The easiest way to travel more is to get a Travel Credit Card which lets you accumulate miles on everyday spends and use those miles for free flights. There are two basic types of travel credit cards: Co-Branded Cards and General Purpose. We look at two options: The Citi PremierMiles Credit Card and Jetprivilege HDFC Bank Signature Credit Card.
Here’s how they stack up against each other:
Citibank PremierMiles Credit Card
- 10 miles on every Rs. 100 airline spends. 4 miles on Rs. 100 spent on all other transactions.
- Annual Fees: Rs. 3000.
- Can be redeemed for flights on ANY airline (or hotel) through its portal premiermiles.co.in.
- Offers access to select lounges worldwide.
- More Details and Application.
JetPrivilege HDFC Bank Signature Credit Card
- 6 JP Miles for Rs. 150 spent on retail purchases, 18 JP Miles for Rs. 150 spent on flights booked on jetairways.com.
- Annual fees: Rs. 2500.
- Points collected on credit card spends are directly transferred to your JetPrivilege account every month.
- Free Priority Pass membership which enables worldwide lounge access at select lounges.
- Flights can only be booked on Jet Airways and partner airlines.
- More Details and Online Application.
Summary:
| Citi PremierMiles | JetPrivilege HDFC Bank Signature | |
| Miles | 10 miles on every Rs. 100 airline spends. 4 miles on Rs. 100 for other spends | 6 JP Miles on Rs. 100 retail spends. 18 JP Miles on Rs. 150 for flights booked on jetairways.com |
| Benefits | Select lounge access. | Select lounge access + Priority Pass Membership |
| Fees | Rs. 3000 annual | Rs. 2,500 annual |
| Bonus miles | 10000 on first Rs. 1000 spent during first 60 days. 3000 miles on card renewal. | 3750 on first swipe. 3750 on retail spends above Rs. 75,000 in first 90 days |
| Interest Rate | 37.2-42% | 41.88% |
| Eligibility | CIBIL Score and I.T. Return | CIBIL Score and I.T. Return |
| Extras | Never Expiring Miles | Miles expire |
Are all miles the same?
No. Miles accrued from the Citi PremierMiles card can be used to purchase tickets on the PremierMiles website which calculate miles differently from JetPrivilege. The miles on JetPrivilege are the same for a particular sector irrespective of date and time. While the miles calculator on Citibank PremierMiles changes as per the fare.
So for example, a Mumbai – Goa flight on Jet Airways can be bought with 5000 miles. (If seats allocated for miles tickets are still available.). While for the same date & time, it could cost anywhere between 5000 to 10000 miles (approx) for the Mumbai-Goa flight on PremierMiles.
In rupee terms, each Citi PremierMile is worth about 0.45 rupees. As the fares fluctuate, so do the miles needed to book a ticket.
Which is the better one?
For regular flyers of JetAirways, the Jetprivilege HDFC Card is the better option. The miles required to book flights stay the same even for last minute bookings. (As long as allocated seats for miles are not sold out). For travelers who can book flights well in advance and are looking for the cheapest ticket and flexibility in choosing an airline, Citi Premiermiles is the way to go.
One key difference between both the cards is that while booking flights with the Citibank PremierMiles credit card, the miles can you be used to pay for the entire ticket. While using the Jetprivilege HDFC card, (or any co branded airline credit card) the tax amount has to be paid in cash.
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