To the point
Let's compare two credit cards: the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card vs. the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®* Mastercard®*.
With the withdrawal of AIR MILES from IGA grocery stores as of March 23, 2023, opportunities to collect miles have diminished. The Scene+ program has been launched on March 24.
Is it time for a change of focus and program? While we’re at it, would it be better to switch credit cards?
For a clearer picture, let’s compare the best Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
With the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you can earn Scene+ points, while with the BMO AIR MILES® World Elite Mastercard®*, you earn AIR MILES Reward Miles.
We will base our analysis on the major differences between these credit cards regarding :
Welcome bonus
The welcome bonus offered by each of these credit cards varies according to promotions. However, there are some important differences between the two!
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card offers 30,000 Scene+ points with total purchases of $1,000 or more during the first three months.
This has a value of $300.
Then, if you have $40,000 in purchases in the first year with the card, Scotia will give an additional 10,000 points. This has an additional $100 value.
Moreover, the annual fee is waived for the first year (a $150 value).
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite Mastercard®* offers 3,000 bonus AIR MILES miles with at least $3,000 in card purchases within the first three months.
This is a $310 value when redeeming Cash Miles at Shell.
Winner: BMO
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite Mastercard has a more generous welcome offer than its competitor.
However, to earn a bonus faster, the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card has an advantage, as only $1,000 in purchases are required to earn 30,000 Scene+ points.
Earning points
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®* Mastercard* and Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card each offer different levels of point accumulation.
Maximum earning level
With the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you earn 3 Scene+ points per dollar (i.e. 3%) on purchases at:
- IGA
- Rachelle Béry
- Les Marchés Tradition
- Voià by IGA / Safeway / Sobeys
- Sobeys and Safeway
- Foodland and Thrifty Foods
- FreshCo and Chalo! FreshCo
With the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®Mastercard*, you can earn 3 miles for every $12 spent at AIR MILES Partners such as :
- Shell
- Budget, Alamo and National
- Pitou minou & Compagnons
- Samsung
This has a value of 2.6%.
Winner: Scotiabank
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card stands out for its value received with purchases at Empire Group grocery stores (IGA, Sobeys, Foodland, etc.).
Other levels of accumulation
Then, in other purchase categories, the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*Mastercard* and Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card offer other accumulation rates.
With the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you earn 1 or 2 points per dollar on these purchases:
- 2 Scene+ points/$1 purchase in restaurants, entertainment, grocery stores and travel (2% value)
- 1 Scene+ point/$1 purchase for the remainder (1% value)
With the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®MasterCard*, you can earn :
- 2 miles for every $12 spent at any grocery store (1.8% value)
- 1 mile for every $12 for all other types of expenses (0.9% value)
Winner: Scotiabank
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card will offer you just a little more than its competitor. But its categories are also more varied than just “grocery”.
However, if you are a Costco customer, you should know that you can use the BMO Mastercard credit card at the warehouse since it is a Mastercard credit card. Since the Scotia card is a Visa, it is not accepted at Costco cashiers.
Redeeming points
Both cards are point cards that can be used in many ways.
Points for travel
With the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you can apply your points to travel purchases in two ways:
- Redeem points directly when booking travel with Scene+ Travel, administered by Expedia.
- Make your own travel arrangements and use your points to pay off the balance on the card
The redemption rate is fixed for travel expenses, with 10,000 points = $100 credit.
With the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*MasterCard*, you can book travel with the Dream Miles you’ve earned.
The rate of use is very variable and to redeem them, you must go through theAIR MILES platform, in the Travel section. To be worth it, a mile redeemed must equal 10.5 cents (or $10 off for 95 miles).
Dream miles are also used to pay for :
- All-inclusive packages through Redtag Travel Agency
- Tickets for skiing, zoo, golf
- Theme park tickets (DisneyWorld, Disneyland and Universal Studios)
- Hotels, airfare, car rental and cruises
Winner: Scotiabank
When it comes tousing points for travel purchases, the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card is simpler than the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*MasterCard. The exchange rate is fixed and easy to remember.
Redeeming AIR MILES points is fine, but the value depends on the travel product. For example, the value is very poor for a plane ticket to Europe. At the opposite, AIR MILES can make substantial savings on a car rental, which is one of the best uses of Dream Miles when traveling.
Points for other rewards
Both the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*Mastercard* andthe Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card allow you to use points for other rewards: everyday purchases, gift cards or merchandise.
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card lets you apply points to everyday purchases.
You can redeem 1,000 Scene+ points for a $10 discount at the IGA/Sobeys checkout.
Points are also used to purchase gift cards, starting at 1,000 to 1,400 points for a $10 discount.
Scene+ points can also be redeemed:
- 500 points for $5 off at select restaurants (Harvey’s, Swiss Chalet, etc)
- 100 points for $1 off movie tickets at Cineplex
- 500 points for $5 off food and beverage at Cineplex, Rec Room and chips at Playdium
- At least 3,000 points for a credit to the account of between $6.67 and $8.00 on any charge to the card
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite® MasterCard* can also be used to redeem for gift cards and merchandise.
For example, 95 Silver Miles can be used to deduct $10 of the bill for gas at Shell. Or, this gives us a Via Rail or Starbucks gift card.
Although we don’t encourage redeeming them in this way because of their low value, Dream Miles can be redeemed for items ranging from movie tickets to a computer.
IT'S A DRAW
For now, it is difficult to redeem points for everyday purchases and essentials with these two cards.
AIR MILES partners have become few and far between in recent years. Then, apart from IGA grocery stores, Scene+ points are used in stores that don’t exist in Quebec (Swiss Chalet, Rec Room, Montana’s, Playdium).
Better to use the points for travel!
Annual fee
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card has an annual fee of $150, but this is refunded in the first year as a welcome offer.
And if you have a Scotiabank Ultimate Package, you’ll get your annual fee waived at any time. Find out more here.
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite® MasterCard®* has an annual fee of $120.
However, there are promotions that give refunds to get the first year for free.
Winner: BMO
The BMO AIR MILES® World Elite®* Mastercard®* has a lower annual fee.
Minimum income
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card requires :
- $60,000 (individual income)
- or $100,000 (household income)
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite® MasterCard®* requires :
- $80,000 (individual income)
- or $150,000 (household income)
Winner: Scotiabank
Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card is more affordable than the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite® MasterCard®*.
Insurance
Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card offers a range of insurance options. The certificate of insurance can be found here:
| Worldwide Emergency Travel Medical insurance | $ 2,000,000 and 25 days (64 years and under) |
| Baggage Delay or Loss insurance | $ 1,000 per trip |
| Flight delay insurance | $ 500 per person |
| Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption/Delay insurance | Up to $2,500 per person |
| Car rental insurance | Up to 48 days, maximum of $65,000 |
| Hotel/Motel Burglary Insurance | Up to $1,000 |
| Purchase Insurance | 90 days |
| Mobile Device Insurance | — |
| Extended Warranty Insurance | Double the warranty up to one additional year |
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®MasterCard®* offers a variety of insurance benefits and its certificate of insurance can be found here:
| Worldwide Emergency Travel Medical insurance | $ 2,000,000, 64 and under, for 15 days |
| Baggage Delay or Loss insurance | Up to $750 |
| Flight delay insurance | Up to $500 |
| Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption/Delay insurance |
Up to $2,500 (cancellation) Up to $2,000 (interruption) |
| Car rental insurance | 48 days, up to $65,000 |
| Hotel/Motel Burglary Insurance | — |
| Purchase Insurance | 90 days |
| Mobile Device Insurance | — |
| Extended Warranty Insurance | Double the warranty up to one additional year |
Winner: Scotiabank
Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card insurances are slightly superior to its competitor. In fact, the amounts are equal to or greater than each other. Please note thatat least 75% of the cost of the trip or tickets must be charged to this card in order for certain insurances to be applicable.
While for the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*MasterCard*, the cardholder is eligible for insurance if purchased in part with AIR MILES miles.
The Benefits
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card offers a range of benefits:
- No conversion fees for foreign currency purchases
- 6 complimentary airport VIP lounges access per year
- Double up on Scene+ points with the Scene+ membership card at partner stores
- Visa Infinite Privileges
In addition, the BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite® MasterCard®* offers a number of benefits:
- 25% discount on the number of AIR MILES miles required for a flight reservation (maximum of 750 miles per year)
- Obtaining AIR MILES Onyx status automatically
- Free access to Boingo WiFi hotspots around the world
- Earn double miles with the AIR MILES Collector Card at our partners
- Mastercard Travel Rewards Benefits
- Free DragonPass network lounge membership (with paid admission at $32 USD per person)
It's a tie !
Other benefits include travel. Depending on the needs of the traveler, his heart will swing between the two cards.
However, avoiding the 2.5% foreign currency conversion fee and access to VIP lounges does provide some benefit.
For an AIR MILES Collector redeeming miles to book airfare, the 25% discount makes sense.
Bottom Line
So? Which card wins this duel?
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card!
It stands out for:
- Its easy to get welcome offer
- Accumulation of 2 or 3 points in grocery stores
- Its variety of accumulation categories
- The flexibility to use Scene+ points for travel purposes
- The savings generated in travel for its absence of conversion fees
- the 6 accesses to airport lounges
- Lowest annual income requested
- Its insurance
The BMO® AIR MILES® World Elite®*MasterCard®* stands out from the crowd:
- People who want to redeem Cash Miles at Shell only
- Its use at Costco
- People who book at least one airline ticket per year to take advantage of the 25% discount with AIR MILES
- Obtain Onyx membership status automatically
- Its lowest annual fee
Anyway, these are two cards that we recommend in many of our rankings:
Come to discuss that topic in our Facebook Group!
