Credit cards in India, by the numbers
Fees, forex markups, lounge access and more, calculated from the 130 credit cards we track. The figures update whenever we add or re-check a card.
Data last updated 16 October 2026- 20% of cards have no annual fee. The median annual fee across all 130 cards is ₹999.
- 64% charge the standard 3.5% forex markup. Only 11 of 129 cards charge no markup at all.
- The median card returns 1.20% on everyday spend, about ₹4,311 a year on ₹30,000 a month, before the annual fee.
- 53 cards (41%) return less than 1%, while 27 (21%) return 2% or more.
- 10 of 15 cards charging ₹5,000 or more do not earn their fee back in rewards on this basket. Their value depends on lounges, travel benefits and milestones.
- 74% of cards include some airport lounge access, though many attach a minimum spend.
On ₹30,000 of spending a month, the median card returns 1.20% in rewards, worth ₹4,311 a year.
Each bar is the median reward return for cards in that fee band: the yearly value of the rewards divided by the yearly spend. Cards with no annual fee have the lowest median return at 0.87%. Under ₹1,000 cards return a median 1.47%, and cards at ₹5,000 or more return 1.80% before their fee is taken off.
The bars show cards whose yearly rewards on this basket are smaller than their annual fee. High-fee cards are mostly built around lounge visits, travel vouchers, milestone bonuses and welcome benefits, which this measure leaves out, so a low figure here does not make them poor value for the right user. For everyday spending alone, though, the fee has to be earned back.
These cards pay the most after the fee on this particular mix of spending, and several depend on a single partner such as Swiggy or HSBC. The result changes with your own spend, so use the card finder on our homepage to rank cards for your own spending.
26 of 130 cards (20%) carry no annual fee, and the median annual fee is ₹999.
The average annual fee is ₹2,485, well above the median, because a small number of premium cards charge very high fees and pull the average up. Most cards sit at ₹999 or below, so the median is the better guide to what a typical card costs. Some no-fee cards are free only on conditions, such as holding a fixed deposit, so check each card page.
64% of cards (83 of 129) charge the usual 3.5% forex markup. Only 11 charge nothing.
38 cards charge 2% or less, which makes them worth a look if you spend abroad or buy from overseas websites. On a ₹1,00,000 overseas spend, the gap between 3.5% and 0% is ₹3,500 in markup alone. 1 card does not publish a forex rate and is left out of these figures.
96 of 130 cards (74%) include some form of airport lounge access, but many of them require a minimum spend each quarter.
The chart shows what share of cards in each fee band offer lounge access. Lounge perks are spread across fee levels, and the number of visits and the spend conditions differ widely from card to card, so open the card page for the exact terms before relying on it.
Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and SBI Card each have the most cards in our tracker, with 18 each. 21 banks and issuers are covered in total.
All-round and co-branded cards make up the largest share of the market. A co-branded card is issued with a partner such as an airline, a fuel company or a shopping platform, and its best rewards usually apply only with that partner.
Banks with four or more cards in our tracker, compared on fees, forex, lounge access and what their cards earn.
| Bank | Cards | Median fee | 0% forex | With lounge | Median return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axis Bank | 18 | ₹500 | 2 | 15 of 18 | 1.26% |
| HDFC Bank | 18 | ₹1,000 | 0 | 11 of 18 | 2.24% |
| SBI Card | 18 | ₹1,499 | 0 | 16 of 18 | 1.07% |
| ICICI Bank | 9 | ₹999 | 0 | 8 of 9 | 1.03% |
| IDFC FIRST Bank | 9 | ₹0 | 3 | 6 of 9 | 1.23% |
| Kotak Mahindra Bank | 9 | ₹1,500 | 0 | 7 of 9 | 0.80% |
| RBL Bank | 7 | ₹1,000 | 1 | 4 of 7 | 0.67% |
| YES Bank | 7 | ₹1,199 | 0 | 5 of 7 | 1.60% |
| IndusInd Bank | 6 | ₹1,749 | 0 | 5 of 6 | 1.18% |
| AU Small Finance Bank | 5 | ₹199 | 1 | 5 of 5 | 0.43% |
| Standard Chartered India | 5 | ₹750 | 0 | 2 of 5 | 1.13% |
| Bank of Baroda | 4 | ₹1,750 | 2 | 3 of 4 | 1.08% |
| HSBC India | 4 | ₹999 | 1 | 3 of 4 | 2.13% |
Median return uses the same ₹30,000 monthly basket as above. A bank with only a few cards can swing on one product, so read the card count alongside each figure.
6 cards in our tracker are secured against a fixed deposit, which makes them available without a credit history or income proof.
Your fixed deposit keeps earning interest while it backs the card, and on-time payments help build a credit record. These cards suit first-time borrowers and people rebuilding their score.
4 cards in our tracker were updated since July 2026: 1 because the bank changed the card, 2 where we corrected our own data and 1 other update.
Lounge access corrected to 4 domestic visits a year plus a Priority Pass membership for two years (previously 8 visits). Spend voucher, insurance cover and wellness memberships updated.
Rewards updated to match SBI Card's current terms: 10X (2.5%) at partner brands, 5X (1.25%) on other online spends, 0.25% offline. Amazon is no longer a listed partner. Welcome gift, milestone vouchers and fee reversal updated.
Corrected reward structure, the advertised 5% rate only applies via HDFC's own PayZapp/SmartBuy portal, not general shopping. Rates and cap logic updated to a conservative 2.5% online / 1% elsewhere.
Reflected HSBC's July 2026 revaluation, reward categories expanded from 3 to 5, monthly cap increased ₹1,000 to ₹1,200, network upgraded to Visa Infinite, domestic lounge visits cut 4/year to 2/year, forex reduced 3.5% to 1.99%.
Each card's page keeps its full update history under "Recent updates". This log covers changes we have recorded in our tracker; it is not yet a complete list of every bank announcement in India.
Every figure on this page is calculated directly from our card database, which is built from each bank's published documents: the Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC), the fee schedule and the official product page. The page is regenerated automatically, so it always reflects the cards currently in the tracker. 130 cards were included when this page was last updated on 16 October 2026. For how the savings calculation and our sources work in detail, see our methodology page.
You are welcome to quote and chart these figures. Please credit and link the source as: Faayda.com, Credit Card Statistics India (https://faayda.com/credit-card-statistics), data as of 16 October 2026. Need the data in another format, or a figure that is not shown here? Email info@faayda.com.