best cryptocurrency exchanges ontario

Best Cryptocurrency Exchanges If You Live In Ontario (2022)

If you’re like me, you live in Ontario (Canada) and have no idea where to start when it comes to finding the best cryptocurrency exchanges, I made this post for you.

I’ve used all of the crypto exchange apps in this post. After hours of research and fiddling around with each of the exchanges, I now primarily use 2 of them; Nexo and Crypto.com. I explain why in my reviews below.

Important Terms To Know Before Reading

Staking

Staking is a mechanism to achieve distributed consensus and validate transactions and blocks, creating an alternative to mining. The term comes from the idea of a stake, where a user or a node locks up some of their cryptocurrency (called the stake) and validates blocks and transactions.

The cryptocurrency holders can then receive a portion of the block reward for each validated block. These are often referred to as staking rewards and advertised in terms of APY (annual percentage yield).

Staking is a great way to earn passive income. You can earn between 4-16% APY of many popular crypto exchanges. For example, if you stake $10,000 worth of a certain crypto with 10% APY, you will earn $1000 in rewards if staked over 1 full year.

Spread

The spread is a term that is used to describe the difference in price between the buying and selling price of a certain currency.

For example, if someone is buying Bitcoin and the price is $8,000 and the exchange is selling Bitcoin at $10,000, they are making a $2,000 spread, they are making the difference between the buying price and the selling price. In this example, the spread is 20%.

The spread is usually detailed in percentage. The smaller the percentage, the less money you pay the exchange.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the cryptocurrency exchange you use have to be a Canadian, or Ontario-based company?

The short answer is no.

Are their benefits to using Canadian-based over International-based cryptocurrency exchanges for Ontarians?

After trying numerous Canadian and International exchanges, I’ve come to the conclusion that there isn’t.

What is the best exchange for cryptocurrency in Canada?

In my opinion, the best Canadian-based crypto exchange is Wealthsimple and the best International-based crypto exchange is Crypto.com.

Can I use Coinbase in Ontario?

Yes, although I don’t recommend Coinbase.

Can I use international exchanges in Canada?

Yes, to my knowledge there are no international exchanges banned from being used in Canada.

Best Cryptocurrency Exchanges for Ontarians

Top Canadian Crypto Exchanges

Wealthsimple

Newton

Shakepay

Top International Crypto Exchanges

Crypto.com

Nexo

YouHodler

Uphold

Top Canadian Cryptocurrency Exchanges

wealthsimple crypto
wealthsimple
#1 canadian crypto exchange
Wealthsimple is trusted and used by over 2 million Canadians. The perfect crypto exchange app for beginners.
Ease of use
10
Fees
9
Security
10
Variety of Coins
7
Staking Rewards
0
Trust Factor
10
Support
6
Pros
No commission fees
Small spread on trades
Never been hacked
ACH bank transfers
Pre-paid Visa rewards card with 1% cashback
Limit orders
Licensed with FINTRAC
Cold-storage
Cons
Low variety of coins
No staking
Limited coin withdrawals
1.5% spread fee
Mixed reviews about their support
7.4

Overall Score

Wealthsimple Review

Wealthsimple was created with beginners in mind. I’ve explored dozens of crypto exchange apps and none are simpler, swifter, or easier to navigate than Wealthsimple.

Watch how simple it is to buy crypto on the Wealthsimple app.

How to buy crypto with the Wealthsimple trade app! #wealthsimpletrade #howtobuycrypto #investing

What I love about Wealthsimple

ACH Bank Transfers

As a Canadian, no other exchange offers this to my knowledge. Once you add your banking info, all it takes in 1 click of a button to transfer funds from your account into Wealthsimple.

Up to $1500 can be added instantly, anything more than that takes up to 5 business days. In my experience, it usually takes all 5 business days.

If you plan to move large sums of money (more than $10,000), this is the best method to use.

Why?

Because other crypto exchanges use e-transfer and most Canadian banks limit the amount that can be e-transferred per day and per week. For example, I bank with CIBC and their e-transfer limits are $3000/day and $10,00 per week.

This can be very frustrating if you’re looking to buy a timely dip in the market and you can’t get your funds fast enough.

Trust and Safety

It could be just an illusion, but given that Wealthsimple has been in business since 2016 and amassed and excellent track record.

Users talk highly of them on social media and through reviews on Google, Facebook, and Trustpilot.

If Wealthsimple is so good, why don’t I use it?

I’d absolutely prefer to use it. However, there’s 2 main reasons I don’t:

  1. They don’t offer crypto staking (yet)
  2. They don’t offer cryptos that I want to invest in

I recognize everyone has their own investment strategy and these above reasons may not affect you at all.

If you have no interest in staking your crypto or buying crypto that can’t be found on Wealthsimple, this is the best crypto exchange for Ontarians and Canadians, hands down.

newton crypto exchange
newton
#2 Canadian crypto exchange
Newton is trusted and used by over 2 million Canadians. The perfect crypto exchange app for beginners.
Ease of use
7
Fees
10
Security
8
Variety of Coins
8
Staking Rewards
0
Trust Factor
9
Support
3
Pros
Beginner friendly
Founded in 2011
Never been hacked
Limit orders
Licensed with FINTRAC
Spreads are 1% or less
Cold-storage
Cons
No ACH bank transfers
No staking
Long waits for support
Interface lacks a modern touch
6.4

Newton Review

I have a verified account with Newton but have yet to use them for any transactions.

I only signed up for them as I thought they offered ACH bank transfers. I misinterpreted their meaning of “pre authorized payments”.

They offer bank e-transfers through a third party app called Plaid. It allows you to pre-connect your bank account so you don’t have to manually e-transfer each time you want to deposit or withdraw to your bank account.

shakepay
shakepay
#2 canadian crypto exchange
Wealthsimple is trusted and used by over 900,000 Canadians. The perfect crypto exchange app for beginners.
Ease of use
10
Fees
7
Security
10
Variety of Coins
1
Staking Rewards
0
Trust Factor
6
Support
3
Pros
No commission fees
Licensed with FINTRAC
Cold-storage
Cons
Only offers 2 coins
No staking
Limited coin withdrawals
No ACH bank transfers
Spread fees are not listed, no transparency
5.3

Shakepay Review

This is the very first crypto exchange app I ever downloaded and got verified on. I had my account registered and verified in no time

Here’s how easy it is to set up an account:

How to set up your Shakepay account!

Once verified, I transferred $4000 into the app through e-transfer and took about 1 hour to see my funds.

As I waited for Bitcoin’s price to come down before I bought in, I continued to research other crypto exchange apps I could try.

Once I came across Wealthsimple, Nexo, and Crypto.com I immediately withdrew my funds from Shakepay and re-allocated them.

Why I Decided not to continue with Shakepay

Given my crypto investment strategy moving forward, it’s based on the following reasons:

  1. Only offers Bitcoin and Ethereum to purchase, I want more diversification
  2. No option to stake either coin for passive income
  3. I may choose not to add either of those cryptos to my portfolio at this time