Earn rates

The Reserve earns at three rates. Air Canada purchases earn 3x Aeroplan points, the highest rate of any Aeroplan co-branded card available in Canada. Dining and food delivery in Canada earn 2x. All other spending earns 1.25x, which is meaningfully above the 1x fallback rate on most competing cards. The card earn on Air Canada stacks on top of the flight miles you earn from the booking.

Spending category Earn rate Points per $100 spent
Air Canada purchases 3x Aeroplan 300 pts
Dining and food delivery (Canada) 2x Aeroplan 200 pts
Everything else 1.25x Aeroplan 125 pts

Key benefits

Unlimited Maple Leaf Lounge access
Unlimited access to Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges in North America when flying with Air Canada. Covers both the cardholder and one guest per visit. The same benefit on the TD and CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege is also unlimited, but those cards restrict access to certain lounges or fare classes on some routes.
Companion economy pass
After spending $25,000 on the card in a calendar year, Amex issues one companion ticket. The companion pays the base airfare ($99–$599) plus taxes and fees on an Air Canada economy cash booking. Valid for 12 months from issue. Covers domestic and international routes.
Free first checked bag
Primary cardholder and up to eight companions on the same Air Canada reservation each receive one free first checked bag on Air Canada–operated flights. On a return trip for a family of four, the saving is approximately $240 to $360.
Priority airport benefits
Priority check-in, priority boarding, and priority baggage handling on Air Canada flights. At Toronto Pearson, cardholders also receive access to priority security lanes and discounts on valet parking.
Status acceleration
Earn 1,000 Status Qualifying Miles per $5,000 in annual card spend, twice the rate of the mid-tier Aeroplan Card. At $25,000 in spend (the companion pass threshold), that is 5,000 SQM earned from card spending alone.
Comprehensive travel insurance
Emergency medical up to $5,000,000 for 15 days, trip cancellation, trip interruption, flight delay, baggage delay, lost baggage, hotel burglary, rental car damage, and travel accident insurance. Coverage applies on Aeroplan reward flights paid with points.

Maple Leaf Lounge access

Maple Leaf Lounges are Air Canada’s domestic business class lounges, available at major Canadian airports and select U.S. and international locations. The Reserve provides unlimited access for the cardholder when flying on a same-day Air Canada flight, regardless of the fare class booked. One guest may accompany the cardholder per visit.

Lounge access details
Access type
Unlimited (no visit cap)
Eligible flights
Same-day Air Canada–operated flights
Guest policy
One guest per visit included
Fare class
Any fare class qualifies
Priority Pass
Membership included; individual visits billed at US$32 each
International lounges
Priority Pass covers 1,300+ partner lounges worldwide (paid per visit)

The Reserve also includes a Priority Pass membership, which covers access to over 1,300 partner airport lounges worldwide. Each visit through Priority Pass is billed at US$32 per person, so it supplements Maple Leaf Lounge access on international legs where Air Canada does not operate its own lounge.

Companion pass

The companion pass triggers once cumulative card spending reaches $25,000 in a calendar year. Amex then issues a companion ticket redeemable for one economy cash fare on an Air Canada booking where the cardholder also purchases a full economy ticket. The companion pays the base airfare, which Amex caps at between $99 and $599 depending on the route, plus all applicable taxes and fees. The voucher is valid for 12 months from issue and covers both domestic and international Air Canada economy routes.

The $25,000 spend threshold is the meaningful difference from the TD and CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege companion vouchers, which are issued annually without a spend condition. For cardholders who do not reach $25,000 in a year, the companion pass may not trigger at all. At $2,083 per month in average spend, the threshold is reachable for most primary cardholders who put most of their household spending on the card.

Travel insurance

  • Emergency medical: up to $5,000,000 (15 days)
  • Travel accident: up to $500,000
  • Trip cancellation: up to $1,500 per person
  • Trip interruption: up to $1,500 per person
  • Flight delay: up to $1,000 per person
  • Baggage delay: up to $1,000 per person
  • Lost or stolen baggage: up to $1,000 per person
  • Hotel / motel burglary: up to $1,000 per person
  • Rental car theft and damage: coverage applies
  • Purchase protection: 90 days
  • Extended warranty: 1 additional year

The $5,000,000 emergency medical limit for 15 days is one of the strongest on any Canadian credit card. The 15-day trip duration limit applies per departure; travellers on longer trips should supplement with additional coverage for days beyond the covered period. Coverage extends to Aeroplan reward flight bookings, which most bank travel insurance policies exclude.

What the earn math looks like

A cardholder spending $2,500 per month, split across typical categories:

Category Monthly spend Rate Monthly points
Dining and food delivery $500 2x 1,000 pts
Air Canada $200 3x 600 pts
All other spending $1,800 1.25x 2,250 pts
Total $2,500 3,850 pts / mo

46,200 Aeroplan points per year from everyday spending at this mix. At 1.5 cents per point, that is approximately $693 in Aeroplan value annually. The $599 annual fee is not covered by earn alone at $2,500 per month. The fee calculation changes meaningfully when Maple Leaf Lounge visits (roughly $30–$50 per visit) and the companion pass are counted. For a cardholder who flies Air Canada eight or more times per year, lounge access alone approaches the fee.

Amex acceptance

American Express is accepted at fewer merchants than Visa or Mastercard in Canada. At the spend levels where the Reserve card makes sense, most purchases land at hotels, airlines, restaurants, and major retailers that all accept Amex. The 1.25x base earn rate softens the impact on non-bonus categories compared to the 1x fallback on most other cards. Carrying a no-fee Visa or Mastercard alongside covers any gaps without added annual cost.

Good fit if

  • You fly Air Canada regularly and will use Maple Leaf Lounge access enough to recover a meaningful portion of the $599 fee.
  • You spend $25,000 or more per year on the card, which unlocks the companion economy pass and 5,000 SQM in status acceleration.
  • You want the highest Aeroplan earn rate on Air Canada purchases: 3x, compared to 1.5x on TD and CIBC Visa Infinite cards.

Less useful if

  • You fly Air Canada fewer than six or seven times per year: lounge access is the primary fee justification, and the math gets harder below that frequency.
  • Your annual spend stays well below $25,000, meaning the companion pass may not trigger.
  • You spend primarily on groceries and gas: TD and CIBC Visa Infinite Aeroplan cards earn 1.5x on those categories, which Amex does not match.
Side-by-side comparison → Compare: Aeroplan Card → Aeroplan program guide →