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This website has many options for you to apply. If you want low fees, low interest rates, points or cash back. It does want you to apply within the website because you will get a extra bonus if you get your credit card with help through this website.

I picked this website because it has many options to help you look at the differences between cards. It is easy to use and gives you lots of options.

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Get rewarded when you get a new credit card in our GeniusCash program

Looking for EXTRA cash back while applying for a new credit card? Then say hello to our GeniusCash program.

In addition to the impressive welcome bonuses and benefits that come with the card you choose, we reward you as well. When you're approved for select credit cards displaying the GeniusCash icon anywhere on creditcardGenius, we'll send you real cash (not gift cards or points) through Interac e-Transfer or PayPal.

You can see ALL our current GeniusCash offers and how it works here.

How To Choose A Credit Card - 7 Factors to Think About

Getting a new credit card may seem like a daunting task. We have 204 credit cards in our database. And that doesn't include all the local credit unions in Canada offering their own cards.

So how do you choose? Well, we came up with 7 questions to answer to help narrow down what you need. Once answered, we have a special tool that will show you the top credit cards for you.

Here's our guide on how to choose a credit card in Canada.

How to choose a credit card

How do you choose a credit card? We've got 7 basic questions to answer. Once done, you'll come up with a combination of things you want in a credit card.

They are:

Here are the details on each one.

1. What is your credit score?

Let's start by reviewing what your credit score is. You may not know your credit score, but you probably have a rough idea if it's good enough for a credit card.

Answer these few questions:

Have you ever missed any payments, and if so, are there more than 1 or 2, and were they for less than 30 days?

Or, have you never had credit before?

If you answered no to any of these, you can move on to the next section, there really shouldn't be any issue with your credit score.

If you answered yes to them, you should still be fine when it comes to getting a credit card. For the 2nd, you likely don't need to turn to secured credit, but you'll have to be careful what you apply for - we suggest staying away from premium credit cards as they may require high credit scores.

Now, in the last 6 years, if you've been late on multiple payments, have a consumer proposal, or worse, been in bankruptcy, your credit score may be in the poor range. It's definitely best to find out what it is ( you can learn more about checking your credit score here). If it's less than 600, you're likely going to need a secured credit card, and your quest to find the best credit card for you ends here at step 1.

There aren't many to choose from. The best of the best is the Neo Secured Credit. And it's for these 3 reasons:

has no annual fee,

only requires a security deposit of $50, and

offers rewards on purchases.

It's a trifecta that other secured cards can't match.

2. Do you tend to carry a balance?

One of our biggest rules when it comes to responsibly using credit cards is you have to pay your balance in full, every month. Typical credit card interest is in the range of 20% and can be a killer on finances.

But, we know that things can happen. And if you do carry a balance, even from time to time, you're going to be better off with a low interest credit card. Instead of paying the typical 20% interest on your balance, you can get a rate of 10% or better.

These cards come at a cost. They're usually pretty basic, only a few offer rewards (and they're not that good), and come with an annual fee. But you may offset all this with a lower interest rate.

You can review all your low interest credit card options here. One to take a closer look at is the MBNA True Line Gold Mastercard. It has a low rate of 8.99% on purchases and balance transfers, for a $39 annual fee.

3. What are your travel insurance needs?

If you haven't gotten off the highway yet, you'll need to answer all of our remaining questions.

Let's start with credit card insurance. Most no fee credit cards include basic insurance - extended warranty and price protection. Some even include mobile device insurance.

But what about travel insurance? You'll need a credit card with an annual fee to get some decent coverage.

Nobody wants travel plans interrupted, but it happens. And having a credit card with travel insurance can get you your money back if you have to cancel, covers expenses if you're delayed, or saves you the cost of having to get rental car insurance.

As to how helpful it can be? Here are 2 different travel insurance claims you can take a look at.

4. Do you want perks?

For many, all they want in a credit card is rewards and none of the extra stuff. But that extra stuff has value.

What are some credit card perks you can get? Here's a listing of some of the most popular ones:

airline companion vouchers,

priority airport services,

free checked bags,

airport lounge access, and

annual travel credits.

Credit card perks are largely the domain of travel credit cards, and you'll need a credit card with an annual fee to pay for them.

5. Should you pay an annual fee?

If you answered yes to either of the previous 2 questions, you already know an annual fee is in your future, and you can skip to the next step.

But if not, then it comes to how much you will earn in rewards.

And if this is the case, you'll want to earn enough rewards to offset the annual fee. What's our guideline? Glad you asked.

We'll consider you're looking at a credit card with an annual fee of $120. We'll also assume your average rewards are 2% on all purchases with said credit card.

Compared to a no annual fee average return of 1%, we'll use this formula to come up with the monthly spending you'll need to meet to offset your annual fee.

Monthly spending requirement = (Difference in annual fee) / (Difference in earn rate) / 12

Taking our numbers above, and we get:

(120) / (0.01) / 12 = $1,000

That would be our rough guideline as to whether or not an annual fee is worth it. Spend less, and go no fee. Spend more, and at the very least, consider it.

6. Choose your rewards

Now for the last step - what do you want to earn for rewards?

There are 3 types of rewards you can earn:

Some flexible credit cards can also be considered travel cards (but not vice versa). Here is a quick overview of each.

Cash back

Cash back is the simplest form of rewards. For every purchase you make, you earn a set percentage back in the form of cash.

Most credit cards pay out cash back as a statement credit but a few offer direct deposits to bank accounts.

Flexible

Flexible credit cards earn points that offer guaranteed value for your points. Whether it's for travel or in-store discounts, you'll get the same value for your points.

Now, many programs offer many ways to redeem your points, including cash. But there's usually 1 way to use your points for best value.

If the best redemption option is for booking any travel (and that's many of them), you could also consider them to be travel credit cards.

Travel

Now we have pure travel rewards. They differ from flexible travel rewards for one reason - your value is not guaranteed. And depending on the program you're earning points in, you may also be limited as to who you can use them with.

Aeroplan is an excellent example. We carry an average value of 2 cents per point on flight redemptions, but the value you actually can get can vary. And, you're also limited to just getting that on Air Canada and Star Alliance flights.

We also consider rewards programs that have flight charts. The Avion Rewards program for instance, can give you up to 2.33 cents per point when redeeming for flight. But again, it's not guaranteed.

Some cards offer both travel and flexible rewards points. Amex Membership Rewards for instance, has these pure travel reward options:

transfer points to 6 airline programs,

transfer points to 2 hotel programs, and

Fixed Points Travel program.

All of these options have varying value, up to 2 cents per point. But if you so choose, you can also use your points to help pay the cost of any purchase, at a set value of 1 cent.

Which is best is up for you to decide.

However, if you said yes to step 4 on wanting perks, you'll almost certainly be looking at a travel or flexible credit card.

If you said yes to step 3, you're probably going to end up with a flexible or travel credit card. Travel insurance packages aren't always the best on cash back credit cards, only a few offer decent insurance coverage.

7. Acceptance & income

Finally, you'll need to consider where you shop and what your income is.

Acceptance largely applies to American Express credit cards. Acceptance is quite good as you can see here, but it's not quite on par with Visa or Mastercard, holding these 2 major blind spots:

Of course, if you are a heavy duty Costco shopper, you'll want to make sure you have a Mastercard, as it's the only credit card they accept.

Amex cards have 1 key advantage though - they have no income requirements to worry about. Premium Visa and Mastercards have the following income requirements.

Keep this in mind when looking at credit cards. Even basic Mastercard and Visa cards can have a personal income requirement of $15,000.

An unbiased credit card chooser - our compare credit cards page

You've chosen what features you want in a credit card - how can you decide which one to get? Or at least narrow yourself to a few choices?

Let's introduce you to our compare credit cards page. On it are 4 sliders you can set to customize what you are looking for in a credit card.

These sliders match up with the questions posed above. Simply adjust them to what you want in a credit card to see cards best suited for you.

For rewards, you may have noticed that "flexible" is not in the rewards slider at the top - it's simply the middle setting.

For the others, if you have no preference, simply leave it in the middle.

You can also adjust your monthly spending in 8 different categories.

What you see here is our default spending - feel free to change it as you like.

There are other filters you can also apply.

As you make changes, the results you see are updated in real time.

Do that, and you'll see a list of top credit cards for you. Here's an example.

We want a flexible rewards credit card with top notch insurance. So, we'll simply change the 2nd slider to insurance, and here are our top 3 results.

Or perhaps we just want a no fee cash back card. We'll change the top 2 sliders and get these results.

In this case, card #4 does have an annual fee - it's so good in other areas it still rates really well, even when you don't want fees.

In this case, simply set your max annual fee slider to $0 to remove cards that have one.

So, happy sliding, and finding the best credit card for you.

The best credit cards in Canada

What are some of the best credit cards in Canada? Here's a summary for the best among a few different categories.

1. Best credit card in Canada

The American Express Cobalt Card is the best credit card in Canada. And it's largely because of the rewards.

Here's what you'll earn for purchases:

5 points per $1 spent on groceries and restaurants

3 points per $1 spent on streaming services

2 points per $1 spent on gas, transit, and travel

1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases

Combined with each point being worth up to 2 cents each, you're looking at annual rewards of $1,080. It also includes 10 types of insurance.

All those rewards are for a $155.88 annual fee.

Other best credit cards

2. Best cash back credit card

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Compare Canada's Credit Cards All In One Place | creditcardGenius

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Compare over 204 credit cards in Canada all in one place. Our credit card comparison tool analyzes 126 credit card features in real time using our unbiased math-based algorithm to match you with the right card, fast.

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This wall is all about credit cards. It is information about all the different options you have with credit cards. You can get credit cards with high interest rates, low interest rates, air miles and many other options. Hopefully it will help guide you in your search for a credit card.

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This wall is all about credit cards. It is information about all the different options you have with credit cards. You can get credit cards with high interest rates, low interest rates, air miles and many other options. Hopefully it will help guide you in your search for a credit card.

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This video compares seven credit cards in Canada that this man uses. He tells you the fees and benefits to each card. He also tells you how to use them to get the most benefit from each different card.

I chose this video because I liked the information he shared. It was very informative for me because I would definitely use cards to earn the most cash back rewards.

I had never heard of one of the credit cards but I would look into it now..

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Top 7 BEST Credit Cards in CANADA (2024) - My Cash Back Combo

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This video explains how credit cards help when you are a new comer to Canada. The video explains how in a lot of other countries it is frowned upon to pay with credit. In the video she explains how it can help you establish a credit rating to purchase a car or house at some point.

I thought it was interesting that in other countries it is wrong to pay with a credit card. I chose this video because I felt it might be of interest to international students.

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Top 5 BEST Credit Cards In Canada 2024 | Best Credit Cards for Newcomers |Save Money on Groceries 🇨🇦

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This video was about different types of American Express credit cards. It explains the different benefits and fees associated with each card. He goes into details about which card is better for travel or just regular use.

I chose this video because it explained about different perks if you like to travel (I do). I liked how he really went into great detail on each and that it is very current content.

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The 6 Best Credit Cards Of 2025 (In Canada)

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This video is quite long but very very informative. He goes over around eighty different credit cards. He tells you all the benefits and fees (if any). He rates the and tells you which cards he actually has.

I loved this video the most because he did review all the different cards from everywhere. It was also a updated list for 2025 which is important if you are looking for a new credit card.

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I Ranked EVERY Credit Card in Canada (2025 Update)

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This site gives you comparisons of credit cards but it also includes lots of pros and cons for each of the cards. Your choose which feature is most important to you when looking for a credit card and then it filters it for you.

I picked this site because it had the pros and cons listed for each card and I liked that. It made it quick to summarize the good and bad quickly.

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We help you find better financial products for your specific needs. Whether you need a mortgage, credit card, savings account, or insurance coverage, we get you the information you need to choose better.

How does Ratehub.ca make money?

Financial institutions pay us for connecting them with customers. This could be through advertisements, or when someone applies or is approved for a product. However, not all products we list are tied to compensation for us. Our industry leading education centres and calculators are available 24/7, free of charge, and with no obligation to purchase. To learn more, visit our About us page.
read more about us

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Compare the best credit cards in Canada - Ratehub.ca

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We help you find better financial products for your specific needs. Whether you need a mortgage, credit card, savings account, or insurance coverage, we get you the information you need to choose better. How does Ratehub.ca make money? Financial institutions pay us for connecting them with customers.

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This site has gold, silver, and bronze ranking for credit cards. It has lots of sub categories that let you look by student credit card, rewards card, low interest card, best travel card, best gas card, best grocery card. The categories are endless.

I liked this site because it had other options that the others didn't. I look for certain things in a card that might not be important to someone else.

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Why you can trust Money.ca

At Money.ca, we provide clear, unbiased insights to help you make confident financial decisions. Our experts break down complex topics through independent and transparent research. While we partner with trusted financial brands, our reviews remain independent and focused on what's best for you, not our partners.

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Best Credit Cards in Canada [March 2025] | Top 11 Picks

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Explore the best credit cards in Canada from 200+ hours of research or find your perfect match in 3 steps with our powerful credit card comparison tool.

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This site also helps you compare credit cards. It doesn't have as many options as the others but there are still many options to pick from. I like that this site is from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.

I like this site because it is listed on the Government of Canada so I always feel that it is a trusted place for information.

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1. What province or territory do you live in?

2. In which currency would you make most of your transactions?

3. Are you looking for a credit card with a low purchase interest rate? You may be considering this option if you don't pay off your credit card in full each month.

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credit; personal finances; borrowers; students; consumer protection; banking; interest rates

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Compare features for different credit cards, including interest rates, annual fees and rewards. Find the credit card that best suits your needs.

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This image shows that you can receive many different options when you sign up for a credit card with different banks. Scotiabank offers you a $210 sign up bonus but only .7 cents point value (the amount you earn when you use your card). Bank of Montreal offers a $270 sign up bonus and 1.8 cents point value. It really is important to shop around for the best card for you.

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This is a image of a website available where you can enter in all the things you are looking for in a credit card. It will give you many options from all credit card companies that match what you have entered.

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What did I learn about credit cards that surprised me the most?

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What did I learn about credit cards that surprised me the most?

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I learned that there were way more credit cards then I ever thought. Companies I didn't even think of have a credit card.

A real life example of how this topic is relevant to me:

I am currently looking to get rid of a credit card that has a yearly fee and not many benefits.

If I could pass on something to someone that I have learned from this it would be:

Never spend more on your credit card than you can afford to pay off before the end of the month. You will pay much more in the end if you don't always pay off your balance.