The CardBuzz blog
Card-by-card write-ups from our team, features, fees, lounge access and who each card actually suits. For the numbers after every cap and exclusion, head to the card pages.
5420 posts · Page 212 of 452 · View the full archive
How-To GuidesUPI vs netbanking vs NEFT: comparing credit card bill payment channels
You can pay a credit card bill a dozen different ways in India — UPI, netbanking, NEFT, debit card, auto-debit, a cheque in a branch drop box if you are feeling nostalgic — and the choice matters more than most people re
How-To GuidesHow credit card bill payment actually works in India
Every month, your credit card company sends you a bill and expects you to pay it. Sounds simple — and it should be — but the machinery behind that bill decides how much interest you pay, how your credit score moves, and
How-To GuidesTen portal mistakes that silently eat your rewards
Nobody sets out to waste portal rewards. The losses happen silently — a bonus that never posts, an accelerator quietly forfeited, a claim denied on a technicality — and most shoppers never connect the missing rewards to
Buying GuidesRouting big-ticket electronics buys through issuer portals
A laptop, a television, a refrigerator, an air conditioner — big-ticket electronics are the purchases where issuer shopping portals earn their keep. The absolute bonus on a large order dwarfs what portals pay on everyday
How-To GuidesPortal exclusions decoded: the purchases that never earn portal rewards
Every issuer shopping portal publishes an exclusion list — the purchases that earn no bonus no matter how perfectly you click through. Most shoppers discover exclusions the hard way: a large purchase, a confident click-t
ComparisonsComparing issuer shopping portals: seven things to check before you route spend
If you hold cards from more than one issuer, you have more than one shopping portal — and they are not interchangeable. Merchant coverage differs, bonus structures differ, payout timelines differ, and the fine print diff
Buying GuidesCard-linked offers on shopping apps: how activate-and-pay works
There is a second rewards mechanism running quietly alongside issuer shopping portals, and it works in reverse. Instead of clicking through a portal to the merchant, you activate an offer on your card first, then shop wh
How-To GuidesTracking missing portal rewards: the claim process that actually works
The portal bonus is supposed to post a few weeks after your purchase. Sometimes it does not. The order shipped, the card was charged, the card's own points posted — but the portal bonus never arrived. This is the most fr
How-To GuidesWhy portal purchases sometimes code as a different merchant category
You click through your issuer's portal to a travel site, book a flight, and expect your card's generous travel-category earn rate. Weeks later, the points post at the plain base rate — the transaction coded as something
How-To GuidesStacking rewards on issuer portals: portal bonus plus card rewards
Stacking is the art of earning more than one reward on a single purchase. On issuer shopping portals, the natural stack has two layers: the portal bonus for clicking through, plus your card's own base rewards for paying.
How-To GuidesPortal or direct? A decision rule for routing online spends
Every online purchase now comes with a small fork in the road: click through your issuer's shopping portal and pick up a bonus, or go straight to the merchant and check out directly. Most people decide on gut feel — port
Buying GuidesHow issuer shopping portals earn you extra rewards on the same purchase
Most credit card users in India know the basics of earning rewards: swipe the card, earn points on the spend, redeem later. What far fewer people use is the issuer's shopping portal — a separate online doorway, usually s