Technology is evolving, as are consumer expectations. That means loyalty programs are changing too.
Every year, adviso examines the state of the marketplace in LoyalT, the most complete study of loyalty program performance in retail business in Quebec and Canada.
In this 8th edition, produced in collaboration with Ad Hoc Research, we surveyed 15,000 respondents (including 6,500 Quebecers) on their opinions about 87 programs from 11 business sectors.
Employing a more robust methodology than ever before, the study presents the highly anticipated top 10 best Canadian programs, but also—for the first time—a Quebec ranking.
LoyalT 2025 highlights the program features that succeeded at engaging and encouraging the loyalty of their members—something to consider for your future reflections on loyalty.
Summary
LoyalT Score
Top performers in Canada
Top performers in Quebec
Conclusion
Every loyalty program is evaluated according to three key indexes:
The average of scores is normalized to 100, which allows the highest or lowest performing programs to be quickly identified.
Despite being recently launched in 2021, MyMcDonald’s Rewards is already making an appearance in the LoyalT rankings.
This very generous program offers rewards after only a few purchases. After spending $20, members can redeem for a treat (ex., a vanilla soft-serve cone), and after $40 they can get a cheeseburger.
Young Canadians (18–34), who are fans of restaurant and beverage programs, consider MyMcDonald’s Rewards one of their favourites.
Ranking 10th in Canada, MyMcDonald’s Rewards climbed to 2nd place in Quebec.
Revamped in 2022 as a private coalition program, Gap Good Rewards earned a position in the ranking through its four brands: Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta.
The program allows members to earn points at any of the four retailers while taking advantage of benefits based on their purchase level. This approach has paid off given that Gap has demonstrated a significant ability to influence purchase behaviour and has a high Attachment Index.
Its application has also garnered accolades as offering the best mobile experience in the country.
Domino’s retained its position in the national ranking this year, but distinguished itself in Quebec as the best loyalty program in the province.
Maintaining a presence in the LoyalT list since 2021, Domino’s Pizza is notable for the consistency of its performance. Its longevity among the best loyalty programs is explained by the strategic shift launched a few years ago, which put data at the heart of its business. This approach has enabled the company to offer enhanced customer experience.
In addition, Domino’s Rewards applies best practices by offering an exceptional mobile application and generous rewards.
PC Optimum remains a leader in loyalty in Canada. Not only was the program named Best Program last year, but it has appeared in the top 10 programs since the very beginning of the LoyalT Study in 2017, where it was listed under its former name, PC Plus.
As a coalition program, PC Optimum unites several brands in the grocery, pharmacy, and service station sectors: Loblaws, Provigo, Maxi, No Frills, Pharmaprix, Esso, etc. By grouping together businesses with high visit frequency that are anchored in Canadians’ everyday lives, PC Optimum continues to attract new members every year.
In 2025, the program earned top honours among those 18–34, who ranked it as their favourite program.
Its strength lies in its very high level of personalization, strong Attachment Index, and ability to innovate and adapt. During the pandemic as well as in inflationary periods, PC Optimum has proven that it puts the customer relationship at the centre of its strategy and is attentive to its members.
How your B2C brand can (and must) adapt during periods of uncertainty. Read our 8 recommendations.
PetSmart’s program stands out for both its Generosity Score and its high level of attachment.
Members benefit from exclusive prices in-store, a highly appreciated advantage that certainly contributes to the perceived generosity of this loyalty program.
Treats Rewards offers a gift for a pet’s birthday—also known as their “Gotcha Day”—and lets customers support PetSmart Charities. It’s a simple yet powerful gesture that feeds the emotional connection between the brand and its members.
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Papa Rewards gambled on a classic formula, at once simple and effective: Every dollar spent earns points which, once amassed, give members the right to a discount on their order.
The program is notable among the LoyalT 2025 winners for its great generosity, typical of the restaurant sector, as well as its high Communication Score.
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Communication Score | This calculation evaluates the opinions of members regarding program communications: whether they consult them frequently, find their frequency adequate, like the content, and consider them personalized and relevant. |
The smallest chain to appear in the Top 10, American Eagle garnered a well-earned 4th place.
Its Real Rewards program was notable for three aspects: communications, attachment, and behaviour. It succeeded at creating a close emotional attachment among members while stimulating purchase behaviour.
Along with Gap, American Eagle is one of the rare fashion businesses to make an appearance in the LoyalT rankings, all editions combined.
Additional reading: The Two Aspects of Loyalty Program Performance
For the second consecutive year, Global Pet Foods has made the LoyalT rankings, with its first appearance last year achieving a noteworthy 10th place.
Pet’s Rewards is kind of two programs in one. Members earn Air Miles while taking advantage of the Frequent Buyer system, which offers a free bag of pet food after several purchases. This combination multiplies the opportunities to reward members and translates into a higher Generosity Score.
For its first appearance in the rankings, Panera Bread has made quite an entrance!
Well known in the U.S. and classed among the best restaurant loyalty programs worldwide, MyPanera earned second place in the overall LoyalT ranking, but also in the following categories:
MyPanera is the most loved program in Canada, occupying first place nationwide in the Attachment Index.
And the best loyalty program in Canada is... Royal Perks!
The Burger King program distinguishes itself in all the LoyalT indexes: Engagement, Attachment, and above all Behaviour. For the latter, Royal Perks earned first place nationwide, a sure sign that it succeeded at influencing visit frequency among members.
Canadians also ranked it as the most generous program in Canada in addition to giving it the best Communication Score. The quality of its intuitive and effective mobile experience should also be emphasized.
Burger King’s ascendancy is a testament to the restaurant sector’s shift towards loyalty programs. Generosity pays, and visits in this sector are increasing so quickly they rival that of pharmacies.
Who made it into the LoyalT rankings last year? Find out which loyalty programs won in 2024.
A regular in the LoyalT list of winners—in which it has appeared since 2020—the SAQ1 deserves attention for having the best Engagement Index.
This engagement can notably be seen in members’ regular use of the program, frequent redemption of loyalty points, and consultation of communications. So what is SAQ Inspire’s secret ingredient? Hyperpersonalization.
Every week, the program sends members over one million personalized newsletters, which are adapted to their purchase habits and taste profiles (red wines, white wines, spirits, ready-to-drink beverages, etc.). Every offer and piece of content therefore becomes relevant and useful, strengthening the program’s perceived value.
These personalized offers are also found in the SAQ Inspire mobile app, which has earned the satisfaction of 81% of members based on its user experience (UX), the highest satisfaction rating given by Quebecers.
The transition from metro&moi to MOI hasn’t impeded Metro Group’s performance, which has stayed in the rankings for 2025.
It should be remembered that the program changed into a private coalition in 2023, allowing members to earn points across a number of grocery and pharmacy brands: Super C, Jean Coutu, Brunet, Première Moisson, and Food Basics.
In Quebec, MOI is notable for its high level of engagement, which affirms the solidity of the brand and the relevance of its communications.
In Ontario, it is still too early to judge its performance, since the program was in its launch phase at the time of this study. Next year, LoyalT will analyze whether it achieved the same level of success as in Quebec, and if it was able to surpass the achievements of the program it replaced, namely Air Miles.
After a short absence from the listings last year, Starbucks has regained its place in the rankings.
Its program Starbucks Rewards continues to attract attention for offering a customer experience (CX) enhanced by the hyperpersonalization of offers as well as for its mobile application.
The latter offers members many features to make their lives easier and save time, such as:
How is artificial intelligence (AI) transforming customer experience (CX) at brands like Starbucks? Find real-world examples where AI and CX are combined.
While other service station programs made the listings in previous editions of LoyalT, Ultramar’s Journie Rewards is the only representative of this sector to make the rankings in 2025.
Earlier this year, the program revitalized its mobile application to make it more engaging and enjoyable. More gamification elements were integrated into the app, and the points redemption was revamped in order to reward members more quickly.
Journie is notable within the LoyalT 2025 ranking for its high Behaviour Index, proof of its ability to increase visit frequency and concentrate more of its members’ purchases.
Iconic Canadian chain Tim Hortons has finally earned a place in the LoyalT rankings... in Quebec!
Launched in 2019, Tims Rewards has undergone a number of transformations in recent years and is now enjoying the results of these improvements:
Quebec consumers award the program a higher Generosity Score. The Tims Mastercard, which enables more points to be earned, is doubtlessly playing a key role in that enthusiasm. As has been demonstrated year after year by the LoyalT study, a co-branded card greatly improves perceived generosity, not to mention overall performance.2
Tims Rewards is also appealing to young consumers: 18- to 24-year-olds rank it among their top three favourite loyalty programs.
In existence for 18 years now, the Beauty Insider program from Sephora is one of the great classics of the loyalty field, and it is still just as appreciated by Canadians.
Initially known for its birthday gift and three levels of rewards, the program has evolved into a strongly omnichannel customer experience.
Whether they are online or on the mobile app, members will find offers that are personalized based on their profile (shade, age, skin type, etc.) and purchase history, as well as gamified beauty challenges, amongst other things.
For its fourth appearance in the rankings, Walmart has climbed to 4th place!
Differing slightly from other programs in the LoyalT list, the Walmart Rewards program is mainly based on its co-branded credit card.
Each purchase generates “Rewards Dollars,” and purchases made at Walmart bring even more advantages. This formula obviously pleases Canadians, who rank it among the most generous programs in the country.
But it’s in Quebec that the Walmart Rewards program really stands apart from the crowd, earning the highest attachment rate and concretely influencing members’ purchase behaviour.
PC Optimum has found a place in the Quebec ranking for the same reasons it earned its national ranking: advanced personalization and outstanding generosity.
In 8th position in Canada, MyMcDonald’s climbed to second place in Quebec. This is a rapid rise for a program launched in 2021.
Its generous offers, fast rewards, and seamless mobile experience contribute to making it one of the most used programs by Quebecers.
Domino’s Rewards takes the lead with 1st position in the Quebec ranking of the best loyalty programs. While also earning a presence in the Canadian listing, Domino’s Pizza triumphed in La Belle Province:
With Domino’s Rewards, points accumulate fast, allowing members to get rewards as early as their second order.
Its leading position—as with the performance of other generous programs—shows that brands shouldn’t flinch at offering more to their members. Generosity gives back: It shows both in members’ attachment as well as their satisfaction level.
Loyalty isn’t just another marketing promotion. It’s a business strategy that only performs when it’s part of an organization’s priorities—that is, when it’s integrated into its business model, business decisions, and customer experience (CX).
The best loyalty programs in Canada and Quebec demonstrate that loyalty achieves its full potential when the program combines:
Do you already have a program? Find inspiration in the top performers and compare your program with theirs. Based on eight years of data, a personalized LoyalT report will show you how you rank compared to your competitors, what your strengths are, and what performance levers you should be activating. Get your benchmark.
Are you planning to launch a program? The LoyalT Report can provide guidance on best practices in your sector so you can design a winning strategy from the get-go. Start earning customer loyalty today.
Want to see last year’s results? Read our article on the best loyalty programs in Canada in 2024.
Download our free highlights of this year's edition.
METHODOLOGY
The LoyalT 2025 Study by adviso: Data collection via web panel conducted by Ad Hoc Research from May 12 to June 7, 2025, amongst 15,000 Canadians aged 18 and over who were members of at least one loyalty program. In order to make the sample more representative of Canada’s entire adult population, the study’s raw data were weighted based on the actual distribution of the Canadian population in terms of gender, age, region, education level, the presence of children in the household, and native language. For comparison purposes, the margin of error for a sample of this size would be ±0.8%, with a confidence interval of 95% (19 cases out of 20). Each program is evaluated by approximately 300 panel members with an approximate error margin of ±5.7% for a sample of this size.
The LoyalT Score and its three indexes
Attachment Index: I love the content (text, information, and videos); I love the promotional offers; It would be hard to live without it; The program makes my life easier
Engagement Index: Presentation (of card or mobile app) with every transaction; Points redemption in the past 12 months; Communications are consulted on a regular basis
Behaviour Index: Increase in visit frequency; Increase in purchase concentration; Reduction in purchase frequency if program didn’t exist; Change in purchase behaviour to maximize bonuses
NOTES
1 The Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) is a government corporation mandated to sell alcoholic beverages in Quebec.
2 When we compare the scores given by members of a program who have the program’s co-branded credit card to those given by members of the same program who do not have the co-branded credit card, we observe notable increases in performance: Engagement Index (+39%), Behaviour Index (+38%), Attachment Index (+31%), LoyalT Score (+36%), and overall satisfaction (+43%).
The article Top 10 Best Loyalty Programs in Canada first appeared on adviso.ca.