Credit cards · Card review
Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite review
The only card paying 4% on BOTH groceries and recurring bills — the two most predictable lines in any household budget — with caps generous enough to ignore. The welcome window (15% intro, to Nov 1) makes 2026 a good year to get it.
Best for: Bill-heavy households that want one card to carry the budget’s backbone
Pros
- 4% groceries + 4% recurring payments — each to a roomy $25,000/yr
- 2% on gas, EV charging, transit and food delivery
- 15% intro on the first $2,000 (to $300) + first-year fee waiver — window to Nov 1, 2026
- 15-day under-65 travel medical and $1,000 mobile device insurance
Cons
- 1% after the caps and on everything else
- Gas at 2% trails the 4%-fuel cards
- 65+ travel medical: not covered per the card page
- Excluded from the welcome if you held any Scotia card in the past 2 years
The bills-and-groceries thesis
Most premium cash cards fight over groceries and gas; Momentum’s 4% lands on groceries and recurring payments — utilities, phone, internet, insurance premiums, streaming, subscriptions. Those two categories are the budget’s backbone: predictable, unavoidable, immune to spending temptation, and big enough that 4% vs 2% is real money. No other Canadian card pairs them at this rate.
The caps are sized to be ignorable: $25,000 a year each means $2,083/month of groceries and the same again of bills before anything drops to 1%. Our bills page and grocery table both rank it at or near the top.
Where it loses, and to whom
Drivers: gas earns 2% here against 4% at CIBC Dividend — the head-to-head at Momentum vs Dividend turns almost entirely on your bills-versus-gas mix (our standard household has Momentum ahead $876 to $828). And very large total spenders may prefer Amex SimplyCash Preferred’s uncapped flat 2%, which wins our worked example outright at $912.
The fine print worth knowing
The travel medical runs 15 days under 65 — and nothing at 65+ per the card page, standard for cash-back Visas (the cards that survive 65 are on the retiree page). The welcome exclusion is broader than most: any Scotia personal card in the prior two years disqualifies you. And the $5,000 minimum credit limit is worth knowing if you keep limits deliberately low.
Frequently asked questions
What does the Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite cost?
Annual fee: $120 — $50 per supplementary — both waived first year under the current offer. Purchase rate 20.99%; cash advances 22.99%. Foreign transactions: Not published on the card page — confirm in the cardholder agreement (typically 2.5%). All figures verified at Scotiabank’s own pages on June 12, 2026 — compare the field on our main card table.
What are the Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite’s earn rates — with the caps?
4% groceries + recurring payments (each to $25,000/yr spend). 2% gas, EV charging, daily transit and food delivery ($25,000/yr). 1% after caps and on everything else. Caps are where card marketing goes to die — our worked household math prices every major card through its caps.
Does the Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite include travel medical insurance?
Under 65: 15 days ($1M) · 65+: not covered per the card page. Card medical attaches to holding the card in good standing (the trip doesn’t need to be charged to it), but trip cancellation/interruption benefits do require paying with the card. The full certificate-verified age-cliff table is on our retiree cards page.
Who can get the Scotiabank Momentum Visa Infinite?
$60k–$80k personal / $100k–$150k household (Scotia’s stated range) · min credit limit $5,000. Current welcome offer: 15% cash back on the first $2,000 of purchases in 3 months (up to $300) + first-year fee waiver — window May 1 to Nov 1, 2026; excluded if you held a Scotia personal card in the past 2 years. Offers change without notice — confirm on the issuer’s page before applying.
The bottom line
For the household whose money mostly leaves through the grocery store and the bill pile — which is most households, and almost all retired ones — Momentum is the most precisely aimed card in Canada. Catch the intro window before November 1 and the first year is essentially free money.
Educational review, not credit advice or an offer of credit. Facts verified at Scotiabank’s own pages (insurance from certificates where stated) on June 12, 2026; offers, rates and terms change without notice — confirm on the issuer’s page before applying. Quebec residents may see different offers and rates.