Best High-Interest Savings Accounts in Canada: Rates Compared (September 2026)

The best high interest savings account in Canada depends on more than the headline rate, which runs from next to nothing at a big bank to several percent at an online bank. Some rates need your paycheque, some need 30 days’ notice before you withdraw, and the biggest ones are new-client promos that end after 153 days. YieldMaple checked each provider’s official rate page on September 23 and 24, 2026, and re-checked EQ Bank’s rates page on October 8, 2026: Wealthsimple Savings pays 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers), EQ Bank pays 1.50% (or 2.75% with payroll deposits), and RBC’s High Interest eSavings pays 0.55%. This guide shows what each account earns in dollars in year one and year two, which one fits a TFSA, and what TD, RBC, CIBC and BMO customers should know.

High interest savings account rates in Canada at a glance

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Savings rates like these can change, so check the provider’s page before you move money. The two promos are for new clients only: Simplii’s covers HISAs opened August 1 to October 31, 2026 by new clients (within 60 days of becoming a client), and Tangerine’s is for new clients whose Client Number is created between July 28 and November 30, 2026. Each account is covered in more detail below.

What is the best high-interest savings account in Canada right now?

Wealthsimple Savings is this guide’s best no-strings pick at 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers); EQ Bank pays more if you direct-deposit your pay or give 30 days’ notice.

The right account depends on what you can commit to:

• Best rate with no conditions: Wealthsimple Savings. 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers), no notice period, no minimum balance and no promo that expires.
• Best if your pay can go in by direct deposit: EQ Bank Personal Account. 2.75% with at least $2,000 a month of recurring payroll deposits, and 1.50% without them.
• Best if you can plan withdrawals: EQ Bank 30 Day Notice Savings. 2.75%, or 2.35% on the 10 Day Notice account.
• Best short-term boost for new clients: Simplii. 4.60% for 153 days on balances up to $200,000.
• Best TFSA promo: Tangerine. 5.00% on TFSA savings for 153 days (about 5 months).
• Best ongoing TFSA savings-account rate for most savers: EQ Bank TFSA Cash Savings. 1.50%. Wealthsimple’s registered savings account pays more only on its Premium (1.75%) and Generation (2.25%) plans.
• Hard to justify on rate: big-bank savings. RBC High Interest eSavings posts 0.55%, and Scotiabank’s HISA pays 0.00% until your Total Relationship Balance reaches $10,000; check any other big-bank savings rate against this list the same way.

Why put Wealthsimple Savings first when EQ Bank’s top rate is higher? Because EQ’s rate needs a condition many people can’t or won’t meet with their emergency fund: either your pay goes to EQ, or every withdrawal waits 30 days. If you can meet either one, EQ Bank pays 0.25 percentage points more ($25 a year on $10,000) and is CDIC-insured.

The accounts compared, one by one

Wealthsimple Savings: the best rate without conditions

Wealthsimple Savings pays 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers). Per Wealthsimple’s Savings page, the rate is non-promotional and the same for every client regardless of assets, with no monthly fees, no minimum balance and no withdrawal limits or notice periods. When you need the money, you move it to Wealthsimple Chequing instantly. Savings has no account or transit number, so your pay can’t be direct-deposited into it; the workaround Wealthsimple describes is to have pay land in Chequing and set an automatic transfer to Savings.

The account many people still call Wealthsimple Cash appears on Wealthsimple’s site as Chequing, a separate spending account that pays 1.25% on the Core plan, 1.75% on Premium and 2.25% on Generation. Core and Premium clients can add an extra 0.5% with at least $2,000 direct-deposited within 30 days, but even with the boost, Chequing pays less than Savings on every plan, so money you aren’t about to spend earns more in Savings.

The catches: Savings is open to individual non-registered accounts only for now (Wealthsimple says more account types are coming), so it can’t hold TFSA, RRSP or FHSA money and can’t be a joint account. And Wealthsimple’s own comparison chart lists $1M CIPF (data as of August 19, 2026) as its deposit protection, not CDIC (the safety section below explains the difference). The full breakdown is in YieldMaple’s Wealthsimple Savings account review, and every plan rate is on the Wealthsimple interest rates page.

EQ Bank: higher rates if you meet a condition

EQ Bank’s Personal Account pays a base rate of 1.50%, per EQ’s rates page (rates effective October 2, 2026). Keep recurring payroll direct deposits of at least $2,000 a month going into the account and the rate rises to 2.75%. Timing matters: the bonus rate starts within the first two weeks of the month after a qualifying deposit arrives, and it drops back to the base rate if a calendar month ends without one.

If your pay goes elsewhere, EQ’s Notice Savings Accounts are the other route to a higher rate: 2.35% with 10 days’ notice or 2.75% with 30 days’ notice. Money you ask to withdraw becomes available on the 11th or 31st day after you ask for it, plus 2–3 business days if it's going to an account at another bank, so a notice account suits savings with a known date better than an emergency fund.

EQ charges $0 — no monthly fees and no minimum balance, and everyday transactions are free — no fees to send or receive Interac e-Transfers or pay bills, and no account, overdraft or dormant-account fees. Joint Accounts can have up to 4 people (you plus 3 co-holders), something Wealthsimple Savings doesn’t offer. See the EQ Bank review, the head-to-head Wealthsimple Cash vs EQ Bank comparison, or open an EQ Bank Personal Account .

Simplii Financial: the biggest promo, for new clients

Simplii, CIBC’s online bank, pays new clients 4.60% on their first High Interest Savings Account for 153 days from the day it’s opened, on balances up to $200,000. The offer covers HISAs opened August 1 to October 31, 2026 by new clients (within 60 days of becoming a client). After day 153 the regular tiers apply: 0.30% up to $50,000, 0.50% to $100,000, 0.60% to $500,000, 0.70% to $1,000,000 and 1.00% above that, with the whole balance earning its tier’s rate.

Simplii suits someone with a lump sum who will move it before the promo ends. Day to day, cash withdrawals are free at over 3,400 CIBC ATMs in Canada, and joint accounts are available with one other person. More in the Simplii Financial review and EQ Bank vs Simplii.

Tangerine: a promo that also covers TFSAs

Tangerine, Scotiabank’s online bank, pays new clients 4.50% on its Savings Account and 5.00% on TFSA, RSP and RIF Savings Accounts, for 153 days (about 5 months) from the date the offer’s conditions are met. The promo is for new clients whose Client Number is created between July 28 and November 30, 2026. Afterwards, Tangerine’s posted rates are 0.30% on the Savings Account and 0.30% in a TFSA.

You can hold up to 10 non-registered Savings Accounts, which is handy for separate goals, and ABM withdrawals are free at 3,500+ Scotiabank ABMs in Canada and 44,000 Global ATM Alliance ABMs worldwide. One catch for TFSA promo-hunters: Tangerine notes that a fee applies when you transfer registered funds out to another institution (amount on Tangerine's fee schedule). See the Tangerine review and Wealthsimple vs Tangerine.

Neo and KOHO: interest on app-based accounts

Neo’s rates page lists 1.25% on its High-Interest Savings account. Neo Savings pays up to 2.75% once you hold a larger balance or a paid membership, depending on which Neo page you read (its accounts page says rates rise as the balance grows, without giving thresholds, and its memberships page lists the top rate under the paid Grow membership).

KOHO pays interest on its spending account by plan: 2% on Essential, 2.5% on Extra and 3.5% on Everything. Essential costs $0 a month if you deposit your paycheque or add at least $1,000 each month, but the top rate needs the paid Everything plan at $14.75 a month when billed yearly. On $10,000, Everything’s rate earns $350 a year while the plan costs $177, leaving $173, less than the $250 Wealthsimple Savings pays with no fee. KOHO funds are CDIC-eligible up to $100,000 per beneficiary, per CDIC member institution, once you opt in to Earn Interest. See the KOHO review and the Neo Financial review.

What do TD, RBC, CIBC and BMO pay on savings?

RBC posts 0.55% on High Interest eSavings; YieldMaple didn’t verify TD’s, CIBC’s or BMO’s posted savings rates for this update, so none are quoted here.

RBC’s personal account rates page for September 23, 2026 also lists 0.01% on Day to Day Savings balances of $1,000 or more. On $10,000, High Interest eSavings earns $55 a year, against $250 in Wealthsimple Savings: $195 less.

Scotiabank, the fifth of the Big 5, ties its savings rate to your whole relationship with the bank. Per Scotiabank’s savings rates page (rates effective June 9, 2026), the Scotia High Interest Savings Account pays 0.00% with a Total Relationship Balance under $10,000, 1.50% from $10,000, 1.75% from $100,000, 2.00% from $250,000 and 2.20% from $500,000. The Total Relationship Balance is your combined Scotiabank chequing, savings, GIC and mutual fund balances (Scotia iTRADE accounts don't count), so your rate depends on those other balances too, not only on what’s in the savings account. So $10,000 in the account earns $150 a year, $100 less than Wealthsimple Savings, while a smaller balance with nothing else at Scotiabank earns nothing.

For TD, CIBC and BMO, check each bank’s own savings-rate page before you compare. These verified points still help:

• CIBC’s online bank is Simplii, covered above. Simplii is a trade name of CIBC, which is a CDIC member, so deposits at Simplii and CIBC count toward the same CDIC coverage rather than separate limits.
• Scotiabank’s online bank is Tangerine, which is a CDIC member in its own right (a wholly owned Scotiabank subsidiary), so its deposits have CDIC coverage of their own.
• Cash left uninvested at a big-bank discount brokerage earns nothing for most clients. Per each brokerage’s rate page in September 2026: TD Direct Investing, 0% on cash balances (CAD and USD) at every balance tier, in trading accounts and RRSPs/RIFs; BMO InvestorLine, 0.00% on cash balances (CAD and USD), including TFSAs and RRSPs for clients below its 5 Star Diamond tier; CIBC Investor’s Edge, 0.00% on cash balances (CAD and USD), in registered and non-registered accounts; RBC Direct Investing, 0% on cash balances (CAD and USD), including TFSA and RRSP accounts.
• All five banks are CDIC members. TD deposits are covered up to $100,000 per depositor, per insured category (The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its Canadian deposit-taking subsidiaries are CDIC members); BMO Bank of Montreal is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC); CIBC is a member of Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC); RBC marks its chequing accounts CDIC-insured for up to $100,000; and Scotiabank lists its chequing accounts as eligible for CDIC insurance.

The real case for a big-bank savings account is convenience, with everything in one place, not the rate. A common setup is to keep your main chequing account at the big bank and move only your savings to a higher-rate account; YieldMaple’s guide to switching from the Big 5 banks walks through it.

How much interest will your savings earn?

On $10,000 held for a year, Wealthsimple Savings earns $250 before tax, EQ Bank up to $275, and RBC’s High Interest eSavings $55.

The promo accounts are where year one and year two split apart. This worked example uses the rates posted on September 23 and 24, 2026 (EQ Bank’s as of October 8, 2026), simple interest before tax, and assumes the whole balance qualifies for each rate:

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Two things stand out. If you leave the money where it is after day 153, both promos earn less over the full year than Wealthsimple Savings, and in year two they earn a fraction of it. And EQ Bank’s conditional rates are the top ongoing earners here. EQ’s bonus rate starts within the first two weeks of the month after your first qualifying payroll deposit, so year one there can come in slightly lower. The figures assume today’s rates hold for the whole period; variable savings rates can change at any time.

To run your own balance, the calculator below compares Wealthsimple’s Savings and Chequing rates with RBC’s posted savings rates. For growth over several years with compounding, use YieldMaple’s compound interest calculator.

Is chasing promotional savings rates worth it?

Yes, if you’re a new client and move the money when the promo ends: on $10,000, Simplii’s promo then Wealthsimple Savings earns about $338 in a year.

That’s about $88 more than leaving the money in Wealthsimple Savings all year, and the gain scales with the balance: about $440 on $50,000. Whether that’s worth two account openings and a reminder in your calendar is your call. This checklist covers what trips people up:

1. Confirm you qualify. Simplii’s offer covers HISAs opened August 1 to October 31, 2026 by new clients (within 60 days of becoming a client). Tangerine’s is for new clients whose Client Number is created between July 28 and November 30, 2026. Each bank’s welcome rate is a one-time offer for new clients.
2. Write down the end date. Simplii counts its 153 days from the day the account is opened; Tangerine counts 153 days (about 5 months) from the date its offer conditions are met.
3. Start the move early. Transfers between banks aren’t instant. EQ Bank, for example, lets you send up to $30,000 per transfer (several a day allowed), arriving in two to three business days to a linked account at another bank, so begin a few business days before the promo ends.
4. Mind the cap. Simplii’s promo rate applies to balances up to $200,000.
5. Don’t hop a TFSA by withdrawing. TFSA withdrawals are added back to your contribution room only on January 1 of the following year, so taking money out and depositing it elsewhere in the same year can put you over your limit if you have no unused room. Use a direct transfer instead, and remember that Tangerine charges a fee when you transfer registered funds out.
6. Taxes don’t change. Promo interest in a non-registered account is taxable like any other interest.

If you’d rather set it and forget it, a no-promo rate you never have to move is the simpler choice, and at these rates it loses only a modest amount.

What’s the best high-interest savings account for a TFSA?

For most savers, EQ Bank’s TFSA Cash Savings Account pays the best ongoing TFSA savings-account rate, 1.50%; Wealthsimple beats it only for Premium and Generation clients.

For a short boost, new Tangerine clients get 5.00% in a TFSA for 153 days. Wealthsimple Savings isn’t an option here: it’s open to individual non-registered accounts only for now (Wealthsimple says more account types are coming). The TFSA choices YieldMaple found:

• EQ Bank TFSA Cash Savings Account: 1.50%, ongoing. EQ pays the same rate on its FHSA and RRSP Cash Savings Accounts.
• Wealthsimple registered savings account (TFSA, RRSP or FHSA): Wealthsimple’s registered savings page lists the Chequing plan rates, 1.25% on Core, 1.75% on Premium (from $100,000 in total Wealthsimple assets) and 2.25% on Generation (from $500,000). Wealthsimple’s legal disclosures say Registered Savings Accounts are not protected by CIPF — the cash is held in trust with CDIC member institutions instead.
• Tangerine TFSA Savings Account: 5.00% for new clients for 153 days, then 0.30%, with a fee if you later transfer it out.
• A HISA ETF in a self-directed TFSA: Global X’s CASH holds high-interest deposit accounts with one or more Canadian chartered banks and showed an annualized distribution yield of 2.09% as at October 6, 2026, with a 0.11% MER. That yield is above EQ’s TFSA rate, but it’s a variable distribution yield, not a posted savings rate. Wealthsimple charges $0 commission to buy it. As an ETF, it’s not eligible for CDIC deposit insurance (CDIC lists ETFs and mutual funds among the products it does not cover).

Should savings sit in a TFSA at all? The tax saving has to beat the rate gap. Wealthsimple Savings’ 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers) is taxable; EQ’s TFSA rate is tax-free. The taxable account keeps more after tax until your marginal tax rate passes 40%. Against Wealthsimple’s Core registered savings rate, the break-even is 50%; against its Generation rate, it’s 10%. TFSA room is limited too: $7,000 for 2026, and $109,000 in total for someone who has been 18 or older and a resident since 2009. Room you fill with cash is room you can’t use for long-term investments. For the investing side, see the best TFSA accounts in Canada and the Wealthsimple TFSA guide.

Is a high-interest savings account in Canada safe?

Yes at a CDIC member bank: eligible deposits are protected up to $100,000 per insured category, per depositor, but not every high-interest product is a CDIC-covered deposit.

How each option in this guide is protected:

• EQ Bank: Equitable Bank, which trades as EQ Bank, is a CDIC member. Its coverage is one $100,000 limit shared by your individual Personal Account, GICs, US Dollar Account and any other deposits in your name at Equitable Bank; joint deposits are insured separately. Per EQ, joint deposits are protected up to $100,000 per set of co-holders, not per co-holder.
• Tangerine: a CDIC member in its own right (a wholly owned Scotiabank subsidiary), with coverage up to $100,000 per name registration (principal and interest combined), and CDIC gives a separate $100,000 each for joint deposits (collectively, not per person), RRSP deposits and TFSA deposits.
• Simplii: a trade name of CIBC, which is a CDIC member, so Simplii deposits share CIBC’s CDIC coverage.
• Wealthsimple Chequing: deposits are held in trust at CDIC members, covered up to $100,000 per beneficiary, per CDIC member institution, and in total up to $1 million, because funds are spread across up to 10 CDIC member institutions (Wealthsimple itself is not a CDIC member).
• Wealthsimple Savings: Wealthsimple lists $1M CIPF (data as of August 19, 2026). Wealthsimple says its investment accounts hold securities eligible for CIPF coverage up to $1M per defined account, and CIPF says cash at a member firm is eligible too, alongside securities, if the member firm becomes insolvent. That protects you if the dealer fails, which is different from CDIC deposit insurance.
• KOHO: CDIC-eligible up to $100,000 per beneficiary, per CDIC member institution, once you opt in to Earn Interest; balances not earning interest are not eligible for CDIC protection.
• Cash ETFs such as CASH: not eligible for CDIC deposit insurance (CDIC lists ETFs and mutual funds among the products it does not cover).

If your savings exceed the CDIC limit, spreading them across separate member institutions, or across insured categories such as a TFSA and a joint account, keeps more of the balance covered. YieldMaple’s EQ Bank safety guide covers how the categories work in practice.

What does Reddit recommend for high-interest savings in Canada?

Canadian Reddit threads on savings tend to land on three tactics: EQ Bank, rotating new-client promos, and a HISA ETF such as CASH in a brokerage account.

Here’s how each holds up at the rates in this guide:

1. “Just use EQ Bank.” Still solid if you meet a condition, but EQ’s base rate is 1.50%. The 2.75% needs $2,000 a month of payroll deposits or a notice account. Without either, Wealthsimple Savings pays more.
2. “Chase the promos.” It works, as the math above shows, but it’s worth about $88 per $10,000 per promo, each bank’s offer is once per client, and hopping a TFSA brings fees and contribution-room traps.
3. “Buy CASH or another HISA ETF.” Useful inside a TFSA, RRSP or FHSA at a brokerage, where uninvested cash often earns nothing, as the bank brokerages above show. But CASH’s distribution yield of 2.09% as at October 6, 2026 was below Wealthsimple Savings’ rate, it isn’t CDIC-insured, and getting money out means selling units and waiting for the trade to settle. The guide to cash ETFs in Canada compares CASH with the other funds of its kind.

Reddit is a fast way to hear about a new promo. Confirm the terms on the bank’s own site before you move money, because rates and offer windows change often.

Should you use a GIC or a cash ETF instead of a HISA?

For money that won’t be touched until a set date, a GIC pays more: EQ Bank’s 1-year GIC pays 3.70%, above every no-strings savings rate in this guide.

On $10,000, that’s $370 over the year, against $250 in Wealthsimple Savings: $120 more for locking the money up. The trade-off is access, because EQ’s GICs are non-redeemable, so the money stays locked in until the GIC matures. YieldMaple’s GIC rates guide compares more terms and providers.

In short: a HISA suits an emergency fund and money you may need at short notice; a GIC suits money with a known date; a cash ETF suits cash that has to stay inside a brokerage account, such as a TFSA you invest from. For picking an emergency-fund home specifically, see the best HISA for an emergency fund.

Who should (and shouldn’t) use Wealthsimple Savings

Pick Wealthsimple Savings if:

• You want the highest rate in this guide with no promo end date, notice period, payroll requirement, minimum balance or paid plan.
• The money sits outside a TFSA, RRSP or FHSA, such as an emergency fund or a short-term goal.
• You already use Wealthsimple for investing or Chequing, so moving money happens in one app.

Pick EQ Bank instead if:

• You can direct-deposit at least $2,000 a month of pay into it for 2.75%, or give 30 days’ notice for 2.75%.
• You want CDIC deposit insurance on the savings account itself, or a joint savings account.

Pick a new-client promo (Simplii or Tangerine) if:

• You have a lump sum, you’re new to that bank, and you’ll set a reminder to move the money before day 153.

Pick a TFSA option (EQ Bank TFSA, a Wealthsimple registered savings account or a cash ETF) if:

• The cash belongs in a TFSA for tax reasons and you’ve checked the break-even above.

RBC’s High Interest eSavings, or any savings account paying a similar rate, gives up $195 a year per $10,000 of interest against Wealthsimple Savings; convenience is the case for keeping money there.

This is general education, not financial advice. Rates change, so confirm the current rate on the provider’s site before you move money.

The verdict

For savings outside a TFSA, Wealthsimple Savings is the simplest high-rate home: 2.5% (available to every client, no tiers), no conditions, and instant moves to Chequing. EQ Bank is the better account if you can meet its payroll-deposit or notice condition, because it pays 2.75% and is CDIC-insured. New-client promos at Simplii and Tangerine pay the most for 153 days, but only earn their keep if you move the money afterward. Inside a TFSA, EQ Bank’s 1.50% is the best ongoing savings-account rate YieldMaple found for most savers; Wealthsimple’s registered savings account pays more once your Wealthsimple assets reach its Premium level of $100,000. Big-bank savings are hard to justify on rate: RBC’s High Interest eSavings pays 0.55%, and Scotiabank’s HISA pays 0.00% below a $10,000 Total Relationship Balance. Hold TD’s, CIBC’s and BMO’s posted rates to the same test. For everything else Wealthsimple offers, see our complete Wealthsimple guide.

Read next

• Wealthsimple Savings account review: vs Chequing, money market and ZMMK
• Wealthsimple Cash vs EQ Bank, head to head
• Best GIC rates in Canada
• Best TFSA accounts in Canada
• 100 envelope challenge printable: three one-page savings trackers
• Wealthsimple Canada: complete independent guide