When choosing a credit card, are you looking for travel rewards, a low interest rate or maybe a good starter card for a student’s lifestyle?
Every year we go the extra mile to figure out exactly which products offer the best value. In picking the winners of the 2016 Best of Finance Awards, we spent hours upon hours breaking down miles, points and cash back. We examined interest rates, promotional balance transfer rates and annual fees. And we compared these figures using the everyday expenditures of the average Canadian over a two-year period to come up with a list of the best cards currently on the market.
To determine and compare the true value proposition of each card, we have converted all rewards -- from points and miles to interest promotions -- to cash earned over a 24-month period, based on the average Canadian household expenditure according to Statistics Canada.
The one exception is the Best Low Balance Transfer category, which is measured over a 12-month period. Here are the best Canadian credit cards of 2016*:
WINNER: President’s Choice Financial® World Elite Mastercard®
2nd Place: Capital One® Platinum Mastercard® (for Costco members)
3rd Place: President’s Choice Financial® Mastercard®
WINNER: Scotiabank GM VISA Card
2nd Place: President’s Choice Financial® World Elite Mastercard®
3rd Place: MBNA Rewards World Elite® Mastercard®
WINNER: Blue Sky™ Credit Card from American Express
2nd Place: Capital One® Aspire Travel™ Platinum Mastercard®
3rd Place: Shell® AIR MILES® Mastercard® from BMO
WINNER: TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite
2nd Place: American Express® AeroplanPlus® Platinum Card
3rd Place: CIBC Aventura® Visa Infinite
WINNER: Alaska Airlines World Elite® Mastercard®
2nd Place: The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express (This card is no longer available. See Marriott Bonvoy.)
3rd Place: WestJet RBC® World Elite Mastercard
WINNER: Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card
2nd Place: SimplyCash™ Card from American Express
3rd Place: RBC® Cash Back Mastercard
WINNER: Scotia Momentum® Visa Infinite
2nd Place: MBNA Rewards World Elite® Mastercard®
3rd Place: BMO® CashBack® World Elite® Mastercard®
WINNER: Scotia Momentum® Visa Infinite
2nd Place: Shell® CashBack® World Mastercard® from BMO
3rd Place: MBNA Smart Cash Mastercard® credit card
WINNER: BMO SPC® CashBack® Mastercard® (discontinued)
2nd Place: Scotiabank SCENE® VISA Card
3rd Place: StudentAwards MBNA Rewards Mastercard® credit card
WINNER: MBNA TrueLine® Mastercard®
2nd Place: National Bank Syncro Mastercard®
WINNER: MBNA Platinum Plus® Mastercard®
2nd Place: RBC Rewards Visa Gold
WINNER: (TIE) Capital One® Guaranteed Mastercard®; Capital One® Guaranteed Secured Mastercard®
2nd Place: National Bank MC1™ Mastercard®
3rd Place: Home Trust Secured Visa Card
*All data was compiled between August 29 and September 7, 2016.
To calculate the return earned on each Canadian rewards credit card, we assumed a total monthly spend on the card of $1,149.82*, divided into the following categories:
*Source: Statistics Canada
To calculate the value of low interest credit cards, we assumed the following:
To calculate the value of low balance transfer credit cards, we assumed the following:
We have also compiled a list of the best banking products in Canada. Click here to view the winners of these categories.
Do you have a winner in your wallet? If not, why not check out the best credit cards today!