I have been using Amazon Pay Icici Bank credit card for 6 months though I’ve been a Amzon prime member for many years. In this short review I have tried to explain all the pros and cons on this credit card.
I have been using credit cards for more than 16 years from various banks and I have many of them. I use different credit cards for different uses and never had any problems.
Amazon was showing me an offer to sign up for the credit card for a long time. Since I already had many credit cards I didn’t want another one. However, the unlimited 5% cash back was too good to ignore!
So, around 6 months ago I applied and got it delivered to me within 5 days. My overall monthly average spending on Amazon is less than 10k. So the Rs 500 worth of cashback rewards isn’t a bad deal.
Amazon credited my account with Rs 300 bonus points for successful approval of the card.
More about Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card
Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card is a Credit Card issued by ICICI Bank in association with Amazon and Visa. This is a lifetime free Credit Card with no joining and renewal fees, which lets you earn back for every purchase, both on and off Amazon.in, in the form of Amazon Pay Balance. This is an invite-only program.
My quick review of Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card
It’s a good credit card assuming that you are a prime customer and regularly shop on Amazon. The big advantage is that there is no upper limit on spending (subject to your credit limit set by ICICI). So, even if you spend Rs 1 lakh per month you earn Rs 5000 cashback.
Biggest Drawback
The cashback points can be utilized for shopping on Amazon only. It cannot be used to pay through Amazon Pay UPI or cannot be converted into cash. This is a honey trapping business model where Amazon would make you buy from them again and again!
What is Honey Trapping?
You may be tempted to buy from Amazon every time just to get that 5% reward without comparing prices on other sites. Few products are cheaper on FlipKart and Tata Cliq. It is always worth comparing prices on various sites before buying.
HDFC bank and HSBC regularly run special offers on Amzon where the instant discount is 10%. In my opinion, instant discount is a financially better option in comparison to cashback or rewards points.
Main Features of Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card
- No joining fee or annual fee
- No limit or expiry date on the rewards earned using this card
- Reward earnings can be used to purchase from over 10 crore products at www.amazon.in and at more than 100 merchant partners.
- 5% cashback on transactions made at www.amazon.in for Amazon Prime members* & 3 % for non-prime members
- 2% cashback on transacting at over 100 Amazon Pay merchant partners on using this card on Amazon Pay
- 1% cashback on all other payments & fuel surcharge waiver.
Card Approval Process
According to the official ICICI bank website, this is an invitation only program where customers are programmatically selected by Amazon.in & Icici. The card is made available only to existing bank customers with good financial history.
It appears that Amazon shares a list of their regular customers with ICICI to check if they qualify for the card. After receiving the status report & pre-approval from the bank, the offer is shown to customers on Amazon.
Can a non ICICI bank customer apply for it?
Firstly you can only apply for if you got an invitation from Amazon. Secondly, if you don’t have any relationship with ICICI you’ll have to complete the KYC procedure. Bank’s sales team will contact you.
After the application is submitted the bank will approve or reject your application based on your credit profile and credit score. You can surely apply for it if your CIBIL score is more than 750.
As per latest report available there are more than 2 million Amazonpay card holders.
Credit Card Statement
Icici bank sends statement through email. In my case statement is sent on 5th of each month. Below is the screenshot. The maximum interest free credit period is 48 days.
When the cashback rewards points are credited?
Amazon credits the rewards point the very next day after email statement has been sent. Below is the screenshot of my amazon pay account
Conclusion:
Amazon Pay Icici bank credit card is a good credit card to have if you are regular shopper on amazon. However, some products are cheaper on other shopping sites. If you are a compulsive Amzon.in fan due to their customer support, shopping experience and delivery speed, then you can definitely go for this credit card. It’s free to join and there is no renewal fee.
