It’s always a rare occasion to see a new credit card launch in Canada and I love seeing how financial institutions can innovate to meet the needs of the Canadian consumer. Neo Financial has been at the forefront of new credit card launches, and as of November 1st, 2024, they have once again launched a new credit product that will be very interesting to Canadians.
The Neo World Elite Mastercard offers cash back earning rates that rival many of their top competitors and comes with an additional opportunity to increase earning rates even further by meeting certain requirements. On top of their base cashback rates, you can also take advantage of their partner network where you can earn an additional average of 5% cashback at any of their 10,000 partners across Canada.
Let’s take a look at everything that you need to know about the Neo World Elite Mastercard.
Overview
Welcome Bonus
The Neo World Elite Mastercard currently does not offer a welcome bonus for new customers.
Plus: You can earn an additional $60 FlyerFunds Rebate on the Neo World Elite Mastercard when you apply through Frugal Flyer Rebates!
The Neo World Elite Mastercard offers a base earning rate of 5% cash back on groceries, 4% on recurring bills, and 3% on gas purchases, with the option to increase earning rates by holding money in a Neo Everyday account.
Check out our Neo World Elite Mastercard review for more details.
$0 cash back
$0
$-125+
$125
Yes
–
The Neo World Elite Mastercard has an annual personal income requirement of $80,000 or an annual household income requirement of $150,000.
Earning Rates
The Neo Financial World Elite Mastercard earns cash for all eligible purchases made on the card at the following rates:
- 5% cash back for every dollar spent on grocery purchases (up to $12,000 in spend per calendar year).
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $5,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 6% cash back on grocery purchases.
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $10,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 7% cash back on grocery purchases.
- 4% cash back for every dollar spent on recurring bills (up to $6,000 in spend per calendar year).
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $5,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 4.5% cash back on recurring bills.
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $10,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 5% cash back on recurring bills.
- 3% cash back for every dollar spent on gas purchases (up to $12,000 in spend per calendar year).
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $5,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 3.5% cash back on gas purchases.
- Cardholders with a minimum balance of $10,000 in a Neo Everyday account will receive 4% cash back on gas purchases.
- 1% cash back for every dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
Once the spending cap is reached in a specific category, all future purchases in that calendar year will earn 1% cash back.
Should you choose to hold a minimum balance in your Neo Everyday account to earn an elevated cash back rate, ensure you do the math to check that you are receiving the best return on keeping your money in this account as opposed to parking it in a high interest savings account.
For example, let’s showcase a situation where a Neo World Elite Mastercard cardholder is going to reach the spending cap on each bonus category while also holding a minimum balance of $10,000 in their Neo Everyday account at all times for an entire year, unlocking the highest earning rates. Ignoring the base earning rates, their elevated cash back categories would earn them:
- An additional 2% cash back on $12,000 in grocery spend = $240 cash back
- An additional 1% cash back on $6,000 in recurring bills spend = $60 cash back
- An additional 1% cash back on $12,000 in gas spend = $120 cash back
- A total of $420 additional cash back as a result of the elevated earning rates
After maximizing all earning categories and reaching the caps, the cardholder would have earned an additional $420 cash back over the base earning rates. However, they will have held $10,000 in their Neo Everyday account for the entire year, removing the possibility of using that money elsewhere for greater return.
This means that even if you knew you would maximize all bonus spending categories each year, it could still be a better idea to keep your $10,000 in another financial vehicle if you can earn greater than $420 on $10,000, or a 4.2% return.
On the other hand, perhaps you keep a liquid emergency fund of $5,000 or $10,000 already, and keeping it within a Neo Everyday Account would be immaterial to you. There is always an opportunity cost to holding money in an account and everyone’s financial situation is different, so look into all of your options before committing.
Annual Fee
The Neo World Elite Mastercard has an annual fee of $125. This is a fairly standard annual fee for a World Elite Mastercard in Canada.
Benefits
Insurance Coverage
The Neo World Elite Mastercard offers a suite of insurance coverages:
- Extended warranty
- Purchase protection
- Auto rental collision loss damages
- Comprehensive travel insurances
View the Neo Financial Insurance Certificate page for additional details, including terms and conditions for eligibility.
Redeeming Cash Back with the Neo World Elite Mastercard
Cash back earned on the Neo World Elite Mastercard is instantly deposited into a ‘Rewards Wallet’ which can then be redeemed towards a statement credit, transferred to your Neo Everyday account, or used for merchandise on the Neo Store.
A minimum balance of $1.00 in cash back must be earned before a redemption can be made.
Comparable Credit Cards
While the Neo World Elite Mastercard has definitely joined the ranks of high-earning cash back credit cards in Canada, there are a few other strong credit card options that are worth considering to ensure you find the right card for your personal finance needs.
Scotiabank Gold American Express Card
The Scotiabank Gold American Express card is a close contender as it earns 6 Scene+ Rewards points at Empire banner grocery stores, 5 Scene+ Rewards points on all other grocery purchases, and 3 Scene+ Rewards points on gas, daily transit, rideshare, and select streaming services.
The Scotiabank Gold American Express card earns Scene+ Rewards points and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 5x Scene+ points on grocery, restaurant, and entertainment purchases. This card charges no foreign exchange fees.
Check out our Scotiabank Gold American Express card review for more details.
45,000 Scene+
$7,500
$450+
$120 (FYF)
No
Dec 31, 2024
The accelerated earning rates do have a combined spending cap of $50,000 per calendar year which is very generous, and any purchases past that cap will earn 1 Scene+ Rewards point per dollar spent.
Scene+ Rewards points are worth at least 1 cent per point when redeemed and can be used towards redemptions such as groceries, alcohol, and travel purchases. While this loyalty program may not be as simple as cash back to understand, it is definitely one of the easiest and one that we recommend all Canadians get familiar with if they want to maximize rewards.
American Express Cobalt Card
The American Express Cobalt card earns 5 Membership Rewards points for all food and drink purchases (including groceries), 3 Membership Rewards points on streaming services, and 2 Membership Rewards points on gas, transit, and rideshare purchases.
The American Express Cobalt card earns Membership Rewards points and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 5x Membership Rewards on eligible restaurant, food delivery, and grocery store purchases.
In 2024, we selected this card to receive the award Best Credit Card for Grocery Purchases.
Check out our American Express Cobalt card review for more details.
15,000 Membership Rewards
$9,000
$174+
$156
Yes
–
There is a bonus category spending cap of $2,500 per month for all purchases at the 5x earning rate.
The value of an American Express Membership Reward point is difficult to determine as they are best used for transferring to hotel loyalty and frequent flyer program partners. If you are more travel-focused and want to accrue valuable Air Canada Aeroplan points or Marriott Bonvoy points, the American Express Cobalt card may be a better fit than a card that offers cash back.
BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard
The BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard is the closest cash back competitor as it offers 5% cash back on grocery purchases, 4% back on transit purchases, 3% cash back on gas purchases, and 2% cash back on recurring bill payments.
The BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard earns cash back and offers cardholders the opportunity to earn up to 5% cash back on all grocery purchases. As a result, for 2024 we selected this card for the award for Best Cashback Credit Card for Grocery Purchases.
Check out our BMO Cashback World Elite Mastercard review for more details.
$250 cash back
$2,500
$250+
$120 (FYF)
Yes
Jun 1, 2025
While this is very similar to the Neo World Elite Mastercard’s base earning rates, the BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard actually has lower bonus category caps as it only will bonus up to $500 in groceries, up to $300 in transit, up to $300 in gas, and up to $500 in recurring bill payments per statement period.
Having the caps split up into monthly allotments and at lower overall amounts, for example only bonusing $6,000 in grocery spend per calendar year versus the Neo World Elite Mastercard which bonuses up to $12,000 in grocery spend is definitely a detractor from this credit card.
Conclusion
The Neo World Elite Mastercard definitely fits a niche in the Canadian market, and it’s obvious to see the value that cardholders will receive by adding this card to their wallet thanks to the outsized earning rates on many popular spending categories.
While it may be a more attractive product for those already involved in the Neo Financial ecosystem, more cash back credit cards with high earning rates are always a plus for those consumers who don’t want to understand miles and points reward systems.
Josh Bandura
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