• Annual fee: $0
• Earn rate: 3% cash back on U.S. currency purchases; 1.5% back for all other purchases
• Interest rate: purchases at 19.99%, cash advances at 22.99%, balance transfers at 22.99%

• Welcome bonus: Earn $25 cash back when you make your first purchase

Pros:

Rewards

• In addition to not charging an annual fee, the card also earns an impressive 1.5% cash back on everything you buy—a rate usually reserved for annual fee-based cards. 
• The Rogers World Elite is a definite contender for the best card to use with big hauls at Costco, since it’s a Mastercard. 
• Attention, snowbirds and online shoppers. The Rogers World Elite Mastercard earns an accelerated 3% cash back on purchases made in U.S. dollars, which effectively offsets any foreign-transaction fees. 
• You can redeem cash back rewards in increments of $10, anytime, when you use the Rogers app.

Perks and other factors

• Rental car collision damage insurance and travel insurance, which is a rarity for a card that doesn’t have an annual fee.

Cons:

• The glaring drawback is that you must charge at least $15,000 in purchases annually to keep the card, otherwise you’ll be downgraded to the entry-level Rogers Platinum Card that earns a less impressive 1% cash back on everything.
• The annual income requirement of at least $80,000 per year (or $150,000) may be an issue for many Canadians.

• Unlike other true no foreign transaction fee credit cards, which help you save on all non-Canadian currency purchases, the Roger World Elite is meant to only save you on purchases made in U.S. dollars. So, consider that before your trip to Europe.

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Best cash back credit cards for groceries and gas (tie)

CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite

At a glance: With inflation and shrinkflation, here’s some good news from the grocery store and at the pumps. The CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite earns you an impressive 4% bonus category for groceries and gas. You also get a 2% rate on dining, transportation and recurring bills, which makes this a well-rounded, all-in-one cash back card.

• Annual fee: $120
• Earn rate: 4% cash back on groceries and gas; 2% on dining, daily transit and recurring bills; and 1% back on everything else
• Interest rate: purchases at 20.99%, cash advances at 22.99%, balance transfers at 22.99%

• Welcome bonus: Get 10% cash back for all purchases (up to $300). After that, the earn rate becomes 4% on eligible gas and grocery purchases.

Pros:

Rewards

• With an earn rate of 4% for groceries, the CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite card gets you the highest earn rate on this spend category in Canada, and it is matched only by the Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite and the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite.
• Again, the 4% cash back rate on gas is the highest available on a cash back card.
• The 2% bonus covers dining, recurring bills and virtually all modes of transit including taxis and rideshares.
• The CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite card offers flexible redemptions so you can access your cash in $25 increments whenever you want.

Perks and other factors

• Save up to $0.10 per litre on top of your cash-back savings at participating Chevron, Ultramar and Pioneer gas stations when you link this credit card with a Journie Rewards account.
• The CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite card includes a sweet suite of travel and car rental insurance, as well as up to $1,000 in mobile device coverage.
• The annual fee is rebated in the first year of having the card, but you can earn an annual fee rebate again when you open a Smart Plus chequing account with CIBC.

Cons:

• The $120 annual fee may not be worth the cost for low volume spenders, but there are a couple of ways to avoid paying it, including its welcome offer and opening chequing account with CIBC. 
• You’ll need to earn an annual income of at least $60,000 (or $100,000 as a household) to qualify, which could put the card out of reach for some applicants.
• Cards for additional authorized users will cost $30 each per year.

Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite

At a glance: The Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite Has a below-average annual fee, but it still offers the most competitive rates on groceries and gas spends. Also, its notable travel insurance coverage manages to beat out most travel cards, too.

• Annual fee: $99 (first year is free)
• Earn rate: 4% cash back on gas and groceries; 2% on drug stores and recurring bills; 1% on everything else
• Interest rate: purchases 19.50%, cash advances 21.99%, balance transfers 21.99%

• Welcome bonus: Annual fee is free in the first year

Pros:

Rewards

• Like mentioned above with the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite and CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite cards, the Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite card earns 4% on groceries.
• Earn 4% on gas, which is the highest rate on a cash back card.
• Earn 2% cash back on pharmacy purchases and utility bills.
• There’s flexibility for redeeming, as you can redeem cash back in increments of $25 whenever you want.

Perks and other factors

• The $99 annual fee is below the $120 average charged by other comparable rewards cards.
• The Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite comes with solid travel insurance benefits, including up to $5,000,000 in emergency travel coverage for up to 48 days, which manages to beat out travel coverage offered, even by the best travel credit cards.
• The emergency travel insurance coverage applies to those who are up to 75 years old, as opposed to the 65-year-age cap on most credit card insurance. 
• Includes up to $1,000 in mobile device insurance.

Cons:

• The Meridian Cash Back Visa Infinite doesn’t offer bonus cash-back earnings on dining nor on daily transit, instead opting to offer 2% on pharmacies. Depending on your spending habits, you may not earn as much as you would with a card with better earn rates on transit and dining.
• To qualify for the card, you’ll need to be a member of Meridian Credit Union. It doesn’t mean additional fees, but you’ll likely have to open a bank account. So, you will have to take some extra steps when applying for this card.
• You’ll need to earn an annual income of at least $60,000 (or $100,000 as a household) to qualify, so this card may be out of reach for some Canadians.
• Additional cards for authorized users are $30 each.

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Honorable mention

TD Cash Back Visa Infinite*

At a glance: The TD Cash Back Visa Infinite features a strong range of bonus categories but is particularly suited to auto owners thanks to its built-in road assistance benefits.

• Annual fee: $120, first year is waived
• Earn rate: 3% cash back on gas, grocery and recurring bill payments; 1% on all other purchases
• Interest rate: purchases 20.99%, cash advances 22.99%, balance transfers 22.99%

• Welcome bonus: Earn 10% cash back on all purchases for the first 3 months (up to total spend of $2,000) when you apply for the card online. After that continue to earn 6% cash back on gas and grocery purchases, and pre-authorized payments for the first three months (up to a total spend of $3,500). Must apply before September 5, 2022.

Pros:

Rewards

• The TD Cash Back Visa Infinite earns 3% back on gas, groceries and recurring bills–some of the most commonly used spending categories for Canadians.
• Redeem cash-back rewards any time of the year in increments of $25.

Perks and other factors

• The card’s biggest differentiator is its roadside assistance coverage, which is basically a roadside assistance package. TD Auto Club is comparable to the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) and covers incidents such as a dead battery, tire changes, gas delivery, $200 in accident towing, $200 in emergency transportation and more.
• For those aged 65 years or younger, the TD Cash Back Visa Infinite includes travel insurance benefits with up to $2 million in emergency coverage for trips up to 10 days. It also covers lost/delayed baggage coverage.
• In addition to the annual being waived for the first year, with the All-Inclusive Banking Plan chequing account with TD, the annual fee will be rebated.

Cons:

• Compared to the alternatives from Scotia, CIBC and Meridian, which offer up to 4% on bonus categories, the TD CashBack Visa Infinite’s 3% falls a little short. 
• The annual income requirement is a $60,000 minimum (or at least $100,000 as a household) to qualify which could be out of reach for some.
• The TD Cash Back Visa Infinite has an annual fee of $120, which may not be suitable for low volume spenders. That said it can be waived in the first year and rebated again if you open a TD chequing account
• The travel insurance benefits don’t include trip cancellation or interruption coverage, and travel medical emergency insurance only covers up to 10 days of a trip.

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Best no fee card for groceries

BMO CashBack Mastercard*

At a glance: The BMO CashBack Mastercard offers 3% cash back rewards on groceries and doesn’t charge an annual fee, making it ideal for value-seekers and big grocery shoppers. It also has lenient approval criteria for students looking to pick their first credit card (if you’re a student, click here).

• Annual fee: $0
• Earn rate: 3% cash back on groceries; 1% on recurring bills; 0.5% on everything else
• Interest rate: purchases 20.99%, cash advances 22.99%, balance transfers 22.99%

• Welcome bonus: You can earn 5% cash back on all purchases for the first 3 months up to $2,500, including up to $500 spend on grocery, up to $500 spend in recurring bill payments, and up to $1,500 qualified spend on all other purchases.

Pros:

Rewards:

• At 3%, the BMO CashBack Mastercard earns more in straight cash back on groceries than any other no fee cash back credit card in Canada.
• As a Mastercard, the card is accepted virtually everywhere including Costco. Plus, unlike Visa or American Express, most Walmart Superstore locations qualify as a “grocery store” for cash-back rewards by Mastercard. So, you’ll earn the bonus 2% on your purchases from the mass, big box retailer.

Perks and other factors

• Aside from having a low annual income requirement of $15,000, if you’re a student looking to open up your first-ever card, you can be eligible to be approved for this card (use this link to apply).

Cons:

• The most obvious drawback is the card’s reward caps on bonus categories. You’ll earn 3% on the first $500 you spend on groceries per month, with everything over earning the base 0.5% earn rate. However, this cap resets every month. 
• Like most cards that don’t charge an annual fee, the BMO CashBack Mastercard does not have travel insurance or side perks.

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More on the best credit cards

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Our methodology

For the best cash back credit cards 2022 ranking, MoneySense tapped into Ratehub.ca’s‡ credit card tool and calculated the numbers for both fee and no-fee, cash back rewards credit cards based on $2,000 in monthly spending. We used the following scenario: $500 on groceries, $200 on gas, $200 on restaurants, $125 on bill payments, $175 on travel, $225 on entertainment, $75 on pharmacy purchases and $500 on everything else.

The end game was a magic number—that is, the annual net reward in dollar terms to identify the top cash back credit cards for each type of spender, along with an honorary mention. Our methodology also took into consideration other factors, including limited time accelerated earn rates, the range of spending bonus categories, annual fee waivers, purchase protections and travel insurance perks.

‡MoneySense.ca and Ratehub.ca are both owned by parent company Ratehub Inc. We may be partnered with some financial institutions, but this does not influence the “Canada’s Best Credit Card” rankings. You can read more about this in our Editorial Code of Conduct.

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