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BMO is now one of the few financial institutions in Canada to offer credit cards across multiple networks:
Both the Visa and Mastercard credit cards featured in this comparison are part of the BMO Rewards program.
Let’s compare the features of the new BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card with those of the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard.
Let’s look at the big differences between these credit cards in regards to:
The welcome bonus offered by each of these credit cards varies depending on the promotions. However, there are differences to be aware of between the two credit cards.
By signing up for the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card, you can earn up to 70,000 BMO Rewards points and get the $120 annual fee waived for the first year:
By signing up for the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, you can earn up to 100,000 BMO Rewards points, along with a waiver of the $150 annual fee for the first year:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard earns more points, but requires significantly higher spending. If your budget allows, this is the best card for getting a lot of BMO points.
However, most of the welcome offer for the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card is easier to earn, with a reasonable minimum spend requirement.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card requires a minimum income of:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard requires a minimum income of:
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card is more accessible than the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, which is now outclassed by the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege* Card that requires an individual income of $150,000 or a household income of $200,000.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card has an annual fee of $120 (but the annual fee is waived for the first year).
However, this card offers a $50 annual credit, effectively reducing the cost to just $70 per year!
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard has an annual fee of $150 (but the annual fee is waived for the first year, and there is a 0% introductory interest rate on balance transfers for 12 months, with a 2% balance transfer fee).
In addition, it comes with 4 airport lounge passes, which can help offset the annual fee.
Both cards have their annual fee waived for the first year.
However, after the first year, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card has a lower annual fee and includes a credit that you can use any way you want, whether for travel, everyday purchases, and more.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card and the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard both offer multiple points earning rates.
With the new BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card, you can earn 5 BMO Rewards points per dollar spent on:
With the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, you can earn 5 BMO Rewards points per dollar spent on travel purchases.
And you get 3 points for every dollar you spend on:
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card is ideal for everyday purchases, earning 5 points per dollar on common spending categories like groceries, gas, and local transit.
For its part, the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard will be particularly interesting if you make a lot of travel purchases: 5 points per dollar.
Outside of these accelerated earning categories, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card and the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard both offer a base earn rate.
With the new BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card, you can earn 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.
With the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, you can earn 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.
Both cards offer 1 point per dollar for non-category purchases. The one advantage of the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard is that it is accepted at Costco, unlike the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card.
These are both travel rewards credit cards that are part of the BMO Rewards program.
Here is a table of your different options for redeeming BMO Rewards points:
No matter which BMO credit card you choose, the best way to use your BMO Rewards points is to book travel such as flights, hotel stays, or car rentals through the BMO Rewards portal. 40,000 points = $268.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card offers a few insurance benefits:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard offers a range of insurance options:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard is one of the best credit cards in Canada for travel insurance with points. Indeed, for most of the proposed insurances, it is enough to have paid only a part of your trip with the card. Even just the airport taxes on an Aeroplan award ticket, for example!
In comparison, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card does not offer many travel-related insurance benefits, except for medical insurance or rental car insurance.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card offers various benefits:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard offers a range of benefits:
On one hand, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card comes with a $50 annual lifestyle credit that you can use however you like.
On the other hand, the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard offers 4 airport lounge passes, which have a higher value than $50, but are more restrictive: if you don’t use them, they have no value for you.
So? Which card wins this duel?
It’s hard to give a definite winner. In fact, it will be up to each person to make up their own mind according to their needs.
The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card stands out for:
It will be more of a credit card for people who regularly earn points for everyday expenses and do not require robust travel insurance. The points can easily be used for hotel nights or car rentals, for example!
Against it, the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard®* stands out for:
This credit card is perfect for people who travel regularly and require extensive insurance.
These are 2 cards that we recommend in many of our rankings:
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