American Express Cobalt® card vs. Scotiabank Gold American Express® card

New American Express Cobalt® cardholders are offered a great intro offer. 

Then there’s the Scotiabank^® Gold American Express^® Card. 

Bottom line: Both cards feature welcome bonuses with a first year spending minimum.

The American Express Cobalt® Card has an annual fee of $155.88 ($$12.99/month).

The Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card has an annual fee of $120 for the primary card and and $29 for each supplementary card..

Bottom line: Though the American Express Cobalt® Card fee is easier to manage because you can pay in monthly installments, its combined monthly fees add up to more in the course of a year than the annual fee charged by the Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card.

Big welcome bonuses are nice but the real long-term value of a rewards card comes down to its standard earn rates.

The Amex Cobalt earn rates

• The American Express Cobalt^® Card is a big earner with one of the most generous rates for food in the country. Cardmembers get 5 credit card points for every $1 they spend at eligible grocery stores, restaurants, bars, cafes and even on food delivery services in Canada.
• Despite the fact that the 5x earn rate category is subject to an overall maximum annual spending limit of $2,500, it’s still an impressive reward rate.
• After you reach the max $30,000 limit, you’ll earn 1 point per $1 until the start of your yearly anniversary date, when spending goes back to 5 points per $1 spent.
• Cardholders also get 3 points for every $1 spent on eligible streaming subscriptions in Canada and 2 points for every $1 they spend on ride shares, travel and transit in Canada (which includes a wide range of travel purchases like ridesharing apps, taxis, hotel stays, flights and any eligible gas station). Finally, users get 1x point on all other purchases.

The Scotiabank Gold American Express earn rates

• The Scotiabank Gold American Express® card has very comparable earn rates, though they’re not exactly the same. You’ll earn 6X Scene+ points¹ for each $1 CAD charged to your account on all eligible purchases at Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, and more eligible grocers.¹ You’ll get 5x Scene+ points¹ for every $1 CAD you spend on other eligible grocery, dining and entertainment purchases.
• Much like the American Express Cobalt® Card, the food category covers a lot of ground, including restaurants, grocery stores, and meal delivery services. Unlike the Cobalt card, you also enjoy the high 5x¹ earn rate on entertainment purchases like movies and theatre tickets. You also earn 3X Scene+ points¹ for every $1 spent on gas, eligible daily transit and even select streaming services.
• For the 5 and 3-point earn rates. Overall annual cap of $50,000 for 5 and 3-point earn rates. But it resets annually and it is a pretty high threshold to meet. After that, you'll earn Earn 1 Scene+ point on all other purchases per $1 spent.

To give you a better idea of how many total points you can earn, here’s how the cards stack up with one another based on an average monthly spend of $1,725.

Bottom Line: The Scotiabank Gold American Express^® Card just edges out the Cobalt in this spending simulation overall. But that could easily flip for someone who spends a bit more on flights, hotels and rental cars, where the American Express Cobalt^® Card has the higher earn rate.

It’s all well and good to earn a bunch of points, but the points should then be easy to redeem, and they should have a high real-world value. The American Express Cobalt^® Card earns Membership Rewards^® points, which are prized for their flexibility. You can redeem points for a wide array of things like flights, merchandise, statement credits and more. You can even redeem your points on Amazon.ca. Points have a high value when redeemed for any eligible purchase on a card statement (where 1 point = $0.01). You can transfer points 1:1 to popular loyalty programs like Aeroplan and Avios, which is a major boon for those who fly frequently with Air Canada or British Airways.

The Scotiabank Gold American Express^® Card earns Scene+ points, which are also quite flexible and can be redeemed for a host of items like travel, gift cards, merchandise, statement credits and more. But while Scene+ points have good value when redeemed against any travel purchase on your statement (1 point = $0.01), they are worth significantly less when you use them to cover any purchase outside travel (1 point = approx. $0.0067–$0.007). Furthermore, you can’t use points to shop directly on Amazon.ca.

Note: As of December 31, 2021, Scotiabank Rewards and SCENE have merged into Scene+.

Bottom line: Both cards have flexible points, but the Cobalt card offers far better value for its points, and its transfer options are much better as well.

For a premium card to be worth its annual fee it’s got to be loaded with lots of benefits. The American Express Cobalt^® Card has an enticing array of extras. The most notable benefit is the suite of insurance, which includes:

• Out-of-province/country medical insurance
• Flight delay insurance
• Baggage delay insurance
• Lost/stolen baggage insurance
• Hotel burglary insurance
• Car rental theft and damage insurance
• Travel accident insurance
• Purchase protection plan
• Buyer’s assurance plan

Other nice benefits include entertainment access to special events and experiences, travel perks like access to the Hotel Collection from American Express. Enjoy access to hotel bookings, a room upgrade (when available), 12pm check-in and late check-out (when available), and up to USD$100 hotel credit to use on amenities when charged to the room for a stay of two or more consecutive nights through The Hotel Collection from American Express Travel.

The card also features a new and very worthwhile perk called Plan It™, which is the American Express^® Installment Program. The program lets you pay a portion of your statement balance off in monthly installments for a fixed monthly fee (akin to what you would pay in interest). This feature can make paying off your balance much more manageable.

The Scotiabank Gold American Express^® Card also has lots of juicy extras; one of the most exciting features is that the card doesn’t charge a foreign exchange fee on your non-Canadian purchases. This is a rare perk among Canadian credit cards and could save you 2.5% on all your foreign purchases online and in person. (Check out our review of the best credit cards with no foreign transaction fees if this is a key benefit you’re seeking.)

The card also includes a strong insurance package, featuring:

• Travel emergency medical insurance
• Trip cancellation/trip interruption insurance
• Flight delay insurance
• Delayed and lost baggage insurance
• Travel accident insurance
• Rental car collision loss/damage insurance
• Hotel/motel burglary insurance
• Purchase security
• Extended warranty protection

With either American Express card, cardholders can take advantage of AMEX special offers, Front of The Line/American Express Invites and exclusive access to events. However, the Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card also comes with 24/7 concierge service and a discount on Priority Pass membership.

Bottom line: Both cards feature similar insurance and entertainment offerings. The Scotiabank Gold American Express^® Card comes out ahead, however, because it doesn’t charge a foreign exchange fee, offering a savings of 2.5% on all foreign purchases made at home and abroad.

The American Express Cobalt® Card has an annual interest rate of 21.99% on purchases and 21.99% on any cash advance. While there is no specified minimum income needed, you do have to be a Canadian resident with a Canadian credit file and have reached the age of majority in your province or territory to apply.

The Scotiabank Gold American Express^® Card requires applicants to be the age of majority and a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada. You must also have not declared bankruptcy in the past seven years. The card has an APR on purchases of 20.99% and 22.99% for cash advances.

Bottom line: The American Express Cobalt^® Card is technically a bit easier to qualify for in our opinion.