| DBS Vantage Credit Card Rating |
| Reward Rate ★★★ International Travel Benefits ★★★★ Annual Fee ★★★ Milestone Benefits ★★★ Other Privileges ★★★★ |
| Overall Rating ★★★ |
Note: This card is not available on Paisabazaar.com. Content on this page is for information purpose only. To express interest in this card, please visit DBS Bank’s website.
DBS Vantage Credit Card is a super-premium invite-only card offering excellent benefits for frequent travellers, in the form of hotel memberships, lounge access, savings on duty-free shopping and more. The card charges 0% forex mark-up fee in Singapore, which makes it a suitable for those who frequently travel to Singapore. Even for other international destinations, the card charges a low forex mark-up fee of 1.75%. With such travel-focused benefits, DBS Vantage stands as a worthy competitor for other super-premium credit cards.
Note that the annual fee charged on DBS Vantage Card varies based on customer segment. For DBS Elite Customers, the annual fee is Rs. 10,000, for DBS Treasure Customers, it is Rs. 20,000 and for all other customers, the card charges Rs. 50,000 as annual fee.
Low Forex Mark-up on International Travel
DBS Vantage Credit Card charges zero forex mark-up fee in Singapore and a low forex mark-up of 1.75% elsewhere. As the standard forex mark-up charged by most credit cards is usually 3.5% of the transaction amount, this is a good advantage, especially for international travellers.
While there are credit cards offering low forex mark-up advantage like HDFC Infinia, Axis Magnus and SBI Card ELITE, DBS Vantage is the first card to launch country-specific zero forex mark-up feature.
Unlimited Airport Lounge Access
Cardholders get unlimited access to domestic and international airport lounges, with their DBS Vantage Card.
Along with unlimited access for primary members, most super-premium cards also offer limited number of free visits for add-on cardholders or guests. DBS Bank does not specify any such added advantage.
Welcome Benefit: Luxury Hotel Membership + Bonus Vantage Points
DBS Vantage Card offers welcome benefits to its users in two forms:
- Complimentary Membership to Taj Epicure, ITC Culinaire or Club Marriott
- 10,000 bonus Vantage Points on making the first transaction within 30 days of card activation
Extra Vantage Points on International Travel
Cardholders will earn Vantage Points every time they use their DBS Vantage Card-
- 4 Vantage Point (VP) per Rs. 200 spent in India
- 8 Vantage Point (VP) per Rs. 200 spent internationally
- 1 Vantage Point = Rs. 1
Being a super-premium card, the reward rate on DBS Vantage is comparatively low. Here is a table showing the reward rates on some popular super-premium cards to help you get a perspective:
| Credit Card | Base Reward Rate | Accelerated Rate |
| Axis Magnus Credit Card | 12 Axis EDGE Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent | NA |
| Axis Reserve Credit Card | 15 Axis EDGE Reward Points for every Rs. 200 spent | 30 Axis EDGE Reward Points for every Rs. 200 spent internationally |
| HDFC Infinia Credit Card | 5 reward points on every Rs. 150 on retail spends | 10X reward points on travel and shopping spends on SmartBuy |
| IndusInd Bank Legend Credit Card | 1 reward point per Rs. 100 spent on weekdays | 2 reward points per Rs. 100 spent on weekends |
Vantage Points Redemption
Cardholders can use the DBS Delights reward redemption platform to redeem the accumulated reward points. They can also avail special deals on flights, hotels and restaurants and gift cards from select premium brands.
Other Benefits
Cashback on Duty-free Spends: The card offers 10% cashback on duty-free spends up to Rs. 1,500 per month.
Golf Privileges: Cardholders can avail up to 4 complimentary golf games in a year.
Milestone Rewards: With DBS Vantage, cardholders can also avail bonus reward points on reaching quarterly spending milestones as shown in the table below:
| Spend Value | Benefit |
| Rs. 3 Lakh in a calendar quarter | 5,000 bonus Vantage Points |
| Rs. 5 Lakh in a calendar quarter | 10,000 bonus Vantage Points |
| Rs. 10 Lakh in a year | Annual Fee Waiver |
Comparison: DBS Vantage Vs. Axis Magnus Vs. HDFC Infinia
Since DBS Vantage is a super-premium card, let us compare its benefits with the two most popular premium credit cards in India- Axis Magnus and HDFC Infinia.
| DBS Vantage | Axis Magnus | HDFC Infinia | |
| Welcome Benefit | 10,000 bonus Vantage Points; complimentary luxury hotel memberships | Complimentary Flight Ticket or Tata CLiQ voucher worth Rs. 10,000 | Complimentary Club Marriott Membership; 12,500 reward points on card activation/renewal |
| Base Reward Rate | 4 Vantage Points per Rs. 200 spent | 12 Axis EDGE Reward Points per Rs. 200 spent | 5 reward points on every Rs. 150 on retail spends |
| Lounge Access | Unlimited complimentary domestic and international lounge access | Unlimited complimentary domestic and international lounge access + 8 guest visits via Priority Pass membership | Unlimited airport lounge access across the globe for Primary and Add-on member |
| Memberships | Complimentary membership to ITC Culinaire, Taj Epicure or Club Marriott | NA | Complimentary Club Marriott membership for first year |
| Foreign Exchange Mark-up Fee | 0% for Singapore 1.75% for other countries |
2% | 2% |
| Other Travel Benefits |
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| Milestone Benefits | 5,000 bonus VP on Rs. 3 lakh spends in a quarter; 3,000 VP on Rs. 5 lakh spends in a quarter; Annual fee waived off on spending Rs. 10 lakh in a year | 25,000 EDGE reward points on Rs. 1 lakh monthly spends; Annual fee waived off on spending Rs. 15 lakh in a year | Annual fee waived off on spending Rs. 10 lakh in a year |
| Golf Privilege | 4 complimentary golf sessions per year | Complimentary golf games/ lessons under Axis Bank Extraordinary Weekends | Unlimited complimentary golf games & coaching at select courses worldwide |
Is the annual fee justified?
DBS Vantage Card charges annual fee based on the customer segment as shown below:
| DBS Elite Customers | Rs. 10,000 |
| DBS Treasures Customers | Rs. 20,000 |
| Other Customers | Rs. 50,000 |
When compared with other premium cards like Axis Magnus and HDFC Infinia, the fee charged by DBS Vantage seems a bit too high, especially if you do not fall in the Elite or Treasure customer category, as in that case you would be charged Rs. 50,000. For a similar fee, you can get Axis Reserve Credit Card with more luxurious privileges and a higher reward rate.
The annual fee of Rs. 10,000 seems reasonable for this card, according to the set of benefits offered.
Should you get DBS Vantage Credit Card?
DBS Vantage is the first proprietary credit card by DBS Bank in India. Currently, it is an invite-only card and the eligibility will be based on the consumer’s credit history and existing relationship with DBS Bank. The unique advantage of the card is its zero forex markup for Singapore. As no other credit card is offering country-specific forex benefits, this card holds great value for people who frequently visit Singapore. They would not have to get a forex card to cover the expenses in Singapore as this card, without the additional charges for currency conversion, offers the same convenience.
Other than that, the unlimited domestic and international lounge access, low forex mark-up of 1.75%, for currencies other than the Singapore Dollar and accelerated rewards on international spends add to its travel benefits.
You should consider getting this card if:
- You frequently travel to Singapore along with limited visits to other countries
- You plan on putting international expenses on credit cards and would be able to make the most of the rewards program
- Complimentary luxury hotel memberships would greatly benefit you
- You would be able to spend Rs. 10 Lakh in a year to avail annual fee waiver
Drawbacks
DBS Vantage Card has two major drawbacks. One, the reward rate is low and there is not enough clarity around whether you would be able to convert the accumulated Vantage Points into Air Miles. Though the DBS Delights Reward Redemption Platform claims to offer travel benefits, the ability to convert points into miles would have been a good feature. Also, for a card worth Rs. 50,000, the base reward rate of 2% is not satisfactory.
Second, a lot of super-premium cards offer additional benefits for add-on members even if it is just a complimentary lounge access. DBS Bank provides no such benefit.