Now that we are in 2015, American Express is gone from Costco Canada stores and Mastercard is in. While Capital One® took the co-branded card away from American Express with essentially the same offering on their Capital One® Platinum Mastercard® it does not mean you have to have that card to shop at Costco. In fact any Mastercard card is accepted at Costco locations across Canada and with so many Mastercard cards to choose from here in the Great White North we thought it would be best to pass along our picks for the five best cards to use at Costco.

1. mbna Rewards World Elite Mastercard - 2% return on Costco purchases

A very popular card right now on Rewards Canada thanks to some other Mastercards becoming weaker, the mbna Rewards World Elite Mastercard is the best card to use at Costco thanks to its 2% return. Doesn't matter if you redeem it for travel or for cash back, which the card offers without dilution like most other programs. And you can choose to get that cash back in any month - not just once per year like the majority of cash back cards in Canada. Sure the card may not have as big of sign up bonus or as good of insurance package as most of the cards below but it also comes with a lower annual fee and if you do spend lots that extra 0.5% can easily make up the difference on the benefits side, that is if you even need them.

2. WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard - 1.5% return on Costco Purchases

The earn ratio goes down as we get through this list, the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard earns 1.5% WestJet Dollars for every dollar spent which means it is a 1.5% cash back card and that is the return you'll get on your Costco purchases. Add in the $99 to $399 annual companion fares, the $250 sign up bonus, first bag free on WestJet flights and you have yourself not only a good return at Costco but lots of other benefits!

3. BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard - 1.5% return on Costco purchases

This card isn't travel rewards related but it offers up a good cash back return of 1.5% on all purchases at Costco and everywhere else. Add the limited time offer of 4% back on all purchases in the first four months (up to a total of $250 cash back) and you can see why this card would be good to use at Costco. The card also offers one of the better insurance packages out there for a cash back card.

4. BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard - ~1.43% return on Costco purchases

This card used to be our number one card to use at Costco but that all changed on January 15, 2018. The rewards structure changed, so while the card still earns 2 points per dollar spent at Costco it now takes 140 points to get $1 worth of travel versus the 100 points prior to the middle of January. That drops the earn rate at Costco down to 1.43%. That's a significant drop hence the drop from first to third. The card does however come with a great insurance package, limited time first year free offers (no annual fee) and access to airport business class lounges.

5. National Bank of Canada World Elite Mastercard - 1.36% to 1.68% return on Costco purchases

This card comes in with an overall slightly lower earn ratio than the cards before it. Sure the card can get you a 2% return but that is for your spending between $40,001 and $80,000 on the card and when redeeming at higher levels. Prior to that the rate is lower and above that the rate lowers again so your average return will be below 2%. And you only get the best return if you redeem 50,000 or more points at a time. Kind of a convoluted program if you ask me but the card has other benefits like reimbursements for travel expenses like airport parking and airline baggage fees that try to make up for the lower earn rate compared to other cards.

What about the Capital One® Platinum Mastercard® - Exclusively for Costco members

Although it isn't travel rewards related, the Capital One® Platinum Mastercard® - Exclusively for Costco members is a essentially a cash back card that replaced the True Earnings Card from Costco and American Express. While it has some great cash back earnings for non Costco purchases, you will in fact only earn 0.5% to 1% back on your actual spending at Costco which is less than other cash back or travel rewards credit cards so that is why this card doesn't factor in as one of the best Mastercard cards to use at Costco.

Even if you have a Mastercard card that is not on this list but it earns rewards you are ahead of the game, it doesn't mean that your card is bad. It could very well be the right card for you or perhaps it is just OK and one of these will work better for you, especially if you spend a lot at Costco stores. You should also take into account all your other purchasing and loyalty program miles/points accumulation before applying for a new card or jumping ship from the card you currently have.

What do you think of this list? Are any of these cards in your wallet? If not are you apt to choose one of them or will you go with another Mastercard card?

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“The interest rates, fees, rewards details, benefits and other details of the Capital One product(s) described in the article may have changed since the time of publication. Please consult the product information pages on the Capital One website for accurate product details. In the event of any conflict between the product details in this article and the Capital One website, the details on the Capital One website shall prevail.”