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  • Shakepay vs Wealthsimple: Which Is Better for Canadians? (2026)

    Last updated: July 2026 | Author: Harold Phillips

    Quick Answer

    If you want one login that handles investing, your RRSP and TFSA, a cash account, and crypto without a lot of fuss, Wealthsimple is the stronger overall platform for most Canadians in 2026. If what you actually want is a low-effort trickle of free Bitcoin and a cashback card that doesn't cost anything to carry, Shakepay does that one job better, mostly because it's the only job it's trying to do. I use both. Neither one replaced the other for me, which is the honest answer readers usually want and rarely get.

    At a Glance

    Feature Shakepay Wealthsimple
    Monthly fee $0 $0
    Assets / products Bitcoin, Ethereum only Stocks, ETFs, 60+ cryptocurrencies, RRSP/TFSA/RESP/FHSA, cash account
    Free Interac e-Transfers Yes Yes
    Daily free reward Yes (ShakingSats) No
    Cashback card Yes (Bitcoin cashback) No
    Interest on cash balance No Yes (Wealthsimple Cash)
    Registered accounts No Yes
    Customer support Email/chat only Email/chat only
    Referral Bonus $20 cash (after $100+ BTC/ETH purchase) $25+ cash (scales with deposit)
    Best For Free Bitcoin trickle plus cashback, zero crypto knowledge needed One platform for investing, saving, and crypto

    Shakepay Overview

    Shakepay is a Montreal crypto app that's been around since 2015. It lets you buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin and Ethereum, and it moves Canadian dollars in and out through Interac e-Transfer for free, which is rarer in this space than it should be. I want to be upfront that I'm not a crypto guy in any real sense. I don't trade, I don't watch charts, and I'm not going to tell you what Bitcoin is worth next quarter. Shakepay earns a place on my phone for two specific reasons that have nothing to do with believing in crypto as an investment: ShakingSats, a small daily dose of free Bitcoin for opening the app, and the Shakepay Card, which pays Bitcoin cashback on everyday purchases.

    That narrow focus is the whole personality of the app. There's no investing tab, no registered accounts, no savings product. You open it, you shake your phone once a day, and you tap the card at the grocery store. It's built for people who want the "free money" part of crypto apps without needing to understand crypto, which describes me fairly well.

    Wealthsimple Overview

    Wealthsimple started in Toronto in 2014 and has grown into Canada's largest online investment platform. The core product lets you open an RRSP, TFSA, RESP, or FHSA and trade Canadian stocks and ETFs commission-free, something the big bank brokerages were still charging $9.95 a trade for not that long ago. On top of the investing side, Wealthsimple runs a managed portfolio option, a crypto offering with over 60 coins, and Wealthsimple Cash, a savings account that actually pays interest.

    It's a lot of functionality under one roof, and the surprising part is how little it feels like a lot once you're in the app. My partner opened their own account in about fifteen minutes with zero help from me, which is not something I can say about most financial platforms. Wealthsimple's crypto section exists in the same app as the RRSP, which is the part that makes it the natural rival to something like Shakepay — except Wealthsimple never built anything like ShakingSats or a cashback card on top of it.

    Detailed Comparison

    Pricing

    Neither app charges a monthly fee, and neither is really "priced" the way a subscription service would be. The cost shows up differently depending on what you're doing.

    Cost type Shakepay Wealthsimple
    Account fee None None
    Canadian stock/ETF trades Not applicable Free
    Crypto trading cost Built into the buy/sell spread Built into the buy/sell spread
    US-dollar trade FX fee Not applicable 1.5% at the Basic tier
    Card fee None Not applicable (no card product)
    e-Transfer fee Free in and out Free in and out

    Shakepay's only real cost is the spread on Bitcoin and Ethereum trades, which functions like a hidden commission even though it isn't advertised as one. Wealthsimple's crypto trades work the same way. Where Wealthsimple pulls ahead on cost is everything outside crypto: the Canadian stock and ETF trades are genuinely free, something Shakepay doesn't offer because it doesn't do stocks at all.

    Features

    This is where the two apps stop competing directly and start doing different things.

    Shakepay's feature set is small on purpose: buy and sell BTC and ETH, free e-Transfers, ShakingSats, and the cashback card. Wealthsimple's feature set is broad: everything Shakepay does on the crypto side, plus registered accounts, a managed investing option, and an interest-bearing cash account. The one thing Wealthsimple doesn't have is any equivalent to ShakingSats or a crypto cashback card, which is the specific niche Shakepay occupies almost by itself among Canadian apps.

    Neither one pays interest on money sitting in a crypto balance. Wealthsimple gets around this by keeping Wealthsimple Cash as a separate, interest-earning product you can move funds into. Shakepay has no equivalent parking spot; a CAD balance left in the app just sits there.

    User Experience

    Both apps are well designed, and both limit support to email and chat, so neither wins on that front. The difference is in scope. Shakepay's interface is narrow enough that there's nothing to get lost in — you shake, you buy, you spend. Wealthsimple has more surface area to navigate because it's doing more, and while the app handles that reasonably well, it's a bigger app with more settings, more account types, and more decisions to make on day one.

    I found Shakepay's onboarding faster. Identity verification took about a day and a half. Wealthsimple's sign-up was quick too, but if you're transferring an existing brokerage account into it, budget close to three weeks for that part, which is an industry-standard delay and not specific to Wealthsimple.

    Availability in Canada

    Both are available across every province and territory. Both support French for Quebec users, which matters more than people outside Quebec might assume, and both require standard identity verification regardless of where you live, since Shakepay is a regulated crypto platform and Wealthsimple's cash account operates through a federally regulated bank.

    I split time between Toronto and my family's cottage in the Eastern Townships most summers, so spotty rural WiFi has occasionally been a test for both apps. Neither has ever failed to load for me up there, though I'll admit that's a low bar given how little signal the cottage gets in the first place.

    Which Should You Choose?

    Choose Shakepay if:

    • You want free Bitcoin with zero effort and don't want to think about crypto strategy
    • You'd use a cashback card that pays out in Bitcoin instead of points or cash
    • You already have an investing platform elsewhere and just want the "free money" layer on top
    • You don't need interest on idle cash or a registered account

    Choose Wealthsimple if:

    • You want one platform for your RRSP, TFSA, or FHSA plus crypto
    • You want your emergency fund earning interest while it sits
    • You're starting to invest and want a clean, approachable app to learn on
    • You'd rather consolidate accounts than manage several apps for different jobs

    Referral Codes

    Service Referral Code Reward
    Shakepay NJ0MTTK $20 cash each, after a $100+ purchase of BTC or ETH within 30 days
    Wealthsimple VAU8OG $25+ cash bonus, scales with your initial deposit

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Is Shakepay or Wealthsimple cheaper for buying crypto in Canada?

    Both charge through a spread rather than a flat commission, and I haven't run a fresh side-by-side comparison of the two spreads in the last few months. If you're moving anything beyond a small amount, check the current buy and sell prices on both before committing.

    Can I use Shakepay and Wealthsimple at the same time?

    Yes, and that's genuinely how I use them. There's no rule against holding accounts on both platforms, and they're not really solving the same problem once you look past the crypto overlap.

    Which one is better for a first-time investor?

    Wealthsimple. It has the registered accounts, the managed portfolio option, and an app built for people who've never invested before. Shakepay doesn't offer investing outside crypto, so it isn't built for that role.

    Does Wealthsimple have anything like ShakingSats?

    No. Wealthsimple's crypto product lets you buy and hold over 60 coins, but there's no free daily reward mechanic and no cashback card tied to it. ShakingSats and the Shakepay Card remain the two things Shakepay does that Wealthsimple simply doesn't.

    Is my money protected the same way on both platforms?

    Wealthsimple's cash account is CDIC-insured up to $100,000 through Wealthsimple Bank, and trading accounts carry CIPF coverage up to $1 million per category. Shakepay's Canadian-dollar balances aren't insured the same way, since it's a crypto platform rather than a bank, and crypto holdings on either app carry regular market risk.

    Can I earn interest on cash sitting in either app?

    Only with Wealthsimple, through the separate Wealthsimple Cash account. Shakepay has no interest-bearing option, so a CAD balance left there is just sitting idle.

    Do both referral codes work year-round?

    Yes. Neither code has an expiry date, and I'm not going to pretend there's urgency that doesn't exist.

    Final Verdict

    For most Canadians asking which one to actually open, I'd point you to Wealthsimple first. It's the platform that can hold your RRSP, your TFSA, your emergency fund, and a bit of crypto, all under one login, and the app is good enough that my partner set theirs up without asking me a single question. Sign up with code VAU8OG through my Wealthsimple link and you'll get a cash bonus of $25 or more once you fund the account. I've written the full breakdown, fees and all, in my complete Wealthsimple review.

    Shakepay earns its spot for a narrower reason: it's the only app I use that hands out free Bitcoin for doing almost nothing, and the cashback card has stayed in my wallet for small purchases longer than I expected it to. If that specific combination appeals to you, more than an all-in-one platform does, sign up with code NJ0MTTK through my Shakepay link and grab the $20 bonus after your first $100 purchase. I go into more detail, including where it falls short, in my full Shakepay review.

    The honest answer is that these aren't really competitors in the way a comparison article title suggests. Wealthsimple is the broader financial tool. Shakepay is the narrow, free-money add-on. I keep both installed, and I'd tell you to consider doing the same rather than picking exactly one. For the rest of the accounts I use to squeeze value out of everyday banking, the banking and investment referral guide covers the full list.

    • This article contains referral links. If you sign up using my code, I may receive a reward at no extra cost to you. I only recommend services I personally use.

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  • Shakepay Review 2026: Free Bitcoin Rewards and No-Fee e-Transfers for Canadians Who Don’t Care About Crypto

    Last updated: July 2026 | Author: Harold Phillips

    Key Takeaways

    • Shakepay is a Canadian app for buying, selling, and sending Bitcoin and Ethereum, with genuinely free Interac e-Transfers in and out, no monthly fee, no minimum balance
    • Referral code NJ0MTTK gets you and me $20 cash each, once you buy $100 or more of BTC or ETH within 30 days of signing up
    • ShakingSats gives you a small amount of free Bitcoin every day just for opening the app and shaking your phone. No purchase, no deposit required
    • The optional Shakepay Card pays cashback in Bitcoin on everyday purchases and carries no monthly fee of its own

    What Is Shakepay?

    Shakepay is a Montreal-based crypto app that's been around since 2015, which in crypto years makes it practically ancient. It lets Canadians buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin and Ethereum, and it moves Canadian dollars in and out through Interac e-Transfer at no cost. That last part matters more than it sounds like it should. Most crypto platforms nickel-and-dime you on deposits and withdrawals. Shakepay doesn't.

    I want to be upfront about something before I go any further: I'm not a crypto guy. I don't own much of it, I don't trade it, and I don't have opinions about where the price is headed next quarter. My partner will tell you I have opinions about literally everything else (phone plans, banking fees, the correct way to load a dishwasher), but crypto has never been one of them. So this review isn't coming from someone trying to convince you Bitcoin is the future. It's coming from someone who found an app that hands out a bit of free money and figured that was worth writing about.

    Shakepay's whole personality is built around two things: the free daily Bitcoin (called ShakingSats) and the prepaid Shakepay Card, which pays cashback in Bitcoin on regular purchases. Neither requires you to actually understand crypto to benefit from them. You open the app, you shake your phone, you get a small amount of Bitcoin. You use the card at the grocery store, you get a bit back. That's the whole pitch, and it's honestly the reason I still have the app installed.

    Shakepay Referral Code: NJ0MTTK

    When you sign up with my code, both of us get $20 cash, deposited straight into your Shakepay account. The catch, and there's always a catch, is that you need to buy $100 or more of Bitcoin or Ethereum within 30 days of creating your account for the bonus to trigger. You don't need to hold onto it. You just need to make the purchase.

    Step Action
    1 Go to referralmaxxing.ca/go/shakepay
    2 Download the app and create an account using the referral link (or enter code NJ0MTTK manually during sign-up)
    3 Complete identity verification, which takes a few minutes though approval can run a day or two
    4 Buy $100 or more in BTC or ETH within 30 days
    5 Receive your $20 cash bonus, usually within a few business days of the qualifying purchase

    This code works year-round. There's no expiry date buried in the fine print, and I'm not going to pretend there is one to create urgency that doesn't exist.

    Pricing and Plans

    Shakepay doesn't really have "plans" the way a subscription service does. It's free to open an account, and the optional card is free to carry. Where the actual cost shows up is in the spread (the difference between the buy price and sell price on trades), which functions like a built-in transaction fee even though Shakepay doesn't advertise it as one.

    Product Price Features Best For
    Shakepay Account Free Buy/sell BTC and ETH, free Interac e-Transfer in/out, ShakingSats daily reward Anyone who wants a simple, no-fee way to hold a bit of crypto
    Shakepay Card Free (no monthly fee) Prepaid Visa, Bitcoin cashback on purchases, load from your Shakepay balance People who want the cashback without opening a new credit product
    Trading Built-in spread (no flat commission) Instant buy/sell execution Casual buyers, not active day traders

    I'll flag this early because it's easy to miss: there's no interest paid on your CAD or crypto balance sitting in the app. If you're the type who wants your emergency fund earning something while it waits, this isn't the tool for that. It's a spend-and-shake app, not a savings account.

    Pros and Cons

    Pros Cons
    ✅ Genuinely free Interac e-Transfers in and out ❌ No interest earned on CAD or crypto balances
    ✅ Free daily Bitcoin through ShakingSats ❌ Only supports Bitcoin and Ethereum, no altcoins
    ✅ No monthly fee for the account or the card ❌ Support is email and chat only, no phone line
    ✅ Simple interface, genuinely usable for non-crypto people ❌ Rewards are exposed to Bitcoin's price swings until you convert
    ✅ Bitcoin cashback on everyday card purchases ❌ Identity verification can take a day or two before you're fully active
    ✅ $20 referral bonus with no ongoing subscription required ❌ Spread on trades isn't published as clearly as a flat fee would be

    Shakepay vs Wealthsimple

    Wealthsimple is the obvious comparison for most Canadians, since a lot of us already have a Wealthsimple account for investing and added crypto there almost as an afterthought. I've used both, and they're solving slightly different problems.

    Feature Shakepay Wealthsimple Crypto
    Assets supported BTC, ETH only 60+ cryptocurrencies
    Free e-Transfers ✅ ✅
    Free daily rewards ✅ (ShakingSats) ❌
    Cashback card ✅ (Bitcoin cashback) ❌
    Interest on cash balance ❌ ✅ (via Wealthsimple Cash)
    Investing beyond crypto ❌ ✅ (stocks, ETFs, registered accounts)
    Support Email/chat only Email/chat only
    App simplicity Very simple, narrow focus Broader, more to navigate

    If you want one app that does crypto, stocks, RRSPs, and a savings account, Wealthsimple is the better all-around platform. I've written about that separately, with the full breakdown of Wealthsimple's fees and account types, if that's the direction you're leaning. But if what you actually want is the free Bitcoin trickle and a cashback card that doesn't cost you anything to carry, Shakepay does that one thing better, mostly because it's the only thing it does.

    My Experience with Shakepay

    I signed up for Shakepay in early 2024, mostly out of curiosity after a coworker mentioned the free Bitcoin thing during a lunch that had nothing to do with finance. I didn't buy anything for the first few weeks. I just shook the app once a day out of habit, the same way I check the TTC app before leaving my apartment, and watched a tiny amount of Bitcoin accumulate in the background.

    The identity verification took about a day and a half for me, which is standard for anything regulated in Canada. I've had worse waits opening a chequing account. Once I was verified, moving money in was simple. I sent an Interac e-Transfer from my Simplii account, it landed in minutes, and I didn't pay a cent to do it. That's rare enough in the crypto space that it's worth calling out on its own.

    Here's where I have to be honest about what ShakingSats actually is, because I think some of the marketing around it oversells the amount. The daily reward is genuinely small — some days it's a few cents worth of Bitcoin, occasionally more during promotional periods. It is not a way to build meaningful wealth by shaking your phone. It's a nice little habit loop, and over a year and a half it's added up to more free Bitcoin than I expected, but if you're picturing anything close to a real income stream, recalibrate that expectation now.

    The card is the part I actually use for real value. I put my daily coffee and No Frills groceries on it for about four months last year as a test, and the Bitcoin cashback landed reliably every time. I eventually stopped using it as my everyday card, mostly because I like my existing points setup better for larger purchases, but it stayed in my wallet as the card I use for smaller stuff where the cashback percentage matters less than convenience.

    My biggest gripe, and I'll say this plainly: there's no way to earn interest on money sitting in the app. If you keep a CAD balance parked there between trades, it's just sitting, doing nothing, the way cash under a mattress does nothing. I moved my Shakepay balance to essentially zero for that reason, converting straight through and pulling profits or holdings out via e-Transfer rather than letting anything idle. I remember mentioning this to my partner while we were up at the cottage last July, spotty WiFi and all, and their response was some version of "so it's like a phone plan, but for Bitcoin, and you still found something to optimize." Fair.

    I'm not going to pretend I've stress-tested this against every competitor. I haven't done a full comparison of Shakepay's trading spread against Newton's fee structure recently, and if you're moving meaningful volume rather than casual amounts, that's worth checking yourself before you commit.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Is Shakepay available in my province?

    Yes, Shakepay is available across Canada, in every province and territory. You'll need to complete identity verification regardless of where you live, which is standard for any regulated Canadian crypto platform.

    How does the Shakepay referral code work?

    Sign up using code NJ0MTTK or through my referral link, then buy $100 or more of Bitcoin or Ethereum within 30 days of opening your account. Once that purchase clears, both you and I get $20 cash deposited into our Shakepay accounts.

    Is Shakepay worth it in 2026?

    For the free Bitcoin and the no-fee e-Transfers alone, yes, I'd say it's worth having installed even if you never actively trade. If you're looking for a full investing platform with registered accounts and interest-bearing cash, you'll want something broader alongside it, not instead of it.

    Do I need to understand crypto to use Shakepay?

    No. That's genuinely the appeal of it for someone like me. You don't need a trading strategy to benefit from ShakingSats or the cashback card. You need an app on your phone and a habit of opening it.

    Is ShakingSats actually worth doing every day?

    It's worth doing because it costs you nothing, but don't expect it to be meaningful money on its own. Treat it as a small bonus layered on top of the card and the free e-Transfers, not as a reason to sign up by itself.

    Is my money safe with Shakepay?

    Canadian dollar balances aren't CDIC-insured the way a bank account is, since Shakepay is a crypto platform, not a bank. Your crypto holdings carry the same market risk any Bitcoin or Ethereum holding does. The value moves with the market, and that's true no matter which app you hold it in.

    Does Shakepay charge any hidden fees?

    There's no monthly account fee and no charge for the card. The main cost is the spread built into buy and sell prices, which isn't published as a flat percentage the way a bank fee would be. It's not hidden exactly, but it's also not front and centre.

    What's the difference between Shakepay and Wealthsimple Crypto?

    Shakepay only supports Bitcoin and Ethereum but adds ShakingSats and a cashback card that Wealthsimple doesn't have. Wealthsimple supports far more cryptocurrencies and pairs crypto with a full investing platform, registered accounts, and an interest-bearing cash account. They overlap on crypto but aren't really solving the same problem.

    Final Verdict

    I'd recommend Shakepay to almost anyone in Canada who wants a low-effort way to end up with a bit of free Bitcoin and a cashback card that costs nothing to carry, crypto opinions completely aside. You don't need to believe in Bitcoin as an investment to get value out of this one. I don't, and I still use it.

    Where it falls short is anywhere close to being a full financial tool. No interest on idle cash, only two supported assets, and support that's email-only if something goes sideways. If you want one app for everything (crypto, stocks, savings, registered accounts), Wealthsimple covers more ground. If you want the specific combination of free daily Bitcoin, no-fee e-Transfers, and a cashback card, sign up with referral code NJ0MTTK at referralmaxxing.ca/go/shakepay and grab the $20 bonus once you make your first qualifying purchase.

    For more ways to make your everyday accounts work harder without paying for the privilege, the banking and investment referral guide covers the rest of what I use.

    • This article contains referral links. If you sign up using my code, I may receive a reward at no extra cost to you. I only recommend services I personally use.

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