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At a glance
- Best for: Air Canada travelers
- Annual Fee: $95
- APR: 20.49% - 28.99% Variable
- Reward Rate: 1X - 3X
- Recommended Credit: 670-850
Aeroplan® Credit Card
Earn up to 70,000 points
Offer Details:
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, earn an additional 10,000 bonus points after your annual fee renewal payment posts and is paid in full.
Why we like it
While it’s a must-have for regular Air Canada customers, the Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card is an excellent card for anyone interested in the world of points and miles. It’s a shortcut to one of the most valuable loyalty programs on the planet and two years of elite status isn’t something you should ignore.
Reward details
3X points for each dollar spent at grocery stores, on dining at restaurants, and Air Canada directly
- 1x points for each dollar spent on all other purchases.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Excellent 70,000 points introductory offer
Approachable annual fee
Free checked bags on Air Canada flights
Automatic elite status
High-earning rates
Super-valuable loyalty program with loads of partners
Cons
Value is limited by the inability to transfer points
Under Chase’s 5/24 rule
Some perks only useful for regular Air Canada customers
Overview
Co-branded airline cards are fickle mistresses. There are a lot of promises and, frustratingly, a lot of disappointment.
The Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card, the co-branded product for Air Canada’s loyalty program, is one of the few that truly delivers on its commitments. Boasting valuable, practical perks and an earning jump-start for one of the most valuable programs around, it’s a card more than worth your time.
Don’t be put off by its Canadian roots. Let’s take a look at the Aeroplan® Credit Card.
Who is the Chase Aeroplan Card best for:
The Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card is a must for casual Air Canada fliers. But points-and-miles-savvy travelers know how valuable Aeroplan is and, as such, this card can be for other travelers as well. Automatic elite status is always worth checking out anyway.
The Bottom Line:
The Aeroplan® Card is one of the best co-branded cards around, offering elite status, high-value perks, and some strong earning opportunities for one of the most valuable airline programs on the planet.
Intro Bonus
The card is currently offering an up to 70,000 point introductory offer. Cardholders earn 60,000 points after spending $3,000 within the first three months and a further 10,000 points after paying the $95 annual fee renewal.
Air Canada Aeroplan points are still super-valuable. It’s been a little while since we’ve seen any harsh devaluations. 70,000 points are comfortably worth over $1,000 when redeemed for one of Aeroplan’s high-value partner routes, including epic business class flights.
Pros & Cons
While the card is amazing, no product is perfect. Here are the good and the bad aspects of the Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card.
Pros
- Excellent 70,000 points introductory offer
- Approachable annual fee
- Free checked bags on Air Canada flights
- Automatic elite status
- High-earning rates
- Super-valuable loyalty program with loads of partners
Cons
- Value is limited by the inability to transfer points
- Under Chase’s 5/24 rule
- Some perks only useful for regular Air Canada customers
Benefits & Perks
The Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card comes with a number of strong perks that belie its relatively approachable $95 annual fee. Here’s everything the card offers.
First checked bag free
Cardholders are entitled to check their first bag for free when flying with Air Canada. The benefit applies to up to eight travelers booked on the same reservation. To ensure you get the benefit, you’ll need to ensure you pay for the flight with your Aeroplan® Credit Card.
Regular Air Canada customers will find this benefit extremely valuable, saving hundreds per flight depending on the size of the group. The benefit applies to any flight originating with Air Canada, but won’t apply to any of its partners.
2-year Aeroplan 25K Club status
The headline benefit is the complimentary up to 2-year Aeroplan 25K Club status. A perk like this is rare for a card costing $95 a year. Getting 25K status comes with a number of strong benefits, including:
- 2nd checked bag free
- Priority bookings, boarding, and check-in
- Limited Maple Lounge access
- Discounts
- 20 eUpgrade credits
- Elite earning rates
- Priority benefits with other partner airlines
It’s important to note that elite status runs until the end of the calendar year and the year after. In short, your time starts as soon as you open the card. For this reason, it’s beneficial to open the card in January to get the maximum amount of time.
To continue enjoying the benefits, cardholders will need to hit a spending threshold of $15,000. Spending $50,000 will boost the cardholder’s status to the 35K Club.
$120 Global Entry, TSAPrecheck, or NEXUS statement credit
Similarly to other cards, this card offers up to $120 statement credit for Global Entry, TSAPrecheck, or Nexus. The credit is applied every four years after paying for the application on one of the services. It’s good to note that successfully applying for Global Entry can also grant you a TSAPrecheck membership.
Any of these services can expedite your travel days considerably by cutting down on the time you have to wait in security or customs. These statement credits are frequently found as perks on more premium cards, so it’s nice to see this on a mid-tier product.
10% bonus on Ultimate Rewards Transfers
If the cardholder owns a Chase Ultimate Reward points-earning card, they’ll enjoy a 10% bonus on any points transfers to Aeroplan of 50,000 points or more with a cap of 25,000 bonus points per year. While the threshold may be fairly high, this does offer cardholders the chance to redeem business-class flights for 10% less than they would otherwise.
It’s worth noting that you can stack other transfer bonuses with this perk.
Travel coverage and insurance
The Aeroplan® Credit Card comes with several travel coverage and insurance options. These include:
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance
- Baggage Delay Insurance
- Zero Liability Protection
- 24/7 Fraud Monitoring
- Trip Delay Reimbursement
- Auto Rental Coverage
- Roadside Assistance
- Purchase Protection
World Elite Mastercard Benefits
The card is also privy to the benefits offered in the World Elite Mastercard program which include members-only discounts, Mastercard Priceless events access, and a 24/7 concierge to help with planning trips and events.
Earning rewards & redeeming points
While the perks are great, the real value comes in the form of its shortcut to earning points with one of the most useful loyalty programs around. Aeroplan’s numerous partners and generous distance-based award chart make it easy to score incredible redemptions around the world.
While the perks are great, the real value comes in the form of its shortcut to earning points with one of the most useful loyalty programs around. Aeroplan’s numerous partners and generous distance-based award chart make it easy to score incredible redemptions around the world.
Earning rewards
3x points per dollar on multiple categories
The Aeroplan card keeps things simple, offering a flat rate of 3x points per dollar on several high-value spending categories. Cardholders enjoy this rate at:
- Grocery stores
- Restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- Direct spending with Air Canada
Whether this rate is worth it will depend on your own travel preferences. Some transferable points-earning cards earn similar or better rates. But if you’re set on Aeroplan it’s an excellent choice.
Bonus 500 points for every $2,000 each month
This card offers a unique incentive by gifting cardholders a bonus of 500 points for every $2,000 spent in a calendar month up to 1,500 points. That’s a potential 18,000 extra points per year on top of whatever you’ve already earned.
1x points per dollar on everything else
All other purchases earn 1x point per dollar.
Redeeming points
Of course, the fun part is redeeming those hard-earned points. Aeroplan’s region and distance-based award chart has a ton of high-value sweet spots to take advantage of.
Here are just a few examples of the redemptions you could make:
- Coast-to-coast with United for 12,500 points
- Business class to Europe with Singapore Airlines for 60,000 points
- Europe to Asia in Business class for 60,000 points
- The US to South America for 40,000 points in business class
If you don’t feel like navigating the slightly more complicated world of redemptions, you can redeem your points for a generous 1.25 cents on purchases like flights, hotels, or even the annual fee. It’s potentially less value than you’d get for using Air Canada’s award chart, but it’s less of a headache for those uninterested.
Is this card right for you?
While it’s a must-have for regular Air Canada customers, the Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card is an excellent card for anyone interested in the world of points and miles. It’s a shortcut to one of the most valuable loyalty programs on the planet and two years of elite status isn’t something you should ignore.
- Best for: Air Canada travelers
- Annual Fee: $95
- APR: 20.49% - 28.99% Variable
- Reward Rate: 1X - 3X
- Recommended Credit: 670-850
Aeroplan® Credit Card
Earn up to 70,000 points
Offer Details:
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, earn an additional 10,000 bonus points after your annual fee renewal payment posts and is paid in full.
Why we like it
While it’s a must-have for regular Air Canada customers, the Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card is an excellent card for anyone interested in the world of points and miles. It’s a shortcut to one of the most valuable loyalty programs on the planet and two years of elite status isn’t something you should ignore.
Reward details
3X points for each dollar spent at grocery stores, on dining at restaurants, and Air Canada directly
- 1x points for each dollar spent on all other purchases.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Excellent 70,000 points introductory offer
Approachable annual fee
Free checked bags on Air Canada flights
Automatic elite status
High-earning rates
Super-valuable loyalty program with loads of partners
Cons
Value is limited by the inability to transfer points
Under Chase’s 5/24 rule
Some perks only useful for regular Air Canada customers
by your friends at The Daily Navigator
