The credit card world has been seeing some big changes this year. BMO has shaken up their lineup, and with Sobeys joining Scene+, Scotiabank has made upgrades to their lineup of Scene+ credit cards.
Now, it’s RBC’s turn to join in on the fun with a pair of new credit cards available that could be perfect for gamers, foodies, and people who love to get rewarded in general.
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Say hello to RBC ION Visa cards
RBC has launched 2 credit cards, creating the ION Visa family.
They are:
These cards are part of the Avion Rewards program and fall in the premium tier.
Here’s what each one has to offer.
The RBC ION Visa
Let’s start with the no annual fee RBC ION Visa.
Here’s what you’ll earn for rewards:
- 1.5 points per $1 spent on groceries, daily transit, rideshares, EV charging, streaming, digital gaming, and subscriptions1
- 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
The ION Visa offers a unique set of bonus categories. Bonus points on digital gaming purchases and in-app purchases? That’s new in the Canadian markets. They also have pretty much all of your streaming content covered as well.
But RBC hasn’t forgotten about the basics. You’ll also be rewarded on everyday needs like food and gas.
The final plus – you’ll still earn 1 point per $1 spent on your non-category purchases.
With each Avion Rewards point worth up to 1 cent each, you’re looking at a return of between 1% to 1.5% on your purchases, which is terrific for a no annual fee credit card.
It doesn’t offer much else. It comes with the standard RBC benefits of extra savings and rewards at Petro-Canada and Rexall, and includes 2 types of insurance.
But, these high rewards, coupled with no annual fee or income requirements, will make it among the best no annual fee credit cards.
As part of the launch, we're offering $60 GeniusCash on approval when you apply thorugh our offers page.
$60 GeniusCash + Earn up to $50 in groceries.^
The RBC ION+ Visa
For a monthly fee of $4, you”ll get increased rewards with the RBC ION+ Visa.
Here’s what this card earns:
- 3 points per $1 spent on groceries, dining, food delivery, daily transit, rideshares, EV charging, streaming, digital gaming, and subscriptions
- 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
The same structure (with restaurants also being added), only you’re getting double the rewards on the categories.
It offers one more additional feature – mobile device insurance. It provides coverage for an item that goes everywhere.
This card has it's own GeniusCash offer of $60 when you get approved using our links.
GC: $60
New travel rewards values for ION cards
There’s one thing to be aware of when it comes to redeeming for travel through Avion Rewards with ION cards.
The standard rate for travel redemptions in Avion Rewards is 100 points for $1 in savings.
However, with ION cards, you’ll need more points to save $1 – 172, or a value of 0.58 cents.
It’s a big downer that one of the primary ways to redeem for travel is for less value with an ION card. You also won’t be able to transfer these points to Hudson’s Bay.
But there is still 1 way to get full value – by transferring your points to WestJet. 100 points become 1 WestJet Dollar. A WestJet Dollar is worth an actual dollar when redeeming towards flights and vacation packages booked with WestJet.
Which RBC ION card should you get?
So is the + version worth the $4 monthly fee? Well, it depends on your answer to these questions.
If you value mobile device insurance, then it’s a yes.
If not, you’ll need to spend about $267 per month on the various categories.
To get his number, we’ve taken the difference in return on the categories divided by the monthly fee. In this case:
$4 / 0.015 = $267
At this level of spend, you’ve just started to offset the annual fee, and you’ll be earning more net rewards.
For most people, that’s not that hard to spend. Even if you’re single and live alone, you’re probably spending somewhere around $250 per month just on groceries. Add on top the other various categories and you’re making more in rewards.
As to our default $2,000 monthly spending? Here’s what you would earn for annual rewards on each card.
- RBC ION Visa – $261
- RBC ION+ Visa – $360
With the + version, you’re more than offsetting the $48 annual fee.
But at the end of the day, it’s up to you to decide if it’s worth it or not.
Say goodbye to the RBC +Rewards and Signature Visa cards
With these new cards here, RBC is sunsetting the RBC +Rewards Visa and the Signature RBC Rewards Visa
With these new ION cards, there’s really no need for them any more. The ION cards offer far more rewards on purchases, and have the same level of benefits.
So there’s no real loss here.
If you have either of these cards already, nothing is changing for you – you’ll be able to keep your current card.
WIll you get an RBC ION Visa?
So there you have it. A pair of new credit cards from RBC offering a unique set of rewards.
Will you get an RBC ION Visa card?
What do you think about RBC’s new offerings?
Let us know in the comment below.
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