American Express credit cards offer some of the highest earn rates and most rewarding travel perks for credit cards in Canada. Here, we break down the best Amex cards in the country for cash back, travel, no fee and low interest.
Best American Express credit cards in Canada
SimplyCash Preferred Card from American Express
Scotiabank Gold American Express Card
American Express Green Card
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Compare popular American Express credit cards
Compare your American Express credit card options with our interactive tool and filter credit cards based on rewards value, annual fees, income requirements and more. Use the tool below to compare credit card options, or keep scrolling for our editors’ top picks.
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Check out the pros and cons of our top American Express card picks across the cash back, travel, low-interest and other categories.
MoneySense editors start by coming up with a list of the best overall credit cards in Canada. If the top card in Canada for a given category is an American Express, we may choose to include it on this page, depending on how it stacks up to other cards’ features. And if the top pick is a Mastercard or Visa credit card, then we look to the next-best card, and so on, until we find the best Amex for each category on this list. Since each category is unique, we use different selection criteria each time to find the best American Express card for cardholders. Unlike with many other websites, the links from affiliate partners has no bearing on the results. Read more about our selection process and about how MoneySense makes money.
Best cash back American Express credit card
At a glance: The American Express SimplyCash Preferred is one of the best cash back credit cards in Canada, offering a generous 4% cash back on gas and groceries and 2% on all other purchases. There’s no income requirement, making it accessible to a wide range of Canadians.
Amex SimplyCash Preferred
Annual fee: $120
- 4% cash back on eligible gas and grocery purchases
- 2% cash back on everything else
Welcome offer: Earn a bonus 10% cash back on all purchases for your first three months (up to $2,000 in purchases) and a $50 statement credit when you make a purchase in month 13 (total value of up to $250).
Card details
| Interest rates | 21.99% on purchases, 21.99% on cash advances |
| Income required | None specified |
| Credit score | 725 or higher |
Pros
- Generous earn rates: Get 4% cash back on gas and groceries and a strong 2% cash back on all other purchases.
- No income requirement: This cash back card is super accessible for many Canadians.
- Exclusive Amex perks: Get access to dining and retail experiences, Amex Front of the Line event access, and tailored monthly Amex Offers.
- Free supplementary cards: Maximize the card’s cash back potential with another card, at no added cost.
Cons
- Limited acceptance: Amex is not as widely accepted as Visa or Mastercard, especially when travelling and at certain stores like Loblaw-banner stores.
- Yearly redemptions: Your cash-back rewards are not always accessible, as they are issued as a statement credit once a year in September.
Gold: Best American Express travel credit card
At a glance: The Scotiabank Gold American Express is king among the best travel credit cards in Canada, thanks to its impressive rewards program, comprehensive insurance package and suite of travel perks, including no foreign transaction fees. With a generous welcome bonus and a flexible redemption process to use points for travel and other purchases, it’s perfect for frequent travellers.
Scotiabank Gold American Express
Annual fee: $120
- 6 points per $1 at Sobeys-affiliated stores
- 5 points per $1 on dining, entertainment and groceries
- 3 points per $1 on gas, transit and streaming
- 1 point per $1 on everything else
- Pay no FX fees on foreign purchases
Welcome offer: Earn up to $780 in value in the first 12 months, including up to 40,000 bonus Scene+ points. Offer ends July 1, 2025.
Card details
| Interest rates | 20.99% on purchases, 22.99% on cash advances, 22.99% on balance transfers |
| Income required | $12,000 per year |
| Credit score | 725 or higher |
| Point value | 1 Scene+ point = $0.01 when redeemed for travel on any airline or hotel (including Airbnbs). |
Pros
- Straightforward redemptions: When you book through Scene+ Travel, Powered by Expedia, you can redeem your points in increments of 100 (each valued at $1). There are no complicated rules or exceptions to deal with when redeeming points.
- Redemption window: Through the “apply points to travel” option, you can redeem your earned rewards retroactively for up to 12 months after you make a travel purchase.
- No foreign transaction fees: Enjoy savings on foreign currency transactions while travelling or shopping internationally online, as this card waives the foreign transaction fee (which is 2.5% on most credit cards in Canada).
- Eligibility requirements: The annual income needed is modest at $12,000 per year to qualify, making it accessible to most Canadians.
Cons
- Fixed point redemption value: While earning rates are comparatively high, points are always valued at $0.01 and cannot be transferred to airline frequent flyer programs, unlike some other Canadian credit cards.
- No free lounge access passes: While this credit card offers a discount of up to 35% off on airport lounge access Priority Pass memberships, the card itself doesn’t include free visits like some other travel cards.
Silver: Best American Express travel credit card
At a glance: The impressive high earn rate of the American Express Cobalt, particularly in the popular food category, makes it a standout credit card for those who vacation often. For travel category—which includes rewards for flights, transit, gas and even rideshares purchases—offers a high-rate for earning rewards.
American Express Cobalt
Annual fee: $156
- 5 points per $1 on dining and groceries
- 3 points per $1 on streaming services
- 2 points per $1 on transit and gas
- 1 point per $1 on all other purchases
Welcome offer: Earn 1,250 points for each month you spend $750, up to a maximum of 15,000 points.
Card details
| Interest rates | 21.99% on purchases, 21.99% on cash advances |
| Income required | None specified |
| Credit score | 725 or higher |
| Point value | 1 Amex Membership Rewards point = $0.01 when redeemed with the Flexible Points Travel Program, $0.015 on average with the Fixed Points Travel Program, and up to $0.02 with airline points transfers. |
Pros
- High earn rates: Earning 5 points per $1 on food and drinks, the Cobalt easily one of Canada’s most lucrative rewards cards.
- Ultimate points flexibility: You can redeem rewards for flights using the Amex Fixed or Flexible travel program, and you can transfer points to other loyalty programs, like Aeroplan at a rate of 1:1. You can also use your points for statement credit, gift cards and merchandise.
- Few spending caps: This travel card will get you some of the highest rates around, along with no spending limits on categories—other than a $2,500 per month spend cap on food and groceries.
Cons
- Moderately high fee: At $156, the annual fee is a bit higher than some other cards in this category.
Best no-fee American Express credit card
At a glance: Think of the American Express Green Card as the Cobalt’s mini-me. Like the Cobalt, this card lets you earn flexible Amex Membership Rewards points that you can redeem for travel and cash rewards—except it has no annual fee.
American Express Green Card
Annual fee: $0
- 1 point for every $1 spent on all purchases
- 1 additional point for every $1 spent on hotel or car bookings made on americanexpress.ca.
Welcome offer: earn 10,000 Membership Rewards points when you charge $1,000 in purchases to your card in the first three months of cardmembership.
Card details
| Interest rates | 21.99% on purchases, 21.99% on cash advances |
| Income required | None specified |
| Credit score | 725 or higher |
| Point value | 1 Amex Membership Rewards point = $0.01 when redeemed with the Flexible Points Travel Program, $0.015 on average with the Fixed Points Travel Program, and up to $0.02 with airline points transfers. . |
Pros
- Redemption flexibility: Amex Membership Rewards points can be used for travel or cash rewards—it’s your choice.
- Points transfers: Transfer your rewards points to other programs—such as Marriott Bonvoy and British Airways—to increase point values and get better rewards returns.
- Great starter card: With no minimum income requirement and no annual fee, this no-fee credit card is very accessible to Canadians.
Cons
- Limited insurance coverage: Though not surprising for a no-fee card, it doesn’t come with emergency medical, mobile device or rental car protection.
Best low-interest American Express credit card
At a glance: The American Express Essential Card is a good low-interest credit card for Canadians who want to save on interest charges. And with a low annual fee of $25, it’s an affordable option for managing everyday expenses.
American Express Essential Card
Annual fee: $25
Rewards: Does not offer rewards.
Welcome offer: None at this time.
Card details
| Interest rates | 12.99% on purchases and 12.99% on cash advances |
| Income required | $15,000 per year |
| Credit score | 725 or higher |
Pros
- Low permanent interest rates: There’s no need to worry about the end of a promotional interest rate period.
- Cash advance rate: The 12.99% purchase interest rate extends to cash advances, which is almost unheard for credit cards in Canada.
- Some travel insurance: This American Exprss card also includes $100,000 in travel accident insurance—a rare perk for a low-interest credit card.
Cons
- No balance transfer promo: Some comparable low-interest cards offer a balance transfer deal that allows you to save on interest charges for a set period of time, but not this one.
About American Express Membership Rewards
American Express Membership Rewards is one of the most valuable and flexible rewards programs for credit cards in Canada. But to make the most of it, it’s important to understand how Membership Rewards (MR) points work and how much MR points are worth.
Travel redemptions
Travel is one of the most popular ways to redeem any of American Express points programs, partly because of how flexible American Express made it for cardholders. There are several ways to make the most of your points, and you don’t need to use Amex’s in-house travel agency. You can redeem points for purchases booked directly from an outside airline, hotel and/or travel agency.
American Express Flexible Travel
The most simplified travel redemption comes from the Flexible Travel points program, where each point is worth $0.01 towards flights, hotel stays, car rental, vacation packages and cruises. You can redeem points for travel in flat increments of 1,000 points (worth $10).
American Express Fixed Travel
If you’re looking to maximize your points value and score great travel deals, you might want to use the Fixed Travel points program. It allows you to redeem points for round-trip flights out of Canada, based on a regional rewards chart.
Point values vary depending on the flight and region you’re travelling to, with each region requiring a minimum number of points in exchange for a maximum price ticket. And you may have to pay upfront and get a refund for the ticket.
For example, say you’re flying from Toronto to Montreal (a short-haul flight within Canada). According to the rewards chart, you’ll need a minimum of 15,000 points, which can cover up to a maximum $300 of a flight ticket’s base price (not including taxes). If you find an airline ticket at $350 ($250 plus $100 in taxes), you would need to redeem 15,000 points and pay $350 (total price of the ticket). Then, American Express would refund you $250—the base price of the ticket, not including taxes. Ultimately, you would pay 15,000 points plus $100 out of pocket for the $350 ticket, which works out to $0.0167 per point—far greater than the $0.01 per point value you’d receive in the Flexible Points program.
Transfer options
One of the benefits of American Express Rewards is the ability to transfer your points to six different frequent flyer programs, often at favourable ratios. For example, you can transfer 1,000 Membership Rewards points for 1,000 Aeroplan Points at a one-to-one ratio. The value of Aeroplan Points fluctuates. But, depending on which flight you redeem them for and how well you optimize your trip, you can reap as much as $0.02 to $0.04 per point, especially on business class flights. The right transfers can boost your rewards values.
Transfers don’t just apply to airlines. You can transfer either Membership Rewards to hotel partners including Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors. Point values and transfer ratio fluctuate by program, so do you may have to do some math to find out what is the very best deal for you.
Statement credits
If you’d rather spend points on your everyday buys, you can. Although the value for points here is not as good as with the travel rewards. When using a statement credit, 1,000 points equals $7 (which is $0.007 per point). You may want to stick with a cash back credit card instead of a travel rewards card, since cash rewards cards offer redemptions values on everyday spends and credits.
Gift cards and merchandise
If you just want to cash in your points for a gift card or merchandise, with American Express Membership Rewards you can do that. The values on merchandise vary dramatically. So, getting a good deal may, again, take a bit of math. You can expect around $0.0075 per point on gift cards.
Amex acceptance in Canada: Is it really an issue?
If you read up on American Express cards, you’ll notice warning about limitations around how widely accepted these cards are. It’s true Mastercard and Visa cards can be tapped at more places, especially outside of North America. But the stigma around American Express may be a bit overblown.
American Express is accepted at more than 96,000 places across Canada, including most department and big box stores like The Bay, Walmart, Canadian Tire, Home Depot among others. It’s also accepted at thousands of restaurants and cafés, including a large number of fast food and chain restaurants, as well as food delivery apps. Metro and Sobeys grocery stores accept American Express, but Costco and Loblaw-banner stores do not. Shoppers Drug Mart, some independent restaurants and several smaller mom-and-pop shops do not take American Express either.
Where does this leave you?
Rather than forgoing the valuable rewards and perks found with many American Express cards, our advice is to carry at least two cards with you. Bring your American Express along with another no-fee Visa or Mastercard, just in case.
