Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card vs Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card

The Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card by Kotak Mahindra Bank is a reward credit card that provides the cardholder with rewards points in the form of Zen Points. The cardholders will get Zen Points against the amount that they spend using this credit card and accelerated Zen Points while they spend on specific categories. This card also provides the cardholders with bonus Zen Points in the form of welcome benefits and milestone benefits. The cardholders are also entitled to a fuel surcharge waiver on fuel transactions done using this credit card. Additionally, this card proves to be beneficial to those people who are frequent flyers as this card provides complimentary access to the domestic and international airport lounges. This card comes with a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 1,500 which is eligible for a waiver on the basis of the amount you spend using your credit card.

Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card by Kotak Mahindra Bank is a very basic credit card that just focuses on providing the card members with reward points and some travel benefits. This card is meant for those people who are new entrants in this field or who just want to enjoy reward points and have nothing to do with the various value-added benefits related to the credit card. This card provides you with reward points on the basis of the amount you spend using your credit card and accelerated reward points while you spend on some specific categories. Moreover, this credit card also provides some travel benefits to the cardholders such as access to domestic lounges and a railway surcharge waiver. Though this card does not charge any joining fee from its customers but charges a renewal fee of Rs. 999 which can be waived on spending some specific amount using your credit card in the previous year.

Both the credit cards by Kotak Mahindra Bank, namely, the Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card and the Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card provide some exclusive features and benefits to the customers. Following are the detailed features and benefits of the individual cards to have a better understanding of them.

Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card

The Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card is a reward credit card that provides you with reward points in the form of Zen Points. This credit card comes with exciting rewards and privileges for its members. The cardholders will get Zen Points on the amount spent using the credit card and higher points when used for some specific transactions. With this credit card, the cardholders will also get complimentary access to the domestic and international airport lounges. The cardholders will also get a fuel surcharge waiver with this credit card. Placed at a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 1,500, following are the detailed benefits and features that this credit card provides –

• As a welcome benefit, the cardholders will get 1,500 Zen Points after they have paid the joining fees on the credit card.
• The cardholders can earn up to 15 Zen Points for every Rs. 150 they spend while transacting on KayMall.
• 5 Zen Points for every Rs. 150 spent on all other transactions except fuel and EMI transactions.
• With this credit card, the cardholders will get 8 complimentary domestic lounge visits in a year, limited to 2 per quarter. This is limited is selected Dream Folks Lounges only.
• The cardholders will also get access to 3 complimentary international lounges with the Priority Pass membership. This offer is valid only for 1 year to the primary cardholders. The cardholders can avail this offer on completing at least 4 transactions in the previous year.
• As a milestone benefit, the cardholder will get 7,500 Zen Points on achieving spends of Rs. 3 Lakhs in the previous year and can earn upto 15,000 bonus Zen Points on annual spending of Rs. 6 Lakhs.
• You can get a fuel surcharge waiver of 1% on fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000 at all fuel stations in India. The surcharge amount is capped at a maximum of Rs. 3,500 in a year.
• The annual fee of Rs. 1,500 of the Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card can be waived off if the cardholder spends Rs. 1.50 Lakhs or more using the credit card in the previous year.
• The Zen Points earned with this credit card can be redeemed for exclusive vouchers and products at KayMall.
• These points can also be used to pay for shopping at merchant outlets. You can ask the cashier to redeem the reward points at the terminal merchant and pay in cash for the balance amount if any.
• For redemption purposes, 1 Zen Point = Rs. 0.25

Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card

Another credit card by Kotak Mahindra Bank, the Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card is a basic reward credit card that provides the cardholders with reward points on all the transactions done through their credit card. This card comes with no joining fee but charges a renewal fee of Rs. 999. This card helps you to save a lot on railway and fuel transactions as this card provides railway and fuel surcharge waivers. The cardholder is also entitled to a welcome benefit in the form of bonus rewards points. Keep reading the article to know more about this credit card in detail –

• The cardholders will get 2 Reward Points for every Rs. 150 spent on all transactions done through this credit card except for fuel and railway transactions.
• Accelerated 4 Reward Points for every Rs. 150 spent on some selected categories that include hotels, restaurants, airlines, tour operators, travel agencies, and international spends.
• The cardholders will get complimentary access to domestic airport lounges, 2 times a quarter through the Visa Lounge Access Program.
• You get a fuel surcharge waiver of 1% on all fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000 at all fuel stations in India. The maximum surcharge is capped at Rs. 3,500 per year.
• The cardholders will also get a railway surcharge waiver while booking their railway tickets on the IRCTC website or at the Indian Railway Booking Counters. The maximum surcharge under this category is capped at Rs. 500 in a year.
• As a milestone benefit, you get 10,000 Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 4 Lakhs in an anniversary year and 30,000 Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 8 Lakhs or more in a year.
• The renewal fee of Rs. 999 can be waived off on spending Rs. 1 Lakhs using this credit card in an anniversary year.
• The rewards earned with this credit card can be redeemed for a variety of products and vouchers available at the kotakrewards.com website.
• For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.1875.

Quick Comparison

Now that we have discussed the features of both the cards individually, let us now have a quick comparison between the Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card and Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card –

Basis	Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card	Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card
Reward Rate	15 Zen Points for every Rs. 150 spent on KayMall. 5 Zen Points for every Rs. 150 spent on all other transactions except fuel.	4 Reward Points for every Rs. 150 spent on some specific categories. 2 Reward Points for every Rs. 150 spent on all other transactions except fuel and railway transactions.
Reward Redemption	The reward points can be redeemed for products and vouchers available at the kotakrewards.com website. Can also be redeemed for payment at partner merchant outlets. For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.25.	The reward points can be redeemed for products and vouchers available at the kotakrewards.com website. For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.1875.
Fuel Surcharge Waiver	1% on fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000, capped at a maximum of Rs. 3,500 per year.	1% on fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000, capped at a maximum of Rs. 3,500 per year.
Railway Surcharge Waiver	NA	Railway surcharge waiver while transacting on IRCTC Website or Indian Railway Booking Counters. Surcharge amount capped at a maximum of Rs. 500 in a year.
Welcome Benefits	Get 1500 Zen Points on payment of joining.	NA
Lounge Benefits	8 complimentary domestic lounge access in a year, limited to 2 per quarter. 3 complimentary international lounge access in a year.	8 complimentary domestic lounge access in a year, limited to 2 per quarter.
Joining Fee	Rs. 1,500 + Taxes	Rs. 0
Renewal Fees	Rs. 1,500 + Taxes (Can be waived off on spending Rs. 1.50 Lakhs or more in the previous year)	Rs. 999 + Taxes (Can be waived off on spending Rs. 1 Lakhs or more in the previous year)
Eligibility	Issued to either self-employed or salaried individuals. The applicant must be between the age of 21 to 65 years. The income of the individual should be Rs. 4.8 Lakhs or more. This card is issued only in the following locations –  Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi (including Gurgaon and Noida), Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, and Bangalore.	Issued to either salaried or self-employed individuals. The applicant must be between 21 years to 65 years of age. The net annual income of the applicant should be Rs. 24 Lakhs per annum or more.

Bottom Line

Both the credit cards by Kotak Mahindra Bank are quite decent credit cards providing exclusive rewards and benefits to the credit cardholders. The Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card provides you with Zen Points in the form of rewards points while you spend using this credit card. Thie credit card provides you will domestic and international lounge access. Additionally, the cardholders will also get a fuel surcharge waiver on their fuel transactions done using this credit card. The joining and renewal fee of the Kotak Zen Signature Credit Card is Rs. 1,500 which can be waived off on spending Rs. 1.50 Lakhs or more using this credit card. On the other hand, the Kotak Royale Signature Credit Card is also a nice credit card providing you with reward points while you spend using your credit card and get accelerated reward points while you spend on some specific categories.

Also, the cardholders will also get bonus reward points in the form of milestone benefits on the basis of the amount that they spend in an anniversary year. The cardholders also get complimentary access to domestic lounges. Also, the cardholders are also entitled to fuel and railway surcharge waiver which helps them save a lot on these transactions. Though this credit card does not charge any joining fee, this card charges an annual fee of Rs. 999 which can be waived off on spending Rs. 1 Lakh in an anniversary year. Both the credit cards provide some exclusive benefits to their members but the cardholders will have to decide on the basis of the features and benefits that the individual credit card provides and also on the basis of their own needs and demands.
For any more queries related to these cards, please feel free to ask us in the comment section below!