Lifetime free here means the product page shows ₹0 joining fee and ₹0 annual fee — so you are not asked to pay a renewal charge to keep the card active (other charges such as interest if you revolve, forex where applicable, and late fees still apply as per the bank’s terms).
Below is a short, practical list of stand-out no-fee products on CardCheck (snapshot 2026-04-23), grouped by the kind of spender they suit: shop online, travel abroad or book trips, want a metal app card, or need a fixed-deposit (FD) path with no traditional income or CIBIL bar. Always read the latest Most Important Terms and Conditions (MITC) on the bank’s site before you apply — offers change.
Cards in this comparison
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1. Online shopping: Amazon + everyday cashback
Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card is the country’s go-to co-brand for Amazon.in and Amazon Pay users. The published rate card includes 5% back on the mall for Prime members (3% if you are not on Prime), 2% on many Amazon Pay partner checkouts, and 1% on other eligible retail spend. Cashback is credited to your Amazon Pay balance each month. The page lists no monthly cap on the headline Amazon earn line.
Fee: ₹0 / ₹0. Forex on international spend: 3.5% in the published fields — it is not positioned as a travel-forex card.
Indicative eligibility: from ₹25,000/month and 750+ (as published; banks may still use internal score checks).
2. Travel: zero international markup and travel rewards
Scapia Federal Bank Credit Card (issued with Scapia) is built for people who want 0% extra on foreign-currency card spends — forex mark-up: 0% on the page — plus “travel coin” style rewards. Published highlights include about 2% back in coins on general spend and a higher accrual on Scapia app flight and hotel bookings, with coins used inside the Scapia booking flow (not an open bank transfer). It is also lifetime free in the same ₹0 / ₹0 fee sense.
Important: the published exclusion line says “no airport lounge on the standard product” — if you need lounges, compare other travel cards in the compare tool, even if they carry a fee.
Indicative eligibility: from ₹25,000/month and 700+ (as published; banks may still use internal score checks).
3. Metal, app-only, auto “5X” on top spend categories
OneCard Metal Credit Card is a Visa metal product managed almost entirely in the OneCard app, with 5× points on the top two spend categories the system picks each month and 1× elsewhere, plus 0% forex in the published fields — no lounge programme on the page.
Name note: depending on the bank partner behind the card, you may see a standard or FD-backed path on the OneCard application — open the offer on their site for the current rules.
Indicative eligibility: from ₹20,000/month and 650+ (as published; banks may still use internal score checks).
4. FD-secured: build history with a locked deposit
IDFC FIRST WOW! Credit Card (WOW!) is a fixed-deposit–backed card: the limit is tied to the FD, and the page lists no minimum CIBIL and ₹0 minimum income in the same fields we use for comparison — a strong fit when you are new to credit or rebuilding. It adds 0% forex and FIRST Coins with multipliers in selected categories, while the deposit keeps earning interest as described on the product page.
Trade-off: you lock money in the bank’s FD, and you must still pay the full statement on time; overdue balances can attract a high published interest range.
5. The simplest LTF: points + no annual charge
ICICI Bank Platinum Chip Credit Card is a no-fee, chip card with a straightforward earn line (2 reward points per ₹100 on retail in the published list) and low bar to entry — good when you only want a first card to pay in full and build score, without co-brand bells and whistles.
Custom “pick your benefit” (not LTF in our snapshot)
The AU LIT card is famous for switchable benefit modules, but the same published fields show ₹499 joining and ₹499 annual — so it is not a true no-annual-fee product. See AU LIT Credit Card if you are happy paying a small fee for that flexibility.
Disclosure
CardCheck summarises issuer-published product fields. We do not set fees or rates. If your approval letter differs from a short article, the letter and MITC are binding.
FAQ
- Is “lifetime free” really forever?
It means the headline product terms show no annual renewal charge in the current published terms. A bank can still change rewards, forex, or eligibility; read notices from your issuer. GST and other government levies may still apply to chargeable line items that are not the card membership fee itself.
- Do any of these include airport lounge visits?
In this LTF set, Scapia and OneCard explicitly list no lounge in the current benefit summary; Amazon Pay ICICI is the same. If lounge access is a must-have, you may need a different product even if it has a fee.
- Which is best for international holidays?
For no forex surcharge in the data, look at Scapia Federal, OneCard Metal, and IDFC FIRST WOW! (all at 0% extra on foreign-currency in the file). For lounges and miles, you will usually need a paid travel card—compare in Card compare.
- I have no CIBIL. Where do I start?
The IDFC FIRST WOW! page lists 0 minimum CIBIL in our snapshot because it is FD-backed — you pledge a fixed deposit for a limit. Re-read the bank’s current FD and card rules. SBI Unnati and other FD cards in India follow a similar idea.