Refreshed BMO Credit Card Offers

BMO has updated the welcome offers for their BMO Rewards credit cards: the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite^* Card, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege^* Card, and the BMO Ascend World Elite^®* Mastercard^®*.

Alongside higher headline bonuses, BMO has also leaned further into lifestyle-style perks this cycle. Depending on the card, that now includes Instacart credits, annual lifestyle or streaming-style credits, and, at the premium end, NEXUS application credits and airport priority benefits.

Keeping pace with a competitive credit card market, these updates are clearly designed to make BMO cards feel more “everyday useful” — not just rewarding on paper, but easier to justify keeping year after year.

Let’s take a look at what’s currently on offer, and how appealing these deals really are once you factor in spending requirements, opportunity cost, and how much of the fine print you’re actually willing to live with.

Before we dive in, recall that BMO Rewards points have a fixed value of 0.67 cents per point, or 150 points = $1.

BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card: Up to 70,000 Points

The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite^* Card is offering a signup bonus of up to 70,000 BMO Rewards points, broken down as follows:

• Earn 30,000 points upon spending $3,000 in the first 110 days
• Earn 20,000 points upon spending a total of $7,000 in the first 180 days
• Earn 20,000 points upon spending a total of $12,000 in the first 12 months

Compared to the previous monthly-bonus structure, this revised offer is a meaningful improvement. Instead of forcing cardholders into rigid $2,000 monthly spending targets over a full year, BMO has shifted to cumulative thresholds, which are far more realistic for most people.

At maximum value, 70,000 BMO Rewards points is worth about $467 in travel, which puts this firmly in the “good but not spectacular” range once opportunity cost is considered.

Where the eclipse Visa Infinite continues to justify itself is not purely through the bonus, but through its day-to-day usefulness.

The card earns 5x points on dining, groceries, gas, and transit, which works out to an effective 3.35% return on those categories. Add a supplementary cardholder and the earn rate increases by 10%, pushing that return closer to 3.7%, which remains among the strongest fixed-rate returns in Canada.

Cardholders receive a $50 annual lifestyle credit, a $20 monthly streaming subscription credit, and Instacart benefits, including six months of complimentary Instacart+ and a $10 monthly Instacart credit on eligible orders.

With the $120 annual fee waived in the first year, these credits go a long way toward boosting the card’s first-year value, even if you never reach the full 70,000-point headline bonus.

BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege* Card: Up to 200,000 Points

The BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege^* Card has also set an all-time high on paper, up to 200,000 BMO Rewards points. But as always, the devil is in the details:

• Earn 80,000 points upon spending $6,000 in the first 110 days
  Earn 60,000 points upon spending a total of $30,000 in the first six months
  Earn 80,000 points upon spending a total of $75,000 in the first year

There’s no denying that these numbers look massive at first glance. But as always with BMO Rewards, the devil is in the spending thresholds.

The initial 80,000-point bonus for $6,000 of spending is perfectly reasonable for a premium card. Where things start to unravel is everything that comes after.

Reaching the second and third tiers requires committing $30,000 and then $75,000 in total annual spending to a fixed-value points currency capped at 0.67 cents per point. At those levels, most points-savvy travellers would almost certainly be better off directing their spending toward cards with transferable points, higher marginal earn rates, or stronger category bonuses.

For that reason, we take a deliberately conservative approach when evaluating this offer.

Rather than assuming cardholders chase the full headline bonus, we focus only on the portion that delivers strong value without forcing outsized spending:

• 80,000 BMO Rewards points from the welcome bonus
• 6,000 BMO Rewards points from base earning on $6,000 of spending

That brings the total to 86,000 BMO Rewards points, worth approximately $576 when redeemed for travel.

Subtract the $599 annual fee, then add the card’s $200 annual lifestyle credit, and the result is a net first-year value of $177.

Beyond the math, the eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege* Card does justify itself for a narrower audience. It includes Visa Infinite Privilege airport benefits, six annual lounge visits through the Visa Airport Companion Program, priority airport services at select Canadian airports, a NEXUS application credit of up to $200, and comprehensive insurance coverage that applies even when only taxes and fees are charged to the card.

BMO has also extended its lifestyle perks to this card, including six months of Instacart+ and a $10 monthly Instacart credit, which adds some everyday utility to an otherwise travel-heavy product.

The takeaway is simple: while the eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege* Card carries a bigger headline and more premium airport perks, the regular eclipse Visa Infinite* Card may actually deliver more practical value for many households.

Between the lower annual fee, the $50 lifestyle credit, and the $20 monthly streaming subscription credit, the standard Visa Infinite can quietly offset a large portion of its cost if you already pay for these services anyway.

BMO Ascend World Elite®* Mastercard®*: Up to 100,000 Points

The BMO Ascend World Elite^®* Mastercard^®* remains the long-standing backbone of the BMO Rewards ecosystem, and it has quietly become one of the more compelling offers in BMO’s current lineup.

The card is now offering a welcome bonus of up to 100,000 BMO Rewards points, structured as follows:

• Earn 45,000 points upon spending $5,000 in the first 110 days
  Earn 20,000 points upon spending a total of $10,000 in the first 180 days
  Earn 35,000 points upon spending a total of $20,000 in the first 365 days

Unlike some of BMO’s other offers, this structure is cumulative rather than monthly, which makes it far more achievable for cardholders who don’t want to micromanage their spending.

That said, earning the full headline bonus still requires $20,000 in total spending within a year, which is not trivial for a fixed-value points currency capped at 0.67 cents per point.

It’s also offering a first year annual fee waiver, with a $150 annual fee thereafter.

On the perks side, the Ascend World Elite includes four complimentary DragonPass lounge visits, a NEXUS application credit of up to $200 in the first year, and now six months of Instacart+ with a $10 monthly Instacart credit once enrolled.

In many ways, the Ascend World Elite occupies a different niche than the eclipse cards. It’s less about lifestyle credits and subscription offsets, and more about traditional travel benefits and insurance coverage, which remains one of the strongest in BMO’s portfolio.

For travellers who prefer Mastercard acceptance, want lounge access without stepping up to a $599 product, and value a robust insurance package on award travel, the Ascend World Elite continues to make a strong case, provided you’re comfortable earning a fixed-value currency.

BMO Air Miles Cards: Ongoing Offers

BMO’s AIR MILES credit cards haven’t changed dramatically on the surface, but there have been a few notable updates that quietly improve their day-to-day appeal.

Most importantly, Instacart benefits have now been extended across the AIR MILES^® lineup, which adds some tangible, everyday value to a program that has increasingly leaned toward predictability over aspirational redemptions.

The BMO AIR MILES^®† World Elite^®* Mastercard^®* continues to be the flagship option for collectors, offering a tiered welcome bonus of up to 7,000 AIR MILES^® tied to spending milestones in the first year.

In addition to stronger earn rates than the no-fee version, the card’s headline perk remains its 25% discount on one eligible AIR MILES^® flight redemption each calendar year, capped at 750 miles. For frequent AIR MILES^® users, this can meaningfully improve redemption value, especially on short-haul or last-minute flights.

This card also includes DragonPass lounge membership, automatic AIR MILES^® Onyx status, and now six months of Instacart+ with a $10 monthly Instacart credit once enrolled.

AIR MILES^® is expected to merge into a single points currency in January 2026, independent of current credit card offer timelines. It remains to be seen whether this transition unlocks any meaningful high-value redemption opportunities, or simply reinforces AIR MILES_® as a more restricted, cash-equivalent rewards program rather than one designed for outsized value.

At the entry level, the no-fee BMO AIR MILES^®† Mastercard^®* remains a straightforward way to earn miles without committing to an annual fee.

The current welcome bonus of 1,200 AIR MILES^® for $1,500 of spending is modest, but reasonable for a no-fee product. The earn rates are similarly unexciting, though acceptable for light spending or topping up an existing balance.

What meaningfully improves the card is the addition of three months of Instacart+ and a $5 monthly Instacart credit, which adds real-world value that many cardholders will actually use.

As a long-term keeper card, the no-fee AIR MILES^® Mastercard works well for preserving credit history, participating in periodic AIR MILES^® promotions, or serving as a companion to a higher-tier AIR MILES^® card.

Just don’t expect it to be your primary earner.

Overall, BMO’s AIR MILES^® cards are still best suited for existing AIR MILES^® collectors who value simplicity, predictability, and partner-based earning.

If you’re starting from scratch or looking to maximize travel value, there are stronger ecosystems elsewhere. But for those already committed to AIR MILES^®, these cards remain serviceable — and slightly more useful than before thanks to the new Instacart perks.

Conclusion

BMO’s latest refresh isn’t about chasing the biggest possible signup bonus — it’s about making their cards easier to justify keeping.

Rather than dangling outsized points totals, BMO is leaning into everyday offsets: monthly streaming credits, Instacart perks, annual lifestyle credits, and NEXUS rebates. These benefits quietly reduce the real cost of holding the cards, even if you don’t maximize every part of the welcome offer.

That shift makes BMO’s cards feel less aspirational, but more practical. The value isn’t in squeezing out maximum redemption value, it’s in lowering recurring expenses you’re already paying anyway.

AIR MILES fits neatly into that theme. With Instacart benefits layered in, the cards are more useful than before, just not designed for people chasing outsized travel upside. They work best for collectors already in the ecosystem.

At the time of writing, these offers are scheduled to run until October 31, 2026 (AIR MILES cards until June 1, 2026), though BMO has a history of extending or quietly adjusting promotions.

If you view BMO’s cards as cost-reduction tools rather than points-optimization machines, the current lineup makes a lot more sense.