Simplii Financial, Tangerine, and EQ Bank occupy three distinct positions in Canada’s no-fee banking landscape. All three charge nothing monthly, offer CDIC-insured accounts, and support unlimited Interac e-Transfers. Beyond those shared features, they diverge significantly on savings rates, physical infrastructure, registered accounts, and credit card offerings.
Understanding which one is right for you comes down to a few practical questions: Do you handle cash regularly? Do you care more about savings rate or chequing features? Do you need registered savings accounts? Are you willing to manage money across two institutions to optimise both rate and convenience?
For many Canadians, the answer is not to choose one — it is to combine them. Simplii or Tangerine for everyday chequing and cash access, EQ Bank for savings. This two-bank setup costs nothing and captures the best of what each institution does well.
At a Glance
| Feature | Simplii | Tangerine | EQ Bank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent company | CIBC | Scotiabank | Equitable Bank |
| Monthly fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Standard savings rate | ~0.40% | ~0.10% | 3.50–4.25% |
| Promotional savings rate | 4–5%+ | 5%+ | None needed |
| ATM network | CIBC (3,400+) | Scotiabank (3,600+) | None |
| Cash deposits | Yes | Yes | No |
| Chequing account | Yes | Yes | Yes (interest-earning) |
| Credit card | Yes (Visa) | Yes (Mastercard) | No |
| TFSA savings account | No | Yes | Yes |
| RRSP savings account | No | Yes | Yes |
| Investing platform | No | Yes (robo-advisor) | No |
| CDIC insured | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Savings Rates
This is the most important difference between the three banks, and where EQ Bank is the clear winner for most Canadians.
EQ Bank’s Notice Savings Account pays 3.50–4.25% on an ongoing basis — no promotional period, no expiry, no conditions. That rate applies whether you opened the account yesterday or three years ago. EQ Bank also applies this rate inside TFSA and RRSP savings accounts, which makes it one of the strongest options for registered savings in Canada.
Simplii’s standard savings rate is approximately 0.40%. Tangerine’s is approximately 0.10%. Both institutions run frequent promotional campaigns of 4–5%+ for new deposits, typically lasting three to five months. These promotions are real and worth capturing — a promotional rate of 5% on a $30,000 deposit for four months is approximately $500 before tax. But once the promotion ends, the rate reverts sharply. Canadians who actively track promotional windows and move money between institutions can capture competitive rates intermittently, but it requires attention.
For savers who want to set a rate and not think about it again, EQ Bank is the straightforward choice. The difference on a $25,000 savings balance between EQ Bank (4%) and Simplii’s standard rate (0.40%) is approximately $900/year — enough that the two-bank approach (Simplii for chequing, EQ Bank for savings) is worth the minor friction of managing two accounts.
| Account | Standard Rate | Promotional Rate | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| EQ Bank Notice Savings | 3.50–4.25% | N/A | Ongoing |
| Simplii HISA | ~0.40% | 4–5%+ | 3–5 months |
| Tangerine Savings | ~0.10% | 5%+ | 3–5 months |
Chequing Accounts
All three offer free unlimited chequing with no minimum balance and free e-Transfers. The differences are in cash access and the interest earned on the balance.
Simplii and Tangerine function similarly as everyday transactional accounts: the balance earns negligible interest (0.01–0.10%), and their value is in the free transaction structure and the ATM networks behind them. Simplii uses CIBC’s approximately 3,400 ATMs; Tangerine uses Scotiabank’s approximately 3,600.
EQ Bank’s Personal Account earns 4%+ interest on the full balance — the same rate as its savings account. This means every dollar sitting in your EQ Bank account earns a meaningful return, even money you are just holding between paycheques. The tradeoff is no cash deposit and no branded ATM network. EQ Bank provides a Visa debit card with some fee rebates at ATMs, but if you withdraw cash regularly you will encounter fees.
For Canadians whose banking is entirely digital — no cash income, no cash expenses, no need for physical machines — EQ Bank’s interest-earning chequing account is genuinely compelling. For everyone else, Simplii or Tangerine is more practical as the primary account.
| Feature | Simplii | Tangerine | EQ Bank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Transactions | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| e-Transfers | Free | Free | Free |
| Interest on balance | ~0.01% | ~0.10% | 4%+ |
| Cash deposit | CIBC ATMs | Scotiabank ATMs | No |
| Overdraft | Available | Available | No |
GIC Rates
All three offer GICs, and EQ Bank generally leads on rate. The gap narrows for shorter terms but widens for 2–5 year GICs.
| Term | Simplii | Tangerine | EQ Bank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 3.75–4.25% | 3.75–4.50% | 4.25–4.75% |
| 2 year | 3.50–4.00% | 3.50–4.00% | 4.00–4.50% |
| 3 year | 3.25–3.75% | 3.25–3.75% | 3.75–4.25% |
| 5 year | 3.25–3.75% | 3.25–3.75% | 3.75–4.25% |
Rates fluctuate with Bank of Canada policy and market conditions. Verify current rates before purchasing.
All three offer registered GICs (TFSA, RRSP). For non-registered GICs, also compare rates from Oaken Financial and Renaissance, which frequently post competitive rates not tied to a major bank.
Credit Cards
EQ Bank does not offer a credit card. The comparison here is between Simplii’s Cash Back Visa and Tangerine’s Money-Back Mastercard — two strong no-fee options with meaningfully different earn structures.
Simplii Cash Back Visa: 4% on restaurants and bars, 1.5% on eligible groceries, 0.5% on everything else. The 4% dining rate is one of the highest of any no-annual-fee card in Canada. The 0.5% base rate is low for non-food categories.
Tangerine Money-Back Mastercard: 2% in up to three categories of your choice (from a list including groceries, gas, restaurants, drugstores, entertainment, hotel-motel, home improvement, recurring bills, public transit, furniture), and 0.5% on everything else. The flexibility is a genuine advantage — a household that spends heavily on groceries and gas can earn 2% on both, which beats Simplii’s 1.5% grocery rate (though not Simplii’s 4% restaurant rate).
For restaurant-heavy spenders, Simplii’s Visa is the stronger card. For households whose high-spend categories are groceries, gas, or other Tangerine categories, the Tangerine card’s 2% flexibility can deliver equal or better value.
| Feature | Simplii Cash Back Visa | Tangerine Money-Back Mastercard |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | $0 | $0 |
| Top earn rate | 4% (restaurants) | 2% (chosen categories) |
| Chosen categories | Fixed | Up to 3, flexible |
| Groceries | 1.5% | 2% (if selected) |
| Base rate | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| Network | Visa | Mastercard |
Registered Accounts (TFSA, RRSP, RESP)
This is an area where EQ Bank and Tangerine are strong, and Simplii is weak.
EQ Bank offers TFSA and RRSP savings accounts at the same 3.50–4.25% rate as its regular savings account, plus registered GICs. This makes EQ Bank one of the most competitive options for liquid registered savings in Canada — your TFSA contribution earns 3.50–4.25% with full liquidity, no lock-in.
Tangerine offers TFSA, RRSP, and RESP savings accounts, plus registered GICs, plus Tangerine Investing (a low-cost robo-advisor that manages index-fund portfolios in registered and non-registered accounts). For Canadians who want a single institution for everyday banking, savings, and hands-off registered investing, Tangerine is the most complete option of the three.
Simplii offers TFSA and RRSP GICs but no liquid registered savings accounts. If you want registered savings that earn interest while remaining withdrawable, Simplii cannot provide it.
| Account | Simplii | Tangerine | EQ Bank |
|---|---|---|---|
| TFSA savings account | No | Yes | Yes |
| RRSP savings account | No | Yes | Yes |
| RESP savings account | No | Yes | No |
| TFSA/RRSP GICs | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Investing (robo-advisor) | No | Yes | No |
Who Each Bank Is Best For
Choose Simplii if your primary need is free everyday chequing with CIBC ATM access, you eat out regularly and want the 4% Cash Back Visa, or you are an existing CIBC customer looking to eliminate monthly fees while keeping the same ATM network.
Choose Tangerine if you want the most complete online banking experience — registered savings accounts (TFSA, RRSP, RESP), a robo-advisor investing option, and a flexible cash back card with 2% in self-selected categories. Tangerine is also the better fit if Scotiabank ATMs are more convenient in your area than CIBC ATMs.
Choose EQ Bank if you want the highest savings rate in Canada without chasing promotions, you are comfortable banking entirely digitally without cash deposits, and you want a TFSA or RRSP savings account earning 3.50–4.25% with full liquidity.
Use two of them if you want to optimise. The most common combination: Simplii or Tangerine as the primary chequing account for everyday transactions and cash access, plus EQ Bank as the savings account for the ongoing 3.50–4.25% rate. All free Interac e-Transfers make moving money between them costless.