Transparent by design
How we rate cards
Every card gets a rating out of 5 from four weighted scores, and our rewards calculator ranks cards by the rupees they'd actually put back in your pocket. Both are published in full — what a bank pays us never changes the order.
Our rating, weighted
Value
65%Net rewards and benefits you'd realistically earn, after fees.
Rewards
15%Breadth and rate of earning across everyday categories.
Perks
15%Lounge access, milestones, insurance and lifestyle benefits.
Service
5%Redemption ease, app experience and support.
The net-value formula
When you set your spending, every card is scored like this:
net annual value =
Σ (capped monthly spend × category rate) × 12
+ milestone benefits unlocked at your annual spend
− annual fee
What we count
- ▸ Category reward rates, with each card's monthly caps applied honestly.
- ▸ The card's base rate on everything outside a bonus category.
- ▸ Milestone benefits, but only once your spending actually reaches the threshold.
- ▸ Reward points valued at our conservative monthly rupee valuation, not best-case.
- ▸ Annual fees, always subtracted. First-year view also nets the welcome bonus and joining fee.
What we don't
- ▸ Commissions. What a bank pays us has zero weight in the order.
- ▸ Fee waivers we can't verify — we'd rather under-promise than inflate a score.
- ▸ Points we can't price honestly in rupees.
Honesty about data
Cards still being re-verified carry a verifyingtag and are never allowed to out-rank a fully checked card on a misleading number. Each card page shows the date we last confirmed its details against the issuer's own site.