Credit card guides that show the math.
Forex markups, lounge rules, fee waivers and reward value for India and the US. Card figures come from our catalog, each with the issuer source.
Choosing a card
Fees, income gates and what free really means.
Is a premium travel credit card worth the fee? The US math (2026)
A premium travel card pays off when the credits and rewards you will really use beat the fee. Run the break-even math, count credits honestly, and compare fees from our catalog.
Read the guideIs a premium credit card worth it in India? The fee and waiver math (2026)
A premium card earns back its fee through rewards, a fee waiver or perks you would pay for anyway. The break-even math, the lounge fine print that changed in 2026, and every premium card in our catalog side by side.
Read the guideLifetime free credit cards in India (2026): what free really means
Lifetime free, first year free and fee waived on spend are three different promises. How to tell them apart, the fees a free card still charges, and every no-fee card in our catalog.
Read the guideCredit card welcome bonus math (2026): when the bonus really pays for the fee
A welcome bonus is year-one money; the fee is every year. How to value Indian and US welcome offers, the year-one and year-two math, the mistakes that forfeit a bonus, and current offers from our catalog.
Read the guideCredit card income requirements in India (2026): every card's stated minimum
The stated minimum income for every Indian credit card in our catalog, grouped by tier, plus what banks check beyond income: credit score, ITR, banking relationship and recent applications.
Read the guideBest credit card for Amazon India in 2026 (₹50K+ annual spend)
Which credit card pays the most on Amazon India: the Amazon Pay ICICI card against SBI SimplyClick, SBI Cashback, HDFC Millennia and Flipkart Axis, with yearly returns computed from our catalog at three spend levels.
Read the guideTravel and forex
Markups, lounges and paying in foreign currency.
Best credit cards for international transactions from India (2026): forex markup compared
What a foreign swipe really costs on an Indian credit card: the forex markup, the 18% GST on it, and the dynamic conversion trap. Every zero and low-markup card in our catalog, side by side.
Read the guideCredit card transfer partners (2026): when moving points to an airline beats cashback
How to tell whether transferring card points to an airline or hotel beats a statement credit, the value-per-point formula, the risks, and every transfer-partner change we tracked in 2026 for Indian and US cards.
Read the guideHow to pay for Anthropic Claude API as an Indian business in 2026
Paying the Claude API from India: which card keeps forex costs down, what 18% GST on the markup adds, how GST reverse charge works for registered businesses, and the TDS question to settle with your CA.
Read the guideForex on AI subscriptions: what Indian startups actually lose in 2026
What the forex markup and the 18% GST on it cost an Indian team paying AI and software tools in dollars, at three monthly spend levels, and how to bring it close to zero.
Read the guideForex markup explained: why a 5% cashback card pays about 1% on dollar spend (2026)
How the forex markup and the 18% GST on it work on Indian credit cards, what they do to rewards on dollar subscriptions, and the markup on every card in our catalog.
Read the guideCredit card airport lounge access in India (2026): spend gates, networks and the cards
How credit card lounge access works in India in 2026: the spend gates most issuers added, lounge networks, guest visits and how to check before you fly. Each card's own lounge terms from our catalog.
Read the guideReward math
Net value, stacking and getting more per rupee.
Net annual value vs headline rate: the math your credit card hides (2026)
The headline reward rate is not what a card pays you. Net annual value counts caps, exclusions, redemption value and the fee. The formula, and a premium card against a cashback card at two spend levels, computed from our catalog.
Read the guideCredit card stacking in India (2026): when two or three cards beat one
A card stack routes each kind of spend to the card that pays most for it. Four Indian stacks computed from catalog earn rates, with fees and waivers counted, and the cases where one card is enough.
Read the guide10 credit card habits that actually save money in India (2026)
Practical credit card moves for Indian cardholders: the right card per category, fee waivers, forex, rent and UPI rules, point expiry and the changes banks announce. No tricks that break the card terms.
Read the guideMore guides
Best credit cards in Europe (2026): UK and euro-area picks
Our Europe edition compares UK and German credit cards on fees, earn and foreign fees. See which card fits everyday spending, Avios, premium travel or trips abroad.
Read the guideAvios credit cards in the UK (2026): free or paid, Amex or Barclaycard
Four UK credit cards earn Avios directly. Compare the free and paid versions from American Express and Barclaycard at the same spend, and see when the fee pays for itself.
Read the guideBest no annual fee credit cards in the US (2026): how to choose one
A no annual fee card can only earn you money. Compare flat-rate and category cards from our catalog, see the math at your own spend, and learn which one to get first.
Read the guideBest cash back credit cards in the US (2026): flat rate vs categories
Which US cash back card earns most depends on where your money goes. Compare flat-rate and category cards from our catalog, and work out when a card with a fee beats a free one.
Read the guideArchive: software and payments posts (12)
Older posts from before CardPolo focused on credit cards. Kept for readers who still link to them.
- Polo Brain, how the AI ranks cards by real value, not headline rate (2026)
- Notion vs Coda for product teams in 2026: when each wins
- Cheaper alternatives to Datadog for Indian startups in 2026
- The AI startup stack we'd actually ship in 2026
- Welcome to CardPolo, play your cards right
- The SaaS subscription audit, a 30-minute playbook to cut 20% of your stack
- The hidden 8-12% FX cost when Indian businesses buy US SaaS
- Buying SaaS in India vs the US, what changes (and what doesn't)
- How to find and cancel the SaaS subscriptions you forgot you had
- Best project management tool for startups in 2026
- Best payment gateway in India 2026, Razorpay, Cashfree, PayU, Stripe
- Best CRM for Indian startups in 2026: Zoho vs HubSpot vs Freshworks