Airtel Axis vs Axis ACE: Cashback Face-off for Utility Bill Payments

Utility bills, including electricity, water, gas, etc., along with DTH and mobile recharges are some essential expenses which make up a considerable portion of our monthly budget. However, many credit cards either exclude this spending category from their value-back programs or only offer a base savings rate. So, credit card options that cater to these spends are quite limited.

Two of the Axis Bank Credit Card offerings, namely Airtel Axis and Axis ACE, stand out by providing noteworthy saving rates on utility bill payments. Both the cards are cashback cards offered at a low annual fee with accelerated value-back on bills, recharges and select preferred partner brands. Though offering similar benefits and fees, their utility benefits are associated with different payment portals and come with different capping conditions.

Here is a detailed comparison of the fees, features and benefits of Airtel Axis Credit Card and Axis Bank ACE Credit Card to analyse which one comes with a better overall value-back and is more suitable for your utility bill payments:

Card Fee and Joining Benefit Comparison

Both credit cards come with similar low annual fee and the same spend-based fee waiver condition – 

Joining/Annual Fee:

• Rs. 500 + GST of Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card
• Rs. 499 + GST of Axis Bank ACE Credit Card

Fee Waiver: On spending more than Rs. 2 lakh in a year

Joining Benefit: Though they have a similar fee structure, only Airtel Axis offers a welcome bonus in the form of an Amazon e-voucher worth Rs. 500 as compensation for its joining fee on making the first card transaction within 30 days of card issuance.

Cashback Benefit Comparison

Here, both Axis Bank Credit Cards come with similar cashback benefits with accelerated value-back on utility bill payments, recharges and preferred partners. Even the preferred partner list of each card has 2 out of 3 brands in common, namely Zomato and Swiggy. However, despite these similarities, the accelerated cashback rates look vastly different with 25% and 10% on Airtel Axis and just 5% and 4% on Axis ACE. Such a contrast could have made Airtel Axis a clear leader in this card comparison, however the low capping limits on both the cards somewhat level the field between these two credit cards. Moreover, each of these cards offers cashback on utility bills paid using different payment platforms, where one prefers Airtel Thanks, the other favours Google Pay. The base cashback rates offered by these cards are also quite close in value and are not accompanied by any capping on cashback earning.

Cashback Comparison: How Much Can You Save?

Given below is a breakdown of possible monthly spends, along with their corresponding cashback earnings using Airtel Axis and Axis ACE credit cards:

Through this comparison of cashback earnings on various monthly spends, Airtel Axis Credit Card seems to be the clear winner. It offers around 4.38% savings with cashback worth Rs. 450 more than that offered by its competitor which only offers around 2.58% savings. However, if you only consider utility and recharge spends, the difference in savings is not that big with Airtel Axis offering Rs. 500 cashback on Rs. 9,500 utility-related spends and Axis ACE offering cashback worth Rs. 475. This draws our focus to how capping on preferred partners plays an important role in differentiating between the cards’ savings potentials.

Here, the capping limitations applicable on Airtel credit card amount to a total of Rs. 500 on utility and recharges combined and Rs. 500 on preferred partners. Whereas the capping of Rs. 500 on all utility, recharges and preferred partners combined on the latter brings down the maximum possible cashback to half of that allowed by Airtel Axis on these spending categories.

Suggested Read: Best Cashback Credit Cards in India

Other Features & Benefits Comparison

Both Airtel Axis and Axis ACE credit cards offer the same lifestyle benefits as follows:

Domestic Lounge Access: 4 free airport lounge visits in India every year on spending Rs. 50,000 during the previous 3 months

Dining Benefit: 15% off, up to Rs. 500, on dining bill at partner restaurants via EazyDiner

Fuel Benefit: 1% fuel surcharge waiver, up to Rs. 500 per month, on fuel spends of Rs. 400 to Rs. 4,000

Which One to Choose: Airtel Axis or Axis ACE?

Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card and Axis ACE Credit Card both come at almost the same annual fee and offer accelerated cashback on similar categories, including utility bill payments, and a similar base rate on other eligible spends. Furthermore, even their fee waiver conditions, domestic lounge access and dining discount features are identical. Nevertheless, the key differences lie in the detailed terms and conditions of their cashback programs.

Choose Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card If:

• You are an Airtel customer and wish to save well on Airtel recharge bills
• You are looking for a card to save on utility bills and recharges and prefer using Airtel Thanks platform to pay these bills
• You frequently spend on Zomato, Swiggy and Ola
• You want a card that compensates for the joining fee with a good welcome bonus

Choose Axis Bank ACE Credit Card If:

• You wish to save well on utility bills and recharges
• You prefer to pay your bills using Google Pay app, instead of any other network specific platform
• You make significant spends on Zomato, Swiggy and BigBasket
• You are looking for a slightly higher base cashback rate on non-accelerated spending categories