn when you scan your receipts with the CapitaStar app, which gives 5 STAR$ per $1 spent (1STAR$ for supermarkets and food courts).
Sign-up promo
New to Amex
Receive up to 150,000 STAR$® (worth S$150 eCapitaVouchers) when you make a min. spend of S$1,500 within the first 3 months of card approval. T&Cs apply.
Conclusion
I recently applied for this card out of curiosity (and this review), and I must say it has presented one of the best promos I’ve seen in a while: getting 10,000 STAR$ for every $100 eCapitaVoucher purchased (it’s now over). This was on top of the 1,500 STAR$ normally awarded, making a total of 11,500 STAR$ which I can convert to more than $16 of eCapitaVouchers.
On top of that, CapitaStar app was incidentally also giving $10 bonus eCapitaVoucher per $100 purchased (also sold out). That makes a total of $26 extra per $100 purchased, and I couldn’t be happier.
It’s not the most versatile of cards and probably won’t be the most used, but it’s definitely a great card to hold, even if it’s for the occasional promo. It’s a highly situational card, but one that you want to have when the situation calls for it.
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The good:
- No minimum spend
- Gives high, unbeatable earn rates on selected merchants
- CapitaLand Malls are numerous
- Great occasional promos
The bad:
- A very situational card
The ugly:
- This is at best a 7★ card, but I just got a 10★ deal from buying eCapitaVouchers. How do I assign a star rating?!
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