Monthly food delivery bills in Indian cities are no longer trivial. Between the food itself, the platform convenience fee, the delivery charge, and Swiggy One or Zomato Gold memberships, a couple ordering in three or four times a week can easily spend ₹6,000–₹12,000/month on these apps. That's a category worth optimizing.
The problem is that most guides to "best cards for Swiggy/Zomato" miss a critical variable: how you pay changes what you earn.
The payment method problem
Most people put their credit card details into the Swiggy or Zomato app and pay directly. Others prefer to pay via Google Pay or PhonePe at checkout. These two approaches trigger entirely different earn mechanisms on many cards.
The Axis ACE is the counter-example worth knowing, because it is widely reported the wrong way round: its 4% on Swiggy, Zomato and Ola is earned paying by card on those apps and sites directly, with no Google Pay involved. Only the card's separate 5% utility tier carries the Google Pay condition. What does bite on the ACE is the cap — the 4% and the 5% share one ₹500-per-cycle allowance between them.
This distinction kills a lot of assumptions in generic card comparisons. Let's go through the actual options.
The dedicated option: HDFC Swiggy Credit Card
If Swiggy is your primary food delivery app and you spend consistently on it, this co-branded card earns 10% cashback on all Swiggy app transactions — food delivery, Swiggy Instamart grocery, and Dineout restaurant bookings made through the Swiggy app.
The cap: ₹1,500/month. That means above ₹15,000 Swiggy spend per month, excess transactions earn 1%. One condition worth knowing before you split a ₹300 order into two: each transaction must be ₹249 or more to earn the 10% at all.
For a typical household spending ₹8,000–₹12,000/month on Swiggy, the 10% rate is uncapped in practice. ₹800–₹1,200/month in cashback on a single category. The annual fee is ₹500 — covered in the first few weeks.
The limitation is the Swiggy lock-in — though it is narrower than it is usually described. The 10% is Swiggy-only, but a Zomato order is simply other online spend, which earns 5% under its own separate ₹1,500/cycle cap. It is offline and general spend that drops to 1% (capped at ₹500/cycle). So splitting your delivery across both apps costs you the difference between 10% and 5%, not the difference between 10% and 1%; where the card genuinely earns poorly is everything you buy away from a screen.
Best for: households where Swiggy is the default food delivery app, spending ₹5,000+/month on the Swiggy ecosystem.
More on this card: full fees, rewards & eligibility → · read our Swiggy HDFC review →
The flexible earner: Axis ACE, paid directly
Axis ACE earns 4% cashback on Swiggy, Zomato and Ola paid by card on those apps and websites. Its headline 5% is a different tier — utility bills through Google Pay — and it is not available on food delivery.
The mechanics, and this is where most write-ups get it wrong: the 4% on Swiggy, Zomato and Ola needs no Google Pay routing at all — it pays on their own websites and apps, with the card used directly. Google Pay is required only for the higher 5% rate, and only on utility bills.
The cap: ₹500/month, shared across the accelerated 4% (Swiggy/Zomato/Ola) and 5% (utility bills) categories. At 4%, that's about ₹12,500/month of food-delivery spend before the cap hits. Beyond the cap, spend earns the 1.5% base rate.
The annual fee on ACE: ₹499.
For someone who doesn't want a co-branded card tied to a single platform, ACE gives 4% on food delivery without any Swiggy/Zomato lock-in and without a payment-app detour. The ₹500/cycle cap on accelerated cashback (shared with the 5% utility-bills earn) is the only real constraint — beyond it, additional spend earns the 1.5% base rate, which is uncapped.
Best for: people who spread food delivery across both Swiggy and Zomato and want one card that earns well across many categories — with Google Pay needed only if you also want the 5% on utility bills. But the ACE is now closed to new applicants. Axis has quietly stopped sourcing the ACE, so you can no longer apply for it; the profile above is for readers who already hold one. If you're choosing a new card, SBI Cashback (below) is the closest still-open everyday earner across both platforms.
More on this card: full fees, rewards & eligibility → · read our Axis ACE review →
The no-restriction option: SBI Cashback Card
SBI Cashback earns 5% cashback on online transactions — any website, any app, any platform, with no merchant list and no UPI dependency. Two limits apply since April 2026: the 5% is capped at ₹2,000/month (₹40,000 of online spend), and gaming, toll and government payments are excluded. Neither touches food delivery, but the "no category exclusions" framing this card is usually given is no longer accurate.
The catch: the 5% is capped at ₹2,000/month in cashback (₹40,000 online spend). For most households, that cap is never reached.
On a ₹10,000/month combined Swiggy + Zomato bill, SBI Cashback returns ₹500 — against ₹400 on the ACE at 4%, and without the ACE's ₹500-per-cycle accelerator cap. Pay directly on the platform with your saved card, earn 5%.
The annual fee is ₹999 (higher than ACE or Swiggy HDFC), but the waiver threshold is ₹2L annual spend — achievable if you're spending ₹10,000+/month online across all categories.
Best for: spenders who want 5% on all online spend without thinking about payment method routing — food delivery, online shopping, subscriptions, all earn the same rate.
More on this card: full fees, rewards & eligibility → · read our SBI Cashback review →
HDFC Millennia: the partner list card
HDFC Millennia earns 5% cashback on a specific list of partner merchants: Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Swiggy, Zomato, BookMyShow, Cult.fit, Tata CLiQ, and a few others. The cap is ₹1,000/month in total partner cashback.
At ₹1,000/month cap, you hit the ceiling at ₹20,000 of partner merchant spend. For most people, that's fine — the cap rarely bites if food delivery is just part of your monthly spend mix.
Where Millennia falls short is the partner list constraint: 5% on Swiggy and Zomato is good, but 1% on everything outside the partner list (other online merchants, utility bills, etc.) means the card only works hard if a meaningful chunk of your spend falls within that specific partner set.
More on this card: full fees, rewards & eligibility → · read our HDFC Millennia review →
Axis Airtel: if you also need to cover utility bills
The Axis Airtel card earns 10% on Zomato, Blinkit and District (capped at ₹200/month per partner, minimum order ₹499 on Zomato and Blinkit with none on District — so above ₹2,000 spend at any one partner, excess earns at a lower rate; Swiggy was dropped in the April 2026 revision). It also earns 25% on Airtel services.
The Zomato/Blinkit/District earn is strong in percentage terms but the ₹200-per-partner cap limits its utility for households spending more than ₹2,000/month at any single partner. It's worth considering if you're an Airtel subscriber who also orders in regularly — though since April 2026 the Airtel benefit cannot justify the card on its own, because the 25% pays out only up to 2× the base 1% cashback you earn in the same cycle. Put no everyday spend on the card and the bill cashback is zero.
More on this card: full fees, rewards & eligibility → · read our Axis Airtel review →
The honest comparison table
| Card | Swiggy/Zomato earn | Cap | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDFC Swiggy | 10% Swiggy app / 5% Zomato (as other online spend) | ₹1,500/month each, under separate caps | ₹500 |
| Axis ACE, paid directly on the app/site (closed to new applicants) | 4% | ₹500/month (shared with 5% utility) | ₹499 |
| SBI Cashback | 5% (all online) | ₹2,000/month | ₹999 |
| HDFC Millennia | 5% (partner list) | ₹1,000/month (all partners) | ₹1,000 |
| Axis Airtel | 10% (Zomato/Blinkit/District) | ₹200/month per partner | ₹500 |
My recommendation
For Swiggy-first households spending ₹6,000+/month on the app: HDFC Swiggy card. The 10% rate earns ₹600+ before hitting the cap at ₹15,000 spend. Annual fee is inconsequential.
For mixed Swiggy + Zomato spend: Axis ACE if you already hold it (now closed to new applicants). Pay by card on either app and earn 4% on both platforms, with no Google Pay detour and no co-branded lock-in. New applicants who want the same both-platform coverage should use SBI Cashback (below).
For people who want the simplest setup: SBI Cashback. Pay by saved card directly on the platform. 5% comes through with no routing requirement and a very high cap.
None of these three is a bad choice. The difference between them is your payment behavior and which platform you favor — not a meaningful difference in earnings at typical household spend levels.
I have spent over a decade on Indian credit cards, mostly for the points and miles. I am a software engineer by profession, I hold and use the cards I write about, and I redeem through airline and hotel transfer partners: Avios, KrisFlyer, Flying Blue, Air India Maharaja Club, Accor ALL, Marriott Bonvoy and Taj. What I write about is what a card is actually worth after the fine print, the caps and exclusions that decide the real return, and the changes issuers make quietly. No paid placements.
Frequently asked questions
Which card gives the highest cashback on Swiggy?
Does Axis ACE earn on Swiggy and Zomato?
What happens if I pay Swiggy via UPI?
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Has the HDFC Millennia earn rate on Swiggy changed?
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