How we rate financial products

Editorial Independence

Aapka Bharadwaj's editorial team operates independently of our business side. The products and cards we recommend are chosen on their merits — annual fee, reward rate, eligibility, and real-world value for Indian consumers — not on which brands pay us more.

No brand, issuer, or lender has editorial approval over our content. If a product has a significant drawback, we say so, even if we earn a commission on applications.

How We Rate Credit Cards

We evaluate every credit card across five dimensions, each equally weighted:

• Annual fee vs. rewards value — We calculate the net value assuming ₹30,000–₹80,000 monthly spend across categories (online, dining, travel, groceries). A card is only worth recommending if its rewards outpace its fee for the target user.
• Earn rate — Reward points, cashback, or miles per ₹100 spent. We verify rates directly from the issuer's MITC (Most Important Terms and Conditions) document, not from marketing copy.
• Redemption quality — Not all points are equal. We assess real redemption value: 1 HDFC Reward point ≠ 1 SBI point. We disclose our assumed redemption rate.
• Eligibility and approval odds — A premium card with a ₹25L income requirement isn't useful for most readers. We segment recommendations by income band.
• Hidden costs — Joining fees, renewal conditions, add-on card charges, fuel surcharge caps, and foreign transaction fees are all surfaced.

How We Rate Loans

For personal loans, home loans, and gold loans we assess:

• Effective interest rate — We use the annualised percentage rate (APR), not the headline "starting from" figure. Processing fees are amortised into the rate comparison.
• Flexibility — Prepayment charges, top-up eligibility, and EMI moratorium options matter more than the interest rate for many borrowers.
• Approval speed and documentation — We verify turnaround times from lender disclosures and RBI data where available.
• RBI compliance — We note lenders on RBI's public list of non-compliant NBFCs and flag any regulatory cautions.

How We Rate Insurance

Insurance ratings follow IRDAI-published data wherever possible:

• Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) — Sourced from IRDAI's Annual Report. We use the 3-year average, not a single-year figure that may be anomalous.
• Solvency ratio — Insurers must maintain a minimum 1.5× solvency ratio under IRDAI rules. We flag any insurer below 2× as a caution.
• Premium vs. coverage — For term insurance, we compare the premium for ₹1 crore cover at age 30, non-smoker, 30-year term. Rates are verified from insurer websites, not aggregators.
• Policy wording clarity — Exclusion clauses, waiting periods, and sub-limits are highlighted in plain language.

*Note: We are not IRDAI-licensed distributors. Links to insurance products are for information only.*

Who Writes and Reviews Our Content

Author: Nitish Bharadwaj — Personal Finance Editor. 8+ years covering credit products, lending, insurance, and personal investing for Indian consumers. All articles on this site are written or directly edited by Nitish.

Fact-checking: Data-heavy articles (interest rate comparisons, insurance CSR tables, tax slabs) are verified against primary sources before publication: RBI circulars, SEBI filings, IRDAI Annual Reports, and issuer MITC documents. We link to primary sources wherever practical.

Updates: We aim to review and update rate-sensitive articles (FD rates, credit card reward rates, loan interest rates) within 30 days of any material change. The "Updated" date on each article reflects the last substantive review.