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Axis Horizon vs SBI Card MILES

Verified 19 sources

Your monthly spend

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹4,500 a year at ₹30,000 a month: ₹4,500 against ₹0, after fees

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹4,800 a year at ₹75,000 a month: ₹13,600 against ₹8,800, after fees

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹16,100 a year at ₹1.5 lakh a month: ₹28,700 against ₹12,600, after fees

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹38,900 a year at ₹3 lakh a month: ₹59,000 against ₹20,100, after fees

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹69,100 a year at ₹5 lakh a month: ₹99,300 against ₹30,200, after fees

Axis Horizon credit card

Axis Bank

Axis Horizon

Our verdict: Keep

SBI Card MILES credit card

SBI Card

SBI Card MILES

Our verdict: Downgrade

SBI Card MILES vs Axis Horizon: which should you pick?

The two entry miles cards from Axis and SBI. Horizon pays 2 EDGE Miles per ₹100 and 5 on Travel EDGE and direct airline sites, moving 1:1 to most of 27 programmes; SBI MILES pays 1 Travel Credit per ₹200 and 2 on travel, moving to 24 partners. Horizon out-earns SBI MILES at every spend level the page tests. ₹3,000 with no spend waiver against ₹1,499 reversed at ₹6,00,000; forex is 3.5% against 3%. Horizon opens eight domestic lounge visits a quarter on the Visa card and two international a quarter; SBI MILES four domestic a year, no more than two a quarter, plus up to eight earned at one per ₹1,00,000 of spend, and its free Priority Pass charges for every visit.

At every spend from ₹25,000 to ₹5 lakh a month, Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES, and its lead widens from ₹3,700 to ₹69,100 a year as spend climbs. At ₹75,000 a month the gap is mostly what each card earns on your spend: Axis Horizon returns ₹15,100 a year in rewards to SBI Card MILES's ₹3,800, even though SBI Card MILES pays bigger milestone bonuses. SBI Card MILES is the better pick if you would rather pay less to get the card: SBI Card MILES costs ₹1,499/yr, Axis Horizon ₹3,000/yr.

SBI Card MILES pays one annual spend milestone, at ₹5,00,000 a year, and Axis Horizon pays none; Axis Horizon pays a renewal bonus whatever you spend, and SBI Card MILES pays nothing to stay.

Axis Horizon review SBI Card MILES review

Side by side

Axis Horizon and SBI Card MILES, fact by fact
FactAxis HorizonSBI Card MILES
Can you get itOpen to applyOpen to apply
Fee (joining · annual, + GST)₹3,000/yr₹1,499/yr✓ Better
Fee waiverNoneSpend ₹6,00,000 a year
Reward rate on everyday spend2.0%✓ Better0.5%
PointsAxis EDGE MilesSBI Travel Credits
Our value per point₹2.00₹1.00
Transfer partners27✓ Better24
Lounges it gets you into22 of 792✓ Better16 of 792
Forex markup3.5% + GST3% + GST✓ Better
Welcome benefit5,000 EDGE Miles on ₹1,000+ cumulative spends within 30 days (paid cards only)1,500 Travel Credits on ₹30k spend in 60 days

✓ Better marks the side that wins a row; rows that compare unlike things are not scored. Axis Horizon is ahead on 10 of the 12 rows we can call.

More facts 6 rows
Rank, verdict, lounge visits and fine print
FactAxis HorizonSBI Card MILES
Our rank#31✓ Better#95
Our verdictKeepDowngrade
Lounge visits in India8/quarter (Visa Signature) · 6/quarter (Mastercard World) at the 20 rooms on Axis's Set B list — but NOT the BLR Domestic Lounge at Bengaluru T1, which the programme swaps for the 080 Domestic Lounge at T14/yr complimentary (max 2 per quarter) at SBI's 16-lounge "Set A" list, plus up to 8 spend-earned visits (1 per ₹1L) — 12 at full stretch
Lounge visits abroad2/quarter (US$1 authorization, reversed) — Axis publishes the count and not the rooms, so this map opens none of themNone (0 complimentary visits) — Priority Pass membership is free for 2 yrs but every visit is pay-per-use
Forex, in the bank’s words3.5% + GST. Dynamic currency conversion markup 3.5% since 28 August 2026, up from 1.5%, per the bank-wide revision notice.3% + GST
Interest (APR)3.75%/mo (55.55%/yr, compounded as quoted by Axis)Up to 3.75%/mo (45%/yr)

Neither issuer publishes an income floor for these two, and the door is the same on both sides: Axis Horizon and SBI Card MILES are both open to a direct application.

Our value per point is what we think a point is worth when you use it well; every currency's figure and its reasoning is on points values.

What each is worth to you

A year of rewards and bonuses, after the fee
Monthly spendAxis HorizonSBI Card MILES
At ₹30,000 a month₹4,500✓ Better₹0
At ₹75,000 a month₹13,600✓ Better₹8,800
At ₹1.5 lakh a month₹28,700✓ Better₹12,600
At ₹3 lakh a month₹59,000✓ Better₹20,100
At ₹5 lakh a month₹99,300✓ Better₹30,200
Pays for itself from₹8,000 a month✓ Better₹30,000 a month

On an everyday mix of spending (groceries, bills, travel, fuel and the rest), using each card's own rules for each kind of spend. The same figures as each card's own page.

Every spend from ₹25,000 to ₹5 lakh 20 steps
Axis Horizon and SBI Card MILES at each ₹25,000 step
Monthly spendAxis HorizonSBI Card MILESAhead
₹25,000₹3,500✓ Better−₹200Axis Horizon by ₹3,700
₹50,000₹8,600✓ Better₹6,000Axis Horizon by ₹2,600
₹75,000₹13,600✓ Better₹8,800Axis Horizon by ₹4,800
₹1 lakh₹18,700✓ Better₹10,000Axis Horizon by ₹8,700
₹1.25 lakh₹23,700✓ Better₹11,300Axis Horizon by ₹12,400
₹1.5 lakh₹28,700✓ Better₹12,600Axis Horizon by ₹16,100
₹1.75 lakh₹33,800✓ Better₹13,800Axis Horizon by ₹20,000
₹2 lakh₹38,800✓ Better₹15,100Axis Horizon by ₹23,700
₹2.25 lakh₹43,900✓ Better₹16,300Axis Horizon by ₹27,600
₹2.5 lakh₹48,900✓ Better₹17,600Axis Horizon by ₹31,300
₹2.75 lakh₹53,900✓ Better₹18,900Axis Horizon by ₹35,000
₹3 lakh₹59,000✓ Better₹20,100Axis Horizon by ₹38,900
₹3.25 lakh₹64,000✓ Better₹21,400Axis Horizon by ₹42,600
₹3.5 lakh₹69,100✓ Better₹22,600Axis Horizon by ₹46,500
₹3.75 lakh₹74,100✓ Better₹23,900Axis Horizon by ₹50,200
₹4 lakh₹79,100✓ Better₹25,200Axis Horizon by ₹53,900
₹4.25 lakh₹84,200✓ Better₹26,400Axis Horizon by ₹57,800
₹4.5 lakh₹89,200✓ Better₹27,700Axis Horizon by ₹61,500
₹4.75 lakh₹94,300✓ Better₹28,900Axis Horizon by ₹65,400
₹5 lakh₹99,300✓ Better₹30,200Axis Horizon by ₹69,100
How we work out the yearly value

We put each card through the same everyday mix of spending, apply that card's own rules for each kind of spend (some earn nothing on fuel or bills), add its milestone and renewal bonuses at our value per point, and take off the fee unless that spend waives it. Bonus categories that need you to shop a certain way are not counted. Your own mix will differ: try your numbers in the calculator, or read how we value cards.

Before you choose

Transfer partners 27 and 24

Axis Horizon's Axis EDGE Miles move to 27 airline and hotel partners; SBI Card MILES's SBI Travel Credits move to 24.

The best-known partners both reach (points : miles)
PartnerAxis HorizonSBI Card MILES
The British Airways Club (Avios)2:11:1
Air India Maharaja Club1:11:1
ALL - Accor Live Limitless2:12:1

Only Axis Horizon: Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Finnair Plus (Avios), Qatar Airways Privilege Club (Avios).

Only SBI Card MILES: Emirates Skywards, AirRewards (Air Arabia), Cathay Pacific Asia Miles.

Every partner and ratio is on each card's page; the best value for your points is on the transfer optimizer.

Watch out 6 points

Axis Horizon

  • Half of Atlas's transfer ratio on the standard partners — 1:1 vs 1:2. Miles & More is the exception: both cards convert 1:1
  • The punished set converts at 2:1 for Horizon too — BA, Finnair, Qatar, Vietnam, IndiGo, Cathay, and the returned Accor
  • Marriott is still gone and ITC left the 25 Sep 2026 grid; Accor came back at Horizon's 2:1, not the old 1:2, and Qatar's return stays at 2:1

4 more on its page

SBI Card MILES

  • 0.5% base / 1% travel — the weakest earn in the MILES range
  • 3% forex, the highest of the three MILES cards
  • Travel Credits expire in 24 months; minimum transfer 2,000 TC

3 more on its page

Common questions 5 answered

Which is better, Axis Horizon or SBI Card MILES?

At every spend from ₹25,000 to ₹5 lakh a month, Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES, and its lead widens from ₹3,700 to ₹69,100 a year as spend climbs. At ₹75,000 a month the gap is mostly what each card earns on your spend: Axis Horizon returns ₹15,100 a year in rewards to SBI Card MILES's ₹3,800, even though SBI Card MILES pays bigger milestone bonuses. SBI Card MILES is the better pick if you would rather pay less to get the card: SBI Card MILES costs ₹1,499/yr, Axis Horizon ₹3,000/yr.

Axis Horizon or SBI Card MILES: which is worth more at ₹3 lakh a month?

Axis Horizon beats SBI Card MILES by ₹38,900 a year at ₹3 lakh a month. Both figures are a year's rewards and bonuses on an everyday spending mix, after the fee.

Which costs less to get, Axis Horizon or SBI Card MILES?

SBI Card MILES: ₹1,499/yr against ₹3,000/yr. Axis Horizon has no fee waiver; SBI Card MILES waives its fee if you spend ₹6,00,000 a year.

Which gets you into more airport lounges, Axis Horizon or SBI Card MILES?

Axis Horizon: 22 of the 792 lounges we track, against 16 for SBI Card MILES. Visit limits and guest charges differ by card; each card's page lists them.

How current is this comparison?

Axis Horizon was last checked against its bank's own documents on 11 Oct 2026, SBI Card MILES on 26 Oct 2026. Every figure here is worked out again from those records each time the site is built, so a change to either card shows up the day we log it.

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Sources

Axis Horizon was last checked against its bank's own documents on 11 Oct 2026, SBI Card MILES on 26 Oct 2026. Every fact above comes from these 19 documents; the banks' own are marked official. A fact a bank does not publish shows as "not published", never as zero.

The documents 19 sources
  1. Official Horizon T&C PDF read
  2. Official Horizon T&C (axisbank.com copy) — no EDGE Miles on Transportation & Tolls or Fuel; 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on airlines and Axis Travel EDGE, 2 elsewhere read
  3. Official Axis Bank Horizon product page — 5 EDGE Miles per ₹100 on Travel EDGE and direct airline sites, 2 elsewhere; ₹3,000 joining and annual, Nil on a qualifying Burgundy Savings Account read
  4. Official Axis Bank Key Fact Sheet, updated 12-Aug-2026 — Horizon joining ₹3,000 / annual ₹3,000 (Nil for customers with a Burgundy Savings Account opened on or after 1 Jul 2026) read
  5. Official Axis Bank Domestic Airport Lounge Access Program — Horizon sits in Set B at 6 visits per calendar quarter for Mastercard World and 8 for Visa Signature read
  6. Official Axis Bank Points/Miles Transfer ratio table — "Horizon Credit Card: 1 EDGE Mile = 1 Partner Point", a quarter of Olympus's 1:4 and half Atlas's 1:2 read
  7. Official Travel EDGE Points/Miles Transfer T&C — the full per-card conversion grid effective 2-Apr-2026 (Horizon column: 1:1 to every standard partner) read
  8. Official Axis Bank-wide MITC — Horizon joining/annual ₹3,000 (Nil^ for a Burgundy Savings Account opened on or after 1 Jul 2026), APR 3.75%/month (55.55% p.a.) read
  9. Official Axis bank-wide revision notice (published 27-Jul-2026) — effective 28-08-2026 the DCC markup goes 1.5% → 3.5%, a ₹1,300 late-payment slab appears above ₹50,000 outstanding read
  10. Community CardInsider review read
  11. Community CardMaven review (partner groups + caps) read
  12. Official Product page — 1,500 welcome TC on ₹30k/60 days, 2 TC per ₹200 travel and 1 per ₹200 otherwise, 5,000 bonus TC at ₹5L, fee reversal at ₹6L read
  13. Official SBI product record behind that page — isOnline "yes" (open to new applications), productType MSOM, cardLaunchDate 2024-04-23 read
  14. Official MILES rewards T&C (23-Sep-2026 edition) — the same document governs MILES, MILES PRIME and MILES ELITE read
  15. Official MITC — ₹1,499 joining/renewal waived at ₹6L preceding-year spend; foreign-currency fee 3% for SBI Card Miles read
  16. Official MILES-range e-kit T&C — one document for all three MILES cards read
  17. Official Airport Lounge Access — "SBI Card MILES" listed under "Set A: Eligible Credit Cards", with 16 domestic lounge rooms in 8 cities w.e.f. 10 Jan'26 read
  18. Community CardInsider — settles SBI's garbled page copy: 4 complimentary domestic visits per year (2 per quarter) plus 1 per ₹1L capped at 8 read
  19. Official SBI Card's bank-wide Most Important Terms & Conditions — the fees, charges and terms this card's MITC row is read from read

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