SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card vs IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card

SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card is a basic but one of the most popular entry-level credit card by SBI Bank. This card has been designed for people who are newcomers in the field of credit cards and want to earn reward points on the spends that they make using the credit card. This credit card will be quite suitable for the people who shop through online websites as this card provides a higher reward rate while shopping online on some specific websites as compared to the reward rate that you get while shopping on other websites or on your offline spends as well. Since this card is an entry-level credit card, this credit card does not offer any value-added services such as lounge access, movie and dining benefits, etc. This card is placed at a quite affordable fee of Rs. 499, however, the rewards earned with this credit card are quite great as compared to its joining fee.

IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card is a co-branded credit card for which Indian Railways and SBI have partnered with each other. This credit card will prove to be quite beneficial to those customers who are quite loyal to both SBI and Indian Railways. This credit card offers quite decent privileges and rewards to the customers considering the fact that this card comes with a nominal joining fee of Rs. 500. This credit card allows you to earn welcome benefits on the basis of the amount that you spend using your credit card in the initial days of the card issuance date. Additionally, the cardholders will also get surcharge waivers while booking railway tickets and get complimentary access to the railway lounges as well.
Although these credit cards are issued by the State Bank of India, the features and benefits of both credit cards are very different from each other. This article will discuss the features and benefits of both the cards individually so that it will be effortless for you to choose according to your needs and requirements.

SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card

This is an entry-level credit card by SBI Bank that is quite famous amongst the new entrants in the field of credit cards. This credit card provides cardholders with some exclusive benefits in the form of reward points while you spend using your credit card. The cardholders can earn reward points on regular spends made using the credit card and accelerated reward points while they spend on some specific categories such as while shopping on Amazon, BookMyShow, etc. Apart from this, this card also provides you with a fuel surcharge waiver and waiver of the annual fee on the basis of the amount spend using your credit card in the previous year. The SimplyCLICK SBI Card comes with an annual fee of Rs. 499 which is quite in sync with the benefits and rewards that this card provides. Following are the detailed benefits of this credit card –

• Upon paying the joining fee of the credit card, the cardholder will get an Amazon voucher worth Rs. 500 as a welcome benefit.
• The cardholders will get 1 Reward Point for every Rs. 100 spent using this card on all offline transactions except fuel.
• Higher reward points, i.e., 5x for every Rs. 100 spent while you spend on all online transactions using this credit card.
• Accelerated reward points, i.e., 10x for every Rs. 100 spent at partner merchants including Amazon, Cleartrip, BookMyShow, Dineout, Lenskart, Apollo 24×7, and Netmeds.
• A Maximum capping of 10,000 Reward Points per month is applicable on the bonus reward points (under the 5x and 10x categories) that can be earned on online spends using this credit card.
• The cardholders will get the following as the milestone benefits- An e-voucher worth Rs. 2,000 from ClearTrip on achieving annual spends of Rs. 1 Lakh.
  – An e-voucher worth Rs. 2,000 from ClearTrip on achieving annual spends of Rs. 2 Lakhs

• The annual fee of the credit card is worth Rs. 499 can be waived off if the cardholder is able to achieve spends of Rs. 1 Lakh using the credit card in an anniversary year.
• The cardholders are entitled to 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 waiver is capped at Rs. 100 per month.
• The reward points earned with this credit card can be redeemed against gift vouchers and products available on the sbicard.com website or application.
• The points can also be redeemed against the card’s outstanding balance through internet banking.
• For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Rs. 0.25.

IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card

A co-branded credit card, IRCTC SBI Platinum Card is a result of collaboration between SBI and Indian railways. All the SBI customers, who are loyal to Indian Railways as well will benefit the most from this credit card. This credit card provides you with rewards points while you continue to make regular spends using your credit card. This credit card also offers deals on hotel bookings, customized tour packages, surcharges on railway ticket bookings, etc, which are quite useful for avid travelers. This credit card comes with a very nominal joining fee of Rs. 500 which is in sync with the rewards and privileges that this credit card provides. Keep reading the article to know more about IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card –

• As a welcome benefit with this credit card, the cardholders will get the following — 350 activation Bonus Reward Points on a single transaction made using your credit card of Rs. 500 or more within the first 45 days of card issuance. (Fuel transactions and cash spends are not included). Here, 1 Reward Point = Re. 1.
  – You will also get a cashback of Rs. 100 on your first ATM Cash withdrawal using this credit card within 30 days of receiving the credit card.

• Get 10% Value Back in the form of reward points while you book railway tickets through IRCTC Website or mobile application. This is applicable only to booking tickets for AC1, AC2, AC3 and AC CC categories. For this purpose, 1 Reward Point = Re.1.
• The cardholders can also earn 1 Reward Point for every Rs. 125 spent on all retail transactions (except fuel) made using the IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card. Here also, 1 Reward Point = Re. 1.
• The cardholders will get 1% railway surcharge waiver while booking their railway tickets and paying using this credit card on the IRCTC Website.
• With the IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card, the cardholders can get a wide range of tailor-made packages ranging from adventure, wildlife, pilgrimage, and leisure tours to various places in India.
• The cardholders can also avail accommodation offers at more than 5,000 hotels spread across 350 cities in India.
• With IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card, the cardholders will get 4 complimentary access to railway lounges at participating railway lounges in India. The access is limited to 1 per quarter and is applicable to only primary credit cardholders.
• The cardholders will also get a fuel surcharge waiver of 1% on transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000 at all fuel stations in India. You can get a maximum surcharge waiver of Rs. 100 per statement cycle per credit card account.
• You can also convert your transactions of minimum Rs. 2,500 and above into easy installments using Flexipay.
• You can redeem the reward points earned with this credit card to book railway tickets on the IRCTC Website or mobile application. For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Re. 1.

Quick Comparison

Now that we have discussed the features of both the cards individually, let us now have a quick comparison between SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card and IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card –

Basis	SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card	IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card
Reward Rate	1 RP for every Rs. 100 spent on offline spends except fuel. 5x RP for every Rs. 100 spent on all other online spends. 10x RP for every Rs. 100 spent on partner merchants.	1 RP for every Rs. 125 spent on all retail transactions except fuel. 10% value back as reward points while you book AC1, AC2, AC3 and AC CC tickets.
Reward Redemption	Can be redeemed against products and vouchers on the SBI Website. Can be redeemed against the card’s statement balance. For redemption purposes, 1 RP = Rs. 0.25	The reward points earned can be redeemed on IRCTC Website or mobile application to book railway tickets. For redemption purposes, 1 Reward Point = Re.1
Fuel Surcharge Waiver	1% on transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000. The waiver amount is limited to Rs. 100 per month	1% on transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 3,000. The waiver amount is capped at a maximum of Rs. 100 per statement cycle.
Welcome Benefits	Amazon gift voucher worth Rs. 500	350 activation bonus reward points on a single transaction of Rs. 500 or more in the first 45 days of card issuance. Cashback of Rs. 100 on first ATM cash withdrawal within 30 days of card issuance.
Milestone Benefits	ClearTrip voucher worth Rs. 2,000 on achieving spends of Rs. 1 Lakh. ClearTrip voucher worth Rs. 2,000 on achieving spends of Rs. 2 Lakhs	NA
Lounge Visits	NA	4 complimentary railway lounge visits to the participating railway lounges, limited to 1 per quarter.
Joining Fee	Rs. 499 + Taxes	Rs. 500 + Taxes
Renewal Fees	Rs. 499 + Taxes (Spend-based reversal of Annual Fee on spends of Rs. 1 Lakh or more in the previous year.)	Rs. 300 + Taxes
Eligibility	Issued to either salaried or self-employed individuals. Minimum salary Rs. 20,000 per month and Age between 21-60 years in case of a salaried individual. Minimum income of Rs. 20,000 per month as per ITR and Age between 21 – 65 years in case of a self-employed individual.	The applicant should be a resident of India and above the age of 18 years. This credit card is issued either to salaried or self-employed individuals. The applicant should have a stable source of income. He should have a decent credit score and credit history.

Bottom Line

Both the credit cards by SBI Bank are quite decent in their individual categories. The SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card is an entry-level credit card that has been specially designed for new entrants in the field of credit cards. This card provides the cardholders with some basic entry-level features and reward points but provides huge reward points when the amount is spent on partnered merchants like Amazon, BookMyShow, etc using this credit card. The SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card also provides some other advantages such as welcome benefits, milestone benefits, fuel surcharge waiver, etc. This card is placed at a joining and renewal fee of Rs. 499 which is quite nominal considering the benefits that this card provides. The joining and renewal fee can be waived off on the basis of the amount spent using the credit card.

On the other hand, the IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card emerged out of a collaboration between SBI and Indian Railways and is also quite popular among travel credit cards. This credit card provides you reward points while you spend using this credit card and you are also entitled to welcome benefits. Additionally, this credit card provides you with a railway surcharge waiver and fuel surcharge waiver which will help you save while making such transactions. Also, the cardholders also get access to railway lounges at the participating railway lounges. The rewards earned with this credit card can be redeemed to book railway tickets. Both credit cards are different from each other but are quite decent in their individual categories.

IRCTC SBI Platinum Credit Card would be suitable for those applicants who travel frequently by railway but the SBI SimplyCLICK Credit Card is a decent credit card for the general applicants. Now that we have explained both the credit cards in detail, it ultimately depends upon the needs and wants of the customer which card he wants to opt for. For any further queries related to these credit cards, please feel free to ask us in the comment section below!