The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Advertiser disclosure
The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
News
How the new 15% Air Canada award discount for Aeroplan credit cardholders works
Ben Smithson is a senior writer for TPG and is based in London. Originally from Australia and a qualified lawyer with a financial services background, he has almost a decade of experience writing about a broad range of travel and loyalty topics.
September 25, 2026 • 7 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
Related stories
Quick summary
A refreshed travel rewards card now provides primary cardholders with at least a 15% reduction in points required for eligible Air Canada award flights compared to non-cardholders.
This discount applies to bookings with at least one Air Canada-operated segment and can be combined with Priority Rewards vouchers for even greater savings.
Priority Rewards, earned as elite status Milestone Benefits, halve the points price of eligible flights and can be stacked with the cardholder discount.
Aeroplan remains a strong loyalty program for U.S. travelers due to its broad partner network, flexible transfer options and reasonable award pricing.
What to consider
Only primary cardholders qualify for the 15% discount, and it applies to everyone on the booking if at least one segment is operated by Air Canada or its subsidiaries.
The discount reduces only the points portion of the base fare; taxes, fees and charges remain unchanged.
Priority Rewards vouchers are valid for 12 months from selection, with eligibility and cabin restrictions based on elite status level.
What you'll miss from the article
Detailed examples showing how to maximize savings by stacking the 15% discount with Priority Rewards, plus a breakdown of additional cardholder perks and elite status benefits.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
Since the card's September refresh, primary cardholders pay at least 15% fewer Aeroplan points on eligible Air Canada flight rewards than members without the card. The new savings also stack with Aeroplan's Priority Rewards, offered as Milestone Benefits for elite members.
Air Canada's Aeroplan is one of the best Star Alliance loyalty programs for U.S. travelers, thanks to its transfer partners, long list of partner airlines and reasonable award pricing. Now its own airline is even cheaper to book for cardholders too.
Here's how the discounts work and how you can save on your next redemption.
What is the 15% Air Canada discount for cardholders?
For example, an award that costs a non-cardholder 100,000 Aeroplan points would cost a cardholder no more than 85,000 points.
To get the discount, you must:
Be the primary cardholder — authorized users aren't eligible — though the discount will apply to everyone on the booking
Link your card to your Aeroplan account
Book through Air Canada's website, app or call center
AIR CANADA
You'll receive the discount as long as at least one segment of your itinerary is operated by Air Canada (or its subsidiaries, Air Canada Express or Air Canada Rouge). That means you could fly United from Chicago to Montreal, then Air Canada from Montreal to London, and still receive the discount.
If you're booking a redemption entirely on a partner (or partners), then you won't receive the discount.
The discount only reduces the points portion of the base fare; taxes, fees and charges don't change. Neither do the cash portion of a points-plus-cash booking, travel insurance, trip cancellation insurance, purchases from third-party partners or Air Canada's carbon offset program.
You can pay with points from a pooled Aeroplan family account, as long as it has enough points for the booking.
Changes and cancellations follow Aeroplan's standard flight reward rules. If you change your booking later, you must remain the primary cardholder for the discount to apply to the new itinerary.
And this award discount can stack with Priority Rewards, saving you more points.
Priority Rewards are vouchers that take 50% off the points price of an eligible flight reward for one passenger. (Taxes, fees and charges are not discounted.)
Where you can travel with a Priority Reward depends on your Aeroplan status when you earn it:
25K: Economy within Canada and the U.S.
35K and 50K: Up to premium economy within North America
75K: Up to premium economy worldwide
Super Elite: Up to business class worldwide
ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
Confusingly, Priority Rewards are not automatically granted at each elite status level above. Instead, members can choose a Priority Reward as a Milestone Benefit when they reach certain levels of Status Qualifying Credits. The first opportunity comes at 20,000 Status Qualifying Credits, and more follow at higher thresholds. Other key rules include:
Each Priority Rewards voucher is valid for 12 months from when you select it, and you only need to book (not travel) before it expires
Every flight on the itinerary must be eligible under your voucher
Vouchers can't be transferred to another Aeroplan account
Basic economy fares are excluded
Fortunately, the refreshed Aeroplan Card doesn't even require you to step onto a plane to earn Milestone Rewards.
The card earns up to 25,000 SQCs toward Aeroplan elite status per calendar year: 5,000 automatically; an additional 10,000 after spending $25,000; and another 10,000 after spending $50,000. If you reach the full $50,000 spending threshold, you'll pass the 20,000 credits level to select a Priority Reward.
How to stack the 15% redemption discount with Priority Rewards
The card's 15% discount on Air Canada redemptions stacks with Priority Rewards, provided your booking meets the voucher's destination and cabin restrictions described above.
Say you find a one-way economy award on Air Canada from the U.S. to Canada for 30,000 Aeroplan points and have selected a Priority Reward as a Milestone Benefit. A Priority Reward halves that to 15,000 points. Then, the card's 15% discount applies to the reduced price, meaning you'd pay 12,750 points, for total savings of over 57%.
For elite members with higher status, the savings add up quickly. A Super Elite member using a Priority Reward on a business-class flight to Asia will save far more points than a 25K member flying economy to Canada.
TPG values Aeroplan points at 1.5 cents each in our September 2026 valuations, so you'd need to save 13,000 points in a year to cover the card's $195 annual fee (solely by maximizing this benefit).
You can easily save that on a premium cabin redemption to Europe for one person or round-trip economy fares for two or more.
The Aeroplan Card also comes with up to $100 in Air Canada statement credits each year. You get one $50 credit for the rest of 2026. From 2027, you can earn up to $50 from January to June and up to $50 more from July to December.
The credits cover purchases coded as Air Canada, including paid fares, award bookings and inflight purchases.
BEN SMITHSON/THE POINTS GUY
The card also offers:
Automatic Aeroplan 25K elite status every year, with no spending requirement. Perks include priority check-in, Zone 2 priority boarding and five eUpgrade Credits a year.
Up to 5 points per dollar spent on eligible Air Canada flights (3 points per dollar from the card, plus an additional 2 points per dollar from Air Canada when traveling as an Aeroplan 25K member)
3 points per dollar spent on all other travel
2 points per dollar spent at grocery stores* and on dining at restaurants* and at gas stations
A free first checked bag (for you and up to eight companions traveling on the same itinerary).
*Dining and grocery store purchases earn a boosted 3 points per dollar spent through the end of 2026.
Plus, every four years, you'll be reimbursed up to $120 toward your application fees for any of these three Trusted Traveler Programs: Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus.
Why Aeroplan remains such a great loyalty program
Aeroplan has long been my favorite Star Alliance loyalty program. It has a wide range of excellent Star Alliance airline partners, as well as unique nonalliance partners like Emirates and Virgin Australia, offers generous award charts for partner-operated flights, and doesn't add carrier-imposed surcharges. You can also add a stopover to a one-way award for 5,000 extra points, an excellent way to extend your vacation.
If you need to top up your account, Aeroplan is a 1:1 transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt, Capital One and Chase Ultimate Rewards.
You will still receive the 15% discount on Air Canada redemptions regardless of where the points were transferred or earned from, provided you have the Aeroplan Card.
Bottom line
The 15% discount is one of the most useful redemption benefits of the newly refreshed Aeroplan Card. While a discount was previously offered to those with Aeroplan 25K elite status, it varied by route and date, and I usually found it to be less than 10%.
Pair it with a Priority Reward, and the savings can get even bigger, covering the cost of the annual fee without factoring in all the other great perks of the card.
