HDFC Bank launched the Millennia range of credit and debit cards in 2019. Unlike Regalia which offers reward points, Millennia is a cashback credit card. I see it more as an upgrade for the entry-level MoneyBack credit card. Here is a review of the key features, benefits, and rewards offered by HDFC Bank Millennia credit cards.
Overview
Though HDFC Bank mentions a joining/annual fee for the Millennia credit card, it is issued as LTF in most cases.
| Joining/Annual Fee | Rs 1000 plus GST |
| Welcome Benefits | 1000 cashpoints ~Rs 1000 value |
| Annual Fee Waiver | On spends of Rs 1 Lakh in a membership year |
| Variants | Visa, Mastercard and Diners |
Cashback
Millennia is an out-and-out cashback credit card. This is good as many customers prefer direct cashback rather than playing the points/miles game.
| CATEGORY | CASHBACK | MAXIMUM CASHBACK |
|---|---|---|
| Spends on Amazon, BookMyShow, Cult.fit, Flipkart, Myntra, Sony LIV, Swiggy, Tata CLiQ, Uber & Zomato | 5% | Rs 1000 per calendar month |
| All other transactions except Fuel. This includes wallet loads and EMI transactions as well. | 1% | Rs 1000 per calendar month |
- There is no minimum transaction size to be eligible for cashback anymore.
- Any transaction on Smartbuy merchants which are a part of the 5% cash back category, will get 1% cashback on Millennia. For example, if transacting on Amazon via Smartbuy, we get 5% Smartbuy cashback for credit cards and get 1% cashback for Millennia. No more clubbing of 5% cashback on Millennia and 5% on Smartbuy.
Millennia is the only credit card from HDFC Bank to offer rewards for loading wallets. 🙂
We get gift vouchers worth Rs 1000 on spends of Rs 1 Lakh and above in each calendar quarter. This translates to an average spend of Rs 25000 each month, which is achievable. This is an extra 1% return over the regular cashback.
Smartbuy Rewards
Millennia is also eligible for Smartbuy platform cashback like other HDFC Bank credit cards. The cap for Smartbuy cashback is Rs 1000 per calendar month for Millennia credit cards.
If you shop from Flipkart, use the Millennia directly instead of going through SmartBuy
Rewards Redemption
The eligible cashback for Millennia credit card transactions is given in the form of cashback points. The minimum cash points required for redemption are 500.
We can redeem the cash points for statement credit or flights/hotel booking on Smartbuy. Redemption for flights/hotels on Smartbuy is not worth going for. Cash points are valid for 2 years from the accumulation date.
| REDEMPTION OPTION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Statement Credit | 1 Cashpoint = Rs 1 |
| Flights/Hotels on Smartbuy | 1 Cashpoint = 30 paise |
Complimentary Airport Lounge Access
We get 2 complimentary domestic lounge access per quarter. The eligible list of lounges varies depending on the card network (Visa/Mastercard/Diners) on which Millennia is issued.
The airport lounge access is where the Diners variant of Millennia is better. The Millennia Visa/Mastercard gets access to only 12 airport lounges in 6 airports. The Millennia Diners variant gets access to 35 airport lounges including many Tier 2 cities. So, if you are interested in airport lounge access then you might want to have the Millennia Diners variant. Though there is one drawback of Diners variant, offline acceptance can be a challenge in some cases.
List of airport lounges for Visa/Mastercard || List of airport lounges for Millennia
Final Thoughts
With the new changes, Millennia is now in the same league as Flipkart Axis and Amazon Pay ICICI credit cards. The key difference is that Millennia has a cap on cashback rewards.
But, if your transactions are not going to hit the cashback cap then this is now a good card for shopping. HDFC Bank has addressed most of the shortcomings of this card with the relaunch of Millennia. But, it would have been better if the cashback cap was at a yearly level than monthly.
