The AU Bank Altura credit card is an entry-level offering that offers up to 2% cashback on spending. It also has a milestone benefit of getting 0.5% extra cashback on meeting target spending in a statement cycle. The other benefits of the Altura credit card include railway lounge access and a fuel surcharge waiver. Here is a review of the AU Bank Altura credit card and its rewards & benefits.
Overview
| Segment | Entry-Level |
| Type | Cashback |
| Variant | Visa Platinum |
| Annual Fee | Rs 199+GST or LTF |
| Cashback | 1% to 2.5% |
Fees and Charges
AU Bank Altura Credit Card Lifetime Free (LTF) Offer
| Joining Fee | Rs 199+GST or LTF |
| Joining Fee Waiver | Spend Rs 10000 within 90 days |
| Welcome Benefit | Spend Rs 40,000 in the membership year |
| Annual Fee | Rs 199+GST or LTF |
| Annual Fee Waiver | Spend Rs 40,000 in membership year |
Rewards
- Grocery stores, Departmental stores and Utility Bills: 2% Cashback up to Rs 50 per statement cycle
- All other spend: 1% Cashback up to Rs 50 per statement cycle
- Fuel, Rent, and Wallet: No cashback
With this cap, Altura is good only if you have low spends.
- Spend Rs 2500 to hit the maximum cap of 2% cashback for Grocery stores, Departmental stores and Utility Bills
- Spend Rs 5000 in other categories to hit the maximum cap of 1% cashback
We can earn a maximum of just Rs 100 cashback every month on transactions. This is extremely low and will not be of any use to anyone. We have many existing cashback credit cards that offer better value for our spending.
Milestone Rewards
- An additional cashback of INR 50 on completing a minimum of Rs 10,000 retail spends in every statement cycle
This adds an extra 0.5% to the cashback but again a very low cap.
Complimentary Airport and Railway Lounge Access
- Railway Lounges in India: 2 complimentary visits/quarter at railway stations in New Delhi, Kolkata (Sealdah), Jaipur, Ahmedabad, and Agra
The complimentary lounge visits are also applicable to add-on credit card holders.
Other Benefits and Charges
- Fuel Surcharge Waiver: 1% for transactions between Rs 400 to Rs 5000. Max Rs 100 per statement month.
- Forex Markup: 3.49%+GST ~4.12%
With a forex markup of 4.12%, it is better to stay away from using Altura for any kind of foreign transactions.
Should you get the AU Altura credit card?
We have many great cashback credit cards in India now. The best all-rounder is Axis Ace or Flipkart Axis credit cards. For online transactions, we have got SBI Cashback. With these three cards, it is easy to earn cashback of 1.5% to 5% on all your transactions. All this with either unlimited cashback or a very high cap in the case of SBI Cashback.
The other plus point of the alternative cashback credit cards Axis Ace and Flipkart Axis credit cards is that they also offer complimentary airport lounge access.
For a fee of Rs 199 plus GST, the AU Bank Altura is best to be avoided. You can look at the new LTF AU Xcite series of cards instead.
