ICICI vs Kotak Credit Cards: A Lifetime-Free Starter Against Kotak's Airline Miles

ICICI has several cards on our list with no annual fee, including Amazon Pay and the MakeMyTrip Signature. Kotak has fewer cards, but leans on airline miles. The result is a comparison where ICICI wins the starter end and the two split travel.

Starter cards

ICICI Amazon Pay lists no annual fee, 5% on online spend, 1.99% forex and a ₹30,000 monthly income floor. The review is at ICICI Amazon Pay card review. The ICICI MakeMyTrip Platinum and Platinum Chip also list no fee. Kotak's entries include League Platinum (₹499, 2.5% online, waived at ₹50,000), 811 (₹500) and the UPI RuPay card with no fee. Kotak Cashback+ costs ₹750 and pays 5% on groceries under a ₹750 monthly cap; the Prime version adds 5% online. Read the Kotak Cashback+ review. ICICI's starter cards are easier to hold without a condition to track.

Pump-side rewards

ICICI HPCL Super Saver costs ₹500 (waived at ₹1.5 lakh) and lists 4% on fuel under a ₹200 monthly cap, plus 5% on groceries and utilities under ₹100 caps. The ICICI HPCL Coral card costs ₹199 and lists 2.5% on fuel. Kotak IndianOil costs ₹449 (waived at ₹50,000) and lists 4% on fuel, 2% on groceries and 2% on dining without a stated cap. Kotak's version looks the better fuel deal, since its rates are not capped on our list. See the ICICI HPCL Super Saver review.

Airline and travel cards

Kotak Air+ costs ₹3,000 and lists miles earn, 5% on travel, 4 domestic and 2 international lounge visits and 2% forex. Air+ Prime also costs ₹3,000 with a ₹4 lakh waiver and a ₹40,000 floor. The IndiGo Kotak card is ₹1,500. ICICI offers MakeMyTrip Signature at no fee with 6% on travel under a ₹1,500 cap, the MakeMyTrip card at ₹999 with 0.99% forex, and Emirates Skywards cards at ₹1,000 (Rubyx), ₹5,000 (Sapphiro) and ₹10,000 (Emeralde). For a bank-agnostic miles card, Kotak Air+ is simple. For hotel and flight bookings through one portal, ICICI's MakeMyTrip cards are cheaper. See the Kotak Air+ review and MakeMyTrip Signature review.

Mid-premium: Sapphiro against White and Zen

ICICI Sapphiro costs ₹3,500 (waived at ₹6 lakh), lists 4 domestic and 2 international lounge visits and a ₹75,000 floor. Kotak White costs ₹3,000 (waived at ₹5 lakh), lists 8 domestic and 4 international visits, but asks for a ₹2,08,333 monthly income. Zen Signature at ₹1,500 lists 4% on dining and 3% online, both under ₹1,000 caps. Sapphiro is easier to qualify for, White has double the lounge visits, and Zen is the cheaper everyday card. Our reviews of ICICI Sapphiro, Kotak White and Kotak Zen Signature go deeper.

Super-premium and forex

ICICI Emeralde costs ₹12,000 (waived at ₹10 lakh), lists 4% base earn, 2% forex, unlimited domestic lounge access and a ₹1,50,000 floor. Times Black costs ₹20,000 with 1.49% forex. Kotak White Reserve costs ₹12,500, lists 1% base and 2% forex. Emeralde offers the stronger base earn for a similar fee and a lower income bar than White Reserve's. Read the Emeralde review.

ICICI lists 1.99% on Amazon Pay, 2% on Emeralde and Emirates Sapphiro, 1.5% on Emirates Emeralde, and 3.5% on many others. Kotak lists 2% on Air+ and White Reserve, 3% on Zen Signature and 3.5% on most others.

Reader-by-reader picks

Amazon Prime regular: ICICI Amazon Pay. Groceries and fuel at a low fee: Kotak Cashback+ Prime or IndianOil. Mid-range traveller: Kotak Air+ for simplicity, ICICI MakeMyTrip Signature for portal bookings. Lounge user with a salary of about ₹75,000: ICICI Sapphiro. High earner: ICICI Emeralde over Kotak White Reserve.

Lineup guides and an ICICI rival

Read the ICICI credit cards guide and Kotak credit cards guide. For ICICI against a major rival, try ICICI vs Axis credit cards.