The Chase Aeroplan Credit Card was always a card I was on the fence for: should I get it or not? Truthfully I never did as the bonus categories were not super compelling. Chase has now refreshed the Aeroplan Credit Card, including increasing the annual fee and changing the name to Chase Air Canada Credit Card. And with that, this card is mostly off the table for me. I wanted to provide an analysis of the refreshed card with a recommendation of whom I think this card is good for, and who should probably apply for something else.

If you are interested, there is a limited time welcome bonus of up to 115000 points, so this would be a great time to apply. Again though, there’s likely other cards out there that are better for you, so read on to see my recommendations.

An Air Canada Credit Card: Why Should You Care?

The best thing about Air Canada is perhaps not the airline itself. Rather, as somebody based in the US (this card is only for US residents) you should care about this credit card because of Air Canada’s loyalty program: Aeroplan.

Air Canada Aeroplan, despite a recent devaluation, still has some really attractive award prices to fly on Air Canada’s partners, which includes many Star Alliance airlines, as well as a bunch of additional ones. It’s through Air Canada Aeroplan that we were able to book Singapore business class for a flight back in 2025, and again for a flight this upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. Both times we paid as little as 60.000 Aeroplan points and ~$150CAD per person for this amazing experience.

Other redemption opportunities with Air Canada are for flights with airlines such as Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian and LOT Polish, but also well-known and loved airlines such as Thai Airways in Thailand, EVA in Taiwan and ANA in Japan. Air Canada’s Aeroplan partners are far and wide and despite the devaluation the prices are still good. A one-way business class flight from the US to Western Europe will cost you 60.000 points, whereas (South) East Asia will run you 102.500 points.

Fun fact: Aeroplan is not great to book award flights in Air Canada business class, nor should you expect to book any long-haul business class United Airlines flights through Aeroplan. United makes those primarily available to members of its own MileagePlus loyalty program, with perks for United credit card holders.

Still, there’s no doubt that there is some great value to be had with Aeroplan. But is that enough to justify getting the Air Canada credit card?

Basics of Chase’s Refreshed Air Canada Credit Card

First, let’s just have a look at the basic features of the refreshed card:

• Limited time excellent welcome bonus: 115000 miles. 75000 if you spend $4000 in the first 3 months, then the rest if you spend $20.000 in the first 12 months.
• $195 annual fee
• Bonus categories:
  • 3x on Air Canada flight and general travel
  • 2x on groceries, dining (incl. takeout and delivery) and gas (groceries earn 3x until the end of 2026)
  • 1x on everything else.
• Automatic 25k Aeroplan Elite Status, from account opening until closing, and qualify for 35k status after spending $75.000 on the card.
• 15% off Aeroplan Award Tickets.
• Free first check bag for card holder and 8 companions.
• Credits that help offset the annual fee:
  • 2x $50 semi-annual Air Canada credits
  • $120 TSA PreCheck/Global Entry/NEXUS credit once every 4 years.

Quick Comparison to Before: What Changed?

Just to get an idea of what this card used to provide, here’s briefly the perks it provided previously and how they changed:

• The name: this card used to be called the ‘Chase Aeroplan Credit Card’. That might seem insignificant, but it encapsulates how the card is fundamentally different now.
• $95 annual fee: the refreshed card is $100 more expensive!
• Bonus categories: changed slightly but still in important ways, and whether that’s good depends on what you’d normally use the card for:
  • 3x on Air Canada purchases, groceries and dining
  • 1x on everything else
• Aeroplan 10% transfer bonus if you transfer 50.000 or more points. This perk got cut.
• Aeroplan 25k status for the year of card opening and the following year, and maintain it with $15.000 of spending and upgrade to 35k with $75.000 of spending, so this perks gets improved sicne now you get 25k status as long as you have the card (and don’t requalify on flying alone).
• Free checked bag for card holder and 8 companions. This is unchanged.
• Credits: the credit on Air Canada purchases is new, and helps to offset the increased annual fee.
  • $120 TSA PreCheck/Global Entry/NEXUS credit once every 4 years.

The Refreshed Card is All About Air Canada Loyalty

The change in the card’s name says it all: The Chase Air Canada credit card is now all about loyalty to Air Canada, rather than being a more generically useful credit card. There’s several factors that point to that:

1. Air Canada’s basic 25k elite status for as long as you have the card is a clear incentive to choose Air Canada over competitors when planning your trips. This status gets you priority check-in and boarding when flying Air Canada. Because 25k maps to Star Alliance Silver status, you can expect Air Canada’s partners, such as United and Lufthansa, to honor this priority access as well. See here the full status benefits.
2. Changes to the bonus categories and earning structure underline the need to spend on travel, and Air Canada specifically, in order to get more bonus points. The interesting 3x on groceries has been demoted to 2x (though will be 3x until the end of 2026).
3. The annual fee is significantly higher at $195, and the best way to offset it are the $100 worth of credits which are all about spending on Air Canada.

Frankly, this refresh is not at all surprising. Airlines, especially in the US, have gotten increasingly savvy with designing a credit card product that rewards loyalty to the airline, and for good reason: these credit card agreements can be a huge source of income for airlines.

For example, when United refreshed its credit card portfolio, it heavily leaned into rewarding loyalty at the cost of those that do not have their credit card. Air Canada now clearly follows that same route, redesigning their Aeroplan Credit Card to stimulate loyalty to Air Canada by trimming more generally useful perks, and adding perks that drive business to Air Canada.

A US-Based Air Canada flyer Will Like This Card

Given the above, I’d say that this is a great card for anybody based in the US who wants or intends to be loyal to Air Canada. For one, the 25k elite status is a nice perk in and off itself, as priority check-in and boarding can relieve some of the basic headaches of traveling. The Star Alliance Silver status it unlocks can help you with Air Canada’s Star Alliance partners as well. But, do note that Star Alliance Gold is where it gets really rewarding, as that’s when you start to get complimentary lounge access.

The free checked bag allowance can genuinely save you money if your routinely fly Air Canada. Besides, the two $50 credits for Air Canada purchases will offset the increase in the annual fee, bringing the card’s cost down to what it was before the refresh: $95.

The bonus categories strengthen the value proposition with the 3x points on Air Canada and other travel purchases, while supporting gas and dining purchases you might make while on your trip. While it should be emphasized that there’s absolutely better cards out there for those categories (e.g. 4x on dining with the Amex Gold), I appreciate what Air Canada and Chase are going for.

If this is you, right now would be the best time to apply, given the excellent welcome bonus of 115.000 points (75.000 when spending $4000 in the first 3 months, and another 40.000 when spending $20.000 in the first 12 months).

Can This Card be Useful For Non-Air Canada Flyers?

With the renewed focus on Air Canada loyalists, what about the rest of us? For example, I’ve argued that the Alaska Atmos Summit card can be valuable even if you never fly Alaska Airlines, thanks to its points angle. Can the same be said for the Chase Air Canada Credit Card?

Unfortunately, I don’t think so. The Alaska Summit Card is valuable because of the Atmos redemptions you can make on oneworld partners: you can find really cheap award flights on American Airlines to Mexico and the Caribbean, and the 25.000 point global companion certificate helps to offset the cost further. You could say that the Atmos Summit card drives business to Alaska that otherwise might have been directed to another airline.

The same can’t be said for the Air Canada credit card because United flights that show up with Air Canada Aeroplan are sparse and when they do show up, they are expensive. If you don’t intend to be loyal to Air Canada, the perks the card provides are largely irrelevant or trumped by other cards.

But what about using the Air Canada credit card elite status perk as a way to make United flights more comfortable? This doesn’t make much sense. If that’s the goal, you might as well get the United MileagePlus Explorer card. You may not get priority services, but the card is cheaper, will much accelerate the MileagePlus points you earn, you get 2 lounge United Club passes annually, and you get your free checked bags through as well.

In sum, I don’t think the Air Canada credit card makes sense for anybody but routine Air Canada flyers.

The Verdict: The Refreshed Card Is Good for Air Canada Flyers, But No Others

Following the above analyses, my conclusion is that the Chase Air Canada credit card is only truly beneficial for those that are loyal to Air Canada. In truth, that means that most people based in the US will simply not have a good reason to pick up this card for anything but the excellent welcome bonus.

So, who might actually benefit? If you’re not currently an Air Canada flyer already, I would only recommend this card to those US residents that are based in towns and cities close to an Air Canada hub, so that they become Air Canada loyalists. That means living close to the US-Canada border, from where a drive over to a large Canadian airport (e.g. Montreal, Toronto or Vancouver) may be easier than driving to a US equivalent (e.g. Vancouver is closer or easier to reach for you than Seattle). These people will be in a position to fly Air Canada routinely and use the perks efficiently.

But for anybody else, I’d say you can pick up this card for the welcome bonus, but otherwise focus your spending on other cards that provide a better return on spending, and you can check out my other analysis posts for details:

• For groceries and dining, Amex Gold trumps all else, T
• The Amex Platinum is great for flights.
• The Alaska Summit card is an all-around nice travel card…
• …and so are the Chase Sapphire cards (Reserve and Preferred).
• Use the Capital One cards for everything else.

Summary

Chase refreshed the Aeroplan credit card, which was always a card I’d been interested in applying to. The new, rebranded Chase Air Canada credit card has a higher annual fee of $195 and is now all about driving loyalty to Air Canada. A new elite status perk as long as you have the card is combined with $100 in credits on Air Canada purchases and bonus categories that promote spending on Air Canada. I appreciate what Chase and Air Canada are going for, but unfortunately I don’t see much use for anybody but Air Canada loyalists.

My verdict: if you’re not currently an Air Canada flyer, skip this card unless you want the welcome bonus or live close to an Air Canada hub that allows you to become an Air Canada loyalist.