Axis Horizon card
#28

Axis Horizon

Keep

The Citi PremierMiles successor — Atlas's little sibling at half the transfer ratio.

Axis Bank·Visa·premium
Visa Mastercard — Mastercard World variant gets 6 domestic lounge visits/quarter vs the Visa Signature's 8
2.0%
Effective reward rate
₹3,000 + GST
Annual fee
None
Fee waiver

What it's worth to you — net annual value

₹22,500
at ₹1L/month
₹70,500
at ₹3L/month
₹1,18,500
at ₹5L/month

Welcome: 5,000 EDGE Miles on ₹1,000+ cumulative spends within 30 days (paid cards only)

Active offers: IndiGo BluChip intro ratio — double miles from EDGE Miles (ends in 30 days)

How these numbers are computed →

Spend tiers, milestones and fee waivers included, at our house ₹/point. Portal and category multipliers can push higher — run your exact number →

The take

Horizon exists because Citi PremierMiles holders needed somewhere to land after the Axis migration, and as a ₹3,000 miles card it's honest work: 2 EDGE Miles per ₹100, 5 on travel, and transfers to Air India, KrisFlyer, Etihad and United. The catch is the ratio — Horizon converts Group A at 1:1 where Atlas gets 1:2, so every mile is worth half as much on the way out, and the 1L/4L annual caps are tighter. A fine first miles card; Atlas at ₹5,000 simply out-earns it for anyone spending seriously.

What's good

  • 1:1 transfers — KrisFlyer, United, Turkish, Etihad in Group A (1L/yr); Air India, Flying Blue, IHG in Group B (4L/yr)
  • 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on Travel Edge and direct airline spend (OTAs earn only 2)
  • 8 domestic lounge visits/quarter on the Visa Signature card + 2 international/quarter
  • 1,500 renewal EDGE Miles every anniversary from year 2; ₹1/mile floor on the Travel Edge portal

Watch out

  • Half of Atlas's transfer ratio — 1:1 vs 1:2 on the same partners
  • Apr-2026 additions (BA, Finnair, Vietnam) convert at a punishing 2:1
  • Marriott, Accor and Qatar left in the Apr-2026 purge — the partner grid is thinner than the launch pitch
  • No spend-based fee waiver — ₹3,000 goes to Nil only via a Burgundy Savings a/c opened on/after 1-Jul-2026 (₹10L AMB or ₹30L TRV); forex 3.5% + GST
  • The Mastercard World variant gets 6 domestic lounge visits/quarter, not the Visa's 8

What earns, what doesn't

Horizon's T&C publishes the full MCC table (rare for Axis). 20-Jun-2025 revision notice: 'no change to the spend categories excluded' but identification moved to internal spend category, not the 4-digit MCC — and exclusions also drop out of the spend-based fee-waiver calc. Transportation & tolls (4111/4121/4131/4784) are ALSO zero-earn; no column for it here.

Fuel excluded — MCC 5541/5542/5983/5172 zero EDGE Miles; 1% fuel surcharge waiver on ₹400–₹5,000 txns, waiver cap ₹400/statement month (official — Atlas gets no waiver at all)
Rent & property management excluded — MCC 6513 zero; also excluded from spend-based fee-waiver calc (20-Jun-2025 notice)
Government / tax excluded — MCC 9211/9222/9311/9399/9402/9405 — plus 8220 (colleges), which Horizon's T&C files under 'Govt. Institutions'
Utilities (electricity/water/gas) excluded — MCC 4814/4816/4899/4900 zero
Insurance excluded — MCC 6300/6381/5960/6012/6051 zero
Education excluded — MCC 8211/8241/8244/8249/8299 zero — UNLIKE Atlas/Magnus/Reserve, Horizon zeroes education too
Wallet loads excluded — MCC 6540 zero
Groceries & supermarkets full — Full 2 EDGE Miles/₹100 — not in the exclusion table
Telecom excluded — 4814 sits inside Horizon's 'Utilities' exclusion row — telecom earns nothing
Jewellery / gold full — NOTABLE: 5944/5094 absent from Horizon's official table (unlike Atlas/Magnus/Reserve, which zeroed gold/jewellery); 20-Jun-2025 revision confirms list unchanged — jewellery earns
Forex / international spends full — 2 EDGE Miles/₹100 (5/₹100 direct airlines / Travel Edge); 3.5%+GST markup
UPI (RuPay-on-UPI only) not applicable — Visa only — UPI not supported
EMI conversions / merchant EMI excluded — Official: qualifying purchase value excludes all EMI / loan-on-card / balance conversion & balance transfer, cash, fees and GST
  • Fuel · excluded MCC 5541/5542/5983/5172 zero EDGE Miles; 1% fuel surcharge waiver on ₹400–₹5,000 txns, waiver cap ₹400/statement month (official — Atlas gets no waiver at all)
  • Rent & property management · excluded MCC 6513 zero; also excluded from spend-based fee-waiver calc (20-Jun-2025 notice)
  • Wallet loads · excluded MCC 6540 zero
  • Utilities (electricity/water/gas) · excluded MCC 4814/4816/4899/4900 zero

per Axis Bank T&C · rank every card by spend category →

Where the miles go

Ratios read card points : partner miles — 2:1 means 2 points become 1 mile. Never the other way round.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Atlas' crown jewel — 1 EDGE Mile → 2 KrisFlyer. Saver business to SIN and Europe. Group A.
Air Canada Aeroplan
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Star Alliance on Aeroplan's chart, no fuel surcharges; great for long-haul business. Group A.
Etihad Guest
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Etihad business to AUH and beyond. Group A.
Ethiopian ShebaMiles
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Star Alliance to Africa and Europe at low cost — if you can wrangle the booking. Group A.
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
oneworld to Japan and beyond; some of the best business-class awards going. Group A.
Thai Royal Orchid Plus
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Star Alliance via BKK; regional premium cabins. Group A.
Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Cheap Star Alliance sweet spots to Europe/US; painful to book. Group A.
United MileagePlus
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Wide Star Alliance access, no fuel surcharges, dynamic pricing. Group A.
Air France-KLM Flying Blue
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Monthly Promo Rewards and business deals from India. Group B.
Air India Maharaja Club
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Domestic + Star Alliance premium cabins post-Vistara. Group B.
Qantas Frequent Flyer
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
oneworld via Qantas; useful for Australia and select partner awards. Group B.
AirAsia Rewards
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Cheap SE Asia short-haul economy. Group B.
SpiceJet SpiceClub
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Domestic SpiceJet fares; low value. Group B.
British Airways Executive Club (Avios)
2:1 2–3 days
Punishing 2:1 since it was added 1 Apr 2026 — 4× the miles of a standard partner. Only for a specific Avios booking. Group A.
Finnair Plus (Avios)
2:1 2–3 days
Added 1 Apr 2026 at the same brutal 2:1; skip unless you're topping up an Avios balance. Group A.
Vietnam Airlines LotusSmiles
2:1 2–3 days
Added 1 Apr 2026 at 2:1; niche SkyTeam, poor value from Atlas. Group A.
IndiGo BluChip
2:1 2–3 days
intro 1:2 till 17 Aug 2026, then 2:1
Added 18 Jun 2026 (Group B) — intro 1:2 through 17 Aug 2026, then 2:1. Lifetime-valid BluChips on India's biggest airline.
ITC Hotels
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
ITC luxury nights across India. Group B.
The Postcard Hotel
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
Boutique Indian luxury stays via the Sunshine Club. Group B.
IHG One Rewards
1:1 this card (std 1:2) 2–3 days
IHG nights; low per-point worth. Group B.
Radisson Rewards
1:1 2–3 days
The one 1:1 route here, but thin value per point. Group B.
Orchid Rewards
1:2 2–3 days
Royal Orchid mid-scale stays; domestic, niche. Group B.
Wyndham Rewards
1:2 2–3 days
Flat redemptions, low points worth. Group A.
Marriott Bonvoy
Pulled 2 Apr 2026. The flexible hotel escape hatch for Atlas holders is gone.
removed
ALL - Accor Live Limitless
Pulled 2 Apr 2026. The near-fixed €40-per-2,000-points value went with it.
removed
Qatar Airways Privilege Club (Avios)
Pulled 2 Apr 2026. Qsuite via Avios is no longer reachable from EDGE Miles.
removed

Lounge access

8/quarter (Visa Signature) · 6/quarter (Mastercard World)
Domestic
2/quarter (US$1 authorization, reversed)
International
paid
Guests

Opens 107 of 644 tracked lounge doors across 59 airports — see the full map →

Can you get it?

The cutoffs and the actual route in — not the "apply now" button, the door that opens.

Route Direct application
Income · salaried not published
Income · self-employed not published
Age band 18–70

Direct application — no invite list, no banking relationship required.

per the official Axis Bank MITC — figures marked (community) aren't in the PDF; the issuer won't say · filter the ranking by what you can get →

The fine print

What the MITC actually says — the rates, fees and cutoffs the brochure skips.

Forex markup 3.5% + GST
APR 3.75%/mo (55.55%/yr, compounded as quoted by Axis)
Late fee Nil ≤₹500; ₹500 (₹501–5,000); ₹750 (₹5,001–10,000); ₹1,200 (>₹10,000); +₹100/cycle recurring on 2+ consecutive MAD misses
Cash advance 2.5%, min ₹500
Add-on card Nil
Overlimit 2.5%, min ₹500 (consent-based facility)
Redemption fee Nil (no redemption fee listed in MITC)

Fee ₹3,000 joining and annual, NO spend waiver — but Nil for customers with a Burgundy Savings Account opened on/after 1-Jul-2026 (Burgundy takes ₹10L AMB in savings or ₹30L TRV or ₹3L+/month salary credit — official Burgundy eligibility PDF). Same standard 3.75%/mo APR tier as Atlas, not the Magnus/Reserve 3.0% tier. DCC 1.5%. Fuel surcharge 1% refunded on ₹400–₹5,000 transactions, capped ₹400/cycle. Axis publishes no income cutoff for Horizon; age 18–70 from the official product page.

per the official Axis Bank MITC · reviewed 10 Jul 2026

What's changed for this card

Full tracker →

Devaluations and buffs that touch this card directly, its issuer, or the points and programs it earns and transfers to.

  • 10 Jul 2026
    Partner moderate IndiGo
    BluChip ↔ Accor ALL ratios surface — 6:1 in, 3:2 out, live 13 July
    Corridor announced Apr 2025; no ratios published for 15 months 6,000 BluChips → 1,000 ALL points (6:1); 3,000 ALL → 2,000 BluChips (3:2); live 13 Jul 2026

    India's first airline↔hotel points corridor finally has numbers: ratios spotted on the Accor ALL site ahead of the 13 July joint launch. 6,000 BluChips buy 1,000 ALL points — a respectable 60% of value retained at house values, making Accor the best BluChip exit that isn't an IndiGo seat. The reverse leg (3,000 ALL → 2,000 BluChips) torches 81% of ALL's fixed stay value; use it never. And the fantasy of resurrecting the dead Axis EDGE→Accor route through BluChips dies at this ratio: even inside Axis's intro window the chain recovers just 30%.

  • 30 Jun 2026
    Partner major American Express
    Amex India cuts Etihad Guest as an MR transfer partner
    MR points transferable to Etihad Guest Miles Etihad Guest transfer route closed for good

    Membership Rewards points could move to Etihad Guest only until 30 June 2026, 11:59 PM IST — after that the route is dead, part of a global Amex-Etihad wind-down already hitting the UK, US, Canada and Germany. Neither side explained why, but Etihad's generous Etihad Guest sweet spots (especially A380 First redemptions) were a favourite MR outlet for Indian cardholders, and this closes one of the better ones with no replacement announced. Points already transferred are unaffected — only future transfers stop.

  • 18 Jun 2026
    Partner moderate Axis Bank
    Axis adds IndiGo BluChip to the EDGE transfer roster
    No IndiGo route from EDGE Miles or Reward Points Group B: Miles 2:1, points 5:1 (intro 2x better till 17 Aug)

    Two months after gutting the partner list, Axis adds one back: IndiGo BluChip, at the new-partner ratios (1:2 intro on Miles until 17 August 2026, then 2:1; points 5:2 intro, then 5:1). Lifetime-valid BluChips on India's biggest airline is genuinely useful — at the intro ratio. After that, do the maths before you move anything.

  • 1 Jun 2026
    Partner moderate Air India
    AU, YES and IndusInd points open transfers to Maharaja Club
    AU/YES/IndusInd points locked in closed loops Maharaja routes: IndusInd Tiger 1:1 (Pinnacle 2:1, Legend 4:1); AU Zenith+ 3:2, other AU cards 6:1; YES Marquee/Reserv 15:1

    Three banks joined Air India's transfer roster at once — and the ratios are the whole story. The lifetime-free IndusInd Tiger gets the only honest 1:1 (capped 25k/month); AU Zenith+ lands a genuinely good 3:2 that triples what AU points were worth; everything else — Pinnacle 2:1, Legend 4:1, the AU 6:1 crowd, YES at a punitive 15:1 — is a decoy dressed as a partnership.

  • 2 Apr 2026
    Partner major Axis Bank
    Axis purges Marriott, Accor and Qatar from its transfer list overnight
    Marriott, Accor, Qatar Airways at Group A ratios All three gone; BA, Finnair, Vietnam Airlines added at 2:1

    With zero advance notice — despite Axis's own MITC requiring 30 days — EDGE Miles/Rewards cardholders woke up on 2 April 2026 to find Marriott Bonvoy, Accor Live Limitless and Qatar Airways Privilege Club stripped from the transfer partner list. The three replacements (British Airways Executive Club, Finnair Plus, Vietnam Airlines LotusSmiles) land in the worst tier: 2:1 on Atlas instead of the usual 1:2, and 5:1 on Magnus/Reserve instead of 5:2 — so you need up to 4x the points for the same miles. This guts Atlas and Magnus's best hotel-transfer sweet spots in one stroke and pushes the whole EDGE ecosystem toward airline-only redemptions.

  • 1 Apr 2026
    Buff moderate Air India
    Maharaja Club gets cheaper awards and faster crediting
    Higher award costs; slow points crediting Domestic awards from 1,500 pts; credited within 2 hours

    A rare buff. Air India's post-merger programme drops domestic award flights to 1,500 points, cabin upgrades to 4,000, credits Star Alliance miles within two hours, and eases Platinum to 60 flights. The transfer target Indian card geeks care about actually got better.

  • 1 Apr 2026
    Devaluation major Axis Bank
    Axis closes the Atlas to new applicants
    Open to new applications Closed to new applicants — existing cardholders unaffected

    Confirmed in early 2026: Axis has stopped issuing its flagship mid-tier travel card to new applicants. First flagged by a September-2025 rumour of internal distributor communication (a '1 September' cutoff), it became real with no press release — the Atlas simply left the application pipeline, and Axis customer care later confirmed the closure. Existing holders keep the card, their EDGE Miles balance, and lounge access; nothing changes for them. But a bank that stops issuing a card rarely invests in it afterwards. There is no confirmed replacement at the Atlas price point.

  • 28 Mar 2026
    Devaluation moderate Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
    KrisFlyer quietly cuts its own dynamic 'Access' award rates
    Access dynamic awards priced as launched in Nov 2025 Access rates cut up to 10.9% (economy/PE), 3.9% (J/F)

    Barely five months after introducing dynamic 'Access' award pricing alongside a broader Saver-chart devaluation, KrisFlyer moved the goalposts again on 28 March 2026 — this time devaluing the dynamic tier itself by up to 10.9% in economy and premium economy. For Indian cardholders funnelling HDFC Infinia, Axis Atlas or ICICI points into KrisFlyer, this is the second haircut in under half a year on the same currency, and it came with the usual zero warning.

Go deeper

Sources

Every fact on this page is checked against these documents — the issuer's own paperwork first. Spot something stale? The PDF wins, and we re-verify.

Spot an error? Report it →