The Airtel Axis credit card still advertises 25% cashback on Airtel bills and 10% on utilities.
Both numbers are technically true. Neither matters.
You have to spend elsewhere before you unlock either benefit.
How the Cashback Really Works
Suppose your Airtel bill is ₹1,000. The advertised cashback is ₹250.
But you only get that if you’ve already spent ₹12,500 on other 1% categories. Spend nothing elsewhere and you get nothing here.
Same story for utilities. ₹2,500 in bills promises ₹250 cashback, but only if you’ve spent ₹25,000 elsewhere first.
Spend ₹25,000 elsewhere, ₹1,000 on Airtel and ₹2,500 on utilities, and you receive ₹750 in total cashback. That is roughly 2.6% on ₹28,500—not the 10% or 25% the headline encourages you to remember.
This is a 1% card with a hoop to jump through if you want more.
The joining and annual fees are ₹500 plus GST. The annual fee is waived only when yearly spending exceeds ₹2 lakh.
The Partner Offers
There’s 10% back on Zomato, Blinkit, and District Movies, capped at ₹200 per partner per month. Zomato and Blinkit need a ₹499 minimum order.
This is credited to the respective partner wallet. It is not cashback against your card bill.
Useful if you already use these. Otherwise, it’s just another nudge to spend where you wouldn’t have.
What Credit Card Users Think
The community response is mostly negative.
It used to be popular for paying Airtel and utility bills without making it your main card. That’s gone. Many have closed it. Others did the maths and found moving ₹20,000–₹25,000 to a 1% card isn’t worth it. Some saw their cashback drop from ₹600 to ₹30 (approximate, rounded numbers).
A few still find value. They already spend enough offline or on RuPay to get just 1% elsewhere, so the Airtel and utility cashback is a bonus.
Both views make sense. The real question is whether you have to shift spending just to unlock the cashback.
Who This Card Is Actually For
This card may work if:
- You already spend ₹12,500–₹25,000 every month in eligible 1% categories.
- You have meaningful Airtel and utility bills.
- You regularly use Zomato, Blinkit or District Movies.
- The card is lifetime-free, or you naturally cross the annual fee-waiver threshold.
Skip it if:
- You want a card mainly for Airtel and utility bills.
- You have another card giving better rewards on your regular spending.
- You’d need to move spending just to unlock cashback.
- You prefer simple rewards with fixed limits.
The Verdict
Do not get this card just because you saw ‘25% cashback on Airtel bills’.
Only get it if your regular spending already unlocks the cashback. Moving ₹25,000 from a better card to earn 1% here is pointless.
If you only used Airtel Axis for bills, it’s not worth the annual fee anymore.
If you already have it, check your actual cashback over two or three statements. If the maths no longer works, wait for all pending cashback to be credited before closing or converting the card. Axis says pending cashback can be forfeited when the card is cancelled.
The card is not completely useless. It is simply useful to far fewer people than its headline suggests.