Credit card showdown

Line up the things you’ll actually feel: the annual fee, what the card earns on your own spending after that fee, the foreign transaction fee if you travel or shop in US dollars, the interest rate if you ever carry a balance, and the insurance and perks you’d use. The showdown above runs those rounds for any two or three cards in our data, with your spending.

In our data, the Cobalt costs $191.88 a year, billed as $15.99 a month, and earns 5 points per dollar on eats, food delivery and groceries (groceries up to $30,000 a year), 3 on eligible streaming and 2 on travel, transit and gas. The Gold Rewards card costs $250 and earns 2 points on groceries, gas, travel and dining, with a $100 annual travel credit, and its insurance list includes travel emergency medical and trip cancellation. Both charge a 2.5% foreign transaction fee. Run them through the showdown with your spending to see which earns more for you.

The Platinum’s fee is $799 against $250 for the Gold. For that, our data lists unlimited airport lounge access, a $200 annual travel credit (the Gold has $100), hotel elite status and a NEXUS rebate, and 3 points per dollar on dining and food delivery. It only pays off if you use those perks. The showdown’s lounge and net rewards rounds show the trade-off on your numbers.

Both pay 5 points per dollar on groceries, dining and food delivery in our data, and the Scotiabank Gold earns 6 at Sobeys, Safeway, FreshCo, Foodland and more. The big difference is abroad: the Scotiabank Gold has no foreign transaction fee, while the Cobalt charges 2.5%. Its fee is $120 against the Cobalt’s $191.88. Points programs differ too: Scene+ for Scotiabank, Membership Rewards for Amex.

They’re payment networks, not the companies that set your rewards, fees or interest. Those come from the bank that issues the card and its tier, such as Visa Infinite or World Elite Mastercard. Both are widely accepted in Canada, though Costco’s Canadian warehouses accept only Mastercard as a credit card. The showdown compares the cards themselves, so the network doesn’t score points.

Privilege cards sit a tier higher. For example, the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite costs $139 a year and the Visa Infinite Privilege version costs $599. Our data lists Maple Leaf Lounge access (with passes) and free first and second checked bags on Air Canada for the Privilege, against a free first checked bag on the Infinite. The Privilege also suggests a higher credit score: 760 and up, against 720.

Both cost $120 a year in our data. The Avion Visa Infinite earns 1.25 points per dollar on travel and 1 on everything else, and lists travel insurance including emergency medical and trip cancellation. The Avion Visa Platinum earns 1 point per dollar on all purchases, and we don’t have its insurance or perks listed, so the showdown marks those rounds Not listed. Check RBC’s site for the Platinum’s coverage.

The ION has no annual fee and earns 1.5 Avion points per dollar on groceries, gas, EV charging, transit, rideshare and streaming. The ION+ costs $48 a year and earns 3 points on those categories plus dining and food delivery, and adds mobile device insurance. If you spend a few hundred dollars a month in those categories, the extra points can cover the fee. Put your own spending into the showdown to check.

It depends on how you redeem. We value Aeroplan points at about 1.5 cents each, our mid-range estimate for economy flights, since their value varies by flight. Avion points are worth 1 cent each toward travel booked through RBC, and can be converted to partner airline programs such as British Airways Avios, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles and American Airlines AAdvantage. These values feed the net rewards round.

Yes, this one. Pick any two or three cards, add your monthly spending if you like, and the showdown compares them on eight rounds. You can share the result: the link in your address bar keeps the cards you picked.