It's official: CIBC is the new partner for Costco. You can see the details here. Stay up to date with the latest Costco credit cards news by subscribing to our newsletter.
Capital One used to have an exclusive partnership with Costco and was the sole provider of Costco credit cards. But in 2022, CIBC partnered with Costco to become the sole issuer of Costco credit cards in Canada.
Here's everything you need to know about what changed.
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The end of the Capital One and Costco Mastercard partnership
Capital One ended its partnership with Costco in 2022. Here are some questions that many Capital One Costco card users had and the answers that we were able to find out.
What happened to Capital One Costco Mastercard cardholders?
Capital One Costco Mastercard cardholders were transitioned over to the CIBC Costco Mastercard.
It was unclear at the time, but CIBC would be the new partner and exclusive credit card issuer for Costco, ending a 15-year agreement between everyone's favourite warehouse club and Capital One.
Those who got the new CIBC Costco Mastercard found that it was similar to the previous one.
You earn cash back at the following rates:
- 3% cash back on restaurants and Costco gas
- 2% cash back at other gas stations, EV charging, and at Costco.ca
- 1% cash back on all other purchases
You can redeem your cash back using the gift certificate that is issued in January of the following year. You can use the gift certificate towards any purchase at a Costco warehouse. If your purchase doesn’t use the entire amount, you’ll receive the change owed in cash.
You'll also get some deals on costco.ca, 3 types of insurance, and be able to use this card as your Costco membership card.
The biggest issue is the disappointing earn rate at Costco warehouses. You'll see plenty of better Mastercard options in the section below.
Are Mastercards still accepted at Costco?
After the changeover, Costco decided to continue only accepting Mastercards. The warehouses have an exclusive agreement with Mastercard, which charges them lower interchange fees.
Alternatives to the CIBC Costco Mastercard?
We go into more detail in our full article about the best Costco credit card alternatives to the CIBC Costco Mastercard, but here is a sampling of 2 of the best other options that you can choose from.
1. Rogers Red World Elite Mastercard
The Rogers Red World Elite Mastercard is an excellent cash back credit card with a flat earn rate of 1.5% on all purchases (this is increased to 2% if you have a Rogers or Fido service).
Not only does it double up on earn rates at Costco, but you'll get 50% more returns if you redeem your cash back towards a Rogers service. It also comes with an excellent insurance package for a no fee credit card.
Rogers Red World Elite® Mastercard®
| Extended Warranty | 1 year |
| Purchase Protection | 90 days |
| Emergency Medical Term | 10 days |
| Emergency Medical over 65 | 3 days |
| Trip Cancellation | $1,000 |
| Trip Interruption | $1,000 |
| Rental Car Theft & Damage | Yes |
Please review your insurance certificate for details, exclusions and limitations of your coverage.
2. MBNA Rewards World Elite Mastercard
×4 Award winner 
$150 GC Boost + Up to 30,000 bonus points + birthday bonus worth up to 15k points.*
GC: $125 + $25
4x Award winner The MBNA Rewards World Elite Mastercard is a winner of multiple awards, including best Mastercard in Canada.
We'll start off with the earn rate, which is superb:
- 5 points for every $1 spent on restaurants, groceries, and select recurring bills (up to $50,000 spent annually per category)
- 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
With each point worth 1 cent each, you'll be looking at a return of 5% in multiple categories. Unfortunately, Costco is not treated as a grocery store – so while you'll only get 1% there, getting easy access to 5 times that when making many other purchases isn't too shabby. This makes it a more well-rounded credit card, especially if you don't have a Rogers service.
You'll start off nicely with a welcome bonus too: 30,000 MBNA Rewards points after spending $2,000 in the first 90 days and signing up for paperless e-statements and get an annual birthday bonus of 10% of what you earned in points last year (capped at 15,000 points).
It also comes with way more insurance than the CIBC Costco Mastercard, with 12 types in total.
Note that there is an annual fee of $120.
Capital One ends their Hudson's Bay relationship as well
Costco also announced that their partnership with Hudson's Bay would also come to an end. To replace the outgoing Hudson's Bay Mastercard, it was announced that Neo Financial would step up to the plate with its HBC Mastercard.
Will you stick with the CIBC Costco Mastercard?
Seeing a major partnership between a bank and a popular store like Costco can have a ripple effect on the market.
What are your thoughts? Leave them in the comment section below.
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