Getting a bonus for opening a brokerage account can provide an initial boost to your portfolio. But Canadian trading platforms will also often offer investment account promotions to entice you to sign up on their platform and to help offset any transfer-out fees your previous brokerage might charge.
Investment account promotions in Canada will often look like cash promotions, free trades, discounted fees on select trades or cashback, and are available to new customers only. But researching different trading platforms to find the best brokerage account bonus can be time-consuming.
That’s why we compiled a list of up-to-date trading promos available from brokerages in Canada so you can easily compare investment account promotions, transfer promotions and referral bonuses available now
| Trading platform | Promotional offer & details | Min. deposit to open | Get offer |
|---|---|---|---|
Qtrade Direct Investing
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Earn up to $5,000 in cashback (+$100 quick-pay bonus) when you open and fund a new Qtrade account. Valid until January 5, 2027.
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$0 | |
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Exclusive
Get an $80 digital Visa gift card from Finder by becoming a Finder member, opening a new Qtrade Direct Investing account through Finder as a first-time client and funding it with a deposit that settles by the end of the promotion period + get up to $5,000 in cashback (+$100 quick-pay bonus) from Qtrade. Keep your account funded until the reward is paid. Offer ends November 30, 2026, 5:00 PM ET. | |||
Questrade
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Get $50 cash back when you open a Questrade self-directed investing account through Finder. T&Cs apply.
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$0 |
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CIBC Investor's Edge
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Young investors 18 to 24 get free online Canadian and US stock and ETF trades and a $0 annual fee using CIBC Investor’s Edge and a chequing account with CIBC Smart Start. T&Cs apply.
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$0 |
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Wealthsimple
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Get a 1% match cash bonus on eligible $25,000+ transfers from other financial institutions to your Wealthsimple Self-directed Investing and Managed Investing accounts. T&Cs apply.
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$0 |
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BMO InvestorLine
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Get up to $20,000 cash back. Plus, get a chance to win $300,000. Apply by March 1, 2027.
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$0 |
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GoSmart by RBC Direct Investing
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Open your first GoSmart account and earn up to 7,500 Avion points when you invest. T&Cs apply. Valid until January 11, 2027
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$0 |
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Scotia iTrade
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New clients can get up to $6,000 and free trades by opening and funding a new account. Valid until December 31, 2026.
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$0 |
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TD Easy Trade
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Get 100 free trades per year when you open a TD Easy Trade account and deposit as little as $1. Plus, earn up to 2% cash back when you open a new TD Easy Trade account and when you transfer $10,000+ from another financial institution. Offer ends April 30, 2027
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$0 |
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Although the following Canadian stock brokerage platforms do not have active offers, these types of platforms in Canada typically offer investment account promotions on a semi-regular basis:
We'll keep monitoring the Canadian landscape to make sure this list is reviewed and showing the most up-to-date investment account promotions.
| Exchagne platform | Promotional offer & details | Get offer |
|---|---|---|
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Buy your first crypto and get $10 in BTC with code BTCCA10. Canadian users only.
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Earn rewards by holding USDC on Kraken. All Kraken users earn 1.75%, while Kraken+ members earn 4.25%. Rewards accrue automatically based on your USDC balance.
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New users get $40 using code FINDER4026
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The following crypto exchanges are not offering active sign-up offers, but it's common for these platforms to offer promotional incentives intermittently throughout the year:
We'll keep monitoring and updating this list as sign-up offers become available.
Yes, many trading platforms in Canada offer promotional bonuses when you open a new brokerage account. These promo offers can include anything from a select number of free trades, discounted trades or cash back.
The best brokerage account bonuses are most typically offered by online brokerages, including Qtrade, CIBC Investor’s Edge and RBC Direct Investing.
Here is a summary of some of the best trading promos and brokerage bonuses available now:
You can compare more brokerage account bonuses in our list of trading promos available now in our list above.
The best trading promos and brokerage account bonuses will typically be offered by online brokerages in Canada as opposed to traditional physical brick-and-mortar brokers. Most online brokerages are designed to give you the tools to manage your investments yourself, which is why they will often offer new brokerage account bonuses with free or discounted trades.
There are a few investment platforms that consistently offer some of the best trading promos on the market, including CIBC Investor’s Edge, Qtrade and RBC Direct Investing. These brokerages also made our list of the best trading platforms in Canada.
Yes, most Canadian stock trading platforms offer transfer-out fee rebates to help cover the cost of you moving your funds to a new platform. Platforms offer that additional sign-up bonus because most institutions charge a transfer-out fee of around $150 to move your funds to a different platform, which can be a big deterrent for potential customers thinking of making the switch.
So in order to incentivize transferring your funds to a new platform, companies will often offer to rebate the fee that your previous institution charged you.
You can see a summary of transfer-out fees and rebate offers for some popular trading platforms below:
| Platform | Transfer-out fee | Transfer-in rebate | Funding methods | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Questrade | $150 | Up to $150 per account | INTERAC e-Transfer Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment Wire transfer Debit card Pre-authorized deposit (PAD) Non-certified cheque | |
| $150 | Up to $150 | Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment |
Finder Reward
Get an $80 digital Visa gift card from Finder by becoming a Finder member, opening a new Qtrade Direct Investing account through Finder as a first-time client and funding it with a deposit that settles by the end of the promotion period + get up to $5,000 in cashback (+$100 quick-pay bonus) from Qtrade. Keep your account funded until the reward is paid. Offer ends November 30, 2026, 5:00 PM ET.
| |
|
Finder Reward
Get an $80 digital Visa gift card from Finder by becoming a Finder member, opening a new Qtrade Direct Investing account through Finder as a first-time client and funding it with a deposit that settles by the end of the promotion period + get up to $5,000 in cashback (+$100 quick-pay bonus) from Qtrade. Keep your account funded until the reward is paid. Offer ends November 30, 2026, 5:00 PM ET.
| ||||
| CIBC Investor's Edge | $150 | Bank transfer | ||
| Wealthsimple | $0 | INTERAC e-Transfer Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Wire transfer Debit card | ||
| Moomoo | Undisclosed | Up to $2,300 in stock cash coupons | INTERAC e-Transfer Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment Wire transfer | |
| Interactive Brokers | $0 | N/A | Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment Wire transfer | |
| RBC Direct Investing | $150 | Up to 500k Avion points | Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment Pre-authorized deposit (PAD) | |
| Scotia iTrade | $150 | Up to $150 | Bank transfer Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Online bill payment Wire transfer Pre-authorized deposit (PAD) Non-certified cheque | |
| BMO InvestorLine | $0 | Up to 1% cashback (max $10,000) | Bank transfer Online bill payment Pre-authorized deposit (PAD) | |
Trading promos and brokerage bonuses come with attractive perks, but opening a new investment account may not be right for you. Here are a few things to think about:
To qualify for any trading promo offers, be aware that bank promos aren’t available for accounts you already have. Some specialized offers will also sometimes require you to complete specific actions, like the following, before you can receive the bonus:
Trading platforms in Canada sometimes offer trading promos or discounts for young investors looking to build their portfolios. Platforms offer those incentives to help young adults begin investing, even if they have little money. Current young investor promos and discounts include:
| Trading platform | Investor age | Perks |
|---|---|---|
| Qtrade Direct Investing | 18 to 30 |
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| CIBC Investor's Edge | Under 25 |
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| Scotia iTRADE | Up to and including the year investors turn 26 |
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| National Bank Direct Brokerage | 30 or younger on May 31 of each year |
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| Desjardins Online Brokerage (Disnat) | Under 30 |
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Stock trading platforms will also often offer incentives and referral bonuses to encourage their current customers to get their friends and family to sign up for a trading account with the platform. These stock trading referral promos can often earn you anywhere from $25 to over $200.
Here is a breakdown of referral bonuses currently available from stock trading platforms in Canada:
Trading promos can be an attractive perk, but whether they’re worth it depends on your investment goals and habits. These brokerage bonuses may come with conditions, such as minimum deposit requirements or maintaining a minimum account balance, which can be challenging for some investors.
While a cash bonus or free trades might be tempting, it’s essential to consider the overall costs of the brokerage, including fees and commissions, and whether the platform meets your long-term needs.
In some cases, you might find that the benefits of a bonus are outweighed by higher ongoing costs or limitations on investment options, so it’s important to evaluate the full picture before deciding.
Importantly, you can always transfer your account to a different broker if it doesn’t end up working for you. Just check whether the broker charges an outgoing account transfer fee and if the broker to which you’re moving your account will reimburse these fees.
"The biggest mistake I see retail traders and investors making is getting suckered in by the size of the bonus.
For example, suppose a retail trader sees a brokerage offering a $250 bonus for new accounts. They sign up and fund their account.
Sounds like free money, right?
However, consider the fact that the bonus is simply a loss-leading marketing expense for the broker. The broker gladly pays the bonus because they earn it back over the ensuing months/years on your order flow, the spread on your idle cash, and the margin.
Brokerages aren’t stupid. They employ teams of data scientists. If they are paying you $250 to open a new account, they’ve already modelled what that new account is worth to them – and it’s well over $250.
For a long-term investment account, what matters is execution quality, the types of orders you can place, and what they pay you on your uninvested/idle cash. Those considerations compound over the lifetime of your account. A one-time $250 bonus does not.
If you’re considering opening a new retail brokerage account, I’d suggest choosing the platform you would use EVEN IF the bonus did not exist. If the brokerage happens to offer a bonus for you to open the account, amazing, take it. But don’t choose a brokerage EXCLUSIVELY on whether it offers a bonus or not."
With online brokerages advertising high promo bonuses along with commission-free trading, it’s easy to wonder if trading promotions are too good to be true—and you’d be wise to be cautious. In order for brokerage companies to make money in a high-bonus, zero-commission landscape, they charge other ongoing fees and interest to use their platforms.
Trading platforms essentially use a loss-leader strategy—they absorb the upfront cost of acquiring your business because they know they can continue to profit from several alternative revenue streams. Here are some of the ways brokerages in Canada make money in spite of offering sign-up bonuses:
Trading brokerages offer different bonuses and promotions to incentivize potential customers to sign up for a new investment account. Whether you’re interested in buying stocks online for the first time or simply want to earn cash back or free stock, see which brokers offer a promotion before you sign up. Compare promotions but also consider its tools, features and fees to find the best stock trading app for you.
Having two brokerage accounts may be worth it if you don't find that one broker offers all the features you're looking for. It also lets you take advantage of multiple brokerage account bonuses.
Yes, investment income is typically taxable in Canada. The Canada Revenue Agency taxes investment income differently based on whether the income is from interest, dividends or capital gains. Read our full guide to investment taxes to learn more.
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