It’s been a whirlwind this past month with all the upcoming changes to some of our favourite credit cards – the Scotiabank Gold Amex, Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite, and Amex Cobalt are all seeing changes coming in the near future. There’s been no shortage of credit card news, that’s for sure.
And here comes another one – starting August 1, 2019, all PC Financial Mastercards will be seeing changes in how rewards are earned when getting fuel at Esso stations. Luckily, there aren’t any other changes to earn rates at this time.
Related: 5x The Gas Rewards At Esso: Get Bonus PC Optimum Or Esso Extra Points This Summer
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How PC Financial Mastercards currently earn rewards at Esso
Before getting into the changes, let’s take a look at how rewards are earned on Esso fuel purchases for all PC Mastercards right now:
- 20 points for every litre of fuel you purchase, plus
- 10 points for every $1 spent as part of the transaction.
On top of that, all PC Optimum members get 10 points per litre.
So as an example, if you get 50 litres of regular gas at a price of $1.30 per litre, here’s what you would earn for points using a PC Financial Mastercard, not including the earnings all Optimum members get:
(20 points per litre x 50 litres) + [10 points per dollar x (50 litres x 1.30$ per litre)] = 1,650 PC Optimum Points
With each point worth 0.1 cents, this works out to a return of 2.54%. Keep in mind this number rises and falls based on the price of gas.
For a no fee card, this is quite a good return on spend, even if it’s only available at one gas station chain.
Changes coming on August 1st, 2019
However, starting August 1st, the earnings at Esso stations will be changing. You will only be earning 10 points per litre of fuel instead of 20.
The other earnings are not changing.
So, using our example from above, this is what you would earn for points with the new earn rates:
(10 points per litre x 50 litres) + [10 points per dollar x (50 litres x 1.30$ per litre)] = 1,150 PC Optimum Points
This works out to a return of 1.77%, a loss of 0.77%.
For more information on earning PC Optimum points at Esso stations, this site has the details, including the upcoming changes.
Alternative credit card to consider
So, if you’re bummed out about these changes, here’s our top no fee option when it comes to earning gas rewards.
Tangerine Money-Back Mastercard
The best no fee option in the market right now is the
You get to choose 2 categories from a list of 10 (3 if you have a Tangerine bank account) to earn bonus rewards.
Choose gas as one of them, and you’ll be earning 2% cash back rewards on gas purchases.
You won’t be limited to just one gas chain, you can earn those rewards at any gas station of your choosing.
Add it all up, and you’ve got yourself a great no fee, cash back card for gas rewards.
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$120 GeniusCash + Up to $100 bonus cash back* + No annual fee.*
Of course, it’s not the only option available. For a full list of our favourite gas cards, our best gas credit cards page has you covered.
Related: Top No Fee Credit Cards with 1% Cash Back (or More) On All Purchases
Your thoughts
Do you have a PC Financial Mastercard? What are your thoughts on these changes?
Is it still a good card for you, or are you thinking of changing to something else?
Let us know in the comments below.
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