Interest rates may be low these days, but if you’re looking to make your money work for you in the best way possible, then there are still plenty of options. Canada’s banks offer a variety of products with competitive rates. Depending on how much you can put in, you may be surprised by what you get in return.
To examine the best savings and chequing accounts and GICs, we crunched the numbers using common deposit amounts for all three. None of the winning products carry monthly fees and all are examined over a five-year term. And the 2016 banking winners are*:
Best Savings Account with $5,000 Balance
WINNER: BMO Savings Builder
2nd Place: Scotiabank Savings Accelerator
3rd Place: Scotiabank Momentum Savings
Best Savings Account with No Minimum Balance
WINNER: EQ Savings Plus Account
2nd Place: Alterna Bank High Interest eSavings Account
3rd Place: Oaken Savings Account
Best Chequing Account with Low Balance
WINNER: Tangerine No Fee Daily Chequing
2nd Place: President's Choice Financial® No Fee Bank Account
Best 5-Year Cashable GIC - Registered
WINNER: ICICI Bank Canada GIC
2nd Place: BMO GIC
Best 5-Year Cashable GIC - Non-Registered
WINNER: ICICI Bank Canada GIC
2nd Place: Royal Bank GIC
3rd Place: BMO GIC
Best 5-Year Cashable GIC - TFSA
WINNER: ICICI Bank Canada GIC
2nd Place: Canadian Direct Financial GIC
3rd Place: State Bank of India GIC
Best 5-Year Non-Cashable GIC
WINNER: Oaken Financial GIC
2nd Place: Implicity Financial GIC
3rd Place: MAXA Financial
*All data was compiled between September 7 and 21, 2016.
The 2016 Best of Finance Awards also recognizes the best credit cards in Canada. Click here to view the full list of winners.
How we chose the winners
To determine the top performing savings accounts, chequing accounts and GICs, we calculated the total interest earned, based on the following:
Savings Accounts
Chequing Accounts
GICs
Looking to grow your money? Check out these and other great chequing and savings accounts today!
