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Questrade vs Interactive Brokers Canada 2026 | Comparison

Updated

Quick Comparison

Feature Questrade Interactive Brokers
Best for Beginners, ETF investors Active traders, USD accounts
ETF purchases Free $1+ per trade
Stock trades $4.95-9.95 $1 minimum (1¢/share)
Currency conversion 1.5-2.5% 0.002% (2 bps)
Options $9.95 + $1/contract $1.25/contract
Account minimum $1,000 $0
Platform IQ Edge, web Trader Workstation, web

Trading Fees Comparison

Stock Trading

Scenario Questrade IBKR
100 shares @ $50 $4.95-9.95 $1.00
500 shares @ $50 $9.95 $5.00
1,000 shares @ $50 $9.95 $10.00
Free ETF buys Yes No

ETF Trading

Action Questrade IBKR
Buy ETFs $0 $1+
Sell ETFs $4.95-9.95 $1+

Questrade wins for passive ETF investors.

Options Trading

Per Contract Questrade IBKR
Base + per contract $9.95 + $1 $0 + $1.25
10 contracts $19.95 $12.50
50 contracts $59.95 $62.50

Similar pricing for options.

Currency Conversion

Conversion Questrade IBKR
Spread 1.5-2.5% 0.002%
$10,000 CAD→USD $150-250 cost $0.20 cost
Norbert’s Gambit Available Not needed

IBKR wins massively on currency conversion.

Example: $10,000 USD Investment

Broker Currency Cost Trade Cost Total
Questrade (convert) $200 $0 $200
Questrade (Gambit) ~$20 $10 ~$30
IBKR $0.20 $1 $1.20

Platform Comparison

Questrade

Platform Best For
Web platform Basic trading
IQ Edge (desktop) Active trading
Mobile app On-the-go

User-friendly — good for beginners.

Interactive Brokers

Platform Best For
Client Portal (web) Basic trading
Trader Workstation (TWS) Advanced traders
IBKR Mobile Professional features

Powerful but complex — steeper learning curve.

Account Types Available

Account Type Questrade IBKR
TFSA ✅ ✅
RRSP ✅ ✅
RESP ✅ ✅
FHSA ✅ ✅
LIRA ✅ ✅
RRIF ✅ ✅
Margin ✅ ✅
Corporate ✅ ✅
USD RRSP ✅ ✅

Both offer all standard Canadian accounts.

Research & Tools

Feature Questrade IBKR
Stock screener Basic Advanced
ETF screener Good Excellent
Options tools Basic Professional-grade
Research reports Morningstar Multiple sources
Paper trading Yes Yes
API access Limited Extensive

IBKR wins for tools and research.

Customer Service

Support Questrade IBKR
Phone Yes Yes
Chat Yes Yes
Email Yes Yes
Wait times Can be long Can be long
Quality Good Technical

Both have room for improvement on service.

Account Fees

Fee Questrade IBKR
Account maintenance $0 $0
Inactivity fee $0 $0
Data fees $0 (delayed) $0 (delayed)
Real-time data $20-90/mo $1-14.50/mo
Transfer out $25 $0

IBKR eliminated most fees; now both are comparable.

Best For Different Investors

Questrade Is Best For:

Investor Type Why
Beginners Easier platform
Passive ETF investors Free ETF purchases
Small accounts No hidden fees
TFSA/RRSP accounts Simple setup
Buy-and-hold Low ongoing costs

IBKR Is Best For:

Investor Type Why
Active traders Lower per-trade costs
US stock buyers Best forex rates
Options traders Professional tools
Large accounts Better margin rates
Day traders Advanced platform
Dividend investors (US stocks in RRSP) Avoid double conversion

Cost Comparison by Investing Style

Passive Investor (12 trades/year, $500 each)

Broker Annual Cost
Questrade $0 (ETF buys only)
IBKR ~$12

Winner: Questrade

Active Investor (100 trades/year)

Broker Annual Cost
Questrade ~$500-700
IBKR ~$100

Winner: IBKR

USD Investor ($50k CAD→USD annually)

Broker Currency + Trading
Questrade (convert) ~$1,000
Questrade (Gambit) ~$50
IBKR ~$1

Winner: IBKR

Mobile App Comparison

Feature Questrade IBKR
App rating (iOS) 4.5/5 4.2/5
Ease of use ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ⭐⭐⭐
Features Basic Advanced
Charting Good Excellent
Options trading Limited Full

Questrade app is simpler; IBKR more powerful.

Margin Rates

Borrowed Amount Questrade IBKR
$25,000 ~8.5% ~6.5%
$100,000 ~7.5% ~6.0%
$500,000 ~7.0% ~5.5%

IBKR wins on margin rates.

Tax Reporting

Feature Questrade IBKR
T5 slips Yes Yes
T3 slips Yes Yes
ACB tracking Basic Good
Gain/loss reports Yes Detailed

Both provide adequate tax documents.

Opening an Account

Questrade

  1. Online application (15 min)
  2. Verify identity (upload ID)
  3. Fund account ($1,000 min recommended)
  4. Start trading

IBKR

  1. Online application (20-30 min)
  2. Detailed questionnaire
  3. Identity verification
  4. No minimum required

IBKR’s application is more involved.

The Verdict

If You… Choose
Are new to investing Questrade
Buy ETFs regularly Questrade
Trade actively IBKR
Buy US stocks IBKR
Want simple platform Questrade
Trade options frequently IBKR
Have large account IBKR
Prefer free ETF buys Questrade