There are plenty of lifetime free credit cards available in the market and it is very confusing and tiresome to get that perfect card that fits your requirement.
Here in this post we are sharing some hand picked set of some best lifetime free credit cards in India in 2022 along with their main benefits, reward systems and eligibility at one place so that you can select the best one out of them without wasting time and effort to search all around.
Contents
What is a lifetime free credit card?
Normal credit cards from banks have a joining fee and an annual renewal charge. Joining fees you have to pay while getting the card for the first time. The annual charge you have to pay every year to keep the card active and enjoy its benefits.
In a lifetime free credit card, you do not need to pay any joining or annual fees. You just have to pay youe bill amount which depends on your spending and interests (if applicable). You do not have to pay anything while getting the card. Also you do not need to pay any annual renewal charges to keep the card active.
Top lifetime free credit cards in 2022 (India)
1. Amazon Pay ICICI bank credit card
This has always been the favourite of all since its starting. It is a co-branded credit card from ICICI Bank and Amazon India. It is a complete lifetime free VISA credit card, with exciting cashback structure.
You should get this card right now, if you shop a lot in Amazon.
Cashback/Discount
| Spends On | Cashback for Prime members | Cashback for Non-Prime members |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Shopping | 5% | 3% |
| Recharges, Flight booking, Bill Payments, etc on Amazon Pay (Also Insurance premium payment) | 2% | 2% |
| All other spends (online and offline) | 1% | 1% |
- Cashback will be credited in form of amazon pay balance on the billing date.
- Cashback is unlimited without any capping.
- No expiry date on the rewards earned using this card.
- You get a waiver of 1% on fuel surcharge payments each time you refuel.
- No cost EMIs are provided to users who purchase items on Amazon that are worth more than Rs. 3,000. No cost EMIs come with a tenure of only 3 and 6 months
- Minimum of 15% discount on your dining bill at participating restaurants
Lounge Access
- No Lounge access on this card.
Welcome Benefit
- Welcome offer differs on this card, you will earn cashback offers. Check amazon while applying.
Fees and Charges
- No Joining/Renewal Membership Fee. Complete lifetime free credit card.
Eligibility Criteria
| Criteria | Details |
|---|---|
| Age | 18 to 60 years |
| Occupation | Offered to both Salaried and Self-employed Applicants |
| Minimum Income Required | Rs. 25,000 for ICICI Customers Rs. 35,000 for other applicants |
2. IDFC First Millennia credit card
This is one of the coolest looking credit card. Specially good for youths. This has two variant in looks, one for male and another one for female.
source: idfcfirstbank.com
IDFC first bank all are lifetime free credit cards. You can get whichever you want and eligible for. We are only keeping the Millennia card over here as this has the minimum eligibility criteria.
The unique feature of this credit cards are:
- Very low interest rate compared to other bank credit cards.
- They offer you 2.5% effective cashback on all your spends on your birthday every year.
- They give you 2.5% effective cashback on all your spends above 20K every month.
Remember all the cards of IDFC bank are lifetime free cards and has great offers and cashback structures. Do read our dedicated blog post on the Comparison of the different IDFC First bank credit cards.
Cashback/Discount
| Spends | Reward Points | Effective Cashback % |
|---|---|---|
| Online spends 20,000 per month | 6X | 1.5% |
| Offline spends 20,000 per month | 3X | 0.75% |
| All other spends (online and offline) above 20,000 per month or if its your birthday. | 10X | 2.5% |
Reward program not applicable on Fuel, Insurance, EMI transactions & Cash withdrawals
- Unlimited Reward points without expiry
- Use Reward points to instantly pay for online or in-store purchases
- 25% discount on movie tickets up to ₹ 100 (valid once per month)
- Complimentary Roadside Assistance worth ₹ 1,399.
- Fuel surcharge waiver of 1%, at all fuel stations across India, up to ₹ 200/month
Lounge Access
- 4 complimentary Railway lounge access per quarter
Welcome Benefit
- Welcome voucher worth ₹ 500 on spending ₹ 15,000 or more within 90 days of card issuance
- 5% cashback on the transaction value for your first EMI transaction within the first 90 days of card issuance (no upper limit on cashback amount)
Fees and Charges
- Its is a complete lifetime free credit card without any joining or annual fees.
Eligibility Criteria
| Criteria | Details |
|---|---|
| Age | Above 21 years |
| Occupation | Offered to both Salaried and Self-employed Applicants |
| Minimum Income Required | Rs. 25,000 for the millennia version |
| Citizenship | Applicant must qualify as an Indian resident and have a current and permanent residential address within India |
3. Flipkart Axis Bank credit card (Limited time offer on Axis Bank website)
This is a co-branded credit card from Axis Bank and Flipkart. This card is chargeable with Rs 500 joining and annual fees.
But now there is an ongoing offer in Axis bank, where you can get this card for lifetime free. This is a limited period offer which is active for limited period in Axis Bank website. You may not get this for free if you apply through Flipkart app.
Cashback/Discount
| Spends On | Cashback |
|---|---|
| Flipkart, Myntra | 5% |
| Preferred Merchants (Cleartrip, Cure.fit, PVR, Uber, Swiggy, 1mg, Tata Sky) | 4% |
| All other spends (online and offline) | 1.5% |
- Cashback will be credited directly to you card on the next month billing date.
- Cashback is unlimited without any capping.
- No expiry date on the rewards earned using this card.
- You get a waiver of 1% on fuel surcharge payments each time you refuel above Rs. 400
- Exciting EMI offers are provided in Flipkart.
- 20% discount on participating restaurants.
Lounge Access
- 4 complementary lounge access to selected airports in India per year.
Welcome Benefit
- Rs. 500 worth Flipkart vouchers on your first transaction with your Flipkart Axis Bank credit card.
- 15% cashback up to Rs. 500 on your first transaction on Myntra using Flipkart Axis Bank credit card.
- Welcome benefits are applicable only if you pay the joining fees.
Fees and Charges
- 500 Joining fees and 500 annual fees from 2nd year onwards.
- (Annual fee waived off on annual spends greater than Rs. 2,00,000.)
Eligibility Criteria
| Criteria | Details |
|---|---|
| Age | 18 to 70 years |
| Occupation | Offered to both Salaried and Self-employed Applicants |
| Minimum Income Required | Rs. 15,000 for salaried person Rs. 30,000 for businessman |
| Citizenship | The individual should either be a Resident of India or a Non-Resident Indian |
4. HDFC Millennia credit card (Not lifetime free credit card by default, but can be made)
This credit card is originally NOT a lifetime free credit card. It has a annual and joining charges of Rs 1000 each. But this card can be easily converted to lifetime free card by spending Rs 50,000 in first 90 days after you get the card. (This is a limited time offer, so please confirm from bank before applying for this card.)
source: hdfcbank.com
This card’s cashback structure has been changed since October 2021. This made the card one of the best cashback cards. NOTE that if you have already received the card before October 2021, then you will be entitled to the old cashback structure only.
Cashback/Discount
| Spends on | CashBack | Maximum CashBack / CashPoints per Cycle |
|---|---|---|
| CashBack on Amazon, BookMyShow, Cult.fit, Flipkart, Myntra, Sony LIV, Swiggy, Tata CLiQ, Uber & Zomato* | 5% | 1000 |
| Other Spends** (except Fuel) | 1% | 1000 |
through the merchants will be considered under 1% CashBack category.
** EMI and Wallet, Gift or Prepaid Card loads & Voucher Purchase transactions will be considered in
other spends category.
- ₹1000 worth gift vouchers on spends of ₹1,00,000 and above in each calendar quarter.
- Upto 20% discount on partner restaurants via Dineout.
Lounge Access
- 8 Complimentary Domestic Lounge Access per calendar year (2 in a quarter. ₹2 or ₹25 (depending upon VISA/RuPay/Diners or MasterCard) will be charged to the Credit Card for the Lounge Access )
Welcome Benefit
- 1000 Cash Points (applicable only on payment of membership fee)
Fees and Charges
- Joining/Renewal Membership Fee – ₹1,000/- + Applicable Taxes
- Spend ₹1,00,000 or more in a year, before your Credit Card renewal date and get your renewal fee waived off .
- Spend Rs 50,000 in first 90 days of card issuance to make the it a lifetime free credit card. (This offer is not permanent, so please confirm from bank before applying).
Eligibility Criteria
| For Salaried | Indian national Age: Min 21 yrs & Max 40 Yrs, Income: Gross Monthly Income> ₹35,000 |
| For Self Employed | Indian national Age: Min 21 yrs & Max 40 Yrs, Income: ITR > ₹6.0 Lakhs per annum |
Conclusion
Select the credit card according to your spending structure, which will give you the highest amount of rewards. You can always take multiple free cards to meet all your expense structure as these are all free cards and there is no hassle even if you do not use them.
All the above credit cards and the best till now in 2022. There are always new credit cards coming up every month from banks with exciting offers. We will keep this post updated and as soon as something comes out which can take a place in this list. Keep an eye on our blog for more information of banks and cards like this.
If you have any questions please let me know in the comment section below and I will try to answer them. Do also let us know which credit card you are selecting out of these?
An IT guy who keeps interest in blogging. Started blogging since 2017. He is the owner of the blog wheretosave.in and knowledgebear.com. A family man who loves Travelling, Gadgets and FOOD.
