The best no-fee credit cards in Canada for 2024

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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

• Unlike some credit cards that claim to have no foreign transaction fees but only waive them for select currencies, the Home Trust Preferred Visa charges zero fees on all non-Canadian currency purchases. ). This can save you 2.5% per foreign transaction. 
• 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 when making purchases in a foreign currency, you’ll save 2.5% on forex fees but won’t pocket the additional 1% in rewards. 
• Cash back is only redeemed as a credit once annually in January, as opposed to any time of the year. This is less flexible than some other cards that let you redeem rewards once you reach a minimum threshold.
• 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 on the first $500 spent per month—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 in increments of as little as $1 or set up automatic recurring redemptions starting at $25. Redemption options include depositing your cash-back rewards into a BMO chequing or savings account, receiving a statement credit on your card or even investing through a BMO InvestorLine account.
• Take advantage of extended warranty and purchase protection on your purchases.

Cons

• The accelerated rates of 3% and 1% are earned on only the first $500 per month, 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 Lufthansa.
• One of the few no-fee cards that comes with car rental collision and loss damage insurance, as well as common carrier insurance.
• Designed for students, the card has no minimum income requirement and also comes with a fee SPC+ membership, which provides valuable benefits and discounts for students.

Cons

• Your everyday purchases won’t contribute to earning Status Qualifying Miles with this Aeroplan credit card. 
• Navigating the Aeroplan points program isn’t straightforward. Point values vary according to a regional chart, so 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 charge between $20 to $40 in annual fees).
• Despite being a no-fee low-interest card, cardholders have travel insurance (including emergency medical, trip cancellation coverage and baggage insurance) for trips up to thre 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 (however, the bank doesn’t charge a fee for balance transfers). 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 card with a balance transfer promotion instead. 
• If you prefer in-person support, note that Desjardins only has physical branches in Ontario and Quebec.