CIBC Aeroplan^® Visa^* Business Card

The first-year fee waiver makes this a zero-risk proposition for business owners who can naturally hit the spending thresholds – you're accumulating 75,000 Aeroplan points with no upfront cost, which is rare in the business card space. Even casual spenders can lock in 35,000 points through the first two tiers, making this one of the most accessible ways to build toward a premium redemption without committing to a premium annual fee.

The real question arrives in year two: unless you're leveraging the bonus categories strategically or valuing the travel perks, the fee becomes harder to justify once the welcome bonus is behind you. For many business owners, this is a first-year play – capture the points, evaluate your usage, and decide whether the ongoing economics work for your spending patterns.

Use this where your business spend naturally flows: flights, hotels, restaurants, and recurring services like shipping or telecom. Outside those categories, you're better served by a cashback card or a higher-earning option for specific verticals.

It's a strategic complement, not a primary earner – pair it with the Amex Business Platinum for airfare or a category-specialist card for ad spend and supplies where 1x doesn't cut it.

Aeroplan excels at premium cabin redemptions on Star Alliance partners – you'll access Lufthansa Allegris suites, ANA's The Room, or Singapore's A350 product often with lower surcharges than booking direct. The distance-based chart rewards efficient routing, and stopovers cost nothing extra, turning point-to-point awards into multi-city itineraries.

For transcontinental business class, expect 25,000–35,000 points one-way – efficient enough for domestic positioning, not just aspirational trips. Family pooling consolidates household earning toward single high-value redemptions rather than fragmenting balances across accounts.

The free first checked bag benefit extends to up to eight companions on the same reservation when you pay with the card, making this particularly valuable for teams or families – a group of four flying roundtrip to Europe saves $280 in baggage fees alone.

Four annual Maple Leaf Lounge passes offer a practical respite during connections, though frequent travellers will exhaust these quickly and should consider whether unlimited lounge access justifies upgrading.

Trip cancellation caps at $1,000 per person – half the standard for premium travel cards – and there's no emergency medical coverage at all. You'll need supplemental insurance for international trips or anything beyond a weekend getaway.

Primary rental car coverage and the Aeroplan-friendly activation rule (taxes only) are genuine strengths, but this package won't replace a dedicated travel insurance policy for serious travel.