The best credit cards in Canada for online shopping

 

Tangerine World Mastercard

Offering 2% cash back on two categories of your choice (with the option of a third category should you choose to deposit your cashback into a Tangerine savings account), the Tangerine World Mastercard is almost identical to the Tangerine Money-Back Card with the exception of some exciting perks.

One unique factor of this card is that it comes with mobile device insurance – making it one of the few no fee credit cards in Canada to offer such coverage. As long as you use the card to purchase the device or consistently pay for its monthly plan, you’ll be covered in the event your device is lost, stolen, or damaged up to a maximum of $1,000. In addition, you'll also get a complimentary membership to Mastercard Airport Experiences by LoungeKey, which offers access to a huge network of over 1,000 airport lounges worldwide. If you were to buy a similar type of membership from an equivalent lounge network, like Priority Pass, it would cost you about $99 USD annually.

The Tangerine World also offers the same basic coverage as its older brother, including purchase assurance and extended warranty protection. Additionally, it comes with the same 19.95% annual interest rate for purchases, balance transfers, and cash advances.

As a new cardholder, you can also take advantage of their welcome offer which gives you the opportunity to earn 10% cash back for the first two months if you spend up to $1000 on the card (a possible cash value of $100).

 

MBNA Rewards World Elite

The MBNA Rewards World Elite Mastercard’s flat rewards rate has landed it on multiple best of lists .

At 1 points per dollar on everything you buy, the MBNA Rewards World Elite offers twice as many points on online shopping than most other travel cards. It also comes with a lucrative two-tiered welcome bonus for new cardholders: you’ll get 10,000 points just for going paperless and enrolling for e-statements, and another 20,000 points for making at least $2,000 in card purchases within your first 90 days of signing up. In total, that can add up to $300 worth of rewards.

First and foremost a travel credit card, MBNA points can be redeemed for flights on virtually any airline at a rate of 1,000 points for $10 (or 1 point for 1 cent). Points won’t expire as long as your account is open and you make your monthly minimum payments, so you can hold onto points until travel is inevitably an option again.

The MBNA Rewards program also offers great value on gift cards.

You can redeem points for gift cards from everywhere from Amazon and eBay to Rakuten, Hudson’s Bay, and more. 1 point is worth around 0.9 cents on gift card redemptions, which is nearly the same value you would get when using points for flights. That’s rare for a travel card.

 

TD First Class Visa Infinite

The TD First Class Visa Infinite earns a flat 3 TD points per dollar on all your regular everyday spending. When redeemed for travel on the ExpediaforTD site, 1 point is worth 0.5 cents, which means you’ll net a solid 1.5% in travel rewards on all your online shopping. That beats out most comparable rewards cards from the big banks which earn a standard 0.5% or 1% on otherwise generic purchases.

TD Points don’t have an expiry date, so you can hold onto your points for travel plans well into the future.

The TD First Class Visa Infinite also offers 9 TD Points per dollar (4.5% in travel rewards) on travel purchases booked via the ExpediaForTD website and a first-year annual fee rebate. As a new cardholder, you can collect up to 60,000 TD bonus points ($300 travel value): 20,000 points after your first purchase and another 40,000 points when you spend at least $1,500 on the card within your first three months (offer ends August 16, 2021).

 

ECHO Cashback Mastercard from National Bank

The Echo Mastercard from National Bank immediately stands out for being virtually the only credit card to have online purchases as its own bonus category. You’ll earn 1.5% cash back when shopping online from websites like Amazon. Though there is a small caveat: online travel bookings and recurring bills don’t count towards this category and will earn you the default 1% cash back.

The card also comes with an annual fee of just $30 and an extremely flexible redemption system, letting you cash out rewards at any time once you accumulate at least $10. Many other cash back cards aren’t as flexible in comparison and only offer your cash back once every calendar year.

Home Trust Preferred Visa

The reason the HomeTrust Preferred Visa has made it on this list has less to do with its rewards and more to do with the fact it waives foreign transaction fees (though, it does offer a solid 1% cash back).

If you regularly shop from international websites that sell items in USD, Euros, or any other non-Canadian currencies, this card will save you the 2.5% in foreign transaction fees that you would otherwise be charged for when using almost any other credit card. The Home Trust Preferred Visa is one of only a dozen or so credit cards in Canada to waive its foreign transaction fees, and even better, it doesn’t charge an annual fee either.

There are a few quirks with this card you’ll want to be aware of though: you’ll only earn cash back on purchases in Canadian dollars, you can make a maximum of ten transactions on the card each day, and if you don’t use the card at least once every year, you’ll owe a $12 inactivity fee. But, all things considered, these are small drawbacks from one of the most compelling no fee credit cards on the market.

 

Brim Financial Mastercards

After a rocky launch and some delays, Brim Financial’s portfolio of Mastercards is now widely available to Canadians. All three of Brim’s credit cards – Brim Mastercard ($0 annual fee), Brim World ($99 annual fee), and Brim World Elite ($200 annual fee) – waive their foreign transaction fees and earn 1%, 1.5%, and 2% back in points respectively. Brim points act like cash back and can be redeemed in increments of 100 points for 1 cent. The combination of no foreign transaction fees and their flat reward rates make them a compelling package for regular online shoppers.

 

Honourable Mentions

Aeroplan and Air Miles

If you carry either an Aeroplan or Air Miles credit card (or are even just a loyalty member of either program), you’ll want to check out their respective shopping portals anytime you want to buy something online.

Both the Air Miles and Aeroplan e-stores are filled with deals that’ll help you either rack up bonus miles, earn discounts, or receive free gifts when shopping online from major retailers like Adidas, Apple, Sephora, Indigo, Rakuten, and more. Just be sure to look into the offer details since these online deals sometimes only apply to certain items.

 

Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard

If you’re a loyal Amazon shopper and Prime Member, the Amazon Rewards.ca Mastercard should be on your radar.

Prime Members earn an impressive 2.5% back on Amazon purchases and at Whole Foods. The only drawback is if you’re not a paying Prime Member (which costs either $7.99 a month or $79.99 every year), rewards will be scaled back and you’ll earn 1.5% on Amazon.ca. When shopping online from any website other than Amazon, you’ll earn the default 1%.

The card offers 2.5% back on international purchases, which serves to offset its foreign transaction fees and help you break even when shopping from websites that don’t let you purchase items in Canadian currencies. While the card doesn’t technically earn cash back, it does offer the next best thing – Amazon Rewards. You can redeem 2,000 Amazon Rewards points for $20 (works out to 1 point = 1 cent) and they can be claimed for Amazon.ca gift cards.