Introducing the BMO Blue Rewards Mastercards

After an initial announcement in January that AIR MILES will transition to Blue Rewards, BMO teased new Blue Rewards credit cards. Well, the day has come with two new credit cards: the no-annual-fee BMO Blue Rewards Mastercard and the BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard.

BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard®* — Apply Now

Definitely the more interesting of the two cards, the BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard®* comes with a first-year annual-fee waiver ($150) and a 0% introductory interest rate on balance transfers for 12 months with a 2% balance transfer fee.

We don’t see 0% balance transfer promos often, but it is a very interesting perk. Essentially, you can borrow your entire credit limit as cash (you can transfer to a chequing account) with no interest for 12 months, in exchange for a one-time 2% fee on the total amount borrowed.

Welcome Bonus

The BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard®* is offering 100,000 Blue Rewards points broken down as follows* (apply by October 31, 2026):

• 45,000 points upon spending $5,000 within the first 110 days*
• 20,000 points upon spending $10,000 within the first 180 days*
• 35,000 points upon spending $20,000 within the first 365 days*

If you joined the waitlist, you should expect an email from BMO with a special welcome offer of up to 115,000 points.

The spend requirement is certainly on the high side, but that’s par for the course these days, and we see a similar spend requirement on the BMO VIPorter cards.

Given the breakdown, the sweet spot is to spend $10,000 in the first six months (averaging only $1,667 per month) to earn 65% of the total points on offer. The last 35,000 points require maintaining the same spend level for another 6 months, but earning only 35% of the total welcome bonus.

Earn Rate

The earn rate is as follows:

• 10 points per $1 spent at participating Blue Rewards partners*
• 2 points per $1 spent on groceries, gas & EV charging, wholesale, and alcohol purchases*
• 1 point per $1 spent on everything else*

You can see the full list of Blue Rewards partners here.

Perks & Insurance

There are two major perks that come with the World Elite version:

• $200 NEXUS Statement Credit (in your first year)*
• 4 complimentary lounge passes through DragonPass*

The BMO Blue Rewards World Elite comes with the full set of World Elite insurance perks. A neat inclusion is complimentary membership in the Dominion Automobile Association (DAA), which comes with BMO’s Roadside Assistance Program.

BMO Blue Rewards Mastercard®* — Apply Now

This is the younger brother of the World Elite card, coming with a modest earn rate in exchange for no annual fee.

The BMO Blue Rewards Mastercard®* is offering 20,000 Blue Rewards points upon spending $1,500 in the first 110 days* (apply by October 31, 2026).

Those on the waitlist are eligible to earn up to 25,000 points, so keep an eye on your inbox.

The earn rate on the no-annual-fee version is exactly half what the World Elite offers:

• 5 points per $1 spent at participating Blue Rewards partners*
• 1 points per $1 spent on groceries, gas & EV charging, wholesale, and alcohol purchases*
• 0.5 points per $1 spent on everything else*

Supplementary cardholders are also free and can help you earn rewards faster through their spending. As usual, only give supplementary cards to those you trust since your credit file is on the line.

Redeeming Blue Rewards

When it comes to redeeming Blue Rewards, there are two ways to do so:

• 1,500 points = $10 when redeeming in-store or on e-gift cards*
• Redeem for travel using the in-house travel portal powered by Expedia*

Some point this summer, your AIR MILES will also transfer to Blue Rewards at equivalent value, so 95 AIR MILES = 1,500 Blue Rewards points (1 AIR MILE = ~15.79 Blue Rewards points).

Based on my poking around the travel portal, it’s quite difficult to get over 10.5¢ per point in value, so the first redemption option comes out ahead the vast majority of the time. In short, the best way to redeem Blue Rewards is in-store or on e-gift cards.

It remains to be seen whether there are further changes as part of the larger program launch this summer.

My Take on the BMO Blue Rewards Credit Cards

The BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard is the more interesting of the two and should be your main consideration if your main goal is to stack on the Blue Rewards earning. This is the best card to get if you’re deeply entrenched in the existing ecosystem and frequent many establishments in the Blue Rewards partner ecosystem.

If you participate in the loyalty program only casually, but still want to earn a steady flow of Blue Rewards, the BMO Blue Rewards Mastercard is a better fit since it allows you to earn points with no annual fee and can act as a forever keeper card. 20,000 points awarded as a single chunk, with an easy $1,500 spend requirement, is very respectable for a credit card with no annual fee.

10 points per $1 spent at Blue Rewards partners on the World Elite version is a very strong earn rate as Blue Rewards has a robust list of partners and continues to expand. Existing partners include Instacart, Porter, Fairmont, Pharmasave, and more.

A sample of Blue Rewards’ 400+ partners

It’s also interesting to see wholesale and alcohol purchases as an elevated category on both cards, as I don’t believe that’s the case for any other card. I’m a little confused about what “wholesale” means — will this card earn bonus points at Costco?

To the points enthusiasts out there, the Blue Rewards credit cards may not look all that appealing, but my hunch is that they will be more popular than you think. More and more, Canadians want credit cards with a simple redemption structure that can be redeemed more often towards “everyday spending”.

Takeaway

The BMO Blue Rewards World Elite Mastercard is the clear winner here. Between the first-year $150 annual fee being waived, up to 100,000 points, a $200 NEXUS credit, four lounge passes, and 10 points per dollar at Blue Rewards partners, there’s a lot to like.

The bigger story, though, is the direction of Blue Rewards itself. If BMO continues adding partners and maintaining straightforward redemptions at $10 per 1,500 points, I can see these cards appealing to a large segment of Canadians who care more about redeeming rewards on everyday spending than chasing premium travel redemptions.