Avion Membership Levels: What’s the Difference Between Elite, Premium, and Select?
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If you’ve explored RBC’s Avion Rewards program in the past, you may have noticed mentions of what seems to be three different types of Avion points: Avion Select, Avion Premium, and Avion Elite.
Interestingly, these are in fact three different Avion Rewards membership levels, each offering improved opportunities for earning and redeeming Avion points.
In this article, we dig into these three membership levels to clarify how to access each level, giving you a better understanding of the best ways to earn and redeem Avion points.
RBC Avion Rewards
Avion Rewards is the loyalty program for the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). Through this program you can earn and redeem valuable Avion points for travel, gift cards, merchandise, and more.
Two unique features of this bank-owned loyalty program is that it’s available to non-RBC customers and that it’s divided into three membership levels:
- Avion Select
- Avion Premium
- Avion Elite
Each membership level gives you improved earning and redeeming potential, but of course, having these three levels also makes it all a bit confusing.
With that in mind, let’s look over the basics of becoming an Avion Rewards member and then dig in to how each membership level works.
Avion Rewards’ Three Membership Levels
The first thing to understand is that your Avion Rewards membership level is determined based on which RBC products you have (or don’t have).
The second thing to know is that your ability to earn and redeem Avion points improves as you move up the membership levels.
The Avion Select membership level is available to all Canadians, regardless of whether or not they’re RBC clients.
In fact, to be an Avion Select member, you can’t have any RBC products, otherwise you’d automatically be bumped up to an Avion Premium or Avion Elite membership.
To become an Avion Select member, you just need to head to the Avion Rewards website and click “Join Now.”
The next two membership levels of Avion Premium and Avion Elite are both accessed based on which RBC products you have and use.
The eligible products for these membership levels range from bank accounts to investment products to credit cards, and if you have multiple eligible RBC products, you’ll enjoy the highest Avion membership level that you qualify for.
Now, let’s take a closer look at each membership to better understand what these level mean.
| Benefit | Avion Select | Avion Premium | Avion Elite |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points and cash back | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deals at 2,000+ brands | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Up to 40% cash back | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Redeem for merchandise and travel rewards | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pay with points | No | Yes | Yes |
| 3X Canadian Tire Money | No | Yes | Yes |
| Up to 7¢/L in value at Petro-Canada | No | Yes | Yes |
| Exclusive everyday savings | No | Yes | Yes |
| Premium experiences and benefits | No | Yes | Yes |
| Top-tier offers and deals | No | Yes | Yes |
| Conversion to other airline programs (WestJet, Avios and AAdvantage with RBC ION and ION+ cards) | No | Yes | Yes |
| Conversion to Asia Miles | No | No | Yes |
| Elite travel and adventure offers | No | No | Yes |
| Elite rewards and offers | No | No | Yes |
| Fixed travel redemption schedule | No | No | Yes |
How you reach each level
Avion Select comes with no RBC product at all: you sign up online, in a few minutes, at no cost.
Avion Premium comes with an eligible RBC product: a bank account, an investment product or a credit card such as the RBC ION+ Visa Card. The move happens automatically.
Avion Elite requires an Avion-branded credit card: the RBC Avion Visa Platinum, the RBC Avion Visa Infinite or the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege. With several RBC products, the highest level applies.
Avion Select
Avion Select is a membership level available to any Canadian who is the age of majority in their province/territory and who has a debit or credit card with another bank.
Avion Select opens the program to people with no RBC products: membership is free and gives access to the merchant offers on the Avion Rewards website. That is also where earning stops at this level: Avion points are earned only through those merchant offers, not with a credit card.
You can also enjoy deals and earn cash back through special offers found on the Avion Rewards website and by using the Avion Rewards ShopPlus Extension. Any cash back you earn will be deposited into the non-RBC account that you linked when you signed up for your Avion membership.
As an Avion Select member, you have only a limited number of redemption options:
- gift cards (increments of $10, $25, $50, $200; 1 Avion point = 0.71 cents)
- merchandise, including Apple and Best Buy (redemption rate varies by item)
- travel (1 Avion point = 0.58 cents)
Also, keep in mind that travel redemptions must be booked online through the Avion Rewards Travel page.
Avion Premium
The second membership level is Avion Premium and at this level your ability to earn and redeem Avion points starts to ramp up.
In addition to all the earning and redeeming abilities from the Avion Select level, you can also now earn points with your debit and credit cards.
To become an Avion Premium member, you need to sign up for one of many RBC products. You can find a list of all the eligible products on the Avion Rewards eligibility website.
The most notable way to earn Avion points at this membership level is with either the RBC ION Visa Card or the RBC ION+ Visa Card.
For example, with the RBC ION+ Visa Card, you can earn up to 3 Avion points per $1 spent and enjoy perks like mobile device insurance, purchase protection and extended warranty, and savings at the gas station.
The Avion Premium membership level also offers considerably better redemption options than the Avion Select level.
As a Premium member, you can not only redeem your Avion points all the same ways as an Avion Select member, but you can now also redeem your points the following additional ways:
- Transfer to WestJet Rewards (100 Avion points = 100 WestJet points)
- Pay bills and send an e-transfer (1 Avion point = 0.58 cents)
- Get a statement credit to pay down your credit cards/bank loans (available in increments of $25, $50, $100, $250, and $500; 1 Avion point = 0.58 cents)
- Use Avion points to invest in the stock market, RRSPs, and more (3,000 Avion points = $25, or 0.83 cents per point)
- Donate your points to charity
- Annual fee
- $0
- Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$238Total$238Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
- $238
- Welcome offerAfter $500 in 3 months
- Up to 14,000 points
- Ends Nov 4, 2026
Apply Now
on RBC's website
- Annual fee
- $48
- Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$476Total$476Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
- $476
- Welcome offerAfter $1,500 in 6 months
- Up to 28,000 points
- Ends Nov 4, 2026
Apply Now
on RBC's website
Avion Elite
Avion Elite is the program’s top membership level, giving you access to the most earning and redemption opportunities.
This level is available to anyone who holds one of RBC’s Avion-branded credit cards, as follows:
With these credit cards, you can earn up to 2 Avion points per $1 spent, and enjoy some pretty excellent travel-focused benefits.
For example, the RBC Avion Visa Infinite offers a comprehensive travel insurance package, including car rental coverage and delayed baggage and flight delay insurance.
Additionally, with the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege, you also get complimentary access to airport lounges around the world.
Of course, as an Avion Elite member, you can also earn Avion all the same ways mentioned for the Avion Select and Avion Premium membership levels.
Now what really makes the Avion Elite membership so valuable is that at this level you get the ability to transfer Avion to additional airline partners and access to redemptions through the RBC Travel Redemption Schedule.
Airline transfer partners
As an Avion Elite member, you can transfer Avion from your account to the following airline loyalty currencies:
- Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (rate of 1:1)
- British Airways Avios (rate of 1:1)
- American Airlines AAdvantage (rate of 1 Avion : 0.7 AAdvantage miles)
- WestJet Rewards (100 Avion = 100 WestJet points)
Additionally, there are occasional transfer bonuses, such as a 30% bonus when you convert your points to British Airways Avios.
With this in mind, we recommend you time your transfers accordingly if you want to maximize the value of your Avion points.
RBC Travel Redemption Schedule
The RBC Travel Redemption Schedule lets you redeem a set number points for flights on any airline, on any date, and at any time.
If you don’t feel like navigating the labyrinth of value and availability with airline loyalty programs, the RBC Travel Redemption Schedule is a great option, offering the possibility of redemption values at 2+ cents per Avion point.
Other redemption options
Avion Elite points can also be redeemed for travel book through Avion Rewards Travel at a value of 1 Avion Elite = 1 cent. This is an improvement on the rate for Avion Premium and Select members of 1 Avion point = 0.58 cents.
Plus, you can also access all the same redemption options as the Avion Select and Avion Premium levels.
This includes redeeming for gift cards, merchandise, statement credits, and more. However, keep in mind that these options only offer a fraction of the previously mentioned value, so we don’t typically recommend that you choose these.
| Credit card | Annual fee | Welcome offer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| $120 | |||
| $120 | |||
| $399 | |||
| $0 | |||
| $0 |
What Avion Membership Level Should You Choose?
The Avion Elite level is the most versatile and valuable thanks to transfer partners and the RBC Travel Redemption Schedule; however, to access this level, you do need to have an RBC Avion credit card.
Pleasantly this access isn't too expensive since the RBC Avion Visa Platinum has no minimum income requirement, and it only requires a reasonable annual fee of $120 (which is often more than offset by the value of the welcome offer).
Now, if you don’t want to take on a credit card with an annual fee, the Avion Premium membership level is still a good way to enjoy some of the value and utility of the program.
In fact, the RBC ION+ Visa Card, giving you access to the Avion Premium level for a total annual fee of only $48, earns up to an impressive 3 Avion points per $1 spent.
For those looking to truly maximize their Avion earning and redeeming strategy, you’ll actually want to use two RBC credit cards at two different RBC membership levels (one Premium and one Elite).
If you hold the RBC ION+ Visa Card to access its high earning rate of up to 3 Avion points per $1 spent, and you also hold any of the Avion-branded credit cards, you'll be Avion Elite member and you'll have access to the best earning rates in the program.
Since Avion points are transferable between membership levels at a rate of 1:1, this strategy lets you get the most earning potential and the most redemption opportunities all for the reasonable price of a couple annual fees.
Finally, Avion Select remains the program's free entry point for anyone who would rather not add a banking product. Merchant offers, cash back and point redemptions are already available there. The value stays modest, since earning comes only from those offers.
Bottom Line
RBC’s Avion Rewards is one of the most valuable loyalty programs in Canada thanks to the many ways you earn, redeem, and transfer Avion points.
Plus, thanks to the program’s three membership levels, including one that’s free to all, it’s possible for pretty much everyone to participate in a way that suits their loyalty budget and ambition.
To learn more about how to use this flexible loyalty program, check out our guides below:
Frequently Asked Questions
How much are Avion points worth?
Avion points are worth anywhere from 0.58 to 2+ cents each depending on how you choose to redeem them and what level of Avion Rewards membership you have. They can also be transferred at a rate of 1:1 to airline loyalty programs like British Airways Club and Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, where you may be able to get even more value per point.
Do Avion points expire?
No, RBC Avion Rewards points do not expire as long as you have an active credit card account. If you close your RBC credit card account, you have 12 months to use your points before they disappear.
Do I need an RBC credit card to earn Avion points?
No, you don't need to have an RBC credit card to earn Avion points. The Avion Rewards program is open to any Canadian who is the age of majority in their province or territory, by simply signing up as an Avion Select member on the Avion Rewards website and clicking “Join Now.”
What is the difference between Avion Premium and Avion Elite?
Avion Premium comes with an RBC account or bank card. That level unlocks paying with points, 3X Canadian Tire Money, Petro-Canada savings and conversion to WestJet. Avion Elite requires an RBC Avion credit card. It adds conversion to Asia Miles (with RBC ION and ION+ cards, conversions to WestJet, Avios and AAdvantage are already possible at the Premium level), the RBC Travel Redemption Schedule and the travel offers reserved for that level.
Can I stay an Avion Select member with an RBC account?
No. As soon as you hold an eligible RBC product, your membership moves automatically to Avion Premium or Avion Elite depending on the product. Avion Select is for people with no RBC products.
What happens to my level if I cancel my RBC Avion card?
You lose the Avion Elite benefits and go back to the level your other RBC products give you. Your points stay usable as long as an active credit card account remains; with no RBC credit card, you have 12 months to use them.
Which programs can you transfer Avion points to?
Four partners. Cathay Pacific Asia Miles and British Airways Avios transfer at 1:1. American Airlines AAdvantage gives 0.7 miles per Avion point, and WestJet Rewards 1 WestJet point per Avion point. With RBC ION and ION+ cards (Avion Premium), you can transfer to WestJet, British Airways and American Airlines; Cathay Pacific Asia Miles requires the Avion Elite level.
Can you transfer Avion points between two accounts?
Yes, at a 1:1 rate. You can therefore pair a high-earning card like the RBC ION+ Visa Card with an Avion card, and keep the best redemption options.
