Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers for December

Here are the Rewards Canada Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers for the month of December! This is not a 'best' credit card list like our Top Travel Rewards Credit Card rankings but instead a look at cards that have very good acquisition offers. As always when choosing a card you should always take other factors into account other than the sign up bonus, but when most or all of these cards are first year free, they can and do pay off even when not taking into account insurance packages and other non-reward benefits. In fact all of the cards on this list for December are first year free so you can try them all at no cost, get over $1,000 in rewards and decide later on if the card is right for you. All the while earning the sign up bonus which can be used to subsidize your travels!  Just ensure you drop any cards you don't like before your 1st year anniversary so you don't pay the annual fee for the second year
   
This month we lose the mbna Rewards World Elite MasterCard since it is no longer first year free! However the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card has its first year free waiver return so that means you can get the card's 15,000 Aeroplan Mile sign up bonus for free!  

So here are our top 5 credit card sign up offers for December (in alphabetical order)

American Express Gold Rewards Card - 25,000 Points (Apply here)
A mainstay offer here on Rewards Canada, the American Express Gold Rewards card has its first year fee of $150 waived and will award you 25,000 Membership Rewards points when you complete $1,500 in spending in the first three months. That 25,000 points is worth a $250 travel credit via Amex's TripFlex feature or can be converted to 25,000 Aeroplan Miles (1 Round trip Economy Award ticket within North America) or 25,000 British Airways Executive Club Avios (as much a 3 one way Economy Award tickets in North America, see this article for details.)

Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Visa - 30,000 Points  (Apply here)
The best no foreign transaction fee card in Canada makes it to this list due to a very strong acquisition offer. I mean who can complain with 30,000 to 50,000 points awarded on approval all at no cost as the card has the annual fee waived in the first year! They also give you a 15 night credit into the mix which automatically provides you with Marriott Rewards Silver Elite status. Please note there is a 50,000 point offer floating around that is specific for Marriott Elite members and some people are reporting that they getting the points while some others are not. YMMV but no matter what you should get at least 30K.


mbna Best Western Rewards MasterCard (Apply here)
Right now there is an offer for 40,000 Bonus Western Rewards points with this card! With no annual fee to boot! We detail the offer in this post that shows just how much value you can pull out of the card with this 40K bonus!

Scotiabank Gold American Express Card - 20,000 Points  (Apply here)
A very strong card in the earn category for Gas, Grocery and Dining/Entertainment purchases, the current sign up bonus for the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card is 20,000 points when you reach $750 in spending in the first three months. That 20,000 points is equal to a $200 travel credit and since this card is a book anywhere card you can book the travel how you want when you want and when the charge shows up on your account you can redeem the points against the charge. The card normally has a $99 annual fee but of course that is waived in the first year if you apply by January 31, 2017!

TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card - 15,000 Miles (Apply here)
Earn 15,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles and a 100% rebate off your first year annual fee when you apply for and receive the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card. You can earn an additional 5,000 miles if you hold onto the card for a year however you'll then have to pay the annual fee unless you have a TD All Inclusive Banking Plan which means you would get all 20,000 miles at no cost to you!


If you went for all these cards you ultimately could end up with over $1,000 in travel credits and hotel free nights but even if you only take on one or two you are helping your travel budget significantly at no cost other than regular credit card spend