Your big-bank savings account is probably costing you money

Check your last bank statement. Find the line that says "interest earned" on your savings account. For most people at a Big Five bank, it's a few cents.

That's not a rounding error. It's the default savings account doing exactly what it was designed to do: hold your money for almost nothing.

The gap, in real numbers

A typical big-bank savings account in Canada pays 0.01%–0.5%. High-interest savings accounts (HISAs) from EQ Bank, Tangerine, Simplii, Wealthsimple and others regularly pay 3% or more on every dollar, no minimums.

On a $10,000 emergency fund:

Account	Rate	Interest per year
Big-bank savings	0.05%	$5
Typical HISA	3.00%	$300

Same money, same risk profile, $295 difference. CDIC insurance covers eligible deposits up to $100,000 per insured category at member institutions — the HISA at a CDIC member is protected the same way your big-bank account is.

"But switching banks is a hassle"

You don't have to switch banks. The move most people actually make:

1. Keep your chequing account where it is. Your direct deposit, bill payments, and e-transfers don't change.
2. Open the HISA online. Takes about 10 minutes with your SIN and a piece of ID.
3. Link your chequing account and move your savings over. Transfers take 1–2 business days.
4. Leave one month of buffer in chequing. Everything else earns the higher rate.

How to check what you're missing

Look at your statement and answer two questions:

• What balance sits in savings (or idle in chequing) in a typical month?
• What interest did you actually receive?

Multiply your idle balance by 3% and subtract what you got. That's the annual cost of doing nothing. For a lot of people in their 20s and 30s it's $150–$400 a year — more if a raise or tax refund has been sitting in chequing.

Related: while you're in your statement, check for forgotten subscriptions too — the two checks together usually find $500+/year.

The lazy version

Monvo does this math from your actual balances — it reads your statement, sees what your money is earning, and tells you specifically what a HISA would pay you instead. No generic advice, your numbers. Start free.

Monvo provides information, not financial advice. Rates change — confirm current rates with the institution before opening an account.