Earn Rates - Amex Cobalt

The keeper card series makes the case for why a specific card deserves an ongoing spot in your wallet.

While I often write specifically for business owners who may have high expenses, this article applies to Canadians at just about every spending level.

Make sure to check out my referral links and disclaimers and disclosures below.

Jump Ahead Cashback Crew Getting More from your Cobalt's Rewards When Cobalt Isn't the Answer What if I Change my Mind

What Makes a Keeper - Earn Rates

Signup bonuses get most of the attention in the points world, but eventually you need somewhere to put your normal spending.

If you can earn meaningfully more points on purchases you were going to make anyway, that value repeats every month and every year that you keep the card.

The first step is figuring out where your money actually goes. Food? Travel? Gas? Subscriptions? Business expenses?

Then look for cards that offer a high multiplier in your biggest categories, preferably in a rewards currency that you can use well.

Pick your biggest 1 or 2 categories and look for cards that reward that spend with high multiplier on a reward currency that you value.

Amex Cobalt

Food and gas are some of the most common high spend categories, especially in Canada these days, and that's why the Amex Cobalt stands out, if you're unsure of Amex, check out my Why Amex article.

With a market leading 5x Amex Membership Reward points (MR) per dollar at grocery, restaurant, and food delivery services, this card can get you incredible return on one of the expenses we all have every month.

This 5x earn rate compares very favourably across the spectrum of alternatives; from cashback to other travel cards it matches or exceeds them by a notable margin. While it caps this earn rate at $2500/mo in spending, this is higher than most competitor cards which drop their earning after $20-25k per year.

Furthermore, many of those cashback cards only have an elevated rate on groceries, the Cobalt also includes restaurants, bars, delivery and coffee shops. And if 5x on food still isn't enough, it also earns a solid 3x on subscriptions (netflix, spotify etc) and 2x on gas and transit (1x on everything else).

Tip: Some convenience stores code as food on the Amex system, so if you fill up and go inside and grab a snack, instead of earning 2x you might earn 5x on the purchase. The card isn't as cheap as it used to be, it increased to $15.99/mo from $12.99, but the question isn't whether $192/yr sounds expensive, it's how much better off you'll be net of that fee.

Cashback Crew - Fixed Value Redemptions

At the absolute simplest level, Membership Rewards can be redeemed for 1 cent each. That means the 5x food category can function much like 5% cash back. Against a 2% benchmark like the WealthSimple cards (assuming you get their even higher fee waived), the extra 3% return covers the entire annual fee after roughly $6,400 per year of 5x spending, or about $533 per month. For a household putting groceries, restaurants and other eligible food purchases on the card, that isn't an especially difficult threshold to reach.

Tip: Costco and Loblaws chains do not accept Amex and majority of Walmarts do not code as grocery. That said Instacart purchases count, and the Cobalt comes with a $5/mo Instacart credit currently planned until end of Dec 2027.

There used to be a stronger cashback case against paying Cobalt's annual fee; the Rogers Red World Elite Mastercard. Assuming you had sufficient Rogers, Fido, or Shaw bills you could effectively earn/redeem at 3% back on all spend with a no annual fee card. You'd need $800 a month in 5x cobalt spending to offset the fee if you planned to use the points like cash. Unfortunately Rogers has introduced an annual spending cap on the World Elite's accelerated earn rate and more importantly, the 1.5x redemption bonus against Rogers, Fido and Shaw purchases is being eliminated in November 2026 removing the 3% everywhere proposition.

If you're willing to accept cashlike, but with restrictions, there is a natural competitor however. The Scotiabank Gold Amex also earns very aggressively on food, including 5 Scene+ points per dollar on eligible dining, food delivery and many grocery stores, with 6x at participating Sobeys-family grocers. It also has a lower annual fee ($120 and typically waived for physicians) and doesn't charge the usual 2.5% foreign transaction fee. Better still, while Cobalt no longer earns elevated rates abroad, many report getting their 5x rewards using the Scotia Gold - but your milage may vary. Scene+ points can be redeemed at 1c each towards groceries at Sobey's related stores, or for any type of travel, so to the extent that you eat/travel this can be considered effectively 5-6% back on food/groceries.

But this is only looking at cash back style Amex redemptions, the least exciting way to redeem Membership Rewards.

Getting More from Your Cobalt's Rewards

You may already be aware that Amex points can convert to several airline programs, this is probably the most touted reason for why you should favour amex points, as a way to at times get over 2x the value from your points.

But there are some easier middle ground options to consider. First, you can use Amex's flight chart (they call it fixed points travel) for up to ~1.8c per point value on round trip flights (depending on region, cabin class, and underlying fare). Second, in 2026 Amex introduced a new transfer partner - Accor Live Limitless (ALL) a hotel awards program that includes Fairmont properties. The exchange rate is 1000 MR to 500 MR but don't let the number of point scare you off. ALL points are worth a fixed amount with 1000 erasing €20 from your hotel bill. This can be redeemed against all aspects of the bill, any room type, and you don't need enough to cover the whole stay. This means 1000 MR can cover €10, which at current exchange rates is around $16, giving a 1.6c redemption. At 1.6c per point, Cobalt's 5x could be viewed as 8% back towards Accor hotel stays.

But this is just the tip of the iceberg - by using Amex's airline transfer partners (such as Aeroplan) in combination with award search tools like Roame you can often get well in excess of 2c per point value with business class travel. While it may be hard to put an "amount saved" on a business class flight you wouldn't have otherwise gone on, but a bucketlist worthy experience funded by your daily food consumption has to be worth something. It's worth noting that at the $2500/mo cap, you could earn 150k points a year, enough for a round trip ticket in business to Europe.

When Cobalt Isn't the Answer

I like Cobalt a lot, but that doesn't mean everyone should have one. The most obvious issue is Amex acceptance. Acceptance is dramatically better than it was years ago, but Visa and Mastercard are still easier to use universally. If most of your biggest expenses happen somewhere that doesn't accept Amex, a theoretical 5x earn rate doesn't help very much.

RBC ION+ earns 3 Avion points per dollar on groceries, dining, gas, food delivery, rideshare, streaming and several other everyday categories for only $48 per year. This is a lower fee of course, and has gas at a higher 3x, but if you can use Amex you'd be far better off. Amex points have a much wider collection of transfer partners and that 5x earn rate pulls ahead pretty quickly even with the higher fee. Especially since you need to also hold an RBC Avion VI or better to be able to transfer out the points from an Ion+ adding at least $120 to your annual fees. But for those who shop at Loblaws chains this is my go to, and Avion as a program has a lot of appeal. Tip: If interested in the ION+ first get an Avion VI for its much higher sign up bonus (currently at an all time high of 70k, but usually 35-55k versus ion+'s max 28k), then after 90+ days open another Avion card and convert the first one into an ION+. This can be done via the RBC online account by clicking on the card, you'll see an option to change the product on the right hand side.

Another non Amex option would be the Scotia Momentum VI+ which earns 4% back on grocery and recurring payments. Just note that this doesn't include restaurant and the 4% is capped on $25k/yr in this combined category.

There are also people whose spending simply doesn't line up well with Cobalt's bonus categories. If your grocery and restaurant spending is low, (first off let me know how!), and/or you want a single card for all spend a no-fee 2% card can still be the simpler and better answer.

All of this to illustrates why the right answer depends on where you spend, where your cards are accepted and what you actually want your rewards to do. Especially when overlayed with a business earning strategy it can get a bit complex to optimize which is why we offer professionals new to rewards free consultations.

In practice, many people will be better served by combining Cobalt with a good Visa or Mastercard rather than trying to make one card do everything.

What if I Change My Mind

Sometimes people worry that they'll regret the decision to get a new card, or that Amex acceptance will be too low, but Amex makes it incredibly easy to dip your toes in. The default Cobalt sign up bonus is 1250 MR points per month you spend $750 or more. With a cash back redemption this is worth $12.50 and almost completely balances out the $15.99 monthly fee even if you don't have high Amex accepting food spend.

So give it a try, get a feel for where it's accepted and how you can use it. The fee is monthly not annual and the rewards easily pay for it so it's the lowest risk and best earner out there. Personally though, I don't think you'll want to cancel when you save up the points for the first year and see where it can take you.

Only $750/mo of 5x spending using the right tricks will get you enough points for a lie flat business class (45k from spend plus 15k from the bonus, with 60k business class options available from several airlines)... Where do you want to go?

Conclusion

If you're a Canadian who eats food, has subscriptions, and/or buys gas and might want to enjoy luxury travel in the future, the Amex Cobalt is a clear choice for a keeper card. Even if you decide to use it for cash back, its high earn rate and ease of implementation are the foundation of your starter earning strategy and when combined with an Aeroplan or Avion card you have an incredibly versatile 2 card setup. Questions or concerns? Looking for help? Reach out for a consult to find out how to make this strategy work for you.

Referral links

With its best in market 5x multiplier, Amex Cobalt is a powerful point earner that can get you on flying for free 5 times faster than much of the competition. Sign up using my referral for the best public offer.

If you're on the fence, or wondering about other cards reach out to me for a free consult, my goal isn't to put everyone on the same card, but to help you find the card(s) that fit the spending you already have and the rewards you actually want.

Disclaimer and Disclosures

These posts are all made in good intentions and are to the best of my ability accurate at the time of writing. That said, the official terms and conditions and current sign up bonuses should be verified and interpreted in the context of your personal financial situation. I may receive compensation for the use of referral links included on this website.