January 17, 2026 · 5 mins read
Santosh Kumar
UPI has transformed the way Indians pay for goods and services or do other daily transactions, and UPI is now in widespread use. Credit cards have also retained a very high importance to consumers for managing their spending, collecting rewards and building their credit history. The introduction of the ability to link a UPI account with a credit card merges these two methods of payment, as it allows customers to pay for products or services using UPI while using their credit card rather than their bank account balance.
To be able to link your UPI account with a credit card, you must open an application that supports UPI and offers the ability to add a credit card. You will be required to select the option to add a credit card to your UPI account, verify your credit card information, complete your verification, and set a unique UPI PIN for the purposes of making credit card UPI payments. Once you have linked your UPI account to your credit card, you can use your credit card to pay for UPI transactions, subject to the requirements laid out by your credit card company and the UPI network.
The original intention of UPI was to create a unified payment system for both savings and checking accounts. Over time, UPI began to offer services using Credit Card Networks, starting with a limited amount of support by a few specific Networks and gradually providing support for all Networks.
This enabled UPI Users to utilise either a QR Code or their UPI ID to pay for goods/services using Credit Cards to approve and charge them for those payments. This is markedly different from using a physical card to purchase something directly from a Retail or Grocery point of sale. It is a combination of the Unique Payment Interface's (UPI) ease of use and the features of credit card networks. The transaction from an end-user's point of view is perceived as a direct UPI transfer; however, the funding source is through their Credit Card Network.
Not all Credit Cards can be used with UPI. Users must verify the network they are with or the Bank they have an account with, as well as any app they are using for UPI payments, to determine which Credit Cards are eligible for UPI linking.
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The credit card has to be from a supported payment network, and while early ranges of supported networks have been limited to only a few options, more options will be added on a case-by-case basis as those solutions become available to customers.
The bank must also support UPI Linking of credit cards; therefore, final authority on whether or not your network is supported will always rest with the issuing financial institution.
The UPI application should provide support for the integration of your Credit Card; many different UPI Apps exist, while others may include the ability to integrate with no more than the correct payment network.
To complete the verification process during your UPI Transaction, the information entered on the application must correspond with the phone number associated with both the UPI Account and the Credit Card Account.
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Once you are sure that your card and app work together, it is generally a very easy task to set everything up. To begin, open your UPI application and navigate to its section for Payment Methods. In this part of your application, there will be an option for adding a Credit Card.
Select that option, and then you will need to enter some of your card's information, including the last few digits of the card's number and your card's expiration date.
Then, your identity will be verified by means of an OTP that will be sent to your registered mobile phone number.
This step makes sure that only the person who owns the credit card can link it. Once your verification has been completed, you will then be prompted to create a UPI PIN specifically for Credit Card transactions.
This newly created UPI PIN is separate from the PIN for your card and should never be shared with anybody else.
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You may only link those credit cards that belong to particular networks or banks to UPI apps. Your card issuer's policies and the UPI app you select will determine whether or not you can use your credit card on the app.
Yes, but using UPI with your credit card can have an indirect effect on your score. All transactions you make on a credit card are considered part of your credit card statement. Making payments on time will positively impact your credit report, while late payments will negatively affect your report.
The majority of UPI transactions made using a credit card are not treated as cash advances, but might be depending on your credit card issuer; please refer to your credit card agreement to confirm.
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