#2 Exclusive deals and privileges at over 1,500 dining & retail partners
One does not simply claim to be a lifestyle rewards app without featuring some of the best offers and discounts in town. The Kris+ app lives up to its name, having upgraded and expanded its partnership to over 1,500 merchant outlets islandwide!
Spanning across dining, retail, attractions, wellness, and others, there’s something in it for everyone.
Bargain hunters can look forward to dollar discounts, 1-for-1 meals, and cash vouchers, whereas shopaholics will love their wellness and shopping vouchers. You can even use the app to book cab rides and earn miles too.
But wait, you can redeem similar discounts and offers on other rewards apps. What makes the Kris+ app so unique? Well, what sets it apart is the flexibility/diversity in rebate types earned.
Within their catalogue, you can find the following promotions often running:
- Generous rebates (e.g. every min. spend of S$10, gives you a sure-win chance for S$1-S$20 rebate)
- In-app challenges (e.g. Check in to the app three times weekly for free S$0.50)
- Complimentary discount on items and services (e.g. 10% off)
- Complimentary gifts (e.g. free champagne with min. spend)
- Discounted cash vouchers (e.g. S$50 voucher at only S$37.50 spend).
- 1-for-1 deals (e.g. 1-for-1 ice cream), and
There’s even a 20% miles-back rebate for Esso fuel redeemed using miles!
But what’s really the cherry on top is the fact that you have over 1,500 partner outlets to choose from; so chances are, whatever merchant you’re intending to shop at, the Kris+ app likely has an ongoing deal with them.
#3 Cross-transferable points from other rewards programmes
Looking for flexibility in your rewards programmes? The Kris+ app values that too; it doesn’t discriminate against other rewards programmes. But what do we mean by this?
The Kris+ app allows users to convert rewards points from other rewards programmes into miles – basically, it facilitates the rewards-points-to-miles conversion for other partner rewards programmes like Citibank, DBS, UOB, and CapitaStar.
Upon transferring to Kris+ you can simply tap a single ‘Transfer’ button to store your miles on KrisFlyer for future flight redemptions.
The benefit of using this Kris+ functionality is the lack of a conversion fee, as well as a lower than the typical minimum number of rewards points before conversion can happen!
Bank
|
Points-to-miles conversion
|
Conversion rate
|
Citibank
|
Citi ThankYou Points / Citi Miles ▶ KrisPay miles
|
10,000 Citi ThankYou Points / 4,000 Citi Miles = 3,400 KrisPay miles
|
UOB
|
UNI$ ▶ KrisPay miles
|
1,000 UNI$ = 1,700 KrisPay miles
|
DBS
|
DBS Points ▶ KrisPay miles
|
100 DBS Points = 170 KrisPay miles
|
CapitaStar
|
CapitaStar STAR$® ▶ KrisPay miles
|
26 CapitaStar STAR$® = 1 KrisPay mile
|
Source: Singaporeair
#4 Flexible redemption of miles
By now you would have understood the various ways Kris+ can help you fatten your air miles wallet. Refer to the table below to see how many miles are required to get to your next holiday.
But most of us are aware that the miles accumulation game requires consistency and patience; but that doesn’t mean you have to constantly save all your miles so aggressively, you deserve to treat yourself with them every once in a while.
With the Kris+ app, there are multiple ways to redeem your miles – like funding your next retail therapy purchase.
“I have insufficient miles for flight redemptions / expiring miles…”
For those in either of these predicaments, don’t fret!
Transfer your precious miles from your KrisFlyer Account to the Kris+ app and use these extra miles to offset other everyday transactions like 108 Matcha Saro, 19 Tea, ASICS, Bacha Coffee, Beauty in a Pot, and more!
Do note that KrisPay miles have a validity period of 6 months after transfer to the Kris+ account.
💡 Fun fact: The conversion rate per transfer is 150 miles to S$1. A medium-sized Pearl Milk Tea from Gong Cha costs S$3.20, which is equivalent to about 480 miles for a cup of bubble tea.
“I have enough miles to redeem a flight from Singapore to ____”
But if you think that you’ve racked up enough miles to redeem a flight, congrats! If you are intending to head to Tokyo or Seoul, you’ll need at least 54,000 KrisFlyer miles to redeem an Economy ticket on redemption save to either Tokyo or Seoul. Check out the number of miles to redeem or upgrade your flight with KrisFlyer’s redemption calculator.
💡 Fun fact: 13,522 miles earned from a SIN – LHR return trip (on Economy Flexi fares) is approximately equivalent to S$90 when transferred to Kris+, and can be used to offset your spend at daily partners.
Comparison: Kris+ App vs yuu vs Shopback vs Klook
Kris+
|
yuu
|
Shopback
|
Klook
|
|
Rebate type
|
Miles (KrisPay)
|
Rewards points
|
Cashback
|
Rewards points (Credit)
|
Rebate earn rate
|
Up to 9 mpd
Up to 13mpd with a miles-reward credit card
|
0.5% base cash rebate
Up to 15% cash rebate with DBS yuu credit card (welcome promo)
|
Depends on merchant (From 1% to 60% cash rebate)*
|
0.5% to 1% of transaction paid
|
Rebate return per dollar spend
|
150 KrisPay miles = S$1
|
200 yuu Points = S$1
|
% cashback per dollar (S$1) spend
|
57 credits = S$1
|
Strengths & weaknesses
|
✔ Only mobile app to earn miles on everyday spend and offers the highest miles earn rates.
✔ Convert rewards points into miles with no conversion fee
✔ Higher rebate value is unlocked when miles are redeemed on flights
|
➖ Focus on supermarkets and eateries
|
✔ Broad range of partner merchants
✔ Daily flash cashback deals
➖ Rebates in the form of cashback, return cashback, or cash rewards
|
✔ Monthly promo codes (e.g. credit card promos, event promos)
➖ Specific travel activities and experience listings, and not by vendor
|
% value of rebate
|
2% - 6% (or 0.67 cents value per mile)
Subject to miles redemption per flight
|
0.5% (or 0.5 cents value per point)
|
Depends on retail spend
|
1.75% (or 1.75 cents)
|
*As of 6 March 2023
To put these values in perspective, we can explore the same Tung Lok Seafood example we mentioned earlier.
Say you’ve volunteered to pay using Kris+ for your family’s S$1,000 meal. The app would have earned you 9,000 miles instantly (or 13,000 miles if you use the right miles card). This would have been sufficient to redeem a one-way from Singapore to Bali (SIN-DPS)!
Whereas on the other hand, the other rewards programmes offering cashback on everyday spend would have earned you $5 (assuming 0.5% cashback) or up to $20 (assuming 2% cashback).
While earning rewards can seem attractive, this example shows how miles when redeemed on flights gives you even higher value.
Conclusion
Even if you were to compare the rebate value to yuu, ShopBack, and Klook, the Kris+ app is the only app allowing users to accumulate miles, with the highest miles-earn rate no less. Every other rewards programme app only earns some form of cashback.
And considering how the valuation of a mile largely depends on the flight route, it’s safe to say that earning miles via the Kris+ app and redeeming flights thereafter is the most versatile ‘bang-for-your-buck’ rebate out there.
This article was written in partnership with Kris+ by Singapore Airlines.
Read these next:
Best Air Miles Credit Cards in Singapore (2023)
6 Best Ways to Redeem Your Miles Without Travelling
7 Common Mistakes People Make When Redeeming Miles
How to Earn KrisFlyer Status Credits Without Flying
7 Ways to Earn More Miles With Everyday Expenses