Federal Bank Signet Credit Card Review 2026: Lifetime Free

The Federal Bank Signet Credit Card is a lifetime-free Visa card whose value comes from its perks, not its rewards. Spend ₹20,000 in a quarter and you unlock a domestic lounge visit, a Swiggy voucher and a buy-one-get-one movie offer. The reward rate, though, is among the lowest of any card we track, so treat Signet as a free perks card rather than a way to earn on spending.

Who the Federal Signet card is for

• Federal Bank customers who want a no-cost card from their own bank
• Light spenders, around ₹7,000 to ₹25,000 a month, who'd never earn back an annual fee
• People who take a domestic flight every few months and want an occasional free lounge visit
• Anyone building a credit history who wants a free card that also carries accident cover

If you want meaningful cashback or points, a different free card will serve you better.

Fees and charges

Item	Federal Bank Signet
Joining fee	₹0
Annual fee	₹0 (lifetime free since April 2023)
Forex markup	2.5%
Network	Visa
Min. monthly income	₹35,000
Welcome benefit	₹200 Amazon Pay e-voucher on ₹3,000 spend within 30 days

There's nothing to waive and nothing to break even on. The 2.5% forex markup is lower than the 3.5% common on entry cards, though zero-markup cards exist if you travel abroad.

Reward structure, with a worked example

BestCard's data lists an effective 0.25% on general spend, 0.75% on online shopping and 0.5% on dining, with points valued at 20 paise each.

Example: ₹20,000 a month

• Online shopping: ₹8,000 × 0.75% = ₹60
• Dining: ₹3,000 × 0.5% = ₹15
• Everything else: ₹9,000 × 0.25% = ₹22.50
• Monthly: about ₹98, yearly: about ₹1,170

That's thin. For comparison, the same ₹8,000 of online spend alone would earn ₹400 a month on a 5% online cashback card.

How you redeem matters too. Redeeming against the Federal Rewards catalogue gets roughly double the value of redeeming the same points as a statement credit. If you're going to use Signet, use the catalogue.

These figures reflect BestCard's latest card data. Federal Bank changes reward and benefit terms from time to time, so check the current details on its website before applying.

The quarterly perks are the real value

Signet's best feature is what you unlock by spending ₹20,000 in a quarter, which is under ₹7,000 a month:

• Lounge: 1 complimentary domestic airport lounge visit per quarter, based on spend in the preceding quarter.
• Swiggy voucher: unlocked for that quarter on hitting ₹20,000.
• Movies: buy-one-get-one ticket offer for that quarter on hitting ₹20,000.

Neither the Swiggy voucher nor the BOGO offer carries over if you fall short, so it's worth keeping an eye on spend near the end of each quarter. Over a year, four lounge visits, four Swiggy vouchers and four BOGO offers can easily be worth more than the card's reward points. Our explainer on quarterly spend triggers for lounge perks covers how to time these.

Other benefits

• Personal accident insurance: ₹2 lakh cover.
• Fuel: 1% surcharge waiver on fuel transactions between ₹400 and ₹4,000, capped at ₹400 a month.

The fuel waiver is modest but useful for two-wheeler riders and city drivers who fill up in small amounts. A ₹2,000 fill-up carries a ₹20 surcharge, so the ₹400 monthly cap is unlikely to bind for most people. The accident cover is a small bonus rather than a reason to hold the card, and you shouldn't treat it as a substitute for proper term or health insurance.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Lifetime free, no fee pressure
• Quarterly lounge visit at a low ₹20,000 spend threshold
• Quarterly Swiggy voucher and BOGO movie offer
• ₹2 lakh personal accident cover
• 2.5% forex markup, lower than many entry cards

Cons

• Very low reward rates across every category
• Statement-credit redemption gets about half the value of catalogue redemption
• Quarterly perks don't roll over if you miss the threshold
• Smaller service network than the largest banks

Eligibility

BestCard's data lists a minimum monthly income of ₹35,000. Existing Federal Bank account holders usually find the process smoother, and pre-approved offers sometimes appear in the bank's app.

How it compares with other free cards

Card	Annual fee	Base rate	Best category	Forex	Lounge
Federal Signet	₹0	0.25%	0.75% online	2.5%	1 domestic/quarter (spend-linked)
Federal Bank Scapia	₹0	2%	4% travel	0%	Unlimited domestic (spend-linked)
Amazon Pay ICICI	₹0	1%	5% online	1.99%	None
IDFC FIRST Millennia	₹0	0.375%	1.25% dining/travel	0%	None

Federal Bank Scapia is the obvious upgrade from the same bank. It's also free, earns eight times Signet's base rate, charges zero forex markup and offers spend-linked unlimited domestic lounges. For most people it's simply the better Federal card. Read our Federal Bank Scapia review.

Amazon Pay ICICI is the pick for online shoppers, with 5% on online spend in our data and no fee. See our Amazon Pay ICICI review.

IDFC FIRST Millennia is another free option with zero forex markup and better dining and travel rates than Signet.

For more, see best lifetime free credit cards in India, lifetime free cards with lounge access and our Federal Bank credit cards guide.

Verdict

Federal Bank Signet is a perfectly decent free card if you value its quarterly perks. Spend ₹20,000 a quarter and you get a lounge visit, a Swiggy voucher and a BOGO movie offer every three months at no cost. As a rewards card, though, it barely registers.

If you're choosing a single free card, Federal Bank Scapia or Amazon Pay ICICI will usually return far more. Signet works best as a second card held for its perks, or for Federal Bank customers who want a simple card from their own bank. To find the free card that fits your spending best, try the BestCard matcher.