Clash of the Credit Cards!
American Express® Aeroplan®* Reserve Card
vs.
TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card

Welcome to another Rewards Canada Clash! This time in our Clash of the Credit Cards is a reader request to see two Aeroplan Ultra Premium cards go head to head in the RC Arena! Those cards are the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card and the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card

Click here to see all the other Rewards Canada clashes

In this match up we look at over half a dozen criteria to compare the cards against one another along with a head to head detailed table comparison.

Annual Fees

Both of these cards carry the same annual fee of $599 for the primary card and $199 for additional (supplementary) cards. The American Express does offer an option for $0 additional cards that earn points only and do not have any of the additional benefits afforded to the fee based primary and additional cards.

This first round of the clash is virtually a draw seeing that the fees are the same for both cards but in the end we do to give it to American Express card for having a $0 points only option which can make sense for spouse, partners, kids that always travel with the primary cardholder and thus don't require the additional benefits.

Welcome Bonus

Right now the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card offering a welcome bonus of up to 90,000 Aeroplan points. The bonus is awarded as follows:

• Earn 5,000 Aeroplan points for each Additional Aeroplan®* Reserve Card with an annual fee added to your account at time of application, up to a maximum of 2 approved Additional Cards. That could add up to 10,000 Aeroplan points
  
• Plus, earn 7,500 Aeroplan points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $2,000 in net purchases on your Card for the first 6 months of Cardmembership. That could add up to 45,000 Aeroplan points
  
• You can also earn 35,000 Aeroplan points when you spend $6,000 in net purchases between 13 and 16 months of Cardmembership
  

Right now the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card is offering a welcome bonus of up to 100,000 Aeroplan points. The bonus is awarded as:

• 20,000 points when you make your first purchase card
• 50,000 Aeroplan points when you spend $7,500 within 180 days of Account opening.
• You can earn an additional 30,000 points when you spend $12,000 within 12 months of Account opening.
• This offer is available until January 3, 2024. This offer is not available for residents of Quebec. For Quebec residents, please click here.

With slightly higher welcome bonus offer this category goes to the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card but it should also be noted there are no income requirements for the Amex card while the TD Card requires $150,000 personal or $200,000 household annual income.

Features & Benefits

As these are Ultra Premium cards, they offer a lot of extra features and benefits, many of which are the same Air Canada and Aeroplan benefits across the two such as Maple Leaf Lounge access, priority airport check in, boarding and baggage, annual companion voucher and rollover status miles and eUpgrades credits.

So for this round of the clash we'll only focus on the differences in their additional features and benefits:

NEXUS Credit:

Both cards have a NEXUS fee rebate with the Amex card offering up to a $100 credit every four years while the TD card offers up to a $125 credit every four years.

Lounge Access (Other than Maple Leaf lounges)

Both cards provide additional airport lounge access beyond the same Maple Leaf lounge benefit they both offer. The American Express Aeroplan Reserve card provides a Priority Pass membership but no additional lounge visits. That means this covers the annual fee of the membership but cardmembers will have to pay the discounted fee each time they access a lounge.

The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card offers Visa Airport Companion by DragonPass membership and six free lounge visits per year.

Additional benefits

The American Express Aeroplan Reserve card has two additional benefits which are the Toronto Pearson International Airport Benefits the provide a waived fee for Valet parking, a 15% discount on parking and access to the Pearson Priority Security Lane in Terminal 1 and Terminal 3. It also Amex Offers which are exclusive limited time offers sent out to cardmembers to receive statement credits or bonus points for using their card at select merchants.

The TD card meanwhile provides Visa Infinite Privilege Airport Benefits where cardholders receive exclusive perks at Toronto City Airport Terminal, Vancouver Airport, Ottawa Airport and Montreal-Trudeau International Airport. These include Priority Security Lanes at International and Domestic checkpoints, Priority airport taxi and limo lane, Access to dedicated premium parking spots and up to 20% off parking.

Here we have a round that can come down to individual preference and travel habits as to which card's additional benefits are more valuable. Overall though the TD card's six annual free lounge visits which are worth US$210 are what score the card the extra points to take the win in this round.

Points Earning & Redemption

This is the category that holds the most weight in our Clashes and is the round that most people care about. The differences in the cards are only on the earn side as both cards have the exact same Aeroplan redemption options.

Earning points

Looking at earning points first, both cards offer a base earn rate of 1.25 Aeroplan Points per dollar spent and then offer differing accelerated earn rates over and above those base earn rates.

For accelerated earn rates the Amex card awards 3 points per dollar spent on Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations purchases, It also offers 2 points per dollar spent on dining and dining delivery.

The TD card's accelerated earn rates are 2 points per dollar spent on Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations purchases. Then the card offers 1.5 points per dollar spent on all other travel, groceries and gas station purchases.

Another close round here where the winner comes down to an individual's spending habits and card acceptance. If you spend a lot on Air Canada flights and dining, Amex is the winner. Spend lots on other travel, gas and groceries? TD is the winner. So we have to call this round a draw.

Redeeming points

The redemption side is yet another draw in this clash as both cards earn Aeroplan points and have the exact same redemption options and redemption value in the program.

Insurance

Both cards offer a variety of travel insurance and other insurance coverage benefits but one card stands out above the other. That card is the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card as it has an better insurance package overall. The biggest differentiator is the out of province emergency medical coverage for those under 65 with TD offering 31 days versus Amex's 15 days. For those 65 and over TD covers for 4 days while Amex does not provide coverage.

The TD card also provides higher compensation amounts for coverage like lost baggage, trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance. It also provided delayed baggage coverage after only 4 hours versus Amex's 6. TD also has 120 days purchase protection whereas Amex has 90 and TD also provides mobile device insurance. The only coverage Amex has that TD does not is damaged baggage coverage.

All in all, this round has a decisive winner and that is the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card.

 

Conclusion

This was another tightly contested Clash here in the RC Arena! Two of Canada's best Ultra Premium cards for one of Canada's best loyalty programs went head to head and were very evenly matched. Both cards have their strengths and weaknesses which can make either one the better card based on an individual's requirements and preferences.

However, when taking into account all of the factors and picking a card that is better across the entire population of Canadians, the win goes to the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card thanks to its better insurance, annual free lounge visits and a generally better acceptance rate.

The winner of this clash is the: TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite Privilege* Card

Key factors in TD's win:

• Six additional non Maple Leaf lounge visits annually
• Better insurance coverage
• Visa's better acceptance rate

If you would like to see any cards go head to head against each please do not hesitate to reach out to us in the comments, on social media or via email.

Here is a direct side by side comparison of the two cards in this clash!