I'm really late to this game. To my fellow Canadians, what is the best air miles credit card out there?

I would prefer one without an annual fee. Not sure if it matters, but most of my miles that I accumulate would be through shopping rather than through air/hotel/rental car useage. My primary airline is AA. I would prefer Visa or MC over AMEX since AMEX is not as widely accepted. I think airline tickets and hotel stays is what I will be using when cashing in miles.

I was considering the BMO air miles card (no annual fee) but it gets 1 mile for every $20 spent. That doesn't seem like a good deal when you compare it to Chase United Mileage that gives something like 1 mile/$1 (with an annual fee).

And is an air miles cc better than a cc that gives cash back (let's say 1-1.4%cash back)?

I would love to get your feedback on best programs (for Canadians). Thanks!

IMHO the right cc for you is my favourite cc : The TD Aadvantage card.( but it has an
annual fee )
Michael

The RBC Avion can also accumulate AA points, but gives you some added flexibility.

However, I would suggest you also look into the Capital One Aspire.

You can't compare Air Miles to other mileage earning cards! That's because a short haul ticket on Air Miles will cost you 1100 Air Miles, compared to a short haul ticket on Air Canada will cost you 15,000 Aeroplan miles!

I haven't looked at the Air Miles cards recently but I believe their free card only gives 1 mile per $40 spent. Plus I got totally turned off Air Miles when I redeemed for a ticket from Toronto to New York and paid 1100 Air Miles + $220 in taxes. It was totally stooooopid!

Back to your original question, most mileage earning cards cost $120/yr in Canada. Your best best is to get the SPG Amex to start with. It's also $120/yr, but they waive the fee for the first year and you get a 10K pt sign up bonus. SPG pts can be used for Starwood Hotels, or can be converted into most airlines at a rate of 1:1, plus you get a 5K mile bonus when you convert 20K pts, so 20K SPG pts = 25K airline miles.

Once your free year is up, dump the SPG Amex because too many places don't accept it.

Thanks for the feedback.

I did some research on various cards but I couldn't find out specific details on them (i.e. $cost to me to actually cash in an award - taxes, fees; how many miles I would have to redeem for an airmiles ticket). The info available is pretty basic.

I'm thinking I should just stick to a cash back card. It seems that most offers are up to 1%, mainly .5% for a certain amount of spending and 1% after surpassing that amount.

The SPG Amex sounds good. I didn't see that they would waive the first year so is it something I have to request? Also, are there any ramifications on your credit score in cancelling a card within a short period of time after opening?

In order for senior posters to recommend anything they would need to know how much you charge on this card per year.

Eg, I have one of the earlier Aeroplan Amex Plat's that offers 1.65 AP miles per dollar spent once I break an annual threshold, which I do after 2-3 months. Thus this card has the best value for me. However for others who wouldn't break the threshold it's not worth nearly as much.

I really like the Alaska Airlines MC. Alaska is an AA partner, so you could use those miles on AA. You get 25000 miles for signup and a companion ticket at $99 per year. The beauty of the companion ticket is that you can purchase a First Class ticket and get the 2nd for $99. (or you can use it for coach). Granted this is better if you are on the west coast, as the companion ticlet has to be used on Alaska. I don't know where you are located. The partnership with AA would still be a benefit to you I think. Their fee is $75 per year which is much better than the usual $120 for most other Canadian cards worth getting.
Have you checked out rewardscanada.ca? They have a comparison chart of all the cc's for Canada. Just be careful as I have noticed the info is not always 100% current, but still a good chart.

You can find a lot of help on my site via the following:
http://www.rewardscanada.ca/choosing...edit-card.html

I try to keep it as current as possible but the comparison chart is due for an update as I just recently received updates from all the banks. (as mplflyer states it is not always 100% up to date but pretty darn close )

Thanks for the info. I just checked out rewardscanada. ^

I've done the math on Airmiles and haven't been able to get the reward yield on any redemption higher than 0.65% with the BMO 1/$20 card. So for every $1 you spend on the card you get $0.065 back in rewards.

You're far better off with any 1% cash rebate card, but take a look at your usual spending and the $39 fee on the Scotiabank Momentum card with the 2% cash back on some purchases might be worthwhile.

--B3

Completely agree about the Airmiles program as far as CC's go. I still collect airmiles at Safeway especially with their bonus offers (spend $100, get 100 airmiles), but redeem them for gift cards only. With an Airmiles CC getting 1 per $20 spent I would have to spend $2000 to get that! Airmiles also won't get me into the F cabin, and that is my goal in a mileage program.

I've been very happy with my AS MC. I 'm also thinking of getting the new SPG Amex if I can get it for no fee first year. I like the fact that the spg points transfer 1:1 to most airline mileage programs.

Agree that depending on where the OP is located in Canada, the AS MC is a decent option, both for the initial sign-up bonus, and the companion certificate.