The short answer
- Prime member, most spend on Amazon: Amazon Pay ICICI. 5% with no cap and no fee, ever. Rewards come back as Amazon Pay balance.
- You shop on many sites, or want cash back: SBI Cashback. 5% on all online shopping, up to ₹2,000 a statement, credited to your card account.
- Spend split across Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy, Zomato: HDFC Millennia. 5% across ten apps, but one shared cap of 1,000 CashPoints a month.
Side by side on Amazon.in
| Card | On Amazon.in | Cap | Paid as | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Pay ICICI | 5% with Prime, 3% without | None | Amazon Pay balance | Nil |
| SBI Cashback | 5% | ₹2,000 a cycle on all online spend | Statement credit | ₹999, waived at ₹2 lakh |
| HDFC Millennia | 5% | 1,000 points a month, shared with 9 other apps | CashPoints (₹1 each, ₹50 fee per redemption) | ₹1,000, waived at ₹1 lakh |
| Most other cards | About 1% or less | Varies | Points | Varies |
Rates are from each issuer's terms, checked 28 Oct 2026. Fees exclude GST.
Three shoppers, three answers
₹8,000 a month on Amazon, with Prime. Amazon Pay ICICI returns ₹400 a month (₹4,800 a year) for no fee. SBI Cashback returns the same ₹400 as cash, but you'd need to spend ₹2 lakh a year on the card to have its ₹999 fee waived.
₹8,000 a month on Amazon, no Prime. Amazon Pay ICICI drops to 3%, or ₹240 a month. SBI Cashback still pays 5%, ₹400 a month, so it wins if you'll clear the fee waiver or the extra ₹160 a month covers the fee.
₹50,000 for a laptop, paid in full. Amazon Pay ICICI (Prime) returns ₹2,500 because it has no cap. SBI Cashback stops at ₹2,000 for that statement cycle, and Millennia at 1,000 points for the month.
The EMI catch
None of these cards pays its 5% on EMI purchases, including Amazon's no-cost EMI. Amazon Pay ICICI also takes back rewards if you convert a purchase to EMI later. On a big purchase, compare what you'd earn paying in full with what no-cost EMI saves you. Often paying in full wins. See how no-cost EMI really works.
During sales
In big sales such as the Great Indian Festival, one or two partner banks run an instant discount, often 10% with a minimum order and a cap. That discount is separate from your card's regular rewards. Check the Bank offers box on the product page before you pay, and read how Amazon bank offers work, including the processing fee Amazon charges on them.