Is the Aeroplan® Card worth the higher annual fee?

The Aeroplan® Card costs $195/yr vs $150/yr for the United Explorer Card. Compare the year-one vs ongoing value table on this page — the $45 gap must be offset by higher earn rates, welcome offers, or credits you will use (the Aeroplan® Card also lists travel credits, dining credits).

Which card earns more rewards, the Aeroplan® Card or United Explorer Card?

Both cards earn 1X on everyday purchases. The difference is in bonus categories — check the earn rate comparison above for a full breakdown.

What benefits does the Aeroplan® Card have that the United Explorer Card doesn't?

The Aeroplan® Card offers travel credits, dining credits. The United Explorer Card offers lounge access, travel credits.

Should I get the Aeroplan® Card or the United Explorer Card?

Use the spend scenarios on this page: the United Explorer Card has a lower $150/yr fee; the Aeroplan® Card must earn enough extra (or offer a larger welcome bonus) to justify $195/yr.

Aeroplan® Card vs United Explorer Card

Annual fees: Aeroplan® Card $195/yr, United Explorer Card $150/yr. Strongest bonus categories: Aeroplan® Card on travel, United Explorer Card on dining.

Card data as of October 12, 2026.

Credit card comparison
Overview
	Aeroplan® Card Chase · $195/yr	United Explorer Card Chase · $150/yr
Annual fee	$195	$150 Lowest Waived first year
Welcome offerCurrent public offer	75,000 points	Up to 80,000 miles
Rewards	Aeroplan Loyalty Program	United MileagePlus
Foreign transaction fee	None	None
Network	Mastercard World Elite	Visa Signature
Earn ratesPer $1 spent
Travel	3x Highest	1x
Dining	2x	2x
Gas Stations	2x Highest	1x
Grocery Stores	2x Highest	1x
Hotels	1x	2x Highest
Everything else	1x	1x
Statement creditsAs the issuer states them · — means none on record
Travel	$120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS · $120 every 4 years	$100 United travel $100 JSX flights $100 United Hotels $50 Avis/Budget travel $120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS 25% United inflight
Rideshare & transit	—	$5/mo rideshare credit · $5 monthly
Dining & delivery	DoorDash DashPass	$10/mo Instacart+ · $10 monthly 3-mo Instacart+
Other credits	Up to $100 in Air Canada credits · $50 every 6 months Credit Journey	—
Perks & access— means none on record
Lounges	—	2 United Club one-time passes annually
Hotel status & programs	Automatic Aeroplan 25K Status Aeroplan 35K Status at $75,000 spend	—
Airline perks	15% off Air Canada flight redemptions Free First Checked Bags	Free first checked bag for you plus companion Priority boarding on all United flights
Other perks	No foreign transaction fees Mastercard 24/7 Concierge	No foreign transaction fees Premier upgrades on award tickets United Card Events from Chase and United MileagePlus Events Earn 10,000-mile award discount after $20K annual spend
Protections & insuranceLimits where published · — means none on record
Trip insurance	Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance · up to $1,500 Trip Delay Reimbursement · up to $500	Trip cancellation coverage up to $6,000 per trip Trip delay coverage up to $500 per person after 12 hours
Baggage	Baggage Delay Insurance · up to $100	Baggage delay coverage up to $100/day for 3 days Lost luggage coverage up to $3,000 per person
Rental car	Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver	Rental car insurance up to $60,000 coverage
Purchase & returns	Purchase Protection · up to $500 24/7 Fraud Monitoring	Purchase protection up to $10,000 per item for 120 days
Extended warranty	—	Extended warranty adds 1 year to manufacturer warranty
Other protections	Roadside Assistance	—
Pros & cons
Pros	—	$0 intro annual fee first year, then $150—reasonable for the benefits Free first checked bag for cardholder and companion saves up to $200 roundtrip 3x miles on United, 2x on dining and hotels—solid everyday earning Up to $530+ in annual credits (United travel, hotels, rideshare, Instacart, JSX) 2 United Club one-time passes per year worth $100+
Cons	—	Only 1x miles on non-category spend limits earning potential Best credits require hitting $10K-$20K spend thresholds No United Club membership—just 2 single-use passes Priority boarding is Group 2, not as early as premium cards Miles locked to United MileagePlus with limited transfer flexibility
	Card details	Card details

Aeroplan® Card
Chase · $195/yr
United Explorer Card
Chase · $150/yr

Overview

Annual fee: Aeroplan® Card
$195
United Explorer Card
$150
Lowest
Waived first year
Welcome offerCurrent public offer: Aeroplan® Card
75,000 points
United Explorer Card
Up to 80,000 miles
Rewards: Aeroplan® Card
Aeroplan Loyalty Program
United Explorer Card
United MileagePlus
Foreign transaction fee: Aeroplan® Card
None
United Explorer Card
None
Network: Aeroplan® Card
Mastercard World Elite
United Explorer Card
Visa Signature

Earn ratesPer $1 spent

Travel: Aeroplan® Card
3x
Highest
United Explorer Card
1x
Dining: Aeroplan® Card
2x
United Explorer Card
2x
Gas Stations: Aeroplan® Card
2x
Highest
United Explorer Card
1x
Grocery Stores: Aeroplan® Card
2x
Highest
United Explorer Card
1x
Hotels: Aeroplan® Card
1x
United Explorer Card
2x
Highest
Everything else: Aeroplan® Card
1x
United Explorer Card
1x

Statement creditsAs the issuer states them · — means none on record

Travel: Aeroplan® Card
$120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS · $120 every 4 years
United Explorer Card
$100 United travel
$100 JSX flights
$100 United Hotels
$50 Avis/Budget travel
$120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS
25% United inflight
Rideshare & transit: Aeroplan® Card
—
United Explorer Card
$5/mo rideshare credit · $5 monthly
Dining & delivery: Aeroplan® Card
DoorDash DashPass
United Explorer Card
$10/mo Instacart+ · $10 monthly
3-mo Instacart+
Other credits: Aeroplan® Card
Up to $100 in Air Canada credits · $50 every 6 months
Credit Journey
United Explorer Card
—

Perks & access— means none on record

Lounges: Aeroplan® Card
—
United Explorer Card
2 United Club one-time passes annually
Hotel status & programs: Aeroplan® Card
Automatic Aeroplan 25K Status
Aeroplan 35K Status at $75,000 spend
United Explorer Card
—
Airline perks: Aeroplan® Card
15% off Air Canada flight redemptions
Free First Checked Bags
United Explorer Card
Free first checked bag for you plus companion
Priority boarding on all United flights
Other perks: Aeroplan® Card
No foreign transaction fees
Mastercard 24/7 Concierge
United Explorer Card
No foreign transaction fees
Premier upgrades on award tickets
United Card Events from Chase and United MileagePlus Events
Earn 10,000-mile award discount after $20K annual spend

Protections & insuranceLimits where published · — means none on record

Trip insurance: Aeroplan® Card
Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance · up to $1,500
Trip Delay Reimbursement · up to $500
United Explorer Card
Trip cancellation coverage up to $6,000 per trip
Trip delay coverage up to $500 per person after 12 hours
Baggage: Aeroplan® Card
Baggage Delay Insurance · up to $100
United Explorer Card
Baggage delay coverage up to $100/day for 3 days
Lost luggage coverage up to $3,000 per person
Rental car: Aeroplan® Card
Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
United Explorer Card
Rental car insurance up to $60,000 coverage
Purchase & returns: Aeroplan® Card
Purchase Protection · up to $500
24/7 Fraud Monitoring
United Explorer Card
Purchase protection up to $10,000 per item for 120 days
Extended warranty: Aeroplan® Card
—
United Explorer Card
Extended warranty adds 1 year to manufacturer warranty
Other protections: Aeroplan® Card
Roadside Assistance
United Explorer Card
—

Pros & cons

Pros: Aeroplan® Card
—
United Explorer Card
$0 intro annual fee first year, then $150—reasonable for the benefits
Free first checked bag for cardholder and companion saves up to $200 roundtrip
3x miles on United, 2x on dining and hotels—solid everyday earning
Up to $530+ in annual credits (United travel, hotels, rideshare, Instacart, JSX)
2 United Club one-time passes per year worth $100+
Cons: Aeroplan® Card
—
United Explorer Card
Only 1x miles on non-category spend limits earning potential
Best credits require hitting $10K-$20K spend thresholds
No United Club membership—just 2 single-use passes
Priority boarding is Group 2, not as early as premium cards
Miles locked to United MileagePlus with limited transfer flexibility

Card details

Add a 3rd or 4th card to this comparison →

Category-by-Category Winner

The Aeroplan® Card wins in 3 of 4 categories. The United Explorer Card leads in 1.

Grocery Stores

Aeroplan® Card earns 2X vs 1X

Travel

Aeroplan® Card earns 3X vs 1X

Gas Stations

Aeroplan® Card earns 2X vs 1X

Hotels

United Explorer Card earns 2X vs 1X

Year One vs Ongoing Value

Modeled net value (bonus categories at unconditional rates, caps applied). Spend mix: dining 15%, groceries 15%, gas 10%, travel 10%, everything else 50%. Statement credits use the same recurring usable estimates as each card's detail page; first-year-only credits count in year one only. Welcome offers valued at each card's program rate shown on this page.

Modeled value is close across spend levels — especially once statement credits are counted.

Scenario	Aeroplan® Card	United Explorer Card	Ongoing winner	Year-one winner
Light spender: $1,000/month	Rewards: $250 Credits (our usable estimate): $93 − Annual fee ($195) Ongoing: $148 Year one: $1,123	Rewards: $166 Credits (our usable estimate): $182 − Annual fee ($150) Ongoing: $198 Year one: $1,188	Close — depends on how much of the credits you use	Close — depends on how much of the credits you use
Heavy spender: $4,000/month	Rewards: $998 Credits (our usable estimate): $93 − Annual fee ($195) Ongoing: $896 Year one: $1,871	Rewards: $662 Credits (our usable estimate): $182 − Annual fee ($150) Ongoing: $694 Year one: $1,684	Aeroplan® Card	Aeroplan® Card

Is the Fee Difference Worth It?

The Aeroplan® Card costs $195/yr — that's $45 more than the United Explorer Card ($150/yr). To justify that gap, you need to extract at least $45 in annual value from the card's higher earn rates and benefits.

The Aeroplan® Card includes travel credits, dining credits, Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit, free checked bags. Those perks are not included in the earn-rate scenario table above — compare their dollar value to the $45 fee gap for your own usage.

Bottom line: Use the year-one vs ongoing table for modeled earn value at your spend level. The $45 fee gap means the Aeroplan® Card needs roughly $45 more in annual rewards (or credits you will use) to break even on travel and dining and everyday spend.

What You Give Up

Choosing one card means missing out on these benefits from the other.

Choosing Aeroplan® Card means losing:

-Airport lounge access

Which Card Is Right for You?

Get the Aeroplan® Card if you:

+Do most of your spending at grocery stores

Get the United Explorer Card if you:

+Fly frequently and value airport lounge access

The Bottom Line

Modeled value is close across spend levels — especially once statement credits are counted.

Published annual fees: Aeroplan® Card $195/yr, United Explorer Card $150/yr — a $45 difference before welcome offers and credits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Aeroplan® Card worth the higher annual fee?: The Aeroplan® Card costs $195/yr vs $150/yr for the United Explorer Card. Compare the year-one vs ongoing value table on this page — the $45 gap must be offset by higher earn rates, welcome offers, or credits you will use (the Aeroplan® Card also lists travel credits, dining credits).
Which card earns more rewards, the Aeroplan® Card or United Explorer Card?: Both cards earn 1X on everyday purchases. The difference is in bonus categories — check the earn rate comparison above for a full breakdown.
What benefits does the Aeroplan® Card have that the United Explorer Card doesn't?: The Aeroplan® Card offers travel credits, dining credits. The United Explorer Card offers lounge access, travel credits.
Should I get the Aeroplan® Card or the United Explorer Card?: Use the spend scenarios on this page: the United Explorer Card has a lower $150/yr fee; the Aeroplan® Card must earn enough extra (or offer a larger welcome bonus) to justify $195/yr.

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Official issuer pages: Chase cards

Editorial disclosure: CardRewards.ai is an independent comparison service. Card data comes from issuers' published terms; catalog last published October 12, 2026, and each card page shows when its terms were last checked. Card issuers do not influence our rankings or content.