Wealthsimple vs Tangerine - 2021 Comparison

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Andrew Goldman

Andrew Goldman has been writing for over 20 years and investing for the past 10 years. He currently writes about personal finance and investing for Wealthsimple. Andrew's past work has been published in The New York Times Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek, New York Magazine and Wired. Television appearances include NBC's Today show as well as Fox News. Andrew holds a Bachelor of Arts (English) from the University of Texas. He and his wife Robin live in Westport, Connecticut with their two boys and a Bedlington terrier. In his spare time, he hosts “The Originals" podcast.

Lisa MacColl is a writer, investor and former compliance consultant in the group retirement and individual wealth management fields. Lisa has written about personal finance for 14 years and currently writes about investing and investment providers for Wealthsimple. Lisa's past work has been published in Canadian Money Saver, Advisor’s Edge, CBC, and CreditCards.ca. She was a nominee for the 2015 Oktoberfest Women of the Year, Professional Category. Lisa holds an M.A. and B.A. from the Wilfrid Laurier University.

We believe that making smart choices with your money shouldn't be hard. To help you choose, we compared ourselves Wealthsimple Invest to Tangerine's investment funds. And then we created this handy comparison for you - to show how we stack up in terms of key features, accounts and pricing.

About Wealthsimple & Tangerine

Wealthsimple is an online investment manager that combines smart technology with expert financial advice. We allow you to put your money in a managed portfolio (Wealthsimple Invest), do self-directed trading (Wealthsimple Trade) or put your money in a high-interest hybrid savings/chequing account (Wealthsimple Cash). We've been in business since 2014, and have over $3 billion in assets under management.

Tangerine is a branchless bank that offers savings and chequing accounts, mutual funds, and mortgages. They allow you to do everyday banking. Tangerine has been in business since 1997 (formerly as ING Bank of Canada). They have over $3 billion in assets under management.

Get started investing — Wealthsimple is investing on autopilot.

How Wealthsimple Invest compares to Tangerine's investment funds

See how Wealthsimple Invest and Tangerine's Investment Funds stack up in this side-by-side comparison. Your trust is important to us. That's why we always do our best to be fair and provide complete and accurate information. That being said, we can't compare every single feature out there and can only guarantee accuracy at the time of writing. To complete your homework, we recommend visiting our competitor's site to continue your research.

FeatureWealthsimple InvestTangerine (Investment Funds)
Overall Company Rating by Simple. Thrifty. Living.5.0/54.8/5* Review is for full suite of banking services, not just investments
Account Minimum$0$10 to open account, $1000 for investment accounts
Fees0.5% on $0-$100,000 and 0.4% for amounts over $100,0001.07%
Financial Planning/Portfolio Review/Expert AdviceYesYes
Transfer Fees (to another financial institution)No$45
Social Responsible InvestingYesNo
Halal InvestingYesNo
Auto DepositingYesYes
Automatic RebalancingYesYes
Dividend ReinvestmentYesYes
Human SupportYesYes

The bottom line

Tangerine 's Investment Funds and Wealthsimple Invest have some key things in common. We both offer access to customer support, have features to automate your contributions, and portfolio rebalancing and dividend reinvestment to keep your investments on track. Our biggest differences are our fee structures and the portfolios we offer.

Wealthsimple offers you a variety of fund portfolios. Tangerine’s portfolios are created from in-house index funds that seek to replicate indices.

Wealthsimple Invest charges a 0.5% management fee. That fee drops to 0.4% if you deposit more than $100k. Tangerine charges a 1.07% fee on their investment funds, regardless of how much you invest. Transfer fees vary by account type at Tangerine. For example, Tangerine charges $125 when you transfer your registered investment account to another institution, and $50 when you move your TFSA, RIF, or RRSP to another provider. There is no fee when you transfer an account from Wealthsimple Invest to another institution. And, if you transfer an account to Wealthsimple Invest, we’ll cover the transfer fees on accounts over $5,000.

Wealthsimple Invest also offers ways for you to invest according to your values, with Socially Responsible Investing portfolios and a Halal Investing portfolio. Tangerine does not offer a dedicated portfolio in either of these areas.

We offer a free portfolio review not just about investing but about your entire financial picture. Tangerine also offer expert advice that comes with their investment funds.

Keep in mind that Tangerine also charges an inactivity fee for its savings account: After 2 years of inactivity, they charge $20 per year for the first 1-9 years. At 10 years of inactivity, there's a $40 fee and any unclaimed assets are transferred to Bank of Canada. 

When it comes to overall ratings — Wealthsimple and Tangerine are both rated highly gaining a 4.9/5 star review from Simple Thrifty Living.

Wealthsimple offers state-of-the-art technology, low fees and the kind of personalized, friendly service you might have not thought imaginable from an automated investing provider — get started investing now.

What to consider when choosing an investment provider

Comparing investment providers doesn’t have to be hard. Here’s some advice to get you started:

Pay attention to account minimums Choose a provider that makes sense for what you can invest now - and in the future. Some investment providers require you to deposit as much as $100,000 to get started. And, in some cases, you could face nasty penalties for dropping below the account minimum - or be forced to close your account.

Watch out for hidden fees Nothing eats away at long-term gains quite like fees. And we’re talking about more than just management fees (though they’re important, too). Account transfers and trading fees can also add up. The best investment providers are upfront with what it costs to invest with them.

Look out for human support When you need to make sense of a mysterious number in your monthly statement, nothing compares to talking to a fellow human. In the competition to offer the lowest possible management fees, some investment providers are quick to cut customer support. Before you commit to a provider, see what support is available - you never know when you’ll want it.

Find out if you have access to a financial advisor No two people are alike - and neither are their financial situations. But investment platforms vary in terms of how much access you get to professional advice. Keep an eye out for providers that offer access to a financial advisor. There are only a few who offer advice when you need it, regardless of how much money you have in your account.

Understand how much freedom you have Relationships end - even when you’re investing for the long term. Before you commit, find out what happens if you need to withdraw your funds or want to move on to a new investment platform - and whether there are any penalties involved.

Not your average investment provider. Say hello to human financial advice and personalized portfolios with no account minimums or hidden fees — start investing now.

What makes Wealthsimple different from other investment providers

We do the work for you Using well Wealthsimple is, well, simple. In just a few minutes, we’ll build you a custom portfolio that makes sense for your risk tolerance and investment timelines. And we’ll do the maintenance for you, with automatic rebalancing and dividend reinvesting. All you have to do to get started is answer a few simple questions. And then you can sit back and tell all your friends how smart you were with your money.

No account minimums or hidden fees We’re the first investment company in Canada to eliminate account minimums. That means you can start investing with as little as $1. Wealthsimple Invest fees are also really, really low. We charge 0.5% on $0-$100k and 0.4% on anything above $100k. Plus, you can make a withdrawal any time you want. So you can always count on your money being there when you need it — start investing now.

Personal touch Our financial advisors are fiduciaries, which is a fancy way of saying that they have a legal obligation to provide financial advice that’s in your best interest - not ours. They’re standing by to answer your questions and provide support whenever you need it. All you have to go is drop us a line by phone, email or even Skype — get started now.

More than 150,000 people love using Wealthsimple

See the reviews for yourself.

  • 1.5k ratings Apple app store

  • 2019 Top Robo Advisor (NerdWallet)

  • 5 Stars - Simple.Thrifty.Living

Ready to give us a shot?

Put your money to work in a smart portfolio, designed to help you get closer to your financial goals. Start investing now and get access to our state-of-the-art technology, low fees, and access to advice from real humans whenever you need it.

Methodology

The information on this page was compiled by Wealthsimple in June 2019. In order to uncover this information, we looked at Tangerine’s website, press releases and third-party sites. The information collected relates to features and pricing. We assumed Tangerine Investment Funds Limited did not have a specific feature if they didn’t mention it on their website.

Wealthsimple offers an automated way to grow your money like the world's most sophisticated investors. Get started and we'll build you a personalized investment portfolio in a matter of minutes.

Last Updated February 23, 2021

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