Jun

Aeroplan Versus Air Miles - Comparing Them

Written by Neil Galloway

Air Miles and Aeroplan points. The two biggest travel rewards programs. There is always the decision on which one to go with.

This will provide a bit of an analysis on them and which one I think is better. Personally, I think you should sign up for both, since the programs are free. There are credit cards that allow you to collect more miles and that is what I am going to focus on. For the record, I am going to assume points were obtained from a credit card alone and that the individual put $10,000 on their credit card in one year. I will also assume they are using their rewards for travel.

Basically, both programs are good. They are free to sign up and free to collect for most situations. Using the credit cards and paying fees change things though. Air Miles is the only one with a "no fee" credit card (Bank of Montreal's Mosaik Mastercard and the American Express Air Miles card) and whether paying the fees is worth it to you or not, you need to read my other articles to figure that out.

The basic air miles Mosaik Mastcard is free, but the American Express is free as well and pays out more AirMiles so that is a no brainer if you want it. I figure you need to put at least $3600/year on the basic CIBC AeroClassic Visa card (the Aeroplan credit card) to make it worth your while there. For most people, that isn't a problem.

I wrote three articles that show how much an air mile is worth, how much an aeroplan point is worth, and a review of a cash back card. They are in these articles...

Canadian Credit Cards

In my other articles, I value an Air Mile at 23 cents/mile for flights and I value an Aeroplan point at 1.6 cents/mile for flights. You can read them to see how I figure that out (links above). Using the $10,000/year situation, it would be in my best interest to pay the fee for the best credit cards. That would be the $120/year CIBC AeroGold Visa and the $80/year BMO Gold Mosaik Mastercard.

The Visa card would give me 15,000 aeroplan miles. These are valued at 15,000 times 1.6 cents or $240. Since I had to pay $120 for the yearly fee I would get $120 back from my spending.

The Mastercard would give me 666 Air Miles. These are valued at 666 times 23 cents or $153.18. Since I had to pay $80 for the yearly fee I would get $73.18 back from my spending.

I'm getting better value out of my Aeroplan Visa card? Yes, in this situation you are. I used the "travel rewards" scenario where an Air Mile is worth around 23 cents.

However, Air Miles has a variety of rewards and entertainment rewards are worth up to 45 cents/mile. You can only get these with an Air Miles card (this isn't totally true, but there are so many more rewards with Air Miles you can't really compare them). In that scenario the Air Miles card actually would give you $220 back from your spending (after deducting the $80 fee).

Here is a brief look at the pros and cons of these credit card programs and the reward systems in general.

Aeroplan Points Pros and Cons

Pros: This is a better "travel" rewards program.

Collecting Aeroplan points with a credit card for the purpose of travel will give you better return on your credit card purchases.
You can collect them at a variety of stores.
Aeroplan has a good website for booking travel online
More international destinations available.

Cons:

There isn't a "no fee" credit card option.
There aren't as many rewards options.
Aeroplan points have an expiry on them (its several years though).
You can't use them for WestJet flights (airline in Canada).

Air Miles Pros and Cons

Pros: This is better for rewards flexibility and better returns for the entertainment options.

There is a "no fee" credit card option. If you don't put a lot on credit cards, then this card is for you.
There are a lot more rewards possibilities.
Entertainment rewards make the return on credit card purchases worth more than the return on Aeroplan credit card purchases.
You can collect them at a variety of stores.
They don't expire.
They are good for travel with Air Canada and WestJet.
Excellent automated phone system for booking non-travel rewards.

Cons:

If used strictly for travel rewards (flights), the return value from the credit card isn't as good as Aeroplan.
The Air Miles website is terrible and there is no ability to book flights online, only other rewards.
Fewer international destinations than Aeroplan.

Update June 15, 2007: A reader commented that you can Collect Airmiles by just flying, which I said you could not. If you use your card in conjunction with booking you can receive more Airmiles.

Summary

My summary would be that you should sign up for both programs. You should always carry a blue Air Miles card and the orange Aeroplan card. Choosing a credit card depends on your rewards preferences and how much you expect to spend on your card. If you rarely use a card and don't want the fee then just get the basic American Express Air Miles Card.

If you do spend more and will use the miles for traveling, then go with CIBC's Aeroplan Visa cards. Read my article on Aeroplan to determine whether a credit card upgrade is worth it or not.

If you would like other types of rewards (like entertainment) or just more variety in your rewards, then go with Air Miles. Read my article on Air Miles to determine wheter a credit card upgarde is worth it or not.

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Category: Finance

44 Comments

Kyle T. Says:
2007-02-05 14:15:36
Thanks for the research. It confirmed what I concluded about the two reward programs. I don't fly as often as I used to and found that Airmiles are now the better option for me, although I still have the WestJet Gold MasterCard for the times I do need to

Pete B Says:
2007-04-03 10:16:35
This is exactly what I've been looking for. Thanks for doing the math for me. You're the man.

Andrew Says:
2007-06-13 11:47:56
You DO earn Air Miles through Flying. You actually can get triple miles when you book online or through an agent and use your Air Miles card along with your Mosaic MasterCard. Westjet gives you 1 mile/$20, double that for using the MC, plus by using the BMO MC, you earn 1/$40 or 1/$20 or 1/$15 depending on your plan.

Neil Says:
2007-06-15 08:22:13
Thanks for the comment. I'm going to double check, but I have never explicitly shown my card when I booked, but then again, I might have inadvertently done so.

TG Says:
2007-08-03 19:35:59
This is a great article! Thanks for taking the effort to reviewing these two. Just wondering what else out there? TD travel rewards? AAdvantage Miles? etc?

betty Says:
2007-08-05 20:29:51
the biggest problem with the American Express card is that so few retailers will accept it They say that the discount fee is high and AmEx is slow to pay so i had to get a MC as well One benefit is that you can pay bills like hydro & telephone with CC then pay the CC bill and have the air miles reward

David Says:
2007-09-10 08:19:24
Great article. Sums it up very well. Thanks for putting this on the web. :)

Ali Says:
2007-09-17 22:33:46
Thanks for the article. Well balanced, I still can't decide which card to get even though I read through it and reviewed your mathematics and concluding remarks. Informative non the less. Thanks again.

Sincerely,
Ali

P Says:
2007-11-15 10:02:40
I use Bank of Montreal for banking and have the Gold Airmiles Mastercard @ $90/yr. The benefit here is with the Gold card they credit you $70 towards a bank account, and since we all have to pay for a bank account of some kind, this effectively brings down the annual fee of the Gold card to $20.

Stu Black Says:
2007-11-29 09:58:30
Neil,
You've done a fabulous job of researching the topic, and saved viewers a lot of time. Good luck with your business venture - didn't the Google guys start out in a small way?

Stu Black

P.S. By all means sign me up for your ezine.

B.Skikavich Says:
2008-01-11 13:47:07
I pay for my Air Canada flights with my Airmiles Amex, so I get both.

Pam Says:
2008-03-07 12:07:00
I used both Airmiles and Aeroplan points to book a hotel stay in Halifax. I did the Aeroplan booking online in less than 10 minutes and had my confirmation emailed to me. Airmiles wouldn't let me book online - I spent 40 minutes on hold and with an agent and they still have to send me a certificate. So in terms of redeeming, Aeroplan is much easier.

Alan T. Says:
2008-04-22 07:13:01
You have excellent insight into these plans. Thanks.

I have both. But,I have not used my AirMiles Bluie card, I have used my Aeroplan twice, once for a first class ticket to New Zealand/Australia, and recently for a tourist ticket to La Paz,Mexico. The online booking is great. Maybe it is the lack of an online service with the Blue AirMiles card that has kept me from cashing in. But, the Aeroplan limit of seven years to use Aeroplan miles has pushed me to use them more often.

I use my CIBC Aerogold for pretty much everything, Personal & Business expenses. Even after using 165,000+35,000 miles, I still have 195,000 left. So, I might retire early and do a round the world trip in first class before I die.

They are both great programs and the Government has not found a way to tax them yet (shh, don\\\'t tell anyone).

Craig Says:
2008-07-14 16:32:53
I have a really dumb question but are the trips on the airmiles site return or not? I can't find anywhere that species!

John Ouellette Says:
2008-09-17 14:17:34
Can I trade Aeroplan miles for Air miles?

Wes Says:
2008-10-18 15:27:17
Good Article. I found that the best program for me is Starwood Preffered Guest Mastercard from MBNA. It is no annual fee and I get 1 Starwood Point per $. Starwood is the hotel operator of Westin. The cool part about their program is that for every $10000, you get 5000 points (upto $30000) so it can be $1 per point. The advantage? You can trade those points for miles on many airline programs. Although Aeroplan is not available for Canadians, you can transfer them to another Star Alliance airline such as ANA, US Airways etc. Check it out http://www.starwoodhotels.com/preferredguest/account/starpoints/transfer/airline_partner_list.html

Brenda Says:
2008-10-24 20:24:55
Great information as I did not know the difference, comparions, and you have outlined all the information needed in great detail. Thank you.

Richard Jones Says:
2008-11-09 14:07:28
I have heard a story that Westjet is leaving the airmiles program. First, is it true? If so, with what will they be replacing it?

Richard Jones Says:
2008-11-09 14:09:22
Here is where the story about Westjet originated....any updates?
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpposted/archive/2008/04/02/westjet-renews-contract-with-air-miles.aspx

Robert Says:
2008-11-15 10:14:35
Anyone has any comment about the Amex AeroplanPlus versus the Avion or Aerogold cards?

Frances Says:
2008-11-18 23:54:06
I am a student, always collecting my points! There is one big problem from this article missing!
To obtain a CIBC Areoplan Visa you have to have a minimum anual income of $35000!
Thant's not me...

Andy Says:
2008-11-23 19:18:16
I think the Amex aeroplan point Credit card is the best. I tried the CIBC VISA Aerogold Credit card mostly, but the bonus points are just you smile on it, but the AMEX Aeroplan Credit card give you so much bonus point every month. The AMEX Aeroplan Credit card is the best ever for me and collecting so much...Every year I have free tickets for two and still have more points left over to travel with it.

Andy Says:
2008-11-23 19:25:30
I forget to mentioned it. To use the Airmiles card is nonsense... I have use it over 10 years and just wont get enough airmiles to travel with it. So the best Creditcard is for me the American Express Aeroplan point Credit Card. It is $120 the annual fee but the secondary card is Free of Charge, not like the CIBC VISA Aeroplan Credit Card, because the annual fee is also $120 per annualy, but there is extra $60 charge for the additional Creditcard and the bonus points what they give us just nothing.. but this is my experience. The AMEX is the best deal here!

Anonymous Says:
2008-11-23 19:34:35
This is the best Rewarding cerditcard: Amex Aeroplanplus Gold Card:
https://www212.americanexpress.com/dsmlive/dsm/int/ca/en/personal/chooseacard/allcards/aeroplanplusgoldcard/allthedetails_pr.do?vgnextoid=0ed3e452a54e4110VgnVCM100000cef4ad94RCRD

Jeremy Says:
2008-12-28 00:08:56
Hi, I found you page very useful, thank you. I just wanted to comment on one previous comment by "Alan T" about taxing points... he is not entirely right, if you are earning points by charging business expenses and then being reimbursed by your employer (for example), those points are considered a taxable benefit from your employer and should be included in your income (it has held up in courts too.) All the best.

NAIRB NOTRON Says:
2009-01-22 22:24:30
I WOULD BE VERY CAREFUL OF CIBC AEROPLAN, WHEN ERRORS ARE MADE IN BILLING, THEY PUT THE ONUS OF PROOF ON THE CARDHOLDER, NOT ON THE SLEAZY CORPORATION THAT HAS CHARGED YOUR ACCOUNT

Wes Says:
2009-02-01 04:39:03
Hey guys, the new Sobeys Mastercard is awesome because it's annual fee free, plus you can convert the points into Aeroplan miles on a 1:1 basis. That means you can basically get the Aerogold Visa Card from CIBC for free, except your not getting that card!

Rhen Says:
2009-02-07 02:06:17
Wow, thanks so much for your research. You just saved me a lot of time!

AA Says:
2009-02-27 09:12:35
I use Aeroplan for travel, its easy to book and the cost is only the taxes. Airmiles includes surcharges which can be more than the base cost of the flight and flight selection is not as gooe. Airmiles is good for purchase of items, Aeroplan in my opinion is better for flights and they have a better selection of gift cards. (this may be a repeat post)

John Says:
2009-05-02 12:26:07
Great tip. It sure saved a lot of time.
http://www.tips2go.splendidtips.com

Ollivier Says:
2009-07-17 07:58:52
Hi Neil,
Thanks for the good analysis. But what about the Platinum MC from BNC. That card has a reward program dedicated for traveling, with a high rate of collection (1.5point per $ spent), you can use then the miles to pay directly for a trip, a package or whatever. That gives you a lot of flexibility without adding any fees. I did not make the exact calculation, but basically you find your trip using any website, agency or other. You pay for it using your MC and you ask for the reimbursement for the reward organization (using phone or website). Of course, every time I am using my MC, I can reward at the same time on my Blue Airmiles or Aeroplan if they apply and collect twice the points on the different programs.

Joanne Says:
2009-08-20 08:21:43
I appreciate you taking the time to do this research. I just wanted to add that my experience with Aeroplan was disappointing when I couldn't use my card unless I was the name on the flight ticket. My son youngest comes home regularily and I pay his flight. I get no benefit from Aeroplan because they won't let me use the card unless I am the one on the ticket. Would Airmiles allow me to book a ticket for him, his name, my card, and I would still get the Airmiles?

RM Says:
2009-08-30 21:16:15
Wes: your post regarding the conversion from Club Sobeys to Aeroplan, the rate is 2 Club Sobeys points for 1 Aeroplan mile. Because it is fee-free, this is only slightly better than the CIBC Card with the $29 annual fee that gives 1 Aeroplan point for each 2$ spent. There is a Aeroplan mile bonus upon first use of the CIBC card but nothing for the Sobeys card.

Jeff Says:
2009-09-24 12:24:54
What about comparing flight rewards????
If you're going short haul (TOR-NYC) its half the miles on Air Miles. HOWEVER, if youre going to LA its double the miles....it all depends WHERE you are going!!!! With BMO Gold you get 1 pt for every $12 if you keep 5k in a bmo account. That puts Airmiles ahead of AP on every flight from Toronto except for LA. The NYC trip you can get by just buying a few groceries...

Anonymous Says:
2009-10-19 18:41:39
The above is very true, the value of airmiles for travel is variable. The cost in airmiles of a trip does not correlate well with the actual cost of the flight, it correlates much closer with the distance of the flight. For example flying from Winnipeg to Montreal is almost the same distance, and accordingly the same amount of airmiles. But the actual cost is about twice as much to fly to New York. So an airmile to New York is worth about double what an airmiles to Montreal is worth, from Winnipeg.

Jeff Says:
2009-11-06 16:34:10
Neil, nice write-up. I was actually just pondering the exact same question the other day and came up with the same conclusion. You might as well collect both sets of points/miles so you can earn from both!

lesley Says:
2009-12-07 23:57:51
Thanks for the article! I have a question: is it possible to book hotel nights for someone else (a family member) to use overseas? I understand that you can book flights under someone else's name, but does that work for rhotels?

Dan Says:
2010-01-02 14:59:29
I have a question: can you get multiple reward cards from different institutions, and by paying the balance of one with the other card, double the amount of points you earn each month by spending the same amount? Is there any reason this wouldn't work?

Hartmut Says:
2010-01-20 00:48:36
In answer to the above question: This particular "double dipping" method won't work, for two reasons. 1. When paying the card B balance from card A, that's not a purchase transaction, but a cash advance or credit card cheque transaction on card A, and these usually do not get reward miles/points. 2. Unless encouraged or authorized explicitly by card A (promoted as "balance transfer"), paying card B with card A is called "kiting" and ranges from a violation of card A policies to outright illegality in various jurisdictions.

Francis Dupuis Says:
2010-01-22 11:12:41
I have been comparing both the Airmiles and Aeroplan programs for many years. My principal card is the CIBD Aerogold Infinity Card but I also have a blue AMEX card (that I use almost exclusively at Costco because they don't accept VISA) and show my Airmiles card where retailers that offer Airmiles, so I have a fair amount of credits in both programs. There is a significant difference in the amount of credits needed to travel depending on the distance. For instance, I was recently looking at booking a flight from Moncton (Atlantic Canada) to Hawaii and compared both programs. Assuming that I had a premium Arimiles card awarding one mile for each $15 spent, I would have had to spend over $150,000 (yes that is over one hundred and fifty thousand dollars) to collect the 10,500 Airmiles needed for one econony ticket while only having spent $40,000 on my Aeroplan card to collect the 40,000 Aeroplan points needed for the same return ticket. On the other hand, last year, I went to Ottawa from Moncton and needed 950 Airmiles or $14,250 of spending on a premiun Airmiles card (@ 1 mile for each $15 spent while requiring 25,000 Aeroplan miles or $25,000 spent on my Aeroplan card. So, on shorter distances, the Airmiles card is sometimes a better deal, on longer distances, the Aeroplan card is almost always the better deal

Nick Says:
2010-02-17 21:13:58
I just did another comparison where I compare the quality of sponsors and the different types of redemptions each program offers. You can find it here: http://scwpg.com/?p=62

Daniel Says:
2010-04-22 22:42:57
I didn\'t see anyone mention that at least at Safeway in Western Canada, you can earn multiplied hundreds of air miles by buying products with bonus air miles attached, which I don\'t know if you can do with Aeroplan. When you can get 100 air miles for buying 5 boxes of cereal, for example - that adds up quickly. A couple months of careful shopping (and maybe a willingness to change some of your eating habits!) can earn you a round trip - from Winnipeg to Toronto, for example, for taxes only.

Ian Says:
2010-06-27 21:56:15
Thanks for the info. Just heard that WestJet has a new RBC card, you get 1.5% cash back in "WestJet dollars" towards travel. What do you think, how does this compare to the others?

Ivan Says:
2010-07-06 18:50:40
Hi Neil

If I was to pick a card on which I would put a lot of spending $50K per year, what do you think the best choice for me would be? Is it better to maybe go for a cash back card instead?

I appreciate your guide and advice.