The quickest way to see which cards I use is to check the best credit cards article. If you’ve followed Cardexpert for a while, you probably know I hold 10+ active credit cards. You might wonder why I keep so many cards—here are five practical reasons.
It’s not because I have unlimited spending power. These choices come down to a mix of personal preferences, opportunities, and experimentation.
Table of Contents
- 1. I love the Design
- 2. Attractive Sign-up offers
- 3. I may not share everything
- 4. I keep changing cards
- 5. It’s an experience
- Bottom line
1. I love the Design
Aesthetics matter to me. I’ve often picked cards because they look great—Axis Select is a good example. Sometimes design alone is enough reason for me to apply, even if the card’s rewards are modest. That may seem odd to some, but personal taste is subjective.
Over the past decade I’ve collected 200+ cards across credit, debit and prepaid types. It’s enjoyable to revisit the collection and appreciate the designs from time to time.
2. Attractive Sign-up offers
Occasionally I receive attractive sign-up or upgrade offers that aren’t public. Banks sometimes send targeted incentives—bonus points, fee waivers, or favorable upgrade packages—to premium profiles. These offers are often short-lived and, if widely publicized, can vanish quickly.
Because publishing such offers can trigger a flood of customer queries and cause banks to withdraw them, I sometimes keep these opportunities private to avoid wasting readers’ time.
3. I may not share everything
There are situations I don’t publish in detail. For instance, I may close a card in my name but retain access to its benefits through a family member’s account. I’ve mentioned similar strategies before, but not every time.
Reward rates, eligibility and other details can vary by profile and over time. Some sweet spots appear briefly and disappear quickly; exposing them publicly often accelerates that process, so I don’t always write about every opportunity.
4. I keep changing cards
People often ask which cards I’m actively using. The answer changes frequently—sometimes monthly or every couple of months—so I can’t realistically keep a single article perfectly up to date.
Despite rotating cards, I typically carry only two or three cards in my wallet for most of the year. The rest remain in my broader portfolio for experimentation, upgrades, or specific use cases.
5. It’s an experience
Upgrading your experiences matters. Rewards alone don’t define the value of a card; how it enhances travel, dining or convenience for your lifestyle is often more important. Sometimes an expensive card can effectively be cheaper if it delivers the right benefits.
I also get cards purely to evaluate the product and customer service, even if I don’t use them heavily. For example, I recently picked up Kotak’s White and Privy League cards mainly to experience the bank’s credit card service—spending on them has been limited, but the insight is valuable.
Sharing honest experiences—good and bad—helps readers and banks improve their products. It’s mutually beneficial.
Bottom line
There’s often more to a card portfolio than what appears in an article. I deliberately don’t publish every detail because broad disclosure can lead to misuse or rapid devaluation of limited offers. This is true across blogs and industries: full transparency can reduce the longevity of worthwhile opportunities.
So blindly getting the cards that I get may not be financially good to you.
Do your own math and make decisions that fit your spending patterns and lifestyle. My articles provide context and reasoning to help you decide, and the comments section often has useful reader insights.
To make the most of credit cards, read reliable content periodically, connect the dots, and identify sweet spots that match your needs. If your annual spend is very high (for example, over 20 lakh), a one-on-one paid consultation might be helpful to access tailored strategies.
Plan your own approach. Generic claims like “you can get 10% reward rate” without context are rarely useful for your personal situation.
Follow none.
Don’t copy my card portfolio or anyone else’s. Only you can choose the cards that best enhance the lifestyle you currently live.