Tangerine Bank Review 2024: No ‘Unfair Fees’ And Unlimited Transactions

Chequing Accounts

Tangerine Bank’s only chequing account, the No-Fee Daily Chequing Account, is notable because it has no daily transaction fees and features free unlimited debit purchases, Interac e-Transfers, bill payments and preauthorized payments. Plus, it is one of the few chequing accounts in Canada that earns interest, even if it’s only a modicum of interest at 0.01% for balances from $0 to $49,999.99. The highest interest rate is 0.10%, but that’s reserved for balances between $100,000 and $499,999.99.

Though Tangerine is an online-only bank with no branches, the fact that it is owned by Scotiabank means you don’t miss a beat when it comes to ATM access, with over 3,500 free ATMs nationwide and 44,000 ATMs worldwide through Scotiabank’s Global ATM Alliance.

The debit card that comes with your No-Fee Chequing Account is powered by Visa, so it can be used online like a Visa card at thousands of retail websites and for making in-app purchases with Visa Debit acceptance. Plus, you’re protected from unauthorized purchases with Interac and Visa Debit Zero Liability.

Finally, if you open a No-Fee Chequing Account and switch your paycheque deposit to that account for two consecutive months, Tangerine will deposit $250 into the account for you. You must receive a client number between May 1 and October 31, 2024 to get that offer.

Tangerine’s regular, non-registered savings account touts “No unfair fees,” but what does that actually mean? If you read the fine print, an “unfair fee” translates to a fee that isn’t disclosed ahead of time. With the regular savings account, the only “fair” fee you may see is a $45 non-sufficient fund fee. With a registered savings account, the only fee you may face is $50 for transferring your TFSA, RSP or RIF from another financial institution.

Tangerine’s regular savings account also comes with a 6% promotional annual interest rate for the first five months of account opening. The rate is annualized, calculated daily and paid monthly. After that, the regular interest rate is 0.60%. This is also the regular interest rate for Tangerine’s Tax-Free Savings Account and Retirement Savings Plan. The Retirement Income Fund has a 0.65% interest rate, and the US$ Savings Account has a 0.10% interest rate.

There are no monthly fees on any Tangerine savings account, registered or unregistered, and no minimum balance is required on any savings account either. The exchange rate on the US$ Savings Account is competitive at $1.399 going in and $1.354 coming out.

Tangerine offers a typical variety of GICs available at most banks. The selection isn’t exhaustive, but it has every GIC you’d want to see from a bank. This includes a regular GIC, a Tax-Free GIC, an RSP GIC, a RIF GIC and a US$ GIC.

Tangerine’s GIC lineup is characterized by no monthly fees and up to a 5.00% fixed interest rate (270-day term) on every GIC except for the US$ GIC, which goes up to 4.80%. It should also go without saying that registered GICs are subject to the rules set out for each registered investment as set out by the CRA.

Learn more: Best Tangerine GICs

In addition to the chequing, savings and GIC accounts above, Tangerine also offers the following banking products:

• Tangerine World Mastercard
• Tangerine Money-Back Card
• Mutual Fund
• Money Market Fund
• Mortgage
• Home Equity Line Of Credit (HELOC)
• Line of Credit

Tangerine is a digital-only bank, so there are no physical branch locations, but its clients don’t lose a step as far as being able to do their daily banking anywhere they are. Thanks to being a Scotiabank subsidiary, Tangerine clients can access 3,500 ATMs across Canada and 44,000 ATMs worldwide, which are part of the Scotiabank Global ATM Alliance for free.

Since Tangerine is digital-only, you can conduct typical banking tasks and open accounts on your desktop computer or through the Tangerine Bank mobile app. However, based on customer feedback on sites like TrustPilot and Reddit, customer service leaves something to be desired, and many clients feel like they are on their own, even with limited phone support. Some have also complained that deposits take longer to appear and transactions take a while to process. If you are a Canadian living abroad, an account with Tangerine Bank probably isn’t the best choice because it can’t process wire transfers since no SWIFT code is available.

Tangerine Bank vs. EQ Bank

Though Tangerine Bank really has no monthly fees or transaction limits on all of its accounts, as well as free and unlimited Interac e-Transfers, EQ Bank offers higher interest rates on its personal account and on its Notice Savings Account, which gives you higher interest the more advance notice you give on withdrawals—4.50% for 10 days and 5.00% for 30 days—these two notice periods indicate the number of days your money will be held in your account after you make a withdrawal.

You can make a withdrawal with EQ Bank by transferring the requested funds out of your EQ Bank account into an externally linked account at another bank. That isn’t to say EQ Bank doesn’t have ATM access. In fact, with the EQ Bank card, you can have free access to any ATM in Canada with the fees reimbursed by the bank. Tangerine’s ATM network is the same as Scotiabank’s and with 3,500 ATMs across Canada and 44,000 ATMs around the world, it is cumulatively larger than EQ’s ATM network, even though its “any ATM in Canada” policy makes its network technically larger than Tangerine’s across the country.

EQ Bank is a digital-only bank like Tangerine, and has a mobile app and online access. However, it also suffers from the same customer service issues, such as money that’s slow to deposit or be available in a personal linked account, and bad customer care when problems arise. EQ Bank may have higher rates than Tangerine on chequing, savings and GICs, but its TrustPilot rating is even lower than Tangerine’s, at 1.9 stars.

Related: EQ Bank vs. Tangerine Bank

Tangerine Bank vs. Simplii Financial

Simplii Financial is another digital-only bank with a parent company that is a member of Canada’s Big Six banks—this time, it’s CIBC. Its product offering is almost identical to that of Tangerine, with a few slight differences.

For example, Simplii Financial offers an introductory interest rate of 5.90% on its high-interest savings account for five months, while Tangerine gives you slightly more interest in its promotional rate for its regular savings account at 6.00% for the same length of time. The two banks’ regular account interest rates beyond the promotion are almost identical to each other, as are the balances needed to achieve them.

Simplii has a slightly wider selection of accounts than Tangerine, including one for newcomers to Canada, one for students (with international and domestic versions) and a foreign currency savings account. Simplii is certainly the better option if you are new to Canada and if you want a higher welcome bonus of $400 after you open an account, as Tangerine’s No-Fee Chequing Account welcome bonus is $250.

Other than that, Tangerine stands out for having one more cash-back credit card than Simplii and for ultimately offering that higher promotional interest rate.

Tangerine Bank vs. Wealthsimple

Wealthsimple beats Tangerine Bank pretty handily when it comes to investing. It has more account options, a wider portfolio and a good selection of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Plus, you’ll find lower investment fees, a welcome bonus for opening an investment account and perks for bigger account amounts. Their online platform is better than Tangerine in terms of ease of use.

Wealthsimple’s chequing account has a much higher standard interest rate at 4%, but Tangerine has a few more everyday banking options, including two credit cards. The customer service reviews on TrustPilot are terrible for both institutions, and some Wealthsimple users report technical glitches with deposits and withdrawals. Consider going with Tangerine if you want ATM access, access to a credit card, or you’re already a Tangerine client and want everything in one place, but for investing, Wealthsimple may be a better option.

Forbes Advisor compared 41 banks, 20 of which are nationally available —both traditional brick-and-mortar institutions and online-only banks—to find the best options available. To make this list, the bank had to be available to Canadians nationwide. They were rated out of five stars according to the following data points and formula out of 100%:

• Product Offerings – 11%
• APY – 25%
• Fees – 20%
• Minimum Deposit – 5%
• Minimum Balance – 5%
• Availability – 5%
• 3P Ratings – 5%
• Customer Reviews – 2%
• Live Chat – 2%
• Digital Experience – 10%
• ATM Network – 10%

Tangerine is a good option if you want the independence that comes with a digital bank with the support and reach of a Big Six bank. ATM and debit card access is great, but you can get higher interest from competitors like EQ Bank and Wealthsimple, even on chequing accounts in a country where interest-bearing chequing accounts are rare. There are very few fees and the ones that exist are straightforward, and it’s nice to have the luxury of unlimited transactions, especially Interac e-Transfers.

Still, if you expect the personal touch and attention you may be used to at your local bank branch, you may be disappointed. Based on the available reviews, customer service seems lacking at Tangerine. However, Tangerine may work for you if you’re looking for low-fee banking with rewarding credit cards and a wide ATM network.