Axis Reserve Credit Card Review

Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers. Last Updated 18th November 2023.

Axis Reserve is the big brother of Axis Magnus and was the second most sought-after card among CC enthusiasts due to its exceptional reward rate till recently. Till 2021 no one would have ever thought that Axis would bring a storm in the credit card industry and outpace all its competitors and even giants like AMEX, HDFC and Citi with such good earning rates and even better redemption partners!

Getting a card worth ₹60K? Are you outta your mind? This was the first thing that I had got to hear when I told my family members that I had applied for Axis Reserve. One of the most UHNI cards available in India right now. I took the plunge last October just before I had an international vacation planned and continuing till now.

But does this card still have some juice left that makes it worth the fees? Let’s check it out!

Charges and Welcome Benefits

 

Joining Fee	₹50,000+GST
Welcome Benefits	50,000 Edge Reward Points on card activation.
Annual Fee	₹50,000+GST
Renewal Benefits	50,000 Edge Reward Points on every renewal even if you manage to fulfil a fee waiver.
Renewal Fee Waiver	Full fee waiver on spending ₹35L* in a year.

• *Rental, Govt Payments Utility and Wallet transactions are not valid for the annual spending threshold.

 

Reward Points Accrual

 

Spends Area	Multiplier	Reward Points Earning Rate	Capping
All Domestic Spends*	1X	15 Edge Reward Points/ ₹200	NA^
International Spends	2X	30 Edge Reward Points/ ₹200	NA
Gift Edge	Up to 5X	Up to 75 Edge Reward Points/ ₹200	NA
Grab Deals	Up to 5X	Up to 75 Edge Reward Points/ ₹200	10,000 ER Points/Customer ID/Month

• *Except for Wallet Loads, Govt Payments, Utility Spends and EMI.
• ^Rewards on rental spends are capped at ₹1,00,000 per transaction.
• Edge Rewards carry an expiry of 3 years from the date of accrual.
• Grab Deals points are per customer ID and not per card.

Technofino Tip – Always spend in multiples of ₹200 to maximize your earning especially when buying vouchers from Gift Edge or Grab Deals. Add smaller denominations like Swiggy/KFC to round the payable amount.

Reward Points Redemption

 

Redemption Options	Value Per ER Point	Reward Rate (1X)
Cash	20p	1X~ 1.5% 2X~ 3.0% 3X~ 4.5% 5X~ 7.5%
Travel Edge Redemption	20p	1X~ 1.5% 2X~ 3.0% 3X~ 4.5% 5X~ 7.5%
Gift Vouchers	20p (Amazon) to 40p (MultiBrand)	1X~ 1.5% to 3.0% 2X~ 3.0% to 6.0% 3X~ 4.5% to 9.0% 5X~ 7.5% to 15.0%
Transfer Partners	Minimum 40p	1X~ Minimum 3.0% 2X~ Minimum 6.0% 3X~ Minimum 9.0% 5X~ Minimum 15.0%

So as you can see first three redemptions won’t fetch you much value. Hence this card is basically a travel-oriented card in which the value can only be extracted if you consider transferring your points to the partner hotel and airlines. Even going by the conservative value of ₹0.80 per point (ITC Transfers) the reward rate comes out to around 4.8% flat and if you are into the miles game then you can take this value anywhere depending on your expertise.

Total EDGE Reward Points that can be converted to Partner Points in a calendar year is capped at 5,00,000 EDGE Reward Points per customer ID. For the year 2023, customers can convert 5,00,000 EDGE Reward Points from 1st September 2023– 31st December 2023.

If you wish to explore transfer partners of this card then we have compiled master lists for both Airlines and Hotels transfer partners on TF Community. Also, you can access our Axis Edge Transfer Guide to know what expected value you can get out of your Axis Edge Rewards earned on the Axis Trifecta.

Milestone Benefits

Axis Reserve offers no milestone benefits which is highly surprising for this fee point.

Other Benefits

Airport Lounge Access

• Domestic Airport Lounge Access:
  Unlimited for Primary as well as add-on cardholders and 12 Complimentary visits per card anniversary year for accompanying guests.
• International Lounge Access:
  Unlimited Lounge Access using Priority Pass for Primary as well as add-on cardholders and 12 Complimentary visits per card anniversary year for accompanying guests.

I would call this a one-stop credit card for you and your entire family for airport lounge access that too anywhere in the world.

Also, you can access some select domestic lounges using the Priority Pass offered by Reserve then the charges are reversed later on. Earlier the bank was allowing to access all domestic lounges in India complimentary using Priority Pass.

Luxury Airport Transfers

How about a luxury (Merc/BMW/Audi) chauffeured car standing right outside your home ready to take you to the airport for your next flight that too for free? Welcome to the world of Luxury Airport Transfers. Axis Bank is giving this facility on Reserve in a tie-up with DreamFolks Services.

In my opinion, the number of transfers is quite low if compared to the fee paid for this card.

Airport Meet and Greet

• 8 Complimentary Meet and Greet Access per Calendar Year.

Airport Meet and Greet also known as an airport concierge service is the USP of this product since only a very limited set of cards in India are providing this service. In this service, you get a dedicated person right at the gate to take care of all your luggage by providing a dedicated buggy and a porter service. With this, they also provide check-in via express counters, security checks via Business class sections and also immigration assistance even if you are travelling economy.

Since Magnus is providing the same I had expected Axis Bank to at least provide double the access on this card!

Complimentary Memberships & Other Hotel Benefits

Club ITC Culinaire

This card provides a toned-down version of Club ITC Culinaire and doesn’t offer the Free Night Stay instead they give a 3rd night stay on booking two revenue nights. It also offers just 1 room upgrade voucher instead of two. But it does provide two 50% and 20% off F&B Vouchers each.

• Complimentary third-night stay.
• 50% savings on published room tariff for suites on weekends.
• 25% Green Points on Food and Beverage Spending.
• Bouquet of 10 certificates and more.

Accor Plus Membership

Axis offers automatic enrolment to the Silver Tier membership of Accor Plus which comes with various benefits and which is generally achievable by spending 800 € which is roughly around 70,000 INR. 

• 2-night complimentary stay across the Asia Pacific region.
• Complimentary room upgrade.
• Up to 50% off on dining.
• Complimentary lunch buffet for 2 across Accor hotels in India.

Club Marriot Asia Pacific Membership

• 20% off on food and beverage.
• 20% off on the best available rates at participating Marriott hotels in India and on Weekend rates in Asia Pacific.

Oberoi Hotels Benefits

• 15% savings on Room Only Rate and Room with Breakfast Rate or 3rd Night complimentary.
• 50% savings on the Best Available Rates on suites.

The Postcard Hotel Benefits

• 15% off on the best available room rate.
• Anytime check-in and check-out.
• A complimentary lifestyle consultation (applicable at our hotels in Goa).

Golf Benefits

Axis Bank Reserve Credit Card entitles you to 50 complimentary rounds of golf games or lessons every year at some of the most premium golf destinations in the country. Never tried this but would soon give it a shot!

Movies & Entertainment

BookMyShow Offer

This card provides Buy 1 Get 1 on Movies and Events for a maximum of up to ₹500 and ₹1,000 per ticket respectively on bookings made on BookMyShow that too 5 times a month. Other than this you can also use the Visa Infinite benefits on this card. The availability for the Magnus offer is better than the Visa Infinite offer since the quota looks huge.

EazyDiner

Complimentary membership of the Eazydiner Prime dining program under which you up to 25% off plus a 40% card discount up to ₹1,000 at premium restaurants across the country. It is one of my favourite benefits on both Reserve and Magnus which I eagerly look forward to enjoying while dining out with my friends and family at fancy places.

Fuel Surcharge Waiver

 A 1% fuel surcharge waiver at all the fuel stations for transactions ₹400 to ₹4000 with a maximum surcharge waiver of ₹400 per month.

Forex Markup

This card provides a reduced forex markup charge of only 1.5% + GST and with an accelerated reward rate of 6% on international spending this card is the crown prince for forex spending!

Insurance Benefits

Comprehensive insurance cover including purchase protection up to ₹2L, a 500 USD cover for loss/delay in baggage. Also, you are provided with an Air Accidental Insurance of ₹4.5Cr and complete lost card liability lies with the bank in case you misplace the card.

Eligibility

 

• Indian Resident, aged 21 to 65 years of age.
• Minimum ₹36LPA ITR or ₹4L credit limit on other banks’ credit cards for C2C basis application.

TechnoFino Recommends

 

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With the recent brutal devaluations on this card, I would say Axis Bank has killed this card. But if you still have considerable forex spends and value the Accor Stay Plus nights and other perks that come along with this card then this card still makes some sense.

Do you hold this magnificent card? How are planning to redeem the truckloads of your ER points? Share your plans in the comments below.