This is for anyone weighing a public-sector bank card, whether because their salary account sits at Canara or because a lifetime-free card with lounge access and UPI sounds too good to check. It settles what the card actually pays, what the benefits are worth, who can get it, and where it stands against the private-bank cards it competes with.
Quick Answer: Canara RuPay Select is a genuinely free card with 8 domestic and 2 international lounge visits a year and full UPI use of the credit limit, but it earns only 0.5% on spend and asks for ₹10 lakh of annual income; hold it for the lounges and UPI, not for rewards, and pair it with a cashback card.
The card at a glance
| Feature | Canara Bank RuPay Select |
|---|---|
| Joining fee | ₹0 |
| Annual fee | ₹0, lifetime free |
| Add-on cards | Up to 4, free |
| Inactivity fee | ₹300 if annual spend is below ₹1 lakh |
| Base earn | 2 Reward Points per ₹100, worth ₹0.25 each, 0.5% |
| Accelerated earn | None |
| Exclusions | Cash, fuel (surcharge waiver applies instead), government transactions |
| Domestic lounges | 2 a quarter, 8 a year |
| International lounges | 2 a year |
| Railway lounges | 8 a year |
| Golf | 1 game or lesson a quarter at partner courses |
| UPI | Credit limit usable on BHIM, PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm and 25+ other apps |
| Insurance | ₹10 lakh air accident cover |
| Forex markup | Up to 3% |
| Interest | 2.5% a month, 30% a year, on revolved balances |
| Cash advance | 3% (₹30 per ₹1,000), minimum ₹100; 2.1% a month interest |
| Late payment | 5% of the amount due, minimum ₹100, maximum ₹750 |
| Income bar | ₹10 lakh a year salaried, ₹12 lakh ITR self-employed |
| Credit score | 700+ |
| Network | RuPay |
What a PSU bank card is good for
Public-sector bank cards are built differently from HDFC's or Axis's. There is no rewards portal, no co-brand bench and no milestone structure; the bank issues one or two cards, prices them low and leans on the RuPay network's bundled benefits. Canara's RuPay Select is a good example. Its earn rate is half what an entry-tier private-bank card pays, but it costs nothing, it gives lounge access that private banks charge ₹1,000 to ₹3,000 a year for, and its late payment and interest charges are among the lowest in the market: a maximum ₹750 late fee against ₹1,300 at HDFC, ICICI or SBI Card, and 30% annual interest against 42% to 55%.
That makes it a sensible card for two kinds of people: Canara account holders who want a free card with real benefits, and anyone who wants a RuPay card for UPI spend and lounge visits alongside a better-earning card from elsewhere.
Rewards in practice
At 0.5%, the earn rate is the weakest part of the card. Points are worth ₹0.25 each as statement credit or on the rewards portal, with a 1,000-point minimum redemption (₹250).
| Annual spend | Points earned | Value | Inactivity fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹60,000 | 1,200 | ₹300 | ₹300 charged, since spend is under ₹1 lakh |
| ₹1.2 lakh | 2,400 | ₹600 | None |
| ₹3 lakh | 6,000 | ₹1,500 | None |
| ₹6 lakh | 12,000 | ₹3,000 | None |
Compare the ₹3 lakh row with SBI Cashback at 5% on online spend: ₹15,000 on the same money if it is all online, for a ₹1,179 fee waived at ₹2 lakh. The Canara card cannot compete on earning. It competes on the ₹0 fee, the lounges and UPI.
UPI on the credit limit
This is the feature that sets RuPay cards apart. Link the card in any of 25 or more UPI apps and every UPI payment, from the kirana store to the auto driver, draws on the credit limit instead of your bank balance, with the same interest-free period as a card swipe and the same 2 points per ₹100. For a household that puts ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 a month through UPI at small merchants, that is spend that no Visa or Mastercard captures at all. Fuel, cash and government payments are excluded, and the RuPay UPI rules that apply to every issuer apply here too.
Lounges and golf
Two domestic lounge visits a quarter, two international visits a year and eight railway lounge visits a year is more access than most ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 cards give, and there is no spend gate on it, unlike the IDFC FIRST, AU and Scapia free cards, which unlock their lounges only after ₹20,000 of monthly spend. One golf game or lesson a quarter at RuPay's partner courses is a small bonus.
For someone who flies domestically eight times a year and would otherwise pay ₹1,500 a visit, the lounge benefit alone is worth about ₹12,000, which is more than any earn rate difference at ordinary spend.
Canara RuPay Select vs SBI Cashback
The card people most often weigh it against is SBI Cashback, because both are aimed at everyday spend without a premium fee.
| Feature | Canara RuPay Select | SBI Cashback |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | ₹0 | ₹999 + GST (₹1,179), waived at ₹2 lakh |
| Base earn | 0.5% in points | 1% cashback offline |
| Best rate | 0.5% | 5% on all online spend, ₹5,000 cap a cycle |
| Lounges | 8 domestic + 2 international a year | None |
| UPI | Yes, RuPay | No |
| Forex markup | Up to 3% | 3.5% |
| Late fee | Max ₹750 | Up to ₹1,300 |
| Income bar | ₹10 lakh a year | ₹25,000 a month |
On ₹3 lakh of annual spend with half of it online, SBI Cashback returns about ₹9,000 and Canara about ₹1,500. On lounges, UPI and fee, Canara wins on every line. The right answer for most people is both: SBI Cashback (or Amazon Pay ICICI) for online spend, Canara RuPay Select for UPI, lounges and as the free card that never closes. The SBI Cashback vs Amazon Pay comparison covers the cashback side of that pairing.
Fees and charges beyond the annual fee
The card's penalty schedule is one of its quieter advantages. Late payment is 5% of the amount due with a ₹100 minimum and a ₹750 maximum, plus GST, against a ₹1,300 top slab at the large private issuers. Revolving interest is 2.5% a month (30% a year), against 3.75% a month at HDFC, ICICI and SBI Card. A cash advance costs ₹30 per ₹1,000 with a ₹100 minimum and 2.1% a month interest from the day of withdrawal, and cash is limited to 20% of the credit limit. The forex markup is up to 3%, which is lower than the 3.5% on most entry-tier private-bank cards but far from the zero on Scapia or the IDFC FIRST cards, so it is not a card to carry abroad. Card replacement is ₹300. None of these is a reason to choose the card, but for anyone who occasionally revolves a balance, the interest gap alone is worth several thousand rupees a year.
Who should get it
Get it if:
- You bank with Canara or clear the ₹10 lakh income bar and want a free card with real lounge access.
- You pay small merchants by UPI and want that spend on credit with an interest-free period.
- You want a card to hold forever with no fee and low penalty charges.
Skip it if:
- You want rewards; at 0.5% it is out-earned by almost everything, including free cards like Amazon Pay ICICI.
- Your spend will stay under ₹1 lakh a year; the ₹300 inactivity fee makes the card not quite free.
- You earn under ₹10 lakh a year; the bar rules the card out, and ICICI Platinum Chip or IDFC FIRST Millennia are the free alternatives.
Break-even
There is no fee to break even on, so the only cost to consider is the inactivity fee. Spend ₹1 lakh a year on the card and it costs nothing; spend less and it costs ₹300 plus GST, which the 0.5% earn on that spend does not cover. Use it for UPI and one or two categories to stay above the line.
Common questions
Is it free? Yes, with a ₹300 inactivity fee if annual spend is under ₹1 lakh.
Rewards? 2 points per ₹100 at ₹0.25 each, 0.5%, no accelerators.
Lounges? 2 domestic a quarter, 2 international a year, 8 railway a year, no spend gate.
UPI? Yes, on 25 or more apps, drawing on the credit limit.
Income? ₹10 lakh a year salaried, ₹12 lakh ITR, 700+ score.
Next steps
- Canara Bank RuPay Select card page
- All Canara Bank cards
- SBI Cashback vs Amazon Pay ICICI
- Zero annual fee credit cards in India
Last verified: 2026-09-17 against https://canarabank.com/pages/Rupay-Select-Credit-Card.