American Express SmartEarn Credit Card
Updated on August 26, 2026
🎖️Reward Rate
10X Reward Partners: Zomato, Ajio, Nykaa, BookMyShow, Uber and more (per main copy)
Overview
The American Express SmartEarn Credit Card is an accessible entry-level rewards card offering accelerated Membership Rewards points on popular online and food-delivery merchants, plus a low ₹495 annual fee.
Rewards
Reward Type
Reward Points
Reward Rate
- • 10X Reward Partners: Zomato, Ajio, Nykaa, BookMyShow, Uber and more (per main copy)
- • footnote example also names Flipkart under the 10X category. Amazon is NOT listed as a 10X partner.
- • 5X Reward Partners: Amazon only (max 250 Membership Rewards points/month per Card Account)
- • Base Reward Rate (all other spend): 1 Membership Rewards Point for every ₹50 spent, except Fuel, Insurance, Utilities, Cash Transactions and EMI conversion at POS
Welcome Benefit
₹500 cashback as a Welcome Gift (statement credit) on eligible spends of ₹10,000 within the first 90 days of Cardmembership
Milestone Benefit
₹500 gift voucher each on reaching annual spend milestones of ₹1.20 Lakhs, ₹1.80 Lakhs, and ₹2.40 Lakhs
Redemption
- • Redeemable for Membership Rewards vouchers/e-vouchers
- • specific catalogue not shown on captured pages for this card
Benefits
- Fuel Surcharge Waiver: 'Fuel Convenience Fee Waiver at HPCL' is listed as a benefit link, but no rate/cap detail shown on captured pages
- Zero Lost Card Liability: Listed as 'Zero Lost Card Liability' under Services
- footnote elsewhere on the site clarifies liability is nil only if reported within 3 working days — after that, liability is capped at ₹1,000, not automatically zero
- American Express EMI: Convert purchases into EMI at the point of sale with interest as low as 14% p.a.
Things to Know Before you apply
American Express SmartEarn Credit Card Eligibility Criteria
- Age: 18+ years
- Employed: ₹4.5 lakhs+ annual income; Self-Employed: ₹6 lakhs+ annual income (different thresholds)
- If self-employed, company must have been trading for more than 12 months
- Resident Indian; card issued only to residents of listed cities (Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Pune, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Indore, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodra, Lucknow, Ludhiana, Nagpur, Nasik, Trivandrum, Mysuru) subject to conditions
Fees & Charges
| Particulars | Amount |
|---|---|
| Joining Fee | Free |
| Annual Fee | ₹495 |
| Cash Advance Fee | Not disclosed by issuer |
Fee waiver: Renewal fee waiver on eligible spends of ₹40,000 and above in the previous Cardmembership year
PaisaSimple Review
Overall Rating
4.9/5What do we like about this card?
A low-fee, entry-level card well suited to frequent Zomato/Ajio/Nykaa/BookMyShow/Uber spenders under the 10X tier; Amazon spend only qualifies for the lower 5X tier; American Express is currently pausing acceptance of new card applications in India while it updates its domestic card-issuing technology platforms.
Pros
- • Low ₹495 annual fee with an achievable ₹40,000 waiver threshold
- • Strong 10X rewards on popular food-delivery, fashion and ride-hailing merchants
- • ₹500 welcome cashback on just ₹10,000 spend
- • Three separate ₹500 milestone vouchers through the year
Cons
- • New applications currently paused by the issuer
- • Amazon spend earns only the lower 5X tier, not 10X
- • Lost card liability is not unconditional — capped at ₹1,000 if not reported within 3 working days
- • Self-employed income threshold (₹6L) is higher than salaried (₹4.5L)
Compare with Similar Cards
Joining Fee
Free
Annual/Renewal Fee
₹495
Joining Fee
₹499
Annual/Renewal Fee
₹499
Joining Fee
₹500
Annual/Renewal Fee
₹500
- • ₹500 cashback as a Welcome Gift (statement credit) on eligible spends of ₹10,000 within the first 90 days of Cardmembership
- • Welcome Benefit: Amazon.in e-Gift Card worth ₹500 on payment of Annual Fee (no spend condition shown)
- • Pay your joining membership fee and get 500 Reward Points
- • 10X Reward Partners: Zomato, Ajio, Nykaa, BookMyShow, Uber and more (per main copy)
- • footnote example also names Flipkart under the 10X category. Amazon is NOT listed as a 10X partner.
- • 5X Reward Partners: Amazon only (max 250 Membership Rewards points/month per Card Account)
- • Base Reward Rate (all other spend): 1 Membership Rewards Point for every ₹50 spent, except Fuel, Insurance, Utilities, Cash Transactions and EMI conversion at POS
- • Base Reward Rate (offline): Not shown on pages reviewed (SBI 'Rewards' tab captured only shows Milestone/E-Shopping sections)
- • 2 CashPoints on every ₹200 spent (base)
- • 10X CashPoints (up to 2.5% valueback) on Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy, Reliance Smart SuperStore and BigBasket
- • 5X CashPoints on EMI spends at merchant locations
- • Low ₹495 annual fee with an achievable ₹40,000 waiver threshold
- • Strong 10X rewards on popular food-delivery, fashion and ride-hailing merchants
- • ₹500 welcome cashback on just ₹10,000 spend
- • Three separate ₹500 milestone vouchers through the year
- • Base Rewards: 1 Reward Point per ₹100 (1 Reward Point per ₹100 on offline retail spends)
- • Forex markup rate of 3.5%
- • Airport lounge and lifestyle dining privileges
- • Value-packed milestone rewards on annual spend
- • Base Rewards: 2 CashPoints per ₹150 (2 CashPoints per ₹150 on retail spends)
- • Forex markup rate of 3.5%
- • Airport lounge and lifestyle dining privileges
- • Value-packed milestone rewards on annual spend
- • New applications currently paused by the issuer
- • Amazon spend earns only the lower 5X tier, not 10X
- • Lost card liability is not unconditional — capped at ₹1,000 if not reported within 3 working days
- • Self-employed income threshold (₹6L) is higher than salaried (₹4.5L)
- • Annual renewal fee of ₹499
- • Reward exclusion on fuel purchases and wallet load transactions
- • Annual renewal fee of ₹500
- • Reward exclusion on fuel purchases and wallet load transactions