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IDFC FIRST Select vs HDFC Bank Millennia

Verified 16 sources

Your monthly spend

HDFC Bank Millennia beats IDFC FIRST Select by ₹2,200 a year at ₹30,000 a month: ₹3,400 against ₹1,200, after fees

HDFC Bank Millennia beats IDFC FIRST Select by ₹9,600 a year at ₹75,000 a month: ₹12,500 against ₹2,900, after fees

HDFC Bank Millennia beats IDFC FIRST Select by ₹10,100 a year at ₹1.5 lakh a month: ₹16,000 against ₹5,900, after fees

HDFC Bank Millennia beats IDFC FIRST Select by ₹4,200 a year at ₹3 lakh a month: ₹16,000 against ₹11,800, after fees

IDFC FIRST Select beats HDFC Bank Millennia by ₹3,700 a year at ₹5 lakh a month: ₹19,700 against ₹16,000, after fees

IDFC FIRST Select credit card

IDFC FIRST Bank

IDFC FIRST Select

Our verdict: Keep

HDFC Bank Millennia credit card

HDFC Bank

HDFC Bank Millennia

Our verdict: Keep

HDFC Bank Millennia vs IDFC FIRST Select: which should you pick?

The free travel-leaning card against the ₹1,000 cashback card. Millennia pays a rupee a point — 5% at ten merchants and 1% elsewhere, each capped at 1,000 CashPoints a calendar month; Select pays 3 points per ₹200 at ₹0.25 a point and 10X on dining and travel, with no cap on the base. So Millennia wins under ₹4.25L a month and Select takes over from ₹4.25L. What Select sells is the trip: lifetime free, 0% forex against Millennia's 3.5%, and one airport lounge visit a quarter on ₹20,000 of the previous month's spend, where Millennia's lounge is a voucher you take instead of ₹1,000 of brand vouchers.

Most people should pick HDFC Bank Millennia: it is the better card until ₹4.25 lakh a month, and only heavier spenders get more from IDFC FIRST Select, ₹3,700 a year more at ₹5 lakh. At ₹75,000 a month the gap is mostly what each card earns on your spend: HDFC Bank Millennia returns ₹12,500 a year in rewards to IDFC FIRST Select's ₹2,900. Pick IDFC FIRST Select instead if you spend abroad: its forex markup is 0% against 3.5% on HDFC Bank Millennia, 3.5 percentage points less on every rupee spent in another currency, or if airport lounges matter more to you than the money: it gets you into 55 of the lounges we track to HDFC Bank Millennia's 0.

HDFC Bank Millennia's ongoing earn stops at ₹1,00,000 of spend a month, where IDFC FIRST Select's doesn't.

IDFC FIRST Select review HDFC Bank Millennia review

Side by side

IDFC FIRST Select and HDFC Bank Millennia, fact by fact
FactIDFC FIRST SelectHDFC Bank Millennia
Can you get itOpen to applyOpen to apply
Fee (joining · annual, + GST)₹0 — lifetime free✓ Better₹1,000/yr
Fee waiverNoneSpend ₹1,00,000 a year
Reward rate on everyday spend0.4%1.0%✓ Better
PointsIDFC FIRST Reward PointsHDFC Bank CashPoints
Our value per point₹0.25 †₹1.00 †
Transfer partnersNoneNone
Lounges it gets you into55 of 792✓ Better0 of 792
Forex markupNil✓ Better3.5% + GST
Welcome benefit₹500 gift voucher on ₹5,000 spent within 30 days of card generation, plus 5% cashback up to ₹1,000 on your first EMI transaction in the same 30 days1,000 CashPoints (₹1,000 as statement credit) on payment of the joining fee — and nothing at all on renewal

✓ Better marks the side that wins a row; rows that compare unlike things are not scored. IDFC FIRST Select is ahead on 6 of the 11 rows we can call.

More facts 8 rows
Rank, verdict, lounge visits and fine print
FactIDFC FIRST SelectHDFC Bank Millennia
Our rank#96✓ Better#137
Our verdictKeepKeep
Lounge visits in India1/quarter (+4 railway lounge visits/quarter) at the 32 rooms on IDFC's own FIRST Select list, NOT the Visa network1 HOI lounge voucher per calendar quarter — but only INSTEAD of the ₹1,000 milestone voucher, never as well
Lounge visits abroadNoneNone
Forex, in the bank’s wordsNil — bank-wide MITC dated 9 Sep 2026 prints NIL on foreign-currency and DCC/SCC transactions3.5% + GST
Interest (APR)Dynamic 0.71%–3.85%/mo (8.5%–46.2%/yr); overdue rate 3.99%/mo (47.88%/yr) on MAD non-payment3.75%/mo (45%/yr)
Income needed (salaried)₹12L+/yr (official product page)₹35,000+/month net
Income needed (self-employed)₹12L+/yr (official product page)ITR ₹6L+/yr

† IDFC FIRST Select: Select redeems the IDFC point at a flat ₹0.25 — including on the app's own Travel & Shop platform, which its travel T&C spells out ("Reward Points can be redeemed at 1 Point = ₹0.25"). That is the house value exactly: no ₹0.50 app-travel tier like Mayura's, no ₹1.00 portal tier like Gaj's. Points expire 24 months after they're credited.

† HDFC Bank Millennia: Millennia's CashPoints are worth ₹1 each — but only against the statement, only above a 500-point minimum, only 3,000 points a calendar month, and only after a ₹50 redemption fee HDFC added on 1 August 2024. Point them at travel and they collapse to ₹0.30: that is the rate on SmartBuy flights and hotels, on the rewards catalogue, and on Airmiles, and the catalogue route adds ₹99 + taxes of handling on top. Flight and hotel bookings can absorb at most 50% of the fare in points, capped at 50,000 points a month. There is no transfer partner — this currency does not reach an airline programme at all.

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 spendIDFC FIRST SelectHDFC Bank Millennia
At ₹30,000 a month₹1,200₹3,400✓ Better
At ₹75,000 a month₹2,900₹12,500✓ Better
At ₹1.5 lakh a month₹5,900₹16,000✓ Better
At ₹3 lakh a month₹11,800₹16,000✓ Better
At ₹5 lakh a month₹19,700✓ Better₹16,000
Pays for itself fromThe first rupee✓ Better₹9,000 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
IDFC FIRST Select and HDFC Bank Millennia at each ₹25,000 step
Monthly spendIDFC FIRST SelectHDFC Bank MillenniaAhead
₹25,000₹1,000₹2,800✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹1,800
₹50,000₹2,000₹9,600✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹7,600
₹75,000₹2,900₹12,500✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹9,600
₹1 lakh₹3,900₹15,300✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹11,400
₹1.25 lakh₹4,900₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹11,100
₹1.5 lakh₹5,900₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹10,100
₹1.75 lakh₹6,900₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹9,100
₹2 lakh₹7,900₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹8,100
₹2.25 lakh₹8,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹7,200
₹2.5 lakh₹9,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹6,200
₹2.75 lakh₹10,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹5,200
₹3 lakh₹11,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹4,200
₹3.25 lakh₹12,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹3,200
₹3.5 lakh₹13,800₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹2,200
₹3.75 lakh₹14,700₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹1,300
₹4 lakh₹15,700₹16,000✓ BetterHDFC Bank Millennia by ₹300
₹4.25 lakh₹16,700✓ Better₹16,000IDFC FIRST Select by ₹700
₹4.5 lakh₹17,700✓ Better₹16,000IDFC FIRST Select by ₹1,700
₹4.75 lakh₹18,700✓ Better₹16,000IDFC FIRST Select by ₹2,700
₹5 lakh₹19,700✓ Better₹16,000IDFC FIRST Select by ₹3,700
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 0 and 0

IDFC FIRST Select's IDFC FIRST Reward Points cannot be moved to any airline or hotel; HDFC Bank Millennia's HDFC Bank CashPoints cannot be moved to any.

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

IDFC FIRST Select

  • 0.375% base earn: 3 RP per ₹200 at ₹0.25 a point, and the point never gets better than ₹0.25
  • 0% forex is now bank-wide — Select no longer undercuts WOW! on markup; the lounge is the difference
  • Lounges, railway lounges and the District movie BOGO all need ₹20,000 spent the previous month

4 more on its page

HDFC Bank Millennia

  • The lounge is an EITHER/OR: one HOI lounge voucher or a ₹1,000 brand voucher per quarter, never both — 4 visits a year at absolute best
  • Complimentary lounge access was withdrawn on 30 Nov 2023; walk-in visits on the card are now charged at the lounge's own rate
  • Points are ₹1 only as statement credit — ₹0.30 on SmartBuy flights, hotels, catalogue and Airmiles

6 more on its page

Common questions 5 answered

Which is better, IDFC FIRST Select or HDFC Bank Millennia?

Most people should pick HDFC Bank Millennia: it is the better card until ₹4.25 lakh a month, and only heavier spenders get more from IDFC FIRST Select, ₹3,700 a year more at ₹5 lakh. At ₹75,000 a month the gap is mostly what each card earns on your spend: HDFC Bank Millennia returns ₹12,500 a year in rewards to IDFC FIRST Select's ₹2,900. Pick IDFC FIRST Select instead if you spend abroad: its forex markup is 0% against 3.5% on HDFC Bank Millennia, 3.5 percentage points less on every rupee spent in another currency, or if airport lounges matter more to you than the money: it gets you into 55 of the lounges we track to HDFC Bank Millennia's 0.

IDFC FIRST Select or HDFC Bank Millennia: which is worth more at ₹3 lakh a month?

HDFC Bank Millennia beats IDFC FIRST Select by ₹4,200 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, IDFC FIRST Select or HDFC Bank Millennia?

IDFC FIRST Select: ₹0 — lifetime free against ₹1,000/yr. IDFC FIRST Select has no fee waiver; HDFC Bank Millennia waives its fee if you spend ₹1,00,000 a year.

Which gets you into more airport lounges, IDFC FIRST Select or HDFC Bank Millennia?

IDFC FIRST Select: 55 of the 792 lounges we track, against 0 for HDFC Bank Millennia. Visit limits and guest charges differ by card; each card's page lists them.

How current is this comparison?

IDFC FIRST Select was last checked against its bank's own documents on 26 Oct 2026, HDFC Bank Millennia on 24 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

IDFC FIRST Select was last checked against its bank's own documents on 26 Oct 2026, HDFC Bank Millennia on 24 Oct 2026. Every fact above comes from these 16 documents; the banks' own are marked official. A fact a bank does not publish shows as "not published", never as zero.

The documents 16 sources
  1. Official IDFC cardholder notice, 13 September 2026 — withdraws the 9 September cut: reward points continue on international transactions "as applicable for the respective cards" read
  2. Official IDFC cardholder notice, 9 September 2026 — announced international earn would stop on 26 October 2026; withdrawn by the bank's 13 September notice, so it never took effect read
  3. Official IDFC's 18-Jun-2026 change notice for this card — reward points earned only on spends up to the credit limit in a billing cycle read
  4. Official Domestic lounge list — the 32 rooms the quarterly visit can be spent at, addresses and terminals included read
  5. Official Product page + FAQs (lifetime free — "no joining, membership, or annual fees at any point"; forex on page may still lag; 9-Sep MITC is NIL; annual income ₹12L+) read
  6. Official Travel & Shop bonus T&C PDF ("Effective June 18, 2026" — 20% bonus RP on hotels, 10% on flights; Table 2.3 Base Earn (A) "Up to 5% Reward points" + Bonus (B) 20% = Total Earn) read
  7. Official Superseded Travel & Shop T&C, archived 12-Apr-2026 ("Effective June 1, 2025" — 33% bonus RP on hotels) read
  8. Official Jan-2026 cardmember notice PDF (earn base ₹150 → ₹200; 1.99% forex; "10X Reward Points on incremental monthly spends > ₹20,000 and spends done on your birthday"; FASTag past) read
  9. Official Bank-wide MITC (reissued 9 Sep 2026) — FIRST Select joining Nil / annual Nil, add-on ₹499; forex NIL bank-wide; ₹199 cash advance; ₹99 redemption fee read
  10. Official Privileges T&C PDF ("Cardholders can enjoy up to 1 complimentary visits per quarter to select airport lounges in India"; District movie offer "100% off up to ₹125 on 2nd ticket", twice a month) read
  11. Community CardInsider review — corroborates the Visa network, nil fees, 1.99% forex and the 10X dining/travel/international construct read
  12. Official HDFC Bank's Millennia product page — the 5%/1% CashBack structure, the quarterly milestone, and the redemption grid (₹1 statement, ₹0.30 SmartBuy, ₹0.30 Airmiles) read
  13. Official Millennia product T&C, published 20 July 2026 — the 1,000-CashPoint monthly cap on both earn buckets, and "1 CashPoint = ₹1 for Millennia Credit Card Holders" read
  14. Official "HDFC Bank Millennia Credit Card — Lounge Access", published 6 Feb 2026: the lounge is one option on the quarterly voucher list, and the old 2-a-quarter quota is gone read
  15. Official HDFC Bank personal-cards MITC, version 4.15 dated October 2026 — Millennia at ₹1 lakh annual-spend waiver, 3.5% forex, and lounge access "via vouchers" read
  16. Official Millennia fees & charges page — "Joining/renewal membership fee: ₹1,000 plus applicable taxes", waived on ₹1 lakh of spend before the renewal date read

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