Credit Cards in India – 2026

Find the right card for your spending

Top cards by reward value

* Base reward value on ₹3 lakh of yearly spends minus annual fee + 18% GST (fee treated as waived when the published waiver threshold is ₹3 lakh or less). Accelerated categories, caps and exclusions change the real value — see each card page.

Credit cards by type

Credit cards by bank

Market snapshot

• Credit cards outstanding: 122.86 million (July 2026), vs 121.6 million (June 2026) and 111.62 million (July 2025).
• Monthly credit card spends: ₹2.08 trillion (July 2026); ₹2.01 trillion (June 2026); all-time high ₹2.18 trillion (March 2026); Jan–Jul 2026 average ~₹2 trillion.
• Top issuers by cards outstanding (July 2026): HDFC Bank 26.97 mn (spend ₹60,217.54 cr); SBI Card 22.76 mn (₹39,591.76 cr); ICICI Bank 19.69 mn (₹34,025.27 cr); Axis Bank 16.26 mn (₹23,824.7 cr).
• Approx. market share by cards (derived from above, July 2026): HDFC ~22%, SBI Card ~18.5%, ICICI ~16%, Axis ~13%.

How a credit card works

1. Credit limitThe bank sets a limit based on income and credit history; spends reduce available credit.
2. Billing cycle & statementAbout 30 days of spends are totalled on the statement date. You can ask to change the billing cycle at least once.
3. Due dateYou get at least 15 days after the statement to pay. Pay the total due and you pay no interest — giving up to about 50 interest-free days.
4. Minimum amount duePaying only this avoids a late fee but triggers interest on the whole balance from each transaction date.
5. RewardsPoints, cashback or miles are earned on eligible spends; rent, wallet loads, fuel and utilities are often excluded or capped.

Interest-free period example

Fees & charges to know

• Finance charges (typical mass-market cards): 3.75% per month (45% p.a.); premium cards lower, e.g. HDFC Infinia/Diners Black 1.99% p.m. (23.88% p.a.).
• SBI Card: 3.75% p.m. (45% p.a.) on unsecured cards; 2.75% p.m. (33% p.a.) on secured/Shaurya cards; minimum finance charge ₹25 per cycle.
• HDFC Bank late payment slabs (on outstanding, from 1 Aug 2024): ≤₹100 nil; ₹101–500 ₹100; ₹501–1,000 ₹500; ₹1,001–5,000 ₹600; ₹5,001–10,000 ₹750; ₹10,001–25,000 ₹900; ₹25,001–50,000 ₹1,100; >₹50,000 ₹1,300; plus GST.
• SBI Card late payment slabs: ₹0–100 nil; ₹100–500 ₹100; ₹500–1,000 ₹500; ₹1,000–10,000 ₹750; ₹10,000–25,000 ₹950; ₹25,000–50,000 ₹1,100; >₹50,000 ₹1,300; extra ₹100 if MAD missed two consecutive cycles.
• Cash advance fee: 2.5% of amount, minimum ₹500 (HDFC, SBI Card); interest accrues from withdrawal date, no grace period.
• Over-limit fee: HDFC 2.5% of over-limit amount (min ₹550); SBI Card 2.5% or ₹600 whichever higher — only with cardholder consent to exceed limit.
• Forex markup: typically 3.5% on standard cards; premium cards ~1.99%–2.5% (e.g. SBI AURUM/Elite 1.99%, Miles Prime 2.5%); some cards offer zero markup.
• HDFC Bank from 1 Jul 2025: 1% fee on rent (all amounts), third-party wallet loads >₹10,000/month, online skill gaming >₹10,000/month, utilities >₹50,000/month (insurance excluded), fuel >₹15,000/month, education via third-party apps (Cred/NoBroker etc.); each capped at ₹4,999/month.
• SBI Card from 1 Nov 2025: 1% on education payments via third-party apps (not direct institution website/POS); 1% on wallet loads above ₹1,000. SBI MITC also lists ₹199 rent processing fee and 1% on utility payments above ₹50,000/month.
• Fuel surcharge waiver norm: 1% surcharge waived on fuel transactions of ₹400–₹4,000 per transaction, usually with a monthly cap (e.g. HSBC ₹250/month on Visa/RuPay Platinum); GST on surcharge not reversed.
• GST at 18% applies on credit card fees and charges (annual fee, interest/finance charges, late fee, processing fees), not on purchases.
• Other SBI Card fees: cash payment of bill ₹250; cheque payment ₹200; payment dishonour 2% (min ₹500).

Late payment slabs (examples)

Plus 18% GST. Charged only if payment is more than 3 days past the due date, on the unpaid amount. Other issuers use similar slabs — check your card’s MITC.

The cost of paying only the minimum

₹1 lakh revolved, paying only 5% minimum due each month; interest + 18% GST. After a year you have paid ₹59,706 and still owe ₹91,222.

RBI rules that protect cardholders

• Original framework: Master Direction – Credit Card and Debit Card – Issuance and Conduct Directions, 2022 (RBI/2022-23/92, DoR.AUT.REC.No.27/24.01.041/2022-23, dated 21 Apr 2022), effective 1 Jul 2022.
• Eligible issuers: scheduled commercial banks (excl. RRBs) with net worth ≥ ₹100 crore; NBFCs need prior RBI approval and minimum NOF of ₹100 crore.
• March 7, 2024 amendment: no prior RBI approval needed for co-branding arrangements; co-brand partner may not access transaction data except encrypted display; billing cycle modifiable at least once; business-card end-use monitoring; board-approved card blocking/suspension procedures with immediate SMS/email intimation.
• Card network choice: RBI circular RBI/2023-24/131 dated 6 Mar 2024 requires issuers to offer eligible customers a choice of multiple card networks at issuance (existing cardholders at renewal), effective six months from the circular (~6 Sep 2024); issuers with ≤10 lakh active cards and issuers using their own network exempt; issuers cannot sign exclusivity arrangements with networks. Authorised networks: American Express, Diners Club, Mastercard, NPCI-RuPay, Visa.
• Current consolidated rules: Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Credit Cards and Debit Cards: Issuance and Conduct) Directions, 2025 (RBI/DOR/2025-26/155, dated 28 Nov 2025) replaced the 2022 Master Direction for commercial banks as part of RBI’s consolidation exercise.
• Unsolicited cards/upgrades strictly prohibited; if issued and billed, issuer must reverse charges and pay a penalty of twice the reversed amount.
• Closure requests must be honoured within 7 working days (subject to dues being paid); delay attracts penalty of ₹500 per calendar day payable to the cardholder.
• Activation: OTP-based consent must be sought if card not activated within 30 days of issuance; if no consent, card must be closed without cost within 7 working days thereafter. No credit information on a new card may be reported to CICs before activation.
• Inactive cards: if unused for more than one year, closure process may be initiated after intimating the cardholder; closed if no response within 30 days.
• Billing cycle: cardholders must be given the option to modify the billing cycle at least once.
• Minimum Amount Due must be set so there is no negative amortisation (no capitalisation of unpaid interest/charges).
• Interest is levied only on the outstanding amount adjusted for payments/refunds/reversals; not on unpaid charges, fees, taxes or levies.
• Late payment charges: account reported as ’past due’ / late fee levied only when payment is past due for more than 3 days; charges levied only on the outstanding amount after due date, not total amount due; days past due counted from statement due date.
• Amendment Directions, 2026 (RBI/2026-27/29, DOR.STR.REC.11/24-01-041/2026-27, dated 27 Apr 2026) revises para 23(5) on 3-day past-due reporting and late charges on outstanding amount only; effective 1 Apr 2027.
• Credit limit sanctioned/communicated must not be breached without explicit cardholder consent (applies to limit increases/over-limit).
• Statements: no delay in sending/dispatching/emailing bills; cardholder must get at least one fortnight to pay before interest begins.
• Bureau reporting: documented procedure and prior intimation to cardholder before reporting default to CICs; status must be updated within 30 days of settlement.
• Credit balances: refunds before due date adjusted against payment due; credit balance above 1% of limit or ₹5,000 (whichever lower) must be refunded to bank account within 3 working days unless cardholder consents otherwise.
• Co-branding: card must state it is issued under a co-branding arrangement; issuer name must be clearly shown; co-brand partner must not access transaction information (only encrypted display visible to cardholder).

RuPay credit cards on UPI

• RuPay credit card on UPI launched by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on 21 Sep 2022.
• NPCI (Oct 2022): nil MDR (no interchange, PSP or app charges) for RuPay credit card on UPI transactions ≤ ₹2,000 at small merchants.
• Only RuPay credit cards can be linked on UPI; only P2M (merchant) payments allowed — no P2P, no cash withdrawal; no charge to customer for linking/transactions except surcharge categories like fuel; small offline merchants not charged for ≤₹2,000.
• Limit is lowest of card limit, user-set limit and bank risk limit; UPI daily limit up to ₹1 lakh (₹2 lakh for specified categories), capped by available credit.
• Usage: 750+ million RuPay credit card UPI transactions worth ₹63,825.8 crore in Apr–Oct FY25, roughly double Apr–Oct FY24 (362.8 mn, ₹33,439 crore).
• NPCI (Feb 2025): ~16% of credit card spends are on RuPay, about half of that via UPI.
• Credit line on UPI: RBI on 4 Sep 2023 enabled pre-sanctioned credit lines from scheduled commercial banks to individuals (with prior consent) for UPI payments; terms set by bank board policy.
• Dec 2024: RBI extended pre-sanctioned credit lines on UPI to small finance banks.

Contactless & UPI-enabled cards →

Credit cards and your credit score

• Utilisation: TransUnion CIBIL describes spending around 30% of available limit as healthy; higher utilisation may lower score.
• CIBIL: higher utilisation suggests over-extension; each credit application enquiry may have a marginal impact and many applications in a short period may hurt the score; checking your own score has no impact.
• Bureau update frequency: RBI circular of 8 Aug 2024 requires credit institutions to report credit information to CICs fortnightly (or shorter), effective 1 Jan 2025, submitted within 7 calendar days of the fortnight.
• Free Full Credit Report including credit score, once per calendar year from each CIC (RBI, 1 Sep 2016; effective 1 Jan 2017).
• Card issuers cannot report a new card to CICs before activation; must intimate cardholder before reporting default; update within 30 days of settlement.
• From 1 Apr 2027 (Amendment Directions 2026): card accounts reported ’past due’ only when overdue more than 3 days.

Fraud & your liability

• RBI circular ’Customer Protection – Limiting Liability of Customers in Unauthorised Electronic Banking Transactions’, RBI/2017-18/15, DBR.No.Leg.BC.78/09.07.005/2017-18, dated 6 Jul 2017.
• Zero liability: (a) bank’s contributory fraud/negligence/deficiency, regardless of reporting; (b) third-party breach where customer notifies within 3 working days.
• Limited liability (third-party breach reported in 4–7 working days): lower of transaction value or cap — BSBD ₹5,000; savings/PPI/gift cards/small MSME ₹10,000; credit cards with limit up to ₹5 lakh and large business accounts ₹25,000.
• Reported beyond 7 working days: liability per bank’s board-approved policy.
• Shadow credit of disputed amount within 10 working days of notification; complaint resolved within 90 days; burden of proving customer liability lies on the bank.

Credit card calculators

Interest on unpaid balance

EMI on card purchases

Forex markup cost

Customer care, bill payment & eligibility by bank

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