HSBC Live+ Credit Card Review 2026: 10% Cashback on Swiggy and Zomato

India’s food delivery market has made people acutely aware of how much they spend on Swiggy and Zomato. If you’ve ever looked at your monthly statement and thought “I spent how much on food delivery?”, the HSBC Live+ credit card has an answer: 10% cashback on Swiggy, Zomato, and Ola. That’s the highest food delivery cashback rate available on any credit card in India — and at ₹999 per year with a reachable spend waiver, it’s genuinely accessible.

But there’s a monthly cap that changes the maths significantly. Let’s work through it honestly.

Fee Structure

Annual fee: ₹999 plus GST

Fee waiver: Spend ₹2 lakh per year and the following year’s annual fee is waived.

₹2 lakh per year is approximately ₹16,700 per month. If you’re using this as your food delivery and dining card, hitting ₹2L total annual spend is realistic for most urban working professionals.

The Headline Rate: 10% on Swiggy, Zomato, Ola

The HSBC Live+ card earns 10% cashback on Swiggy, Zomato, and Ola transactions. This is posted as CashBack reward points, which are equivalent to cash value.

But there’s a cap: ₹3,000 per calendar month across these three categories combined.

This means the maximum cashback from the 10% rate is ₹3,000/month, earned on ₹30,000 of spending on Swiggy + Zomato + Ola per month. If you spend more than ₹30,000 across these platforms in a month, the excess earns at the base rate (1.5%).

For most people, ₹30,000/month on food delivery and cab rides is the upper limit — so the cap rarely constrains in practice. More relevant: what’s your typical monthly spend on these platforms?

Breaking Down the 10% Return

₹5,000/month on Swiggy + Zomato: ₹500 cashback per month → ₹6,000/year. Against ₹999 fee: net benefit ₹5,001.

₹10,000/month on Swiggy + Zomato: ₹1,000 cashback per month → ₹12,000/year. Against ₹999 fee: net benefit ₹11,001.

₹15,000/month on Swiggy + Zomato + Ola: ₹1,500 cashback per month → ₹18,000/year. Against ₹999 fee: net benefit ₹17,001.

The break-even is simple: ₹9,990 in annual Swiggy + Zomato + Ola spend (approximately ₹830/month). If you spend less than ₹830/month combined on these apps and Ola rides, the card doesn’t pay for itself from the 10% rate alone.

For context, ordering food 3–4 times per week from Zomato or Swiggy at ₹400–600 per order comes to ₹6,000–9,000 per month. That’s well above break-even.

The 1.5% Base Rate

On all other purchases — offline retail, other online merchants, utilities — the HSBC Live+ earns 1.5% cashback. This is a decent all-purpose rate; better than most cards’ 1% floor. It won’t set the world on fire, but it means you’re not getting nothing when you use this card outside the 10% categories.

Who Is This Card for?

This card serves one profile extremely well: the urban professional who spends ₹8,000–25,000 per month on food delivery and cab rides.

In Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, and other major cities, this profile is common. Many urban professionals order lunch and dinner multiple times a week, and Ola rides supplement their commute. For this lifestyle, the 10% rate is the highest available anywhere.

The card is also suitable as a second card for anyone who already has a travel card (for lounge access and flight bookings) and wants to add a specialised food delivery cashback card.

What This Card Is Not Good For

Lounge access: None. This is not a travel card.

International spending: 3.5% forex markup — above average. Don’t use this abroad.

Large offline spend: The 1.5% base rate is fine but not exceptional. Better offline cards exist.

Miles accumulation: This is purely a cashback card. No airline transfer partners, no points that convert to miles.

HSBC Live+ vs Axis Bank ACE (₹499 fee)

The Axis ACE also offers 5% on Swiggy and Zomato (via Google Pay). At half the cashback rate but half the fee, the comparison is interesting:

• Axis ACE: ₹499 fee, 5% on Swiggy/Zomato/Ola via Google Pay, 5% on all bill payments via Google Pay
• HSBC Live+: ₹999 fee, 10% on Swiggy/Zomato/Ola (direct, no Google Pay required), 1.5% on everything else

If you always pay via Google Pay and use Axis ACE’s 5% on bill payments as well, ACE may serve better at half the fee. If you want the absolute highest food delivery rate without the Google Pay dependency, HSBC Live+ delivers.

Note: Axis ACE’s 5% on Swiggy/Zomato requires payment through Google Pay on those apps. HSBC Live+‘s 10% works when you pay via the card directly on Swiggy/Zomato apps.

Is the Monthly Cap a Problem?

Only if you’re spending over ₹30,000/month on Swiggy + Zomato + Ola combined, which is unusual. The ₹3,000/month cap covers the typical heavy food delivery user comfortably. If you genuinely spend more than ₹30K/month on these platforms — perhaps running a catering account or very heavy corporate ordering — the cap bites, but that’s an edge case.

Verdict

The HSBC Live+ credit card earns its ₹999 annual fee in the first month if you’re spending ₹10,000 or more on Swiggy, Zomato, and Ola. The 10% cashback rate is not matched by any other card in India, and the category coverage — food delivery plus cab rides — represents a significant chunk of urban discretionary spending.

Its niche is narrow but genuinely valuable. If you spend ₹8,000+ monthly on these platforms, this card pays for itself in February and earns pure profit for the remaining ten months. If you spend ₹5,000–8,000/month, it’s still a solid positive. If you spend under ₹5,000, other cards compete more effectively.

Best use case: Pair HSBC Live+ with a travel card (IDFC FIRST Wealth for free international lounge, or HDFC Regalia Gold for points + lounge). Live+ covers your food delivery and cabs; the travel card covers everything else. That combination serves most urban Indian spending patterns exceptionally well.