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Best credit cards in India, by need

28 rankings, one for each thing you want a card to do. For travel, HDFC Diners Club Black Metal comes first, worth ₹28,200 a year at ₹75,000 a month.

Travel and points

Travel and points: the top card for each need, and its figure
NeedTop card todayIts figure
TravelEvery travel card you can get, priced at your monthly spend HDFC Diners Club Black Metal₹28,200a year at ₹50k–1L a month
Lounge accessThe most airport lounge visits for the fee Scapia (Federal Bank)unlimited visits in Indiafree lounge visits a year
Spending abroadThe lowest markup on foreign-currency spends Scapia (Axis Bank)+2.00%net back per ₹100 abroad
Points transfersThe most a point can be worth once it moves to an airline or hotel HSBC TravelOne₹2.15/ptceiling ₹/pt
Air India milesMost Maharaja Points a rupee buys, after the fee IndusInd Tiger₹32,000net ₹/yr in Maharaja Points at ₹75,000/mo
KrisFlyer milesMost Singapore Airlines miles a rupee buys, after the fee HDFC Diners Club Black Metal₹44,000net ₹/yr in KrisFlyer miles at ₹75,000/mo
Hotel pointsMost hotel points per ₹1 lakh of spend HDFC Diners Club Black Metal₹43,000net ₹/yr in hotel points at ₹75,000/mo
Status and membershipsHotel status and memberships the card hands over Axis Bank Reserve₹22,000bundled perks ₹/yr
First travel cardA first travel card under ₹5,000 a year, open to anyone HSBC TravelOne₹9,400a year at <₹50k a month
Premium, high spendWhere ₹5 lakh a month should go Axis Magnus₹2,70,000a year at ₹5L+ a month

Everyday spending

Everyday spending: the top card for each need, and its figure
NeedTop card todayIts figure
CashbackCards that pay you in rupees, priced at your monthly spend HSBC Live+₹12,700a year at ₹50k–1L a month
Amazon and FlipkartWhat one ₹25,000 sale order pays back Amazon Pay ICICI BankInvite only ₹1,250₹ back on one ₹25,000 sale order
DiningRestaurants and food delivery HSBC Live+₹12,000₹/yr at ₹10,000/mo of dining
GroceriesSupermarkets and grocery apps Swiggy BLCK HDFC Bank Credit Card₹18,000₹/yr at ₹15,000/mo of groceries
FuelWhat a petrol pump pays you back IndianOil RBL Bank XTRA Credit Card₹8,160₹/yr at ₹8,000/mo of fuel
UPIWhich cards earn on a UPI payment Axis Bank SuperMoney RuPay1.50%reward rate on UPI
Utility billsElectricity, water and gas bills HSBC Live+₹7,200₹/yr at ₹6,000/mo of bills
Phone and broadbandMobile, broadband and DTH bills HSBC Live+₹1,800₹/yr at ₹1,500/mo of bills
RentWhich cards still pay on rent Axis Bank Reserve₹10,800₹/yr at ₹30,000/mo of rent
InsurancePaying a premium on a card HDFC Diners Club Black Metal₹3,996₹ back on a ₹1,20,000 premium
School and college feesTuition and school fees HDFC Diners Club Black Metal₹2,498₹ back on one ₹75,000 term fee
Tax and governmentIncome tax, GST and other government payments IndusInd Tiger₹1,000₹ back on one ₹1,00,000 tax payment
MoviesBuy-one-get-one movie tickets Emirates Skywards ICICI Bank Emeralde₹36,000₹/yr of second tickets, at the ceiling
Wallet loadsLoading Paytm, Amazon Pay and other wallets IDFC FIRST Mayura1.00%back on wallet loads
EMIPurchases converted to EMI Standard Chartered Rewards0.67%back on EMI
Jewellery and goldJewellery shops and gold Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank5.00%back on jewellery and gold

Fees and who it is for

Fees and who it is for: the top card for each need, and its figure
NeedTop card todayIts figure
No annual feeNo joining fee and no annual fee, ever IndusInd Tiger₹38,000a year at ₹50k–1L a month
BusinessBusiness cards ranked against each other HDFC Biz Black Metal₹1,87,292a year at ₹2–5L a month

New here? Start here.

No card yet? 7 short lists by the reason you are shopping, each open to apply for today.

First card at 24

  1. HSBC TravelOne 2.61% net of fee at ₹30,000/mo spend · ₹4,999/yr · open to apply
  2. IndusInd Tiger 2.33% net of fee at ₹30,000/mo spend · ₹0 — lifetime free · open to apply
  3. Scapia (Federal Bank) 2.00% net of fee at ₹30,000/mo spend · ₹0 — lifetime free · open to apply
  4. Scapia (Axis Bank) 2.00% net of fee at ₹30,000/mo spend · ₹0 — lifetime free · open to apply
  5. HDFC Regalia Gold 0.94% net of fee at ₹30,000/mo spend · ₹2,500/yr · open to apply

Moving to Dubai next year

  1. Scapia (Axis Bank) 0% markup (Nil — foreign currency transactions and DCC surcharge both NIL (product page; MITC and Key Fact Sheet of 17 Sep 2026 agree)) · 2.00% back on a foreign swipe · ₹0 markup per ₹1L abroad, GST in · open to apply
  2. BOBCARD Etihad Guest Premium 0% markup (Nil — 0% markup, Premium-specific (the non-premium Etihad Guest pays 1%)) · 2.00% back on a foreign swipe · ₹0 markup per ₹1L abroad, GST in · open to apply
  3. IDFC FIRST Select 0% markup (Nil — bank-wide MITC dated 9 Sep 2026 prints NIL on foreign-currency and DCC/SCC transactions) · 1.25% back on a foreign swipe · ₹0 markup per ₹1L abroad, GST in · open to apply
  4. IDFC FIRST Millennia 0% markup (Nil — bank-wide MITC dated 9 Sep 2026 prints NIL on foreign-currency and DCC/SCC transactions) · 1.25% back on a foreign swipe · ₹0 markup per ₹1L abroad, GST in · open to apply
  5. IDFC FIRST Classic 0% markup (Nil — bank-wide MITC dated 9 Sep 2026 prints NIL on foreign-currency and DCC/SCC transactions) · 1.25% back on a foreign swipe · ₹0 markup per ₹1L abroad, GST in · open to apply

Retiring the Regalia

  1. IndusInd Tiger ₹2,172 more a year than Regalia Gold nets you, at ₹75,000/month. · open to apply
  2. BOBCARD Etihad Guest ₹1,670 more a year than Regalia Gold nets you, at ₹75,000/month. · open to apply
  3. IndusInd Avios Visa Infinite ₹0 more a year than Regalia Gold nets you, at ₹75,000/month. · open to apply

Flying IndiGo every month

  1. IndiGo IDFC FIRST Dual Credit Card The one BluChip card that also works abroad — 3 chips on everything, 0% forex, and up to 22 on IndiGo. · open to apply
  2. IndiGo IDFC FIRST Secured The IndiGo dual card without the ₹4,999 cheque — a ₹50,000 FD, assured approval, and no fee until year two. · open to apply
  3. IndiGo SBI Card ELITE The top IndiGo card: 3.5% on 6E, up to 24,000 milestone chips, and two lounges you can actually use abroad. · open to apply
  4. IndiGo Axis Bank Premium Credit Card The frequent-flyer BluChip card — 3.5% on IndiGo, up to 20,000 milestone chips, and a fee that only a real 6E loyalist clears. · open to apply
  5. IndiGo Kotak Premium Credit Card The only IndiGo card that opens a lounge door — eight of them a year, no spend gate, for ₹3,000. · open to apply

Lounge access for ₹0

  1. Scapia (Federal Bank) 74 lounge doors across 41 airports — no joining fee, no renewal fee, ever. · open to apply
  2. IndusInd Tiger 720 lounge doors across 292 airports — no joining fee, no renewal fee, ever. · open to apply
  3. ixigo AU 719 lounge doors across 283 airports and 21 railway stations — no joining fee, no renewal fee, ever. · open to apply
  4. IDBI Bank Royale Signature 74 lounge doors across 41 airports — no joining fee, no renewal fee, ever. · open to apply
  5. IDFC FIRST Wealth 131 lounge doors across 54 airports and 21 railway stations — no joining fee, no renewal fee, ever. · open to apply

A business card that actually earns

  1. HDFC Biz Black Metal 3.33% everyday · 16.50% on 5X business payments (tax/GST/bills/MyBiz) (10% of spend) · ₹10,000/yr · open to apply
  2. HDFC BizPower 1.63% everyday · 8.10% on 5X business spends (GST/income tax, ads, bills, MyBiz) (15% of spend) · ₹2,500/yr · open to apply
  3. IndusInd Vrddhi Business 1.60% everyday · 3.20% on International spend (10% of spend) · ₹10,000 joining, then ₹4,999/yr · open to apply
  4. Flipkart Wholesale HDFC Bank 1.00% everyday · 5.00% on Flipkart Wholesale online spends (20% of spend) · ₹499/yr · open to apply
  5. Paytm HDFC Bank Select Business 1.00% everyday · 4.10% on Paytm bill stack and travel, plus Swiggy / AJIO / Big Basket / Uber (18% of spend) · ₹1,000/yr · open to apply

The weekend-dining card

  1. HSBC Live+ 10.00% on a dining bill · the rate stops at ₹12,000 of dining a month · 1.50% on every rupee past that ceiling — 10% accelerated cashback, hard-capped at ₹1,200 a month… · ₹999/yr · open to apply
  2. Swiggy BLCK HDFC Bank Credit Card 10.00% at Swiggy · the rate stops at ₹15,000 of dining a month · 1.00% on the same meal billed anywhere else — 10%, capped at ₹1,500 of cashback a billing cycle IN ITS OWN RIGHT · so the 10% runs out at… · ₹1,000/yr · open to apply
  3. HDFC Diners Club Black Metal 6.67% Weekend only · the rate stops at ₹2,60,000 of dining a month · 3.33% on the same meal billed anywhere else — Weekend dining (2X) · 10 RP per ₹150 at standalone restaurants on weekends, minimum ₹150 a bill… · ₹10,000/yr · open to apply
  4. YES PaisaSave RuPay 6.00% on a dining bill · the rate stops at ₹50,000 of dining a month · 1.00% on every rupee past that ceiling — 12 RP per ₹200 = 6% · but the glossary excludes UPI transactions from this tier, so a scanned QR… · ₹0 — lifetime free · open to apply
  5. YES PaisaSave 6.00% on a dining bill · the rate stops at ₹50,000 of dining a month · 1.00% on every rupee past that ceiling — 12 RP per ₹200 = 6% · ₹0 joining, then ₹499/yr · open to apply

How every ranking is computed: our method. To find a card by bank, fee or network, use the card finder; to compare two, compare cards.