HDFC SmartBuy Extra Saving Days Sale October 2021

HDFC Bank has been offering exciting deals and offers on its SmartBuy portal for years, but to make it even more lucrative, last year, HDFC Bank introduced Extra Saving Days Sale, under which they offer extra Reward Points and cashback on the SmartBuy portal. The sale runs every month and lasts for three days. Earlier, the Extra Savings Days sale ran from December 2020-March 2021. The bank paused this program from April to June 2021, probably due to the COVID situation but resumed it in July. The Extra Savings Days Sale for the month of October 2021, will run from 28th October to 30th October 2021.

Under the Extra Savings Days Sale, you can earn up to 10X Bonus Reward Points on Amazon/Flipkart and on instant vouchers (compared to 5X Points on any other day) via SmartBuy on Infinia and Diners Club Black Credit Cards and up to 10% cashback on other HDFC credit cards, and a discount of up to Rs. 500 on travel-related spends (hotel/flights/rail/bus bookings).

October 2021 Update:

We already have a lot of offers from various banks this month. Adding more to it HDFC Bank is bringing back the Smartbuy Extra Savings day sale from October 28th, 2021 to October 30th 2021. This time, HDFC has completely revamped the Extra Savings Days benefits that you get on the various spends categories.

Reward Points / Cashback on Amazon & Flipkart

Reward Points / Cashback on Instant Vouchers

Discounts on Travel Spends

Note:  The max cap of 15,000 Reward Points for Infinia and 7,500 Reward Points for Diners Club Black Credit Cards is still applicable. The max cap on cashback for Regalia and Diners Club Privilege Credit Cards is Rs. 2,000 and for Rs. 1,000 for all other HDFC credit cards.

Surprisingly, HDFC has devalued the Extra Savings Day Sale this time. Earlier you could earn up to three times (up to 15X) the Bonus Reward Points on the Infinia and Diners Club Black Credit Cards (on the expenditure of more than Rs. 50,000) on purchases from Amazon/Flipkart during the Extra Savings Days Sale. The max cap on Reward Points earlier was 30,000 Reward Points (for Infinia Credit Card) and 17,500 Reward Points (for Diners Club Black Credit Card) if the expenditure exceeded Rs. 50,000.

Now you earn only 2 times the Bonus Reward Points (10X) during the Extra Saving Days Sale, and the max cap also remains the same (15,000 Reward Points for Infinia and 7,500 Reward Points for Diners Club Black Credit Card). The only positive thing about this Saving Days Sale is that you can earn 10x reward points on Gift vouchers which were 5x last month.

September 2021 Update:

For September 2021, the Smartbuy Extra Saving days sale would run from September 2nd to September 4th. Further, no information is available, regarding any changes. We would update the article accordingly.  The offers terms for shopping on Amazon/Flipkart is the same, but for Flight/Hotels/Rail/Bus booking, the 15x limit on HDFC Infinia and Diners Club black has been increased to 15,000 and 7,500 reward points, respectively.

August 2021 Update:

HDFC has reintroduced the offer in August with a few changes in the travel category. The offer runs from August 5th to August 7th. Now, on Booking Flights/Hotels/Rail/Bus tickets, instead of instant discounts, you would be getting 15x reward points up to 8,000 points on HDFC Bank Infinia Credit Card and up to 5,000 Reward Points on HDFC Diners Club Black Credit Card. The table below illustrates the same-

 

Reward Points and Cashback on Amazon and Flipkart:

Note: The offer has changed w.e.f. 28th October 2021. Refer to the October Update for details.

On Amazon and Flipkart, there are two slabs to earn Reward Points or Cashback-

1.) for expenditures less than or equal to Rs. 50,000.

2.) for expenditures greater than Rs. 50,000.

The following table illustrates the Reward Points and Cashback benefits on Amazon and Flipkart:

• The cap on the number of Reward Points or cashback that can be earned in a calendar month under the monthly SmartBuy offer (15,000 RPs for Infinia card, 7,500 RPs for Diners Black card, 2,000 cashback for HDFC Regalia and Diners Privilege cards and 1,000 cashback for all other credit/debit cards.) is inclusive of the Reward Points or cashback benefits that you get under the Slab 1 of this sale (applicable if you spend less than or equal to Rs. 50,000 on Amazon/Flipkart). However, in case you spend more than Rs. 50,000, your monthly cap of Reward Points or cashback (whichever applicable) is increased. For Infinia and Diners Black cards, the overall monthly cap of Reward Points is increased to 30,000 and 17,500 points respectively. For all other credit/debit cards (including the Regalia and the Diners Privilege cards), the monthly cashback limit is increased to Rs. 3,000.
• You will get the Slab 2 benefits only if you spend more than Rs. 50,000 on Amazon and Flipkart individually (and not on Amazon and Flipkart combined) during the three days of the sale.
• The Reward Points/cashback earned are also calculated for Amazon and Flipkart individually at their respective rewards rates.

Discounts on Travel Category:

Note: The travel offer has been changed w.e.f. 28th October 2021. See the October update for the revised travel offer.

Talking about the discounts on the travel category (hotel/flight/rail/bus bookings), you may refer to the table below to calculate the discounts that you get on different types of expenditures:

Apart from this, if you use the PayZapp app as the payment method, you get an additional cashback of Rs. 100.

• These discounts on the travel category are over and above the regular cashback and Reward Points benefits that you get on making payments with your HDFC credit/debit card. For example, you get a discount of Rs. 250 on top of the Bonus Reward Points or cashback that you would get otherwise.
• The Rs. 250 discount is applicable for the expenditure on each of the categories separately. For example, to avail the discount of Rs. 250 on hotel reservations and flight tickets, you need to spend at least Rs. 5,000 on hotel reservations and air tickets separately within the three days of the sale.

Discount on Instant Vouchers:

Note: The offer has changed w.e.f. 28th October 2021. Refer to the October Update for details.

If you purchase Instant Vouchers on the SmartBuy portal, you get the discounts as per the following structure:

You must use the Promo Code SBEXTRA at the time of checkout to avail this discount on Instant Vouchers. This code can be used only once.

Some of the popular brands offering their Instant Vouchers during this three-day sale include Big Bazaar, Ola, PVR, Cafe Coffee Day, Puma, Arrow, Allen Solly, Titan, Fastrack, MakeMyTrip, BookMyShow, etc.

• Just like the travel category, you can get an additional cashback of Rs. 100 if you make the payment using the PayZapp mobile app for purchasing the Instant Vouchers.
• The Instant Voucher offer is also over and above the bank’s monthly offers, which earn you accelerated Reward Points or cashback.
• The gift vouchers are valid for a minimum of 3 months from the date of purchase. The exact expiry date is different for every brand.
• You can buy a maximum of Rs. 5,000 worth of Amazon/Flipkart gift vouchers in a calendar month.

How to avail the SmartBuy Extra Saving Days Sale Benefits:

The procedure to avail the benefits of this sale is very similar to that of availing the monthly accelerated Reward Points/Cashback benefits on the SmartBuy portal (as illustrated in this post). All you have to do is go to the respective section on the SmartBuy portal and checkout using your HDFC credit/debit card or using the PayZapp mobile app. In some cases, you need to enter a Promo Code before making the payment. While booking air tickets using mobile banking or the PayZapp app, you need to use the Promo Code SBFLY (the same is applied automatically on the desktop/mobile site). Similarly, after reserving a room in the hotel of your choice, before proceeding with the payment, you need to use the Promo Code SBSTAY. For Insta Vouchers, the Promo Code SBEXTRA is to be applied.

Now, as far as the PayZapp cashback offer is concerned, you need not use any Promo Code to get the cashback of Rs.100. All you need to do is use the PayZapp app for the transaction. You’ll automatically get the cashback within 90 working days from the date of the transaction. The cashback is credited to your PayZapp Prepaid Card.

Bottom Line:

HDFC is offering double bonus Reward Points on Amazon (10X) and Flipkart (6X), compared to the 5X and 3X RPs that you get on any other day. Given that Amazon and Flipkart are the top two most popular online shopping websites in India (for most consumers, most of their online purchases are from either of these sites), it is one of those deals that you can not afford miss. If you’re planning to buy something expensive in the near future, you might want to consider preponing your purchase. Although HDFC Bank keeps coming up with new offers quite frequently on their SmartBuy portal, it’s better not to miss this limited period offer.

FAQs:

1. ) Is the Reward Points/Cashback monthly cap increased for shopping on Amazon and Flipkart during these 3 days?

No. The same monthly cap of 15,000 Reward Points (for Infinia Card) and 7,500 Reward Points (for Diners Club Black card), and Rs. 2,000 cashback (for Regalia and Diners Club Privilege Cards) and Rs, 1,000 cashback for all other HDFC credit cards are still applicable.

2.) When do I get the Reward Points/cashback?

The Reward Points and cashback are posted in your account within 90 working days from the last date of the transaction month.

3.) Is the offer applicable on EMI transactions?

Yes, you can avail the offer benefits even on the EMIs. The bank charges a processing fee of Rs. 99 (plus GST) for processing your purchase as monthly installments.

4.) Is the offer applicable for all hotel reservations?

Certain hotels are excluded from the offer. The list of such hotels is available here.

5.) Is the offer applicable on all purchases from Amazon/Flipkart?

The offer is not applicable on certain categories of items on Amazon and Flipkart including-

• Flight Bookings, Prepaid / Gift Cards, Bill Payments & Recharges on Amazon
• Amazon Prime Membership
• Amazon Pay Balance
• Purchase of Video Gaming Consoles & Hardware
• Amazon Fresh orders
• Jewelry / Gold coins or their equivalents