I am a similar advocate of credit card usage. And the points articulated by you pretty much satisfies my reasons for having 6 credit cards.
The only point I may want to disagree on with you is not using EMI. While I completely get your point. I convert as many of my transactions to No-Cost EMI as possible, despite having the paying capacity right then. It encourages fiscal discipline (similar to aggregating money before purchase, except that product is with you from the first day and best offer), allows you to invest the capital saved into short term funds if markets are down (has been really beneficial at times), and is eventually a zero sum game.
P.S. - Nothing comes without cost. No-Cost EMI nevertheless does run in the back of our mind. So I take care of not it bothering me too much. As the principle, I agree with all your points.
I don't know a lot about credit cards unfortunately 😅. I just use a couple of cards, one that I got along with my salary account, and the other is Amazon Pay ICICI credit card. I use the first one to keep the credit history from the card, and the second one for any online or large spends. It suits my needs, so I'm sticking to them for now.
I encourage you to look at your spending pattern and find a card which suits those needs. If you like to travel, you might want a card that gives you miles. If you tend to shop online, look for a card like Amazon Pay ICICI card or the Flipkart Axis Bank card.
In case I go down the rabbit hole when my spending pattern changes, I'll write another post on it!
I am a frequent user of credit card, and I had my 6th one recently. Further, my craze for keeping so many credit cards are all listed here author. I hence think myself somewhat eligible to answer your query.
I have these credit cards and I have noted the points to consider while opting for same.
1. Amex Gold Rewards Card - The most amazing card as far as rewards point is concerned. It has the best ratio for rewards point redemption. Reward point accumulation too happens pretty swiftly. Extremely beautiful customer service. I have been using the card for 7th year now, and I have not paid a fee for any year so far. And not only that, I have practically earned rewards worth Rs 8000 on an average each year. Now the caveats. Amex cards have hefty annual charges - 4500 Rs for mine. It is waived off on more than 1.5L annual expenses, which isn't extremely tough (I use this card anywhere and everywhere). The other downpoint of Amex is its limited acceptance due to high MDR. However, it is almost accepted everywhere online - bigbasket, flipkart, amazon, Tata1mg, Zomato etc. So thats taken care off.
2. Amazon ICICI CC - Free of cost. Useful as it rewards you 1%/3%/5% depending on the platform. Accepted most places. I use it as my second card.
3. SBI Yatra CC - Rs 500 Annual Charges (waived at 1 lakh spending). But it gives me straight away 1000 off on flights if no other offer is available so its net positive. Moreover, there are offers on SBI CC some or the other time on some or the other e-Commerce.
4. ICICI Coral CC - Free of cost. Gives me 1 lounge access each quarter, other movie offers, and here and there on e-Commerce
5. HDFC Regalia CC - Free of cost. No particular benefit. I have heard HDFC reward system too is impressive. However I am not an active customer. Offers here and there are a plus nonetheless
6. ICICI Rupay Coral - Free of cost - Manages even my UPI payments. Too early to comment over its other benefits.
The offers and rewards have given me way too much compared the hassle of managing so many cards. While it may seem a hassle, if you notice, I don't advocate active use of more than 2 cards, and having free cards as many as you want.
Hi Prashant,
I am a similar advocate of credit card usage. And the points articulated by you pretty much satisfies my reasons for having 6 credit cards.
The only point I may want to disagree on with you is not using EMI. While I completely get your point. I convert as many of my transactions to No-Cost EMI as possible, despite having the paying capacity right then. It encourages fiscal discipline (similar to aggregating money before purchase, except that product is with you from the first day and best offer), allows you to invest the capital saved into short term funds if markets are down (has been really beneficial at times), and is eventually a zero sum game.
P.S. - Nothing comes without cost. No-Cost EMI nevertheless does run in the back of our mind. So I take care of not it bothering me too much. As the principle, I agree with all your points.
Cheers,
Gautam
Can you suggest some good credit cards.
Hi Tarun! Thanks for stopping by.
I don't know a lot about credit cards unfortunately 😅. I just use a couple of cards, one that I got along with my salary account, and the other is Amazon Pay ICICI credit card. I use the first one to keep the credit history from the card, and the second one for any online or large spends. It suits my needs, so I'm sticking to them for now.
I encourage you to look at your spending pattern and find a card which suits those needs. If you like to travel, you might want a card that gives you miles. If you tend to shop online, look for a card like Amazon Pay ICICI card or the Flipkart Axis Bank card.
In case I go down the rabbit hole when my spending pattern changes, I'll write another post on it!
Hi Tarun.
I am a frequent user of credit card, and I had my 6th one recently. Further, my craze for keeping so many credit cards are all listed here author. I hence think myself somewhat eligible to answer your query.
I have these credit cards and I have noted the points to consider while opting for same.
1. Amex Gold Rewards Card - The most amazing card as far as rewards point is concerned. It has the best ratio for rewards point redemption. Reward point accumulation too happens pretty swiftly. Extremely beautiful customer service. I have been using the card for 7th year now, and I have not paid a fee for any year so far. And not only that, I have practically earned rewards worth Rs 8000 on an average each year. Now the caveats. Amex cards have hefty annual charges - 4500 Rs for mine. It is waived off on more than 1.5L annual expenses, which isn't extremely tough (I use this card anywhere and everywhere). The other downpoint of Amex is its limited acceptance due to high MDR. However, it is almost accepted everywhere online - bigbasket, flipkart, amazon, Tata1mg, Zomato etc. So thats taken care off.
2. Amazon ICICI CC - Free of cost. Useful as it rewards you 1%/3%/5% depending on the platform. Accepted most places. I use it as my second card.
3. SBI Yatra CC - Rs 500 Annual Charges (waived at 1 lakh spending). But it gives me straight away 1000 off on flights if no other offer is available so its net positive. Moreover, there are offers on SBI CC some or the other time on some or the other e-Commerce.
4. ICICI Coral CC - Free of cost. Gives me 1 lounge access each quarter, other movie offers, and here and there on e-Commerce
5. HDFC Regalia CC - Free of cost. No particular benefit. I have heard HDFC reward system too is impressive. However I am not an active customer. Offers here and there are a plus nonetheless
6. ICICI Rupay Coral - Free of cost - Manages even my UPI payments. Too early to comment over its other benefits.
The offers and rewards have given me way too much compared the hassle of managing so many cards. While it may seem a hassle, if you notice, I don't advocate active use of more than 2 cards, and having free cards as many as you want.
Hope it helps.
- Gautam