GLOSSARY — BANKING TERMS, PLAIN LANGUAGE

"Per annum" — the interest or rewards rate expressed per year. 5% p.a. means you earn 5% of your balance over a year (paid monthly, so roughly 5% ÷ 12 each month).

The interest rate you earn with no conditions attached. Every account on this site shows its base rate first.

Extra interest you unlock by meeting conditions — salary credit, card spend, bill payments, or holding insurance/investments with the bank. Bonus tiers stack on top of the base rate.

Base rate + every bonus tier, assuming you meet all conditions. Realistic for some people, impossible for others — the calculator tells you which tiers you'd actually hit.

The maximum balance that earns bonus interest (e.g. S$100k). Anything above the cap earns the base rate only. Our calculator applies caps honestly when ranking.

The blended annual rate on your full balance after applying the bonus tiers you qualify for and the balance cap. This is the number that matters — it's what you actually earn.

Effective Interest Rate — the true annualized cost or return including fees and compounding, not just the headline rate. Banks quote EIR for loans; we use the same idea for savings.

Your employer deposits your salary into the account each month. Many bonus accounts require this to unlock the top tiers.

Spending on the bank's own credit or debit card. Usually a minimum monthly amount (e.g. S$500) counts toward bonus interest.

Singapore's recurring bill-payment system — you authorise the bank to pay bills (utilities, phone, insurance) automatically each month. Counting as a "bill payment" is a common bonus condition.

Holding a life insurance policy, unit trust, or structured deposit with the same bank. Some accounts give bonus tiers for this.

The lowest balance you must keep to avoid fees or qualify for the account. Falling below it may trigger a monthly fee.

A recurring fee some banks charge when you don't meet conditions (e.g. minimum balance). We list it when the bank publishes it.

A percentage of your spending returned to you. "1.75% cashback" means S$17.50 back for every S$1,000 spent.

The cashback or rewards rate for a specific spend category — dining, groceries, petrol, online, travel, utilities. Cards often pay more in some categories than others.

The maximum cashback you can earn in a month or billing cycle (e.g. S$50/month). Above the cap, the category rate stops applying.

Airline loyalty points earned per dollar spent (e.g. 1.4 miles per S$1). Redeemable for flights and upgrades. "mpd" = miles per dollar.

The yearly fee for holding the card (e.g. S$196.20). Our calculator subtracts it from rewards so you see net value.

Conditions that skip the annual fee — often "waived for the first year" or "waived with S$X minimum annual spend".

The minimum annual income you need to qualify for the card (e.g. S$30,000/year).

Your total annual rewards as a percentage of your annual spend — before the annual fee. "1.67% eff" on S$24,000/year spend means about S$400 back. The net figure (after fee) is what rankings use.

Total rewards minus the annual fee — the true yearly value of the card. This is what our card rankings sort by.

Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation — the government deposit insurer. Deposits with a member bank are protected up to S$100,000 per depositor per member bank, automatically and free.

The account is a bank deposit protected by SDIC up to S$100,000 per depositor per member bank. Every account on this site carries a verified flag.

A licensed bank with no physical branches — everything happens in an app. Trust Bank, GXS Bank, MariBank are licensed digital banks and SDIC-insured like any other bank.

NOT a bank deposit. Chocolate Finance, Syfe Cash+, Endowus Cash Smart, StashAway Simple invest your money in unit trusts or money-market funds. Returns are not guaranteed and capital is not deposit-insured — we flag these "NOT INSURED" on every surface.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore — Singapore's central bank and financial regulator. All banks on this site hold a MAS banking licence.

Singapore's instant peer-to-peer transfer system — send money to anyone with just their mobile number or NRIC.

The bank does not publish this number. We never invent it — if the source doesn't state it, we say so.

The field does not apply to this product (e.g. miles on a pure cashback card). Different from "not disclosed".

The date we last read the official bank page and confirmed the numbers. Data is re-verified on a weekly cycle — see the methodology.