Best brokerage account promotions in Canada

• Fall 2024 BMO Mutual Funds Transfer Bonus Offer: Transfer investments into BMO Mutual Funds between November 1 and December 31, 2024, to receive a bonus of up to $3,500, depending on the transfer amount.
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $5,000 ($250 bonus)
• Holding period: Until February 28, 2025
• Cost to transfer: BMO InvestorLine covers transfer fees up to $200 for new clients transferring at least $15,000 from another financial institution.

BMO InvestorLine charges $9.95 per stock trade but offers over 80 ETFs with no trading fees. It stands out for its wide variety of assets, account types, and the option to open USD-registered accounts for trading U.S. stocks. With no minimum balance requirement to open an account, investors gain access to robust research tools, perfect for more experienced traders.

For those opening a self-directed account between June 4 and September 30, 2024, BMO InvestorLine's cashback promotion provides a tiered bonus. To maximize the $3,500 reward, you'll need to invest $1.5 million, but even a $5,000 transfer earns a respectable $250 in cash back.

• Bonus: Get 100 free trades when you open a CIBC Investor’s Edge account using promo code EDGE2425. Plus, get $200 or more cash back. Offer valid until March 31, 2025
• Qualification: To be eligible for the Offer, you must open an eligible CIBC Investor’s Edge account with promo code EDGE2425. Additionally, to earn cash back, the more you transfer in the more you get, up to $10,000.
• Cost to transfer: CIBC doesn’t cover the transfer fees, so it will depend on what your original brokerage charges

CIBC bank is currently offering a banking promotional package if you’re looking to switch over all of your accounts. When you open a chequing and savings account and you meet the criteria for qualifying, you can earn up to $600.

CIBC charges $6.95 per trade for stocks and ETFs but doesn’t charge for mutual funds (though be mindful of the hidden fees).

Based on our previous review, we discovered that CIBC ranks low in customer service. However, the brokerage is backed by one of the largest banks in Canada, and young investors (between 18 and 24) can trade stocks and options for free.

• Bonus: No bonus currently offered
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: N/A
• Holding period: N/A
• Cost to transfer: Depends on what your brokerage charges

Desjardins Online Brokerage offers commission-free trading for stocks and ETFs. While Desjardins isn’t generally known for its online brokerage services, this can be the right choice if you’re looking for educational resources and commission free trading in Canada. If you’re a young investor between 18 and 30, Desjardins will reimburse you up to $150 in transfer fees.

Desjardins Online Brokerage isn’t currently offering any promotional offers. However, you can have the $30 quarterly inactivity fee waived if you make over six trades in a year. The notable issue is that most online brokerages don’t even charge an inactivity fee in the first place.

• Enjoy $2,000 commission rebate card
• Deposit $100 or more and receive $50 stock cash coupon
• Deposit $2,000 or more and receive $200 stock cash coupon
• Deposit any amount and receive 6% per annum (up to $10,000 on uninvested cash)

Moomoo is a global investing app that launched in Canada in 2023, offering low trading fees, a powerful trading platform, and extensive educational resources. However, it lacks some features compared to top Canadian brokerages.

Moomoo Canada stands out for low-cost trades and advanced charting tools, making it a strong choice for active traders and beginners.

Promotion ends January 31st, 2025.

• Bonus: Will waive $100 annual fee
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $25,000
• Holding period: None
• Cost to transfer: Will refund up to $150 if you have $20,000 or more in assets

National Bank touts that it’s the first brokerage to offer commission-free trading for Canadian and US stocks. With no trading fees and access to educational resources like webinars and training materials, this is one of the best brokerage accounts for those looking to save on commissions. However, you can’t ignore the $100 annual administration fee and that there have been issues reported with the usability of the mobile app.

National Bank will waive the $100 annual administration fee if you meet the qualifications as an offer. However, the qualifications will include being a young investor under 30 or holding eligible assets of at least $20,000.

• Bonus: Get up to 5% cash back + $150 sign-up bonus + free trades.
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $1,000
• Holding period: None
• Cost to transfer: Up to $150 rebate per transfer when you transfer $15,000+.

Qtrade is known for its award-winning customer service, exceptional educational resources for investors and ease of use. The Globe and Mail rated Qtrade A-, and it has been consistently rated as the top online broker in Canada for the last decade. The Portfolio Score tool helps clients work on their portfolios by reviewing the risks. Qtrade charges $8.75 per trade but offers commission-free trading of over 120 ETFs. Plus, they currently have a promotion where you can get unlimited free trades until April 30, 2025.

• Bonus: 5 Free Trades: New Questrade account holders receive five commission-free trades. Use the offer code "5FREETRADES" when opening your account.
• Bonus: New clients can enjoy a month of free trades plus streaming level 2 data. Apply the offer code "ADVANTAGE14" during account setup.
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $1,000
• Holding period: Trades completed within 60 days of the account activation
• Cost to transfer: Questrade will rebate the transfer fees you're charged for the switch "any balance, from any eligible account."

Based on our extensive research, Questrade is the best online brokerage in Canada due to its low fees and simple DIY trading platform. Questrade is one of the most well-established online brokerages in Canada, in part due to the excellent customer and account options for investors.

You can get five commission-free stock trades if you open and fund a new TFSA or margin online trading account with $1,000. Questrade also has a referral program, where you can earn $50 with up to 30 friends or relatives per year for every account sign-up. You can transfer your account for free, get five free trades and then refer friends to maximize your switch to Questrade.

• Bonus: Get up to 500,000 Avion points, $300 cash bonus and 50 commission-free trades until March 3rd, 2025.
• Offer Code: WPP11
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $15,000
• Holding period: Until October 3, 2025
• Cost to transfer: RBC covers up to $200 in transfer fees

RBC Direct Investing doesn’t require a minimum account to get started, and you can even open a practice account until you’re ready to start investing. However, RBC Direct Investing charges $9.95 per trade, which is higher than many of the other options in this article, and there’s also a quarterly maintenance fee.

RBC Direct Investing currently has a massive winter promotional offer with up to 500,000 Avion points. To qualify, you'll need to transfer a minimum of $15,000 cash and/or securities into your new eligible account by April 3, 2025 from another institution. To also get the additional $300 cash bonus, you'll need to hold your account from April 3, 2025 to October 3, 2025. You'll also need to sign up for Avion rewards in the Avion Elite or Avion premium membership level.

Now, for the 500,000 points. It's one of those "up to" promotions. You get 1 Avion point for every 2 Canadian dollars you transfer over before October 3, 2025. To unlock the full 500,000, you'll need to transfer $1 million. Still, transferring even $100,000 still gets you 50,000 points. Your points unlock in November 2025.

• Bonus: Up to $10,000 (1% cash back offer)
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $1,000
• Holding period: Until April 30, 2026
• Cost to transfer: Whatever your original institution charges

Scotia iTRADE is the online brokerage for Scotiabank, which is one of the largest banks in the country and it would simplify your financial life if you already have an account with them. However, it’s worth pointing out that the Scotia iTRADE online brokerage has received poor reviews from users based on customer service, the high fees, and issues with the mobile app.

Scotia iTRADE currently has a promotional offer where you can earn up to $10,000 in cash back if you open a new account by March 31, 2025 and hold the funds until April 30, 2026. You must fund the account with the required amount by April 30, 2025. The promotional offer also includes $4.99 stock and ETF commission prices until the end of the year.

It's a tiered offer: $1,000 gets you $1, $50,000 gets you $500, $250,000 gets you $2,500 all the way up to $1,000,000 getting you that sweet $10,000. But, you do need to hold the money in your account until April 30, 2026.

• Bonus: 1% cash back
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $10,000
• Holding period: Until April 30, 2026
• Cost to transfer: $150

The Globe and Mail gave TD Direct Investing an A rating because the online brokerage offers tools for managing your portfolio. Trading fees depend on whether you’re considered a standard trader (less than 150 trades per quarter) or an active trader (over 150 trades per quarter).

Standard traders pay $9.99 per trade, while active ones pay $7 per trade. It comes down to deciding if the fees are worth having access to the market research tools.

TD Direct Investing is currently offering a 1% cash back promotion to new and existing customers of TD Direct Investing between February 1, 2025 and March 31, 2025 when you transfer in $10,000 or more to a new or existing account using the promo code STARTGOALS1^†.

You must fund the account with qualifying assets by April 30, 2025. The maximum cash back rewards is $10,000 and you must maintain the assets in your account until April 30, 2026. Also, TD will cover up to $150 in transfer fees when you transfer in at least $25,000 in eligible assets and you can open up a banking account with them to simplify your financial situation.

†Terms and Conditions Apply.

• Bonus: Get $50 cash with TD Easy Trade^TM
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: Transfer $500 or more
• New or existing clients can open an eligible account by March 31, 2025 using the promo code: GETSTARTED
• Holding period: Maintain the assets in your account until June 30, 2025. Receive your award by July 31, 2025.

Get 50 commission-free stock trades every year and trade TD ETFs any time for free all with no monthly fees.

It's a great app for beginner investors with no minimums and the ability to trade in partial shares.

• No current promotion: Move your RRSO and get a 2% match (plus 5 ski lift tickets) and a 1% match on all other qualifying transfers.
• Holding period: 365 days
• Cost to transfer: Free, as Wealthsimple reimburses the transfer fees
• Deadline: March 15th, 2025

Wealthsimple is the best online brokerage if you’re looking for a top notch user experience. With no account minimums to get started and zero commission trading, this is the ideal account for most investors. Even though Wealthsimple has limited portfolio options and there are currency fees for purchasing US stocks, you can expect reasonable fees and access to quality human advisors.

Wealthsimple always has different promotions, straying from the straight up cash back. Their last promo was an Apple Macbok, this one is 5 ski lift tickets — well, and a hefty 2% match on qualifying RRSP transfers as well as a 1% match on all other transfers.

You can get those lift tickets when you refer friends, enable direct deposit, and more.

• Bonus: 1.5% match on all deposits and transfers up to $2,000,000.
• Minimum deposit to unlock bonus: $2,000
• Holding period: Until November 30, 2025
• Cost to transfer: Webull covers up to $150

Webull offers professional tools and no account minimums or maintenance fees. It charges $2.99 per trade for Canadian and USD stock purchases. The platform also offers a 90-day introductory offer, during which you can trade Canadian and US stocks commission-free.

Let's look closer at the promo: If you transfer in $1,000 and deposit $1,000 cash, your aggregate amount transferred in is $2,000. Then, you'll get 1.5% match so you'll earn a bonus of $30.

You can unlock up to $30,000 if you transfer $1,000,000 from another brokerage and deposit $1,000,000 so your aggregate is $2,000,000.

Any withdrawal or transfer out made between the offer end date and the first claim date (05/30/2025) will be subtracted from your Net Qualifying Deposit, reducing the actual match bonus you’ll receive.

Between the first claim date (05/30/2025) and the second claim date (11/30/2025), any withdrawals or transfers out will disqualify you from receiving the second installment payment.