The best no-fee credit cards in Canada for 2024

Pros

• Considering most no-fee credit cards in Canada have a base earn rate of 0.5%, the base earn rate of 1.25% is especially generous.
• Many no-fee cards in Canada only give you extended warranty and purchase protection, but with this card you get travel insurance that provides up to $100,000 in accidental death and dismemberment insurance when you fully charge your common carrier (plane, train, ship or bus) tickets to the card.

Cons

• Cash back is only applied once a year to your account as a statement credit every September. Other no-fee cards offer more frequent or on-demand redemption options.. 
• With grocery purchases, you’re capped at $300 in cash back annually (the first $15,000 spent). That’s a relatively low cap for a bonus category.
• American Express is less widely accepted in Canada than Visa or Mastercard, so you might want to also carry a secondary card for purchases at certain stores, including Costco and Loblaw grocery stores.

Pros

• This is the only card in Canada among both no-fee and premium cards that allows you to pick either two or three categories from a total of 10 options, including grocery, gas, eating places, entertainment, public transit and recurring bills. 
• You have an unlimited opportunity to switch bonus categories, subject to certain time limitations. 
• Take advantage of a low 1.95% interest rate on balance transfers made within your first 30 days of being a cardholder. There’s a 1% balance transfer fee, and the interest rate is valid for six months (then it jumps to 19.95%).

Cons

• Purchases that don’t fall into one of your chosen 2% categories will only earn 0.5% cash back, which is lower than some other no-fee cash back cards that offer a higher base rate.
• You can only change reward categories every 90 days and the change won’t come into effect until your next billing cycle.

Pros

• The 1.5% cash back on all purchases in Canada is among the highest for no-fee cards, making it particularly valuable for everyday spending and at retailers like Costco that don’t accept Visa or Amex.
• The accelerated 3% earn rate on purchases in U.S. dollars covers the 2.5% foreign transaction fee. If you frequently shop in the U.S., it’s like having a no-forex-fee card.
• Redeem your rewards against purchases on your card once you have earned a minimum of $10 in cash back rewards.
• The card comes with four types of travel insurance: emergency medical insurance, trip cancellation, trip interruption and collision/damage rental car coverage (all very rare features for a no-fee card). Complimentary membership to Mastercard Travel Pass by DragonPass is also included.

Cons

• Only Rogers, Fido and Shaw customers benefit fully from having this card (as they earn 2% on all purchases and get a redemption bonus of 1.5% on Rogers, Fido and Shaw purchases). The 1.5% earn rate for people who aren’t customers is less impressive.
• High income requirements of $80,000 annual personal income or $150,000 annual household income may put this card out of reach.

Pros

• Cardholders can redeem Membership Rewards points for a wide variety of options including gift cards, merchandise, Amazon.ca purchases, and travel. This versatility allows users to maximize value based on their preferences.
• Amex Membership Rewards points offer great value for travellers, allowing you to transfer your points to a variety of loyalty programs like Aeroplan at a value of 1:1. 
• The American Express Experiences program is a unique extra among no-fee cards, which tend to have very streamlined perks. It gives cardholders access to presale tickets and invites to exclusive events.

Cons

• The American Express Green Card offers a bonus of 2 points per $1 spent on hotel and car rental bookings made through its travel website. However, for all other purchases, it has a flat earn rate of 1 point per $1.
• American Express cards are not as widely accepted as Visa and Mastercard in Canada.

Pros

• A birthday bonus perk gets you 10% of your annual earnings in points (up to a maximum of 10,000 bonus points in one year).
• The MBNA Payment Plan allows you to pay for eligible credit card purchases of $100 or more in monthly payments rather than a lump sum.
• Cardholders also enjoy rental car discounts, extended warranty and purchase protection.
• It’s one of the few no-fee cards that offers mobile phone insurance.

Cons

• The accelerated earn rate of 2 points is capped at $10,000 annually in each boosted category. Then it falls to the base rate of 1 point per $1.
• MBNA rewards aren’t as flexible as some other programs, because you have to redeem through the bank’s own travel portal and you can’t transfer points to other airline programs.

Pros

• A true no forex credit card, you don’t pay a fee for purchases in a non-Canadian currency (unlike some so-called no-forex fee cards that only waive the fee for some select foreign currencies).
• Earn a flat 1% cash back (with no cap on earnings) on all your Canadian currency purchases.

Cons

• Cash back is only earned on Canadian currency purchases (so while you’re abroad, you’ll save 2.5% on forex fees but won’t pocket the additional 1% cash back rewards).
• Cash back is only redeemed as a credit once annually in January, as opposed to any time of the year.
• The card does not come with extended warranty protection, which is pretty standard even for no-fee cards.

Pros

Get 3% cash back on groceries—the highest rate on groceries for a no-fee cash back credit card in Canada. You also earn 1% on recurring bills. 

BMO has very flexible cash back options. You can redeem your cash any time and deposit it into a BMO account (chequing, savings or InvestorLine) or get a statement credit. 

Take advantage of extended warranty and purchase protection on your purchases.

Cons

• Unfortunately, the accelerated rate categories have quite a low cap of only $500 monthly and once you reach that max you’ll only earn the 0.5% base rate

Pros

• With Aeroplan you can redeem points on any available Air Canada flight with no blackout dates. You can also use them with any of Aeroplan’s many partners, such as United and Aer Lingus.
• Get up to 10 cents off per litre at participating gas stations if you link your Aeroplan card with a Journie Rewards membership.
• The card features car rental collision and loss damage insurance, as well as common carrier, purchase security and extended protection insurance.
• Designed for students, the card has no minimum income requirement.

Cons

• Your everyday purchases won’t contribute to earning Status Qualifying Miles with this Aeroplan credit card. 
• For first-time cardholders, navigating the Aeroplan points program might be less straightforward, as point values vary according to a regional chart. To maximize value, strategic flight booking is essential.

Pros

• You’d be hard pressed to find a card with a lower interest rate that also charges no annual fee (most low APR cards from the other banks charge between $20-$40 in annual fees)
• Despite being a low interest card, it doesn’t completely skimp on perks: cardholders have travel insurance for trips up to 3 days, select rental car discounts at Hertz, Thrifty and Dollar and mobile device insurance.
• The card also has a low 12.9% APR on cash advances.

Cons

• This card doesn’t offer any balance transfer promotions. So if you want to transfer an existing balance to a new card with the goal of paying it off fast, you may want to consider a balance transfer credit card instead. 
• If you prefer in-person support, note that Desjardins only has physical branches in Ontario and Quebec.

Pros

• The earn rates translate to a high 3% to 4.5% return on your spending at Canada’s largest grocery and pharmacy retail network—all with the advantage of no annual fee.
• You can quickly stack points by combining your PC Optimum Card and your PC Financial Mastercard.
• The card features an impressive amount of insurance, including travel emergency medical insurance, car rental collision/loss damage waiver insurance, as well as collision/damage and theft protection for car rentals. 
• One of the only no-fee cards that offer 24/7 concierge service.

Cons

• To remain eligible for the card’s higher-tier earn rates, you need to spend a minimum of $15,000 annually. If not, you’ll be “demoted” to a lower earning card, such as the PC World Mastercard or PC Mastercard.
• You have to shop at PC partners to earn the most points.

Pros

• The card comes with a hassle-free return policy without requiring a receipt at select stores and offers exclusive savings events for members. 
• The card comes with purchase security, extended warranty and car rental collision/loss damage waiver.
• Enjoy the Triangle World Elite Mastercard Roadside Assistance Gold Plan, providing a towing distance of up to 250 km per service call to your preferred destination within Canada or the US. 
• Get $0.07 per litre in CT Money on premium fuel and $0.05 per litre at Gas+ and Essence+ locations.
• Cardholders can also enjoy complimentary concierge service to help you with travel and other bookings. 
• One dollar in CT Money is equal to CAD$1. Plus, for $89 per year plus tax you can sign up for the Triangle Select program, which will earn you as much as ten times the CT Money on everyday purchases made with your Triangle Mastercard.

Cons

• The reward points are only applied to the price of the purchased items, meaning the 4% you’ll earn on purchases at Canadian Tire doesn’t include sales tax.
• The card has a high annual minimum income requirement of $80,000 or $150,000 per household.