Tangerine Bank Review

Tangerine Bank has made a reputation for itself over the last few years as one of the most popular digital banks, with many exciting spending, saving, borrowing, and investing products that run the gamut of financial products available in Canada.

While some may find themselves wondering if it’s too good to be true that a digital bank can provide so many great financial products while operating entirely online, rest assured, Tangerine is the real deal.

In this Tangerine Bank review, we’ll take a look at everything the online-only bank has to offer, how it works, its key features as a bank, and much more.

No-Fee Daily Chequing Account

This account is perhaps the most popular product offered by Tangerine—and with good reason!

After all, this chequing account is entirely free to use and comes with no minimum balance requirements.

It also allows account holders to reap the benefits of unlimited transactions, which includes unlimited Interac e-Transfers. All of this and much more comes with no minimum balance requirements and no monthly fees.

But that’s not all! Tangerine Bank customers can access 3,500 Scotiabank ATMs nationwide, along with 44,000 Global ATM Network ATMs across the world, at no extra charge and one of the lowest foreign exchange rates available. The chequing account also offers up to 1.00%* interest on deposits of all sizes.

The Global ATM Network ATM allows customers to access affiliated banks worldwide at no additional fee, and usually with a great exchange rate.

Upon sign-up, Tangerine customers will receive a (bright orange) debit card, along with a chequebook containing 50 free cheques.

You can use the Tangerine Bank with Apple Pay, Android Pay, and Samsung Pay, all while having additional access through the banking account.

• Annual fee: None
• Interest rate: 19.95%
• Rewards: Up to 2% cashback on three spending categories, 0.5% on regular purchases
• Minimum annual income requirement: $12,000

Tangerine Money Back Credit Card is a no-frills credit card that grants a major opportunity to earn more cashback on what’s most important to them, with minor qualification requirements.

With the Tangerine Money Back Credit Card*, cardholders can reap the benefits of 2% cashback on two spending categories of their choosing.

Cashback on this card is paid monthly, with the option to contribute to the credit card or to deposit the funds into a Tangerine Savings Account. Choosing the latter allows you to add an extra spending category and receive 2% on three categories.

Purchases outside of the three categories still earn cashback of 0.5%.

• Annual fee: None
• Interest rate: 19.95%
• Cashback: 0.5% to 2%
• Minimum annual income: $60,000 personal or $100,000 household

The Tangerine World Mastercard Credit Card isn’t an average low-interest credit card. It provides an amplified version of the Money Back Card, with more perks than Tangerine’s other credit card option.

Tangerine World Mastercard* offers the same 2% cashback on two to three categories, depending on the cashback payout option selected.

This version of the Tangerine Credit Card comes with additional perks. One of these perks includes access to Boingo Hotspots, a wireless network with over a million hotspots worldwide.

Another perk includes rental car collision and loss damage insurance for up to 31 days.

Tangerine World Mastercard also comes with mobile device insurance in the event of damage, theft, or technical failure.

Tangerine also offers special pricing on subscriptions through this credit card, along with airport lounge access and other perks.

Tangerine Bank offers both fixed and variable mortgages. Its variable mortgage is available for 5 years at 7.10%* and their fixed mortgages range from 1 – 10 years at 6.49% – 7.89%.* With its mortgages, Tangerine will let you pay up to 25% of your principal annually. You can also increase mortgage payments by 25% to pay back your loan faster. Most banks would charge a fee to pay a large sum towards your principal or increase mortgage payments. We love Tangerine Bank for putting their customers first and offering fair and rewarding benefits.

The bank also offers other loans, including a home equity line of credit (HELOC) at a current rate of 7.70%* (prime rate + 0.5%*), RSP loans for 1-5 years at rates ranging from 7.29%-8.75%*, and a personal line of credit.

Tangerine is a fully-digital Canadian bank. It is the direct-to-consumer banking division of Scotiabank. Tangerine is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC).

Tangerine is a part of a growing trend of neo-banks, meaning exclusively digital banks offer their products and services exclusively online. This helps Canadians save money on banking fees while improving their banking experience.

With a Tangerine Bank account, you won’t pay any monthly, annual, or maintenance fees. Tangerine allows you to bank with both their chequing and savings account free of charge and send e-transfers at no charge.

Using a Scotiabank ATM, withdrawals are also free. With other national ATM fee charges at $1.50 and international ATM fees are $3. There are a few additional charges that Tangerine may make, but overall their fee structure is fair, and users can enjoy no-fee banking with an active account.

For a no-fee banking account with this many products and services, Tangerine is an excellent option for those who see no reason to pay for monthly fees.

While there are no branches, in a world that’s almost entirely online, is this even an issue for many of us?

Tangerine is a safe and legitimate bank, which makes it suitable for anyone who likes to do most of their banking online.

Tangerine works great as an account to receive your money. You can save and invest with Tangerine, while also using external accounts for your advanced saving and investing needs, such as using an online brokerage or robo-advisor.

Learn more about how we rate banks and credit unions by visiting our methodology page.

*Rates as of October 2023