Axis ATLAS vs. Axis Horizon: Which airline agnostic credit card is better?

Axis Atlas remained the most popular airline-agnostic credit card in India for a long time. However, in July 2024, it faced competition with the launch of Axis Horizon- a card introduced to transition Citi PremierMiles cardholders to Axis Bank. Both credit cards extend similar benefits offering EDGE Miles redeemable across the same set of airlines and hotel partners, catering to frequent travellers. They, however, differ in terms of value-back model, annual fee and additional perks. Here is a detailed comparison of the two cards to help you choose.

Similar value-back on card activation

On card activation, Axis Atlas offers 2500 EDGE Miles, equal to 5,000 partner miles (at 1:2 conversion ratio) and Axis Horizon offers 5,000 EDGE Miles, also equal to 5,000 partner miles (at 1:1 conversion ratio). The list of airlines and hotel partners is also the same for both cards.

An important point to note here is that Axis Horizon is offering the same activation bonus as Atlas, despite charging an joining fee Rs. 2,000 lesser than Atlas. Hence, Atlas only compensates for the joining fee charged whereas Horizon surpasses this value.

Other than miles conversion, both cards also offer direct travel bookings as a redemption option. With ATLAS, the bonus miles on activation offer a 1:1 value against travel bookings, thus Rs. 2,500. Though a decent return, it is lower than the fee paid. For Axis Horizon, no specific value is mentioned for the redemption of miles against travel bookings.

Note: Activation benefits cannot be a deciding factor to choose the right card. It is better to analyze other travel benefits as well.

Axis ATLAS has a complex tier-based structure, but suitable for heavy spenders

Axis Horizon offers straightforward benefits around lounge access and card renewal (bonus 1500 EDGE miles). On the other hand, Axis ATLAS offers tier-based benefits keeping lounge access and renewal benefits as well based on the spends in a year. This is contrary to many cards that offer just the milestone benefits as a spend-based feature.

In case of ATLAS, based on the annual spends in the previous anniversary year, cardholders are categorized into one of these tiers every year:

• Silver: In the first year/On annual spends of up to Rs. 3 lakh
• Gold: On annual spends of Rs. 7.5 lakh
• Platinum: On annual spends of Rs. 15 lakh

If a user fails to meet the spend requirement of a particular tier, he/she is downgraded to a lower tier. The higher the spend, the better the tier, which in turn leads to better benefits. When looking at the highest benefits on the card, the benefits on ATLAS are too good for a card at a fee of Rs. 5,000 and decent for this fee at the lowest tier.

In comparison to this complex structure of Axis ATLAS, Horizon has a very simple structure. No matter the spend value, all users earn the same benefits.

Individually both cards justify the fee charged, covering benefits around lounge access and welcome & renewal benefits.  ATLAS is a better choice for heavy spenders offering better returns with bonus point on renewal and milestone achievements. However, for moderate spenders, or card users owning multiple cards, Horizon is  a good choice winning with factors like higher frequency on domestic lounge access.

For better clarity on this, check this table below:

ATLAS has a better redemption rate, but low capping on points conversion

Both cards offer a similar base rate of 2 EDGE Miles on every Rs. 100 spent. Even the accelerated reward earn rate on travel bookings for both cards is the same, but ATLAS offers 5 EDGE points for every Rs. 100 only on travel spends up to Rs. 2 lakh. Beyond this value, users earn base rates on their card spends.That way, card users spending more than Rs. 2 lakh per cycle with ATLAS will have to plan their spends in multiple months in order to derive the maximum value-back.

Axis Horizon offers accelerated 5 EDGE rewards on every Rs. 100 spent on travel, irrespective of the spend limitation. But, in comparison to ATLAS, Horizon offers a low reward value of 1:1 in comparison to 1:2. Thus, in some cases, the spend-limitation on ATLAS would hardly make a difference.

For spend up to Rs. 2 Lakh on travel, ATLAS might fetch a higher return due to a conversion rate of 1:2, but on spends beyond Rs. 2 lakh, there can be a slight difference in the value-back. But, the slightly less number of partner miles earned on ATLAS are compensated well via other other benefits offered based on the card’s tier structure. Spending  beyond 2 lakh each month just on travel, can easily help them meet the spend requirements of a higher tier, automatically moving the user to a better tier.

Beyond the reward earning, another notable point is that despite charging a lower fee than ATLAS, Axis Horizon offers multiple redemption options. The annual capping for miles conversion is lower for ATLAS at 1,50,000 points in comparison to 5,00,000 points on Horizon. This huge gap in redemption capping, can be a game-changer for users sticking to ATLAS for a high redemption ratio.

So, which is the better airmile credit card between the two?

Individually, both cards offer justified benefits based on the annual fee they charge.  At a fee of Rs. 3,000, Horizon does really well with a good redemption ratio and no spend-based limitation on earning accelerated rewards.

Similarly, with a slightly higher fee of Rs. 5,000, Axis ATLAS offers an airline redemption of 1:2—even better than most premium credit cards in the market. But the best benefits on the card are only offered to high spenders. Thus, here card users will have to put most expenses on the card to derive the maximum value-back. While this could be convenient for users owning single credit cards, those who own multiple cards might struggle to meet the thresholds.

Both cards are suitable only for frequent travelers seeking airline travel benefits; for all-round lifestyle benefits, consumers should explore other options.