The market for investment apps in Canada changed significantly in the last couple of years, and most advice written before 2025 is now wrong. The old rule — Wealthsimple is free, Questrade charges commissions — stopped being true when Questrade moved to zero commissions in February 2025. Qtrade followed in October of that year.
So the fee gap that used to decide this has largely closed. Here’s what actually separates the platforms now, and the decision that matters more than any of them.
The decision that saves you the most money
It isn’t which app you choose. It’s which account you fill first and what you hold inside it.
Canadians have three registered accounts available, and the differences are worth far more than any fee comparison:
| Account | 2026 room | Tax treatment |
|---|---|---|
| TFSA | $7,000 | No deduction; growth and withdrawals tax-free |
| RRSP | Up to $33,810 | Deduction now; taxed on withdrawal |
| FHSA | $8,000 ($40,000 lifetime) | Deduction now and tax-free withdrawal for a first home |
The FHSA is the standout if you’re saving for a first home — it’s the only account offering both the upfront deduction and the tax-free withdrawal. If you qualify and haven’t opened one, that’s a bigger win than any platform choice.
Between TFSA and RRSP, the rough rule: TFSA when your current income and tax rate are low, RRSP when they’re high. Contribution room carries forward in all three, so unused room isn’t lost.
The main platforms in 2026
Wealthsimple — the usual starting point for beginners. Zero commission on Canadian and US stocks and ETFs, no account minimum, fractional shares, and the cleanest app in the Canadian market. Its managed option runs around 0.4–0.5% depending on balance. The weakness is depth: limited research, basic charting, and fewer tools if you eventually want more control.
Questrade — now zero commission on Canadian and US-listed stocks and ETFs, with mutual funds still around $9.95 per trade. Its advantage is USD accounts, which cut currency conversion costs on US-listed holdings, plus a more capable desktop platform, options and margin accounts, and RESP availability. Fractional shares are supported for US securities but not Canadian ones.
Qtrade — moved to zero commission in late 2025, with a reputation for solid research tools.
Bank brokerages — RBC Direct Investing, TD Direct Investing, BMO InvestorLine, CIBC Investor’s Edge. Most still charge around $9.95 per trade. What you’re paying for is having everything under one login with your existing bank, which some people value enough to justify it. Many don’t.
Interactive Brokers — for experienced investors wanting global market access and the lowest currency conversion costs. More complexity than most beginners need.
Currency conversion: the fee people miss
This is the real cost difference between platforms now that commissions have converged.
Buying US-listed stocks or ETFs means converting Canadian dollars to US dollars. Wealthsimple charges around 1.5% on conversions on its free tier — which, on regular contributions, adds up to considerably more than the commissions everyone was arguing about. Its Premium tier at roughly $10 a month reduces that, and pays for itself if you’re converting more than about $700 monthly.
Questrade supports holding USD directly and accommodates Norbert’s Gambit — a technique using interlisted ETFs to convert currency at close to the spot rate. It’s more involved than a button press, but for larger amounts the saving is substantial.
There’s also a simpler answer: buy Canadian-listed ETFs that hold US or global equities. No conversion required, and for most beginners this is the sensible route.
What actually matters when choosing
Does it support the accounts you need? TFSA, RRSP and FHSA are available across the major platforms. RESP support is narrower — Questrade offers it, Wealthsimple doesn’t.
Fractional shares. Matters if you’re investing small amounts regularly. Wealthsimple supports them broadly; Questrade for US securities only.
Currency handling, as above, if you’ll hold US-listed assets.
Will you outgrow it? Transferring accounts between brokers is possible but involves paperwork and transfer fees. Worth a moment’s thought about where you’ll be in five years.
Regulation and protection. All the major platforms are regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization, with Canadian Investor Protection Fund coverage up to $1 million per account category if the broker fails. Verify any platform through CIRO before depositing money — this protects against broker insolvency, not against investments falling in value.
What to actually buy
The app is the container. What goes inside determines your outcome.
For most beginners, broad low-cost index ETFs do the job — a Canadian-listed all-equity or asset-allocation ETF gives diversified global exposure in a single holding, with no rebalancing required and no currency conversion.
Management expense ratios matter enormously over decades. The gap between a 0.20% ETF and a 2% mutual fund compounds into a very large sum across thirty years, and the expensive option is not reliably better. Canada has historically had some of the higher mutual fund fees among developed markets, which makes this worth checking carefully.
Individual stocks are fine as a small satellite position. They shouldn’t be the foundation. The broader framework for this is in our beginner’s guide to stock market investing, which applies across borders even though the account names differ.
Robo-advisor or self-directed?
Self-directed means you pick and buy the holdings. Cheapest, and with a single asset-allocation ETF it’s genuinely simple.
Managed or robo-advisor means the platform builds and rebalances a portfolio for you, typically for 0.4–0.5% annually on top of the underlying fund fees.
Is that worth it? On $50,000, roughly 0.45% is around $225 a year. For someone who would otherwise never get started, or who would panic-sell in a downturn, that’s cheap. For someone comfortable buying one ETF monthly, it’s an unnecessary drag.
Be honest about which you are. The most expensive option is the account you never open.
Getting started, practically
- Check your contribution room in your CRA My Account. It’s the actual number, not an estimate.
- Open the right account first — FHSA if buying a first home, otherwise TFSA or RRSP based on your tax rate.
- Set up automatic contributions from each paycheque. Automation beats intention.
- Buy a broad ETF and set contributions to buy more of it.
- Then stop looking. Quarterly is plenty.
Before any of this, make sure you have an emergency fund in cash. Investing without one means selling at the worst moment when something breaks.
How this compares elsewhere
United States. 401(k), traditional and Roth IRAs. No direct equivalent to the FHSA, and no TFSA equivalent with the same flexibility.
United Kingdom. Stocks and Shares ISAs are the closest analogue to the TFSA, with pensions filling the RRSP role. The Lifetime ISA has some overlap with the FHSA for first-time buyers.
Australia. Superannuation is compulsory and dominates long-term investing, with no direct TFSA equivalent.
Europe. Tax-advantaged investment accounts vary widely by country, and some markets apply transaction or wealth taxes that change the calculation entirely.
Frequently asked questions
Is Wealthsimple or Questrade better?
Wealthsimple for beginners who want simplicity and Canadian-listed holdings. Questrade if you’ll hold significant US assets, want an RESP, or need options and margin. Since both are now commission-free, the decision rests on currency handling and features rather than trade costs.
Are these apps safe?
The major platforms are CIRO-regulated with CIPF coverage up to $1 million per account category. That protects against broker failure, not market losses.
How much do I need to start?
Most have no minimum, and fractional shares mean small regular amounts work fine.
Can I have accounts at more than one broker?
Yes, but your contribution limits are personal, not per-account. Over-contributing across platforms triggers CRA penalties, so track the total yourself.
The bottom line
The commission war is over and the major Canadian platforms now cost roughly the same to trade. That makes the app choice less important than it used to be — pick Wealthsimple for simplicity or Questrade for flexibility and both are defensible.
Spend the saved effort on the decisions that still matter: open the FHSA if you’re buying a first home, check your actual contribution room, buy a low-cost broad ETF rather than a high-fee mutual fund, and automate the contributions so the habit survives your enthusiasm.
Sources
- Canada Revenue Agency — TFSA, RRSP and FHSA contribution limits and rules
- CIRO — which investment platforms are registered to serve Canadian investors
- CIPF — investor protection if a member firm becomes insolvent
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada — comparing investment accounts and fees
Commission structures, account minimums and management fees come from each platform’s own published pricing and change — Questrade and Qtrade both moved to zero commissions recently, which is why older comparisons are wrong.
Last reviewed: 15 August 2026. Platform pricing and contribution limits change — we review this article when they do.
General information only, not personalised investment advice. Platform fees and features were current as of mid-2026 and change frequently — verify on each provider’s own pricing page before opening an account. We have no affiliate relationship with any platform mentioned.
