What is changing on the Chase Aeroplan Card?
Three things are moving at once: new benefits are being added, the welcome offer is the best it has ever been, and the annual fee is going up.
All three points describe the same card at the same time, so the decision is not simply “is the offer bigger” or “is the fee higher” taken alone. A cardholder weighing the card has to look at the added benefits and the larger welcome offer against the higher annual fee together.
What the higher annual fee means for the math
An annual fee is a recurring cost, while a welcome offer is generally earned once. That difference matters when the fee rises: the offer is a one-time gain against a cost that repeats each year the card is kept.
This does not make the card good or bad on its own. It means the case for holding the card has to rest on the benefits and on whatever ongoing value the cardholder gets, because the first-year welcome offer cannot by itself offset a fee that recurs.
How to think about the new benefits
The new benefits are part of the same change as the higher fee, so they are the natural place to look for the offsetting value. The practical question is whether the benefits are ones the cardholder will actually use, since an unused benefit does not reduce the cost of keeping the card.
That is a judgement each cardholder has to make against their own travel and spending patterns; the evidence here does not assign a value to any individual benefit.
Weighing the best-ever welcome offer
A “best-ever” welcome offer means the offer is larger than any previous version of this card’s offer. It says nothing about how it compares with offers on other cards, and it does not change the fact that a welcome offer is typically a one-time event.
For a new applicant, the sequence is straightforward: the offer is at its highest point for this card, the fee is higher than before, and the new benefits are in place. The larger offer improves the first-year picture, but the higher fee continues to apply afterward.
FAQ
Is the welcome offer the best it has ever been on this card? Yes. The welcome offer on the Chase Aeroplan Card is the best it has ever been.
Did the annual fee go up? Yes. The annual fee on the Chase Aeroplan Card is higher.
Are new benefits being added to the card? Yes. New benefits are being added to the Chase Aeroplan Card at the same time as the higher annual fee and the best-ever welcome offer.