I mostly spend on flights and hotels, and I’m torn between the SBI Elite Credit Card and the SBI Cashback Credit Card. Which one offers better value in terms of travel perks, lounge access, and overall benefits?
If your main expenses are on travel, the SBI Elite Card is a much better choice. It offers six complimentary domestic airport lounge visits per year, plus two international lounge visits with the Priority Pass program. You also get reward points on hotel and flight bookings, which can be redeemed for travel vouchers, making it more rewarding for frequent travelers. Plus, you get a welcome gift worth ₹5,000, which pretty much covers the first-year fee.
The SBI Cashback Card, on the other hand, is excellent for online shopping but not so much for travel. While it offers 5% cashback on online spends, it excludes most travel portals and doesn’t provide lounge access or travel-related perks. Also, the SBI Cashback Card has a lower annual fee (₹999 vs. ₹4,999 for Elite), but that’s because it lacks premium travel benefits.
I personally use SBI Elite for travel since the lounge access alone makes it worth it. But if you book flights through a platform like MakeMyTrip and it’s counted as an online spend, the SBI Cashback Card might still give you some value. Just check if the travel site qualifies for the 5% cashback, otherwise, you might miss out.