CIBC Investor’s Edge, like most Big Bank brokerage platforms, has been around since the last century. But recent years have seen these established trading platforms face increasing competition from discount brokerage firms and fintech apps like Wealthsimple.
So, which platform offers the better investing or trading experience? Let’s compare Wealthsimple vs CIBC Investor’s Edge to find out.
| Wealthsimple | CIBC Investor’s Edge | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded in | 2014 | 1996 |
| Best for | Go with this platform if you want a beginner-friendly app and $0 commission trades | Go with this platform if you bank with CIBC or you want detailed research and analysis tools |
| Stock and ETF trading fees | $0 | $6.95 (or $5.95 for student investors, $4.95 for active traders, or $0 for young investors) |
| Minimum deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Deposit methods |
|
|
| Withdrawal methods |
| Linked CIBC bank account transfer |
| Fractional shares | Yes, for Canadian and US stocks and ETFs | No |
| After-hours trading | Yes, 24 hours a day for 5 days a week for US-listed stocks and ETFs | Yes, from 7:00am to 9:29am ET and from 4:00pm to 6:00pm ET on US stocks and ETFs. After-hours TSX trading only available over the phone |
| Customer support | Available via live chat and phone | Available via live chat and phone |
| Get started |
Wealthsimple is a Canadian fintech that has certainly made its mark in the investing world in recent years. Launched in 2014 as a robo-advisor service, Wealthsimple now also offers self-directed investing alongside other products such as a chequing account, a credit card and mortgage broking.
Wealthsimple was the first broker to offer commission-free stock and ETF trading in Canada, and it’s also known for its user-friendly mobile app.
Investor’s Edge is the self-directed investing platform of Big Five bank CIBC. It lets you trade stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds, options and more online or via the CIBC Mobile Wealth app.
Sign up with Investor’s Edge and you can access a wide range of account types along with a handy selection of research tools and investment screeners. Trading commissions apply, but there are discounts for young people, students and active traders.
What are your investment plans? Will you focus on a handful of Canadian stocks only, or do you want to dabble in options, precious metals or even crypto?
CIBC Investor’s Edge provides access to a wide range of investment products, but unlike Wealthsimple, it doesn’t support crypto trading.
Here’s a breakdown of the assets you can trade with each broker.
Who’s the winner?CIBC Investor’s Edge offers more trading choices.
| Fee type | Wealthsimple | CIBC Investor’s Edge |
|---|---|---|
| Account fee | $0 | $100 (or $0 if your total account balances = more than $10,000) |
| Trading fees |
|
|
| Management fee |
| N/A |
| Currency conversion fee | 1.50% | 0.2%–1.6% |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee | Instant withdrawals: 2.5% | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | $0 | $0 |
| Account transfer fee | $0 | $150 |
Who’s the winner?Wealthsimple has lower fees than Investor’s Edge.
Both brokers offer cash and margin accounts, plus the tax advantages of a range of registered accounts. Options at Wealthsimple and Investor’s Edge include:
Who’s the winner?It’s a tie. Both platforms allow you to invest in a wide range of account types.
Picking investments isn’t easy. It takes time, research and knowledge, so you might find it easier to leave all that hassle to someone else and choose a managed investment portfolio instead.
Wealthsimple first made a name for itself as a robo-advisor, and it still offers managed portfolios as part of Wealthsimple Invest. The range is headlined by the Summit portfolios, which combine equities and access to private markets across Aggressive, Growth and Balanced portfolios. The Classic portfolio invests in ETFs in pursuit of Aggressive, Growth, Balanced or Conservative financial goals. Private credit funds and Income portfolios are also available.
Wealthsimple also offers its Automated Investing service, which allows you to create your own custom portfolio with the holdings you want. You can then take advantage of portfolio management assistance from Wealthsimple for a 0.25% management fee.
CIBC does not offer a robo-advisor service.
Who’s the winner?Wealthsimple.
There are plenty of investment opportunities worth exploring on US markets. But if your broker only lets you trade in CAD, you’ll need to account for the cost of CAD/USD conversions.
Happily, CIBC offers dual-currency accounts that support USD as well as CAD, allowing you to skip the currency conversion costs. Wealthsimple also offers USD accounts, but if you’re a Core client with less than $100,000 in assets with Wealthsimple, your USD account comes with a $10 monthly fee.
Who’s the winner?CIBC Investor’s Edge offers free USD accounts (provided you meet account minimums to avoid the annual fee).
Margin accounts let you maximize your buying power by borrowing money from your broker to invest. Wealthsimple and Investor’s Edge both support margin accounts, and Wealthsimple also lets you link your TFSA and non-registered account to your margin account as collateral to provide an extra boost to your buying power.
Check the table below for each broker’s margin interest rate ranges for non-registered accounts.
| Wealthsimple | CIBC Investor’s Edge | |
|---|---|---|
| CAD | 3.95% – 4.95% | 4.75% – 6.25% |
| USD | 6.25% – 7.25% | 7.00% – 8.50% |
Who’s the winner?Wealthsimple’s lower interest rates make it the top pick.
When comparing the experience that these two platforms offer, it’s important to remember that they have different strengths.
Wealthsimple is a mobile-first platform where the main focus is on keeping things simple. The app is intuitive, there are no stock or ETF trading commissions to worry about, and it’s easy for a beginner to sign up and start investing without any fuss. Wealthsimple has started rolling out features to suit more advanced traders in recent times, but at heart it remains a convenient, beginner-friendly platform.
Investor’s Edge is a little more old-school. It’s not as streamlined as Wealthsimple, but it’s still simple and functional to use. It offers plenty of useful tools to help you choose your investments as well, making it a good fit for anyone who likes to do a deep dive into a stock or ETF before investing. You also get the security of dealing with a Big Bank—it’s just a shame you have to pay brokerage fees every time you place a trade.
Who’s the winner?That depends on the type of investor you are. If you want to buy and hold for the long-term, commission-free, on an app that’s easy to pick up and use straight away, Wealthsimple comes out on top. But if you want access to a range of research and analysis tools, Investor’s Edge may offer a better user experience.
Want to level up your investing skills? Wealthsimple Learn provides access to a selection of tutorials and guides covering everything from market basics to complicated topics like technical analysis.
In 2025, Wealthsimple announced plans to launch a range of AI-powered research tools after it acquired investment research firm Fey. It also allows you to create watchlists and access advanced charting tools through its Trade Plus platform, but Wealthsimple’s focus is more on placing buy and sell orders rather than investment research.
For new investors and those looking to boost their trading knowledge, Investor’s Edge offers a decent selection of how-to guides, tutorials, videos and courses. You’re well looked after when you need to choose investments too, with stock screeners to play around with, different investment themes to explore, and the ability to backtest the performance of stocks you’re interested in. Charting tools, customizable alerts, CIBC Capital Markets research reports and Morningstar ratings are also included.
Who’s the winner?CIBC Investor’s Edge takes the win here.
Both Wealthsimple and Investor’s Edge tick all the essential boxes when it comes to regulation. Both are overseen by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), and both are members of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) so you get the peace of mind of up to $1 million of coverage.
Who’s the winner?It’s a tie. They’re both legit and properly regulated in Canada.
Wealthsimple users can make trading decisions for Canadian and US stocks and ETFs based on real-time Level 1 market data, while Investor’s Edge also offers Level 1 data.
If you’re an active trader looking for real-time Level 2 market depth quotes, you’re out of luck. Neither platform offers Level 2 data, so you’ll need to look elsewhere.
Who’s the winner?It’s a tie.
The Wealthsimple app offers the sort of streamlined user experience you’d expect from a fintech. The interface is clean and easy on the eye, and it’s simple to navigate your way around. It’s also quick and convenient to switch between all your different Wealthsimple products, so you can check the savings balance in your Wealthsimple Chequing Account or find out how much you owe on your credit card. But it’s interesting to note that the app scores much higher ratings from iOS users than Android users.
CIBC’s Mobile Wealth app isn’t quite as slick, but it’s still relatively easy to use. You can use it to place trades, access advanced order types, check the performance of your portfolio, use customizable charts and research your investments. Feedback is slightly mixed for the Mobile Wealth app, with some users complaining about factors such as occasional glitches.
| Wealthsimple | CIBC Mobile Wealth | |
|---|---|---|
| Apple App Store rating |
4.6 –
★★★★★ 129,000 reviews |
3.8 –
★★★★★ 11,000 reviews |
| Google Play rating |
4.1 –
★★★★★ 80,900 reviews |
3.6 –
★★★★★ 5.76K reviews |
Who’s the winner?The clean user interface of the Wealthsimple app is hard to beat.
Fractional share trading means you don’t need to be able to pay the full price of a stock to start investing. Wealthsimple allows you to trade fractional shares of thousands of Canadian and US stocks and ETFs, so you can start investing with as little as $1.
Investor’s Edge does not offer fractional shares.
Wealthsimple offers commission-free stock and ETF trading across the board. CIBC Investor’s Edge charges brokerage fees on most trades, but you can buy and sell over 180 ETFs commission-free.
Another convenient feature of Wealthsimple is the ability to set up recurring stock, ETF and crypto investments. This allows you to place a recurring buy order that automatically buys the investment of your choice on a daily, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly basis.
CIBC offers Regular Investment Plans that allow you to set up a recurring deposit into your Investor’s Edge account. The money can be automatically invested in a mutual fund, or you can use it to manually invest in stocks and ETFs.
In mid-2026, Wealthsimple made headlines with the launch of Wealthsimple Predict. This separate app allows users to attempt to predict the outcomes of close to 4,000 real-world events, and it’s offered in partnership with US exchange Kalshi. Learn more in our Wealthsimple Predict review.
CIBC Investor’s Edge does not offer prediction markets trading.
What does Reddit think of the Wealthsimple vs CIBC Investor’s Edge debate?Commenters across investing and personal finance Subreddits generally agree that Wealthsimple is a top choice for anyone who wants $0 commission trading. It also wins praise for its ease of use, ensuring that it’s highly accessible for novice investors.
That said, posters do acknowledge that Investor’s Edge is also easy to use and has robust reporting and analysis tools. And if you bank with CIBC and want to keep all your financial products and services in one place, using Investor’s Edge could make sense.
CIBC Investor’s Edge may be preferable in some cases, such as if you bank with CIBC or if you want more in-depth research and analysis tools.
Wealthsimple is a better choice for most people. It’s easy to use, you can trade commission-free, and it offers convenient features like recurring investments. Most of the time, Wealthsimple comes out on top between the two platforms.
Read our full Questrade review
Read our full Interactive Brokers review
Like Wealthsimple,
now offers commission-free stock and ETF trading. This Canadian broker also supports a wide range of registered account types and offers a variety of handy research tools to help you choose the right investments.
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