HDFC Regalia Gold vs IDFC FIRST Ashva (2026)
The answer changes hands 2 times between ₹0.25L and ₹5L a month — this pair is decided by your spend, not by the board.
Head to head
| HDFC Regalia Gold | Metric | IDFC FIRST Ashva |
|---|---|---|
| #14 — wins this row | Our rank | #20 |
| ₹2,500/yr — wins this row | Fee — joining · annual (+ GST) | ₹2,999/yr |
| ₹4,00,000 spend | Fee waiver | None |
| 2% + GST | Forex markup | 1% + GST (Ashva-specific carve-out in the bank-wide MITC) — wins this row |
| 3.75%/mo (45%/yr) | APR | Dynamic 0.71%–3.85%/mo (8.5%–46.2%/yr); overdue rate 3.99%/mo (47.88%/yr) on MAD non-payment |
| 1.6% — wins this row | Headline earn rate | 1.3% |
| HDFC Reward Points | Currency | IDFC FIRST Reward Points |
| ₹1.00/pt † | House value | ₹0.50/pt † |
| Complimentary Swiggy One + MMT Black Gold memberships, on ₹1L spend in the first 90 days | Welcome benefit | 7,500 RP — 2,500 on fee payment + 2,500 each on ₹20k in cycles 2 and 3 (once per customer) |
| 731 of 789 — wins this row | Lounge doors opened | 93 of 789 |
| ₹1.5L+/month net (private); ₹1L+/month (govt) | Income — salaried | not published |
| ITR ₹18L+/yr | Income — self-employed | not published |
† HDFC Regalia Gold: One catch on that ₹1.00: Regalia Gold can't reach it. Its points cap out at ₹0.65 (Gold Catalogue) or ₹0.50 (flights/hotels) — a 35–50% haircut vs the HDFC house value. Our 1.6% reward rate already prices that in.
† IDFC FIRST Ashva: Ashva redeems the same IDFC points at ₹0.40 on app travel bookings and ₹0.25 everywhere else — a 20% haircut on Mayura's ₹0.50 house value that earn.base already bakes in.
Gold marks the better side of a row. House value is our ₹-per-point mark for each card's currency — the full valuation index →
Ranking-value face-off
Everyday spend at each card's base rate plus a realistic ~20% at its best accelerator (less for narrow or capped boosters) — milestones, fee waivers and the redemption haircut all at our house ₹/point. That's why the biggest headline rate doesn't automatically win. This is the ranking model, the one that orders the board; each card page prints the earn-rate-only net annual value instead, which reads lower for any card with an accelerator (both models, side by side). Tune it to your own spend in the calculator.
It swings with spend: HDFC Regalia Gold at ₹1L/month, IDFC FIRST Ashva at ₹3L/month, IDFC FIRST Ashva at ₹5L/month.
Where the lead changes hands
The lead changes hands at ₹0.5L and ₹1.25L a month: IDFC FIRST Ashva is ahead by ₹886 at ₹0.25L, IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹72,333 at ₹5L.
HDFC Regalia Gold draws above the line, IDFC FIRST Ashva below · ₹0.25L to ₹5L a month, step by step
| Monthly spend | HDFC Regalia Gold | IDFC FIRST Ashva | In front |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹0.25L | ₹3,166 | ₹4,052 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹886 |
| ₹0.5L | ₹22,333 | ₹14,294 | HDFC Regalia Gold by ₹8,039 |
| ₹0.75L | ₹32,999 | ₹27,537 | HDFC Regalia Gold by ₹5,462 |
| ₹1L | ₹38,666 | ₹37,779 | HDFC Regalia Gold by ₹887 |
| ₹1.25L | ₹44,332 | ₹48,022 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹3,690 |
| ₹1.5L | ₹49,998 | ₹58,265 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹8,267 |
| ₹1.75L | ₹55,665 | ₹68,507 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹12,842 |
| ₹2L | ₹61,331 | ₹78,750 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹17,419 |
| ₹2.25L | ₹66,998 | ₹88,992 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹21,994 |
| ₹2.5L | ₹72,664 | ₹99,235 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹26,571 |
| ₹2.75L | ₹78,330 | ₹1,09,478 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹31,148 |
| ₹3L | ₹83,997 | ₹1,19,720 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹35,723 |
| ₹3.25L | ₹89,663 | ₹1,29,963 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹40,300 |
| ₹3.5L | ₹95,330 | ₹1,40,205 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹44,875 |
| ₹3.75L | ₹1,00,996 | ₹1,50,448 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹49,452 |
| ₹4L | ₹1,06,662 | ₹1,60,691 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹54,029 |
| ₹4.25L | ₹1,12,329 | ₹1,70,933 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹58,604 |
| ₹4.5L | ₹1,17,995 | ₹1,81,176 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹63,181 |
| ₹4.75L | ₹1,23,662 | ₹1,91,418 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹67,756 |
| ₹5L | ₹1,29,328 | ₹2,01,661 | IDFC FIRST Ashva by ₹72,333 |
Transfer reach
Only HDFC Regalia Gold
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Finnair Plus (Avios)
- Qatar Airways Privilege Club (Avios)
Full route maps on each card page, best ₹/point routes on the optimizer →
What to watch out for
HDFC Regalia Gold · 4 more →
- Cashing out to your statement fell from ₹0.20 to ₹0.15 a point in Jul-2026 — unannounced, and HDFC's own page still says ₹0.20 in one place
- Jul-2026: 3 domestic lounge visits/quarter now need ₹60k prior-quarter spend
- May 2026 cut lowered the effective earn ~6%
IDFC FIRST Ashva · 1 more →
- ₹0.40/pt is the ceiling — Ashva points are worth 20% less than Mayura's, ₹0.25 outside app travel
- Closed loop: no airline or hotel transfer partners at all
- Lounge, golf and movie perks all need ₹20k spend the previous month
The call
For the ₹1L/month spender, HDFC Regalia Gold nets ₹38,666 against ₹37,779 — a ₹887 gap. At ₹5L/month, IDFC FIRST Ashva nets ₹2,01,661 against ₹1,29,328 — a ₹72,333 gap. Lounge chasers: HDFC Regalia Gold opens 731 of 789 tracked doors to IDFC FIRST Ashva's 93.
Our standing verdicts: HDFC Regalia Gold — Keep; IDFC FIRST Ashva — Keep. On our board, HDFC Regalia Gold sits at #14 to IDFC FIRST Ashva's #20 — that's the overall call. Your spend pattern can overrule us: run your exact numbers →
Straight answers
Which is better, HDFC Regalia Gold or IDFC FIRST Ashva?
HDFC Regalia Gold. It sits at #14 on our board to IDFC FIRST Ashva's #20. HDFC Regalia Gold takes 5 of the 8 rounds we can score. It swings with spend: HDFC Regalia Gold at ₹1L/month, IDFC FIRST Ashva at ₹3L/month, IDFC FIRST Ashva at ₹5L/month.
HDFC Regalia Gold or IDFC FIRST Ashva — which earns more at ₹3L a month?
At ₹3L a month, IDFC FIRST Ashva nets ₹1,19,720 against ₹83,997 — a ₹35,723 gap. Those are ranking-value figures: everyday spend at the card's base rate plus a realistic slice at its best accelerator, net of the fee.
Which costs less to hold, HDFC Regalia Gold or IDFC FIRST Ashva?
HDFC Regalia Gold — ₹2,500/yr against ₹2,999/yr. HDFC Regalia Gold waives its fee at ₹4,00,000 of spend; IDFC FIRST Ashva at no spend level — there is no waiver.
Which gets you into more airport lounges, HDFC Regalia Gold or IDFC FIRST Ashva?
Lounge chasers: HDFC Regalia Gold opens 731 of 789 tracked doors to IDFC FIRST Ashva's 93. Visit quotas, guest charges and spend gates are per card — the lounge map carries each one.
How current is this comparison?
Both card records were last re-verified against their issuers' own documents on 2026-08-01. Every figure on this page — the ranking values, the fee rows, the lounge counts, the transfer ratios — is recomputed from those records each time the site builds, so a devaluation changes the call the day we log it.