Pros & cons
Pros
- No currency conversion fees on U.S. dollar purchases.
- 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases.
- 8 types of insurance.
Cons
- Annual fee of US$65.
- Requires a U.S. dollar bank account.
Your rewards
Getting your welcome bonus
Based on $2,000 in monthly spending, you can get up to 7,000 points which translates to an estimated $70.◊
For all welcome bonus details click here.
Welcome bonus offer ends May 31, 2025.
How you earn rewards
Each card earns rewards differently. Part of choosing your card is deciding what type of rewards you want to get. With Meridian Visa US Dollar Card, here's how you earn rewards:
- 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases
For all reward details click here.
How much your rewards are worth
The dollar value of your rewards depends on the specific rewards program ‒ and what you choose to redeem your points for. For Meridian Visa US Dollar Card in particular, if you spend $2,000 per month, here's our estimated annual rewards earned depending on which reward you choose:
| Statement credits | $240 | |
| Merchandise | $240 | |
| Gift Cards | $240 | |
| Redeem for any travel | $240 |
Calculating your annual rewards
$24,000 annual spending x 1.00% return on spending = $240 annual rewards
$240 annual rewards − $65.00 annual fee = $175 net annual rewards
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Details and eligibility
- Estimated Credit Score
- 760 - 900
- Personal Income
- N/A
- Household Income
- N/A
- Annual Fee
- US$65.00
- First Year Free
- Yes
- Extra Card Fee
- $30
- Card type
- Credit
- Purchase
- 19.50%
- Cash Advance
- 21.99%
- Balance Transfer
- 21.99%
Insurance coverage
- Extended Warranty
- 1 year
- Purchase Protection
- 90 days
- Travel Accident
- $100,000
- Trip Cancellation
- $2,000
- Trip Interruption
- $2,000
- Baggage Delay
- $500
- Lost or Stolen Baggage
- $1,000
- Rental Car Theft & Damage
- Yes
Please review your insurance certificate for details, exclusions and limitations of your coverage, terms and conditions apply.
Learn more about the value of credit card insurance coverage.
Genius Rating
Meridian Visa US Dollar Card's 2.9 Genius Rating is based on the weighted average of the following scores:
Methodology
All scores are produced by our math-based rating algorithm that takes into account over 126 credit card features.
Top cards from Visa
GC: $150
Meridian US Dollar Visa review
If you want the best U.S. dollar credit card in Canada, this is the card to get. As one of the few U.S. dollar credit cards that actually reward you for your spending and comprehensive insurance coverage, it's a nice card if you travel often to the States and deal a lot in USD.
With this card, you can earn rewards that are redeemable for travel and a ton of other categories.
Here's a full review of the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card.
Pros of the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card
There aren't many options when it comes to getting U.S. dollar credit cards, but this card stands out as the cream of the crop – and for good reason.
1. One of the few U.S. dollar credit cards that earns rewards
The earn rates for the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card are nice and simple:
- 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases
No thinking about categories or anything – all you'll want to think about is how you redeem your rewards. Here are the categories you can cash in your points for:
- Travel
- Merchandise
- Gift cards
- Statement credits
All in all, a good card to have on the rewards front since you'll be earning something no matter what you buy.
2. Travel insurance is included
If you have this card, it's probably not "just in case." Perhaps you travel to the United States from time to time. And if that's the case, you'll be breathing a sigh of relief. This card comes with 8 types of insurance.
Cons of the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card
Now that you're all up to date with what this card does well, here are some minor red flags to consider.
1. US$65 annual fee
The biggest thing to know about a card with an annual fee is that your main goal is to use its earn rates to your advantage to outearn the fee.
In this case, you'll have a palatable US$65 annual fee – but it's still going to cost you some money. If you don't spend much U.S. currency, this card won’t be worth it.
2. You'll need a source of U.S. dollars to use this card
This card does all of its transactions in U.S. dollars, so if you can't get your hands on any, there is no use getting this card.
You'll need a bank account that works in greenbacks (and ideally a job that's all about the Benjamins so you don't have to constantly convert Canadian cash over) to make this worthwhile.
You'll also need to spend in U.S. dollars. If you buy something in Canadian dollars, you'll end up paying a foreign exchange fee. If you spend a lot of time doing cross-border shopping or ordering things from the States, then it might be a path to follow.
3. Only available to residents of Ontario
If you want this card, you'll have to live in Ontario to get it – Meridian credit cards are only available to those with an Ontario address.
Comparison to the BMO U.S. Dollar Mastercard
There aren't many U.S. dollar credit cards on the market but we’ll see how this one stacks up against the BMO U.S. Dollar Mastercard. Many other U.S. dollar cards from the big banks are similar to this one, so it's probably a nice, average card to go toe-to-toe with.
| EXID | Meridian Visa US Dollar Card | BMO U.S. Dollar Mastercard |
|---|---|---|
| Normal earn rate | * 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases | N/A |
| Number of insurance types | 8 | 2 |
| Annual fee | $65 | $49 (see below) |
Both these cards are very basic. The biggest difference is that the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card earns rewards and the BMO U.S. Dollar Mastercard does not.
Insurance is handily won by our friends at Meridian – BMO offers no travel insurance at all (just the bare bones purchase insurance and extended warranty).
The annual fee is the only category where the BMO U.S. Dollar Mastercard comes out on top. It's significantly less than what Meridian can do, but that's not the end of it. If you spend over $1,000, the annual fee is waived in its entirety.
FAQ
Does the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card earn rewards?
Yes, it earns 1 point per $1 spent on all purchases. Please note that the dollar value is in U.S. dollars.
What kind of insurance coverage does the Meridian Visa US Dollar Card have?
In total, this card has 8 types of travel and purchase insurance.
How does a U.S. dollar credit card work?
With this card, you'll need a source of U.S. dollars to make purchases. If you don't, you'll be charged foreign exchange fees. Because of this, you'll want to be buying things in USD as well as paying for them in USD. If you have a bank account that you regularly top up with U.S. dollars (whether by converting CAD or having a job that pays in USD), then this card may be worth it.
Key benefits
User reviews
Reviewed by 4 Canadians
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My husband forgot his wallet in Florida and so he called and asked for a new card. They sent a new US card instead of the Canadian one he wanted but did not send a PIN number or at least we have not received one although we have called twice to ask them to mail one out. One month later and we are still waiting and they do not provide any help at all, they just tell us the PIN numbers are computer generated and have to be mailed to our home address they will not mail it to our address in the States. We have gone to the Credit Union to see if they could help but they get the same story. They will not provide a temporary password good for a few minutes so we could set up our own PIN. They will not authorize the Credit Union to provide a temporary number or advise them of the current one. So now we have a US card, no PIN number and are leaving for the USA in three days. . We went through the same thing when they changed carriers, as they mailed the new card and PIN to our home address while we were in Florida and just cancelled the old card. We should have changed companies last summer but thought our problems were solved after we got the English versions to replace the French ones they originally sent out, last year. It is one problem after another with them. It is like they do not actually want our business. A friend had her card compromised while in S. Carolina and the TD Bank shipped her a new card the following day. What a difference in service!
Everything is fine once you get your free USD account with meridian setup. Its tough getting USD $ in there from other banks as you cant send USD e-transfers. Best is to get a xe.com account to exchange money from CAD to USD. xe will deposit it into your Meridian USD account.
You have to have a Meridian chequing/savings act in order to get the card. Card can only be paid through Meridian act.
Can you detail what is required about the bank account, and where it is (ie: just online?).
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