Best Credit Cards for Overseas Spending in Singapore: A 2026 Comparison

Looking for a credit card for overseas spending? Many Singaporeans buying souvenirs or dining out on trips abroad face unseen costs when using standard cards from traditional banks: high foreign transaction fees and poor exchange rates. These can quickly (and quietly) add up, leaving you with a bigger bill than you anticipated when you get home.

Getting the right travel card can help. This guide will look at the best credit cards for overseas spending, with a keen eye on foreign exchange fees to reduce costs, high earn rates, and strong rewards to actually get something worthwhile in return.

Table of contents

How do overseas credit cards work? What is dynamic currency conversion (DCC)? Best air miles credit cards for overseas spending Citi Premier Miles Card HSBC TravelOne Card OCBC 90°N Card Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card (No Annual Fee) Best cashback credit cards for overseas spending UOB EVOL Credit Card Cashback Credit Card by Trust Travelling soon? Bring the Wise card along to maximise your foreign currency transactions Summary Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) What are the best credit cards for overseas spending? Which credit card charges the lowest foreign transaction fee? How do I avoid foreign transaction fees?

We'll also introduce the Wise account, a handy companion to make your money go further with low, transparent fees.

How do overseas credit cards work?

Credit cards work the same overseas as they do in Singapore. But when you spend in a foreign currency, most banks add on a foreign transaction fee. This is usually around 3.25% for most credit cards. While it doesn’t sound like much, it can mean, for example, that you have to spend $6 more for every $200 spent overseas. This can quickly add up, even during a short break.

When paying for things or drawing out cash, you’re also usually given the option of either using the local currency or the Singapore dollar (SGD). This is where something called “dynamic currency conversion” comes into play (and can make your transactions very expensive if you’re not careful).

What is dynamic currency conversion (DCC)?

Dynamic currency conversion is a service that converts your foreign currency transactions into SGD at the point of sale when you’re using an ATM or card reader overseas. Unfortunately, the merchant can use pretty much any forex rate, which means you’re likely to pay more than you expected, especially when markups and extra fees are added.

That’s why it’s usually best to pay in the local currency and let your credit card provider convert it for you. While there is usually a small transaction fee, you’ll get a consistent, fairer rate instead of playing the DCC “lottery.”

For this reason, foreign transaction fees are one of the key things to research before taking out a card for overseas spending.

What to look for in a credit card for overseas spending

Travelling abroad usually involves making lots of transactions in a short space of time. If you pick the wrong credit card (or rely on DCC), it’s easy to rack up costs with poor conversion rates and fees. Similarly, you’ll want to make the most of every dollar you do spend with miles and rewards.

With this in mind, you’ll ideally want:

• Low or no foreign currency transaction fees - Most banks in Singapore charge a flat rate of 3.25% on every foreign currency purchase. You might want a card with very low fees or one that waives them entirely if you’re travelling for longer periods or spending regularly.
• High miles or cashback earn rates - Frequent travellers will get lots of value with cards with high earn rates. However, if you prefer simplicity, standard cashback with predictable rates might make more sense. Travellers focused purely on minimizing foreign transaction costs often pair these cards with a multi-currency debit card like Wise.
• Lower annual fees or fee waivers - Quite a few cards charge $196.20 for annual fees. The earn rates and perks need to justify the cost, so consider how much value you’ll get from it. Some banks offer first-year waivers as an incentive for new cardholders.
• Complimentary travel insurance, lounge access, or other key perks - Beyond miles and rewards, most cards offer travel perks to create a more compelling package. Look for complimentary travel insurance if you don’t want to get a standalone policy, and other benefits like lounge access and travel discounts, and promos.

7 best cards for overseas spending in Singapore

So, which credit card is best for overseas spending? We’ll now look at 7 cards available in Singapore, comparing earn rates, cashback, features, and fees to give you a better understanding of what’s out there and what might be best suited to your travel habits.

Here’s a quick overview of the cards.

Credit card	Foreign transaction fee	Overseas earn rate	Annual fee	Key perks
Citi Premier Miles Card	3.25%	2.2 miles per $1 spent	$196.20	Miles don’t expire Up to 10 miles per $1 with Kaligo 30,000 miles sign-up bonus
HSBC TravelOne Card	3.25%	2.4 miles per $1 spent	$196.20	Instant miles redemption 4 free lounge visits Free travel insurance
OCBC 90°N Card	3.25%	2.1 miles per $1 spent	$196.20	Miles don’t expire 7 miles per $1 with Agoda Free roaming plans DragonPass lounge access
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card (No Annual Fee)	0% (at time of writing)	2 miles per $1 spent	$0	20,000 miles welcome bonus 2 lounge passes Free travel insurance
UOB EVOL Credit Card	0%	1% cashback	$0 when making 3 transactions per month	Dining and shopping deals via UOB TMRW app
Cashback Credit Card by Trust	0%	1% cashback	$0	Up to 15% cashback on travel bookings Agoda and local discounts

Best alternative for overseas spending: Wise Card

Best for: Budget-conscious travellers who prioritise the lowest conversion fees over rewards

The Wise international debit card is an alternative for frequent travellers and anyone who spends in foreign currencies regularly. It is designed to minimise fees and currency markups, making it the most cost-effective option for many overseas expenses.

You can open a Wise account online or in the Wise app, add money in SGD, and spend in 40+ currencies with the mid-market exchange rate and low fees from 0.43%. Either exchange to the currency you need within your account in advance, or let the Wise card automatically convert to the currency you need to pay at the point of purchase.

There’s no annual fee, no minimum income requirement, and you’ll get some fee-free ATM withdrawals every month.

• Issued on the Visa network for global use
• Spend in 150+ countries with the mid-market exchange rate and no foreign transaction fee to pay
• No annual or ongoing fees, no minimum balance
• Up to 350 SGD/month in international ATM withdrawals fee-free, with low costs after that
• Debit card, not a credit card - so no interest or penalty fees to worry about

Best air miles credit cards for overseas spending

First, we’ll cover 4 cards that are best for earning air miles with overseas expenditure, starting with Citi’s Premier Miles Card.

Citi Premier Miles Card¹

Best for: Travellers making online bookings

The Citi PremierMiles Card lets you rack up 2.2 miles for every $1 spent on foreign currency, a competitive rate with no caps or expiry dates. But its “promotion”’ for online travel bookings are where you can really maximise earnings. You can get up to 10 miles per $1 when booking through Kaligo, and up to 7.2 miles with Agoda. There’s also a welcome sign-up bonus of 30,000 miles when spending $800 in the first 2 months.

Other perks with Citi include 2 airport lounge passes per year and complimentary travel insurance with coverage up to $1,000,000 for personal accidents. You can also earn miles on things like rent and insurance with Citi PayAll.

HSBC TravelOne Card²

Best for: High overseas earn rates and instant rewards

The HSBC TravelOne Card lets you earn 2.4 miles per $1 on foreign currency spends. One thing that makes this card quite unique is its “instant redemption” - there are no fees or block sizes when redeeming miles or points. You also get 4 lounge visits per year, cashback offers in 26 destinations with Mastercard Travel Rewards, and free complimentary travel insurance.

HSBC currently has a generous sign-up offer: Up to 26,200 miles for the first $500 spent and up to 9,800 miles for the next $500. Unlike some other cards, there’s no time limit for this. You can also apply for 5 supplementary cards for free, which can all be used to earn rewards overseas.

OCBC 90°N Card³

Best for: Earning miles with flexible redemption that don’t expire

With the OCBC 90°N card, you can earn ‘unlimited’ miles that don’t expire at a rate of 2.1 miles for all your foreign currency spend. There’s also a higher 7-mile per $1 rate for bookings made with Agoda. These miles can be redeemed as KrisFlyer Miles through OCBC rewards or with 8 other airlines or hotels via the STACK Marketplace.

Perks include airport lounge visits with DragonPass and 3 global data roaming plans for 5 days per year. There isn’t a miles sign-up bonus, but you can currently get a free gift (suitcase).

Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card (No Annual Fee)⁴

Best for: Semi-frequent travellers seeking miles rewards

You can earn 2 miles for every $1 spent overseas with the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card. Any miles earned can be redeemed with the bank’s “360 Reward Programme,” where you can get e-vouchers or KrisFlyer Miles. There isn’t an expiration date, so you can convert whenever you want to.

Standard Chartered is also offering a 20,000-mile bonus for $800 spent within 60 days, plus 10,000 miles for each renewal from year 2 onwards. Perks include 2 complimentary lounge passes and travel insurance with coverage up to $500,000 for personal accidents. There are also promos for travel bookings with Expedia and others.

Now, let’s look at a couple of the best cashback credit cards in Singapore.

Best cashback credit cards for overseas spending

Instead of collecting miles, some banks let you earn cashback on everything you charge to a card. You might think of this as a simpler and more predictable way to save, as you don’t have to redeem or convert points into rewards.

UOB EVOL Credit Card⁵

Best for: Straight cashback on all foreign currency spend

The UOB EVOL Credit card offers 1% cashback on all the money you spend overseas in foreign currency until the end of 2025. However, cashback is capped at $20 per month, so keep this in mind if you’re planning to spend more than $2,000 in a short period overseas⁶. One notable perk with this card is 0% foreign exchange fees. There’s no annual fee either when you make at least 3 transactions per month.

With UOB, you won’t get as many travel-related perks as other cards, but you can get a few deals plus dining and shopping offers via the UOB TMRW app.

Cashback Credit Card by Trust⁷

Best for: Earning high cashback from travel bookings

Trust’s Cashback Credit Card lets you pick “Travel” as a preferred category when signing up to unlock a higher rate, up to 15% when you spend +$2,000 per month, with cashback capped at $250 per quarter. However, this is limited to booking flights or hotels and not “everyday spend” overseas, where the rate is 1%. You do get $0 foreign exchange fees, though, and there are no annual charges for using the card.

Trust also has a few “exclusive” partner deals where you can get 10% off on travel bookings with Agoda and discounts for local takeaways and petrol.

Travelling soon? Bring the Wise card along to maximise your foreign currency transactions

Using a credit card can be a smart way to rack up bonus rewards, points and miles - but it can also mean extra fees when you travel. Consider using your credit card smartly at home, and pop the Wise card in your wallet the next time you’re overseas.

The Wise card lets you spend in 40+ currencies at the mid-market rate including MYR, JPY, CNY, and USD so you know you'll be getting a great deal in over 150+ countries. Simply create a free Wise account, order a card and top-up SGD to get started.

Virtual cards are free and can be added to your Google or Apple Pay wallet, while a physical Wise card can be ordered for a low fee of 8.50 SGD. Having a physical Wise card allows you to make chip and pin payments, as well as 2 free ATM withdrawals to the value of 350 SGD each month, before low fees start.

While abroad, you can choose to spend with directly in SGD and let auto-conversion do the trick, or convert to your desired currency with your Wise account. Either way, you’ll get the exchange rate you see on Google, with low, transparent fees from 0.26%.

Plus, you can activate Wise Interest to earn returns* on your SGD and other currencies, meaning your travel money could be growing right up until you spend it.

*Growth is not guaranteed. Capital at risk.

💳 Get your Wise card

Summary: Which card should you pick?

When deciding on the best card for foreign currency transactions, you need to consider your own travel style and spending habits, as well as how you like to earn rewards and redeem them. Frequent flyers might get the most out of a card with higher earn rates and useful perks like lounge access, while occasional travellers may prefer the overall value of a cashback card with simple savings.

Here’s some general guidance for specific preferences:

• Choose air miles - Go for HSBC One or Citi Premier Miles if you want to maximise earnings.
• Choose flexibility - The OCBC 90°N offers no expiry and wide redemption options.
• Minimal fuss - Standard Chartered Journey pairs decent miles with no annual fees and several travel perks.
• Need cash back? - Both UOB EVOL and Trust Cashback deliver steady returns on all overseas spend.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are the best credit cards for overseas spending?

The best credit cards for overseas spending usually have strong earn rates and either very low or zero foreign exchange fees. This allows you to accumulate miles quickly and consistently when travelling to countries outside Singapore, while not getting stung by excessive forex markups or fees. The best cards are usually rounded out by several compelling travel perks like lounge access.

Which credit card charges the lowest foreign transaction fee?

Both the UOB EVOL Credit Card and Cashback Credit Card by Trust offer $0 foreign transaction fees, making them ideal for overseas spending. The Wise card can also minimise fees by letting you hold and pay in multiple local currencies at low, transparent rates.

How do I avoid foreign transaction fees?

You can avoid foreign transaction fees entirely by using cards with waived FX fees. For other cards, always try to steer clear of DCC when paying for things overseas. Always use the local currency and let your bank handle the conversion. You might also want to consider a multi-currency card like Wise to hold and convert currencies at a time that’s convenient for you, with transparent fees and no hidden markups.

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Sources:

1. Citi - PremierMiles Card
2. HSBC - TravelOne Credit Card
3. OCBC - 90° Travel Credit Card
4. Standard Chartered - Journey Credit Card
5. UOB - EVOL Credit Card
6. UOB - EVOL Credit Card FAQ PDF
7. Trust -Cashback Card Fact Sheet