Best Travel Credit Cards
Quick answer. As of October 2026, the top 3 on Saifu's best travel credit cards list are HSBC TravelOne (₹4,999 a year), IndiGo SBI Card ELITE (₹4,999 a year), Axis Bank Atlas (₹5,000 a year), ranked from 25 travel cards on what they return for ₹1,00,000 a month spread like a typical frequent traveller.
| # | Card | Value a year | Annual fee | Fee waiver | Lounges a year | Forex | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HSBC TravelOneHSBC India | ₹34,800 | ₹4,999 | Waived on ₹8,00,000 spend a year | 10 | 3.5% | Apply |
| 2 | IndiGo SBI Card ELITESBI Card | ₹26,321 | ₹4,999 | No spend waiver | 14 | 1.99% | Bank page |
| 3 | Axis Bank AtlasAxis Bank | ₹25,120 | ₹5,000 | No spend waiver | 12 | 3.5% | Apply |
| 4 | Scapia Axis BankAxis Bank | ₹21,840 | Free | No fee to waive | Unlimited | 0% | Apply |
| 5 | Axis Bank HorizonAxis Bank | ₹21,480 | ₹3,000 | No spend waiver | 32 | 3.5% | Apply |
| 6 | Kotak Air+Kotak Mahindra Bank | ₹18,240 | ₹3,000 | Waived on ₹4,00,000 spend a year | 6 | 2% | Apply |
| 7 | Kotak Air+ PrimeKotak Mahindra Bank | ₹18,240 | ₹3,000 | Waived on ₹4,00,000 spend a year | 6 | 2% | Bank page |
| 8 | SpiceJet Axis Bank Voyage BlackAxis Bank | ₹16,720 | ₹2,000 | No spend waiver | 8 | 3.5% | Apply |
| 9 | IndiGo SBI CardSBI Card | ₹15,301 | ₹1,499 | No spend waiver | 4 | 3.5% | Bank page |
| 10 | MakeMyTrip ICICI BankICICI Bank | ₹14,400 | ₹999 | Waived on ₹3,00,000 spend a year | 9 | 0.99% | Bank page |
| 11 | IRCTC HDFC BankHDFC Bank | ₹12,360 | ₹500 | Waived on ₹1,50,000 spend a year | None | 3.5% | Apply |
| 12 | Standard Chartered EaseMyTripStandard Chartered Bank India | ₹11,280 | ₹350 | Waived on ₹50,000 spend a year | 2 | 3.5% | Bank page |
| 13 | Kotak AirKotak Mahindra Bank | ₹10,920 | ₹999 | Waived on ₹2,50,000 spend a year | 4 | 3.5% | Apply |
| 14 | IRCTC SBI Platinum CardSBI Card | ₹9,388 | ₹500 | No spend waiver | None | 3.5% | Apply |
| 15 | SpiceJet Axis Bank VoyageAxis Bank | ₹8,610 | ₹750 | No spend waiver | 4 | 3.5% | Apply |
Value a year: rewards on ₹1,00,000 a month spread like a typical frequent traveller, minus the annual fee. Lounge visits are domestic plus international free visits a year as the bank lists them; many banks now ask for a minimum spend first. Forex markup is before GST.
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Questions
Which is the best travel credit card in India?
For ₹1,00,000 a month spread like a typical frequent traveller, HSBC TravelOne returns the most on Saifu's numbers: about ₹34,800 a year after its annual fee. The best card for you depends on where you spend; the card finder ranks cards on your own spends.
How is this list ranked?
Saifu runs each card's reward rules, monthly caps and exclusions from its bank's terms on a sample month of spends, scales it to a year and subtracts the annual fee. No bank pays to be listed or to rank higher.
Your spends are different? Rank cards on your own spends or see the best card for each app.
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