The UOB YOLO has been renamed UOB Evol and restarted, but the changes are more than just up close.
Of all the credit card launches in recent times, the UOB YOLO is likely taking the cake for “Most Interesting Name”. Launched the YOLO back in 2016, UOB believed its rewards for lifestyle spending and priority access to bars and clubs would be key to entering the millennial market.
But just five years later it was decided that the YOLO mantra was a thing of the past. UOB has now renamed the YOLO to UOB Evol and restarted it. New YOLO cards will no longer be issued and existing YOLO cardholders will automatically switch to the Evol program from June 17, 2021.
It’s more than just another name, however – there are some serious changes under the hood.
What is the difference between YOLO and Evol?
At first glance, YOLO and Evol look very similar. The most noticeable difference is that the Evol uses a card face in portrait orientation, with the numbers shifted backwards.
| UOB EVOL | UOB YOLO | |
| Cashback |
|
|
| Minimum. Spend a month | 600 dollars | 600 dollars |
| Cashback cap per month | $ 60 (max. $ 20 per category) | $ 60 |
But they are basically very different products. The YOLO offered cardholders three percent and eight percent cashback for restaurants, entertainment, Grab and UOB Travel, respectively, on weekdays and weekends.
Cardholders can also earn three percent cashback on online fashion and travel expenses.
The EVOL makes things a lot easier. Instead of having different rules for weekdays and weekends, cardholders receive a flat-rate cashback of eight percent for:
- Mobile payment
- Online editions
A cashback of 0.3 percent is given everywhere. A minimum of $ 600 per statement month is required to unlock the eight percent cashback rates. The maximum cashback that can be earned per statement month is $ 60, divided into:
- $ 20 for mobile payments
- $ 20 for online spending
- $ 20 for all other types of expenses
This is far superior to the previous regulation as mobile payments and online spending are very broad categories.
As long as you pay with your phone or use your card online, you get 8 percent cashback, whether it’s restaurants, movie tickets, streaming subscriptions, groceries, or a haircut.
However, there is one important caveat that needs to be highlighted. Although UOB advertises “8 percent cashback” as its headline rate, the best you can get is 6.7 percent. Why? Because of how the caps work.
Based on an eight percent cashback rate and a cap per category of $ 20, you can maximize bonus cashback by spending $ 250 each on mobile payments and online spending. In total, however, you’ve only spent $ 500, which is $ 100 less than the $ 600 minimum spend.
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Therefore, you’ll need to spend at least $ 100 with a cashback rate of only 0.3 percent, which will reduce your effective cashback to 6.7 percent. It’s still a decent rate, but eight percent isn’t.
Aside from cashback, UOB plays the sustainability aspect of the Evol. It trumps the fact that the card consists of 82 percent vegetable polylactic acid, which saves 4.48 g of PVC and creates a 10 g lower carbon footprint.
To this end, the company is also working with a group of sustainable retailers to offer EVOL cardholders special offers. For example, cardholders can receive a five percent discount on purchases in your sustainable store or a 15 percent discount on kitchen utensils as part of the sustainability project.
How does that compare to the OCBC FRANK & DBS Live Fresh?
If the online and contactless spending bonuses sound familiar to you, it’s because OCBC FRANK and DBS Live Fresh basically offer the same thing.
OCBC FRANK and DBS Live Fresh cardholders earn six percent and five percent cashback, respectively, on online and contactless spending, which is less than what UOB Evol offers.
| EVOL | Live fresh | FRANK | |
| Online editions | Eight percent | Five percent | Six percent |
| Contactless expenses | Eight percent | Five percent | Six percent |
| “Sustainable Spending” | 0.3 percent | Five percent | 0.3 percent |
| Foreign currency | 0.3 percent | 0.3 percent | Six percent |
| All other | 0.3 percent | 0.3 percent | 0.3 percent |
| Minimum. Monthly expenses | 600 dollars | 600 dollars | 600 dollars |
| Max. Monthly cashback | $ 60 | $ 75 | $ 75 |
However, your maximum monthly cashback caps are higher at $ 75 instead of $ 60. Because of this, their effective discounts can be higher depending on how much you spend.
To illustrate this, let’s consider three different scenarios:
- Scenario A: Spend $ 600 per month
- Scenario B: Spend $ 800 per month
- Scenario C: Spend $ 1,000 per month
| EVOL | Live fresh | FRANK | |
| Scenario A: $ 600 | 6.7 percent | Five percent | Six percent |
| Scenario B: $ 800 | 5.1 percent | Five percent | Six percent |
| Scenario C: $ 1,000 | 4.2 percent | Five percent | 5.1 percent |
Spending $ 600, the Evol has the highest effective cashback at 6.7 percent (although, as mentioned, it’s not quite eight percent).
But once we get to $ 800, the FRANK card has the better deal. That’s because the $ 501-800th earns 0.3 percent cashback on the Evol, lowering its average to 5.1 percent. FRANK, on the other hand, continues to earn six percent cashback in this area.
At $ 1,000, the Evol’s effective cashback also drops to 4.2 percent, and the FRANK also drops to 5.1 percent (because the $ 834-1,000th earns 0.3 percent cashback).
The result is that someone who spends $ 600 every month on the point will find the Evol to be a useful card, but there’s a narrow range where it’s the best of the three. Once you spend S $ 675 or more, the FRANK becomes a better option.
Conclusion
All in all, the UOB Evol is an improvement over the previous YOLO card. It’s a lot easier to maximize your monthly cashback, and the only thing you really have to do is add it to your mobile wallet and use it as your default card for everything.
That said, it’s important to keep the caps in mind and keep track of your overall spending. Once you top $ 675 per month, other cashback cards become better options.
This article was first published on SingSaver.com.sg.
