Investors looking to buy and sell stocks often look first at recognisable names. Charles Schwab is an investment company that is well known around the world, so it’s no surprise that Canadian investors want to know whether they can use it.
In this article, we explain whether Charles Schwab is available to investors in Canada and which alternatives Canadians can use instead.
Is Charles Schwab available in Canada?
No. Charles Schwab does not accept Canadian residents for its Schwab One International brokerage account. Charles Schwab & Co. is registered with the SEC in the US, but it is not registered as a dealer with Canadian securities regulators, which it would need to serve investors living in Canada. This may change in the future, but for now you can’t open a Charles Schwab account if you’re based in Canada.
However, if you’re in Canada and want to invest, there are plenty of alternatives to Charles Schwab, most of them regulated by CIRO (the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization) and covered by CIPF (the Canadian Investor Protection Fund).
Charles Schwab alternatives in Canada
Here are some of the best brokers available in Canada:
Interactive Brokers | Sophisticated trading tools
Online broker with a sophisticated trading platform and a very wide range of products. Founded in the US, it serves Canadians through Interactive Brokers Canada Inc., and you can also use the simpler IBKR GlobalTrader app.
Plus500 | CFD trading platform
Plus500 is a CFD broker regulated in Canada by CIRO (through Plus500CA Ltd), offering a clean proprietary platform to trade CFDs on shares, ETFs, forex, indices, commodities and crypto. With CFDs, you speculate on price movements rather than owning the underlying assets, so it suits active traders rather than long-term, buy-and-hold investors. New Canadian clients may be eligible for a welcome bonus.
Questrade | Excellent platform
The Canadian broker offers both DIY investing and pre-built portfolios. It’s a great low-cost option to invest in stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds and more, with $0 commission on stocks and ETFs.
XTB | Cheap for stocks and ETFs
Headquartered in Poland and listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, XTB serves Canadian investors through its French branch, XTB FR, with thousands of stocks, ETFs and CFDs on indices, forex and commodities.
Qtrade | Simple fee structure
Based in Canada, Qtrade has been around for more than 20 years and lets Canadian investors trade stocks, ETFs, mutual funds and options, with $0 commission on stocks, ETFs and mutual funds since October 2025.
| Broker | Fees for US stocks | Minimum deposit |
| Interactive Brokers | US$0.005 per share (min. US$1, max. 1% of trade) | $0 |
| Plus500 | No commission; costs built into the spread (CFDs only) | $100 |
| Questrade | $0 commission on stocks and ETFs | $1,000 |
| XTB FR | $0 up to €100,000 monthly turnover (then 0.2%, min. €10) | $0 |
| Qtrade | $0 commission on stocks and ETFs | $0 |
Fees as of September 2026. Other fees, such as currency conversion and third-party fees, may apply.
#1 Interactive Brokers (IBKR)
Interactive Brokers at a glance
Interactive Brokers is an excellent broker for Canadian traders and investors. The company was founded in 1978 and serves Canadian clients through Interactive Brokers Canada Inc., a CIRO member firm whose eligible accounts are covered by CIPF. It is one of the largest and most reliable brokers in the world.
Its powerful tools, wide range of products and low prices usually attract advanced traders. However, the IBKR GlobalTrader app is simpler and better suited to beginners.
Interactive Brokers offers low commissions on US stocks, a demo account to practise, a very wide range of tradable assets and the option to hold and trade in CAD.
#2 Plus500
Plus500 at a glance
81% of retail CFD accounts lose money.
Plus500 is a different kind of alternative to the others on this list. Where Interactive Brokers, Questrade or Qtrade let you buy and hold actual shares, Plus500 in Canada is a CFD-only platform: you trade on whether a price will rise or fall, without owning the underlying stock or ETF. That makes it suitable for active, short-term traders, but not for investors who want a traditional buy-and-hold portfolio or registered accounts like an RRSP or TFSA.
Founded in 2008 and listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE:PLUS), Plus500 is a FTSE 250 company. Its Canadian subsidiary, Plus500CA Ltd, became a CIRO member in June 2025. It is registered as an investment dealer in all provinces and territories except Québec, and in Alberta its services are only available to accredited investors. Plus500CA is a CIPF member, so eligible accounts are protected up to C$1 million if the broker becomes insolvent (this does not protect against trading losses).
The proprietary WebTrader platform is clean and quick, with guaranteed stop-loss orders, price alerts and an integrated economic calendar. There is no MetaTrader or cTrader support, and research tools are limited. New Canadian clients may be eligible for a welcome bonus (terms and conditions apply).
#3 Questrade
Questrade at a glance
Questrade is a Canadian broker that has been offering an alternative to the big banks since 1999. Only Canadian residents can open an account with Questrade.
You can invest using the app or the web platform and choose between self-directed investing and the competitively priced Questwealth Portfolios, which are pre-built ETF portfolios. You can only hold cash in CAD or USD, but it’s a solid option for beginners and more advanced investors, with plenty of resources such as research, stock data and charting tools.
Questrade requires $1,000 to start trading, and since February 2025 it offers $0 commission on stocks and ETFs.
#4 XTB FR
XTB FR at a glance
69-80% of retail CFD accounts lose money.
XTB is a Polish company founded in 2002. According to XTB, Canadian residents are accepted only by XTB FR, the French branch of the XTB Group. That means your account is not held with a Canadian, CIRO-regulated entity and is not covered by CIPF.
Along with real stocks and ETFs, you can trade CFDs on forex, indices, commodities and crypto with XTB. However, these are riskier and more complex instruments that should only be used by experienced traders.
With lots of investment options, a well-built interface, no minimum deposit and no commission on stocks and ETFs up to €100,000 of monthly turnover, XTB is a low-cost alternative to Charles Schwab for Canadians. If you want to learn more about the broker, read our XTB review.
#5 Qtrade
Qtrade at a glance
Qtrade Direct Investing is a Canadian broker, part of Aviso, that has been around for more than two decades. You can try the platform with a free 30-day trial account (view only) before opening a real account.
Canadian investors can trade stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds and debentures (a type of bond). Since 28 October 2025, Qtrade offers $0 commission on stocks, ETFs and mutual funds, and it has eliminated its quarterly administration fee. Options still pay a $0.75 fee per contract.
Qtrade is an excellent alternative to Charles Schwab for Canadian investors: there’s no minimum deposit, a free trial account and a simple fee structure.
Other resources
If you’re still unsure which alternative to choose, explore our website and our YouTube channel, where we cover the best brokers in several regions and share step-by-step guides on how to invest with some of these platforms.
You can also contact us or book a meeting with us.
Bottom line
Charles Schwab doesn’t accept Canadian residents. Even if it did, the alternatives above offer simpler onboarding, CAD accounts and, in most cases, Canadian regulatory protection (CIRO and CIPF), which Schwab can’t provide to non-US investors.
For long-term investors, Questrade, Qtrade and Interactive Brokers let you buy real shares and ETFs with $0 or low commissions, and the Canadian brokers also offer registered accounts such as the TFSA and RRSP. Plus500 is only for CFD trading, which suits active traders, and XTB serves Canadians from its French branch.
So, don’t be put off investing if you were planning on using Charles Schwab in Canada.
