India, Apr 28:: Visa (NYSE: V), a global leader in digital payments, has unveiled its Visa Consulting and Analytics (VCA) Whitepaper – India’s Affluent Economy 2025- 2026.
The VCA Whitepaper examines “affluence in India“ primarily from a behavioural perspective rather than solely in terms of income. Drawing on insights from a Visa-commissioned YouGov study, supplemented by recent Visa-Net data encompassing travel, dining, retail, and lifestyle sectors, the whitepaper analyses how affluence is influencing consumption patterns across the country.
The study reveals ‘affluent India’ is growing and entering a new phase where consumption is more intentional and deliberate and closely tied to personal identity. Rather than buying more, affluent consumers are choosing purchases that feel meaningful, visible and worth repeating.
Interestingly, as consumers move up the affluence ladder, discretionary categories account for a larger share of credit card spending, underscoring the role of credit cards as primary enablers of bespoke lifestyle spending.
A rapidly expanding affluent base
The VCA Whitepaper highlights a sharp expansion in India’s affluent population. Recently, individuals earning over ₹10 lakh rose from 69 lakh to 130 lakh, highlighting a significantly larger base of consumers with the capacity to spend beyond necessities, and participate more actively in discretionary categories.
Affluence spreads beyond metros and is defined by behaviour
Affluence is no longer limited to metro cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Wealth is increasingly spreading to emerging cities such as Ahmedabad, Surat, Jaipur and Lucknow, with consumption behaviour in these markets mirroring metropolitan patterns.
Key Highlights from the report:
Credit-cards are the primary instrument empowering the growing Indian affluent cohort enabling access to the premium products and exclusive experiences they seek.
Luxury is moving from ownership to access:
- Over 50% of affluent consumers use cards for elite memberships, and 7 in 10 are drawn to limited‑edition drops and gated collections.
- Status today comes from belonging, curation, and seamless access, not just visible possessions. For example: Consumers increasingly prefer concierge‑led travel, or curated dining experiences and only through trusted intermediaries because the real premium is time saved and effort removed.
- Luxury retail intensity increases:
- The report shows that 2 in 5 affluent consumers spend over ₹5 lakh annually on luxury retail, and 4 in 1 exceed ₹10 lakh in annual luxury spending.
- Technology as lifestyle:
- Technology is increasingly becoming a lifestyle category, with average spends of ₹60,000 or more per visit on high-end gadgets, and 2 in 5 Ultra Elite consumers treating technology as a luxury purchase.
- Wellness becomes routine:
- Ultra Elite consumers are eight times more likely to visit spas and show five times higher penetration for cosmetic stores compared to non affluent consumers.
- Travel as the primary driver of affluent spending:
- Among the Ultra Elite, travel accounts for 58% of discretionary spends, while retail and luxury together account for 28%, indicating a strong tilt toward experience led consumption.
- Global spending rises with affluence:
- Cross border spending penetration in elite tiers is at 63%
- Dining becomes frequent:
- Nearly 4 in 5 affluent Indians dine at premium establishments at least three times a year, while 1 in 4 visit luxury venues more than five times annually.
- Higher dining benchmarks:
- An annual dining spend marker of around ₹2 lakh, with ₹20,000 emerging as a new spend floor per experience and ₹50,000 cited as a premium benchmark.
- Retail turns selective:
- 3 in 4 affluent consumers make a high-end retail purchase at least once every quarter, while 1 in 4 buys something premium every two weeks.
Commenting on the findings, Sushmit Nath, Head of Visa Consulting & Analytics, India and South Asia, said, “Our analysis in this VCA Whitepaper – India’s Affluent Economy, shines a light on how affluence is no longer episodic. The propensity towards discretionary spends is far higher and not just reserved for milestones. This marks a definite shift in how premium consumption contributes to the broader economy, especially as affluence expands beyond large metros. Increasingly, this premium spend is experience-led, driven by demand for exclusivity, bespoke journeys and seamless access across travel, dining, wellness and curated lifestyle moments.”
What the data signals about India’s affluent economy
The VCA Whitepaper points to a fundamental reshaping of India’s affluent economy.
- As the number of high-income individuals and affluence expands beyond metros, discretionary spends across the segment are seen to be central to everyday consumption.
- Affluent consumers increasingly seek – ecosystems, not products. They value an integrated ecosystem as a coherent lifestyle stack that combines their choice of experiences across – travel, dining, wellness, payments, and digital identity.
- The affluent cohort seeks seamless, connected experiences that are naturally a part of their lifestyle. They place a higher premium on saving time and an access to bespoke, exclusive experiences through reliable enablers.
India’s luxury opportunity over the coming years will not be shaped merely by the scale of its affluent segment, but by the speed at which new cities, new consumers and emerging behaviours converge with global standards. The brands that win will be those that establish presence early – embedded locally, relevant culturally, and visible consistently, well before the inflection point becomes evident in the data.
