“Spend your way to your next getaway”, Standard Chartered (SC) proclaims of their newly rebranded Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card. The idea they’re trying to sell you is simple: Charge purchases to your SC Journey Credit Card, and they’ll reward you with miles for your everyday spending. So that Gojek ride? That Foodpanda delivery? They’ll all count towards your next flight to your dream destination.
The SC Journey Credit Card may sound like a low effort way to afford your next holiday, but so are many other air miles credit cards. And on the surface level, a lot of these miles cards seem to offer pretty much the same thing—earn miles on stuff you buy. Is the SC Journey Credit Card just a regular entry-level miles credit card on the scene, or is it a cut above the rest? Let’s take a closer look.
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card Review—Is it MoneySmart?
Overall: ★★★☆☆
Best for: Those looking for an entry-level rewards card with extra earn rates for online transport, food delivery and grocery transactions. Don’t hold your breath when it comes to the card’s sign-up bonuses and other privileges.
Category
Our rating
The deets
Earn rates: 360 Rewards Points
– 360 Rewards Points do not expire, and can be redeemed for miles, cash rewards, or shopping vouchers
– 7.5 Rewards Points / 3 miles = S$1 spend on online transactions: Transportation, Grocery and Food Delivery Merchants
– 5 Rewards Points / 2 miles = S$1 overseas spend
– 3 Rewards Points / 1.2 miles = S$1 local spend
Earn categories
Annual fees and charges
★★★★☆
S$194.40 (first year waiver available) / No fee for supplementary cards
Accessibility
★★★☆☆
Minimum income requirement: $30,000 (Singaporeans) / $60,000 (non-Singaporeans)
Extras/periphery rewards
★★☆☆☆
– 2 complimentary visits to Priority Pass lounges worldwide each year
– Complimentary travel insurance coverage of up to S$500,000
– S$0 foreign transaction fee for overseas spend made and posted in June-July, November-December 2023
– S$10 off Grab rides to or from Changi Airport (limited to the first 2,000 redemptions)
Sign-up bonus
★★☆☆☆
Up to 45,000 miles:
– For 25,000 miles: Spend $5,000 within 30 days of card approval
– For 10,000 miles: Transact $5,000 worth of foreign spending
– For 10,000 miles: Pay the annual fee of $194.40
See our credit card ranking rubric to find out how we rank credit cards.
Contents:
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Summary
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Eligibility
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Annual fees
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Earn rates
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Bonus earn categories
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Rewards Points redemption
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Benefits and privileges
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Sign-up promotion
Should I get the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card?
Alternatives to the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card
1. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Summary
The Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card is the rebranded version of the now defunct Standard Chartered X Card, which had its 15 minutes of fame back in 2019 with its whopping 100,000 miles sign-up promo. What went wrong with the X Card? This high-flying card was aimed at the higher echelons of society, with its almost $700 annual fee and $80,000 minimum income requirement. But with the SC X Card’s decidedly average earn rates of $1 = 1.2 miles locally and $1 = 2 miles overseas, it’s no wonder Standard Chartered X-ed the X card in lieu of the friendlier, entry-level Journey Credit Card.
In a word, the rebranded SC Journey Credit Card is average. It’s nothing to shout about, but is also nothing to complain about. It’s got an average minimum income requirement ($30,000). It’s got average earn rates (the exact same as its predecessor X card, in fact, which speaks more of the X card than of it). And it’s got average additional perks, such as complimentary visits to Priority Pass lounges. Having said that, that doesn’t mean you should write off the SC Journey Credit Card. There’s a space in many a wallet for a decent everyday rewards card, and the SC Journey Credit Card just might fit the bill.
One thing I want to say about the SC Journey Credit Card: Don’t label it as a miles card just because Standard Chartered has been selling it as one, or because it has the word “journey” in its name. Technically, the SC Journey Credit Card earns you 360 Rewards Points, not miles. These points can be used to redeem air miles, sure, but also cash rewards or shopping vouchers. Your choice!
2. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Eligibility
The Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card is definitely in entry-level credit card territory. These are its eligibility conditions and income requirements:
Minimum income for Singaporeans: S$30,000
Minimum income for non-Singaporeans: S$60,000
Age: 21 – 65 years
The only condition that might make the SC Journey Credit Card less friendly is its income requirement for foreigners, who need to earn at least $60,000 a year to be eligible for the card. Comparatively, many other miles cards with a $30,000 income requirement for Singaporeans only impose a $40,000-$45,000 income requirement for non-Singaporeans. Here’s a quick look at the minimum earn rates of miles cards with similar earn rates:
Minimum income requirements
Air miles credit card
For Singaporeans
For non-Singaporeans
SC Journey Credit Card
$30,000
$60,000
Citi PremierMiles Card
$30,000
$42,000
HSBC TravelOne Card
$30,000 (salaried worker) / $40,000 (self-employed or commission-based)
$40,000
DBS Altitude Visa Signature Card
$30,000
$45,000
OCBC 90°N Card
$30,000
$45,000
3. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Annual fees
Thank goodness Standard Chartered has come to realise that no one in their right mind is going to pay ~$700 in annual fees for a credit card that gives you a very average 1.2 miles per S$1 earn rate. Now, the new and improved SC Journey Credit Card gives…the same average earn rate. But! At least it’s brought its annual fees down to an equally average amount of S$194.40, with the option of waiving the annual fee for (at least) the first year. There’s also no annual fee for any supplementary card(s), all in all making the SC Journey Credit Card the next best thing after a no annual fee credit card.
4. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Earn rates
The SC Journey Card works just like many other air miles credit cards—charge money to the card, and earn rewards points that you can turn into miles, cash rewards, or shopping vouchers. That’s right—although the SC Journey Credit Card is advertised and categorised as a miles credit card, it actually earns you 360 Rewards Points that give you the flexibility to choose what you want to redeem them for. This sets it apart from, say, the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card, which earns you KrisFlyer miles directly.
Here’s what you can expect to earn with the SC Journey Credit Card:
Earn rates with the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card
Per $1 spent on
360 Rewards Points
Air Miles
Online Transactions: Transportation, Grocery and Food Delivery Merchants
7.5 Rewards Points (of which 4.5 Rewards Points are considered bonus points)
3 miles
Overseas spend
5 Rewards Points
2 miles
Local spend
3 Rewards Points
1.2 miles
Do note that there is a cap to the number of bonus Rewards Points you can earn. In each month, you can only earn a maximum of 4,500 Rewards Points, which basically means a spend cap of S$1,000. This cap only applies to the S$1 = 4.5 Rewards Points bonus earnings, and doesn’t apply to the regular S$1 = 3 Rewards Points earnings you get from local spend. So, past the S$1,000 mark on the bonus earn categories, further spending will continue to earn you the usual 3 Rewards Points (1.2 miles) per dollar.
5. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Bonus earn categories
To get the most out of your SC Journey Credit Card, you’re going to want to max out the bonus earn categories that give you the highest earn rate on the card of S$1 = 7.5 Rewards Points. These apply only to online transactions in 3 categories: Transportation, Groceries, and Food Delivery. Here are the eligible merchant category codes and merchant examples:
Bonus earn rate transaction categories
Qualifying MCCs (online transactions only)
Examples of merchants with those MCCs
Transportation
4111
4121
4411
4789
Gojek, Cabcharge Asia (they work with ComfortDelGro), Tada, Ryde Technologies, Royal Caribbean Cruises
Food Delivery
5814
5811
5812
Foodpanda, Deliveroo, McDonald’s, KFC, Pizza Hut, Dominos Pizza
Groceries and Food
stores
5411
5462
5499
5921
NTUC FairPrice Online, NTUC FairPrice app, Nespresso
Once again, there’s a spend cap of S$1,000 for the categories above. Past the S$1,000 mark, further online transactions under the categories above will just earn you the usual rate of S$1 local spend = 3 Rewards Points / 1.2 miles.
6. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Rewards Points redemption
With the SC Journey Credit Card, you’ll earn 360 Rewards Points that can be redeemed for air miles, cash rewards, or shopping vouchers. The miles conversion rate is 2.5 Rewards Points = 1 mile, while the shopping voucher conversion rates vary by merchant, and you’ll need to log in to the online Standard Chartered 360 Rewards Points catalogue to view the cash reward details. You’ll also use this platform to redeem your Reward Points. But for now, to give you a rough idea, here are the conversion rates for everyone’s favourite, good old trusty Capital Mall vouchers:
6,900 points = S$20 eCapitaVoucher
17,250 points = S$50 eCapitaVoucher
You’d need to spend $920 via online food delivery/grocery/transport transactions to amass the 6,900 reward points needed for a $20 eCapitaVoucher. Essentially, that’s like getting a 2.17% “cashback” rate—not too shabby compared to an unlimited cashback credit card with very general spend categories, but falls short of other cards’ cashback rates for specific categories.
ALSO READ: 11 Best Cashback Credit Cards in Singapore
It may seem quite troublesome to some to have to log in and convert the points to miles/vouchers/cash rewards, but that’s the price we pay for flexibility. Plus, one big advantage to the 360 Rewards Points you’ll earn is that these points do not expire. So feel free to hang on to them and accumulate them to your heart’s content before using your hard-earned points.
7. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Benefits and privileges
If the SC Journey Credit Card were a burger, it would be a McChicken. It’s no limp and flat hamburger, but it’s a far cry from the hearty, juicy Big Mac everyone’s got their eye on. The SC Journey Credit Card has 2 main permanent benefits that are guaranteed to stick around:
2 complimentary visits to Priority Pass lounges worldwide each year
Complimentary travel insurance coverage of up to S$500,000
Aside from these, there are also some limited-time privileges that we can only hope will either be extended or replaced with an equivalent perk:
S$0 foreign transaction fee for overseas spend made and posted in June-July, November-December 2023
S$10 off Grab rides to or from Changi Airport (limited to the first 2,000 redemptions)
45% off all single trip plans with MSIG TravelEasy Insurance
See what I mean about the McChicken? These aren’t benefits you’d crave and long to have, and you probably won’t be getting the SC Journey Credit Card solely for the perks above. But things like discounted Grab rides and insurance are certainly complimentary add-ons that anyone would welcome. Plus, the knowledge that you don’t have to pay a cent in foreign transaction fees while travelling is as reassuring as the knowledge that you’re always going to get to enjoy McDonald’s signature burgers all over the world.
8. Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card: Sign-up promotion
From now till 30 Sep 2023, Standard Chartered is offering up to 45,000 miles for those who sign up for the SC Journey Credit Card. But before you get too excited at the prospect of 45,000 miles, it’s important to break this down to see what conditions it comes with:
Gift condition
Rewards Points awarded
Equivalent KrisFlyer Miles
Pay the annual fee of S$194.40
25,000
10,000
Get 5 miles for every S$1 of eligible transactions within the first 30 days of card approval, capped at S$5,000
62,500
25,000
Get 2 miles for every S$1 of eligible transactions in
foreign currency under the Standard Chartered
Credit Card Rewards Promotions
25,000
10,000
Total
112,500
45,000
So to hit the 45,000 mile welcome gift, you’ll need to spend/pay a total of S$10,194.40:
For 25,000 miles: Spend S$5,000 within 30 days of card approval
For 10,000 miles: Transact S$5,000 worth of foreign spending
For 10,000 miles: Pay the annual fee of S$194.40
If you don’t fancy paying the annual fee and also don’t foresee yourself spending overseas, you’re looking at only 25,000 miles—assuming you spend $5,000 in a month. Tough. Lesson learnt: Don’t be blindly lured by the promise of 45,000 miles!
On the plus side, it’s also worth mentioning that Standard Chartered isn’t going to give you miles directly, but 360 Rewards Points that can be converted to miles. So if you would prefer converting these points to cash rewards or shopping vouchers instead, go ahead!
9. Should I get the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card?
The SC Journey Credit Card is a good entry-level rewards card with decent earn rates, especially for its 3 miles per S$1 earn rate on online transactions for transport, grocery and food delivery. That’s perhaps its biggest draw— it’s definitely not a credit card you’re going to get for its lacklustre travel benefits or difficult-to-attain welcome points. Here’s a summary of why you should or shouldn’t get it:
Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card
Pros
Cons
Higher than average earn rates on online transactions for transport, grocery and food delivery: 7.5 Rewards Points / 3 miles per S$1 spend
360 Rewards Points never expire
Reasonable annual fee with first year waiver available, and no annual fee for supplementary cards
Low minimum income requirements for Singaporeans (a bit higher for non-Singaporeans)
Travel and other benefits fall short
Alleged 45,000 mile welcome gift is difficult to get—you’d need to spend pay $5,000+$5,000 and pay the annual fee of $194.40
Our advice is to only get the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card if you know you can make full use of the 3 miles per S$1 spend on online transactions for transport, grocery and food delivery. That means maxing out the spend cap of S$1,000 each month. Otherwise, consider these alternative cards below.
10. Alternatives to the Standard Chartered Journey Credit Card
Here are some air miles credit cards with similar or slightly higher earn rates:
Citi PremierMiles Card: Similar earn rates (1.2 Citi Miles per S$1 local spend/ 2 Citi Miles per S$1 overseas spend) but a sign-up bonus that’s a lot easier to get. Plus, Citi Miles also never expire.
OCBC 90°N Card: Slightly higher earn rates (2.1 miles per S$1 foreign currency spend, 1.3 miles per S$1 local spend), with no cap on miles earned per month. Additionally, comes with a sign-up bonus that’s juicier and easier to get.
UOB PRVI MASTERCARD Miles Card: Higher earn rates (2.4 miles per S$1 foreign currency spend, 1.4 miles per S$1 local spend), and the first fee waiver comes with the sign-up bonus instead of being a prerequisite to receive the welcome gift
P.S. Here’s our MoneySmart credit card ranking rubric
In case you’re wondering, here’s how we decide on our credit card rankings.
Is that credit card MoneySmart? Our MoneySmart credit card ranking rubric
Category
Our rating
Overall
The average rating for the credit card on the whole, calculated from the ratings for the individual categories below. Plus, we’ll give you a one-liner on who we think the credit card is best suited for.
Earn rates: Air miles / Cashback / Rewards points
Air miles / Cashback / Rewards points . This category looks at the depth rather than breadth of earn rates.
5 stars means this card’s got the highest earn rates within that credit card type.
3-4 stars mean it’s average
1-2 stars reflect earn rates that are below average.
Earn categories
This category looks at the breadth rather than depth of your earnings.
5 stars: Earn with ANY spend.
3-4 stars: Earn on a large number of categories (e.g. all dining, transport and retail, but not telco bills) OR earn on 1 very broad category (e.g. all contactless/mobile payments).
1-2 stars: Earn a decent rate only on selected categories, such as fast food only.
Annual fees and charges
5 stars: $0
4 stars: $1-200
3 stars: $201-500
2 stars: $501-$999
1 star: $1,000 and up
We dock a star if fee waiver is NOT allowed.
Accessibility
Minimum income requirements:
5 stars: $0
4 stars: Up to $30k a year for Singaporeans and up to $45k for non-Singaporeans
3 stars: $30-60k a year for Singaporeans, $45-70k for non-Singaporeans
2 stars: $60-120k a year for Singaporeans, $70-120k for non-Singaporeans
1 star: $120,000 and up for either, or both
Exclusivity: We dock 1-2 stars if there is/are another category/categories that make the card exclusive and very specific to a certain clientele.
Extras/periphery rewards
These include:
Travel benefits, such as airport lounge access
Lifestyle benefits, such as spa privileges
Dining benefits, such as complimentary AMEX Love Dining or Entertainer with HSBC subscriptions
We count the number of benefits and award between 0.5 to 2 stars for each, depending on how good the perk is.
Sign-up bonus
5 stars: The gift(s), cash, or miles are the highest we see out there compared to other credit cards of the same type (miles, cashback, etc). Also easy to attain these welcome bonuses.
3-4 stars: Average but not disappointing sign-up bonus compared to other credit cards. You aren’t losing out.
1-2 stars: You are probably losing out in terms of the welcome bonus you’re getting; there are other similar credit cards with sign-up bonuses that are better or easier to attain.
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Original article: What Happened To The StanChart X Card?—SCB Journey Credit Card Review.
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