The Best Credit Cards for Beginners – December 2025

Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card

The Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card has no annual fee and offers cash back.

With this limited-time welcome offer, you can earn an additional 10% cash back (up to $100) when you spend up to $1,000 on everyday purchases during the first 2 months.

You can choose two to three purchase categories that interest you (groceries, gas, home furnishings, renovations, recurring bills, pharmacy, etc.) to earn 2% cash back ! And there’s no annual cash-back limit. It is one of the best credit cards for renovations.

In addition, the Tangerine Mastercard offers several insurance coverages for your purchases :

• 90 days purchase insurance
• One year extended warranty

Finally, during the first 30 days you hold the card, transfer credit card balances and pay only 1.95% interest on these balances for the first 6 months.

Rogers Mastercard^®

The Rogers Red Mastercard® is one of the best no-annual-fee credit cards in Canada, especially for Rogers, Fido, Comwave, or Shaw customers.

With the Rogers Red Mastercard®, and by having just one eligible service with Rogers, Fido, Comwave, or Shaw, you can get 2% unlimited cash back on all your eligible purchases.

Eligible services include:

• Rogers Mobile
• Fido Mobile
• Residential service from Rogers, Fido, Comwave, or Shaw (Internet, TV, home phone, home automation, or satellite service)

This card is therefore also available to Quebec residents who have mobile service with Rogers or Fido!

Additionally, you get 1.5 times more cash back every time you redeem for Rogers, Fido, Comwave or Shaw purchases, which represents cash back valued at 3%.

Furthermore, by being a Rogers Red Mastercard® cardholder, you get 5 Roam Like Home days at no cost, every year, with an eligible Rogers mobile plan (up to $90 value).

If you are not a Rogers, Fido, Comwave, or Shaw customer, you will get 2% cash back on your eligible purchases in U.S. dollars and 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.

RBC ION Visa Card

With the RBC ION Visa card, get 7,000 bonus Avion points:

• 7,000 Avion points upon approval, which represents a value of $50 in gift cards

With this no-annual-fee RBC credit card, you earn 1.5 Avion points per dollar for :

• Groceries
• Travel, gas and EV charging
• Streaming, digital games and subscriptions

And 1 Avion point per dollar for all other purchases. Plus, save 3¢/L on gas at Petro-Canada and earn 20% more points when you pay with a linked RBC card.

American Express Cobalt^® Card

The American Express Cobalt® Card is the best credit card from American Express, whether you want points for travel or cash back.

The welcome bonus is distributed monthly for the first 12 months. You’ll earn 1,250 Membership Rewards points for every $750 in purchases charged to your card during the month (whether in the 1X, 2X, 3X or 5X category). That’s up to 15,000 Membership Rewards points.

You can easily use these points as statement credits for everyday or travel purchases. The value is the same for both: 1,000 points = $10.

Alternatively, transfer them to Aeroplan points, Avios (British Airways/Qatar Airways), Flying Blue, Marriott Bonvoy, or Hilton Honors.

For example, with this welcome offer, if you decide to transfer your Membership Rewards points to a partner loyalty program, you would have the choice of earning up to:

• 15,000 Aeroplan points
• 15,000 Avios points
• 11,250 Flying Blue Miles
• 18,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

With the American Express Cobalt® Card, you can earn between 1 and 5 points per dollar:

This is a 1 to 5% return on all these purchases.

For example, if you spend $1,000 per month on groceries and/or restaurants and/or food delivery, you’ll earn $50 cash back per month, or $600 cash back per year with this card for this category of purchases!

And if you decide to transfer your points to other programs like Aeroplan, you could get even more value!

In addition, this card provides excellent insurance coverage: rental car theft and damage, baggage delay, lost or stolen baggage, flight delay, $250,000 travel accident, hotel or motel burglary, Mobile Device Insurance, Purchase Security, Purchase Protection Insurance.

Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.

American Express^® Green Card

Do you want a cash back credit card with no annual fee that earns travel points? Here’s an option for you: American Express® Green Card.

By signing up for the American Express® Green Card, you can earn 10,000 Membership Rewards Welcome Bonus Points when you charge $1,000 in purchases to your Card in the first 3 months of Cardmembership. This is a $100 value for travel or any purchase on the Card.

You can also transfer your points to airline partners (Aeroplan, British Airways Executive Club, Flying Blue, etc.) and hotel partners (Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors).

For example, with this welcome offer, if you decide to transfer your Membership Rewards points to a partner loyalty program, you would have the choice of earning:

• 10,000 Aeroplan points
• 10,000 Avios points
• 7,500 Flying Blue Miles
• 12,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

That’s a nice welcome bonus for a credit card with no annual fee.

You’ll also have access to online promotional offers to earn points or rebates on your purchases with this no annual fee credit card.

Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.

RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card

With this offer for the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card, you can get 35,000 Avion points as a welcome bonus upon approval.

You can use your Avion points for travel or convert them to other loyalty programs such as:

• American Airlines AAdvantage
• The British Airways Club (and Qatar Airways Privilege Club)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
• WestJet Rewards

The current welcome offer, for example, gives you the equivalent of 35,000 British Airways Avios or 35,000 WestJet points.

With the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card, you earn 1 point per dollar and 1.25 points for travel purchases.

What’s more, you’ll benefit from a wide range of insurances: trip cancellation and interruption insurance, out-of-province or out-of-country emergency medical care insurance, collision and damage insurance for rental vehicles, and mobile device insurance.

Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card

The Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card is the best credit card for free hotel nights.

With this welcome offer, you can earn up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points:

• Earn 50,000 points after charging a total of $1,500 to your Card in your first 3 months of membership.

It’s a card we recommend you keep, because each year at renewal, you’ll get an annual one-night free certificate worth 35,000 points, plus 15 Elite nights per year, counting towards your Marriott Bonvoy status.

With this Card, you earn 5 points per dollar on all purchases at Marriott Bonvoy properties and 2 points per dollar on all other purchases.

Last but not least, this Card comes with a wide range of insurances : baggage delay, baggage loss or theft, $500,000 travel accident, flight delay, hotel/motel burglary, rental car theft and damage, Purchase Security, Purchase Protection.

Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.

Scotiabank Passport^® Visa Infinite* Card

With this welcome offer for the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card, you’ll receive up to 45,000 Scene+ points in welcome bonus (a $450 value):

• 35,000 points after $2,000 in purchases in the first three months
• 10,000 points after $40,000 in purchases in the first year

Then, each year, if you make at least $40,000 in purchases on the card, you’ll earn an annual bonus of at least 10,000 points, a value of $100.

With the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card, you earn 3 points per dollar spent at Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, Foodland, FreshCo, Voilà by Sobeys, Voilà by IGA, Voilà by Safeway, Chalo! FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, IGA West, Les Marchés Tradition, Rachelle Béry and Co-Op.

You’ll also earn 2 points for every dollar you spend, including on foreign purchases, in the following categories:

• Grocery shopping
• Restaurants
• Entertainment centers
• Transit

The Scotiabank Visa Infinite Passport is an excellent Visa credit card for this type of purchase.

These points can be used against any travel purchase at the rate of1,000 points = $10 (flights, hotels, all-inclusives and even Airbnb). You can also redeem your points for cash back at Scene+, for example, at your local grocery store checkout at the same rate of 1,000 points = $10.

The Scotiabank Visa Infinite Passport also offers :

• No fees for foreign currency transactions
• 6 access to VIP airport lounges
• Excellent insurance for your travels and purchases
• Concierge service

We voted this credit card the Best No FX Fee Credit Card of 2024 and 2025.

National Bank Platinum Mastercard

With this offer for the National Bank Platinum Mastercard®, enjoy a rebate on the first year’s annual fee (a $70 value) and receive up to 25,000 bonus points distributed as follows:

• 10,000 points by subscribing to credit card payment insurance for at least the first three months*
• 5,000 points if you make $2,500 in net purchases within the first 3 months of membership**
• 10,000 additional points if you make $10,000 in net purchases within the first 12 months of membership (including the $2,500 from the previous condition)**

With the National Bank Platinum Mastercard®, you can earn 2 points per dollar on grocery and restaurant purchases, and 1.5 points per dollar on gas, EV charging, recurring bills and À la carte Travel.

Since it is an NBC mycredit Mastercard, you can use it at Costco.

Unlike the other two National Bank travel rewards cards, the National Bank Platinum Mastercard® does not require a minimum income.

What’s more, you can take advantage of a wide range of insurances usually reserved for high-end credit cards:

• 180-day Purchase protection in the event of theft or damage
• Possibility of tripling the manufacturer’s warranty (up to 2 additional years)
• Trip Cancellation Insurance
• Trip Interruption Insurance
• Out-of-province hospital insurance
• Flight Delay Insurance
• Baggage insurance in case of delay, theft or loss
• Car rental insurance
• Mobile Device Insurance

We voted the National Bank Platinum Mastercard® as the best credit card for young professionals in 2024.

BMO eclipse rise Visa* Card

The new BMO eclipse rise Visa* Card is a no-annual-fee credit card with travel points, requiring no minimum income.

With this offer, you can earn up to 25,000 points as a welcome bonus:

• 20,000 points after $1,500 in purchases in the first 3 months
• 2,500 points when you redeem 12,000 points with the Pay with Points option over a 12-month period
• 2,500 points when you pay the balance on time for 12 months

What’s more, you can benefit from an interest rate of 0.99% on balance transfers for nine months (a 2% balance transfer fee applies).

With the new BMO eclipse rise Visa* Card, you earn :

• 5 points for every two dollars spent on recurring bill payments
• 5 points for every two dollars spent at the grocery store
• 5 points for every two dollars spent at restaurant and for takeaway
• 1 point per two dollars of purchases for all other purchase categories

You can use BMO Rewards points for all travel purchases made through theagency or website of your choice (airline tickets, hotels, car rentals, all-inclusives, Airbnb, etc.) or for rewards and gift cards on the BMO Rewards platform.

The new BMO eclipse rise Visa* Card also offers:

• Mobile Device Insurance
• Purchase Protection
• Extended warranty insurance

Scotiabank American Express^® Card

Scotiabank American Express® Card is one of the best no-annual-fee credit cards in Canada.

For a limited time, you can earn up to 5,000 points in the first three months, which represents a $50 value for travel (including Airbnb) :

• 2,500 Scene+ points after $250 spent in the first three months
• 2,500 Scene+ points after $1000 spent in the first three months

With Scotiabank American Express® Card, you earn 3 points per dollar spent at Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, Foodland, FreshCo, Voilà by Sobeys, Voilà by IGA, Voilà by Safeway, Chalo! FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, IGA West, Les Marchés Tradition, Rachelle Béry and Co-Op.

Also, you get 2 points per dollar for:

• Grocery stores
• Restaurants
• Entertainment centers
• Gas stations
• local transportation
• streaming services

And 1 point per dollar of purchase for all other purchases.

These points can be used against any travel purchase (air tickets, hotels, all-inclusives and even Airbnb) or with Scene+ partners for cash back.

American Express^® Aeroplan^®* Card

With this welcome offer for the Aeroplan American Express Card, you can earn up to 40,000 Aeroplan points. Here’s how:

• Earn 30,000 Aeroplan points after spending $3,000 on your Card in the first 3 months.
• Plus, earn an additional 10,000 Aeroplan points when you spend $1,000 in the 13th month.

With this Card, you earn 2x the points on purchases with Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations.

And 1.5x the points for dining and food delivery services in Canada. Anywhere else, you will earn 1X the points.

Enjoy your first checked bag free (up to 23kg/50lb) for up to 9 people travelling on the same reservation on Air Canada®* flights.

Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.

BMO AIR MILES^®† Mastercard^®*

With this exclusive offer for the BMO AIR MILES Mastercard, you get 1,600 AIR MILES after $1,500 in purchases within the first 110 days of account opening.

Plus, earn 900 additional AIR MILES after $450 in purchases at eligible warehouse clubs, grocery stores, or alcohol retailers within the first 110 days.

This credit card has no annual fee.

With the BMO AIR MILES Mastercard, you earn 3X miles for every $25 spent at participating AIR MILES Partners.

Plus, you’ll earn 2X miles for every $25 spent at any eligible grocery store, wholesale club (warehouse like Costco) and liquor retailer.

For everything else, you earn 1 AIR MILES for every $25 in purchases.