RBC is one of Canada’s leading Big 5 banks, offering a variety of travel and cash back credit cards.Here are our picks for the best RBC credit cards in Canada.
Best Overall RBC Credit Card
The RBC® Avion Visa Infinite† is RBC’s core travel credit card. You’ll earn 1.25 Avion points per dollar spent on travel, and 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.Avion points are one of the few transferable rewards currencies in Canada, making them very valuable. There are some good sweet spots with any of their transfer partners, including British Airways Avios, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, and American Airlines AAdvantage. It’s often best to wait for a transfer bonus, which could net you 10–50% more points depending on the partner program.For straightforward round-trip flights in economy class, you can also score great value with the Air Travel Redemption Schedule. You can redeem your rewards for up to 2 cents per point for most destinations. If you book this way through the RBC Rewards centre, you can also use your points to cover taxes and fuel surcharges.As an added bonus, RBC has special promotions for Avion cardholders. Check the offers on your account from time to time, and you can earn discounts or additional Avion points for using your card to make purchases at merchants like Best Buy, Indigo, Apple, Rexall, or HelloFresh. There’s also an ongoing benefit of discounts and extra points at Petro-Canada.The card also has some unique insurance benefits, like a high amount of hotel burglary coverage and mobile device insurance. A mid-tier card with a manageable annual fee, the RBC Avion card is always useful to have in your wallet for those types of purchases and bookings.If you don’t qualify with at least $60,000 annual personal income or $100,000 annual household income, you can apply for the RBC Avion Visa Platinum. You’ll get all of the same earning and redemption opportunities (except for bonus points earned on travel purchases) and the same annual fee, just with no minimum income requirement.
Best Premium RBC Credit Card
The
RBC® Avion Visa Infinite Privilege† is RBC’s top-tier card. It’s a step up from their other cards, earning
1.25 Avion points per dollar spent on all purchases.
As for travel benefits, you’ll get a better insurance package, as well as a complimentary
DragonPass membership with six annual free lounge visits, as is standard on all Visa Infinite Privilege cards.
But perhaps the most intriguing advantage of this card is that you can redeem your Avion rewards at a rate of 2 cents per point for any business class flight. If you can find some cheap cash fares, you can score some flights this way for even better value than you might find with frequent flyer programs.
Best RBC Mastercard
The
WestJet RBC® World Elite Mastercard is RBC’s go-to travel-oriented Mastercard.
You’ll earn
1.5 WestJet Dollars per 100 dollars spent, good for 1.5% back. You can use your rewards to cover payments for WestJet flights or WestJet Vacations.
The card’s best feature is its annual companion voucher. Every year, including your first year with the card, you can book a second round-trip ticket with a reduced base fare when you pay full price for your own seat. You’d still have to pay $119 to $399 plus taxes and fees, depending on the destination, but these rates can represent steep discounts if you travel in high season.
Best RBC Credit Card for Daily Spending
The
RBC® ION+ Visa is an intriguing option for spenders who want to earn enticing travel rewards while keeping credit card fees down.
The card has a monthly fee of just $4, while earning a hefty
3 points per dollar spent on a wide range of lifestyle categories, including groceries, dining, commuting, and entertainment subscriptions.
As an ION+ cardholder, you'll earn points at the Avion Premium tier. Aside from WestJet, you can’t transfer these points to airline partners or use the Air Travel Redemption Schedule. As an ION+ cardholder, you’ll miss out on the very best ways to stretch your value with the trio of Oneworld airline programs of British Airways Avios, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, and American Airlines AAdvantage.
Luckily, you can easily upgrade the card to an Avion card. This moves your cardholder status to Avion Elite, which lets you transfer Avion Rewards points to frequent flyer programs.
If you have an RBC® ION+ Visa and an Avion Visa, you can transfer your Avion Premium points into Avion Elite points. This is an ideal setup, as you can earn at elevated rates with the RBC® ION+ Visa, while redeeming in the most valuable ways as Avion Elite points.
Best No Fee RBC Credit Card
The
RBC® ION Visa is the best entry-level card offered by RBC. You can earn
1.5 points per dollar spent on groceries, dining, and other lifestyle categories, and 1 point per dollar spent everywhere else.
You can redeem your Avion Rewards points for gift cards at a rate of 1 cent per point, although with frequent discounts of 30%, you can often get a rate of 1.43 cents per point. If you wait for these promotions, you can significantly increase your returns on daily spending, which you can’t do on most no-fee cards.
Otherwise, like with the ION+ card, you can upgrade the ION card to an Avion card to take advantage of exclusive airline transfer partners available to Avion Elite cardholders, or hold both and transfer your Avion Premium points into Avion Elite points.
If you can’t qualify for a higher-tier card initially, the ION card is a great starting point as you begin making plans for future travel with the three Oneworld programs.
Best Cash Back RBC Credit Card
The
RBC® Cash Back Mastercard has an interesting rewards structure. Your earn rates will vary depending on how much you spend in different categories.
You’ll earn
2% cash back on your first $6,000 of grocery purchases each year; then your rewards rate drops to 1%. You’ll also earn 0.5% on your first $6,000 of other purchases each year; then your rewards rate increases to 1%.
If most of your spending is on groceries, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a no-fee card that earns more than 2%. And if you exceed $500 per month on average, at that level you’re probably better off swallowing a modest fee for bigger rewards.
If you’re a high-volume spender in other categories and you’ll easily reach the 1% rate, that’s a great return for an entry-level cash back card that doesn’t face the same acceptance issues as American Express cards.
Best RBC Credit Card for Business Owners
The
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Business is the go-to choice for business owners looking to rack up points for business travel.
You can transfer your Avion points to RBC’s Oneworld airline partners, use the RBC Air Travel Redemption Schedule for economy flights, or credit your points against any business class flight at a rate of 2 cents per point.
The card earns
1.25 Avion points per dollar spent on your first $75,000 in purchases per year, or 1 point thereafter. It also comes with a solid suite of travel insurance coverage.
You can have these unique high-value perks like extra Avion points on spending and 2 cents per point redemptions for premium class tickets, all for an annual fee of just $175.
Compared to the
RBC® Avion Visa Infinite Privilege† and its $399 annual fee for those same benefits, you should definitely see if you have an opportunity to get this business credit card instead.
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