AIR MILES is back with its summer edition of Shop the Block, running from July 25 to August 8, 2025.
This time around, you can earn up to 500 Bonus Miles, plus an additional 50 Bonus Miles by using a BMO AIR MILES credit card for a qualifying purchase, bringing the total possible bonus to 550 AIR MILES.
While the promotion structure remains familiar, the rewards have been scaled back compared to previous years—so it’s worth weighing whether the effort is still worthwhile for you.
Shop the Block is a tiered promotion that rewards you with bonus AIR MILES for making purchases with different partners across the AIR MILES network. Here’s how the bonuses break down for this round:
- 100 Bonus Miles when you shop at two different partners
- 300 Bonus Miles when you shop at four different partners
- 500 Bonus Miles when you shop at six different partners
- Plus 50 Bonus Miles when you use a BMO AIR MILES credit card with at least one partner
As a fixed-value rewards currency, AIR MILES are valued at 95 AIR MILES = $10 (all values in CAD). Thus, 100 Bonus Miles are worth $10.53, 300 Bonus Miles are worth $31.58, and 500 Bonus Miles are worth $52.63.
To participate in the promotion, you must first opt in by logging into your account on the AIR MILES website or app.
Compared to previous editions of the promotion, this year’s offer is noticeably less generous. In 2024, members could earn 775 Bonus Miles by shopping with five partners, and in 2023, it was possible to earn up to 1,000 Bonus Miles by shopping with just four.
Not only has the top reward decreased, but the number of required actions has also increased—making the path to the maximum bonus a bit steeper. While Shop the Block still presents a good opportunity to earn extra miles on everyday spending, it’s clear that the promotion has gradually become less rewarding over time.
For your purchases to qualify, you must earn at least one Reward or Bonus Mile with each partner. This means that merely making a purchase with AIR MILES partners won’t necessarily count towards the requirements.
To illustrate this, at Pharmasave, you’ll only earn 1 Reward Mile when you spend $10. Purchases less than that threshold won’t earn you any AIR MILES and therefore won’t count towards this promotion.
It’s also important to keep in mind that your purchases must be made with different partners. But with more new partners and ways to earn AIR MILES, it’s easier for you to do so than it has been for the last couple of years.
For this promotion, qualifying purchases can be made through the following channels:
In-store partners include Pharmasave outlets, as well as Shell gas stations nationwide. You must earn at least one Reward or Bonus Mile at an in-store partner for your purchase to qualify.
Each action counts as one unique partner or method, provided you earn at least one Reward or Bonus Mile.
Keep in mind that different partners may have different spend thresholds to trigger miles, so it’s worth checking the AIR MILES app or website before making a purchase.
Each unique partner or action only counts once, even if you make multiple purchases or redemptions.
AIR MILES Receipts lets you earn Bonus Miles when you buy featured products at qualifying retailers and scan your physical receipt. For your receipt to qualify for this promotion, you must purchase one featured product and earn Bonus Miles. Online purchases and online receipts don’t qualify.
For this promotion, AIR MILES Receipts counts as only one partner. This means that even if you submit different receipts from different stores and/or earn AIR MILES on different products, all of your purchases will only count once.
AIR MILES Shops is a shopping portal, similar to the Aeroplan eStore and Rakuten. You must earn at least one Reward or Bonus Mile for your online purchase to qualify. Usually, that means purchasing at least $20 and earning 1 Reward Mile.
Online travel purchases made through AIR MILES Shops, including travel bookings, car rentals, and hotel stays, don’t qualify for this promotion, since AIR MILES for those purchases take longer to post.
AIR MILES Card-Linked Offers require you to register and link a Canadian Mastercard to your AIR MILES account. Then, you must meet the purchase requirements of each partner, and pay with your registered card to earn AIR MILES.
Each store/brand has different requirements to earn AIR MILES, so you’ll want to check to see the fine print of each.
You can link more than one Canadian Mastercard to your account, and supplementary cards must be linked separately, either to your account or another account.
AIR MILES Travel is the program’s in-house travel agency. You’ll earn AIR MILES on qualifying flights, accommodations, car rentals, packages, extras, and cruises, but for your travel purchase to count towards Shop the Block, your booking must be paid entirely with cash.
Each AIR MILES Travel purchase counts as one partner, regardless if you make more than one booking, or if you make bookings with different airlines or hotels.
For the Shop the Block promotion, earning AIR MILES through BMO AIR MILES credit cards doesn’t count towards partner requirements. However, as mentioned, you’ll earn an extra 50 Bonus Miles if you use a BMO AIR MILES credit card with at least one of the partners of your choosing.
You’ll likewise earn more AIR MILES by stacking this promotion with other concurrent promotions, as the terms and conditions specifically state that “this offer can be combined with other offers”.
Lastly, it may take until September 12, 2025 for your Bonus Miles from this promotion to be posted to your account.
As mentioned, AIR MILES now has more ways to earn and partners to shop with, so it’s easier to maximize this promotion than ever before.
Here are some ways for you to maximize the promotion.
Bonus Miles with In-Store Partners
With the Shop the Block promotion, purchases with in-store partners count when you earn at least one Reward or Bonus Mile.
An easy, affordable way to earn Bonus Miles with in-store partners is by buying featured items. You’ll see them in promotional materials, through the AIR MILES app or website, or in-store.
For Shell gas stations, you’ll earn Bonus Miles by buying featured items from their attached convenience stores. You’ll see these featured items in-store or through the AIR MILES app.
You can also buy $10 worth of items, such as personal care items, at Pharmasave and already earn 1 Reward Mile for this promotion.
Make Multiple Online Purchases with AIR MILES Shops
You may actually participate in and maximize this promotion from the comfort of your own home with AIR MILES Shops. You’ll earn the full 500 Bonus Miles by shopping and earning AIR MILES with six different online partners.
Usually, with online partners, you’ll earn 1 Reward Mile with a $20 purchase. Therefore, you can simply make small purchases with six different stores, and you’d already have earned the 500 Bonus Miles.
Of course, it’s not worth buying things you don’t actually need just to chase AIR MILES—especially with this year’s reduced bonus. The reward is decent if it lines up with your existing purchases, but not exactly game-changing on its own.
That said, if you find yourself just one partner short of hitting a higher bonus tier, it might be worth making a small strategic purchase to get across the line.
For example, retailers like Old Navy, Gap, and Banana Republic only require $50 in merchandise to qualify for free shipping through airmilesshops.ca, making them relatively low-cost options to help you round out your six qualifying actions.
If you have an Amazon Prime subscription, you can take advantage of its low free shipping requirements.
However, keep in mind that Amazon has a list of “included categories”, such as clothing, luxury beauty, and Fire TV devices. Therefore, for your purchases to earn AIR MILES and qualify for this promotion, you’ll have to make sure you’re buying items from the listed categories.
Combining with Other AIR MILES Promotions
As mentioned, the terms and conditions of the Shop the Block promotion specifically state that “this offer can be combined with other offers”. This means that you can maximize your AIR MILES earnings by looking at other concurrent offers through the AIR MILES website or app.
For example, on July 28, 2025, you’ll earn 1 Bonus Mile per litre when you fill with any grade of Shell fuel.
You might also find similar offers for Pharmasave and other partners. Again, you must check the AIR MILES app or website for your current offers, as some of these offers are targeted and require opting in.
Using a BMO AIR MILES Credit Card
Again, you’ll earn 50 Bonus Miles when you use a BMO AIR MILES credit card with one of the partners of your choice.
BMO AIR MILES Credit Cards
But on top of that, you’ll also earn more AIR MILES when you shop with AIR MILES partners. For example, with the BMO AIR MILES®† World Elite®* Mastercard®*, you can 3 AIR MILES per $12 spent with participating partners.
Some of the abovementioned partners also happen to be in-store partners of AIR MILES, so in turn, your purchases with these partners will qualify for Shop the Block.
Conclusion
Shop the Block, one of the signature promotions of the AIR MILES program, is back from July 25 to August 8, 2025, until 11:59pm Eastern Time.
With this year’s promotion, you stand to earn up to 550 AIR MILES by making purchases at six different partners.
Whether it’s worth going out of your way to hit that target is ultimately up to you—especially given the reduced rewards this year. But if you’re already earning AIR MILES through some of the qualifying actions anyway, this promotion is a great opportunity to give your balance a meaningful boost for little extra effort.
Just remember to opt in, track your qualifying partners carefully, and check each offer’s terms to ensure your purchases count.