[ANALYSIS] BMO Air Miles World Elite MasterCard

The Bank of Montreal is offering its new Air Miles World Elite MasterCard, so today, we will be analysing the benefits of this credit card and whether the annual fee is worth it. Below are the highlights of the credit card:

• $120 annual fee
• No fee for supplementary cardholders
• Earn 1,000 Air Miles bonus points (if you apply between May 13, 2015 and October 31, 2015)
• Earn 1 Air Mile for every $10 spent on all purchases
• Receive a 25% Flight Discount
• Travel & Medical Insurance
• Receive 2 Priority Pass lounges passes per year
• BMO Concierge Service

The $120 annual fee may seem steep, if once you look at the benefits included in this credit card, it might actually be worth it. First of all, earning 1 point for every $10 spent on all purchases is actually a great rate. I value 1 Air Mile at 11 cents each. So spending $10, you are essentially getting 1.1% return, which is fair, but not great.

The value of the $120 comes with the benefits. First of all, having the ability to redeem for Air Miles reward flight at 25% fewer points is amazing value.

The travel and medical insurance is always great to have. The credit card also gives you an annual Priority Pass membership with 2 complimentary passes per year is always nice to have.

When you factor in all the benefits that come with this credit card, the annual fee can be justified.

Personally, for the moment, I still prefer the American Express Air Miles Platinum Card, because its annual fee is waived. The benefits are not as great though, so there is an argument to be made that this is a better credit card to get, depending on how much you value your Air Miles.

I am actually very excited about this credit card. It is about time that we have a more competitive Air Miles credit card. This helps with the value of Air Miles.