In-depth review
HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card
A ₹99 virtual RuPay card whose whole job is putting credit onto UPI scan-and-pay. It earns 3% CashPoints on grocery, supermarket, dining and PayZapp, 2% on utilities and 1% on everything else — but a CashPoint is worth only ₹0.25, so those headline rates are really 0.75%, 0.5% and 0.25% of cashback. Judge it as a cheap convenience card, not a rewards engine.
Read the full review →Key features
What this card is built to do — the highlights that actually matter.
3 points/₹100 on Groceries (~0.75% value)
3% CashPoints (~0.75%) on grocery, supermarket, dining and PayZapp, capped 500 CashPoints/month
0.5% on Utility Bills
2% CashPoints (~0.5%) on utility spends, capped 500 CashPoints/month
Annual Fee Waiver
Fee of ₹99 + 18% GST (₹117 all-in)/yr fully waived when you spend ₹25,000/year
UPI Linked
Pay UPI QR codes from your credit line. What UPI payments earn can depend on the app you pay through, so check the rewards details.
For UPI-heavy spenders who want a near-free way to put everyday scan-and-pay on credit and earn a small return — not for anyone chasing meaningful cashback rates.
Full reward structure
What you earn on every rupee, per spend category — as of 1 Oct 2026. Rates assume 1 pt = ₹0.25. How we value points →
| Category | Type | Rate | Monthly cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groceriesonly at Grocery, supermarket, dining and all PayZapp spends | reward points | 0.75%3 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹125 |
| Utility Bills | reward points | 0.5%2 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹125 |
| Other | reward points | 0.25%1 pts/₹100 × ₹0.25 | ₹125 |
Groceries: 3% CashPoints (~0.75%) on grocery, supermarket, dining and PayZapp, capped 500 CashPoints/month · Grocery, supermarket, dining and all PayZapp spends
Utility Bills: 2% CashPoints (~0.5%) on utility spends, capped 500 CashPoints/month
Other: 1% CashPoints (~0.25%) on all other spends incl UPI — 1 CashPoint = ₹0.25
Earns nothing on: Fuel · Rent · Insurance · Education · Government & Tax · Wallet Loads · EMI Conversions
These spends earn no rewards at all — not a reduced rate, and not the base rate. They are also normally left out of any milestone or fee-waiver calculation.
Fees & charges
The numbers that matter beyond rewards — verify on the issuer site before applying. Fees below are shown inclusive of 18% GST, as of 1 Oct 2026.
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Annual fee (incl. 18% GST) | ₹117 |
| Joining fee (incl. 18% GST) | ₹117 |
| Finance charge (APR) | 3.75% p.m. |
| Forex markup | 3.5% |
Perks & benefits
Estimated annual value beyond rewards — ~₹100/yr in total.
1% fuel surcharge waiver (₹400–₹5,000 per txn, ₹250/statement cycle) — but NOT on UPI payments, where HDFC levies no fuel surcharge at all; the card is issued virtual-only
Should you get it?
- Best for: UPI-heavy spenders wanting a near-free credit-on-UPI card, Existing HDFC customers with a pre-approved offer
- Entry tier — great for first-time and lower-spend users.
- Strongest value if you spend heavily on Utility Bills (0.5% back; 0.75% only at Grocery, supermarket, dining and all PayZapp spends).
Pros & cons
✓ Pros
- Brings credit to UPI scan-and-pay for just ₹99, with the renewal waived at ₹25,000 of spend
- 3% CashPoints on grocery, supermarket, dining and PayZapp
- 1% fuel surcharge waiver
- Instantly issued as a virtual card to existing HDFC customers
✕ Cons
- CashPoints are worth only ₹0.25 — the "3%/2%/1%" rates are really 0.75%/0.5%/0.25%
- Each category is capped at 500 CashPoints/month; no lounge access
- Rent, wallet loads, gift cards, education, EMI, fuel and government spends earn nothing
How to redeem rewards
Ways to convert what you earn into real value.
- 🎁Statement credit / cashback adjustment (₹0.25/point)
- 🎁Rewards catalogue / SmartBuy
What your HDFC Reward Points are worth
Realistic value per point by redemption route — the difference is what most people leave on the table.
Standard catalogue & cashback
Brand & e-gift vouchers
₹0.50/pt on travel via SmartBuy on most HDFC cards; Infinia, Infinia Metal and Diners Club Black redeem at ₹1 there
The ₹0.25 point value quietly cuts every headline rate to a quarter — the "3%" is really 0.75%, so the card looks more rewarding than it is.
Frequently asked questions
What is 1 CashPoint worth?
What is this card for?
Is there a fee, and is the card lifetime-free?
Do I get a physical card?
How has the HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card changed over time?
Has the HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card been devalued recently?
When did the HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card's fees last change?
How did the HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card change in 2025?
The bottom line
The UPI RuPay is a convenience card first and a rewards card a distant second. Getting credit onto UPI for ₹99 (often free) is genuinely useful, and the 3% grocery/dining bucket is fine — but at ₹0.25 a point the real return is 0.75% at best, so read the rates honestly. As a cheap secondary card for UPI spends it earns its keep; as a primary earner it does not.
How this page was built
Counted from this card’s own record: 3 earn rules, 3 of them capped, 1 paid only at named merchants, the spends listed as earning nothing and 1 recorded perk. The renewal fee is conditional — it is waived on a published spend target, so the fee you pay depends on what you spend.
Last updated 1 Oct 2026.
Sources & verification
Fees, reward rates, and benefits for the HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card are taken from HDFC Bank's official Most Important Terms & Conditions (MITC) and fee schedule — see the card's official page. Last updated 1 Oct 2026. Reviewed by Devchandra Sah. Always confirm current details on the issuer's site before applying. How we research →
Independence. CardAdvisor is an independent editorial publication. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or authorised to act for HDFC Bank. All issuer names, product names, and payment-network marks are the property of their respective owners and appear here for identification and comparison only. Card faces shown on this site are our own original illustrations — we do not display or host issuer card artwork or logos.
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Guides and reviews related to this card.
HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card
A ₹99 virtual RuPay card whose whole job is putting credit onto UPI scan-and-pay. It earns 3% CashPoints on grocery, supermarket, dining and PayZapp, 2% on utilities and 1% on everything else — but a CashPoint is worth only ₹0.25, so those headline rates are really 0.75%, 0.5% and 0.25% of cashback. Judge it as a cheap convenience card, not a rewards engine.
PhonePe HDFC Bank Uno Credit Card
A RuPay-on-UPI entry card that pays in HDFC Reward Points worth a genuinely strong ₹1 each — but only in three buckets: 2% on PhonePe recharges, bills and travel, 1% on select online brands, and 1% on RuPay-on-UPI Scan & Pay, each capped 500 points a month. Ordinary offline swipes earn nothing, and you apply only inside the PhonePe app. A tidy, honest choice for the PhonePe-first, UPI-heavy spender — and the wrong card for anyone wanting rewards on general spends.
Value timeline
Every real-world change to this card's rewards, fees and benefits we've tracked — newest first, each linked to its source.
Tracking since 2023 · last change May 2026
2026
- ▼ FeeEffective 15 May 2026
Dynamic currency conversion markup raised to 1.75%
1% markup→1.75% markup
HDFC's MITC: "Dynamic currency conversion Markup Fee: With effect from 15th May 2026, a Markup fee of 1.75% will be levied on all transactions carried out in Indian Currency at an international location or at merchants which are located in India but registered overseas." This is separate from, and stacks on top of, the card's ordinary foreign-currency markup. It is the charge you pay for accepting a terminal's offer to bill you in rupees while abroad - always decline that offer and pay in the local currency. It also catches India-based purchases from merchants registered overseas, which is easy to trigger without leaving the country. The PIXEL MITC dates the same change 17 May 2026.
Verification: HDFC Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
2025
- ▼ FeeEffective 1 Jul 2025
1% fee added on rent, wallet loads and online gaming
No category surcharge on rent, wallet loads or gaming→1% on rent (cap Rs 4,999 per transaction); 1% on wallet loads and on online skill-based gaming above Rs 10,000 a calendar month (cap Rs 4,999 a month)
HDFC's MITC: "Rent Pay Transactions: W.e.f. 1st July 2025, 1% fee on transaction amount will be levied on rental transactions... Fee capped at Rs 4999 per transaction"; "Wallet Loading (excl PayZapp) - W.e.f. 1st July 2025, 1% fee will be levied on Wallet loading spends exceeding Rs 10,000 in a calendar month"; "Online Skill based Gaming - W.e.f. 1st July 2025, 1% fee... exceeding Rs 10,000 in a calendar month". These are charges on top of the fact that most HDFC cards already earn zero reward points on the same categories - you pay to spend, and earn nothing for it. PayZapp wallet loads are exempt from the wallet fee.
Verification: HDFC Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▼ FeeEffective 1 Jul 2025
1% fee on utilities above Rs 50,000 and on third-party education payments
No surcharge on utility or education payments→1% on utility spends above Rs 50,000 a calendar month (cap Rs 4,999 a month); 1% on education paid through third-party apps
HDFC's MITC: "Utility Charges: 1% fee will be levied on utility spends exceeding Rs 50,000 per Calendar month for consumer cards... Fee capped at Rs 4999 per month"; "Education Charges: 1% fee... on Education transactions done through third party applications like (but not limited to) CRED, Nobroker, Cheq etc." Paying school or college fees DIRECTLY to the institution is not charged - only routing them through a third-party app is. A 1% fee also applies to fuel transactions above Rs 15,000.
Verification: HDFC Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
- ▼ RewardEffective 1 Jul 2025
Insurance reward points capped, online gaming stops earning
Insurance uncapped on most cards; online skill-based gaming earned points→Insurance capped at 2,000 reward points a month (5,000 on Diners Black, 10,000 on Infinia); online skill-based gaming earns nothing
HDFC's MITC: "With effect from 1st July 2025, Reward Points accrued for insurance transactions will have a maximum cap of... 2000 per month for all other credit cards" and "With effect from 1st July 2025, Online Skill-Based gaming transactions will not earn Reward Points/CashPoints on all the cards." Insurance premiums are a common way to hit a milestone quickly, so the cap matters more than its size suggests.
Verification: HDFC Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
2023
- ◆ LaunchEffective Apr 2023
HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card launched
HDFC introduced a virtual-only RuPay credit card built for UPI scan-and-pay — one of the first dedicated RuPay-on-UPI credit cards from a private bank. It earns 3% CashPoints on groceries/supermarkets (MCC 5411), dining (5812/5814) and all PayZapp spends, 2% on utilities (MCC 4900) and 1% on everything else, each capped at 500 CashPoints per calendar month, with 1 CashPoint worth ₹0.25 — so real returns of roughly 0.75%/0.5%/0.25%. Launch fee was ₹250 + GST (waived on ₹25,000 annual retail spend); fuel, rent, EMI, wallet/gift-card loads, insurance, education and government spends earn nothing. Statement-cashback redemption needs a minimum of 2,000 CashPoints (₹500).
Verification: HDFC Bank ↗ · Confidence: High
Each change links to the issuer's own document — bank T&C, MITC, notice, press release or product page — where one is public. Where the bank published nothing, it's marked CardAdvisor Research and verified against the card's current terms. Independent of the live terms shown above. This timeline is one card's slice of our market-wide change record across every tracked card.
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Source: <a href="https://cardadvisor.in/cards/hdfc-upi-rupay#value-timeline">HDFC Bank UPI RuPay Credit Card value timeline</a>, CardAdvisor (CC BY 4.0).
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