Introduction

If you have been following my blog for years,you will know that credit card issuers will downgrade their existing card benefits over time BUT they may also revamp an existing credit card features or introduce a completely new credit card with very good benefits.

Over the past 12 months, Alliance Bank, CIMB Bank, Maybank, RHB (but 2 days before 17th Ocotober 2024 they announced the revision postponed – click here to read it) and UOB have revised their cards’ benefits and in the case of CIMB they make it so complicated with different caps for different categories which gives me a headache, so much so I stopped using my CIMB Travel World Elite MasterCard.

Yeah, credit cards are suppose to make our lives more convenient but lately card issuers are making our lives harder and giving us more stress! In addition to CIMB different caps for different categories, RHB also announced different reward points for different categories. Worst is Maybank credit cards that earn us Treats Points where they now have this stupid ridiculous quota of 100M monthly Air Miles for redemption for all cardholders making us stay up late at night so that we can convert our Treats Points to Air Miles on the 1st of the month and that is even not guaranteed!

With the above said paragraphs, I have decided to produce a completely new Best Top Credit Cards in Malaysia 2025 to give you some guide as what credit cards you should be holding since most of our expenses are local transactions.

If you are a credit card fan, you will know what I mean by you need the right credit card(s) based on your spending pattern. All of us have different spending patterns and if anyone tells you that there is only 1 Best Credit Card, that person is bull shitting you!

Worst are people who tell you which card offers you lower interest rates on Outstanding Balances or even entices you to sign up for Balance Transfer or 0% Installment Plans as both are debt instruments laid out by the banks to get you deeper into debt. I tell you, for you own good, stay away from people who teaches you how to get into debt because this people are in the shit hole of debt themselves. Best you mix around frugal people to be smarter on managing money and once you have saved more than enough money to “chiak bui liow” and “chiak pa ta si” then hang around people like me who will tell you not to be stupid thinking you can take your money to the grave and spend your children inheritance while you are still alive, hahaha.

Yes, I admit I used to promote 0% Balance Transfer or 0% Installment Plans but today I no longer promote Balance Transfer or 0% Installment Plans UNLESS, and it is a BIG UNLESS, you have the money in the bank to pay off your debts instantly.

For example, if you have RM1M in your savings account and you buying a RM200K Patek with 0% Installment Plan then maybe it is ok since you can settle the debt instantly.

On the other hand, if you have RM2K in your savings account and you go purchase an iPhone costing RM5K with 0% installment plan, then you are living beyond means!

If you do not understand the above said paragraph, what I am trying to tell you is that credit card(s) will entice you to spend more and even lead you down the bottomless shit hole of debt!

So if you are new to my blog or credit cards, first thing you must do is click here and read my Prelude to The Best Top Credit Cards in Malaysia where you will also find a link to my Credit Card Tutorial 101 so that you educate yourself and not be fooled into the shit hole of debts and be a slave to the banks!

You will note that the Prelude keeps showing up here and there because it is very very very very very very important that you know the basics of owning a Credit Card and Debit Card and Prepaid Card. Each of these said cards have pros and cons but Debit Card basically is a con except for setting it for the sole purpose to withdraw cash from ATMs in the event of an emergency.

Like I said, all of us have different spending patterns and no one is alike. Some of you may not even own a car but somehow paying high insurance premiums or having to pay your child’s tuition fee.

Nowadays eWallets are also very common where it is accepted as a form of payment not only by merchants but even education centres and charity organizations. However, most eWallets, i.e. Grab, TnG eWallet and Boost, impose a fee when we top up with credit cards.

This article IS NOT A COMPREHENSIVE tutorial but just a guide on what credit cards to get/use for certain specific transactions that applies to most people.

Generally, credit cards users can be categorized into many categories:

1. Cash Back Fans;
2. Air Miles Fans;
3. Both Cash Back and Air Miles Fans to optimize;
4. Debt accumulation and a slave to the bank paying interest as no money to pay with cash (e,g, refusing to go to government hospital but admit to a Private Hospital to accumulate debt or also applies to no money to Duit Now to eWallets where we are not imposed any fees);
5. Credit card collectors (not many but if you gotten yourself the Maybank Mercedes Benz VI Metal Card or the new Maybank World Elite MasterCard Metal Card for fun or for airport lounge access, then you fall into this said category, haha).
6. For convenience sake and not bothered with the benefits (most super rich people).

For the purpose of this said article, I will only concentrate on items 1 and 2 above and maybe even break down into what credit card for different transaction categories (spending patterns).

Before I proceed any further, do not complicate your life by holding too many different credit cards if you are not really benefiting from them. For example, if you are only paying RM200 monthly insurance premiums, please lah don’t go get the credit card I mentioned solely for Insurance Premiums. On the other hand, if you are paying RM20K per month on insurance premiums, then it may be worthwhile to get the credit card I recommended.

Having said the above, if the credit card is FREE FOR LIFE without any condition, then you can get it but like I warned you in the Prelude, Credit Limit is a liability. As for the RM25 SST, if you so kedekut to donate (charity work where you expect nothing in return) to the government to provide services to the Rakyat… you will be punished for being calculatinve and greedy, serious. Yes, keep a FREE FOR LIFE credit card with a few banks and pay the damn SST! I have mentioned the pros of keeping FREE FOR LIFE credit cards in the Prelude to this article but if you stubborn then you will regret later on when you can no longer qualify for new credit card(s).

Once again, this article will only touch on Entry Level Credit Card (annual income up to RM60K) and Premier Credit Cards (annual income up to 180K). I will exclude credit cards where their eligible income requirement are above RM180K or you need AUM of RM200K and above.

So if you have read my Prelude to The Best Top Credit Cards in Malaysia 2025 AND you have the discipline not to spend beyond your means AND you have no existing Credit Card Outstanding Balances where you are paying interest AND you have the money in your savings account to settle in full instantly an existing Balance Transfer or 0% Installment Plans, then please click on the button below to Page 2 to start your tutorial: