Vistara Airlines is undoubtedly India’s best airline. It has been ranked 20th on the list of the World’s Top 100 airlines way ahead of Indigo which ranked 45th. There are many reasons why Vistara is so popular among travellers. The airline aspires to be an industry first and leader in terms of its offering. One such offering is the Co-Branded credit cards of Vistara Airlines which are ahead of any other airline’s credit cards in India.
Here is the detailed analysis of Vistara Airlines Credit Cards.
List of Vistara Credit Cards with Cabin and Tier Offered
There is a total of 6 Vistara Co-Branded credit cards of which three are issued by Axis Bank Credit Cards, two by SBI Credit Cards, and one by IndusInd Bank.
Here is the complete list of Vistara Credit Cards with the variant, cabin offered and tier offered:
| Card Name | Variant | Cabin | Tier |
| Axis Vistara Card | Basic | Economy | CV Base |
| Club Vistara SBI Card | Basic | Economy | CV Base |
| Axis Vistara Signature Card | Premium | Premium Economy | CV Silver |
| Club Vistara SBI Card PRIME | Premium | Premium Economy | CV Silver |
| Axis Vistara Infinite Card | Super-Premium | Business Class | CV Gold |
| Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card | Super-Premium | Business Class | CV Gold |
Axis Vistara Card: Basics and Analysis
The Axis Vistara Card is the basic variant of Vistara Credit Cards. Here are the basics and analysis of it.
Axis Vistara Card: Basics
Here are the details of Axis Vistara Cards:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 1500 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 1500 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Complimentary Economy Ticket |
| Welcome | CV Base Membership (Not a Benefit) |
| Welcome Benefit-3 | 1000 CV Point on Spent of Rs. 50000 |
| Annual Benefit | Complimentary Economy Ticket |
| CV Points Earning | 2 CV Points on every Rs. 200 Spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | 2 Per Quarter |
Milestone Benefits on Axis Vistara Card
| Amount Spent in a Year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 125000 | 1 Economy Class ticket |
| Rs. 250000 | 1 Economy Class ticket |
| Rs. 600000 | 1 Economy Class ticket |
Axis Vistara Card: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 4000
A Free Air Ticket for Economy class for paying just Rs. 1500 as a joining fee is a great deal. Since even the economy ticket on Vistara Airlines would cost more than Rs. 1500. If used for a long journey, then the value of an air ticket can be multifold. In the first year, you also get 1000 CV Points on spending Rs. 50000 in 90 days however this benefit is not recurring so not included in our analysis.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 8000
Spending Rs. 600000 can be challenging for someone who is holding a basic version of a Vistara Credit Card so at best you can easily achieve milestone spending of Rs. 250000 which will give you two economy air tickets.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 2000
Since you get 2 CV Points for every Rs. 200 spent you will receive 2500 CV Points on spending Rs. 250000. These CV Points can be worth Rs. 2000.
Lounge Access Benefit is not included since this is not the primary benefit for a cardholder.
Axis Vistara Card Final Result
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 250000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 1770 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 4000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 8000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year (Milestone Linked) | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 2500 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 14500 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 12700 |
| Reward Rate | 5.08% |
Note: On Every reward ticket or free air ticket any taxes or charges other than the basic fare has to be borne by the ticket holder. This practice is prominent across the world. But since, you anyway would pay for such charges while paying for a ticket so these are not included in our analysis. Also, the basic fare of an air ticket can differ based on distance so it is better to use air tickets for long journeys.
The reward rate of 5.08% on a spend of Rs. 250000 is really good for a primary card. But this reward rate will decrease to 2.7% if you spend Rs. 6 lacs in a year which is not so great. However, up to Rs. 2.5 lacs this card beats most cashback credit cards.
We now move to premium economy and CV Silver variant Vistara credit cards.
Club Vistara SBI Card: Basics and Analysis
The Club Vistara SBI Card is the basic version of Vistara Credit Cards issued by SBI Credit Cards. Here are the basics and analysis of it.
Club Vistara SBI Card: Basics
Here are the details of Club Vistara SBI Cards:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 1499 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 1499 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Complimentary Economy Ticket |
| CV Base Membership | |
| Welcome Benefit-3 | 1000 CV Point on Spent of Rs. 50000 |
| Annual Benefit | Complimentary Economy Ticket |
| CV Points Earning | 3 CV Points on every Rs. 200 Spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | 1 Per Quarter |
Milestone Benefits on Club Vistara SBI Card
| Amount Spent in a Year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 125000 | 1 Economy Class ticket |
| Rs. 250000 | 1 Economy Class ticket |
| Rs. 500000 | 1 Economy Class ticket and Hotel Gift Voucher Worth Rs. 5000 |
Club Vistara SBI Card: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 4000
Similar to the Axis Vistara Card the worth of welcome benefits is the same. So there is no difference here between the base variant of cards.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 8000
The milestone benefit at the higher end is good on Club Vistara SBI Card. However, spending Rs. 5 lacs in a year can be a task. So, normally, two milestone benefits can be easily achieved.
However, on spending Rs. 5 lacs in a year you get an additional ticket worth Rs.5000 and a hotel voucher worth Rs. 5000 from Yatra. This is a better milestone benefit than the Axis Vistara Card. Since, you not only have to spend Rs. 1 lac less but you also get a hotel voucher, giving you complete travel savings.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 2500
Another difference from Axis Vistara Card is that you get 3 CV Points for every Rs. 200 spent as against 2 CV points. So, you receive 3000 CV Points on spending Rs. 250000. These CV Points can be worth Rs. 2500.
Club Vistara SBI Card Final Result
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 250000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 1770 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 4000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 8000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 3000 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 15000 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 13200 |
| Reward Rate | 5.28% |
The reward rate of 5.28% on a spend of Rs. 250000 is really good for a basic card. The reward rate is further increased to 5.34% if you spend Rs. 5 lacs in a year however it is similar to the reward rate on spend of Rs. 2.5 lacs.
We now move to premium variants of Vistara Credit Cards.
Axis Signature Vistara Card: Basics and Analysis
The Axis Signature Vistara Card is a premium variant of Vistara Credit Cards. This card offers benefits in premium economy cabin-class and tier benefits of CV Silver Here are the basics and analysis.
Axis Vistara Signature Card: Basics
Here are the details of the Axis Vistara Signature Card:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 3000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 3000 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Premium Economy Ticket |
| Welcome Benefit-2 | CV Silver Tier |
| Welcome Benefit-3 | 3000 CV Point on Spent of Rs.75000 |
| Annual Benefit | Premium Economy Ticket |
| CV Points Earning | 4 CV Points on every Rs. 200 Spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | 2 Per Quarter |
Milestone Benefits on Axis Vistara Signature Card
| Amount spent in a year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 75000 | 3,000 Bonus CV Points |
| Rs. 150000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 300000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 450000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 900000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
Axis Vistara Signature Card: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 7000
The Premium Economy ticket can be worth Rs. 7000 on a long enough flight. By paying fees of Rs. 3000 and taxes getting an Rs. 7000 premium economy ticket is a great deal on a standalone basis.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 14000
The milestones have increased with the upgrade of the basic to the premium variant card. Now milestones up to Rs. 900000 are available. In basic variant cards the milestone was only available up to Rs. 600000. However, Rs. 300000 spent is easily achievable which gets you two premium economy tickets worth Rs. 14000.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 6000
The CV Points earnings have been increased from the basic variant card. With the Axis Vistara Signature Card, you get 4 CV Points on spent of Rs.200 which is great. On Spent of Rs. 3 lacs, you can easily get 6000 CV worth Rs. 6000, good enough for travel from Delhi to Goa in an economy cabin-class.
CV Silver Benefit:
The benefit is only in terms of priority check-in at the Premium Economy counter even if you are flying economy class. Check here for Tier wise benefits of Club Vistara here.
Axis Vistara Signature Card Final Result
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 300000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 3540 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 7000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 14000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 6000 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 27000 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 23460 |
| Reward Rate | 7.82% |
The reward rate of 7.82% on a spend of Rs. 300000 is amazing. Even at top most Milestone of Rs. 9 lacs the reward rate comes to 5.5% which is good however on the spending of Rs. 9 lacs in a year there are better alternatives.
Club Vistara SBI Card Prime: Basics and Analysis
The Club Vistara SBI Card Card Prime is a premium variant of the Club Vistara Card. This card offers benefits in premium economy cabin-class and tier benefits of CV Silver Here are the basics and analysis.
Club Vistara SBI Card Prime: Basics
Here are the details of the Axis Vistara Signature Card:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 2999 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 2999 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Premium Economy Ticket |
| Welcome Benefit-2 | CV Silver Tier |
| Welcome Benefit-3 | 3000 CV Point on Spent of Rs.75000 |
| Annual Benefit | Premium Economy Ticket |
| CV Points Earning | 4 CV Points on every Rs. 200 Spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | 2 Per Quarter |
The regular benefits are similar to that of the Axis Vistara Signature Card.
Milestone Benefits on Axis Vistara Signature Card
| Amount spent in a year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 75000 | 3,000 Bonus CV Points |
| Rs. 150000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 300000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 450000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket |
| Rs. 800000 | 1 Premium Economy ticket And Hotel Gift Card Voucher Worth Rs. 10000 |
Club Vistara SBI Card Prime: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 7000
The benefit is based on premium economy ticket base fare.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 14000
The only change here from Axis Vistara Signature Card is that the top-most milestone benefit is Rs. 8 lacs with an additional Hotel Gift Voucher worth Rs. 10000. That is just amazing. If you have the option to choose between Axis Vistara Signature Card and Club Vistara SBI card Prime, The SBI Card is way ahead if you can spend Rs. 8 lacs in a year.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 6000
The CV Points earnings have been increased from the basic variant card. With the Axis Vistara Signature Card, you get 4 CV Points on spent of Rs.200 which is great. On Spent of Rs. 3 lacs, you can easily get 6000 CV worth Rs. 6000, good enough for travel from Delhi to Goa in an economy cabin-class.
CV Silver Benefit:
The benefit is only in terms of priority check-in at the Premium Economy counter even if you are flying economy class. Check here for Tier wise benefits of Club Vistara here.
Club Vistara SBI Card Prime Final Result
The final result is similar to Axis Vistara Signature Card. However, if you spend INR 8 lacs in a year then the Club Vistara SBI Card Prime will be more beneficial.
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 300000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 3540 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 7000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 14000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 6000 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 27000 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 23460 |
| Reward Rate | 7.82% |
The reward rate of 7.82% on a spend of Rs. 300000 is amazing. But if you can achieve higher milestones even then the reward rate remains above 7% which is 30% higher than the Axis Vistara Signature Card.
Now we move to the Business Class and CV Gold bases variant of Vistara Credit Cards.
Axis Vistara Infinite Cards: Basics and Analysis
The super-premium variant of the Vistara Credit Card is Axis Vistara Infinite. If you are looking for business class travel and amazing CV Tier benefits with CV Gold then you should look at this card.
Axis Vistara Infinite Card: Basics
Here are the details of the Axis Vistara Infinite Card:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 10000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 10000 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Business Class Ticket |
| Welcome Benefit-2 | CV Gold Tier |
| Welcome Benefit-3 | 10000 CV Point on Spent of Rs.100000 |
| Annual Benefit | Business Class Ticket |
| CV Points Earning | 6 CV Points on every Rs. 200 Spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | With CV Gold Tier |
Milestone Benefits on Axis Vistara Infinite Card
| Amount spent in a year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 100000 | 3,000 Bonus CV Points |
| Rs. 250000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 500000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 750000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 1200000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
Axis Vistara Infinite Card: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 20000
The benefit is based on Business class ticket base fare.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 40000
Out of the milestones, Rs. 5 lacs is the most reasonable someone can achieve. However, some may even reach Rs. 7.5 lacs. So we have considered based on Rs. 5 lacs spending you can get two business class ticket worth Rs. 20000.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 15000
The biggest advantage of the Vistara Infinite Card is that you receive 6 CV Points on every Rs. 200 spent. On a Spend of Rs. 5 lacs in a year, you will receive 15000 CV Points which are good enough for two economy class tickets or one premium economy class ticket.
CV Gold Benefit:
Below are the CV Gold Benefits:
- Priority Aiport Check-in at the Business Class counter even if you travel Economy or Premium Economy
- Priority Baggage Handing
- No fees for rescheduling flights
- Lounge Access
- Additional Privileges with Singapore Airlines
Axis Vistara Infinite Card Final Results
Axis Vistara Infinite card doesn’t disappoint. It is truly a premium airline card that can fulfil the dream of a luxurious trip in India. Here is the summary
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 500000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 11800 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 20000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 40000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 15000 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 75000 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 63200 |
| Reward Rate | 12.64% |
The reward rate of 12.64% on a spend of Rs. 500000 is unheard off. However, the benefit is limited to Vistara only. Even at the topmost milestone of Rs. 12 lacs reward rate is 10% which is great. If you are looking for an airline card Vistara Credit Cards are undeniably better than other Airlines Cards far better than Indigo.
Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card: Basics and Analysis
The IndusInd Bank offers only Vistara Co-Branded Credit Cards. It is a super premium card from IndusInd. However, this card is the most different from all the Vistara cards and tries to be a differentiator. Let’s find out if it succeeds.
Here are the details
Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card: Basics
Here are the details of the Card:
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Joining Fees | Rs. 40000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 10000 |
| Welcome Benefit-1 | Business Class Ticket |
| Welcome Benefit-2 | CV Gold Tier |
| Welcome Benefit-3 (Any One Voucher) | 1 Oberoi Hotel & Resorts Gift Voucher or Luxe Gift Card worth INR 25,000 or Vouchagram Gift Vouchers worth INR 25,000 |
| Annual Benefit | Business Class Ticket |
| CV Points Earning: | |
| on Vistara Spends | 8 CV Points for every INR 200 spent |
| on Hotels/Airline/Travel spends | 6 CV Points for every INR 200 spent |
| on Utility, Insurance, Government Payment, Fuel | 1 CV Point for every INR 200 spent |
| on all other spends | 2 CV Points for every INR 200 spent |
| Additional Benefits | Milestone Linked Benefits |
| Lounge Benefit (Domestic) | 1 Per Quarter |
| Lounge Benefit (International) | 4 Per Quarter |
| Other Benefits | Move Ticket Worth Rs. 1400 Per Month and Zero Foreign Currency Mark-up |
On paper, Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card looks solid. However, that is not the case. Firstly, the CV Gold membership is only available in the first tier and thereafter you have to fulfill tier criteria to remain in the CV Gold tier otherwise you will be downgraded to CV Silver. The Annual Fee of Rs. 10000 for a CV Silver is not worth it. However, you will receive business class tickets as usual on payment of annual fees and milestone benefits.
Milestone Benefits on Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card
| Amount spent in a year | Milestone Benefit |
| Rs. 300000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 650000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 900000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 1200000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
| Rs. 1500000 | 1 Business Class Ticket |
Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit
Card: Analysis
Welcome/Annual Benefits Analysis: Worth Rs. 65000/Rs. 20000
The only thing that excites here is the welcome benefit but for that, you pay hefty Joining fees of Rs. 40000+ taxes. However, 1 Oberoi Hotels & Resorts voucher can save you even more than Rs. 50000. That can further increase the welcome benefit. Since you will get only a business class ticket next year for payment of annual fees the benefit over the long term would be Rs. 20000 per year.
Milestone Benefit Analysis: Worth Rs. 40000
You need to shell out Rs. 6 lacs for getting two business class tickets. So you need to spend Rs. 1 lac more than the Axis Vistara Infinite Card to get two business class tickets which will reduce the reward rate.
Regular CV Points Earning: Worth Rs. 6000
Since the default CV Points earning is 2 per Rs. 200 the CV Points earning will be low.
Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Credit Card Final Result
The result is disappointing. Here is the Result
| Particulars | Remarks |
| Amount Spent | Rs. 600000 |
| Annual Fees | Rs. 11800 |
| Annual Benefit | Rs. 20000 |
| Milestone Benefit | Rs. 40000 |
| Number of Air Tickets in a Year | 3 |
| CV Points Benefit | Rs. 6000 |
| Total Benefit | Rs. 66000 |
| Net Benefit | Rs. 54200 |
| Reward Rate | 9.03% |
The reward rate of 9.03% on a spend of Rs. 600000 is bad. A Premium Travel card should be able to provide a decent return. But it fails to do so. Even the downgrade of CV Tier is not what cardholders gonna like. So, overall it is not a great Vistara Card.
Final Results
| Card | Cabin | Tier | Reward Rate |
| Axis Vistara Card | Economy | CV Base | 5.08% |
| Club Vistara SBI Card | Economy | CV Base | 5.28% |
| Axis Vistara Signature Card | Premium Economy | CV Silver | 7.82% |
| Club Vistara SBI Card PRIME | Premium Economy | CV Sliver | 7.82% |
| Axis Vistara Infinite Card | Business Class | CV Gold | 12.64% |
| Club Vistara IndusInd Bank Explorer Credit Card | Business Class | CV Gold/Silver | 9.03% |
Only the Axis Bank Vistara Credit Cards and SBI Vistara Credit Cards are worth holding. IndusInd bank Vistara credit card is not that great. But if you truly want to explore Vistara Airline’s tiers and cabin class then having an Axis Bank-based Vistara credit card is better. Since Axis Bank offers all three variants of Vistara credit cards.
Related: Best Ways to Earn CV Points of Vistara Airlines & Best ways to redeem Club Vistara Points.
Bottomline
Vistara Credit Cards are true Airline Credit cards that India needs. All airline credit cards should have a milestone benefit otherwise it is not going to be exciting for normal travelers to step out and spend using a low-reward earning card. The Vistara co-branded credit cards are undoubtedly India’s best Airline credit cards. If you met the milestones and wish to hold a CV Gold membership then having these cards are beneficial.
