Rankings
Best Credit Cards for Seniors in Canada
The Scotiabank American Express records no annual fee and no income requirement, and the Scotiabank Gold American Express adds no foreign transaction fee for spending in US dollars. Neither asks for the household income a premium travel card does.
Which credit cards are best for seniors in Canada?
The Scotiabank American Express, the SimplyCash Card from American Express and the BMO CashBack Mastercard all record no personal or household income requirement and no annual fee, and the Scotiabank Gold American Express adds no foreign transaction fee to that.
| Card | Annual fee | First-year value | Net annual rewards |
|---|---|---|---|
| TopScotiabank American Express | $0 | $364 | $364 |
| SimplyCash Card from American Express | $0 | $329 | $329 |
| BMO CashBack Mastercard | $0 | $380 | $282 |
| ATB Gold Cash Rewards Mastercard | $0 | $331 | $252 |
| ATB Gold My Rewards Mastercard | $0 | $298 | $248 |
WalletReturn example spending of $2,000/month: groceries $500, dining $200, gas $150, transit $80, travel $100, recurring bills $200, entertainment $100, drugstore $40, online $300, other $330.
We record an income requirement only where the issuer publishes one. A blank is an unrecorded fact rather than a guarantee of approval: the issuer still applies its own criteria and looks at your credit file.
Put it into practiceFind My CardDo I need a minimum income to get a credit card in retirement?
Not on the cards above, which record no income requirement. Where a card does state one, it is the income you can report rather than employment income alone.
Pension income, CPP and OAS, RRIF or RRSP withdrawals, annuities and investment income can all be reported on an application. Some issuers count household income instead of your own.
Cards with a stated personal or household income requirement are usually the premium travel cards with the largest insurance packages. Where you do not meet it, an application leaves an inquiry on your report rather than a path to the card.
Which card should a snowbird use in the United States?
The Scotiabank Gold American Express, the Capital One Quicksilver World Elite Mastercard and the Capital One Quicksilver World Mastercard record no foreign transaction fee, which keeps a 2.5% charge off everything you spend in US dollars.
| Card | Annual fee | First-year value | Net annual rewards |
|---|---|---|---|
| TopScotiabank Gold American Express | $120 | $1,011 | $361 |
| Capital One Quicksilver World Elite Mastercard | $0 | $792 | $396 |
| Capital One Quicksilver World Mastercard | $0 | $792 | $396 |
| Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite + | $150 | $546 | $196 |
| Wealthsimple Visa Infinite + | $240 | $309 | $240 |
On $5,000 of US spending in a year, a 2.5% foreign transaction fee adds about $125 — usually more than the difference in rewards between these cards and the ones that charge it.
If a terminal offers to bill you in Canadian dollars, you are usually better off declining: that conversion is set by the merchant or its processor rather than by the card network.
Does travel insurance still cover an older cardholder?
Where a card includes medical or trip coverage, the age at which that coverage ends is stated in the certificate of insurance, so check it before paying a fee for it.
Certificates commonly set an age limit for emergency medical coverage, and a longer trip or a pre-existing condition can fall outside the terms. What has to be charged to the card, and how the trip must be booked, also decide a claim.
The certificate is the contract, not the marketing page. Read it before choosing a card on the strength of its insurance, and check whether the coverage you would use survives past the age you are now.
Which cards charge the least if you carry a balance?
The Scotiabank Platinum American Express records a 9.99% purchase rate and the Desjardins Flexi Visa 10.9% — well below the roughly 21.99% of a typical rewards card.
| Card | Purchase rate | Annual fee | Interest on $1,000, one year |
|---|---|---|---|
| TopScotiabank Platinum American Express | 9.99% | $399 | $100 |
| Desjardins Flexi Visa | 10.9% | $0 | $109 |
| MBNA True Line Gold Mastercard | 10.99% | $39 | $110 |
| Desjardins Odyssey Visa Infinite Privilege | 11.9% | $395 | $119 |
| TD Low Rate Visa | 12.9% | $25 | $129 |
A reward of 1% to 2% cannot cover a 20% interest rate. At 21.99%, $1,000 carried for a year costs about $220 in interest before any payment, against roughly $109 at 10.9%.
Interest is normally charged on a daily balance, so the figure above is a simple estimate rather than a statement projection.
How do I check these against my own income and spending?
Enter your monthly spending in Find My Card and the ranking, the yearly totals and the fee comparison all re-run on your numbers.
WalletReturn example spending of $2,000/month: groceries $500, dining $200, gas $150, transit $80, travel $100, recurring bills $200, entertainment $100, drugstore $40, online $300, other $330.
Every card is put through the same earn rules, cap records and supported welcome offers. WalletReturn is paid by affiliate links on some cards, and that never changes an estimate or the order of a ranking.
Keep reading
RankingsBest No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards in CanadaEvery Canadian credit card with no foreign transaction fee, ranked by first-year value. 11 cards skip the usual 2.5% charge.
RankingsBest Credit Cards for Families in CanadaThe MBNA Rewards World Elite Mastercard and the National Bank World Elite Mastercard pay 5% on groceries — the highest grocery rate we track — and the Scotia Momentum Visa pays 2% at pharmacies for $49 a year.
RankingsBest Credit Cards in CanadaThe 149 Canadian credit cards we track, ranked by what they’re worth in dollars in year one. Top pick right now: TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card at $1,251.
RankingsBest Credit Cards for Home Improvements in CanadaRenovation spending usually records as a general purchase rather than a bonus category, so the card that pays the same rate everywhere is the one to use for a large home-improvement bill. The SimplyCash Preferred Card from American Express records $516 in net annual rewards on our example profile.
Official sources and further reading
Terms vary by product. Confirm the provider’s current terms before acting. This guide does not predict approval, realized value or credit-score changes. How WalletReturn calculates value