IndusInd Tiger Credit Card Review: Lifetime Free, Low Forex, Almost No Rewards

The IndusInd Tiger is a lifetime-free card that gets the expensive things right and the everyday thing wrong. It charges nothing to hold, has a forex markup well below the usual 3.5%, and includes domestic and international lounge visits. What it doesn't do is reward you for spending. The reward rate is close to zero, so Tiger works as a travel companion card and a safety net for overseas spending, not as the card you put your monthly bills on.

Fees and eligibility at a glance

There is no joining fee and no annual fee, ever, so there's no waiver target to track. That alone makes Tiger worth considering as a second or third card. Eligibility is accessible: a credit score of 650, a minimum monthly income of ₹15,000 and an age between 21 and 60, for salaried and self-employed applicants alike. It runs on Mastercard. The interest rate is 3.5% a month, standard for the market, and the card offers up to 50 interest-free days if you pay the full balance each cycle.

Rewards and how they actually work

This is the weak spot. Tiger earns reward points at an effective rate of about 0.15%, with each point worth around 40 paise. In practice, ₹10,000 of spending earns roughly ₹15 in value. Put ₹3 lakh a year on the card and you'd collect around ₹450. There are no accelerated categories and no milestone bonuses.

That return is low enough that it shouldn't factor into your decision at all. If you want rewards, use a cashback or rewards card for everyday spending and treat anything Tiger earns as a rounding error.

Lounges, forex and other perks

The perks are where Tiger earns its place. You get 2 complimentary domestic lounge visits per quarter, up to 8 a year, plus 2 complimentary international lounge visits a year through Priority Pass. There's no spend condition attached to the domestic visits, which matters, because many free and low-fee cards now gate lounge access behind a monthly or quarterly spend target.

The 1.5% forex markup is the other big draw. On ₹1 lakh of overseas or foreign-currency spending, you'd pay ₹1,500 in markup instead of ₹3,500 on a typical 3.5% card, a saving of ₹2,000 on a card that costs nothing. For a once-a-year international holiday or regular payments to foreign websites, that adds up.

The rest is a mix of useful and minor. There's personal air accident cover of up to ₹25 lakh and card protection against counterfeit fraud and unauthorised use for up to 48 hours before you report a loss. You get complimentary golf games, one free BookMyShow movie ticket worth up to ₹500 every six months, and a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on transactions between ₹400 and ₹4,000.

How it compares with IDFC FIRST Wealth and Scapia

The IDFC FIRST Wealth review covers the most similar card on paper: also lifetime free, also a 1.5% forex markup, with richer extras like quarterly golf and ₹1 crore of air accident cover. But Wealth asks for a minimum monthly income of ₹3 lakh, and its lounge visits (1 domestic and 1 international per quarter) unlock only when you spend ₹20,000 in the current calendar month. Tiger's ₹15,000 income bar makes it reachable for far more people.

The Federal Bank Scapia Credit Card is the other comparison. It's lifetime free with zero forex markup, earns 2% on general spend and up to 10% on travel booked in the Scapia app, and offers unlimited domestic lounge access once you spend ₹5,000 a month. It has no international lounge access, though. Scapia beats Tiger on rewards and forex. Tiger's edge is the Priority Pass visits and the lower income and credit score requirements.

What's genuinely good about this card

Zero fees with no conditions is the foundation. On top of that, a 1.5% forex markup is genuinely low for a free card, and 8 domestic plus 2 international lounge visits a year is a generous allowance for something you never pay for. The insurance cover and movie tickets are small extras that cost nothing to keep. And with a 650 credit score and ₹15,000 income requirement, it's one of the more accessible ways to get lounge access and low forex in one card.

Where it falls short

The reward rate is about as low as it gets, so every rupee you spend on Tiger instead of a proper rewards card is money left behind. Beyond the lounges and forex, the benefits are basic. Golf and movie perks are nice but minor, and there's nothing here for dining, groceries or online shopping.

Who this card actually makes sense for

Tiger suits budget-conscious travellers who want lounge access and lower forex charges without paying an annual fee, and people early in their credit journey who can't yet qualify for premium travel cards. Carry it for trips and foreign-currency payments, and keep a separate card for everyday spending. If you never travel, there's little reason to hold it beyond having a free backup card.

Where to go from here

For the rest of IndusInd's lineup, see the IndusInd Bank credit cards guide and our IndusInd Legend review. To compare free cards with lounge access, read the best lifetime free credit cards with lounge access, and for overseas spending, the best low forex markup credit cards.