With the rapidly evolving Canadian credit card market, younger generations and new Canadians are driving the demand for innovative, secure, and informed credit card features. AI-driven tools offering personalized insights and recommendations are gaining traction, while in-person interactions remain essential for building trust during credit card applications.
As competition among providers intensifies, the focus will shift toward enhancing app features to deliver more insightful digital tools for tracking finances and offering flexible rewards that cater to the diverse interests and needs of Canadians. Leveraging merchant partnerships for cashback and integrating Buy Now, Play Later (BNPL) directly into credit cards will enable providers to address a broader range of consumer preferences and stand out in an increasingly competitive market.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Factors impacting credit card usage and adoption
- Channel used to apply for a credit card
- Barriers to credit card adoption
- Attitudes toward credit cards, including factors influencing choices
- Valuable features from credit card providers
New Canadians and younger, tech-savvy consumers are reshaping the credit card market, seeking innovative, flexible, and tailored solutions to meet evolving needs.
Radha Paleja, Senior Analyst, Financial Services
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
“New Canadians” refers to adults that have become Canadian in the past 10 years.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Market predictions
- What consumers want & why
- Opportunities
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THE MARKET
- Market context
- Canadians are bracing for economic uncertainty
- Quarterly flows of household credit market debt in Canada: mortgage, consumer credit and total debt
- Graph 1: household credit market debt, seasonally adjusted flows, 2019-25
- Market drivers
- Stabilized inflation won’t curb credit card reliance
- Graph 2: the 12-month change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and CPI excluding gasoline, 2021-25
- The role of credit cards in Canada’s ecommerce boom
- Graph 3: monthly retail trade ecommerce sales (x 1,000), 2020-25
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CONSUMER INSIGHTS
- Consumer fast facts
- Application channels
- In-person applications still dominate
- Graph 4: credit card application channels, top channels, 2025
- Men are comfortable with a variety of application channels
- Graph 5: credit card application channels, NET channels, by gender, 2025
- Gen Z embraces all application channels
- Graph 6: credit card application channels, NET channels, by generation, 2025
- New Canadians prefer face-to-face support
- Graph 7: credit card application channels, NET channels, by new Canadian status, 2025
- Credit card acquisition motivation
- Rewards are the top motivator
- Graph 8: credit card acquisition motivations, 2025
- Younger generations focus on becoming financially established
- Graph 9: credit card acquisition motivations, by generation, 2025
- New Canadians need to build trust with providers
- Graph 10: credit card acquisition motivations, by new Canadian status, 2025
- Reasons to not own a credit card
- Fear of debt keeps some consumers away
- Graph 11: reasons to not own a credit card, 2025
- Security concerns are more common among new Canadians
- Graph 12: reasons to not own a credit card, by new Canadian status, 2025
- Ways rewards are redeemed on primary credit card
- Cashback is king for rewards
- Graph 13: credit card rewards redemption methods, 2025
- Gen Z loves flexible reward options
- Graph 14: credit card rewards redemption methods, by generation, 2025
- Desired areas of improvement
- Consumers want better rewards and clarity
- Graph 15: credit card desired areas of improvement, 2025
- Gen Z demands smarter financial tools
- Graph 16: credit card desired areas of improvement – select responses, by gender, 2025
- New Canadians seek tailored education
- Graph 17: credit card desired areas of improvement – select responses, by new Canadian status, 2025
- Factors that could lead to getting a regular/unsecured credit card
- No annual fees and strong rewards win new consumers
- Graph 18: important factors for credit card adoption, 2025
- Gen Z driven by low interest rates
- Graph 19: important factors for credit card adoption – select responses, by generation, 2025
- New Canadians value no-fee cards
- Graph 20: important factors for credit card adoption – select responses, by new Canadian status, 2025
- Attitudes toward credit cards
- Apps are underused despite their potential
- Graph 21: attitudes towards credit cards, preferences and usage habits, 2025
- Cashback is a valuable feature to market
- Graph 22: attitudes towards credit cards, preferences and usage habits, by generation, 2025
- First-year fee waivers build loyalty
- Graph 23: attitudes towards credit cards, ownership, features and motivations, 2025
- Men are more likely to own a credit card outside of their primary bank
- Graph 24: attitudes towards credit cards, ownership, features and motivations, by gender, 2025
- More use, more stress, new solutions
- Graph 25: attitudes towards credit cards, behaviours and concerns, by all and race/ethnicity, 2025
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COMPETITIVE STRATEGIES
- Marketing and advertising
- BNPL integration meets demands for flexible repayment
- Merchant partnerships for a competitive edge
- Skipped annual fee = skipped stress
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APPENDIX
- Timing of most recent credit card
- One in five consumers opened a credit card within the last year
- Graph 26: timing of most recent credit card acquisition, 2025
- Market definition
- Consumer research methodology
- Consumer research questions
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
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