SBI Elite Credit Card vs HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card

SBI Elite Credit Card is one of the premium credit cards by the State Bank of India that provides top-notch services and benefits to card members. This credit card provides the best value-added benefits that a cardholder may expect from a premium credit card which includes complimentary visits to the domestic and international airport lounges, golf benefits, insurance benefits, etc. Apart from this, the cardholders will also get accelerated reward points while they spend on specified categories such as dining, grocery, and departmental store spends.

The cardholders will also get some amazing gift vouchers from renowned brands in the form of welcome benefits to this credit card. With this credit card, you get amazing deals while you pay your dining bills or book movie tickets. The annual and renewal fee of Rs. 4,999, which though being on the higher side is justified because of the rewards and benefits that this credit card provides but can be waived on the basis of the amount you spend using your credit card.

HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card is one of the classy credit cards by HDFC Bank that provides some exclusive travel and lifestyle benefits to its members. In addition to this, the cardholders will also get reward points while they continue to spend using their credit card. Being a premium credit card, this card comes with a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 2,500 which by paying, cardholders will get access to various benefits such as complimentary access to domestic and international airport lounges along with complimentary priority pass membership as well. You will also get various insurance benefits with this credit card. Additionally, you will also get huge reward points in the form of welcome benefits with this credit card. The renewal fee of this credit card can be waived on the basis of the amount that cardholders will spend using this credit card in an anniversary year.

Both the credit cards are quite premium credit cards providing travel and lifestyle benefits to the card members. Now let us discuss in detail the features and benefits that the individual credit card provides so that it becomes easier for the prospective applicant to choose between the two cards.

SBI Elite Credit Card

An exclusive credit card by the State Bank of India, the SBI Elite Card provides cardholders with some amazing benefits which you cannot afford to miss. This credit card is offered to the applicants in 3 variants – namely – Visa, MasterCard and American Express. To start with, credit cardholders will get gift vouchers in the form of welcome benefits, reward points while you make regular spends using your credit card, generous reward points in the form of milestone benefits, and complimentary access to domestic and international airport lounges, and much more. This credit card is quite suitable for those who travel quite frequently as this credit card offers complimentary Club Vistara and Trident Privilege Red Tier Membership. Furthermore, the cardholders will also get free movie tickets and discounts on dining bills using this credit card. Following are the details of the features and benefits that come along with the SBI Elite Credit Card –

• The credit cardholders will get a gift voucher worth Rs. 5,000 from any one of the brands – Shoppers Stop, Aditya Birla Fashion, Pantaloons, Yatra, Hush Puppies or Bata, as a welcome benefit upon paying the joining fee on the credit card.
• 2 Reward Points for every Rs. 100 spent on all transactions using this credit card.
• 10 Reward Points (i.e., 5x Reward Points) for every Rs. 100 spent on grocery and departmental store spends.
• Since this card provides great travel benefits, therefore, the cardholders get complimentary Club Vistara Silver Membership and Trident Privilege Red Tier Membership.
• Up to 15% discount on best available room rates on Lalit and F&B Hotels. (This deal is applicable only for the cardholders with MasterCard Variant)
• Up to 10% off on Hertz car rental and up to 35% off on Avis Car rentals and can also enjoy exclusive benefits across 900 luxury hotels. (This deal is applicable only for the cardholders with Visa Variant)
• Complimentary Tablet Plus Membership with access to VIP upgrades and privileges at hotels in India and abroad. (This deal is applicable only for the cardholders with American Express Variant)
• In a calendar quarter, the cardholders will get 2 complimentary domestic lounge visits.
• In case of access to international airport lounges, the cardholders will get 6 complimentary visits with the Priority Pass Membership which is limited to 2 per quarter.
• Get up to 25% discount on dining bills while dining at the partnered restaurants. (This deal is applicable only for the cardholders with American Express Variant)
• The cardholders will get complimentary/ discounted movie tickets every month. The maximum benefit is capped at Rs. 6,000 per year and Rs. 250 per ticket. This offer is valid for at least 2 tickets per booking per month.
• The cardholders can get up to 50,000 bonus reward points in the form of milestone benefits on achieving pre-defined spends with SBI Elite Credit Card. You can earn reward points in the following pattern-

– 10,000 bonus Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 3 Lakhs.
– 10,000 bonus Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 4 Lakhs.
– 15,000 bonus Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 5 Lakhs.
– 15,000 bonus Reward Points on achieving spends of Rs. 8 Lakhs.

• For the MasterCard variant holders, the members will get up to 50% discount on golf games and 1 complimentary lesson in a month at the selected golf courses in India. Along with this, you will also get 4 complimentary green fees access at selected golf courses in India.
• With SBI Elite Credit Card, the cardholders will get an exclusive benefit of a low foreign currency markup fee of 1.99%. This is quite less as compared to the other cards present in the market.
• The cardholders will get a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on all fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 4,000 at all fuel stations in India. The maximum waiver that a cardholder can get is capped at Rs. 250 in a month.
• You also get 24×7 concierge service for assistance related to flower delivery, online doctor consultation, and gift delivery.
• This credit card comes with a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 4,999. The renewal fee on this credit card can be waived off if the cardholder is successfully able to spend an amount exceeding Rs. 10 Lakhs in an anniversary year.
• The reward points that the credit cardholders will earn with SBI Elite Credit Card can be redeemed against a variety of products and vouchers present on www.sbicard.com.
• The reward points can also be redeemed against the statement balance of the credit card.
• For the purpose of redemption, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.25

HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card

One of the premium credit cards by HDFC Bank, the HDFC Regalia Credit Card offers a wide variety of deals and benefits over travel and lifestyle spends. With a joining fee of Rs. 2,500, this card provides you amazing welcome benefits and reward points on your spends made using this credit card. Being a travel-friendly credit card, this card provides you with complimentary access to the domestic and international airport lounges. In addition to the above-mentioned benefits, this card also provides you with discounts on your dining bills, complimentary Priority Pass Membership, insurance benefits, and much more. Let us now discuss in detail the features and benefits of the HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card-

• The cardholder gets 2,500 bonus reward points as a welcome benefit to this credit card on successful payment of the joining fee of the credit card.
• For every Rs. 150 spent using this credit card, the cardholders will get 4 Reward points. (This is not applicable on spends done towards fuel, EasyEMI, and Wallet Transactions)
• The reward points earned on insurance transactions are capped at 2,000 in a day.
• As the HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card is a travel credit card, you will get complimentary access to the domestic lounges 12 times in a year. The visit is limited to 3 visits per quarter.
• You get a complimentary Priority Pass Membership and 6 complimentary international lounge visits.
• If you are able to spend Rs. 75,000 or more using your credit card, you are entitled to an exclusive dine-out passport membership which includes a 25% discount on your dining bills at more than 2,000 premium restaurants.
• You get a buy 1 get 1 offer at over 200 restaurants along with 5% off and no convenience charges.
• Fuel surcharge waiver of 1% at all fuel stations in India on transactions between Rs. 400 and Rs. 5,000.
• As a milestone benefit, you are rewarded with 10,000 Reward Points if you are able to achieve spends of Rs. 5 Lakhs or more in an anniversary year.
• You will be given additional 5,000 Reward Points on crossing spends of Rs. 8 Lakhs in an anniversary year.
• This card offers a low foreign currency markup fee of 2% which can help you in saving a lot on your international transactions.
• The credit cardholders will get the following insurance benefits with this credit card –

• The renewal fee of the HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card can be waived off if you spend Rs. 3 Lakh or more using your credit card in an anniversary year.
• The Reward Points earned can be redeemed against a variety of options on the Smartbuy portal where the monetary value of reward points is different for redemption against different categories. This can be explained in the table below –

Against Flight/Hotel Bookings	Against Products/Vouchers	Against Cashback	Against Air Miles
1 RP = Rs. 0.5	1 RP = Rs. 0.35	1 RP = Rs. 0.20	1 RP = 0.5 Air Mile

Also Read: SBI Elite Credit Card vs HDFC Bank Diners Club Black Credit Card

Quick Comparison

Now that we have discussed the features of both the cards individually, let us now have a quick comparison between SBI Elite Credit Card and HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card-

Basis	SBI Elite Credit Card	HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card
Reward Rate	2 RP for every Rs. 100 spent. 5x RP for every Rs. 100 spent on grocery and departmental stores	4 RP for every Rs. 150 spent on all transactions except fuel, EasyEMI and wallet transactions
Reward Redemption	Can be redeemed against products and vouchers available at www.sbicard.com. Can be redeemed against card’s outstanding balance. 1 RP = Rs. 0.25	Can be redeemed on the Smartbuy portal 1 RP = Rs. 0.5 for redemption against flight and hotel bookings 1RP = Rs. 0.35 for redemption against products and vouchers 1 RP = Rs. 0.20 for cashback 1 RP = 0.5 Air Mile for redemption against Air Miles.
Fuel Surcharge Waiver	1% on a transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 4,000. Maximum waiver capped at Rs. 250 per statement cycle.	1% waiver on transactions between Rs. 400 to Rs. 5,000
Welcome Benefits	Gift Voucher worth Rs. 5,000 from any one of – Yatra, Hush Puppies/Bata, Pantaloons, Aditya Birla Fashion, and Shoppers Stop	2,500 Reward Points on successful payment of joining fees
Dining Benefits	25% off on dining bills at partnered restaurants. This benefit is applicable only to American Express Variant holders.	Dine-out Passport Membership 5% additional discount with 0 convenience fee on 200+ partnered restaurants
Milestone Benefit	10,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 3 Lakhs. 10,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 4 Lakhs. 15,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 5 Lakhs. 15,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 8 Lakhs.	10,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 5 Lakhs in an anniversary year Additional 5,000 RP on achieving spends of Rs. 8 Lakhs in an anniversary year
Domestic Lounge Access	2 complimentary domestic lounge access.	12 complimentary visits in a year, limited to 3 per quarter
International Lounge Access	6 complimentary international lounge access, limited to 2 per quarter.	6 complimentary visits in a year
Golf Benefits	4 rounds of complimentary green fees access. Up to 50% off on golf games. 1 complimentary lesson per month (This benefit is available only to MasterCard Variant holders)	NA
Movie Benefits	Get free movie tickets every month (max benefit capped at Rs. 6,000 per year and Rs. 250 per ticket, offer valid for at least 2 tickets per bookings per month)	NA
Joining Fee	Rs. 4,999 + Taxes	Rs. 2,500 + Taxes
Renewal Fees	Rs. 4,999 + Taxes (Can be waived off on spending Rs. 10 Lakhs or more in the previous year.)	Rs.2,500 + Taxes (Can be waived off on spending Rs. 3 Lakhs or more in the previous year)
Eligibility	The applicant should be a resident of India. Issued to both salaried individuals between the age of 18 years to 65 years. Issued to self-employed individuals between the age of 21 years to 60 years. The income of both the salaried and self-employed individuals should be above Rs. 60,000 in a month.	Issued to salaried individuals between the age of 21 years and 60 years and have a minimum income of Rs. 70,000 or more per month Issued to self-employed individuals between the age of 21 years and 65 years and have a minimum income of Rs. 8.4 Lakhs per annum as per ITR

Bottom Line

SBI Elite Credit Card and HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card are premium travel and lifestyle credit cards providing great deals to cardholders across these categories. The SBI Elite Credit Card comes with a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 4,999 against which the cardholders get some amazing benefits such as accelerated reward points while spending on some specific categories, complimentary Club Vistara and Trident Privilege Membership, complimentary access to the domestic and international airport lounges, insurance benefits, etc. The main attraction to this credit card is that this credit card charges a low foreign currency markup of 1.99% which is quite low and helps the cardholders to save generously on international transactions. On the other hand, the HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card is also a travel-friendly credit card.

This credit card comes with a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 2,500 which is lesser as compared to the Elite Credit Card. With this credit card, the cardholders will get complimentary visits to the domestic and international airport lounges along with Priority Pass Membership, amazing welcome and milestone benefits, insurance benefits, etc. This credit card also charges a low foreign currency markup fee of 2% on all international transactions. Both the credit cards provide almost similar benefits but the difference between their joining fees is huge. The card applicants should do a detailed study of the features and benefits of both the credit cards individually and then decide the credit card they would want to apply for.

For any further queries related to these credit card, please feel free to ask us in the comment section below!