American Express Canada and Scotiabank offer two cards for frequent travelers:
They’re both no-annual-fee cards linked to American Express, and yet they’re not alike! Let’s see which one is the best.
The welcome bonus offered by each of these cards varies according to the promotions.
Here is how the current offer is structured:
With this welcome offer from this card , you can earn 10,000 Membership Rewards points:
Based on our Membership Rewards points valuation (1.7 cents per point), this welcome bonus corresponds to a value of170 $.
With this welcome offer for the Scotiabank American Express® Card, you can earn up to 5,000 Scene+ points:
Based on our Scene+ points valuation (1 cent per point), this welcome bonus corresponds to a value of50 $.
The American Express® Green Card offer gives many more points and more value than its compatriot.
The American Express® Green Card requires no minimum income.
The Scotiabank American Express® Card requires a minimum annual income of $12,000.
Like the vast majority of American Express cards, the American Express® Green Card requires no minimum income.
It should be noted, however, that the Scotiabank American Express® Card is also very affordable, with its low annual income requirement.
If you’re looking for travel benefits, but don’t have a very high income, either of these cards may be right for you.
The American Express® Green Card has an annual fee of $0.
The Scotiabank American Express® Card has an annual fee of $0.
It’s so simple! You won’t need to pay an annual fee for these two cards.
The American Express® Green Card and Scotiabank American Express® Card offer different point accumulations.
With the American Express® Green Card, you earn:
The Scotiabank American Express® Card allows you to earn :
For everyday spending, the Scotiabank American Express® Card is the best and will give you more.
Loyalty programs are completely different:
As a result, the way points are used is different.
With the American Express® Green Card, you can apply its Membership Rewards points to reimburse any travel purchase charged to the card (airline tickets, hotels, Airbnb, car rentals, etc.), where 1,000 points = $10 in reimbursement.
You can also use the American Express fixed rate chart for specific flights.
The redeeming rate is 1,000 points = $20.
Scene+ points and travel:
You can apply them to travel purchases in two ways, thanks to the fixed redemption rate where 10,000 points = $100 credit:
The two ways of using points for travel are relatively similar for both cards.
With the American Express® Green Card, you can apply Membership Rewards points to everyday purchases charged to the card.
The redeeming rate is 1,000 points = $10.
You need to redeem a minimum of 1,000 points (i.e., a minimum of $10).
You can redeem 1,000 Scene+ points for a $10 discount at the IGA/Sobeys checkout.
Points can also be used to purchase gift cards on the Scotiabank/Scene+ website, from 1,000 to 1,400 points for a $10 discount.
Scene+ points can also be redeemed:
With the American Express® Green Card, whether you want to use your points for travel or any other purchase, you’ll get the same value: 1,000 points = $10 less for you to pay.
This is not the case if you want to use Scene+ points for statement credit on anything, where using Scene+ points is not advantageous at all.
With the American Express® Green Card, you can transfer your points to other rewards programs:
You cannot transfer Scene+ points to other programs.
When your Scene+ points are in your Scene+ account, you have no other way out: you can only use them in the Scene+ program.
American Express® Green Card Membership Rewards points are highly flexible and can be transferred elsewhere at great savings.
This flexibility is not available with the Scotiabank American Express® Card.
With the American Express® Green Card, you enjoy the following benefits:
The Scotiabank American Express® Card offers you the following benefits:
It really depends on your lifestyle! It’s up to you to decide which card wins this round.
Insurances are similar, but the Scotiabank American Express® Card has convenient mobile device insurance.
So? Which Card is the winner?
In the short term, the American Express® Green Card will give you more points up front with its welcome offer.
Over the longer term, the Scotiabank American Express® Card will earn you more points.
The American Express® Green Card is the best for these reasons:
The Scotiabank American Express® Card is a good compromise and stands out on its own:
Savings are here: