There are now over 200 credit cards in India across 10+ banks. Having options is a good thing, but it also makes it more difficult to find the best credit cards. So the question now becomes, which credit cards offer you the most benefits and rewards during your spending? We present you with a list of the best credit cards in India. Whether it’s cashback, miles, lounge access, or free vacations, we have a credit card for you.
Best Credit Cards in India: Entry Level Segment
This list is for someone starting off with credit cards and looking for something simple. Entry-level credit cards are best suited for annual spends of less than Rs 2 Lakh. The credit cards in this segment:
- Are easy to get approved for
- Have low or zero annual fee
- Have low salary requirements for eligibility
- Provide rewards such as cashback, statement credit or Amazon gift vouchers
SBI Cashback Credit Card
With 5% cash back on any online merchant spends, SBI Cashback credit card is one of the best cards in the cashback segment. This card will give you 5% cashback on any e-commerce spends like Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Tata CLiQ etc. If you are into cashback, this is the best credit card for online spends.
- Joining/Annual Fee: Rs 999+GST
- Cashback: 1% to 5%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 2 Lakh spend
- Best Use: 5% cashback on online spends
- Airport Lounge Access: Not Available
- Con: SBI Cashback card is not eligible for 10% instant discount online sales
HSBC Cashback Credit Card
HSBC Cashback credit card makes this list in 2024. This card was recently relaunched with revised rewards and now offers 10% cashback on dining, food delivery and grocery spends.
- Joining/Annual Fee: Rs 999+GST
- Cashback: 1.5% to 10%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 2 Lakh spend
- Best Use: 10% cashback on dining, food delivery and grocery spends
- Airport Lounge Access: Only Domestic
- Con: Applications are limited to few cities
Axis Bank Ace Credit Card
Ace comes with a 2% to 5% unlimited cash back on transactions. The only point that we need to note is that Google Pay bill payments using this card are not available on iOS yet. So, iOS users lose out on 5% cashback. This card is invite-only from Google Pay for now.
- Joining/Annual Fee: Rs 499+GST
- Cashback: 2% to 5%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 2 Lakh spend
- Best Use: 2% cashback on offline and online spends
- Airport Lounge Access: Only Domestic
- Con: 5% cashback on utility bills is limited to only Android devices
Amex Membership Rewards Credit Card
MRCC is an entry-level credit card that can give rewards on par with some of the premium cards. We get 1000 bonus MR points each on Rs 1500 X 4 transactions and Rs 20000 spent every month. With the Gold Collection redemption, the reward rate is between 5% to 8%.
- Joining Fee: Zero
- Annual Fee: Rs 1500+GST
- Rewards: 1% to 8%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 1.5 Lakh spend
- Best Use: Online Spends and Wallet Loads
- Rewards Redemption: 18K and 24K Gold Collection
- Airport Lounge Access: Not Available
- Con: Offline acceptance can be an issue
Best Credit Cards in India: Premium Segment
This list is for cards that offer reward points along with some lifestyle benefits. These offer more value than entry-level credit cards and are suitable if annual spends are more than 4 Lakhs. The cards in the segment will:
- We will need a higher salary eligibility criteria (preferably > Rs 6 Lakhs per annum)
- May have a higher fee that might not have waiver criteria
- Provide lifestyle benefits with better rewards than entry-level credit cards
IDFC First Bank Wealth Credit Card
IDFC First Wealth does not have the high rewards that few others on this list have. But, it is LTF without any strings. For the LTF price, we get up to 2.5% rewards with some good benefits. Some of the complimentary benefits are railway lounge access, roadside assistance, airport spa access and a BOGO movie offer. We also get domestic and international airport lounge access.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Zero (Lifetime Free)
- Rewards: Up to 2.5%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Not Applicable
- Best Use: Online Spends and Lounge/Spa Access
- Rewards Redemption: Statement Credit
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
HDFC Bank Regalia Gold Credit Card
Regalia Gold is the newest launch from HDFC Bank. It is an upgrade over the Regalia/Diners Club Privilege and also offers better milestone benefits. While the base reward rate might seem low, HDFC Bank has SmartBuy and other spending offers to boost the return. Get Regalia Gold especially if it is offered LTF and keep it for an upgrade to the future HDFC super-premium credit card.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 2500+GST
- Rewards: 1.3% to 13.3%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 3 Lakh Spend
- Rewards Redemption: SmartBuy Travel Bookings
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank Credit Card
Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank credit card is one of the underrated options today. The RuPay variant is popular as a good UPI card but it does a lot more. We can earn up to 10% NeuCoins and more through promotional offers on the Tata Neu app.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 1499+GST / LTF
- Rewards: 1.5% to 5%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 3 Lakh Spend for paid cards
- Best Use: UPI, Bill Payments and Tata Neu spends
- Rewards Redemption: Tata Neu partner brands
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
Best Credit Cards in India: Super Premium Segment
These are the cards that everyone wants but few get them thanks to the stringent criteria. The super-premium credit cards can offer you every benefit that you wanted and more. For the cards in this segment:
- The salary should be high (preferably > Rs 15 Lakhs per annum)
- Annual spending should be close to 10 Lakhs
Axis Bank Atlas Credit Card
Axis Atlas under the super-premium credit card section? While it is surprising, Atlas very much belongs to the league of Infinia and DCB. At a fee of Rs 5000+GST, the Atlas provides great value for our spends. And it is easy to get compared to other options in this list.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 5000+GST
- Rewards: 1% to 10%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 3 Lakh Spend
- Rewards Redemption: Points transfer to airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
HDFC Bank Infinia Credit Card
The HDFC Bank Infinia is in a league of its own when it comes to super-premium credit cards. 3.3% base rewards, up to 33% SmartBuy rewards, and many other offers ensure Infinia retains its crown. Till the much-rumoured Infinia Reserve/Galaxia is launched, Infinia will continue to be a good option.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 12,500+GST
- Rewards: 3.3% to 33%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 10 Lakh Spend
- Rewards Redemption: 1:1 redemption on SmartBuy, Points transfer to airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Airport Lounge Access: Unlimited for both Domestic and International
HDFC Bank Diners Club Black Credit Card
Diners Club Black is the second card from HDFC Bank in the super-premium segment. The card is on par with Infinia with some minor differences in rewards and redemption.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 10,000+GST
- Rewards: 3.3% to 33%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 8 Lakh Spend
- Rewards Redemption: 1:1 redemption on SmartBuy, Points transfer to airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Airport Lounge Access: Unlimited for both Domestic and International
Best Credit Cards in India: Travel
All the cards we covered till now are all-purpose cards for both earning and redeeming points. The redemption value depends on the option we choose – travel, gift vouchers, or cash back. Apart from this, we also have travel credit cards that offer better value if the rewards are used for flights/hotels.
Amex Platinum Travel Credit Card
Milestone benefits and Taj vouchers are the highlights of the Amex Plat Travel credit card. If Taj vouchers are not useful for you, then there are other options as well. We get at least 48000 MR points every year including regular and milestone MR points. These can be transferred to Marriott Bonvoy or one of the airline travel partners as AirMiles.
- Joining Fee: Rs 3500+GST
- Annual Fee: Rs 5000+GST
- Rewards: Up to 8%
- Annual Fee Waiver: None
- Rewards Redemption: Taj Vouchers
- Airport Lounge Access: Only Domestic
Club Vistara IDFC First Bank Credit Card
The Club Vistara IDFC First Bank credit card is one of the better Vistara co-branded credit cards. It offers you up to 5 premium economy tickets on spends.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 4999+GST
- Rewards: Up to 4%
- Annual Fee Waiver: None
- Rewards Redemption: Vistara Tickets
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
Marriott Bonvoy HDFC Bank Credit Card
This is the first Marriott Bonvoy co-branded credit card in India. While the reward rate is low, this card is still a good bet just for the joining and renewal benefits. We get Bonvoy Silver Elite status with 10 night credits that help in reaching higher statuses like Gold/Platinum. The second benefit against the fee is a FNA credit worth up to 15K points.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 3000+GST
- Rewards: 0.8% to 3.2%
- Annual Fee Waiver: None
- Rewards Redemption: Marriott Bonvoy Hotel Stays
- Airport Lounge Access: Both Domestic and International
Best Credit Cards in India: Fuel
BPCL SBI Credit Card
The BPCL SBI credit card is a good option for getting 3%+ return on fuel spends. We can meet the annual fee waiver with only fuel spends getting an overall reward rate of 3.25% plus a 1% fuel surcharge waiver. You can also explore the BPCL SBI Octane credit card for a higher fuel return. But that comes with a higher annual fee too.
- Joining and Annual Fee: Rs 499+GST
- Rewards: 0.25% to 3.25%
- Annual Fee Waiver: Rs 50,000 Spend
- Rewards Redemption: Fuel/Statement Credit
- Airport Lounge Access: Not Available
Final Thoughts
This is the list of the best credit cards in India that we think are worth checking out and applying for across all banks and credit cards. The decision to get a card depends on what you intend to use the rewards for and whether the card will help you do that. So, do check the redemption options to see if you are getting a good value out of your spending. The next thing to check would be the annual fee. The card should offer a good return on spending including the annual fee (if not waived).
Hope this list helps you in getting a card that gives you a rewarding experience. 🙂
Any other card you think should be a part of this best credit cards in India list? Do comment and let us know!
Frequently Asked Questions
18 thoughts on “10+ Best Credit Cards in India for 2023”
Drop all Amex cards from your list!
The major drawback I have been facing using Amex is its reducing footprint!
Can’t use it for major big ticket spends like School Fees / Hospital Bills / Major Shopping stores and even Intermiles / Cred have stopped Amex as a mode of payment.
And those who do have Amex accepted stickers only tend to have 1-2 Amex machines which invariably are “not working”.
I don’t blame the merchants.. its the huge merchant fees that Amex charges that make them avoid Amex… but then what justifies the Amex Credit Card fees when we can’t use it at places where we can normally use any other Card?
They have been giving me annual fee waivers over the years while accepting their limited coverage, but that still doesn’t justify having a card just for decoration in my wallet that can’t be used.
Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank Rupay card should be in the list, especially if you get it LTF or FYF. 1.5% cashback on UPI merchant payments. Unlimited 5% plus extra 5% NeuCoins on Tata brands, it’s worth it just for my Big Basket spends :-). I also have Airtel Axis bank card which also provides 10% cashback on BigBasket but the amount is capped.
Yes, this post needs a mid-year refresh 🙂
I think SBI Vistara PRIME card deserves a mention over Axis Vistara Signature. The SBI one offers PP.
Yes, will be updating this soon with revised list of cards.
Think the SCB Super Value Tytanium should be in in the list of fuel cards. Unlike SBI, the SCB card can be used with all providers, HPCL, IOC or BPCL… The capping is an issue, still decent…
Following policy changes announced by Standard Chartered Bank will be instrumental in SCB ULTIMATE(ly) losing edge over its competition.
Customers who have been loyal to SCB Ultimate being consistent in delivering its promised 3.3% returns without devaluation (for this many years ), irrespective of expenses would surely feel the pain.
Moreover, the annual renewal cost of Rs. 5000/- + 18% GST and fewer GVs in Reward Points Redemption Options at a cost of Rs. 99 + 18% GST will additionally bring down the “Reward Rate” value proposition.
SCB Ultimate would surely end up as a CASE STUDY for management students on how a stable product can be KILLED overnight, just by copying and pasting policies from competition, without realizing their end effects. Including Supermarkets in the list of impacted transactions is testimony of reckless product management.
Effective 2 April, 2023:
1) Transactions on Utilities, Supermarkets, Insurance, Property Management, Schools & Government payments will now earn 3 reward points on every INR 150 spent.
(Reward Rate Reduced by 1.3% to 2% instead of 3.3%)
2) No reward points will be earned on Fuel transactions. However, you will now enjoy a surcharge waiver of 1% on fuel spends. Fuel surcharge waiver amount will be capped at INR 1000 per month.
(Reward Rate Reduced by 2.3% to 1% instead of 3.3%)
3) You will be charged a 1% processing fee (plus applicable taxes) for rental payments made using Standard Chartered credit cards.
(Reward Rate Reduced by 1.18% to 2.12% instead of 3.3%)
Which card provide best reward for 10L+ of insurance spends per year ? I currently use SBI cashback card for it
You may need to look into milestone cards like Vistara or Platinum Travel.
Thumbs up
Very nice illustration… I think….Sbi cashback will make flipkart axis and amazon icici useless..
Can you tell me best credit card for utility payments and insurance premium payments.
The best option is to use Amazon Pay for these cases. We can buy Amazon Pay GV at discount from Smartbuy and Grab Deals.
I have been using SCB Ultimate and Axis Magnus for almost 5 years. SC is the most uncomplicated card. The entire process of RP on spend is to confuse the user. RP can be just 20 Paise in some cases and can be 1 Rupee in others. As a CC user, its almost impossible to keep track of conversion ratio. From that perspective, SC makes it extremely easy to calculate. If you are spending 12 Lac a year on card ( school fees+insurance+ others), you straight away get 40K vouchers spread across categories. I end up taking Big Basket vouchers and that takes care of lot of monthly spends. Now, 40k vouchers is worth 60K gross salary. The issue with SC card is almost zero travel benefits. You just get lounge access and the quality of lounges has ben going down now and the lounges in general are now over crowded. If you are frequent flyer( avg 1 trip per month), the concierge service/ meet and greet is the most important one. Thats where Axis Magnus scores ahead of lot of other cards. Axis Vistara vouchers are a waste. In most of the cases, the vouchers can not be used because free seats/award seats are not available. All in all, CCs are best for heavy spenders( 15Lac-18 Lac per year) to truly enjoy rewards. Else, it serves just the credit benefit.
Am totally surprised why not in 2023 axis atlas can you describe and elaborate please
Atlas is a good for specific use cases. If it is about Miles, Magnus and Reserve can rack them up a whole lot faster with Grab Deals and Gyftr.
You have mentioned there are other redemption options other than Taj Vouchers on Amex Travel Platinum, what are those? Also is it possible to get the annual fees waived for this card?
The other option is Flipkart vouchers but at a reduced value for each MR point. All details including fee waiver are mentioned in the detailed review linked in the list above.
Thanks for the post.
I think below cards shouldn’t be in this list in 2023:
– SBI SimplyClick //except 10% very hard to reach 2L, if Cashback present
– SC Smart //no use when one has Ace or Cashback.
– HDFC Regalia, DCB & Privilege //less usage with Magnus and travel cards
– Axis Select & Flipkart //least benefits among Axis cards
Considering better reward rates and benefits in other cards these do not serve any purpose nowadays.
You can add the below cards, if requirement satisfies:
– IDFC Wealth : Better lounge support compared to Regalia or Privilege.
– Axis Myzone : For Select Swiggy alternative and LTF most cases.
– AU LIT : If used properly, it provides more cashback.
Ignored 10% cards because in that case we have to list all bank cards, and considering if person hold one of these cards then will other card in this list serve any purpose.
I’m thinking that best cards means those cards should be in our wallet, no matter (this require frequent edits in this post according to changes in that bank).
Hi Phani. Thank you for going through the list. Gave some thought while including some cards in this list. Retaining the above cards for below reasons but may be will have a look later to reduce the list a bit.
– SimplyCLICK only for taking advantage of sales. Cashback card is still quite hard to get for most people and it will not help during sale season.
– Agree on SC Smart. No major use for now with other cards. Will remove this one.
– Regalia, DCB and Privilege are all there for one reason – future upgrade to Infinia or may be the next one. Expecting HDFC Bank to bounce back soon.
– Select – only for its partner offers
– FK Axis – Still a good cashback card. Its LTF for many and gives 1.5% on offline spends compared to Cashback card.
– IDFC Wealth – Yes, a good card for LTF. I will add this one as it makes sense.
– MyZone – Good only if LTF which comes up now and then.
– AU LIT – Find it rather complicated. We need to spend and optimize quite a bit on that. Would rather prefer taking a super premium card with that fee. But, will add under Worthy Mentions section.
Thank you again for all the feedback. It helps. 🙂