ICICI Times Black vs HDFC Infinia Metal (2026)
₹20,000 of helicopter transfers vs ₹12,500 of everything — the king nets ₹39,960 to Times Black's ₹4,000 at ₹1L a month.
Head to head
| Metric | ICICI Times Black | HDFC Infinia Metal |
|---|---|---|
| Our rank | #18 | #1 |
| Annual fee | ₹20,000 + GST | ₹12,500 + GST |
| Fee waiver | ₹25,00,000 spend | ₹10,00,000 spend |
| Forex markup | 1.49% + GST (card-specific carve-out in the MITC; standard ICICI rate is 3.5%) | 2% + GST |
| APR | 3.75%/mo (45%/yr) | 1.99%/mo (23.88%/yr) |
| Effective reward rate | 2.0% | 3.3% |
| Currency | ICICI Reward Points | HDFC Reward Points |
| House value | ₹1.00/pt | ₹1.00/pt |
| Welcome benefit | ₹12,000 Lohono / ₹10,000 EaseMyTrip stay voucher + ₹10,000 visa-services wallet (Atlys/OneVasco) + Toni&Guy ₹3,000 + Interflora ₹1,000 + Zomato Gold — application windows via timesblack.com | 12,500 reward points + complimentary Club Marriott, first year |
| Lounge doors opened | 581 of 644 | 588 of 644 |
| Income — salaried | Invite-led; ~₹2L+/month reported (community) | ₹5L+/month net (private sector); ₹3.5L+/month (govt) |
| Income — self-employed | ~ITR ₹24L+/yr reported (community) | ITR ₹60L+/yr |
Gold marks the better side of a row. House value is our ₹-per-point mark for each card's currency — the full valuation index →
Net annual 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. Tune it to your own spend in the calculator.
HDFC Infinia Metal out-earns ICICI Times Black at every spend level we model, from ₹25k to ₹5L a month.
Transfer reach
Both reach
- Air India Maharaja Club 1:1 vs 2:1
Only ICICI Times Black
- iShop travel portal
Only HDFC Infinia Metal
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- British Airways Executive Club (Avios)
- Finnair Plus (Avios)
Full route maps on each card page, best ₹/point routes on the optimizer →
The call
For the ₹1L/month spender, HDFC Infinia Metal nets ₹55,764 against ₹34,000 — a ₹21,764 gap. At ₹5L/month, HDFC Infinia Metal nets ₹2,78,820 against ₹1,70,000 — a ₹1,08,820 gap. Lounge chasers: HDFC Infinia Metal opens 588 of 644 tracked doors to ICICI Times Black's 581.
Our standing verdicts: ICICI Times Black — Keep; HDFC Infinia Metal — Keep. On our board, HDFC Infinia Metal sits at #1 to ICICI Times Black's #18 — that's the overall call. Your spend pattern can overrule us: run your exact numbers →