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No Fee Chequing Accounts Comparison

First Posted: September 26, 2007
Last Updated: September 18, 2009

By Denis Agar

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A note about the big banks

I looked high and low for some sort of good deal at a Big 5 bank. I couldn't find one. As you'll see at the bottom end of the table, big banks' best offerings don't even come close to these guys. BMO is generally the cheapest of the lot, but you shouldn't have to resort to that.

Comparison Table

Name	Monthly Fee/ Min. balance to avoid fees	Interest Rate	Access Methods				ATM Network	Extras
Name	Monthly Fee/ Min. balance to avoid fees	Interest Rate	Cheques	Bill Payments	ATM withdrawals	Interac Direct Payment	ATM Network	Extras
ICICI HiVALUE Chequing Account	$5.00 / ($500 or a regular direct deposit from an employer)	negligible	Unlimited chequing but only 20 free printed cheques provided	Unlimited			The Exchange	Free Cheques, Free unlimited international ATM withdrawals*, access to human tellers at branches in Toronto, Calgary, or Vancouver, free money transfers to India (must involve a currency exchange), free bank drafts in rupees
President's Choice Financial No-fee bank account	None	negligible	Unlimited				PC Financial and CIBC	Free Cheques, can earn PC Points outside QC
The following are only available in British Columbia
Coast Capital Savings Free Chequing, Free Debit and More Account	None	negligible	Unlimited chequing but only a "starter pack" provided	Unlimited			The Exchange	None
Vancity Shared Growth Chequing Account	$7.00 / $1000	0%	Unlimited chequing but no free preprinted cheques provided	Unlimited			The Exchange	One free in-branch transaction, money is pooled for use in projects that return "meaningful social, environmental and economic benefits to community"
For comparison purposes, some offerings from the big banks
Bank of Montreal Plus Plan	$8.50 / $1500	negligible	30 included, $0.60 after				Bank of Montreal	One free E-mail Money Transfer per month, earn Air Miles on debit purchases.
CIBC Everyday Chequing Account	$3.90 / $1000	negligible	10 included, then $0.60 each				CIBC	None
Royal Bank	Not a single chequing account with a waivable monthly fee
Scotiabank Powerchequing Account	$3.95 / $1500	negligible	When paying monthly fee, 15 are included. Otherwise, you are allowed unlimited transactions.				Scotiabank	Free usage of Scotiabank's Global ATM Alliance, earn SCENE points on certain transactions
TD Canada Trust Value Plus Account	$8.95 / $2000	negligible	25 included, then $0.65 each				TD Canada Trust	None

* Free international ATM withdrawals means that your bank won't charge you for the withdrawal, but it doesn't mean that the bank that owns the ATM you are using won't charge you. These types of fees, although common in Canada, are very rare abroad. And the bank machine will usually warn you before you are charged.

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