Amex Cobalt vs Aeroplan Reserve (2026): Which Travel Card?

Amex Cobalt vs Aeroplan Reserve is a choice between an everyday points card and an Air Canada benefits card. This page sets out what each one costs, what it earns and what it includes, so you can see which one matches your spending and flying. YieldMaple checked Amex Canada’s Cobalt, Aeroplan Reserve and Membership Rewards pages on October 8, 2026, and every figure below comes from those pages. This page is general education, not financial advice.

The full reviews go deeper on each card: the Amex Cobalt review and the Amex Aeroplan Reserve review. Related comparisons: Amex Cobalt vs Scotia Passport and Aeroplan Reserve vs RBC Avion.

Amex Cobalt vs Aeroplan Reserve at a glance

Source: Amex Canada’s Cobalt and Aeroplan Reserve product pages, October 8, 2026. Each row is explained in the sections below.

Which card costs less, the Cobalt or the Aeroplan Reserve?

The Amex Cobalt costs less: its fee is $15.99 a month, which Amex states equals $191.88 a year, against $599 a year for the Aeroplan Reserve.

That is a gap of $407.12 a year today. The gap is set to widen, because Amex’s Reserve page carries a notice that the fee becomes $799 on annual fees charged on or after January 12, 2027. At that level the Reserve costs $607.12 a year more than the Cobalt.

The billing pattern differs too. The Cobalt fee is $15.99 a month ($191.88 a year) outside Quebec; Quebec residents pay $191.88 once a year, so most cardholders pay it in small monthly amounts. The Reserve fee is charged once a year.

Additional cards follow the same pattern. The Cobalt has no annual fee for additional cards, while the Reserve charges $199 a year for each additional Aeroplan Reserve Card, and Amex’s notice puts that at $249 a year on annual fees charged on or after January 12, 2027. The Reserve also has a no-fee additional card option, which becomes the Companion Card with a $25 annual fee from January 12, 2027.

Two costs match. Foreign currency purchases carry a conversion commission of 2.5% on the Cobalt and 2.5% on the Reserve, per Amex’s Cobalt page and the Reserve application’s information box. Interest is the other: the Cobalt charges 21.99% on purchases and 21.99% on funds advances and the Reserve charges 21.99% on purchases and 21.99% on advances. A breakdown of every Cobalt charge is in the Amex Cobalt fees guide.

Which card earns more points on everyday spending?

The Amex Cobalt earns more on food: 5 points per $1 at eligible restaurants, coffee shops, bars, stand-alone grocery stores and food delivery in Canada, while the Aeroplan Reserve earns 2 Aeroplan points per $1 on eligible dining and food delivery in Canada and 1.25 Aeroplan points per $1 on everything else.

The Cobalt’s top rate has a ceiling. It applies to $2,500 in combined net purchases a month, then 1 point per $1. The Cobalt also earns 3 points per $1 on eligible streaming subscriptions in Canada, 2 points per $1 on eligible gas, transit and ride share in Canada and 1 point per $1 on everything else.

The Reserve’s top rate is for the airline: 3 Aeroplan points per $1 on eligible Air Canada and Air Canada Vacations purchases. Groceries are not part of its dining category, so a grocery bill earns the Reserve’s base rate.

A worked example

Take a household that spends $500 a month at grocery stores and $500 a month at restaurants, all in Canada. These are example amounts, so swap in your own.

• On the Cobalt: the whole $1,000 earns 5 points per $1, which is 5,000 Membership Rewards points a month, or 60,000 points a year. That spending sits under the Cobalt’s monthly cap.
• On the Reserve: groceries earn 1.25 points per $1 and restaurants earn 2 points per $1, which is 1,625 Aeroplan points a month, or 19,500 points a year.

Because Cobalt points move to Aeroplan at 1,000 Membership Rewards points = 1,000 Aeroplan points, the Cobalt household could end the year with 60,000 Aeroplan points from food spending, against 19,500 on the Reserve.

Air Canada tickets pull the other way, but not by as much. On $4,000 a year of Air Canada flights, the Reserve earns 12,000 Aeroplan points. If those tickets earn the Cobalt’s base rate of 1 point per $1, the Cobalt earns 4,000 points. In this example the Cobalt still finishes ahead on points overall, which is why the case for the Reserve rests on its travel benefits, not on its earn rates.

Where the points can go

Cobalt points are Membership Rewards points. Amex’s transfer page lists 8 partners: 5 airline programs and 3 hotel programs. The full list: Aeroplan, Air France KLM Flying Blue, British Airways Avios and Hilton Honors at 1,000:1,000; Marriott Bonvoy at 1,000:1,200; Cathay Pacific Asia Miles and Delta SkyMiles at 1,000:750; ALL Accor at 1,000:500. Points can also pay for card purchases at 1,000 points = $10 toward eligible purchases. One limit applies to every transfer: a transfer to a partner program cannot be reversed.

The Reserve earns Aeroplan points directly, so they stay inside Air Canada’s program. The Reserve also earns status credit that the Cobalt does not: 1,000 Status Qualifying Credits (SQC) for every $5,000 in eligible net purchases, up to 25,000 SQC.

What does the Aeroplan Reserve offer that the Cobalt doesn’t?

The Aeroplan Reserve adds Air Canada benefits that Amex’s Cobalt page does not list: airport lounge access, a free first checked bag, priority airport services and a companion pass.

• Lounges. Reserve cardholders get complimentary access to Maple Leaf Lounges and Air Canada Cafés in Canada and the United States, with one guest per eligible Cardmember. Access needs a same-day ticket on a departing Air Canada or Star Alliance flight. It excludes Maple Leaf Lounges outside Canada and the United States, Air Canada Signature Suites and lounges run by third parties such as Star Alliance member airlines. The card also comes with Priority Pass membership, with a usage fee charged for every lounge visit.
• Checked bags. The Reserve includes a free first checked bag (up to 23 kg) for you and up to eight companions on the same reservation, when travel starts on an Air Canada flight.
• Priority services. The Reserve includes Priority Airport Check-In, Priority Boarding and Priority Baggage Handling on Air Canada for you and up to eight companions on the same reservation.
• Companion pass. Amex gives one Annual Worldwide Companion Pass after $25,000 in net purchases before your card anniversary, with the companion's Air Canada economy base fare fixed at $99 to $599 plus taxes and fees.
• NEXUS. The Reserve gives up to $100 in statement credits every four years toward a NEXUS application or renewal fee.

Amex puts its own dollar values on two of these. It values the lounge access at up to $590 a year (Amex's estimate, based on up to 5 visits a year with a guest) and the checked bags at $140 (Amex's estimate for two people on one round trip). Added together, that is $730, which is $131 more than the current Reserve fee and $69 less than the fee from January 12, 2027.

Those are Amex’s estimates: the lounge figure assumes five visits a year with a guest, and the bag figure covers two people on one round trip. Someone who flies Air Canada once a year, or who travels alone, will get less. The companion pass is also conditional: it needs $25,000 in net purchases in the card year.

The Cobalt’s own extras are lifestyle perks. Amex lists up to $60 in statement credits within a 12-month period, until December 31, 2027 on Instacart, and Front Of The Line access to presale and reserved tickets for concerts, theatre and other special events.

How do the welcome offers compare?

The Aeroplan Reserve’s standard public welcome offer is larger: up to 85,000 Aeroplan points: 60,000 after $7,500 in net purchases in the first 3 months, plus 25,000 when you spend $2,500 in month 13, against up to 15,000 Membership Rewards points on the Cobalt.

The Cobalt’s offer is earned as 1,250 points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $750, in your first year. Amex values the full offer at up to $150. Reaching the full amount takes $9,000 of spending spread across the year, and it is for new Cobalt Cardmembers only; current or former Cobalt Cardmembers are not eligible.

Amex values the Reserve’s standard offer at up to $1,700 in flights (Amex's estimate, at $0.02 a point or more). Reaching the full amount takes $10,000 of spending, most of it in the first three months, and it is for new Aeroplan Reserve Cardmembers only; current or former Reserve Cardmembers are not eligible.

One caveat on the Reserve. Amex shows different offers on different pages and to different visitors. On October 8, 2026, some visitors saw a higher offer labelled "Elevated Offer" on Amex's product page, which Amex says is available on that webpage and can change at any time. The figures on this page are the standard public offer. The offer on the application you submit is the one that applies, so read it before you apply.

Travel insurance on each card

Both cards include out-of-province emergency medical insurance: up to $5,000,000 for the first 15 consecutive days of a trip, if you are under 65 on the Cobalt, and up to $5,000,000 for the first 15 consecutive days of a trip, if you are under 65 on the Reserve.

The Reserve lists more beyond that. It has trip cancellation insurance of up to $1,500 per insured person per trip, to a maximum of $3,000 for all insured persons combined and trip interruption insurance of up to $1,500 per insured person per trip, to a maximum of $6,000 for all insured persons combined. Amex’s Cobalt page lists neither. Flight delay cover is up to $1,000 (combined maximum with baggage delay insurance) on the Reserve and up to $500 (combined maximum with baggage delay insurance) on the Cobalt.

Coverage on both cards depends on charging the trip to the card and on the terms of the insurer’s certificate.

Can you hold both the Cobalt and the Aeroplan Reserve?

Amex’s pages for the two cards list no rule against holding both, and the combined fees come to $790.88 a year today. Approval for each card is Amex’s decision.

From the first Reserve renewal on or after January 12, 2027, that becomes $990.88 a year. In a two-card setup the Cobalt takes food, streaming and transit spending, and the Reserve takes Air Canada bookings and supplies the airport benefits. Points from both can end up in one Aeroplan account, because Cobalt points transfer at 1,000 Membership Rewards points = 1,000 Aeroplan points.

The pairing costs a lot to keep, so it only adds up when the Reserve’s lounge, bag and priority benefits get regular use. Other Aeroplan options with lower fees are covered in the guide to Aeroplan credit cards in Canada.

The verdict: Cobalt or Aeroplan Reserve?

Neither card is a substitute for the other. The deciding question is how often you fly Air Canada.

The Cobalt fits if:

• Most of your card spending is groceries, restaurants and food delivery in Canada.
• You want points that can go to Aeroplan or to other programs.
• You fly Air Canada a few times a year or less, so lounge access would see little use.
• A fee of $15.99 a month is the level you are comfortable with.

The Aeroplan Reserve fits if:

• You fly Air Canada often from Canadian or US airports and would use Maple Leaf Lounges on most trips.
• You travel with family or companions who would use the free first checked bag.
• You are working toward Aeroplan Elite Status and want the Status Qualifying Credits.
• You accept a fee of $599 a year that rises to $799 on annual fees charged on or after January 12, 2027.

Both fit if you meet both lists and the combined fees are a small share of the value you take out of the lounges, bags and points each year.

Fees, earn rates and offers change. Check Amex’s current terms for each card on the day you apply.