How Do the 11 Aeroplan Credit Cards Compare?

The Aeroplan loyalty program currently offers no less than 11 co-branded credit cards in Canada issued by TD, CIBC, and American Express.

While the credit cards by all three issuers are mostly similar to each other, there are a few notable differences in the products across each customer segment that aren’t necessarily apparent at first glance.

In this article, we’ll go over a few comparison charts for the TD, CIBC, and American Express Aeroplan credit cards to help you decide which issuer’s product is the best fit for you in any given customer segment.

As this is intended to serve as a long-term guide, there isn’t a focus on the current welcome bonuses on each card, which regularly change over time. If you’re looking for the current offers, head to our credit cards page.

Entry-Level Aeroplan Credit Cards

We’ll begin with the entry-level Aeroplan credit cards, which come with the most affordable fees, but are also the most stripped-down in terms of perks and benefits. TD and CIBC will each issue one card in this segment:

• TD® Aeroplan® Visa Platinum* Card
• CIBC Aeroplan® Visa* Card

The comparison chart is as follows. As in previous comparison charts, any clear winner in a category is highlighted in green.

While TD maintains its entry-level product under the Visa Platinum banner, thereby commanding a light annual fee of $89 with a $35 supplementary card fee, CIBC has instead chosen to issue a no-annual-fee Aeroplan credit card instead. This makes the CIBC Aeroplan® Visa *Card the only no-annual-fee Aeroplan co-branded card on the market. 

The earning rates and limited set of Aeroplan benefits are uniform between the two products, with the sole exception as CIBC offering 1 Aeroplan point per dollar spent on electric vehicle charging. So what justifies the TD® Aeroplan® Visa Platinum* Card’s higher annual fee?

Well, it offers a decent set of insurance benefits, including flight/trip delay, delayed and lost baggage, hotel/motel burglary insurance, and mobile device insurance, all of which are not offered by the CIBC Aeroplan® Visa* Card. However, as entry-level products, neither card offers the coverage that tends to matter the most to travellers: emergency medical insurance, trip cancellation, and trip interruption.

Overall, both the TD and CIBC cards do a good job of serving different subsegments of the market: TD provides some light travel insurance in exchange for a small annual fee, while CIBC caters towards Canadians who’d prefer not to pay any annual fee while still earning Aeroplan points on their spending.

Core Aeroplan Credit Cards

The core Aeroplan credit cards are geared towards the average Canadian traveller. TD, CIBC, and American Express will each issue one card in this segment:

• TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite* Card
• CIBC Aeroplan® Visa Infinite* Card
• American Express Aeroplan Card

The comparison chart is as follows.

As you can see, this segment of the market is where the trade-offs between the three issuers start to become more apparent.

The American Express Aeroplan Card comes with the lowest annual fee of the three at $120 instead of $139. Along with CIBC’s product, its supplementary card fee for shared perks is lower than TD’s, while it’s unique among the three issuers for offering a no-fee supplementary card that simply lets you earn points faster.

In terms of earning rates, American Express’s offering is stronger in the Air Canada and dining categories, while TD and CIBC’s products offer a stronger return on spending on gas and groceries. CIBC is the only issuer to offer a bonus on electric vehicle charging.

You’ll want to think about which set of bonus categories is more valuable to you based on your own spending profile.

The three cards’ benefits are virtually identical, with the only exception being the TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite* Card’s $100 NEXUS credit, which isn’t offered by either of the other two cards.

Finally, the insurance packages generally follow an order of descending strength as you read the chart from left to right, with a few exceptions:

• The American Express card provides car rental collision/loss damage waiver on more valuable car rentals
• CIBC’s emergency travel insurance has a higher maximum claim amount than TD’s ($5,000,000 vs. $2,000,000), although you could place a higher value on TD’s longer coverage period instead

Notably, American Express has chosen not to include any emergency travel insurance on the core card, which definitely counts against it in this three-way comparison.

Overall, TD’s product is the strongest here, justifying its slightly higher annual fees for the primary and supplementary cardholders. American Express’s differentiated higher earning rates may outweigh its weaknesses for some individuals, while there’s relatively little to set CIBC’s core card apart.

Premium Aeroplan Credit Cards

The premium (or “black”) Aeroplan credit cards are geared towards frequent Air Canada travellers that also tend to fall in the higher income and wealth brackets. TD, CIBC, and American Express will each issue one card in this segment:

• TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card
• CIBC Aeroplan® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card
• American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card

The comparison chart is as follows.

In the premium segment, all three cards’ fee structures are identical, and American Express has the major advantage of having no income requirement for their Aeroplan Reserve Card, compared to TD and CIBC’s more onerous $150,000 income threshold as Visa Infinite Privilege products.

Like the core segment, American Express has differentiated itself from TD and CIBC in terms of the earning rates, offering a stronger return on Air Canada and dining, but a weaker return on other travel spending, gas, and groceries.

The cards’ benefits are mostly uniform, with one area in which TD and CIBC excel.

Compared to American Express, these two issuers offer six complimentary DragonPass lounge visits per year, whereas the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card only offers an annual Priority Pass membership without any free visits.

Also note that the Visa Infinite Privilege cards come with priority airport benefits at Vancouver (YVR), Montreal (YUL), Ottawa (YOW), and Toronto Billy Bishop (YTZ), whereas the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card delivers similar priority benefits at Toronto Pearson (YYZ). If you tend to frequent one of these airports, you’d naturally place more weight on different products accordingly.

Finally, insurance. Here, CIBC and TD are more evenly matched, with the former’s 10-day emergency medical insurance for travellers aged 65+ and 180-day purchase protection benefit setting itself apart. Both are generally stronger than American Express’s insurance proposition by quite a clear margin.

Among the trio of premium cards, it’s pretty clear that TD and CIBC’s Visa Infinite Privilege cards are generally stronger than what American Express is putting out, in exchange for a very high $150,000 income threshold.

A natural point of comparison for the premium Aeroplan credit cards would be the American Express Platinum Card – you can find our detailed comparison here.

Small Business Aeroplan Credit Cards

The core small business Aeroplan credit cards are geared towards small business owners who aren’t necessarily frequent flyers with Air Canada, but would still like to earn Aeroplan points on their business spending. TD and CIBC will each issue one card in this segment:

• TD® Aeroplan® Visa Business* Card
• CIBC Aeroplan® Visa Business* Card

The comparison chart is as follows.

This comparison results in a very clear victory for TD’s small business product over CIBC’s.

The TD card has the lower annual fee for both primary and supplementary cardholders, a lower income requirement, a $100 NEXUS credit, and a significantly more comprehensive insurance package.

It certainly feels like TD has gone the full distance to boost the value proposition of its small business Aeroplan card, whereas CIBC appears to have treated theirs as an afterthought.

Short of CIBC making big improvements to its card, there will be no reason for small business owners to choose CIBC’s product over TD’s.

(Note that American Express’s small business Aeroplan co-branded credit card, the American Express Aeroplan Business Reserve Card, is in the “premium business” category all on its own. A natural point of comparison for this card would be the Business Platinum Card from American Express; you can find our detailed comparison here.)

Conclusion

While the 11 Aeroplan co-branded credit cards are largely in line with each other between the three issuers, there are several small but important differences worth noting within each customer segment.

In sum, TD’s cards are the strongest overall, and that perhaps reflects their larger slice of the pie in terms of the suite of Aeroplan co-branded credit cards compared to the other issuers.

Meanwhile, as the most independent-minded issuer of the three, American Express has already proven to be the most dynamic in terms refreshing their credit cards to keep them competitive.

Combined with the lack of income requirements and unique cardholder perks like Amex Offers, and that might move the needle in favour of American Express for your next Aeroplan co-branded credit card.

† Terms and conditions apply. Please refer to the card issuer’s website for up-to-date information.