ICICI vs American Express Credit Cards: A Small, Pricey Lineup Against a Wide One

American Express sells nine cards on our list, and ICICI far more. That alone makes this a lopsided comparison. The more useful question is whether any Amex card beats what ICICI sells at the same price.

Entry level

Amex's SmartEarn costs ₹495, waived at ₹40,000 of spend, and pays 10X points on app spends at Zomato, Flipkart, Uber and BookMyShow, but each category is capped at ₹150 a month. Everything else earns the base rate. Income needed is ₹37,500 a month.

ICICI's Amazon Pay is free for life with an income bar of ₹30,000, paying 5% on Amazon.in with Prime. The Coral is ₹500 and the Platinum Chip is free. ICICI's Platinum Chip is also free, with a ₹20,000 income bar. ICICI wins this section outright, on fee and breadth.

Mid-tier travel

The Amex Platinum Travel costs ₹5,000, with a free Priority Pass membership (the US$99 fee waived) and, from 1 October 2026, two domestic lounge visits a quarter subject to prior-quarter spend. Forex is 3.5%.

ICICI's Sapphiro costs ₹6,500 to join and ₹3,500 a year, with four domestic visits a quarter on ₹75,000 spend and two international visits. Its forex markup is also 3.5%. Which is better depends on whether you want bundled Priority Pass or higher domestic visit counts. Roughly even, with Amex ahead on international access and ICICI on domestic.

Premium

Amex's Platinum Reserve costs ₹10,000, waived only at ₹10 lakh of annual spend, with complimentary domestic lounge access and a free Priority Pass. ICICI's Emeralde is ₹12,000 with the same ₹10 lakh waiver, but adds unlimited domestic lounges and a 2% forex markup against the Reserve's 3.5%. ICICI leads.

The flagship

The Amex Platinum Charge Card is ₹66,000 and gives unlimited access to Amex and Centurion lounges worldwide, 1,200+ Priority Pass lounges and a 2.5% rate on travel and dining. It needs ₹2,08,333 in monthly income. ICICI's Times Black is ₹20,000, with unlimited global lounge access via Priority Pass and a 1.49% forex markup.

At the very top, the Centurion (₹7 lakh to join, ₹2.75 lakh a year, invitation only) has no ICICI equivalent at that price, though ICICI's invite-only Diamant and 1838 Reserve exist. If lounge access and a low forex markup are the goal, ICICI's cost is a fraction. If you want the Amex charge-card experience for its own sake, Amex is the only issuer here that sells it.

The honest verdict

ICICI wins most categories on price, breadth and forex. Amex's narrow case is travellers who value its lounge network and Priority Pass bundle, and who spend enough on the Platinum Charge Card to justify the fee. For almost everyone else, an ICICI card gets the same lounge perks for less.

Pick ICICI for a first or only card, and for Amazon shopping. Consider Amex Platinum Travel as a second card if international lounge access is a priority and you already hold an ICICI card for everyday spends.

Keep reading

Our ICICI credit cards guide and Amex credit cards guide go through each card. For an Amex matchup against a different issuer, try Amex Platinum Travel vs Axis Atlas.