Best Rewards Credit Cards in Canada
Rewards cards earn points or miles you redeem for travel, merchandise or statement credits. The best ones combine high earn rates on the categories you actually spend in with flexible redemption — so your points are worth close to their face value instead of getting stuck in one program. This page ranks flexible points cards; airline cards are on our travel page.
Short answer: For flexible points, the American Express Cobalt Card is our top pick (4.8/5): 5 Membership Rewards points per $1 on groceries, restaurants and food delivery, with points that transfer to airline partners or apply against any purchase, for $191.88 a year. The Scotiabank Gold American Express (#2) earns up to 6 Scene+ points per $1 with no foreign transaction fee, and the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite (#3) earns 8 points per $1 on travel booked through Expedia For TD. This page ranks points cards that aren’t tied to one airline; for cash back see our cash back rankings, and for airline cards our travel rankings. Card details last checked September 25, 2026 against issuer pages.
Our Picks, Ranked
among flexible points cards
American Express Cobalt Card
Why it’s #1: Top-rated flexible points. Membership Rewards points: 5X on eligible eats & drinks in Canada — confirmed to include groceries, restaurants…
Good for
- ✓Front Of The Line presale/reserved tickets for concerts, theatre, and events
- ✓The Hotel Collection perks for 2+ night stays booked via Amex Travel
Worth knowing
- !The ‘no annual fee’ framing is misleading — it’s billed monthly and totals $191.88/year…
- !No airport lounge access.
among flexible points cards
Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card
Why it’s here: No foreign transaction fee. 6x Scene+ points at Sobeys-family grocers, 5x on other groceries, dining, food delivery and entertainment, 3x on gas, transit and select streaming, for $120 a year and a $12,000 income minimum.
Good for
- ✓Discounted Priority Pass lounge membership
- ✓Travel medical insurance $1,000,000
Worth knowing
- !$120/yr fee with no universal first-year waiver (rebate only via an existing Scotiabank package)
- !Bonus categories cap at $50,000 combined spend/yr
among flexible points cards
TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card
Why it’s here: Best Expedia travel rate. 8x TD Rewards points on travel booked via Expedia For TD; 6x groceries/dining/transit; 4x recurring bills plus streaming/gaming/digital…
Good for
- ✓Travel medical insurance up to $2,000,000 (21 days; 4 days if 65+)
- ✓Flight/trip delay $500 (4+ hour delay)
Worth knowing
- !$139/yr ongoing fee
- !Best earn rate (8x) is locked to TD’s own Expedia For TD portal, not general travel bookings
among flexible points cards
American Express Gold Rewards Card
Why it’s here: Membership Rewards points: 2 per $1 on travel, gas, groceries and drugstore purchases in Canada, a $100 annual travel credit, a $50 NEXUS credit and a full travel insurance package, including trip cancellation and emergency medical. $250 a year.
Good for
- ✓2 points/$1 on travel, gas, groceries, and drugstore purchases
- ✓$100 annual travel credit through American Express Travel
Worth knowing
- !$250/year fee only partly offset by the $100 travel credit
- !Lounge access more limited than premium travel cards (4 visits/year, not unlimited)
among flexible points cards
BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege Card
Why it’s here: Premium points + lifestyle credit. 5 points per $1 on dining, travel, groceries, gas and drugstores, a $200 yearly lifestyle credit, 6 airport lounge visits a year and up to 200,000 bonus points. $599 a year, with a $150,000 personal or $200,000 household income requirement.
Good for
- ✓$200 yearly lifestyle credit after a single purchase of $200 or more
- ✓6 complimentary airport lounge visits per year
Worth knowing
- !$599 annual fee
- !$150,000 individual / $200,000 household income requirement
among flexible points cards
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card
Why it’s here: Any-airline flight chart. 1 Aventura Point per $1 on all purchases; 1.5 points per $1 at grocery stores, gas stations, EV charging stations, and drugstores, capped at $80,000…
Good for
- ✓Out-of-province/out-of-country emergency travel medical insurance up to $5,000,000 CAD…
- ✓Trip cancellation up to $1,500 CAD per person ($5,000 combined per trip)…
Worth knowing
- !$139 annual fee (plus $50 per supplementary card, up to 3) applies once the first-year rebate ends
- !Base earn rate of 1 point/$1 is unremarkable next to flat-rate cash-back competitors
among flexible points cards
RBC Avion Visa Infinite
Why it’s here: Most flexible redemption. 1.25 RBC Avion points per $1 on travel purchases; 1 point per $1 on everything else. Points don’t expire while the account remains open and in good…
Good for
- ✓Flexible travel redemption: any airline (500+), no blackout dates or seat restrictions…
- ✓Travel insurance suite: emergency medical, trip cancellation/interruption…
Worth knowing
- !$120 annual fee plus $50 per supplementary card.
- !No airport lounge access at this tier (only on the pricier $399/yr Privilege card).
All 7 at a Glance
Compare any cards side by side →| # | Card | Annual fee | Welcome bonus (est.) | Rewards | Redemption flexibility | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | American Express Cobalt Card | $191.88 | $255 | ~8.5% groceries | 4 / 5 | 4.8 ★ | Apply |
| 2 | Scotiabank Gold American Express Card | $120 | $500 | ~5–6% groceries | 3 / 5 | 4.7 ★ | Apply |
| 3 | TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card | $139 (yr 1 waived) | $800 | ~4% Expedia For TD travel | 3 / 5 | 4.2 ★ | Apply |
| 4 | American Express Gold Rewards Card | $250 | $1,020 | ~3.4% groceries | 3 / 5 | 4.2 ★ | Apply |
| 5 | BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege Card | $599 | $1,340 | ~3.4% groceries | 3 / 5 | 4.0 ★ | Apply |
| 6 | CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card | $139 (yr 1 waived) | $720 | ~2.4% travel | 3 / 5 | 3.9 ★ | Apply |
| 7 | RBC Avion Visa Infinite | $120 | $1,120 | ~1.6% everything | 4 / 5 | 3.9 ★ | Apply |
Welcome bonus values use MoneyMint’s points valuations, not the issuer’s advertised “up to” figure. Rewards rates are estimated cash-equivalent values. Cards are ordered by MoneyMint Score. Star ratings on this page compare the cards shown here: the highest-scoring card gets 4.8 and the others are scaled to it, so a card’s review page, which compares it with its own group, can show a different rating. Methodology
Should I Choose Points or Cash Back?
Cash back is predictable and needs no effort; points can be worth more but only if you redeem them well. As a rough test: if you would not enjoy spending twenty minutes comparing redemption options, take the cash back. The Amex Cobalt tops this page on earn rate, but its value depends on using Membership Rewards for travel rather than statement credits.
Which Card on This Page Has the Highest Earn Rate?
The Cobalt, at 5X points on eligible eats and drinks (about 8.5% at our valuation). The Scotiabank Gold earns 5x on groceries, dining and entertainment (6x at Sobeys-family stores), and the TD First Class earns 8x on travel booked through Expedia For TD. All of them beat a flat-rate card, provided your spending actually lands in those categories.
What Is the Catch With High Earn Rates?
Caps, almost always. The Cobalt’s 5X applies to roughly $2,500 of monthly spending in its category; the Scotiabank Gold’s accelerated rates stop after $50,000 of purchases a year; the National Bank World Elite’s 5x covers the first $2,500 a month in groceries and restaurants. Past those limits you drop to a base rate near 1 point per $1, so the headline number is a ceiling, not an average.
Do I Need to Pay an Annual Fee to Earn Decent Rewards?
Not necessarily. Every card on this page has a fee, from $120 a year (Scotiabank Gold American Express and RBC Avion Visa Infinite) to $599 (BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege), but no-fee cards like the RBC ION Visa and CIBC Aeroplan Visa still earn points in everyday categories. A fee buys higher rates and insurance, and only pays off above a certain level of spending. Our no annual fee page covers the $0 options.
How Do I Actually Redeem What I Earn?
It varies more than the earn rates do. Some cards credit cash back automatically once a year, some let you apply it to your balance any time above a minimum, and points programs differ again. Before choosing on earn rate alone, check how and when you can get the value out — rewards you cannot conveniently redeem are worth less than a lower rate you can.
Rates, fees and offers are as last verified by MoneyMint and may have changed — always confirm current terms on the issuer’s official page before applying. Some links on this page may be affiliate links, meaning MoneyMint could earn a commission if you apply through them, at no extra cost to you. This never affects which cards we feature or how we rank them. This is general information, not personalized financial advice. Where a card earns points, “estimated value” figures convert points to dollars using MoneyMint’s own point valuations — see our points value calculator.