For decades, Canadian stock investors were forced to pay $5 to $10 every time they bought or sold a stock. For anyone trying to build a portfolio with smaller, consistent deposits, those fees destroyed compounding returns.
Wealthsimple changed that reality.
As Canada's pioneer in commission-free trading, Wealthsimple completely changed the self-directed investing landscape. But is it the right platform for your specific trading style? Here is a deep dive into how Wealthsimple holds up for self-directed stock and ETF investors.
Wealthsimple lets you open the most important tax-advantaged and taxable accounts with a $0 minimum balance requirement, including:
TFSA (Tax-Free Savings Account)
RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan)
FHSA (First Home Savings Account)
Non-Registered (Personal taxable trading accounts)
You can buy and sell thousands of Canadian-listed stocks and ETFs entirely for free. There are no hidden software fees, no quarterly maintenance fees, and no minimum activity requirements. If you want to buy 1 share of an eligible Canadian ETF every week it'll cost you absolutely nothing in fees.
Don't have thousands of dollars to buy a full share of expensive tech giants? Wealthsimple supports fractional trading. You can invest as little as $1 into major companies, allowing you to build a perfectly diversified portfolio regardless of your account size.
You can automate your investing strategy by setting up weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly recurring purchases of your favorite stocks or ETFs. Wealthsimple will pull the cash from your bank account and execute the trade automatically.
While eligible Canadian assets are 100% free, WealthSimple charges currency conversions fees when buying foreign assets like US stocks and ETFs.
If you are on the standard free tier, Wealthsimple charges a 1.5% currency conversion fee every time you buy or sell a US asset (like Apple or Tesla). Because you cannot hold USD in the basic account, you get hit with this fee twice (once when buying, once when selling).
If you plan to trade a lot of US stocks you can upgrade your account or achieve a higher tier:
The USD Account Option: For a flat monthly fee (or free if you deposit over $100K across Wealthsimple accounts), you can unlock USD accounts. This allows you to convert currency once, hold American dollars, and trade US stocks without ongoing commission fees.
Wealthsimple is the absolute best platform in Canada for long-term investors, ETF compounders, and dollar-cost-averagers who want to build a portfolio without losing money to fees. It is exceptionally well-suited for TFSA, RRSP, and FHSA accounts. It's great for beginner investors and experienced investors who don't day trade frequently.
However, if you are a hyper-active day trader requiring advanced technical charting, Level 2 market data, and complex options strategies, WealthSimple probably isn't the best for you. If you're a frequent day trader requiring advanced features, Interactive Brokers (IBKR) might be a better fit for you. You can check out Interactive Brokers here and get up to $1,000 in free IBKR stock with this referral link https://ibkr.com/referral/jermain597
If you're ready to open a WealthSimple investing account, make sure to claim your free cash bonus:
1.Use referral link https://www.wealthsimple.com/invite/BM5_AG to signup for WealthSimple. If you prefer to enter the code manually, look for the gift icon in the top right corner of the app or website, or a section that says "referral code" and enter code BM5_AG
2. Open a WealthSimple chequing account (it's free) and a investment account type of your choice.
3. Deposit at least $100 within 30 days.
The money must come from an external source, like a linked traditional bank account (via Interac e-Transfer or direct deposit) or an institutional transfer from another investment firm. Moving money internally between existing Wealthsimple accounts, or receiving a peer-to-peer cash transfer from a friend, does not count
The 7-Day and 30-Day Deadline: You must apply the WealthSimple referral code BM5_AG within 7 days of first funding your account, and within 30 days of opening your account. If you don't add the code by those deadlines it won't work.
4. That's it!
WealthSimple will deposit the $25 bonus into your chequing account a few days later.