Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers for May - These cards provide some of the best value out of their welcome bonuses

Here are the Rewards Canada Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers for the month of May 2020! 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 (welcome/sign up) offers. As always when choosing a card you should always take other factors into account other than the just sign up bonus, but when some of these cards are first year free, they can and do pay off even when you grab them strictly for the sign up rewards. This month we see two first year free cards on the list!

The big change this month is the Platinum Card from American Express making the list for the very first time and in a big way jumps to the number one spot on the list. It's bonus is 60,000 points and it does have a $699 annual fee however until late July it has double the redemption value of those points (1,000 points = $20) which means the first 50,000 points on the card are worth $1,000 plus the additional 10,000 points you get after 6 months are worth another $100 giving you $1,100 in value or a $401 gain above the $699 annual fee. The other change this month is the BMO AIR MILE World Elite Mastercard dropping off the list as it's welcome bonus decreased this month.

Editor's Note:
As travel is curtailed right now these offers are more forward looking and can and should be used towards your long term travel plans - whether that's later this year, next year or even beyond. Getting the cards now allows you to achieve the sign up bonuses as you wish and then continue to spend to build up those points and miles balances to make those future vacations that much better. - Or in the case of all the cards except the Alaska Airlines Mastercard you can also look at cash back or cash back equivalents like gift cards from each program if you are looking at short term financial help. If you are going for the latter focus on the cards that have no fee in the first year so that you can maximize your value.

Remember as well that you will find this list smack dab in the middle of the Rewards Canada homepage for easy reference!

Here are our top 5 credit card sign up offers for May (in order of welcome bonus value, calculated as minimum mile/points value minus annual fee)

The Number one card has changed as its offer was removed from market.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card - 50,000 Points (Apply here)

No changes to this card means it stays put on the list The 50,000 points, awarded after spending $1,500 on the card in three months are worth at least $500 in our minds which means after subtracting the annual fee you are coming out ahead by $380. In reality you can pull even more value out of the card (into four figures) as we outlined in our post A look at how The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card provides huge value!  Don't forget you get an annual free night with the card as well on the card anniversary date!
Minimum Income: N/A

TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card - 30,000 Miles (Apply here)

This is the only first year free card on the list this month and if you are just starting out I would recommend getting this card first thanks to that annual fee waiver! The bonus is awarded as follows: 15,000 Aeroplan Miles when you make your first Purchase with your Card + 5,000 Aeroplan Miles when you spend $1,000 per month in the first three months (up to 15,000 miles) Depending on how you redeem those Aeroplan miles should be worth no less than $360 but more likely closer to $800 or more! In fact if you take the per mile value from our post from late July 2019 this welcome bonus would be worth $1,800 or more.
Minimum Income: $60,000 Personal or $100,000 Household

Alaska Airlines World Elite Mastercard - 30,000 Miles (Apply here)

This card offers a welcome bonus of 30,000 miles when you spend $1,000 on the card in the first three months of having it. This is one of the easiest bonuses to achieve and this card is one of the most churnable in Canada. There are really no problems in getting it 2-4 times in one year alone! Those 30,000 miles are worth no less than $330 when redeeming for economy class flights and just go up from there like the TD Aeroplan card.
Minimum Income: $80,000 Personal or $150,000 Household

HSBC World Elite Mastercard - 60,000 points (Apply here)
This card offers a welcome bonus of 60,000 points, split between 20,000 on first purchase and 40,000 more when you spend $6,000 within 180 days of getting the card. The annual fee of $149 is waived in the first year as well meaning these points come to you at no cost other than card spend.The card has a lot of other good benefits like no foreign transaction fees to consider as well! Those 60,000 points are worth $300 in travel rewards but those points can also be converted to British Airways Executive Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles or Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer. 

Minimum Income: $80,000 personal or $150,000 household or $400,000 in assets at any Canadian Financial Institution


If you went for all these cards you ultimately could end up with anywhere from $1,700 to over $3,000 in travel value. However 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. We don't really recommend getting all five in one month unless you know you can meet the minimum spend for them all at once, rather you'd want to pick one or two right now, perhaps another next month and so on.

Disclaimers:
American Express is not responsible for maintaining or monitoring the accuracy of information on this website. For full details and current product information click the Apply now link.

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