The 9 Best Credit Cards for Streaming Services in Canada
By Maude Gauthier | Published on 04 Oct 2023
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Streaming services have become an integral part of our entertainment landscape. Canadians are increasingly turning to platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Crave for their TV and movie needs. But subscription plans add up quickly and you can end up paying a hefty amount for your favorites shows! What’s the solution to save on these subscriptions? Picking the best credit card for streaming services. Indeed, with the rise in streaming subscriptions, credit card companies have recognized an opportunity to provide value to their customers. In this list, you will find some of the best credit cards in Canada.
How to Pick the Best Credit Card for Streaming Services
Streaming services have revolutionized the way Canadians consume entertainment. Platforms such as Netflix, Apple TV, Crave, Amazon Prime Video, Discovery+ and Sportsnet Now offer an extensive library of content that can be accessed from the comfort of your home or on the go. Whether you’re a fan of movies, TV series, documentaries, or music, there’s a streaming service tailored to your preferences.
There are many types of streaming service discounts offered by credit card issuers. This is an important element to consider when you choose your credit card. On one hand, some credit cards offer cash back or rewards for recurring payments, which can include streaming service subscriptions. For example, you might earn a percentage of your monthly streaming bill as cash back, but your subscription has to be a registered recurring bill in your account. On the other hand, some other credit cards provide direct discounts or partner with specific streaming platforms to offer cash back. Also, credit cards often provide welcome bonuses or sign-up incentives. These can include free months of a specific streaming service, for example.
In order to pick the best credit cards, we looked at the cash back and discounts on streaming services offered. If there wasn’t any, we looked for cash back or rewards on recurring payments or subscriptions. We also included some credit cards’ welcome offers.
Neo Credit – Best Credit Card for Streaming Services Partners
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”60fed96813fd2f260ff90748″]The Neo Credit Card offers cash back thanks to its over 10,000 partners accross Canada. It boasts one of the highest cash back rates in Canada, with no limits on earnings. You can get up to 15% cash back on your first purchase at many partner stores. But which streaming services companies are Neo partners? Netflix, Crave and Disney+! And they offer 3% cash back. However, you have to look out for the minimum spend (55$ for Crave, 95$ for Netflix, 70$ for Disney+) which may vary in time.
With Neo Credit, the cash back base rate is 0.5%, but you can strategically earn an average of 5% by shopping within Neo’s extensive partner network. Moreover, Neo partners frequently run promotions, including some with as much as 25% cash back, making it easy to accumulate significant cash back rewards as long as you use the app often to find the best opportunities.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 600 |
| Minimum Annual Income | None disclosed |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident; have a valid Canadian photo ID. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
RBC ION+ Visa – Best for Travellers
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”6324a8b757179a4644cb8b42″]The RBC ION+ credit card is one of the cards explicitly offering rewards on streaming. You will get 3 Avion points for every dollar spent, but they need to be merchants classified by Visa’s Merchant Category Code as Digital Goods Media – Books, Movies, Music or Cable, Satellite, or Other Pay Television/Radio/Streaming Services, for example. If you subscribe to a service that is not classified this way, you will still earn 1 Avion point for every dollar on subscriptions or pre-authorized bill payments you make on your RBC ION+ Visa credit card.
This card offers a fast way to accumulate points and some more perks. You get 3 Avion points for every dollar on grocery, dining, food delivery, rides, gas, electric vehicle charging, digital gaming and subscriptions. And of course, on streaming. The RBC ION+ Visa keeps you entertained, and fed! You can also save on fuel at Petro-Canada and on your DoorDash subscription.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 700 |
| Minimum Annual Income | None disclosed |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite – Best Credit Card for Cash Back on All Subscriptions
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”5f32a25c92ec22115033b2cf”]The Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite credit card gives you access to more perks, including Visa Infinite Hotel Collection, concierge service and a range of travel insurances when you go out of the country. This card earns 4% cash back for every dollar you spend recurring bill payments and subscription purchases (including streaming services). Basically, if you spend $100 per month on streaming services, you will get $4 back.
The Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite is also a great credit card for groceries. You get 4% on groceries, 2% on gas and daily transit, as well as 1% on everything else. Scotia also offers mobile device insurance with this card. You may be covered for up to $1,000 in the event your phone is lost, stolen or damaged. Be aware that you have to charge the full cost of your new mobile device or all of your wireless bill payments to your card to benefit from this insurance.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 700 |
| Minimum Annual Income | $60,000 personal or $100,000 household or $250,000 of minimum assets under management |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
Scotiabank Scene+ Visa – Best Credit Card for Watching Cineplex at Home
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”5f32b19192ec22115033b2d5″]The Scotiabank Scene+ Visa card offers interesting rewards and has no annual fee. You earn 2 Scene+ points for every dollar you spend at Cineplex theatres or at cineplex.com. On this website, you can click on Watch at home to find movies you’d like to rent, for instance. Every purchase will help you to collect points, which you can redeem later for more entertainement, groceries or home hardware.
The Scotiabank Scene+ Visa earns 2 Scene+ points on every dollar you spend at major groccery stores such as Sobeys and Safeway, as well as 2 points at stores like Home Hardware and Home Furniture. Check for participating merchants before you make a purchase.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 600, possibly less |
| Minimum Annual Income | $12,000 |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
BMO CashBack Mastercard – Best No-Fee Cash Back Card
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”5f298ccf68c746304bee1258″]You probably won’t be blown away by the BMO CashBack Mastercard, but you should consider it anyway. Why? It has no annual fees and you earn decent cash back. You will get 1% on recurring bill payments such as streaming services, subscriptions and monthly utilities, as well as 3% on groceries and 0.5% on any other purchase. Cash back on groceries and monthly utilities shouldn’t be overlooked. Everyone has to eat and heat their home, right?
Once you are ready to get your reward, you can redeem your cash back any time you want for as little as $1 or set up an automatic deposit whenever you reach a predetermined amount. Another interesting feature of the BMO CashBack card is that you can save up to 25% off rentals at participating National Car Rental and Alamo Rent a Car locations.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 600 |
| Minimum Annual Income | $15,000 |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
TD Cash Back Visa Infinite – Best Credit Card for Streaming Services in your Car
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”6334640861728a40bc5d854b”]With the TD Cash Back Visa Infinite credit card, you can get higher rate of cash back on streaming services. It is established at 3% on groceries, gas and regularly recurring bill payments set up on your account. The latter category includes insurance premiums, Internet charges, magazine/newspaper/online streaming subscriptions, membership fees and mobile fees, that are set up by the merchant with your consent to be automatically charged to your card. You also earn 1% on all other purchases.
Coffee lovers will live the TD Cash Back Visa Infinite because it also earns 50% more Stars at participating Starbucks stores under certain conditions. But one of its most interesting feature is the Deluxe TD Auto Club membership. It is free and covers you with Emergency Road Services in case something goes wrong while you are on the road. Keep the kids entertained with a movie at the back of the car and know that you will get roadside assistance if anything should happen! You can also get a discount at Avis or Budget participanting stores if you need to rent a car and you will have a collision and damage insurance included.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 725 |
| Minimum Annual Income | $60,000 personal or $100,000 household |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
BMO Ascend World Elite – Best for VIP Travelling
[Offer productType=“CreditCard” api_id=“5f2aceacff76a21b40c68aa7″]The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard is Canada’s top travel credit card, thanks to its high earnings potential on travel purchases and its premium travel perks. But it is also a very good card for entertainment and subscriptions. You earn 3 points for every dollar spent on entertainement and recurring bill payments. This card does not offer rewards on streaming as such, but recurring bill payments are defined as payments made on a monthly or regular basis which are automatically billed by the merchant to your card.
With the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, you can also earn 5 points per dollar spent on travel, 3 points on dining and 1 point for everything else. This card also includes travel insurance and valuable benefits for frequent travellers. This consists of a DragonPass membership with four free airport lounge visits annually. You’ll also receive a free Boingo hotspot membership for the airport and in-plane Wi-Fi.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 740 |
| Minimum Annual Income | $80,000 personal or $150,000 household |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. |
Tims Credit Card – Best Welcome Offer including Streaming Services
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”64dd008b7271d033a068311b”]The new Tim Hortons Mastercard will not only help save on your morning coffee, it’ll also help you save on your Crave subscription. When you sign up for the credit card, you can qualify to get 3 months of Crave for free! You have to activate the offer before Novembre 19, 2023 and pay for your subscription with your card. With the Tims Card, you earn 15 Tims Rewards points per dollar spent at Tim Hortons restaurants, 5 points on groceries, gas, electric vehicle charging and transit. Everything else earns 1 point per $2.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 660 but there is a secured version of the Tims Credit Card if your score is lower |
| Minimum Annual Income | None |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. Provide identification and an email address. |
Tangerine Money-Back Mastercard – Best Credit Card for Streaming Services with Customizable Categories
[Offer productType=”CreditCard” api_id=”5f34494292ec22115033b302″]The Tangerine Money-Back credit card earns 2% cash back on your everyday purchases in two categories of your choice. Recurring bill payments is one of them. This means you can get 2% back on all your streaming services subscriptions. The image below shows the other categories you can choose from.
You also get 0.5% on all your other everyday purchases. There is no limit on the amount of rewards you can earn on your everyday purchases. If you decide to get your rewards deposited into your Tangerine Savings Account, you will have access to a third category at 2%. Otherwise, your cash back will be applied to your credit card statement each month.
| Eligibility | Description |
| Credit Score (estimated) | 600 |
| Minimum Annual Income | $12,000 |
| Other | Be a Canadian resident. Be the age of majority in your province or territory. Clear of bankruptcy for more than 7 years. |
Streaming services have become an essential part of our entertainment landscape, and credit card companies in Canada are recognizing the trend by offering attractive discounts and rewards to subscribers. By choosing the right credit card, you can save money on your streaming service subscriptions, whether through cash back, direct discounts, or rewards points. When selecting a credit card for streaming services, consider your spending habits more generally and the specific benefits each card offers to maximize your rewards.
