SBI Card MILES PRIME vs SBI Card MILES ELITE (2026)
Same 25-partner transfer hub, two price tags — at ₹1L a month PRIME's twin milestones net ₹27,000 to ELITE's ₹27,001, one rupee apart, for a point less on travel and half the lounges.
Head to head
| Metric | SBI Card MILES PRIME | SBI Card MILES ELITE |
|---|---|---|
| Our rank | #30 | #37 |
| Annual fee | ₹2,999 + GST | ₹4,999 + GST |
| Fee waiver | ₹10,00,000 spend | ₹15,00,000 spend |
| Forex markup | 2.5% + GST | 1.99% + GST (also 1.99% DCC on INR-billed international transactions ≥₹1,000) |
| APR | Up to 3.75%/mo (45%/yr) | Up to 3.75%/mo (45%/yr) |
| Effective reward rate | 1.0% | 1.0% |
| Currency | SBI Travel Credits | SBI Travel Credits |
| House value | ₹1.00/pt | ₹1.00/pt |
| Welcome benefit | 3,000 Travel Credits on ₹60k spend in 60 days | 5,000 Travel Credits on ₹1L spend in 60 days |
| Lounge doors opened | 583 of 644 | 583 of 644 |
| Income — salaried | not published | not published |
| Income — self-employed | not published | 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 →
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.
SBI Card MILES PRIME wins under ₹1L/month; SBI Card MILES ELITE takes over above it.
Transfer reach
Both cards earn SBI Travel Credits, so the partner list is identical — 26 live transfer routes each. The fight is decided on earn and fees, not reach.
Both reach
- British Airways Executive Club (Avios) 1:1
- Air France-KLM Flying Blue 1:1
- Air India Maharaja Club 1:1
Full route maps on each card page, best ₹/point routes on the optimizer →
The call
For the ₹1L/month spender, SBI Card MILES ELITE nets ₹29,881 against ₹28,440 — a ₹1,441 gap. At ₹5L/month, SBI Card MILES ELITE nets ₹94,400 against ₹82,200 — a ₹12,200 gap. Lounge chasers get no tiebreak here: both open 583 of 644 tracked doors.
Our standing verdicts: SBI Card MILES PRIME — Keep; SBI Card MILES ELITE — Keep. On our board, SBI Card MILES PRIME sits at #30 to SBI Card MILES ELITE's #37 — that's the overall call. Your spend pattern can overrule us: run your exact numbers →