CardTrail

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Best Credit Card for CRED in India (2026)

Quick answer:

Axis ACE Credit Card gives you up to 5% back on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED — the highest of any card we track. SBM OneCard Credit Card is the best free alternative.

Updated April 2026·10 cards compared·No affiliate commissions

Top 10 Cards for CRED

1

Axis ACE Credit Card

Axis

Up to 5% on bill payments

Reward rateUp to 5%
Annual fee₹499
Score8.1/10
2

DBS Spark20 Credit Card

DBS

Up to 20% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 20%
Annual fee₹1,499
Score8.2/10
3

Chennai Super Kings ICICI Bank Credit Card

ICICI

Up to 10% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual fee₹500
Score8.5/10
4

HSBC Cashback Credit Card

HSBC

Up to 10% on cashback category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual fee₹999
Score8.2/10
5

SimplyCLICK Advantage SBI Card

SBI

Up to 10% on cashback category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual fee₹499
Score7.9/10
6

SBM OneCard Credit Card

SBM Bank

Up to 10% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual feeFREE
Score7.8/10
7

YES BANK POP-CLUB Credit Card

YES Bank

Up to 10% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual feeFREE
Score7.8/10
8

OneCard Metal Credit Card

OneCard

Up to 10% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 10%
Annual feeFREE
Score7.7/10
9

Titan SBI Credit Card

SBI

Up to 7.5% on cashback category

Reward rateUp to 7.5%
Annual fee₹2,999
Score8.8/10
10

Uni Card

Uni

Up to 7% on rewards category

Reward rateUp to 7%
Annual feeFREE
Score7.5/10

How We Ranked These

We ranked all 239 credit cards in our database against CRED using three tiers of relevance:

  1. Direct match — cards specifically designed for or partnered with CRED (co-branded cards, direct accelerated rewards)
  2. Category match — cards that earn accelerated rewards on the spending category that CRED falls under
  3. Broad match — cards that earn elevated rewards on related or overlapping categories

Within each tier, cards are sorted by effective reward rate (highest first), then by CardTrail Score as a tiebreaker. Every number on this page comes from our database — nothing is fabricated.

Tips to Maximise Rewards on CRED

→

Paying credit card bills via CRED doesn't earn rewards — but CRED gives its own coins

→

CRED Rent Pay charges convenience fees that may exceed card rewards

→

CRED's value is in bill tracking and offers, not credit card rewards per se

Free vs Paid: Is the Annual Fee Worth It?

Best Free Card

SBM OneCard Credit Card

SBM Bank · ₹0 annual fee

Up to 10% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

Score: 7.8/10

Best Overall

Axis ACE Credit Card

Axis · ₹499 annual fee

Up to 5% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

Score: 8.1/10

Cards to Avoid for CRED

These are popular, well-rated cards that earn only their base reward rate on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED. If you carry one of these, use a different card for CRED purchases.

IDFC FIRST Diamond Reserve Credit Card

IDFC FIRST · Score: 9/10 — but only 0.5% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

American Express Platinum Charge Card

American Express · Score: 8.7/10 — but only 1.25% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

IndusInd Tiger Credit Card

IndusInd · Score: 8.7/10 — but only 1.2% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

HDFC Swiggy Credit Card

HDFC · Score: 8.7/10 — but only 1% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

IDFC FIRST Select Credit Card

IDFC FIRST · Score: 8.7/10 — but only 0.75% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED

These are great cards for other spending categories — just not for credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED. Use the top-ranked card above instead.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which credit card gives the highest cashback on CRED?
Axis ACE Credit Card from Axis gives up to 5% back on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED. It has a CardTrail Score of 8.1/10 with an annual fee of ₹499.
Is there a no-annual-fee credit card good for CRED?
Yes — SBM OneCard Credit Card is a free card (₹0 annual fee) that earns up to 10% on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED. CardTrail Score: 7.8/10.
How do credit card rewards work on CRED?
Credit cards earn rewards based on the Merchant Category Code (MCC) of the transaction. CRED transactions are assigned an MCC by the payment network, and cards with accelerated rewards on that MCC earn higher cashback or points.
Which popular credit cards should I avoid using for CRED?
Cards like IDFC FIRST Diamond Reserve Credit Card, American Express Platinum Charge Card, IndusInd Tiger Credit Card have high overall scores but earn only their base rate (0.5% or less) on credit card bill payments and rewards via CRED. Use a category-matched card instead.

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