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Wealthsimple Crypto vs. Crypto.com: What Works Better For Canadians in 2024

Oleg Galeev

Last updated September 20, 2024

Wealthsimple Crypto and Crypto.com are both pioneering cryptocurrency trading platforms, serving a growing base of Canadian investors. While Wealthsimple Crypto focuses on simplicity and user-friendliness, Crypto.com provides a comprehensive suite of features, including staking, crypto Visa cards, and NFTs.

Description

Wealthsimple is a Canadian trading platform that offers several popular cryptocurrencies. You can connect your bank account, move funds from different investment accounts, and buy crypto in CAD.

Crypto.com is a crypto exchange that is gaining popularity in Canada. It offers its own coin (CRO), staking, lending, NFTs, and pre-paid Visa crypto cards offering cashback. Crypto.com offers everything in one place and is suitable for Canadians looking for an easy way to buy crypto.

Coins

Over 30 coins, e.g. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, EOS, Stellar, LINK, AAVE, Solana (SOL)Cardano (ADA)Polkadot (DOT), Dogecoin (DOGE), Polygon (MATIC), and a few stable coins.

 

150+

Fees

  • Free deposits
  • Variable Withdrawal fees
  • Send crypto to other crypto.com users for free
  • 0.04 to 0.4% maker/taker fees

Pros

  • Offers 30 popular cryptocurrencies
  • Easy to use
  • Can transfer funds between investment accounts
  • Secure and trustworthy
  • You can set limit orders
  • $200M insurance
  • Free CAD bank transfers and withdrawals
  • Wide range of coins available
  • Suitable for beginners and pro traders
  • Interac e-Transfer available
  • Deposits take up to one day to process
  • Visa cards
  • Staking
  • NFT marketplace
  • 20+ fiat currencies supported
  • Free deposits

Cons

  • High trading fees
  • Cannot move crypto to a private wallet yet
  • No crypto education articles
  • Poor customer service

Account Limits

Low

Low

Methods to buy

CAD Bank transfer

  • Interac e-Transfer

Security

  • Coins are insured for $200 million by Gemini Trust Company LLC™
  • Fully regulated in all Canadian provinces
  • Touch/Face ID
  • 100% coins held in cold storage
  • Ledger Vault partnership
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Mandatory whitelisting of withdrawal addresses

Mobile and Desktop Trading

Both Wealthsimple Crypto and Crypto.com offer seamless mobile and desktop trading experiences. Wealthsimple Crypto is applauded for its easy-to-use, uncluttered interface, earning an impressive 4.7 out of 5 stars on the App Store and 4.5 stars on Google Play. In contrast, Crypto.com provides two distinct platforms — a mobile app suitable for beginners and a Pro desktop exchange for advanced users, earning a 4.5 rating on the App Store and a 4.5 on Google Play.

Wealthsimple Crypto

Wealthsimple’s Trade app has a 4.7-star rating from 121,000 reviews on the Apple App Store, and a 4.6-star rating from 41,000 reviews on Google Play.

The app makes it easy to switch between all of your investment accounts, and see exactly how much you have in each one. The desktop trading platform is essentially the same and allows you to deposit and withdraw, buy and sell, and view charting for different cryptocurrencies. It has a simple interface making it easy for beginners. 

Wealthsimple desktop app screenshot

Wealthsimple desktop app

Wealthsimple crypto trading main screen

Wealthsimple crypto trading main screen

Wealthsimple mobile app screenshot

Wealthsimple Crypto Mobile app

Buying crypto with Wealthsimple Crypto

Crypto.com

In the crypto.com app, users can buy and sell crypto easily. You can also directly stake or lend your crypto, apply for a crypto.com card, track favourite coins, withdraw to external wallets and more. The app is an all-in-one trading platform that’s user-friendly and suitable for beginners.

The app has a 4.3-star rating from 56,000 reviews on the Apple App Store and a 3.9-star rating from 200,000 reviews on Google Play.

If you’re looking for more advanced tools, you can use crypto.com’s desktop exchange. The exchange offers more charting and order types but the interface can be confusing for beginners. The crypto.com app has everything you need, so you’d only use the Exchange for slightly lower fees or advanced order types. 

Crypto.com advanced trading view

Advanced Desktop Trade

List of coins available for trading on Crypto.com desktop app

List of coins

Crypto.com app interface

Crypto.com app interface

Crypto com app while trading

Crypto.com app interface while trading

Security Compliance

Wealthsimple Crypto requires new customers to go through the KYC process in order to trade and offer two-factor authentication. 

In your Wealthsimple account, you can use Touch ID or Face ID instead of entering a username and password each time you log in. Currently, there is no Two-factor authentication available. 

Crypto.com is highly secure crypto exchange. They keep funds in cold storage, offer two-factor authentication to keep accounts secure, encrypt user data, and more. 

Crypto.com keeps 100% of users’ funds in cold storage, specifically in a Ledger vault. This percentage is the highest we’ve seen of any crypto exchange, showing crypto.com truly values security. Crypto.com also has $750M in cold storage insurance in case of theft. 

Crypto.com also makes its users whitelist all withdrawal addresses via email and users multi-factor authentication  - such as FaceID - to

Security is paramount in the world of cryptocurrency, and both Wealthsimple Crypto and Crypto.com have robust measures in place. Wealthsimple Crypto uses state-of-the-art security features like two-factor authentication and encryption. On the other hand, Crypto.com provides stringent security protocols, including cold storage for 100% of user funds and multi-factor authentication, making it a highly secure platform. However, the choice of which is safer is subjective and depends on individual trust and preference.

Regulatory Compliance

Wealthsimple Crypto is insured by the Gemini Trust Company LLC™ which covers $200 million. Wealthsimple is fully regulated in Canada and has been a staple for Canadian investments since 2016. It's a fully-compliant crypto platform in Canada.

Crypto.com is fully regulated and can be accessed in Canada, USA (except New York), Europe, and other countries around the world.

Both Wealthsimple Crypto and Crypto.com demonstrate their adherence to Canadian rules and regulations. The operations of Wealthsimple Crypto are overseen by prominent Canadian regulatory bodies such as the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). Similarly, Crypto.com has taken tangible steps towards compliance with Canadian regulations, illustrated by their pre-registration agreement with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).

Customer support

Wealthsimple has a comprehensive help centre on its website and within the app. It is full of articles about crypto in general as well as how to use their platform. They also have live chat support, email support and phone support, all available 24/7. Wealthsimple has good customer service and you will be able to find an answer to your question quickly. 

The customer support for crypto.com is quite slow. Users like the app, security, and the wide range of coins, but the customer service needs work. Crypto.com does not offer educational resources or a knowledge centre, which is a let down. 

Wealthsimple Crypto provides support via email, although the absence of real-time assistance like phone support might be a concern for some users.

Crypto.com's customer service is reportedly slower and lacks the abundance of educational resources that Wealthsimple provides, which is an area they could improve upon

Conclusion

While both Wealthsimple Crypto and Crypto.com provide robust platforms for crypto trading, Wealthsimple Crypto stands out for its simple, user-friendly interface and its dedication to regulatory compliance in Canada. Despite the wide array of features Crypto.com offers, the user experience may be a bit overwhelming for newcomers. So, Wealthsimple Crypto emerges as the winner for those preferring a straightforward and hassle-free trading experience.

We recommend choosing Wealthsimple Crypto over Crypto.com for your cryptocurrency trading needs. By opting for Wealthsimple Crypto through our referral link, you support us in conducting comprehensive independent analyses of crypto trading options for Canadians.

If you find that neither Wealthsimple Crypto nor Crypto.com meets your requirements, we encourage you to explore our monthly-updated list of the best exchanges for Canadians to trade crypto. This list provides a range of alternative options that may better suit your specific needs and preferences.

Author

Oleg is a Canadian citizen & crypto expert who has been trading since 2016. He started out with Coinbase, Kraken and Peer-to-Peer exchanges. After some time, centralized exchanges started charging crazy fees to their users.

He decided to review different crypto exchanges that operate in Canada and start a Youtube channel in order to educate Canadians on what kinds of things are going inside each one while giving them unbiased advice. On top of that, Oleg also has experience with NFT, airdrops, and crypto staking and he is constantly checking on new crypto assets.

His writing has been featured in popular Canadian media sources such as Toronto Sun and Ottawa Citizen.