In a study done by Investment Executive, 64% of discount brokerage clients actually do not use their discount brokerage’s mobile application. Although this is a majority of discount brokerage clients, you may not fall into this category.
If you are an investor or trader that spends a lot of time looking at your investments on your phone, you will want to make sure that you use a brokerage with a great mobile application. Although almost all discount brokerages in Canada come with a mobile app, some are more competitive than others.
How good an investment app is will mostly be a direct reflection of how competitive the underlying discount brokerage actually is. Keep in mind that investment apps are mobile versions of a financial institution’s discount brokerage.
I will cover the best investment apps in Canada below and outline what makes them such excellent picks.
- Commission-free trading of stocks and ETFs
- High app store ratings
- Easy-to-use platform
- Professional platform
- No account minimum
- Lots of tools and resources
- Commission-free trading of stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds
- Great account variety
- Access to a wide range of asset classes
Criteria used to Rank the Best Investment Apps
I take a look at a few criteria when determining which investment apps in Canada are the best:
- App’s reviews and ratings: how well received the application is on both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store
- Trading costs: how much it costs to trade various investments on the platform.
- Account variety: how many different account types the brokerage (and application) supports.
- Asset class variety: the number of different investments that can be traded on the application.
- Account opening minimum: if there is a minimum required deposit (and how high it is).
- Account Fees: other miscellaneous fees that may be present on the platform
5 Best Investment Apps in Canada
1. Wealthsimple Trade: A Top-Rated App
- User reviews & ratings: high
- Apple App Store Rating: 4.7 out of 5
- Google Play Store Rating: 4.4 out of 5
- Trading commissions: zero
- Account variety: low
- Asset class variety: low
- Account minimum: no
- Account fees: low
Do use Wealthsimple Trade if: You are looking for a mobile app to trade North American stocks and ETFs.
Do not use Wealthsimple Trade if: If you want to trade investments other than stocks and ETFs or want to have a wide range of accounts under one brokerage.
Signing up for a Wealthsimple Trade account here will get you a $25 signup bonus.
Wealthsimple Trade is the number one investment app on my list when it comes to brokerages in Canada. Wealthsimple Trade has significantly higher mobile app store ratings than peers while also allowing clients to trade North American stocks and ETFs without any trade commissions.
The Wealthsimple Trade mobile application has very high ratings and overwhelmingly positive reviews on both the Google Play Store as well as the Apple App Store. The app leads other investment app peers in ratings and reviews by quite a wide margin.
Since the platform only allows you to trade stocks and ETFs, Wealthsimple Trade can be considered a commission-free platform. Make sure to be aware of the platform’s fee of 1.5%, which is charged every time you switch between Canadian dollars and US dollars.
You will not be able to trade other asset classes through Wealthsimple Trade, including mutual funds, fixed income, or options.
Wealthsimple Trade has a very slim offering when it comes to account variety. This is likely due to efforts to keep costs as low as possible to offer commission-free trading. Wealthsimple Trade currently offers:
- Non-registered personal accounts
- Registered Retirement Savings Plans
- Tax-Free Savings Accounts
The brokerage comes with low account fees relative to other discount broker peers in Canada. Wealthsimple Trade does not come with any account opening minimums.
Take a look at my Wealthsimple Trade review for a full breakdown of the platform.
- Zero-commission trading of Canadian or US stocks and ETFs
- One of the highest-rated mobile investment apps available to Canadians
- No account minimum
- Account types that can be opened are limited
- Only Canadian or US stocks and ETFs can be traded
- High fees for converting between US and Canadian dollars (unless you have a Wealthsimple Trade Plus account)
2. Interactive Brokers: An Investment App for Seasoned Investors
- User reviews & ratings: average
- Apple App Store Rating: 2.6 out of 5
- Google Play Store Rating: 4.4 out of 5
- Trading commissions: very low
- Account variety: good
- Asset class variety: good
- Account minimum: no
- Account fees: average
Do use Interactive Brokers if: You are an experienced investor that is looking for an advanced platform.
Do not use Interactive Brokers if: You are new to investing and are just learning the basics.
Interactive Brokers takes the second spot on my list of investment apps in Canada. The app is designed to target more seasoned traders or investors. It offers a lot of tools and resources to help you make investment decisions.
Interactive Brokers’ mobile app has fairly average ratings on both the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store:
If you are looking to trade stocks, the platform charges trade commissions based on trading volume. Most average investors and traders will be charged $0.008 per share (or unit) for stocks and ETFs (with a minimum trade commission of $1 and a maximum commission of 0.5% of the trade’s value).
If you are trading very high volumes of shares or units, these commissions decrease if you exceed more than 300,000 shares per month.
Interactive Brokers supports a good range of account types. The discount broker supports:
- Non-registered accounts
- Trust accounts
- Tax-Free Savings Accounts
- Registered Retirement Savings Plans
- Spousal RRSPs
The discount broker also offers access to a very wide range of asset classes. These include, but are not limited to:
- Stocks
- ETFs
- Options
- Futures
- Warrants
- Fixed Income
- Mutual Funds
- Structured Products
- Currencies
Interactive Brokers has average fees (outside of trading commissions) relative to other Canadian platforms.
If you would like to learn more about Interactive Brokers as a brokerage, read my Interactive Brokers review.
- Very low trading commissions for most investment asset classes
- Platform designed for advanced investors
- Good account type variety
- May be too complex for newer investors
- Mobile app reviews are average
- Does not offer commission-free trading
3. Desjardins Online Brokerage
- User reviews & ratings: average
- Apple App Store Rating: 2.9 out of 5
- Google Play Store Rating: no reviews
- Trading commissions: zero for stocks, ETFs, and most mutual funds, average for other investments
- Account variety: good
- Asset class variety: good
- Account minimum: $1,000
- Account fees: medium
Do use Desjardins Online Brokerage if: You are looking to trade stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds without trading commissions.
Do not use Desjardins Online Brokerage if: You are looking to exclusively trade options or have less than $1,000 to invest or trade.
Desjardins Online Brokerage is another great choice as a Canadian investment app. It offers Canadians commission-free trading for stocks, mutual funds, and ETFs. The mobile application is fairly simple to use and understand.
Desjardins Online Brokerage’s mobile application has average ratings on Apple’s App Store and does not have reviews or ratings on the Google Play Store.
Although the brokerage offers commission-free trading for stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds, options trades will still cost $1.25 per contract (with an $8.75 minimum cost per trade). You can trade most investment asset classes through Desjardins Online Brokerage, including:
- Canadian and US stocks
- North American options
- Structured notes
- IPOs
- Mutual funds
- Fixed income
- GICs
Desjardins Online Brokerage also supports a very wide range of account types. Clients will be able to open most of the key Canadian investment accounts through the platform.
These include inactivity fees, as well as hefty administration fees for registered accounts, unless certain conditions are met.
In terms of fees, the platform charges clients various miscellaneous fees, including inactivity fees and administration fees for registered accounts (unless you meet specific criteria). The brokerage has a $1,000 account opening minimum requirement.
Be sure to look at my Desjardins Online Broker review for more details on the platform.
- Free trading of ETFs, mutual funds, and stocks
- Great investment asset class choices
- Various account types are available
- The platform requires a minimum of $1,000 to get started
- Numerous account and miscellaneous fees
- Not very competitive for trading options
4. Questrade
- User reviews & ratings: low
- Apple App Store Rating: 1.7 out of 5
- Google Play Store Rating: 2.1 out of 5
- Trading commissions: below average
- Account variety: good
- Asset class variety: good
- Account minimum: $1,000
- Account fees: average
Open an account with Questrade and get $50 in free stock trades.
In fourth place on my list is Questrade, a Canadian discount brokerage offering fairly inexpensive trading commissions. Questrade’s mobile app is intuitive to use but comes with low ratings and users complaining of extended downtimes during periods of high market activity.
Questrade’s mobile app has a ton of reviews and ratings, although these are, for the most part negative in nature.
One of the brokerage’s key features is that clients are able to trade most asset classes at below-average commissions. For clients that sign up to access one of Questrade’s advanced market data packages, trading commissions are reduced even further.
Investors can use Questrade to trade ETFs, stocks, options, IPOs, fixed income, precious metals, and more. In addition to the great asset class support, Questrade clients are also able to open a wide range of Canadian investment account types through the platform.
Questrade’s miscellaneous fees are fairly average relative to discount broker peers.
Give my Questrade review a read to learn more about Questrade as a platform.
5. Qtrade
- User reviews & ratings: low
- Apple App Store Rating: 1.6 out of 5
- Google Play Store Rating: no reviews
- Trading commissions: below average
- Account variety: good
- Asset class variety: good
- Account minimum: no
- Account fees: low
Sign up for a Qtrade account here.
A final investment app to consider is Qtrade Direct Investing. Although Qtrade’s app has low reviews, the platform allows clients to trade over 100 ETFs and mutual funds for free and otherwise inexpensive trading commissions. Qtrade also offers an abundance of portfolio tools and resources.
Qtrade’s mobile app does not have any reviews on the Google Play Store and has poor ratings on Apple’s App Store.
If you are not trading one of the 100+ commission-free ETFs or mutual funds, Qtrade charges decently-low trading commissions. If you are a frequent trader or have over $500,000 in assets with Qtrade, you will be able to take advantage of even lower trading commissions.
Clients frequently praise Qtrade’s customer support, which may be an invaluable feature for less independent investors.
Qtrade allows you to trade most investment asset classes and also provides good flexibility when it comes to available account types.
The discount brokerage’s general account fees are slightly lower than peers.
Read my Qtrade review for more insights into the platform and its specifics.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the Best Investing Apps for Beginners?
The investing apps on my list, with the exception of Interactive Brokers, are intuitive and fairly simple to use. Beginners should not have too much difficulty with the mobile app versions of Wealthsimple Trade, Desjardins Online Brokerage, Questrade, or Qtrade.
What is the Best App for Buying ETFs?
If you are looking to trade ETFs, your best bet is to choose a brokerage (and app) that offers commission-free trading of ETFs. From my list above, these include Wealthsimple Trade and Desjardins Online Brokerage.
Conclusion
After considering the initial criteria and looking at each of the investment apps in Canada, Wealthsimple Trade comes in first place as the best investment app in Canada for most Canadian investors.
Advanced investors may want to consider using Interactive Broker’s mobile application. If you are looking to trade investments outside of just stocks and ETFs, Desjardins Online Brokerage offers a great platform.
If you are a new Canadian investor, make sure to read my guide on how to start investing in Canada.
