With the increasing price of gas in Canada, I think it’s important to identify the best credit cards for purchasing gas in Canada based on your preferred gas provider.

Brand Specific Recommendations

Many credit card companies have partnerships with specific brands in Canada to create even more rewards for consumers.

Chevron, Ultramar, Pioneer, Fas Gas Plus

Chevron and CIBC have a partnership, where if you create a Journie Reward Account, you will earn a discount of 3c / litre and 1 Journie Reward Point per litre. After filling up 300 liters, you would be provided a discount for an additional 7c / litre discount, giving a total discount of 10c / litre in addition to the regular credit card rewards you would earn. By my valuation, I expect each Journie point to be worth 1c on average, so your total savings with a CIBC credit card will be between 4 and 11c per litre.

This card is the single best card available for gas purchases. It will give an extra 2% rebate over any of the no-fee credit cards. So, if you spend at least $500 per month on gas in Canada, for example, Uber or DoorDash drivers, this is the best card for filling up gas. If you spend less than $500 per month, or have an alternative card for groceries, then a no annual fee card might be your best option.

When you combine this with the 3c / litre discount and the additional 1c / litre for Journie rewards, this credit card can provide a meaningful amount of savings back to your wallet. Since petrol prices vary across the country, I’ve listed sample prices and savings below:

Price Per Litre (c)	Savings (c)	Total (c)
140	9.48	130.42
150	9.88	140.12
160	10.28	149.72
170	10.68	159.32
180	11.08	168.92

The only issue with this card that might be a problem is that the minimum income requirements are 60,000 for individuals or 100,000 for household members.

Credit Card: CIBC Dividend Visa Platinum

Signup Link

Annual Fee

$120. The first year fee is waived

Bonus

• 10% cashback on the first $2,500 spend in the first 4 statements.

Ongoing Benefits

• 3% cashback on gas and groceries
• 2% cashback on transportation, dining and recurring payments
• 1% cashback on everything else
• Purchase Security & Extended Protection Insurance
• $500,000 Common Carrier Accident Insurance
• Car Rental Collision and Loss Damage Insurance

This card is only advisable if you do not qualify for the Visa Infinite for ongoing spend, as the minimum income requirement for this card is just $15,000 for the household. Although the signup bonus for the CIBC Dividend Visa Platinum is occasionally better than the CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite, the 3% cashback is not very meaningful in comparison to the no-fee credit cards which typically give 2%. That being said, if you find that the Chevron has the lowest prices in your area, the 3% cashback combined with the 3c / litre discount for using Journie rewards could also make this an equally compelling credit card.

Petro Canada

RBC Credit Cards

Similar to CIBC, RBC has a partnership with Petro-Canada gas stations offering an additional discount of 3c / litre if you use an RBC credit card. There are no RBC credit cards that provide a category bonus on spending on gas, so the type of card does not really matter. This will be in addition to the regular 1 – 1.25% return you obtain through RBC points.

Costco Gas

CIBC Costco MasterCard

The biggest challenge with Costco Gas Stations are that they only accept MasterCard. However, if you hold executive membership, alongside the CIBC Costco MasterCard (launching on March 4, 2022), then the combination of the two will give the best return on spending on gas.

With the CIBC Costco MasterCard and Executive Membership, you will earn 5% cashback on the already low prices offered by Costco Gas.

Esso

PC World MasterCard

You earn 30 pts / litre which is the same as 3c / litre. The one difference with this credit card that makes it worse than all the other partner credit cards is that you don’t earn any additional rewards. With RBC you will earn 3c / litre + the regular rewards earned with spending on the RBC Credit Card. In this situation, there are no extra rewards earned.

Conclusion

These are some of the best credit cards in Canada for gas purchases. Realistically, everyone has their preferred gas provider and a particular pump that you know has the lowest price of gas every time you might do a comparison, so your preferred credit card might change depending on what brand of gas you prefer.