HSBC Live+ Credit Card
A ₹999/year cashback card with 4 lounge visits. At 1.5% base return, the rewards hold up, but 10 excluded categories matter.
HSBC Bank
A ₹999/year cashback card with 4 lounge visits. At 1.5% base return, the rewards hold up, but 10 excluded categories matter.
10 spending categories earn zero rewards (including fuel, wallet_load).
Monthly reward cap of ₹1,000. High spenders will hit this quickly.
The HSBC Live+ Credit Card is HSBC Bank's ₹999-a-year cashback credit card with about 1.5% base rewards on everyday spend. Best for occasional flyers and ₹2-4l annual spenders.
Quick Decision
Reward earnings only, at the everyday spend mix: milestone vouchers and lounge value are tracked separately in the sections below. 10 categories (fuel, wallet load, education, etc., see Excluded list) earn 0% and are NOT in this range.
Casual users hit the lower end; engaged users hit the upper end.
See full analysisPros & Cons
A balanced look at what this card does well and where it falls short.
- Fee waived on ₹2.0L annual spend
- 1.5% base reward rate on eligible spend (10 categories excluded)
- 4 domestic lounge visits/year
- Welcome bonus worth ₹1,000
- Fuel transactions excluded from rewards
- Rent payments excluded from rewards
- 10 spending categories excluded
- High forex markup: 3.5%
- High income requirement: ₹50,000/month
Our editorial take on this card
What works
The 10% bucket bundles three categories that most cards split: dining, food delivery (Zomato + Swiggy), AND groceries - so a single Rs.10,000/month basket at any combination of these caps out the accelerated tier. The 1.5% base rate is unlimited and beats Cashback SBI Card's 1% offline rate, Swiggy HDFC Bank Credit Card's 1% offline, and Tata Neu Plus HDFC Bank Credit Card's 1% non-Tata floor - meaningful when most monthly spend is non-accelerated. Fee waiver at Rs.2,00,000/year (Rs.16,667/month) is realistic for any household using one card for primary spend. 4 domestic lounge visits/year (1 per quarter, no spend gate) is rare at this fee - Axis Bank ACE Credit Card gives 4 lounges but only after Rs.50,000 in the previous 3 months, and Cashback SBI Card offers zero lounges. EazyDiner partner discount (15% off) is an extra layer for restaurant bookers.
The Rs.1,000/month cap defines this card: at 10%, you hit it on Rs.10,000 of dining/grocery spend, and additional spend in those categories gives you no more accelerated cashback that month - heavy diners or large grocery households should know this is a single-card-of-many strategy, not a primary card. Forex markup is a high 3.5% - keep it home; international transactions cost you more than the cashback returns. The exclusion list is unusually long: fuel (MCC 5541/5983/5172/5542/5552), e-wallets (Paytm/PhonePe loads, MCC 6540), rent, utility bills, insurance, education, government payments, jewellery, B2B, tolls, and money transfers all earn zero cashback - if your month leans on rent, utilities, or fuel, this card returns nothing on those. Fuel does get a surcharge waiver (1% saved on Rs.400-Rs.4,000 transactions) but no cashback on the fuel amount itself. Minimum income is Rs.50,000/month for salaried (Rs.1,00,000/month self-employed) - a higher bar than entry cashback cards like Axis Bank ACE Credit Card, which is far easier to qualify for. International lounges are zero - if you fly abroad even occasionally, this isn't your card.
Bottom line
Buy this card only if your monthly dining + groceries + food delivery spend is consistently Rs.10,000+ AND you can hit Rs.2,00,000/year to waive the fee. The combined 10% bucket is genuinely rare at this price point, but the Rs.1,000 cap means the ceiling is fixed - Rs.12,000/year accelerated cashback, period. If your spend pattern is online-heavy across non-grocery categories, Cashback SBI Credit Card's Rs.4,000 monthly cap beats this; if it is utility-heavy, Axis Bank ACE Credit Card at half the fee is the smarter call.
Independent analysis from public card terms, no paid placements or ratings.
Welcome Bonus
VerifiedOne-time bonus for new cardholders
₹1,000 Cashback on Spending ₹20,000 in the First 30 Days
So what does this card actually earn?
Tiered Rewards
Different reward rates by category
Cap: Monthly: ₹1,000
Partner Rewards
Earn bonus rates at these merchants
| Merchant | Reward | Type |
|---|---|---|
| EazyDiner | 15% off | Flat discount |
Monthly Reward Cap
Maximum rewards you can earn per month
Monthly Cap
₹1,000
Annual Cap
₹12,000
Takeaway: the 10% sub-cap bites at ₹10,000/month See per-tier detail below.
At 10% (Dining + Food Delivery + Grocery): sub-cap of ₹1,000 bites at ₹10,000/month.
Excluded Categories
10 categories earn no rewards on this card
⚠ Do not use for Fuel / Petrol / Diesel / CNG, Wallet / Prepaid Instrument Loading, Education / School / College Fees and 7 more. You earn 0 rewards on these spends. Use a different card or pay direct.
This card works best for dining + food delivery +…, airport lounge usage, and dining. Spends in those categories still earn at the headline rate.
Lounge Access
Complimentary airport lounge visits
Domestic
4
visits/year
International
0
visits/year
Priority Pass
No
membership
The ceiling priced at walk-in rates is the theoretical max; the realistic range above assumes 40–70% of visits actually used (most users land in the lower half). How is this estimated?
Up to 1 domestic/quarter
How It Compares
Side-by-side with similar cards in our database.
| Feature | This card | BPCL SBI Octane | Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | ₹999 | ₹1,499 | ₹1,499 |
| Reward ratecash-equivalent · accelerated | 1.50%no accelerator | 0.25%no accelerator | 1.50%no accelerator |
| Network | Visa | Visa / RuPay | Visa / RuPay |
| Acceptance | Universal | Universal | Universal |
| Eligibility | Applicable | Applicable | Applicable |
Methodology: reward rates shown at cash-equivalent redemption (statement credit / direct cashback): the most conservative tier every cardholder can realize. Travel-transfer or partner-merchant routing can be materially higher; see each card's full review for upside scenarios.
Fees & Charges
Complete breakdown of all fees associated with this card.
Value Verdict
Eligible spend · no routingEstimated annual value at ₹50,000/month spend with base earn on eligible retail (after assumed 25% in excluded categories), plus lounge access at realistic utilization.
✓ Fee waived above ₹16,667/month, so all ₹8,510 is net value
Year 1 also carries a one-time ₹999 + 18% GST joining fee (~₹1,179), charged upfront on issuance and not waivable by spend. The net above reflects the renewal-year fee (which your spend waives); subtract the joining fee from year-1 value.
First year bonus: +₹1,000 welcome value (not included above)
↓ Accelerated rates (Dining + Food Delivery + Grocery at 10%) not included: actual value may be higher
Assumptions used in this estimate▸
- • Reward earnings shown at the conservative redemption tier.
- • Monthly reward cap of ₹1,000 applies to the card; spend above this earns nothing extra.
- • Lounge value uses ~55% realistic utilization (most flyers don't fully clock the available visits). Per-visit anchors: ₹800 domestic, ₹1,500 international. Retail-equivalent (100% utilization) would be ₹3,200.
- • Assumes 25% of your spend lands in 10 excluded categories (fuel, rent, etc.) that earn ₹0: eligible spend used in the math above is ₹37,500/month.
Eligibility
Requirements you need to meet to apply for this card.
Data verified against HSBC Bank official website · Last verified: 2026-05-09
WhichWise does not accept payment for card placement or ratings. Fees, rates, and benefits may change. Always confirm with the issuer before applying.
Verified from the source
Key facts below are quoted verbatim from HSBC Bank's own pages and documents, not paraphrased.
- Joining fee
“Joining fee for Live+ Primary Cardholder is `999”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (MITC document) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Annual fee
“Annual Fee NIL `999 (Waived off only if the minimum spends on the primary card is more than `200,000 in the AY for which the annual fee is charged)”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (MITC document) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Annual fee waiver
“Standard annual fees `999 (Waived off for annual spends of `200,000 or more).”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (issuer brochure) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Reward type
“10% accelerated cashback, up to INR1,000 a month, on all dining, food delivery and grocery spends 1.5% unlimited cashback on most other spends”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (issuer website) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Monthly rewards cap
“10% accelerated cashback, up to INR1,000 a month, on all dining, food delivery and grocery spends”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (issuer website) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Welcome bonus
“Get INR1,000 cashback when you download and log on to the HSBC India Mobile Banking app and spend INR20,000 within the first 30 days of getting your card.”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (issuer website) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Forex markup
“3.5% of foreign currency transactions”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (MITC document) · fetched 2026-05-08 - Lounge access
“Customers will get four complimentary lounge access, one per quarter.”
Verified quote from hsbc.co.in (issuer brochure) · fetched 2026-05-08
Interested in HSBC Live+?
Check the official page for the latest terms before applying.