3 best cashback credit cards of 2025: Earn more on every purchase

Various credit cards come with numerous features and benefits. Some of these include instant discounts, cashbacks, reward points, airport/railway lounge access, BOGO offers on movie tickets, various memberships, etc. A segment of credit card holders uses them for the cashbacks they provide. Looking at the popularity of this segment, banks have launched cashback specific credit cards that cater to this segment. 

Let us look at the features and benefits of some cashback credit cards and which one is the best for 2025.

Cashback SBI Card

The Cashback SBI Card is one of the most popular credit cards in the cashback segment. It provides the following features and benefits.

1. 5% cashback on online spends and 1% cashback on offline spends, subject to a maximum cashback of Rs. 5,000 in a statement cycle.
2. The following spends/transactions will not earn any cashback: wallet loads, rent/property management, jewellery, school and education services, utilities, insurance premiums, railway transactions, any purchases at petrol pumps, etc.
3. 1% fuel surcharge waiver across all petrol pumps in India on fuel transactions ranging between Rs. 500 to Rs. 3,000. The maximum surcharge waiver is Rs. 100 per monthly billing cycle.
4. The cashback is automatically credited to the cardholder’s SBI Card account within two working days of the monthly statement generation.
5. The joining and annual fee is Rs. 999 + Taxes. The annual fee is reversed if the cardholder spends Rs. 2 lakhs or above in the previous year.
6. A limitation of this card is that it is not eligible for the 10% instant discount that SBI Card gives on various merchant platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, etc., during sale events.

The Cashback SBI Card is a simple credit card that gives cashback for online and offline spends. The cashback earned in a billing cycle is posted to the account within two working days of the statement generation. It doesn’t have the concept of reward points.

Individuals whose maximum spends are online, and prefer cashback over instant discounts and reward points may consider this card.

Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card

If you are a foodie who loves dining out or ordering food delivery at home, the Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card can offer you 10% cashback. The card provides the following features and benefits.

1. 10% cashback on the Swiggy App (ordering food delivery, Instamart, Dineout, and Genie), subject to a maximum capping of Rs. 1,500 in a billing cycle.
2. 5% cashback on online spends across specified categories. These include apparel, department stores, electronics, entertainment, home décor, pharmacies, personal care, local cabs, online pet stores, discount stores (Flipkart, Amazon, Meesho, and Ajio), etc. The maximum cashback that can be earned in a billing cycle is Rs. 1,500.
3. 1% cashback on other categories, subject to specified exclusions. The exclusions include fuel, rent, wallet loads, jewellery, Government related transactions, etc. The maximum cashback that can be earned in a billing cycle is Rs. 500.
4. Complimentary Swiggy One membership 3 months on card activation.
5. The cashback earned in a billing statement will be posted as a statement credit.
6. The card has a joining and annual renewal fee of Rs. 500 + Taxes. The renewal fee is waived on spending Rs. 2 lakhs in the previous year. For a limited period, the bank is offering the card on a lifetime free basis till 31st December for applications made through HDFC Bank’s digital platform and physical applications.

The Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card can save you up to Rs. 42,000 annually as follows:

1. 10% cashback on Swiggy App purchases (Rs. 1,500 savings per month X 12 months = Rs. 18,000 annually)
2. 5% cashback on online spends (Rs. 1,500 savings per month X 12 months = Rs. 18,000 annually)
3. 1% cashback on other spends (Rs. 500 savings per month X 12 months = Rs. 6,000 annually)

If you prefer cashback and spend a lot of money on purchases through the Swiggy App and other online websites/apps, you may consider this credit card.

HSBC Live+ Credit Card

In the earlier section, we saw how the Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card can give you 10% cashback on dining and ordering food through the Swiggy App. However, the 10% cashback on this card is limited to the Swiggy App. What if someone wants to order food delivery from Zomato, or order groceries from Bigbasket or dine at a local restaurant of their choice? The HSBC Live+ Credit Card gives you the flexibility to choose the online or offline merchant of your choice for specified categories and earn 10% cashback on it.

The HSBC Live+ Credit Card offers the following features and benefits:

1. 10% cashback on all dining, food delivery, and grocery spends, subject to a maximum limit of Rs. 1,000 per billing statement.
2. 1.5% unlimited cashback on other spends, subject to some exclusions
3. The exclusions are utilities, tax payments, rent and other property management fees, jewellery, insurance premiums, fuel, wallet loads, education, Government payments, gambling, toll fees, charity, wholesale clubs, etc.
4. Four complimentary domestic airport lounge access (one per quarter).
5. The card has a joining and annual fee of Rs. 999 + Taxes. The annual fee is waived on spending Rs. 2 lakhs in the previous year.

If you prefer to order food from or dine at a restaurant of your choice and get 10% cashback, you may consider this credit card.

Which cashback credit card is the best?

As everyone has their own choices and preferences, there is no single best cashback credit card. If someone prefers cashback for most online purchases, the Cashback SBI Card can be considered. If someone prefers the Swiggy App, whether for ordering food delivery, groceries, or booking restaurants for dining, the Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card may be considered. If someone prefers to order food from or dine at various restaurants, independent of any platform like Swiggy, the HSBC Live+ Credit Card may be considered. So, the HSBC Live+ Credit Card offers flexibility along with a good 10% cashback.

However, the HSBC Live+ Credit Card is available in very few cities and for salaried individuals. The Cashback SBI Card and Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card are available in most cities due to the wide reach of SBI and HDFC Bank. Also, these credit cards are available to salaried and self-employed individuals.

The HSBC Live+ Credit Card limits the 10% cashback to Rs. 1,000 per billing cycle. The Cashback SBI Card has a maximum cashback capping of Rs. 5,000 per billing cycle. The Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card has a maximum cashback capping of Rs. 1,500 on Swiggy purchases and Rs. 1,500 on online purchases per billing cycle.

If you are salaried and stay in a city serviced by HSBC Bank, you may consider the HSBC Live+ Credit Card. Else, you may choose between Cashback SBI Card or Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card, depending on how much you spend through the Swiggy App.

Apart from the three cashback credit cards discussed in this article, there are others like the Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card, Flipkart Axis Bank Credit Card, Tata Neu HDFC Bank Credit Card (Plus and Infinity variants), etc. Each of these credit cards has its own USP.

You need to analyse factors like your cashback requirement, annual spends, categories where you spend the maximum amount, annual income, city of residence, profession, etc. Based on the above factors, you can choose the best card. As everybody’s needs are different, the best cashback credit card for you is the one that suits your needs and provides you flexibility in spending wherever you want.

Gopal Gidwani is a freelance personal finance content writer with 15+ years of experience. He can be reached at LinkedIn.