The top crypto platforms and apps in Canada 2023
If you’re looking for the best crypto exchanges in Canada for buying and selling bitcoin, ether and other cryptocurrencies, we’ll help you compare.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
If you want to buy and sell bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on a Canadian crypto trading platform, it’s worth shopping around—the features, fees and customer support options vary. To find the crypto trading platform that fits your needs, and to better understand your risk tolerance for this highly volatile asset type, start with our comparison guide.
Crypto platform comparison
To view all the details in the table, slide the columns right or left using your fingers or mouse. You can also download the information to your device in Excel, CSV and PDF formats.
Crypto is exciting, but remember…
Cryptocurrency is a relatively new asset class that’s prone to significant price volatility—bitcoin’s highs and lows, for example, have caused investors many sleepless nights. As of early July 2023, the cryptocurrency is down 56% from its November 2021 record high of USD$68,789.
Before you invest, consider why you want to buy crypto, whether it fits your overall investing strategy and long-term financial goals, and—as with other speculative investments—it’s wise to limit your purchases to what you can afford to lose.
Crypto investing also has risks that you wouldn’t typically encounter when, say, buying exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or guaranteed investment certificates (GICs)—including technology risks, legal and regulatory uncertainty, and the potential for human error (including your own). It’s important to understand the different types of risk and how to protect your crypto assets, and to watch out for all-too-common crypto scams.
Also good to know: In the event that a financial institution becomes insolvent or suffers a security breach, crypto assets held there aren’t covered by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) nor the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), unlike some other types of investment accounts.
Top crypto platforms in Canada
CoinSmart*
CoinSmart’s simple interface makes crypto trading accessible to beginners, but the platform also offers tools and services for experienced traders, such as advanced charting and order book functionality. As noted above, CoinSmart is merging with Coinsquare and WonderFi in 2023.
Pros
- Low trading fees
- Instant account verification
- Same-day deposits
- 24/7 support with live chat and AI chatbot
- Advanced trading tools (limit orders, stop loss, real-time charting)
Cons
- Fee for credit/debit card deposits starts at 6.75%
- The selection of 16 coins is less than that of other platforms on this list
NDAX*
Founded in 2018, Calgary-based NDAX—short for National Digital Asset Exchange—has some of Canada’s lowest crypto trading fees plus a roster of 34 coins. NDAX offers staking for certain coins (ADA, DOT, ETH, GRT, MATIC); its website has a handy staking calculator.
Pros
- Low trading fees
- $4.99 flat fee for withdrawals
- Fast deposits and withdrawals with no minimums or maximums
- Support by phone and live chat 10 a.m. to midnight EST, Monday to Friday
- Advanced trading tools
- Ability to set up recurring buys
- Crypto staking
Cons
- None
Bitbuy
In December 2021, Bitbuy became Canada’s first crypto trading platform to be regulated as a marketplace, as well as the first to be both a registered digital asset marketplace and a restricted dealer of cryptocurrency assets. Canadian ivestors can benefit from greater price transparency and more consistent fees, and their orders are matched against other live orders on Bitbuy rather than routed to a third-party dealer.
Pros
- Trading fees of 0% to 1.5%
- Advanced trading tools available through Bitbuy Pro Trade
Staking available for certain coins
Cons
- No live chat for customer support
Bitvo
Bitvo achieved registration with Canadian securities regulators in April 2022. Since then, it’s distinguished itself with its “Bitvo Same Day Guarantee”—which promises same-day processing for account registration, deposits and withdrawals—and its Bitvo Cash Card.
Pros
- Same-day processing for deposits and withdrawals
- Advanced trading tools such as limit orders
- Bitvo Cash Card allows fast access to cash via ATMs that accept Visa or Plus
Cons
- Small selection of 10 coins
Netcoins
Netcoins, launched in 2014, keeps things cheap and cheerful with no fees for deposits or fiat withdrawals, flat fees for crypto withdrawals and a 0.5% fee for trades.
Pros
- Low trading fee of 0.5%
- Fast account verification and price alerts
Cons
- Website offers little information about security measures
- Daily live customer support by email, phone and chat (hours vary by day)
Newton
Since its launch in 2018, Newton has grown steadily, and it now offers one of the largest selections of crypto coins among Canadian trading platforms. Its fees and spreads are among the lowest on our list.
Pros
- Large selection of 70-plus coins
- Instant account verification
- No fees for deposits, withdrawals or trades
- Charges a spread per side (difference between midpoint and bid/ask price)
- Covers the first $5 in network fees for crypto withdrawals
Cons
- No customer support by phone
VirgoCX
Toronto-based VirgoCX was founded in 2018 with a mission to provide safe, easy and accessible crypto trading. It offers over 60 coins and several tools for advanced traders.
Pros
- Large selection of cryptocoins
- Free cash deposits and withdrawals
- Instant account funding with Interac
- Can use Canadian and U.S. dollars
- Advanced tools like price alerts and recurring buys
- 24/7 live chat
Cons
- Trading spreads as high as 2.5%
Wealthsimple Crypto*
In 2020, robo-advisor firm Wealthsimple launched Canada’s first regulated crypto platform, Wealthsimple Crypto, with a menu of two coins: bitcoin and ethereum. As of 2023, it offers over 50 cryptocurrencies via its user-friendly Wealthsimple Trade app.
Pros
- Can start investing with as little as $1
- No fees for fiat or crypto deposits or withdrawals
- Convenient option for existing Wealthsimple customers
- Staking available (SOL and ETH only)
Cons
- Charges an operations fee (a spread on the bid and ask prices) of 1.5% to 2% per transaction, which is higher than most platforms on our list
- Despite offering 56 cryptocurrencies, it doesn’t support the transfer, deposit or withdrawal of all of them
How to choose a crypto platform
With so many crypto trading platforms to choose from, it’s essential to review their features in detail.
Newer crypto investors, for example, will benefit from a platform that provides 24/7 customer support, while more experienced investors will look for advanced trading tools like limit orders and a live order book. A large coin selection is great to have, but it’s not necessary if you plan to trade just the most established cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin and ethereum. And, of course, you’ll want to compare fees and spreads.
Worth noting: A major change is coming to Canada’s crypto landscape. In April 2023, three platforms, CoinSmart, Coinsquare and WonderFi (which owns platforms Bitbuy and Coinberry) announced a merger. According to a press release, the combined company “will offer one of the largest regulated crypto asset trading platforms in the world and will provide Canadians with a wide range of diversified products and services including both retail and institutional crypto trading, staking products, B2B crypto payment processing and will also soon include sports betting and gaming.” Closing of the deal was expected in the second quarter of the year. As of late June 2023, the three platforms still maintain separate websites.
Watch: How to buy bitcoin in Canada
Crypto platform questions to ask before you start investing
Before you deposit money, or even create an account, tackle this list of questions to help you decide on which platform is best for you.
- What coins are available?
- Can you buy and sell crypto in Canadian dollars?
- What are the fees for deposits, withdrawals and trading?
- How does the platform/app make its money? Is it through fees? Or is is through spreads?
- Does the platform/app have a welcome offer?
- What’s the process to open an account? Is it free?
- What funding methods are available? Options may include Interac, EFT, wire transfer, crypto and more.
- What are the waiting periods for deposits and withdrawals?
- How intuitive is the platform to use, including its mobile app?
- What is the quality of customer support the platform offers? Is it available 24/7?
- How fast and easy is it to get money and crypto in and out of the platform?
- What security features and processes does the platform have?
- Is the platform registered with securities regulators?
- Does the platform comply with Canadian privacy laws, such as PIPEDA?
- For experienced traders, does the platform offer advanced trading tools, such as limit orders, charting and a live order book?
- If you’re interested in crypto staking, is it available, and for which coins?
- Does the platform have a referral program?
Learn more about crypto
These and other crypto trading platforms make buying and selling cryptocurrencies almost as easy as ordering a pizza—but do you understand how crypto works, what affects crypto prices, how to choose investments and what risks are involved?
Explore our roster of crypto articles to become a more informed investor:
- How does crypto work? A guide to investing in bitcoin, ethereum and more
- Best cryptocurrencies to invest in for 2022
- Altcoins vs. bitcoin: What to consider when building your crypto portfolio
- What are the risks of trading crypto?
- What’s the best type of crypto wallet?
- How long should you hold a cryptocurrency investment?
- The best metaverse coins to buy in 2022
- Crypto trading fees: Are you paying too much?
- How to gain exposure to crypto without buying it
- Trading tools that can raise your crypto game
- What is DeFi? And how can Canadians invest in it?
- Getting paid in bitcoin
- What you should know about cryptocurrency tax in Canada
- How to invest more sustainably in crypto
- How to navigate growing crypto regulation in Canada
Watch: 10 cryptocurrencies you need to know about
Best crypto platforms methodology
For our list of top crypto trading platforms, we only included Canadian companies that met the following criteria:
- offer cryptocurrency trading in Canadian dollars
- offer a wide selection of coins
- are registered with Canadian securities regulators
- are accepting new customers
All information was sourced from the platforms’ websites, press releases and company employees.
What does the * mean?
If a link has an asterisk (*) at the end of it, that means it's an affiliate link and can sometimes result in a payment to MoneySense (owned by Ratehub Inc.) which helps our website stay free to our users. It's important to note that our editorial content will never be impacted by these links. We are committed to looking at all available products in the market, and where a product ranks in our article or whether or not it's included in the first place is never driven by compensation. For more details read our MoneySense Monetization policy.
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Thank you for the info. Could you please share your thoughts on Utopia p2p? It is the only decentralized blockchain where the Transaction Explorer cannot be implemented.