Kotak Essentia Platinum Credit Card: Features, Fees & Benefits

This review was contributed by a reader, Bhavye Goel, who and his family hold a couple of Kotak credit cards.

I began exploring credit cards in 2017 and discovered this blog while researching options. This is my first review for the community, and I’m starting with one of Kotak Mahindra Bank’s most underrated cards: the Kotak Essentia Platinum Credit Card. In my view, it’s one of the best grocery credit cards in India, and particularly useful for people in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

I already held a Kotak savings account for three years, mainly because of a competitive interest rate on the savings balance. Many Kotak cards have low rewards, and I’ve noticed that most cardholders end up with those cards due to limited research and awareness. After reviewing Kotak’s offerings, I selected three cards and currently hold two in my name and a third on behalf of my father; I’ll review the third one later.

Joining Fees

• Joining fees: Rs 1,499 + GST
• Welcome offer: Two BookMyShow vouchers worth Rs 200 each on first swipe if you apply online directly with Kotak
• Annual fees: Rs 749 + GST (non-waiverable from year two)
• Add-on card fees: Rs 249 + GST

Application process was straightforward and fully online for me, helped by a good CIBIL score and an existing Kotak savings relationship. The card arrived within 10 days. The assigned credit limit was modest but comparable to my SBI card.

Rewards

• 10 saving points on every Rs 100 spent at departmental and grocery stores (Reward rate: 10%)
• Minimum transaction: Rs 1,500; maximum per transaction: Rs 4,000
• Monthly cap for grocery saving points: 500 points
• 1 saving point on every Rs 250 spent in other categories (Reward rate: 0.4%)
• 1 saving point = Rs 1
• Milestone benefit: Spend Rs 1,25,000 every six months and receive either six free PVR tickets or 1,200 reward points

If you spend Rs 1,25,000 in six months, the effective reward when redeemed as cashback comes to approximately 1.4% (0.4% base rate plus roughly 1% from the milestone benefit).

Redemption Options

• Cashback, airline tickets, air miles, movie tickets, mobile recharge, and branded merchandise

Double Dipping

Big Bazaar: You can load money into the Big Bazaar Future Pay wallet in multiples of Rs 1,500 per day to get up to Rs 75 cashback in the wallet, plus the 10% savings from Kotak on eligible spends.

PayZapp: Previously, PayZapp offered 25% cashback (up to Rs 250) on BigBasket when paying through PayZapp. I used to check out via PayZapp and pay with my Essentia card. Note: loading the PayZapp wallet itself does not qualify for the 10% Kotak savings.

BigBasket: BigBasket often runs an instant 10% discount on Kotak cards on selected days (for example, Wednesdays). Combining that offer with the Essentia card’s grocery rewards can effectively increase your savings.

Below is an example from my statement showing how rewards accumulate with regular grocery spending.

Bottomline

• Cardexpert Rating: 3.8/5

This card makes sense if you spend around Rs 6,000 per month on groceries and prefer shopping at large and local grocery or departmental stores. A helpful feature is that the 10% grocery savings also applies to some online grocery and departmental stores like Grofers and BigBasket.

I personally save approximately Rs 500–600 per month using this card, which adds up to around Rs 6,000 annually — a meaningful amount. Even after accounting for the joining fee, the effective return can be close to 8% in the first year. Additional rewards can be earned by using platforms like CRED to pay credit card bills.

This demonstrates how a relatively basic and underrated card can still deliver strong value when used strategically.

What do you think? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.