What is the best online-only chequing account in Canada?
On published fees, Personal Account from EQ Bank ranks first: $0 a year for our Everyday profile (household account, a few e-transfers), against a median of $18 across 8 ranked accounts. Your own usage can change the order. Fees from FCAC, retrieved November 1, 2026.
What would the #1 account cost a typical customer?
Here is the engine’s arithmetic for the Everyday profile: 25 debit purchases, 6 bills, 5 e-Transfers, 0 branch visits and a $1,000 low balance a month.
Worked example — Personal Account (EQ Bank), Everyday profile
| Monthly fee × 12 | $0 |
| Transactions beyond the included number (0 a month) × 12 | $0 |
| Other-bank ATM access fees (1 a month) × 12 | $0 |
| Paper statements × 12 | $0 |
| Fees a year | $0 |
Against the median ranked account, that saves about $18 a year — $90 over five years.
- #1 Personal Account · EQ Bank$0
- #2 Neo Chequing account (Essentials) · Neo Financial$0
- #3 Wealthsimple Chequing · Wealthsimple$0
- #4 PC Money Account · PC Financial$18
- #5 Tangerine Chequing Account · Tangerine Bank$18
- #6 No Fee eChequing Account · Alterna Bank$23
- #7 Advantage Account (chequing & savings) · Manulife Bank$504
- #8 DCBank Personal Bank Account · Digital Commerce Bank$1,529
- Median of the 8 ranked accounts$18
Our verdict
Choose Personal Account for the lowest cost at this usage if online and ATM banking suits you. Your own pattern can change the order: the finder re-ranks every account for your numbers.
How does this ranking work?
Each account gets a cost score for each usage profile: 100 − (fees a year ÷ $3), floored at 0 — so $0 a year scores 100 and $300 or more scores 0. A profile the account can’t serve (for example, branch visits at an online bank) scores 0.
Weights: Light 25% · Everyday 50% · Heavy 25%. Profiles are defined in the finder; fees come from the true-cost engine described in the methodology.
Rebates for bundles or credit cards, welcome bonuses, app quality and customer service. Those matter, but they can’t be checked from published fee data — so they don’t move the order.
Three kinds of digital banking
| Type | Examples | Deposit protection |
|---|---|---|
| Branchless bank | EQ Bank, Tangerine, Alterna Bank, Wealth One | CDIC member in its own right |
| Division of a bigger bank | Simplii Financial (CIBC) | Shares the parent’s CDIC limits |
| Fintech app | Neo, KOHO, Wealthsimple | Through partner CDIC members, per each company’s disclosures |
What to compare
- Charter: is it on OSFI’s bank list?
- Protection: CDIC member, division, or partner arrangement? Check the CDIC list.
- Cash and cheques: how do you deposit them without a branch?
- ATM access: which network is free?
- Support and complaints: phone and chat hours; OBSI applies to banks and federal credit unions.
- USD: do you need a US-dollar account?
Open banking is coming, slowly
Canada’s consumer-driven banking framework will let you share data with accredited apps without handing over passwords. As of October 30, 2026 it is not live; see the status page.
Same app look, different vaults. Two apps can hold your money at the same partner — and share one CDIC limit.
Frequently asked questions
Are online banks in Canada safe?
Branchless banks such as EQ Bank and Tangerine are Schedule I banks and CDIC members. Fintech apps are not banks; their protection depends on partner institutions.
Is Simplii covered separately from CIBC?
No. Simplii Financial is a CIBC division, so deposits at both share CIBC’s CDIC limits.
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