Ho ho ho! Can you hear it in the air? Is that the jingling of sleigh bells? Can you smell the fireplace and hot chocolate?
That’s right, it’s the Christmas and Boxing Day shopping season, both proud Canadian traditions. And unless you have a chimney big enough for old St. Nick, you may need some help finding the right credit card to purchase your Christmas presents and get them under the tree. Purchase protection insurance is something often overlooked, but it can be super valuable at this time of year.
Visiting family? Make sure you have the proper travel insurance. Let’s call the reindeer and fly right in as we take a look at the best Canadian credit cards for the Christmas season!
American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card
First up on our list is the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card.
The American Express® Aeroplan®* Reserve card offers Air Canada benefits including Priority Airport Services, Eligible free first checked bags, and access to Maple Leaf Lounges™* across North America.
Check out our American Express Aeroplan Reserve card review for more details.
Earn when you apply through Frugal Flyer.
85,000 Aeroplan points
$10,000
$1,910+
$599
Yes
–
Yes, its earn rates of 1.25x Aeroplan points on all purchases, including general merchandise such as Christmas presents, 3x on Air Canada flights, and 2x on dining and food delivery are great, but its insurance and travel benefits are what make it really stand out.
Whilst it does come with a hefty $599 annual fee, the Aeroplan Reserve can really improve your experience if you’re flying a lot with Air Canada. As the biggest airline in Canada, with some of the most connections, this makes it an excellent choice for those of you going to visit your friends and loved ones this Christmas season.
Just what can it do? Well, first up, it has flight delay and baggage delay insurance of up to $1,000 per trip. It also has trip interruption and cancellation insurance, for up to $1,500 per person on the same itinerary (for a maximum of $6,000 and $3,000, respectively).
That means that not just you, but any companions or family you’re traveling with are covered.
The best part is that if you redeem Aeroplan points for your holiday travels and use your Amex Aeroplan Reserve card to pay for the taxes and fees, all these insurance benefits are included for free. Never pay for check-out travel insurance again!
Worried about losing stuff? Up to $1,000 for lost/damaged baggage, and $1,000 if goods are stolen from your hotel room.
As if this wasn’t enough, using this card to purchase goods extends the manufacturer’s warranty up to a year past the original end date, and you have purchase protection for up to $1,000 on physical damage or theft of items up to 90 days. Kid put a ball through your new TV? Claim it!
Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card
Next up on the list is a mainstay of our recommendations here at Frugal Flyer: the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card.
The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card offers benefits such as no foreign transaction fees and six annual complimentary airport lounge access passes.
Check out our Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite card review for more details.
Earn when you apply through Frugal Flyer.
45,000 Scene+ points
$40,000
$600+
$150
No
Jan 1, 2026
The fact that it earns 4x Scene+ points on Scotiabank’s Expedia travel portal is decent, though really it’s the 3x on groceries at certain retailers, 2x on dining, entertainment, and transit that make its earning rate decent.
And why wouldn’t we recommend this for the Christmas and Boxing Day season? It has no foreign exchange (FX) fees on any transactions made in a currency other than Canadian dollars. Order from Europe, Asia, and the US without fear of being dinged with any pesky currency conversion fees.
The festive cheer doesn’t end, though, because the card comes loaded with six complimentary airport lounge passes via the Visa Airport Companion program for any airport lounge participating in the Dragonpass lounge program. This is a great way to avoid getting stuck in a crowded terminal while waiting for your next flight to visit family.
While the card does have travel insurance, I don’t think that’s the use case for the card, as it won’t apply if you pay for an award flight’s taxes and fees with this card. So be aware of that limitation.
As for purchase protection, it also has coverage for physical damage to goods, up to $60,000 in a lifetime. This makes it a good option for buying higher-ticket items you may want coverage on. It also has the usual 1-year extended warranty coverage.
Scotiabank Gold American Express Card
Similar to the last entry, what we have next is the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.
The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card earns up to 6x Scene+ points at Empire grocery stores and charges no foreign exchange fees on purchases made in foreign currencies.
Check out our Scotiabank Gold American Express card review for more details.
Earn when you apply through Frugal Flyer.
50,000 Scene+ points
$7,500
$650+
$120 (FYF)
No
Jan 1, 2026
It’s pretty similar, except that it’s part of the American Express network. While it lacks fancy lounge passes to ease your travels, it does have higher earn rates such as 6x Scene+ points on purchases at Sobey’s and affiliated grocery stores, 5x on all eats and drinks, 3x on gas, transit, and streaming services, and, of course, no pesky foreign exchange fees.
It also comes with the option to load Amex Offers, which tend to see an uptick in value around the holiday season. This includes programs like Amex Shop Small, which incentivize you to purchase gifts at local vendors!
On the insurance front, its delay and trip interruption coverage is not quite as nice as the Visa Passport Infinite, but then again, this card fulfills a different role. The purchase protection of up to $60,000 per lifetime, up to 90 days after a purchase, and the extended warranty extension of 1 year remain the same.
Overall, this is the card you want if you’ll be hitting the town and dining out a lot over the holidays, but also need the same robust protection on presents and no FX fees.
MBNA Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard
This next entry is great for those of you who are Amazon Prime members, and it should come as no surprise that it’s the MBNA Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard. Shopping has changed in recent years, and there’s no shame in making lots of purchases on Amazon.ca, who stock almost everything.
The MBNA Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard offers Prime Members 2.5% in Amazon.ca Rewards on purchases on Amazon.ca and at Whole Foods Market Stores.
Check out our MBNA Amazon.ca Rewards Mastercard review for more details.
15,000 Amazon.ca Rewards points
$3,000
$150+
$0
Yes
–
Just remember that to earn the maximum cashback rate of 2.5% on all Amazon.ca and Whole Foods purchases, as well as 2.5% on FX purchases (thus nullifying the 2.5% FX fee), you need to be a Prime member.
If you are a Prime member, however, this is your one-stop shop solution. You don’t need to worry about various different credit cards; you can just put this one into your Amazon account and let it ride as you order all your holiday and life essentials. It’s particularly good on days that have strong sales, like Boxing Day or even Black Friday.
In addition, it comes with an extended warranty that doubles the manufacturer’s original warranty, as well as offers up to $60,000 in lifetime purchase protection. This one is limited to $500 per individual claim, however.
Rogers Red Mastercard
Alright, let’s talk about the plain vanilla ice cream of the list. The Rogers Red Mastercard is a simple, no-annual-fee card that just works, but its real magic is reserved for those already in the Rogers family.
With the Rogers Red Mastercard®, Rogers, Fido, Shaw, and Comwave postpaid consumer customers can earn 2% cash back on all eligible purchases and get a 1.5x redemption bonus on Rogers, Fido, Shaw, and Comwave purchases – a 3% cash back value.
Check out our Rogers Red Mastercard review for more details.
$0 cash back
$0
$0+
$0
Yes
–
If you’re a Rogers, Fido, or Shaw customer, this card gives you a flat 2% cash back on all your Christmas and Boxing Day spending. No categories to track, no hoops to jump through. But here’s the kicker: when you redeem that cash back against your Rogers bill, they give you a 1.5x bonus, turning your 2% into a 3% cash back value. That’s a fantastic return for a no-fee card.
It’s also a sneaky good card for holiday travel. If you’re a Rogers mobile customer, it gives you five free Roam Like Home days every year, which is perfect for visiting family and posting holiday snaps without racking up a huge bill. It also gives 2% back on U.S. dollar purchases, which doesn’t fully erase the 2.5% foreign exchange fee, but it does take most of the sting out of it if you’re shopping on U.S. websites.
Conclusion
To tie a bow on this Christmas post, I’d like to say that there are many ways to go shopping this holiday season. We hope that our list of credit cards has provided you with value in finding ways to navigate crowded seasonal airports or protect the precious presents you buy for your loved ones.
Until next time, log off, eat some turkey, and enjoy the fruits of this Canadian winter. From our Frugal Flyer family to yours, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Kirin Tsang
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