EQ Bank and Wealthsimple are online-only banks in Canada, but EQ Bank specializes in everyday banking and Wealthsimple specializes in investing.
Canadian banking has tended to look a certain way and offer certain products. However, these institutions break the mould – neither offers a typical credit card or mortgage product, and they don't offer personal loans at all.
Still, the products they do offer are quite valuable and very, very convenient. EQ Bank is a fan-favourite for everyday high interest rates and Wealthsimple is hands-down the best platform for online investing in Canada right now.
Key Takeaways
- Both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple offer hybrid chequing accounts that come with prepaid debit cards.
- EQ Bank offers fewer registered accounts, and they can only hold GICs and cash.
- Wealthsimple offers a wide variety of investment products, including ETFs and crypto.
- Many Canadians use one or both banks as a secondary bank to complement their main big 5 bank.
EQ Bank vs. Wealthsimple: Overview
EQ Bank and Wealthsimple are two of Canada’s top digital financial platforms, but they serve different needs.
EQ Bank is known for high-interest savings accounts, no-fee banking, and a short list of investment options.
Wealthsimple has a high-interest chequing account as well as automated investing, stock trading, and crypto options.
EQ Bank leans more toward banking and savings, while Wealthsimple is primarily an investment platform.
Both are online-only with no physical branches that focus on low fees and easy-to-use apps. Because neither is a traditional bank, clients can't get a mortgage or a personal loan directly from either online bank.
For everyday banking and high interest rates on your savings, try EQ Bank.
For more investment options and a great app experience, try Wealthsimple.
Chequing accounts
Neither EQ Bank nor Wealthsimple offers a traditional chequing account. Instead, they each provide a prepaid spending or hybrid account, one that acts as both a chequing and savings account.
EQ's hybrid account is the EQ Bank Personal Account, which offers these features:
- Max 3% interest
- Free ATM use, including reimbursement for independent fees
- Quick, inexpensive global money transfers via Wise
- A prepaid EQ Bank Mastercard (earns 0.5% cash back)
Wealthsimple Chequing is a similar prepaid spending account:
- Max 2.75% interest
- Free peer-to-peer transfers within Wealthsimple
- Early paycheque direct deposits
- A prepaid Wealthsimple Cash Mastercard (earns 1% cash back)
The winner: EQ Bank
We’re giving this one to EQ Bank for its free ATM withdrawals and higher interest rate.
Wealthsimple’s cash back rate is higher and supposedly there’s a Wealthsimple Visa in the works. But until this is in place, EQ is still on top.
High-interest savings accounts
Both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple offer high-interest savings options, but they’re very different.
EQ Bank has two account options that earn interest:
- EQ Bank Personal Account: 3% interest with $2,000 monthly recurring direct deposits
- EQ Bank Notice Savings Account: 2.75% for 30-day notice withdrawals, 2.6% for 10-day notice withdrawals
Wealthsimple has two savings options:
- Wealthsimple Chequing: 1.75%, 2.5%, or 2.75% depending on your balance
- High-Interest Savings Account: 2%, 2.5%, or 3% depending on your balance
As you can see, the interest rates are the same for both of these accounts, but the Wealthsimple Chequing offers an extra 0.5% interest boost if you set up a direct deposit (still a total max rate of 2.75%).
The winner: EQ Bank
It simply comes down to the fact that EQ Bank’s 3% rate is better. And a high rate is exactly what you want for a savings account.
That being said, if you know that your balance will consistently be under $100,000, either bank is a good choice with similar rates.
Credit cards
Neither EQ Bank nor Wealthsimple offers a traditional credit card. However, each has a spending card with cash back rewards.
EQ Bank Card offers a prepaid Mastercard with cash back and interest:
- 0.5% cash back on all purchases
- 2.5% interest on your balance
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
It's a bit difficult to comprehend, but the EQ Bank MasterCard isn't actually a debit card or a credit card:
The Wealthsimple Cash Mastercard is a prepaid card that accompanies its the Wealthsimple Chequing account:
- 1% cash back in cash, stocks, or crypto
- 3% interest on your balance
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
Because neither of these is a typical credit card, there are a few details to remember:
- They do not affect your credit score
- Neither offers a welcome bonus
- No purchase protection
The winner: Tie
Since neither bank offers a true credit card, we’re calling it a draw.
Go with EQ Bank if you value ATM access and earning top interest on your prepaid balance. But choose Wealthsimple if you prefer higher cash back rates and more variety in your reward options (like crypto and stocks).
Investments
Both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple have valuable options, but Wealthsimple is the clear winner with a full suite of investment products.
Wealthsimple's other valuable features include extremely low fees, the ability to buy fractional shares, and a straightforward platform for making your investments.
Plus, Wealthsimple offers crypto buying and selling whereas EQ Bank does not.
Investment platforms
EQ Bank doesn't offer its own investment platform, but Wealthsimple does.
You have two options when investing with through Wealthsimple – a robo advisor or a self-directed platform:
- Wealthsimple managed investing: After an initial risk tolerance assessment, this robo advisor automatically handles your money and investments for you.
- Wealthsimple Self-Directed Investing: This is a self-directed platform where you manually buy and sell mutual funds and other investment products. It can be automatically funded, which is quite a valuable feature.
The winner: Wealthsimple
There's literally no contest here since EQ Bank doesn't have its own platform at all, but both Wealthsimple managed investing and Wealthsimple Self-Directed Investing are highly rated products in their own right.
GICs
If you want to set aside cash to grow for a specific amount of time, EQ Bank offers GICs. Unfortunately, Wealthsimple doesn't offer its own GICs.
You have a choice of term lengths with EQ Bank's GICs, and each has a set interest rate. Take a look:
| Term | Rate |
|---|---|
| 1 year | 3.4% |
| 15 months | 3.4% |
| 2 years | 3.45% |
| 27 months | 3.45% |
| 3 years | 3.45% |
| 4 years | 3.4% |
| 5 years | 3.6% |
These are the rates as of February 19, 2024.
The winner: EQ Bank
EQ Bank is the only one of the two institutions to offer GICs, and its rates are quite competitive.
Registered and foreign currency savings accounts
Both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple offer registered savings accounts.
EQ Bank offers these:
However, both of these account types can only hold GICS – no stocks or ETFs.
Wealthsimple offers these accounts:
These accounts can hold stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies.
As for foreign currency accounts, EQ Bank has a U.S. savings account, but that's it.
The EQ Bank US Dollar Account provides 2.75% interest and charges no monthly fees.
Clients seem to appreciate the EQ Bank US Dollar Account too:
Wealthsimple doesn't offer any global currency accounts.
The winner: Wealthsimple
Ultimately, Wealthsimple has more registered account options as well as its own investment platforms.
At EQ Bank, you can only hold GICs in your RRSP and TFSA – and that’s probably not enough for your primary retirement strategy.
Mobile apps
EQ Bank and Wealthsimple both offer mobile apps that are similarly well-rated.There are far more Apple users who choose Wealthsimple over EQ Bank, but EQ's rating is slightly higher in the App Store.
| EQ Bank | Wealthsimple | |
|---|---|---|
| App Store | * 4.8 stars * 42,500+ ratings | * 4.6 stars * 125,400+ ratings |
| Google Play | * 4.4 stars * 9,500+ ratings | * 4.4 stars * 79,200+ ratings |
The ratings on both platforms are very, very close – but if the number of reviews also indicates the number of users, it seems Wealthsimple is the more popular choice.
This person recently switched to Wealthsimple, but they say they prefer EQ Bank’s app:
Still, some Redditors swear by the Wealthsimple app:
The winner: Wealthsimple
Both apps do the job, but Wealthsimple’s intuitive interface and the many features give it a slight edge.
$75 GeniusCash + Unlimited transactions for $0 + Ding-free non-affiliated ATM usage.
$25 GeniusCash + $50 bonus for funding a new account, and $0 commissions on stocks & ETFs
$12 GeniusCash + Access trusted news coverage 24/7 + Digital and home subscription options.
$25 GeniusCash + Delicious meal choices with fresh ingredients + Front-door delivery.Other bank features
When considering bank features aside from those mentioned above, Both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple have very similar offerings.
Both banks offer international money transfers through Wise, for instance, but Wealthsimple offers a broader overall product menu, including a free tax-filing service:
This table lists various products offered by EQ Bank and Wealthsimple:
| EQ Bank | Wealthsimple | |
|---|---|---|
| Mortgage* | Yes | No |
| HELOCs | No | No |
| Personal loans | No | No |
| International money transfers | Yes | Yes |
| Business accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Business GICs | Yes | No |
| Kids bank accounts | No | No |
Technically, EQ and Wealthsimple both offer mortgages. EQ Bank works with nesto and has a unique Mortgage Marketplace where clients can view the best rates from all across the market.
Wealthsimple offers mortgage products through its partner organization, Pine. The mortgage itself isn't funded by Wealthsimple, but you'll get cash back and/or other perks by applying through the Wealthsimple site.
The winner: EQ Bank
Since EQ Bank offers more of the products listed, it wins the category. And since many people prefer to keep all or most of their financial products and services under one roof, this gives EQ Bank a leg up.
However, it's difficult to compare these types of extra products since Wealthsimple doesn't claim to be a typical banking institution.
Final winner
We're calling it a tie.
Technically, EQ Bank won in most of the categories we reviewed, it feels a bit like comparing apples and oranges. Simply put, both institutions specialize in different things and this makes it difficult to compare like with like.
EQ Bank is the better choice for everyday spending and saving. It offers a unique hybrid account with a prepaid card that gives you cash back and interest on your balance. You can hold GICs with EQ, but no stocks or ETFs.
Wealthsimple is the better choice for investing. It won in more investment categories, and we like its mobile app is slightly better rated.
Ultimately, it comes down to what you need from your bank. And it certainly can't hurt to work with both EQ Bank and Wealthsimple.
FAQ
Is EQ Bank or Wealthsimple better?
For a full banking experience, EQ Bank is the stronger choice. But for investing, Wealthsimple wins. EQ Bank is better for high interest savings, GICs, and free international transfers, while Wealthsimple excels at investing, stock trading, and cash back rewards.
Why would I use EQ Bank when there is Wealthsimple cash?
Wealthsimple Cash offers higher cash back (1%) and unique rewards, but EQ Bank provides better savings rates (3%%), a U.S.D. account, and free international transfers. If you need more than just spending perks, EQ Bank is a strong alternative.
Is EQ Bank a reputable bank?
EQ Bank is a reputable, secure, and popular digital bank. It’s owned by Equitable Bank, a federally regulated Canadian financial institution. It’s also a member of CDIC, meaning eligible deposits are protected, and it consistently offers competitive savings rates.
Is there a catch to EQ Bank?
EQ Bank is a digital bank, so there are no branches. Plus, their unique hybrid chequing/saving account with a prepaid card may not work for everyone. Account offerings may be more limited with an online-only bank like EQ.
How do I get money out of EQ Bank?
You can use an ATM to withdraw your funds using the EQ Bank Card. You can also send funds to yourself or someone else via Interac eTransfer, or use an EFT to send money to a linked bank account.
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