Best Chequing Accounts in Canada

Why it’s here: CIBC’s flagship everyday account rounds out Big Five coverage here — the $16.95 fee waives at a $4,000 daily balance, or automatically for students, seniors 65+, newcomers, foreign workers and RDSP/DTC recipients. The advertised up to $850 bonus isn’t a standalone chequing offer, though: it only pays out if you also apply for a CIBC Dividend Visa Infinite card.

Why it’s here: the largest cash bonus of any chequing account we track — up to $1,000 when you stack the chequing, savings and credit card legs — with unlimited transactions and a $16.95 fee that disappears if you keep $4,000 in the account. The catch is that the full $1,000 takes three products and several months of conditions.

Why it’s here: the same $17.95 / $4,000 structure as BMO, but with two things BMO doesn’t give you — up to $139 of a TD credit card’s first-year annual fee rebated, and no TD fee at any ATM in Canada. Worth it if you already want one of the five eligible TD cards; otherwise it’s $215 a year for a balance that earns nothing.

Why it’s here: TD’s top chequing tier — unlimited transactions with no TD fees at any ATM in Canada or abroad, plus an annual-fee rebate on one of six eligible TD credit cards. The $30.95 fee is the highest on this list, and needs a stricter end-of-day (not average) $6,000 balance to waive.

Why it’s here: Scotiabank’s premium package qualifies for the same up-to-$1,000 bundle bonus and adds a higher MomentumPLUS interest boost, but the $30.95 fee only disappears if you hold $6,000 every day of the month or $100,000 across your Scotiabank relationship. It ranks last because most people are better served by the Preferred Package at less than half the fee.

Why it’s here: a free, app-first account that plugs into Neo’s cashback credit cards. As of Sept 2026 it no longer pays any interest on your balance (Neo moved that to a separate Neo Savings account), and there’s no public welcome bonus, so it ranks behind the others for switching your main banking.

Why it’s here: Blue Rewards trades a lower cash bonus for Blue Points worth roughly the same ~$900 — but the $17.95 fee has no published waiver option, and the full bonus needs a separate Blue Rewards enrollment. It ranks near the bottom because most people are better served taking cash outright.

Why it’s here: RBC’s flagship unlimited-transaction account rounds out Big Five coverage here — unlimited debit transactions and free Interac e-Transfers, plus Avion Rewards points on debit purchases and a $5,000 fee-waived overdraft line. The $16.95 fee drops to as low as $4/month under RBC’s Value Program rebate (or $12.95/month for seniors), though unlike some competitors there’s no simple minimum-balance waiver. The current welcome offer is a new iPad rather than cash.

Why it’s here: A lower-fee alternative to TD’s Unlimited and All-Inclusive plans — the $3,000 waiver balance is easier to hit, and public transit transactions don’t count against your monthly limit. The trade-off is a 25-transaction cap before $1.25 per-transaction fees kick in.

Why it’s here: Practical is BMO’s cheapest personal chequing plan at a flat $4 a month, but transactions cap at 12 (including e-Transfers) and there’s no fee waiver at any balance. It ranks last because Simplii and Tangerine offer the same simplicity for $0.

Why it’s here: TD’s lowest flat fee, with no balance to maintain — and it’s fully waived for GIS recipients, Indigenous peoples from Canada, RDSP beneficiaries, and newcomers in their first year. The catch is only 12 included transactions a month, the lowest cap of any TD account on this list.

Why it isn’t ranked: StartRight is a newcomer bundle rather than a standalone chequing account — its fee waiver runs on a clock tied to arrival in Canada, so scoring it beside everyday accounts would not compare like with like.

Why it’s here: Built specifically for newcomers to Canada — no Canadian credit history required for a bundled credit card (limits up to $15,000), plus Nova Credit integration that imports credit history from 15 countries. The chequing fee is waived for the first 12 months, but returns afterward unless you keep a $4,000 daily balance.