Freecharge Plus Credit Card

The 5% that users say is really 3.8%

The headline is 5% cashback on payments made through Freecharge. The catch, according to users, is that Freecharge adds a 1.2% convenience fee on utility bill payments above ₹1,000. On a typical electricity bill, that leaves you about 3.8%.

That is still a good rate for bills, and users say the monthly cashback ceiling is higher than on Airtel Axis, which is why heavy bill payers call this card underrated. For everyone else it is a plain 1% card. Our record does not hold the exact cap, so read the MITC before planning a large month.

Three bills, worked out

Using the user-reported fee, and assuming the full 5% posts:

• A ₹1,000 bill: ₹50 back, no fee, so a true 5%.
• A ₹5,000 bill: ₹250 back, minus a ₹60 fee, so ₹190 net.
• A ₹15,000 bill: ₹750 back, minus ₹180, so ₹570 net.

GST on the convenience fee is ignored here, so treat these as the best case. Run one bill first and check what actually posts before you move every bill onto the card.

Outside Freecharge, you get 2% on local commute spends and 1% on everything else. Our record does not define which merchants count as local commute.

You may not be able to apply for it

Axis offers Freecharge Plus by invitation, through a banner in the Freecharge app for users it considers eligible. If you do not see the offer in your app, there may be no open route for you right now. An invite is still not an approval.

There is also no welcome voucher on cards issued on or after 4 January 2023, and the terms were updated on 20 June 2025, so older reviews may describe a different card.

₹350 a year, and how to never pay it

You pay ₹350 + GST to join. There is no annual fee in year one, and from year two the ₹350 + GST fee is waived if you spent ₹50,000 in the previous anniversary year. That is about ₹4,200 a month, which a household routing its electricity and insurance through the card will clear without trying.

Users ask whether Axis will make it lifetime free on request. We found no reliable evidence that it does, and with a waiver this easy you probably do not need it.

Freecharge Plus or Airtel Axis?

This is the comparison Reddit makes most. Users prefer Airtel Axis for utility bills up to about ₹3,000 a month because its rate is higher, and Freecharge Plus for bigger bills and insurance premiums because of its larger cap. Users also say LIC and private insurer premiums paid on Freecharge earn cashback, which most cards exclude. Test that with a small renewal first.

For a daily driver, users lean towards Axis ACE for its Google Pay bill payments and wider offline use.

Is Freecharge Plus worth it?

Yes, if you got the invite and pay ₹10,000 or more a month in utility or insurance bills, and you keep it for that one job. No, if your bills are small or you already hold Airtel Axis or SBI Cashback; then it mostly adds a fee and a 1% card to your wallet.

Credit Card Information Compiled by: Abhijeet Kumar | Reviewed by: Anmol Ratan Sachdeva