KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX vs SBI AURUM (2026)
SBI AURUM vs KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX: which wins?
₹1,27,853ranking value a year at ₹3L a month, to KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX
Skip the duel — the board, ranked → · nothing to sign up for
SBI AURUM marks foreign spend up 2.0% against KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX's 3.5% — 1.5pp on every rupee you spend abroad, before either card earns a point on it.
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX out-earns SBI AURUM at every spend level we model, from ₹25k to ₹5L a month.
Every metric, row by row — 12 compared
Head to head
| KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX | Metric | SBI AURUM |
|---|---|---|
| #22 — wins this row | Our rank | #168 |
| ₹9,999/yr | Fee — joining · annual (+ GST) | ₹9,999/yr |
| None | Fee waiver | ₹12,00,000 spend |
| 3.5% + GST — the schedule of charges exempts only ELITE, AURUM and the three SBI Card MILES tiers, and APEX is in none of them | Forex markup | 1.99% (AURUM concession; SBI standard 3.5%) — wins this row |
| 3.50%/mo (42%/yr) — SBI's standard unsecured-card rate | APR | 3.75%/mo (45%/yr) |
| 3.3% — wins this row | Headline earn rate | 1.0% |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | Currency | AURUM Reward Points |
| ₹1.10/pt | House value | ₹0.25/pt |
| 10,000 KrisFlyer miles on annual-fee payment plus a first transaction within 60 days of card issuance | Welcome benefit | 40,000 AURUM Reward Points (₹10,000 at the 4-per-₹1 peg) + a year of Club Marriott, WSJ and Mint |
| 689 of 793 — wins this row | Lounge doors opened | 139 of 793 |
| ₹2L+/month — SBI's own product record tags the card's income band "2lac-above" | Income — salaried | not published |
| Same ₹2L+/month band — SBI's record does not split salaried from self-employed | Income — self-employed | not published |
Gold marks the better side of a row. House value is our ₹-per-point mark for each card's currency — the full valuation index →
The ₹ face-off at ₹1L/₹3L/₹5L a month
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.
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX out-earns SBI AURUM at every spend level we model, from ₹25k to ₹5L a month.
How the gap moves with spend — a 20-step sweep from ₹0.25L to ₹5L/month
How the gap moves with spend
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX leads at all 20 steps, but not by the same amount: ₹2,796 at ₹0.25L a month, ₹97,221 at ₹5L — the gap fans out with spend, widest at ₹5L (₹97,221).
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX runs a 4.4% booster on International spends, where SBI AURUM earns one flat rate.
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX draws above the line, SBI AURUM below · ₹0.25L to ₹5L a month, step by step
| Monthly spend | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX | SBI AURUM | In front |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹0.25L | ₹297 | −₹2,499 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹2,796 |
| ₹0.5L | ₹21,593 | ₹10,001 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹11,592 |
| ₹0.75L | ₹31,889 | ₹17,501 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹14,388 |
| ₹1L | ₹45,485 | ₹45,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹485 |
| ₹1.25L | ₹55,781 | ₹48,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹7,781 |
| ₹1.5L | ₹66,077 | ₹51,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹15,077 |
| ₹1.75L | ₹76,373 | ₹74,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹2,373 |
| ₹2L | ₹86,669 | ₹77,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹9,669 |
| ₹2.25L | ₹96,965 | ₹80,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹16,965 |
| ₹2.5L | ₹1,07,261 | ₹83,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹24,261 |
| ₹2.75L | ₹1,17,557 | ₹86,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹31,557 |
| ₹3L | ₹1,27,853 | ₹89,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹38,853 |
| ₹3.25L | ₹1,38,149 | ₹92,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹46,149 |
| ₹3.5L | ₹1,48,445 | ₹95,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹53,445 |
| ₹3.75L | ₹1,58,741 | ₹98,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹60,741 |
| ₹4L | ₹1,69,037 | ₹1,01,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹68,037 |
| ₹4.25L | ₹1,79,333 | ₹1,04,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹75,333 |
| ₹4.5L | ₹1,89,629 | ₹1,07,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹82,629 |
| ₹4.75L | ₹1,99,925 | ₹1,10,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹89,925 |
| ₹5L | ₹2,10,221 | ₹1,13,000 | KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX by ₹97,221 |
Transfer reach — 0 vs 4 live routes
Transfer reach
0 shared routes · 0 only KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX · 3 only SBI AURUM — the full partner lists
Only SBI AURUM
- The British Airways Club (Avios)
- Air India Maharaja Club
- AirAsia Rewards
Full route maps on each card page, best ₹/point routes on the optimizer →
What to watch out for — 6 points
What to watch out for
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX · 5 more →
- ₹9,999 every year with no spend-based waiver — the only SBI travel card at this fee that publishes none
- 3.5% forex markup against a 4.4% international earn — the international accelerator nets under 1%
- Fuel, rent, utilities, government, wallet loads, cash advances and every EMI earn zero miles
SBI AURUM · 2 more →
- The engine is 1% — 4 RP/₹100 at a flat ₹0.25/point; everything above that is milestone pacing
- The monthly ₹1,500 CLiQ voucher needs ₹1L in that calendar month — uneven spenders forfeit rungs our annualized model credits
- Transfers cost 5 points per mile (₹1.25 of catalogue value per ₹1 mile) — worse than redeeming except premium-cabin Avios/Maharaja awards; ITC's own grid prints no ratio, the 5:1 is community-reported
The call
For the ₹1L/month spender, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX nets ₹45,485 against ₹45,000 — a ₹485 gap. At ₹5L/month, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX nets ₹2,10,221 against ₹1,13,000 — a ₹97,221 gap. Lounge chasers: KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX opens 689 of 793 tracked doors to SBI AURUM's 139.
Our standing verdicts: KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX — Keep; SBI AURUM — Keep. KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX takes 6 of the 7 rounds we can score — that's the overall call. Your spend pattern can overrule us: run your exact numbers →
Common questions — 5 answered
Straight answers
Which is better, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX or SBI AURUM?
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX. KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX takes 6 of the 7 rounds we can score. KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX out-earns SBI AURUM at every spend level we model, from ₹25k to ₹5L a month.
KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX or SBI AURUM — which earns more at ₹3L a month?
At ₹3L a month, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX nets ₹1,27,853 against ₹89,000 — a ₹38,853 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, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX or SBI AURUM?
They cost the same to get: ₹9,999/yr. KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX waives its fee at no spend level — there is no waiver; SBI AURUM at ₹12,00,000 of spend.
Which gets you into more airport lounges, KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX or SBI AURUM?
Lounge chasers: KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX opens 689 of 793 tracked doors to SBI AURUM's 139. Visit quotas, guest charges and spend gates are per card — the lounge map carries each one.
How current is this comparison?
Card records last re-verified against their issuers' own documents: KrisFlyer SBI Card APEX on 2026-08-15, SBI AURUM on 2026-07-26. 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.
Verified against SBI Card and SBI Card's own documents on · the ranking model, at our house ₹/point
Every document behind this page — 13 of them, each with the day we read it
- official SBI's own T&C for this card — ₹9,999 annual and ₹9,999 renewal, 10 KrisFlyer miles/₹200 on Singapore Airlines, 8/₹200 international, 6/₹200 on other spends, and the MCC exclusion table
- official SBI's product record behind the APEX page — the full earn, milestone and lounge grid, plus isOnline "yes" (open to new applications), productType KFAA, cardLaunchDate 2024-09-30
- official SBI's live card catalogue — the APEX is listed and applyable, isOnline "yes", annual fee 9,999, launched 30 September 2024
- official Airport Lounge Access — the APEX appears in neither Set A nor Set B, and the page scopes those cut-down lists to "all cards with an annual fee of ₹1,499 & ₹2,999"
- community CardInsider — the APEX is issued in an "American Express and Mastercard variant"; ₹9,999 joining and annual, 10/8/6 miles per ₹200, 3.5% forex
- official SBI Card's upgrade/downgrade FAQ — the only downgrade the issuer publishes: customer-initiated, inside 90 days of an upgrade, and no upgrade again for six months
- official AURUM microsite — 4 ARP per ₹100 on every non-fuel spend at 1 ARP = ₹0.25, 40,000-point welcome worth ₹10,000 on first annual fee, points never expire
- official AURUM benefits page — complimentary DreamFolks membership with UNLIMITED international lounge access plus one guest visit a quarter
- official MITC — AURUM ₹9,999 annual and ₹9,999 renewal waived on ₹12L preceding-year spend; foreign-currency fee 1.99%; AURUM Reward Points never expire and carry no ₹99 redemption fee
- official SBI Card consolidated MITC PDF — AURUM annual fee ₹9,999, renewal ₹9,999 "Waived off on annual spends of Rs.12 Lakh or more in the preceding year"
- official Club ITC's official AURUM partner page — transfer route confirmed (min 500 AURUM Reward Points, increments of 500, up to 5 working days)
- community CardInsider (upd. 29-Jun-2026) — 4 RP/₹100, 4 RP = ₹1, 40,000-pt welcome + Club Marriott/WSJ/Mint, CLiQ/Taj/Apple milestones
- community CardExpert review (4/5) — corroborates ₹12L waiver, 40,000-pt welcome, ₹0.25/pt, milestone ladder, 4/qtr domestic + unlimited intl (DreamFolks), 4 BMS tickets/month ₹250 cap