AU Altura Plus Credit Card

Overview

The AU Altura Plus Credit Card is an entry-level cashback card from AU Small Finance Bank, aimed at everyday spenders who want a little back on regular shopping without paying a heavy annual fee. It sits a notch above the plain Altura card, adding a slightly higher offline cashback rate and reward points on online spends. With a joining and annual fee of just ₹499 plus GST, and both fees waivable on modest spends, it is built for people getting their first proper cashback card or looking for a simple secondary card.

Rewards and earning

The headline benefit is a flat 1.5% cashback on offline and POS retail purchases, credited automatically to your account. The catch is the cap: cashback is limited to ₹100 per statement cycle, so the full 1.5% only works up to about ₹6,667 of offline spends in a month. Anything beyond that earns no extra cashback.

Online spends earn 2 reward points for every ₹100, while utility, telecom and insurance payments earn 1 point per ₹100. Fuel spends do not earn any reward points. Each reward point is worth ₹0.25, so 2 points per ₹100 works out to roughly 0.5% back on online purchases. There is a monthly milestone as well: cross ₹20,000 of spends in a month and you pick up 500 bonus reward points.

Rounding out the pack are a 1% fuel surcharge waiver on transactions between ₹400 and ₹5,000 (capped at ₹150 per cycle) and complimentary railway lounge access twice every quarter at select stations. New cardholders also get vouchers worth ₹500 for spending at least ₹10,000 on retail within 60 days of setup.

Fees

The joining fee and the annual (renewal) fee are both ₹499 plus GST. The first-year fee is waived if you spend ₹20,000 on retail within 90 days of setting up the card. From the second year, the renewal fee is waived if you spent ₹80,000 on retail during the previous card-anniversary year. For anyone using the card even semi-regularly, both targets are easy to clear, which effectively makes this a near free card to hold in practice.

Eligibility

The primary applicant should be an Indian resident aged between 21 and 60 years. Add-on cards can be issued to family members aged 18 and above. Approval and the final credit limit depend on AU Bank's internal assessment of your profile.

Who it is for

This card suits budget-conscious users who spend more at physical stores than online and want a straightforward cashback card that costs next to nothing to hold. It also works as a secondary card purely for the flat 1.5% offline rate. It is less compelling for heavy spenders, because the ₹100 monthly cashback cap and the low ₹0.25 point value limit how much you can actually earn.

Verdict

The AU Altura Plus is an honest, low-cost cashback card that does the basics well. The flat 1.5% on offline spends is genuinely useful for daily shopping, and the easy fee waivers mean you rarely pay to keep it. Just go in knowing the caps: this is a card for steady, modest spending rather than a high earner. As a first cashback card or a no-fuss backup, it earns its place.