Why a points balance is not a dollar balance
Canadian loyalty programs use different point scales, and nothing on a statement tells you which scale you are looking at. One program's 10,000 points might buy a short flight while another's buys ten dollars of groceries. Both statements say 10,000.
This matters most when comparing credit cards. A card advertising 8x points is not four times better than a card advertising 2x if the 8x program is worth half a cent per point and the 2x program is worth a cent and a half. Converted to cents, the 8x card returns 4 percent and the 2x card returns 3 percent, which is a much narrower gap than the multipliers imply. Reverse those valuations and the ranking flips entirely.
Converting to cents per point before comparing anything is the single habit that prevents most Canadian credit card mistakes. The table below is the conversion CardGenie uses everywhere on this site, including in the card calculator, so a comparison article and the calculator cannot quietly disagree.
CardGenie's baseline valuations
| Program | Value per point | Where it is earned |
|---|---|---|
| Aeroplan | 1.5¢ | Air Canada, via TD, CIBC and American Express cards |
| Scene+ | 1.0¢ | Scotiabank and Empire, via Scotiabank cards |
| Amex Membership Rewards | 1.0¢ | American Express |
| RBC Avion | 1.0¢ | RBC |
| BMO Rewards | 0.7¢ | BMO |
| TD Rewards | 0.5¢ | TD |
| PC Optimum | 0.1¢ | Loblaw, via PC Financial cards |
| National Bank À la carte | 1.0¢ | National Bank |
| Cash back | 1.0¢ | Most Canadian issuers |
These are deliberately conservative. They describe what a cardholder can reach without specialised booking knowledge, not the best redemption a dedicated points hobbyist could find. Where a program has meaningful upside above the baseline, that upside is noted below rather than baked into the headline number, because a valuation that assumes optimal behaviour flatters cards that most people will not use optimally.
How each valuation is derived
Aeroplan — 1.5 cents per point
Redemption value varies more than any other Canadian program because Aeroplan prices flights dynamically. Short-haul economy seats often land near 1.2 cents, while long-haul business class redemptions can exceed 2 cents. CardGenie publishes 1.5 cents as a conservative middle that a typical redeemer can reach without specialised booking knowledge.
Scene+ — 1.0 cents per point
Scene+ is one of the few Canadian programs with a fixed and predictable rate. Points redeem at a consistent value against travel, groceries at participating banners, or a statement credit, which works out to roughly 1 cent per point. There is little upside above that, but there is also almost no downside.
Amex Membership Rewards — 1.0 cents per point
Redeeming for a statement credit against a purchase sets the floor at roughly 1 cent per point. The upside comes from transferring to airline partners including Aeroplan, where a good redemption can beat that. CardGenie uses the floor, because transfer value only materialises if you actually do the work.
RBC Avion — 1.0 cents per point
Avion points booked against travel sit near 1 cent per point at the baseline level. Higher values are reachable on specific redemptions, but the floor is what a cardholder gets without optimising, so that is the figure used here.
BMO Rewards — 0.7 cents per point
BMO Rewards redeem against travel at a rate closer to 0.67 cents per point, rounded here to 0.7. Non-travel redemptions such as merchandise or investment deposits are generally worse, which is why the program looks weaker than its earn rates suggest.
TD Rewards — 0.5 cents per point
TD Rewards are the clearest example of why earn rate alone is misleading. Booking travel through the TD portal values points at roughly half a cent each, so a card advertising 8x TD Rewards is earning about 4 percent, not 8 percent. Other redemption routes are typically worse.
PC Optimum — 0.1 cents per point
PC Optimum points redeem in store at roughly a tenth of a cent each, so 10,000 points is about 10 dollars of groceries. The very large point numbers the program advertises are a function of that low per-point value, not of unusual generosity.
National Bank À la carte — 1.0 cents per point
À la carte points redeem against travel and select purchases at approximately 1 cent per point, which puts the program in the same band as Scene+ and Avion at the baseline level.
Cash back — 1.0 cents per point
Cash back needs no valuation because a dollar is a dollar. It is included here as the benchmark: any points program worth less than its cash back equivalent is costing you money in exchange for flexibility you may never use.
Working out your own valuation
The published figures above are averages, and your redemption behaviour is not average. The accurate method takes about a minute: find a redemption you would genuinely make, note its price in points and its price in cash, then divide the cash price by the points price and multiply by 100.
A flight priced at 25,000 points or CA$375 gives 375 divided by 25,000, times 100, which is 1.5 cents per point. A flight priced at 60,000 points or CA$480 gives 0.8 cents per point, which is a poor redemption you should probably decline. Running this on two or three redemptions you would actually book gives you a personal valuation far more useful than any published average, and you can enter it directly in the calculator above.
Be honest about the cash comparison. Valuing a business class seat at its full retail fare inflates the result if you would never have paid that fare. The relevant comparison is what you would otherwise have spent, not what the airline lists.
The rule this produces
Convert every card's earn rate into cents before comparing. Multiply the multiplier by the program's value per point: 5x Membership Rewards at 1 cent is 5 percent, 1.5x Aeroplan at 1.5 cents is 2.25 percent, and 8x TD Rewards at half a cent is 4 percent. Once every card is expressed in cents, comparing them is arithmetic rather than marketing.
Points lose value over time
Loyalty programs adjust their redemption charts, and the adjustments run in one direction far more often than the other. A balance that buys a flight this year may not buy the same flight in three years, and no program guarantees a future redemption rate. This is the strongest practical argument against hoarding points.
The implication is straightforward: earn points against a redemption you intend to make reasonably soon, rather than accumulating a large balance as a store of value. A balance is an unsecured claim on a company that can reprice it unilaterally. Cash back cannot be devalued, which is worth more than it appears when comparing a points card that wins by a narrow margin.
Put the valuations to work
Knowing what a point is worth is only useful once it changes a decision. The CardGenie calculator applies these same valuations to all 40 cards in the database against your own monthly spending, so cards earning in different programs are ranked on a single comparable scale after annual fees.
For a worked example of valuations deciding a comparison, see Amex Cobalt vs TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite, where a card earning three times as many points still wins despite each point being worth less. The travel card rankings and the full list of card comparisons use the same figures throughout.
Common questions
How much is an Aeroplan point worth?
CardGenie values Aeroplan points at 1.5 cents each as a conservative baseline. Real redemption values range from roughly 1.2 cents on short-haul economy seats to more than 2 cents on long-haul premium cabins, because Aeroplan prices flights dynamically rather than from a fixed chart. If you know what a specific redemption costs in points and in dollars, enter your own figure in the calculator above; dividing the cash price by the points price gives you the exact value of that redemption.
Why are TD Rewards points worth so much less than Aeroplan points?
Because the two programs use different point scales. TD Rewards points redeem at roughly half a cent each through the travel portal, so a card advertising 8x TD Rewards is returning about 4 percent, not 8 percent. Aeroplan points are worth roughly three times as much each, so a card earning 1.5x Aeroplan can beat one earning 8x TD Rewards. Comparing multipliers across programs without converting to cents is the single most common mistake in Canadian credit card comparisons.
Are these valuations guaranteed?
No, and no honest valuation can be. A point is worth whatever you redeem it for, which means the number depends on your redemption choices rather than on the program alone. CardGenie publishes conservative baselines that a typical cardholder can reach without specialised knowledge, and the calculator lets you replace any of them with your own figure. Treat published valuations as a starting point for comparison, not as a cash balance.
What is the best way to work out what my own points are worth?
Find a redemption you would genuinely make, then divide its cash price by its points price and multiply by 100 to get cents per point. A flight costing 25,000 points or 375 dollars is worth 1.5 cents per point. Doing this on a redemption you would actually book is far more accurate than any published average, because it prices your behaviour rather than the average member's.
Do points expire?
It depends on the program and often on account activity rather than time. Some Canadian programs expire points after a period of inactivity, some tie expiry to holding an active card, and some do not expire them at all while the account is open. Because the rules differ and change, confirm the current expiry policy with the program directly rather than relying on a general answer.
Should I choose a points card or a cash back card?
Convert the points card's earn rate into cents using the valuations above, then compare it against the cash back card's rate directly. If the points card does not clearly win after that conversion, take the cash back, because cash requires no redemption effort and cannot be devalued. Points are worth the extra complexity only when the converted rate is meaningfully higher, or when you specifically want a redemption that cash cannot buy.
CardGenie is not affiliated with any card issuer or loyalty program and earns no commission. Point valuations are estimates for comparison purposes, not guaranteed redemption values or cash equivalents. Programs can change redemption rates, transfer partners and expiry rules at any time. Verify current terms with the program before making a decision. General information only, not financial advice.