Your spending,
in months to a seat.
$5,800 a month, allocated as below, reaches a one-way business class seat from MEL to Singapore in 12 months on earn rates alone, using the American Express Platinum Card.
Until you enter your own figures the table runs the Inner-North Couple pattern, whose monthly total is the median of the five published here. Replace any box below with your own figure and submit.
- Monthly spend
- $5,800
- Seat
- MEL–SIN business
- Seat price
- 82,100
- Months on spending alone
- 12 mo
- Months with a current bonus
- 12 mo
What you spend in a month
Whole dollars, per month, before any card is chosen. Everything else is what the issuers call all other purchases, and it is where most spending lands. Leave a box empty where you spend nothing.
Months to MEL–SIN in business class
| Card | Points a month | Annual cost, all in | Months on spending alone | Months with a current bonus | Seat it reaches | Figures collected |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express Platinum Card | 13,050 | $1,450 | 12 mo | 12 mo | Velocity · Singapore Airlines | 8 September 2026 |
| American Express Qantas Ultimate | 7,250 | $450 | 12 mo | 2 mo | Qantas Classic Reward | 8 September 2026 |
| Qantas Money Titanium | 7,250 | $1,200 | 12 mo | 1 mo | Qantas Classic Reward | 8 September 2026 |
| ANZ Frequent Flyer Black | 5,800 | $425 | 15 mo | 8 mo | Qantas Classic Reward | 9 September 2026 |
| NAB Qantas Rewards Signature | 5,400 | $420 | 16 mo | 1 mo | Qantas Classic Reward | 10 September 2026 |
| St.George Amplify Signature (Qantas) | 4,010 | $370 | 21 mo | 2 mo | Qantas Classic Reward | 10 September 2026 |
| Westpac Altitude Rewards Black | 9,500 | $295 | 24 mo | 13 mo | Velocity · Singapore Airlines | 4 September 2026 |
Rows are ordered by the arithmetic above: fewest months first, then points a month, among the cards in these tables. A row with an em dash carries no collected figure for this pattern, and the column beside it says which one is missing. This site holds no credit licence and recommends no card.
The pattern this ran on
| Category | Monthly spend | Share of the month |
|---|---|---|
| Everything else | $1,500 | 26% |
| Supermarkets | $1,400 | 24% |
| Dining out | $1,100 | 19% |
| Fuel | $300 | 5% |
| Travel | $600 | 10% |
| Utilities & insurers | $900 | 16% |
| Total | $5,800 | 100% |
Spending inside a threshold band is allocated across categories pro rata, which is what an even month looks like; the issuer applies it in transaction order, which no reader can predict. That rule and the two beside it are set out on the methodology page.
Questions this run answers
- How long does $5,800 a month take to reach a business class seat from MEL to Singapore?
- On earn rates alone, 12 months, using the American Express Platinum Card, which is the shortest figure among the cards in these tables. It counts that spending pattern and no sign-up bonus, so it holds until an earn rate or a transfer ratio moves.
- Does a current sign-up bonus change the answer?
- On the same pattern, the shortest answer among these cards once a current sign-up bonus is folded in is 12 months. A bonus carries an end date and a minimum spend, so the two figures are kept apart: one survives the quarter and one does not.
The seat this ran against
- MEL to Singapore, business82,100 Qantas points
The cards it ranked
- American Express Platinum Card12 mo on this pattern
- American Express Qantas Ultimate12 mo on this pattern
- Qantas Money Titanium12 mo on this pattern
How the figures get here
- The arithmetic, in fullLadders, pro rata, dated rows
- Every transfer ratioDated, with its source
- All published seats14 seats priced