Is it worth maintaining a Big 5 bank account?

callernamet wrote: ↑Is it worth maintaining a Big 5 bank account?


Simple Answer is Yes.

angel_wing0 wrote: ↑Yes due to their ATMs around Canada. And you never know that you might need teller service.

BrokeMillennial wrote: ↑ Yes.

Find the bank that fits your needs the best. Think about the amount of monthly transactions required, minimum balance (if required, RBC has their multiproduct rebate), and physical distance to your location.

CanJpnPhl wrote: ↑ I, too, was part of Scotiabank's Start Right Program when my family and I moved here to Canada 3 years ago. Now, most of my daily banking has shifted to Simplii and Tangerine. I still keep my chequing account with them, just in case I need teller service, as well as my Momentum No-Fee Visa (same as yours), since it's my oldest trade line.

So yes, it's still worth it -- that is, as long as you're not paying any monthly fees.

karthiks wrote: ↑ Ah, thank you for sharing your experience!

Yes, the chequing account will come with a fee because I won't be able to meet the min. balance requirement for now. But come to think, even if I were able to, not sure if I'm ok with the idea of $3k sitting there in a chequing account when I could either invest it or put it in a savings account/GIC.

karthiks wrote: ↑ As a newcomer, I was on Scotiabank's StartRight package. With the first year almost complete, I was wondering if its worth maintaining that chequing account. As it is, Tangerine has been my "more active" bank since December (when I finally landed a job).

The only issue with Tangerine is that they do not have a proper debit card; their client card cannot be used online.

TWELVES wrote: ↑ I don't see a need for a bank account with a big 5.

I'd suggest an LOC.

Holystone wrote: ↑I moved to Tangerine several years back and it has fulfilled all my daily banking needs. Previously I used to have my chequing and savings accounts at TD. I closed the chequing but still maintain the savings account at TD for any emergency needs which I have never needed in all these years. I think I’m allowed one free transaction a month. The only time my TD savings account has come in handy is when someone has to wire me money. Tangerine doesn’t accept wire transfers.

Kneader wrote: ↑Whoa, the Big 5 are getting a lot of love in this thread!
I don't see much use for them really. You're talking about how your Tangerine debit card is no good for online transactions, but you still have your Scotia credit card that works well and is a better choice anyway since it offers protection that no debit card does.
If you don't trust yourself with using credit, there's always Koho/Stack that offers prepaid cards.

That's not to say there aren't negatives. As pointed out above, Tangerine does not accept wires and sometimes it's just more convenient to go see a teller for a cashier's cheque. It's up to you to weigh the pros against the cons. For me it's not worth paying (or leaving a bunch of cash sitting around earning nothing) for that convenience.

CanJpnPhl wrote: ↑ Yes, you can always shift to a free savings account with at least one free transaction a month.

The only thing that makes me detract from closing my chequing account with them, is that occasionally, our family members in the US send us wire transfers. They're old school and don't know how to use services like TransferWise. LOL. Tangerine cannot accept wire transfers at all, and while Simplii is essentially a no-frills CIBC (heck, their institution numbers are the same: 010), I heard that they can't handle wire transfers very well. I have no problems receiving wire transfers to my BNS account.

It all depends on your needs, TBH.

GooseAkuma wrote: ↑ Well I won't use the term "proper debit card." In Canada not every debit card is a debit VISA or Mastercard. My Scotiabank card isn't. Neither is my RBC card.

But to answer your question YES it's worth it. I primarily bank with Tangerine and there are instances in life when having an account with one of the big 5 banks is more convenient such as when you need a bank draft. You can order bank drafts with Tangerine but do you want to have it couriered to your home or to a Tangerine Cafe? For big purchases and time sensitive matters it's just not convenient not to mention that you lack the ability to wire money.

DonkeyDoo wrote: ↑I do 90% of everything through Simplii, but still keep a free savings account with $10 in it and a unused credit card at each of the big 5. You never know when you might have to open up a relationship with them again. This also leads to pre-approvals... That $10 and unused CC at RBC led to a pre-approved 25K line of credit.

bomber17 wrote: ↑ Unless you're wealthy or able to maintain min balances, not worth keeping a Big 5 bank due to the monthly fees. I wouldn't keep a big 5 account due to ATM network. As you said, you rarely carry cash with you so rarely would you need an ATM. Even if you need to use it for the odd time to get cash, you can still use any ATM, don't have to be one from your bank. Sure there's a fee of around $3-5, but still cheaper than the $11-16 a month you're paying if you're not maintaining fees.

I would only suggest having a big 5 bank if you're looking for perks and able to maintain a relationship with an personal banker or advisor. This usually means you need to have some sort of assets like mortgages and big secured lines of credits, and/or investments as well. You'll get to have higher interest rate discretion for investments and lower rates for lending. Could even get the monthly account fees waived too. Also check with your employment, some big companies have partnerships with a bank and can provide free banking and lower rates.

apnayloags wrote: ↑ We’ve also moved over to Simplii for my wife’s banking, but with this covid thingy and lickdown the closing of TD account is gojng to wait since her CCB payment still was sent to her old td account despite changing it online to simplii. Not sure how long CRA takes to change in its systems. That’s whats holding us up now from fully closing td.
With my rbc we get cashback every 3-4 months which sorta offsets the monthly fees as we pay off our creditcards in full every month....but the fees keep increasing

Opening/closing is a bit of a pain right mow with long lineups at banks and even call centres so we just have to stay status quo for now and avoid visits or calls unnecessarily