How to Save on Gas in Canada – 10 Cents per Litre Discount – Road trip Gas Hacks

Best Methods to Save on Gas in Canada

The weather is getting nicer and we will be doing more road trips (Versus total 2000 km in the past 5 months). I’d like to find whatever technique possible to save on gas. In this post, I am going to cover my newest finding about saving on gas.

Recently, I found JOURNIE Rewards accidentally after getting my new CIBC credit card (To receive the promotional bonus).

You might also like to read about True Best Travel Credit Cards in Canada 2021.

Requirement to Save 10 Cents per Litre on Gas

Not much! A CIBC debit or credit card along a Free JOURNIE Rewards Account. You can still get 7 cents per liter by only signing up to Journie App. It is really cool.

What Credit Cards are Eligible

For personal banking, all CIBC debit and credit cards except Simplii cards. For business banking clients, Journie only works with CIBC business debit card.

I recommend CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card as there is currently a great offer and it only needs $15000 household income.

The offer includes a 10% cash back for the first 4 statements up to $2000. That is $200 in cash which can be used toward paying your statement. In addition, the $99 first-year annual fee is waived. After the promotional 4 months, there will be 3% cash back on gas and grocery, 2% on dining, transportation, and recurring payments, plus 1% cash back on all other purchases.

For clarification, I got CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite and CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite and linked them to Journie successfully. You can read the details here my newest 3 credit cards in 2 days.

Receive Cash Back or Points Plus Discounted Fuel Price

Depends on what card you will be using, there will be cash back or points for gas spending. Below are the cash back percentage or points for CIBC cards. The details of this offer can be found on CIBC Website.

• CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card: 1.5 Aventura Points
• CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card: 1.5 Aeroplan Points
• CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite Card: 10% (For 4 months) then 3% cash back
• CIBC Aventura Gold Visa Card: 1.5 Aventura Points
• CIBC Aventura Visa Card: 1 Aventura Points – $0 Annual Fee
• CIBC Aeroplan Visa Card: 1 Aeroplan Point – $0 Annual Fee
• CIBC Dividend Visa Card: 1% cash back – $0 Annual Fee

You can use any other card you prefer. For example, if you already have a credit card paying you 3% cash back on gas and you don’t feel like applying for another card, keep using that card but you will only get 7 cents discount. CIBC – Journie partnership makes the 10 cents per liter possible.

What is JOURNIE Rewards and How to Register

JOURNIE Rewards is a great service where customers accumulate JOURNIE Rewards in exchange for Fuel Discount. There are 3 ways to register. However, to get extra bonus register via the App first. I then requested the Plastic card to be shipped to my address.

• App: Download JOURNIE Rewards App from the Apple App store or Google Play store and use it to register now.
• Plastic Card: Pick up a JOURNIE Rewards Card at any participating Chevron, Pioneer or Ultramar station, or use the number on your current Card, and register your Card online at Journie.ca.
• Journie.ca: Register right away at their website, then choose to download the app – or request a plastic card through the link on your profile – at any point down the road.

How Does the Discounted Fuel Price Work

It might sound a bit complicated initially, but it is really simple. I am going to explain when using a CIBC credit card. You can also find all JOURNIE Rewards promotions here.

1. Get CIBC cash back or points while filling up gas. This varies depends on the card.
2. Swipe or enter your JOURNIE ID Code and get 3 cents per litre discount at one of the participating Pioneer, Ultramar, or Chevron gas stations.
3. While using your JOURNIE ID Code, you get 1 Point per 1 litre and 2 Points per $1 in store
4. Every time you earn 300 JOURNIE Points, you’re all set to receive a 7 cents Fuel Discount, which is automatically applied to the first 100 litres of the next fill-up. Discount is available for one transaction only and only for a maximum of 100 litres.
5. Keep accumulating points even when you are using a discounted gas cost. This means, you will need to put in 300 litres of gas to get a discount. It won’t be as good as I hoped for because my car fuel tank is small (50 L) which makes us require 350 liters of gas to get the 7 cents discount.

Sounds Complicated. Why did I Join

Honestly, I never paid attention to this app till I received my CIBC card. But Ultramar is the closest gas station to where I live. It is only a 1 min drive from me, and I love getting discounted prices.

What I have been doing was to go to a Canadian Tire Gas+ (12 min drive) and fill up using my Canadian Tire Triangle World Elite Mastercard. This card gives a nice 5 cent discount per liter in CT Money.

However, we are hopefully going to do some road trips this Summer, so I wanted to have more discount options. JOURNIE Rewards gives that discount.

How Much in Saving When Joining and Using JORUNIE Rewards

1. Join by downloading the App and get 150 points = 2 free rewards
2. Link your CIBC Card and get 150 points = 2 free rewards

Now you have 300 points enough to take the 7 cents discount plus 3 cents by using CIBC card on top of the cash back or points.

Somehow magically, I received an extra 75 points for a total of 375 points. Every time, you reach 75 or 150 points, you get a reward unlocked. The girls and I biked to Ultramar today so I show them how points can be beneficial in real life.

We had 3 rewards unlocked plus the 7 cents discount which I haven’t used yet. All the rewards were unhealthy delicious snacks. KitKat, CARAMILK, and 250 ml Coca Cola. We enjoyed the FREE treats after 2 hours of biking.

In addition, there is currently some promotions going on where depends on how many times you fill up until April 20, you can get some great Bonus Points.

How to Use JOURNIE Rewards in a Gas Station

It is really simple. On the gas pump screen, you will see JOURNIE Rewards. When you have accumulated 300 Points, you will automagically get the discount by entering your JOURNIE ID CODE.

1. Select JOURNIE Rewards on the gas pump screen (It was the 2^nd option on the right top in Ultramar)
2. Open JOURNIE Rewards app on your phone (Or tablet if you are like me) and click “Card”
3. You will have a temporary 6 digits JOURNIE ID CODE which expires in 2 minutes
4. Enter the IP CODE by using the pump keyboard
5. The rest is what you normally do. Enter credit card, and so on

How Much I am Going to Save Personally

My car fuel tank is totally empty now. I will fill up to 30 litres tomorrow and save $3 (10 cents per litre). I will have another 30 points so for a total 105 JOURNIE points. I will also get 50 Aeroplan Points for these 30 litres.

Update 1: I used my JOURNIE Rewards today for a 31 L filling. Unfortunately, I forgot that I have to go to CIBC ATM to reset my PIN so I ended up using my free MBNA card. I saved $2.17 with JOURNIE Rewards and collected 31 Points. I like that they round up when giving the Points. I didn’t fully put 31 L.

In a week, I will probably use 10 liters so can put another 30 litres. This time, I will only get 3 cents per litre discount which is $0.90 discount in total plus another 30 JOURNIE Points for a total 135 points and 53 Aeroplan Points.

I will repeat the same 2 more times before April 20 which will give me another $1.8 discount, 60 JOURNIE Points for a total of 195 JOURNIE Points and another 106 Aeroplan Points.

Because, I visited 4 times, I will be eligible for the promotion and will get a 300 Bonus Points. This means, I will be eligible for the extra 7 cents discount again just after putting 120 litres.

I am now going to wait to empty the tank before filling up. I will put 50 litres and save $5 plus 50 JOURNIE Points to make it 245 Points. Remember when using the 7 cents discount, the 300 points will be gone. I will also receive 83 Aeroplan Points.

To simplify, I unlocked 4 Rewards (2 at 75 Points and 2 at 150 Points, More KitKats, or Chips) for a total of $4 in value. I also received $10.7 discount on my 170 litres (4 times 30 litres and a final 50 litres). I also received 292 Aeroplan Points which has a value of $4.38 in travel spending.

In total, I received $19.08 for spending $205.7. This is a nice 9.27% combined return in rewards, points, and discounts.

How to Choose and Collect Your JOURNIE Rewards

When accumulating 75 and 150 points, the App automatically offers you rewards. These are small snacks. Here is what you need to do:

1. Within 7 days of the reward, select a reward from the App
2. You will have 30 days to pick your reward
3. Go to any of the participants stores and collect your reward
4. Come to the cashier, open your card on the app for them to scan (Or use a physical card)
5. Cashier will scan your items and then will see your balance is zero based on your reward selection (Of course you have to pay extra if you buy other items 😊)

Comparing JOURNIE Rewards with Other Cards

I am going to assume the participants gas stations for JOURNIE Rewards have the same gas price as other gas stations including Canadian Tire Gas+. I am going to compare the total cost of 350 liters of gas for an average $1.21 / liter. I will also assume the gas tank is only 50 liters, so we aren’t taking full advantage of the extra 7 cents discount on next 100 L fill-up offered by JOURNIE Rewards.

We will assume filling up at eligible stations (Ultramar as an example) for all scenarios except scenario 3 where we will be using a Canadian Tire Gas+ station.

Scenario 1: CIBC Dividend Visa Card – 1% cash back – Free card

• 300 litres = 300 * ($1.21 – $0.03) = $354
• 50 litres = 50 * ($1.21 – $0.10) = $55.5
• Cash back = $4.1
• JOURNIE Rewards: 2 Rewards = $2
• Total Cost = $354 + $55.5 – $4.1 – $2 = $403.4

Scenario 2: CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite Card – 3% cash back – Waived 1^st year fee

• 300 litres = 300 * ($1.21 – $0.03) = $354
• 50 litres = 50 * ($1.21 – $0.10) = $55.5
• Cash back = $12.29
• JOURNIE Rewards: 2 Rewards = $2
• Total Cost = $354 + $55.5 – $12.29 – $2 = $395.21

Scenario 3: Canadian Tire Triangle World Elite Mastercard – 5 cents back in CT Money – Free card

350 litres = 350 * ($1.21 – $0.05) = $406

Scenario 4: Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite – 4% cash back – Waived 1^st year fee

• 300 litres = 300 * $1.21 = $363
• 50 litres = 50 * ($1.21 – $0.07) = $57
• Cash back = $16.8
• JOURNIE Rewards: 2 Rewards = $2
• Total Cost = $363 + $57 – $16.8 – $2 = $401.2

Scenario 5: Tangerine World Mastercard – 2% cash back – Free card

• 300 litres = 300 * $1.21 = $363
• 50 litres = 50 * ($1.21 – $0.07) = $57
• Cash back = $8.4
• JOURNIE Rewards: 2 Rewards = $2
• Total Cost = $363 + $57 – $8.4 – $2 = $409.6

Scenario 6: TD Cash Back Visa Infinite – 3% cash back – Waived 1^st year fee

• 300 litres = 300 * $1.21 = $363
• 50 litres = 50 * ($1.21 – $0.07) = $57
• Cash back = $12.6
• JOURNIE Rewards: 2 Rewards = $2
• Total Cost = $363 + $57 – $12.6 – $2 = $405.4

I tried to cover most cases here but for simplicity only focused on cash back credit cards to avoid the point to dollar value conversion complexity. As shown, CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite Card is by far the winner at least for the 1^st year when the fee is waived where we will be spending $395.21 for 350 litres of gas versus $409.6 by using Tangerine World Mastercard or $406 with Canadian Tire Triangle World Elite Mastercard.

This is a $10.79 saving in 350 litres of gas (2.73% cheaper) when using CIBC – JOURNIE combination versus Canadian Tire Triangle World Elite Mastercard. As shown above, the difference is higher if comparing with Tangerine World Mastercard. Surprisingly considering the current gas prices, even using a 4% cash back credit card like Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite will cost $5.99 (1.52%) more.

Conclusions and Recommendations

We can’t predict the future cost of fuel, but I think the prices will hover around the current range for Summer in average. We can see a great opportunity by using a mix of CIBC and JOURNIE Rewards. The saving is even more if your car tank can take the full 100 liters.

The only disadvantage is that you will need to find a participating station to make sense of this discount. I think we all need multiple discounts when on the road. Hence, I will be using both JOURNIE Rewards and Canadian Tire Triangle Mastercard for our upcoming trips.

A $10 saving might not look a big number but look at it as 8 liters free gas for every 350 paid liters.

Thank you for reading. Let me know your tricks about saving on gas price which is going higher and higher!