Short Answer. No.
Mastercard vs Visa Perspectives.
I have covered some views on this topic elsewhere. However, some summarised perspectives and their sources are as under:-
* Mastercard More Widely Accepted. There are a few reasons why you might choose Mastercard over Visa. Mastercard credit cards are more widely accepted internationally, with over 210 countries and territories accepting Mastercard compared to 200 for Visa (source -
here).
* Mastercard Better for International Travel. Mastercard is generally considered better for international travel because it is accepted in more countries and territories (source -
here).
* Mastercard Has Better Forex Conversion Rates. Even though exchange rates fluctuate and there are many variables involved (details such as transaction vs. posting date, decimal rounding, etc.), MasterCard generally provided the best exchange rates across these currencies in the past year, at least 70% of the time (source -
here). Mastercard’s exchange rate is better in all instances, except with the Japanese Yen, where Visa is
slightly better (source -
here).
* Mastercard Uses Better Forex Rate Conversion Method. Visa guarantees the exchange rate the day you make the purchase, but has a built-in cushion since the transaction typically only posts a couple of days later, so exchange rates could change, meaning there’s some risk for Visa while Mastercard charges the exchange rate the day the transaction posts (often a couple of days after the transaction), so since they’re charging whatever the rate is, the cushion is much smaller (source -
here).
* Mastercard Better. In almost all instances, your purchase will be more expensive if you use a Visa rather than a MasterCard on an overseas transaction and the best credit card for general spending, including overseas transactions, is a MasterCard (source -
here)
The Debate Rages On.
I think while the debate on Mastercard vs Visa continues, many of these researches have found that Mastercard appears to be better overall and for foreign transactions. However, these researches are based on data analytics of foreign countries and not India, yet, these still throw useful pointers at the trends and the overall benefits and tend to gravitate towards Mastercard as being the better player.
Overall View.
I feel that both the networks offer almost similar perks, offers and privileges. Both are widely accepted in India and worldwide. Nevertheless, I guess it is only at peripheral fringes - like foreign transactions, forex rates, international lounges, etc - that there emerges a general consensus in terms of a winner in the form of Mastercard, as per the above cited sources. For daily routine transactions for most of the normal usage patterns in India - like grocery, dining, airlines, hotels, railways, smartbuy, gyftr, et al - both the payment networks offer similar perks catering to their respective users (as per their respective business strategies and business models), if not exactly same, and both run numerous offers every now and then for their respective clientele.
My Final Two Bit.
So, no clear winner by a mile, only by a few whiskers - that too influenced by one's own likes, dislikes, perspectives and usage patterns. Mastercard or Visa - take your pick as the winner. Rupay and Amex remain some distant behind, with Rupay catching up fast, courtesy the govt push. Amex remains the laggard for the general hoi polloi.
More Perspectives.
For more views, you can also check out this thread
here.
Hope this helps.
