Two Canadian brokerages dominate the DIY-investor conversation: Wealthsimple Trade (now part of Wealthsimple’s unified platform) and Questrade. Both let you open a TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, and non-registered account; both are CIPF-insured up to $1M; both have legitimate apps. The decision usually comes down to: are you a beginner who wants zero-decisions investing, or a more advanced investor who wants control + slightly cheaper US holdings?
The honest at-a-glance comparison
Wealthsimple wins for
- Beginners. The app is clean. The defaults are sensible. There’s no analysis-paralysis “Level 1 vs Level 2” account choice. You sign up, transfer $200, buy XEQT, done.
- Anyone who values zero commissions. $0 stock + ETF trades adds up over years. If you contribute $500/month and buy 3 ETFs each time, Questrade would charge you ~$15/month in commissions ($180/year). Wealthsimple charges nothing.
- Quick FHSA + TFSA + RRSP setup. The newer FHSA is fully supported. All three accounts can be opened the same day from one signup.
- Newcomers. Identity verification is faster (often instant) using the modern e-verification systems. Questrade still requires document uploads for many newcomer applications.
Questrade wins for
- Active traders. The IQ Edge platform has serious charting, options chains, and order types that Wealthsimple doesn’t have. If you’re trading more than 20x/month, Questrade is the right tool.
- US dividend investors. A USD-denominated account avoids the 1.5% conversion fee on every US dividend. Over a 30-year holding period with regular DRIPs, this saves real money. Questrade includes USD accounts free; Wealthsimple charges $10/month (Premium) for the same.
- Complex account types. LIRA, LIF, RRIF, RDSP, and corporate accounts — all supported by Questrade. Wealthsimple has been slowly adding these but is still behind.
- Norbert’s Gambit. A DIY currency-conversion trick that saves the 1.5% on large CAD↔USD movements. Works at Questrade; not really feasible at Wealthsimple.
The recommendation by situation
- New Canadian, first investment account: Wealthsimple. Lowest friction, zero commissions, modern app.
- Mid-career, $50K-$200K portfolio: Wealthsimple still wins for most. Add a Premium tier ($10/mo) if you want USD account support.
- $200K+ portfolio, mostly Canadian holdings: Either works. Pick based on UX preference.
- $200K+ with significant US holdings: Questrade. The USD-account fee savings + Norbert’s Gambit ability outweigh the commission cost.
- Active trader (20+ trades/month): Questrade. The advanced platform pays for itself.
Can I hold both?
Yes — many Canadians do. Common split: Wealthsimple for TFSA + FHSA (no fees, simple), Questrade for RRSP (USD account avoids ongoing withholding-tax conversion costs). Your TFSA/RRSP/FHSA contribution room is federal — it doesn’t care which brokerage holds the account, only that your total contributions stay within your room.
Related guides
- The Complete Guide to the TFSA
- The Complete Guide to the RRSP
- The Complete Guide to the FHSA
- What Is an Index Fund? Investing Without Feeling Like Gambling
FAQ
Wealthsimple vs Questrade FAQ
Are Wealthsimple and Questrade both safe?
Yes — both are registered Canadian investment dealers and members of CIPF (Canadian Investor Protection Fund), which insures your account assets up to $1 million if the brokerage fails. Note: CIPF protects against the broker’s failure, not market losses on your investments.
Can I transfer my account between Wealthsimple and Questrade?
Yes — both accept incoming transfers and usually pay the $135-$200 transfer-out fee the other broker charges. The transfer takes 5-15 business days and your investments stay invested (no need to sell first).
Which is better for a TFSA?
For most Canadians, Wealthsimple — zero commissions and no fees mean every dollar goes into investments. The exception is if you plan to hold significant US dividend stocks in your TFSA (which you usually shouldn’t, due to the unrecoverable US withholding tax) — in which case the choice is moot.
What about Questrade’s free ETF purchase advantage?
Buying ETFs at Questrade is free; selling costs $4.95. Wealthsimple charges $0 for both buying and selling. For accumulation-phase investors (buying monthly), the difference is small. For someone rebalancing or selling positions, Wealthsimple is clearly cheaper.
Frequently asked questions
If I’m just starting with $1,000, does it really matter which one I pick?
Honestly, not as much as people make it sound. At $1,000, the commission difference is maybe $10-15/year if you buy ETFs monthly at Questrade, and Wealthsimple’s ETF buys are free. The bigger question is whether you’ll actually open the account and start contributing — Wealthsimple’s signup is faster, and momentum matters more than optimizing a $15 fee in your first year.
What about the currency conversion fee — is 1.5% actually a big deal?
It depends on how often you move money between CAD and USD. If you buy VFV (a Canadian-listed ETF that holds US stocks) inside your TFSA and never touch USD directly, the 1.5% doesn’t apply to you. But if you hold VOO or individual US stocks in an RRSP and reinvest dividends quarterly, that 1.5% hits every conversion. On a $100K US portfolio paying ~1.5% dividends, you’re losing roughly $22/year in conversion friction — small, but it compounds.
Does Wealthsimple’s “managed” product count as the same thing as Trade?
No, and this trips people up. Wealthsimple Invest (the robo-advisor) charges 0.4-0.5% per year to manage a portfolio for you. Wealthsimple Trade (now folded into the main app as the self-directed side) is the $0-commission DIY product compared in this article. When my mom asked me about this last year, she’d signed up for Invest thinking it was the free one — easy mistake because they live in the same app now.
Can newcomers without a long Canadian credit history actually open these accounts?
Yes, but the experience differs. Wealthsimple’s identity verification often works instantly with a PR card or study permit plus a Canadian address. Questrade more frequently asks for document uploads (passport, proof of address, sometimes a SIN letter) and the review can take 2-5 business days. Neither requires a credit score — these are investment accounts, not loans — but you do need a SIN to open any registered account (TFSA, RRSP, FHSA).
What happens to my investments if Wealthsimple or Questrade gets acquired or shuts down?
Your assets are held in trust, separate from the brokerage’s own books, so an acquisition doesn’t affect your holdings — they’d just move to the new owner’s platform. If the firm fails outright, CIPF covers up to $1 million in missing assets. Wealthsimple has been acquired before (by Power Corporation’s IGM, then partially bought back) and client accounts were unaffected throughout.
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