Is it worth paying an annual fee on a credit card?
Rakesh Palaniswamy
Asked 9 May 2026
Most premium cards charge ₹5,000+ as annual fee. Are the rewards and lounge benefits worth it for someone whose monthly spend is around ₹2,00,000?
3 Answers
The 'minimum due' trap is real. Banks love it because they charge ~36-42% interest on the carried-forward amount. If you can't pay the full bill this month, pay at least 50% — anything below that and the interest eats the rewards of the next 6 months.
Tip from someone who made this mistake: never max out the credit limit in the first 6 months. Banks track utilisation, and high utilisation right after approval often triggers a credit limit decrease or even an account review.
Yes the rewards sound amazing in marketing, but the redemption catalogue is full of products at inflated MRP. The statement credit redemption is almost always the best value. Skip the merchandise, skip the flight bookings, take the cash.
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