Best Options Trading Platforms in Canada for 2026

Best Options Trading Platform Canada 2026: Ranking at a Glance

This table lists all 13 brokers in options-score order. Scores are out of 5 and shown to one decimal. Where two brokers share a rounded score, the order follows the unrounded score. The yearly cost column uses our scoring pattern: four US equity options trades a month of two contracts each, at each broker’s published standard pricing.

Why a $0 broker is not first. Options cost is half of the options score, not all of it. Interactive Brokers gives up a little on cost but earns full marks for platform features and for cash and margin rates, which matter to anyone who writes options or carries a margin balance. Read how we rate online brokers for every rule behind these numbers.

Options Trading Canada Fees: Master Comparison Table

Use the search box and column sorting to filter the table. The three cost columns are yearly commissions for two trades of one contract a month, four trades of two contracts and ten trades of five contracts, at each broker’s standard US equity options pricing. Exchange, clearing and regulatory fees are not included. “Not published” means the figure was not on the provider’s own pages when we checked.

Reading the table. “Not listed separately” means the broker publishes one options schedule without saying whether Canadian and US options are priced differently. Prime-based margin rates use the 4.45% prime rate that Canada’s big banks have charged since October 30, 2025.

The 13 Options Trading Platforms Ranked

Each card shows the options score, the five sub-scores behind it and the fees an options trader pays. Brokers without a WealthScale review page yet have no review button.

1. How We Ranked the Best Options Trading Platforms

The weights. The options score uses five of our broker sub-scores, each from 0 to 5: options cost 50%, platform features 25%, cash and margin rates 10%, safety 10% and account types 5%. Cost carries half the weight because commissions are the one cost every options trader pays on every trade. The other half rewards the things that make a broker workable for options: tools, borrowing costs and protection.

How options cost is scored. We price four US equity options trades a month of two contracts each, a yearly total of 48 trades and 96 contracts, at each broker’s published standard pricing. The sub-score is 5 minus the yearly cost divided by $120, kept between 0 and 5. A $0 broker scores 5.0; a broker costing $600 or more a year scores 0.

The other four factors. Platform features give one point each for fractional shares, a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP), options, an advanced trading platform and a mobile app. Cash and margin rates give up to 2.5 points for a low CAD margin rate under $100,000 and up to 2.5 for interest on uninvested cash. Safety gives 4 when the broker states both CIRO and CIPF membership (3.5 when CIRO is inferred), plus 1 for bank or cooperative ownership. Account types give half a point for each of 10 types.

Ties and rounding. Scores are shown to one decimal. Ties are ordered by the unrounded score. Wealthsimple (4.35) and Questrade (4.275) both show 4.3, as do moomoo (3.74) and BMO (3.665) at 3.7. The full rules are on our broker rating methodology page, and how WealthScale makes money explains why no payment can change a score.

What the score leaves out. The score does not measure exercise and assignment fees or exchange and regulatory pass-through fees, because brokers publish them unevenly. Section 4 covers them, and section 6 lists the fees for holding US dollars in a registered account, so you can add them to your own numbers. Our best online brokers in Canada ranking uses the same sub-scores with the overall weights.

2. Yearly Options Costs for Three Trading Patterns

The three patterns. We priced a light trader (two trades a month of one contract each, 24 trades a year), our scoring pattern (four trades of two contracts, 48 trades) and an active trader (ten trades of five contracts, 120 trades and 600 contracts a year). Each trade is priced as the larger of the base commission plus the per-contract fee times the contracts, or the broker’s minimum. No promotional pricing is used.

The light trader. With one contract per trade, minimums decide the order. Qtrade ($18.00), BMO ($21.60) and Webull ($23.76) all beat Interactive Brokers and moomoo ($24.00), because the US$1 minimum costs more than one contract at $0.75, $0.90 or $0.99. National Bank ($150.00) is cheaper here than CIBC ($196.80) and Desjardins ($210.00).

The active trader. At ten five-contract trades a month, the base commission dominates. TD and Scotia cost $1,948.80 a year, about five times the $390.00 at Interactive Brokers. The active-investor prices do not help: they need 150 or more trades a quarter, and this pattern makes 30.

Canadian-listed options. Only two brokers publish a separate Canadian price. At Questrade (CA$0.99 a contract) our three patterns cost $23.76, $95.04 and $594.00. At Interactive Brokers (CAD 1.25 a contract, minimum CAD 1.50) they cost $36.00, $120.00 and $750.00. Try your own numbers in the options cost calculator.

3. Per-Contract Fees, Base Commissions and Minimums

Four pricing models. Canadian brokers price options in one of four ways: $0 a contract (Wealthsimple on equity and ETF options, Questrade on US equity options), a per-contract fee only (Qtrade, BMO, Webull), a per-contract fee with a minimum per order (Interactive Brokers, moomoo, National Bank, Desjardins), or a base commission plus a per-contract fee (CIBC, TD, RBC, Scotia). The model matters more than the headline number, because it decides how cost grows with trade size.

Where minimums stop mattering. Interactive Brokers’ and moomoo’s US$1 minimum applies only to a one-contract order: two contracts cost US$1.30. National Bank’s $6.25 minimum covers up to five contracts (5 x $1.25 = $6.25), and Desjardins’ $8.75 minimum covers up to seven (7 x $1.25 = $8.75). If you usually trade one or two contracts, a broker with a high minimum charges you for contracts you never bought.

How a base commission spreads out. At TD and Scotia one contract costs $11.24 ($9.99 + $1.25). Ten contracts cost $22.49 ($9.99 + 10 x $1.25), about $2.25 a contract. Base-commission brokers punish small, frequent trades most. National Bank’s $19.95 cap on trades under $2,000 only matters from 16 contracts, where 16 x $1.25 = $20.00 would pass the cap.

Per-contract fees at Interactive Brokers fall with the premium. Its US$0.65 rate applies to premiums of US$0.10 or more. Contracts priced from US$0.05 up to US$0.10 cost US$0.50, and contracts under US$0.05 cost US$0.25, still with the US$1 minimum per order.

4. Exercise, Assignment and Other Options Fees

What these fees are. Exercising means you use your option: a call buys the shares at the strike price, a put sells them. Assignment is the other side: if you wrote (sold) an option, the buyer exercises it and you must deliver or buy the shares. Either one turns an options position into a stock trade, and many brokers charge a separate fee for it. These fees are outside our yearly cost tables, so add them yourself if you expect to exercise or be assigned.

Expiry-day risk at Questrade. If you leave a position open into expiry and Questrade has to close it for you, it charges a $45 service fee. The fee is avoidable: close or roll positions yourself before the final trading session.

Early exercise at Wealthsimple. Automatic exercise of an in-the-money option at expiry is free, and so is assignment. Asking to exercise before expiry, or asking Wealthsimple not to exercise an option that would be exercised automatically, costs US$45 each time.

Pass-through fees. Some brokers add exchange, clearing and regulatory fees to the commission. Webull lists them by name, and Interactive Brokers says exchange and clearing fees are extra. They are small per contract but appear on every trade confirmation, so read your first few confirmations closely.

5. Options in a TFSA, RRSP and Other Account Types

What the tax rules allow. The Canada Revenue Agency’s list of qualified TFSA investments includes most securities listed on a designated stock exchange, and it names options alongside shares, warrants, ETF units and REIT units. The agency also says the investments permitted in a TFSA are generally the same as those permitted in an RRSP. So a listed option is not a problem in either account on tax grounds. What you can actually do with options in each account is set by the broker.

What Wealthsimple allows. Wealthsimple is the only broker on our list that publishes which strategies each account type allows. In registered accounts (TFSA, RRSP and more) and in margin accounts you can buy calls, buy puts, sell cash-secured puts and sell covered calls. Every other strategy, such as writing an option that is not covered by shares or cash, needs a margin account.

The other 12 brokers. Their per-account strategy rules are not published in a form we could verify. Qtrade describes its margin account as allowing short selling and options, Desjardins lists a separate “margin option” account type, and National Bank lists a short-selling account. Brokers generally approve options trading separately from opening the account, so please ask which strategies each account type allows before you transfer money.

The TFSA business-income risk. The Canada Revenue Agency says TFSA holders who trade with the frequency and experience of a professional trader may have their income taxed as business income. It gives no trade-count test. Frequent options trading in a TFSA is exactly the pattern that can draw this question, so keep records of how and why you trade. Our TFSA guide covers the full rules.

Losses in a registered account are final. A loss inside a TFSA or RRSP cannot be claimed against other income. In a TFSA, only withdrawals are added back as room on January 1 of the next year, so money lost on an expired option is room you do not get back. Read the RRSP guide and compare TFSA vs RRSP before choosing where options belong.

6. Canadian vs US-Listed Options and USD Accounts

US options are priced in US dollars. Options on US-listed stocks and ETFs are priced in US dollars, and brokers quote their contract fees for them in US dollars: US$0.65 a contract with a US$1 minimum at Interactive Brokers and moomoo, US$0.99 at Webull and US$0 at Wealthsimple. Some brokers let a TFSA or RRSP hold US dollars, and the table shows which ones say so and whether a fee applies.

USD account fees. Where a registered account can hold US dollars, check whether a fee comes with it. Questrade’s registered accounts hold US dollars at no extra cost. Wealthsimple charges $10 a month plus tax on its Core tier and includes it on Premium and Generation. Qtrade charges US$15 a quarter for each RRSP, RRIF or TFSA that holds US dollars, unless you have Investor Plus. Count any such fee as part of your yearly cost.

Canadian-listed options. Options on Canadian-listed shares are priced in Canadian dollars. Only Questrade (CA$0.99 a contract) and Interactive Brokers (CAD 1.25 a contract, minimum CAD 1.50) publish a separate Canadian price. Wealthsimple’s options page describes options on US-listed stocks and ETFs, and moomoo and Webull do not list Canadian options.

Do the full sum. Add exercise and assignment fees from section 4 and any USD account fee from this section to the commissions in section 2. Use our investment fee calculator and the best brokers for US stocks ranking to price your own pattern.

7. Options Trading Tools and Platforms

What our platform score measures. The platform sub-score gives one point each for fractional shares, DRIP, options, an advanced trading platform and a mobile app. It shows whether a broker offers an active-trading platform, not how good its option chain is. Features such as multi-leg order tickets, risk graphs or position Greeks are not compared in our register, so we do not rate them.

Options-specific tools. National Bank is the only broker on our list that names an options analysis tool, OptionsPlay, alongside Trading Central research. Interactive Brokers’ Trader Workstation and TD Active Trader are full desktop platforms built for active traders. Webull runs a desktop platform on three operating systems.

Mobile-first brokers. Wealthsimple and moomoo run options through their apps. Wealthsimple offers options in both its mobile app and its web app. If you prefer a large screen with several windows, test the desktop or web version before you fund the account.

Try before you trade. Open the platform, pull up an option chain and walk through an order ticket without sending it. Confirm that the order screen shows the commission and any minimum before you submit, so the fee is never a surprise. Compare app quality on our best investing apps page.

8. Margin and Cash Rates for Options Traders

Why margin rates matter here. At Wealthsimple, every strategy beyond the four allowed in registered accounts needs a margin account, and Qtrade and Desjardins also tie options trading to margin account types. If you borrow to buy shares on assignment, or leave a debit balance after a trade, you pay the margin rate on it. Cash left idle between trades may earn interest at some brokers and nothing at others.

How the USD figures were worked out. Qtrade and Scotia publish USD margin as USD prime plus a spread, with a USD prime of 7.00%: Qtrade adds 1.55% (8.55%) and Scotia 1.65% (8.65%). Questrade’s USD rate is prime + 4.50% (11.50%). These are our arithmetic from published formulas.

The cost gap can beat the commission gap. A $10,000 margin balance held for a year costs $367.50 at Interactive Brokers and $870.00 at Questrade, a difference of $502.50. That is larger than a year of commissions at Interactive Brokers in our scoring pattern ($62.40). If you carry a balance, the margin rate may decide which broker is cheaper.

Idle cash. Interactive Brokers pays CAD 1.675% on balances above CAD 13,000, with the full rate once the account is worth more than USD 100,000. Questrade, Qtrade, National Bank, CIBC and Scotia pay 0% or effectively 0% on uninvested cash. See every rate, tier and registered-account debit rate on our lowest margin rates in Canada page.

9. Options Risks: You Can Lose the Whole Premium

Buying an option can lose 100% of what you paid. If you buy a call or a put and it expires worthless, the premium is gone, plus the commissions you paid to open it. If you pay $300 in premium for two contracts and they expire out of the money, you lose the $300 and the fees. This is not a rare edge case: an option has a fixed expiry, and the price of the shares has to move far enough, soon enough, for the option to be worth anything at expiry.

Selling an option can lose more than you received. When you write an option you collect a premium, but you take on an obligation. A covered call caps your gain on the shares at the strike price while you still carry the full drop if the shares fall. A secured put can force you to buy shares at the strike price when the market price is lower. An uncovered option can lose far more than the premium received, which is why Wealthsimple, for one, allows it only in a margin account.

Small moves, big swings. An option controls more shares than its price would buy outright, so its value can swing much more, in percentage terms, than the shares underneath it. That works both ways. It also means a few trades can use up a TFSA’s contribution room, which does not come back when money is lost.

Assignment and margin calls. If you sell options, you can be assigned at a time you do not choose, and the resulting share purchase or sale can create a debit balance in a margin account. If the value of your account falls below the broker’s requirement, it can ask for more cash or sell positions to cover the shortfall.

What this page does and does not do. This page compares costs, account rules and tools. It does not recommend any options strategy or any security, and nothing here is personal advice. Options are not suitable for everyone, and you can lose the whole premium you pay. If you are unsure whether options suit your situation, please speak with a registered professional first. Our editorial standards explain how we keep comparison pages free of picks.

10. Safety and Regulation: CIRO and CIPF

Who regulates options brokers. The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) oversees all investment dealers in Canada and trading on Canada’s debt and equity marketplaces. Every member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) is a CIRO member. All 13 brokers on this list are CIPF members or, for National Bank Direct Brokerage and TD Direct Investing, whose own pages do not name the legal entity, operate under a bank-owned dealer on CIPF’s member list.

What CIPF covers. If a member firm becomes insolvent, CIPF covers missing cash and securities held for you, up to $1,000,000 for all general accounts combined (cash, margin, TFSA and FHSA), a separate $1,000,000 for registered retirement accounts (RRSP, RRIF, LIF) and a separate $1,000,000 for RESPs. It does not cover market losses. An option that expires worthless is a market loss, so CIPF does nothing for it.

Why “inferred” scores lower. Our safety rule gives 4 points when a broker states both memberships and 3.5 when CIPF membership is confirmed and CIRO membership follows from it. Bank or cooperative ownership adds a point, which is why BMO, Desjardins, RBC and Scotia score 5.0.

Safety is not suitability. Regulation protects your property from a failed dealer. It does not protect you from a strategy that loses money. Our CIPF vs CDIC guide explains how protection at an investment dealer differs from deposit insurance at a bank. For a deeper look at one broker’s protection, see is Wealthsimple safe.

11. How to Choose the Cheapest Options Broker in Canada for You

The cheapest options broker in Canada depends on how many contracts you trade, where the options are listed and whether you borrow. These six steps put your own numbers through the tables on this page.

1. Write down your pattern. Count your options trades a month and the usual number of contracts per trade, then enter both in the options cost calculator.
2. Split Canadian and US options. If you trade Canadian-listed options, use the published Canadian prices in section 2; if you trade US-listed options in a registered account, add any fee for holding US dollars from section 6.
3. Add exercise and assignment. Estimate how often you exercise or are assigned in a year and add the fees from section 4.
4. Pick the account type. Decide whether you will trade in a TFSA, an RRSP or a margin account, and confirm which strategies the broker allows in each.
5. Price any borrowing. If you will carry a margin balance, multiply your typical balance by each broker’s margin rate from section 8.
6. Test the platform. Open the option chain and order ticket on the platform you will actually use, and check that fees show before you submit.

A quick shortcut by profile. For mostly one-contract US trades, $0 brokers and Qtrade ($0.75) cost least. For larger US trades with a margin balance, Interactive Brokers’ low margin rate can outweigh its per-contract fee. For Canadian-listed options, Questrade’s CA$0.99 a contract is the lowest separate Canadian price published. Compare more trading costs on our commission-free trading platforms page.

12. How to Switch Options Brokers

Use a direct transfer. Ask the new broker to start the transfer. For a TFSA or RRSP this keeps the tax status and avoids a withdrawal. Our guide on how to transfer an investment account walks through the forms and timing.

Open option positions. Ask both brokers whether open options can move in kind. If they cannot, you may need to close them before the transfer, which means paying commissions and possibly realizing a gain or loss. Avoid starting a transfer close to an expiry date.

Keep the paperwork. Some rebates depend on proof of the fee you were charged. Keep the final statement from your old broker that shows the transfer-out fee.

Check the minimum balance for a rebate. Wealthsimple covers up to $150 per account at $25,000 or more, and RBC and Qtrade at $15,000 or more. A smaller account may pay the $150 itself.

13. Common Options Cost Mistakes

Comparing only the per-contract fee. National Bank’s $1.25 a contract looks close to Webull’s US$0.99, but its $6.25 minimum means a one-contract trade costs $6.25. Always price a whole trade, not one contract.

Forgetting the base commission. At TD, RBC and Scotia, the base fee is most of the cost on small trades: $9.99 of the $11.24 for one contract at TD.

Ignoring account fees. A $0 contract fee does not make an account free. Wealthsimple charges $10 a month plus tax on Core to hold US dollars in a registered account, Webull charges a $0.70 monthly administration fee, and TD, Scotia, CIBC and National Bank charge low-balance or low-activity fees unless a waiver fits.

Letting positions drift into expiry. Questrade charges $45 if it has to close an option on expiry day, and Wealthsimple charges US$45 for a do-not-exercise instruction. Decide what to do with each position before the last day.

Assuming active-trader pricing. CIBC, TD, RBC and Scotia need 150 or more trades in a quarter for their lower price. Ten trades a month is 30 a quarter, so a trader at that pace pays the standard rate.

Assuming protection covers losses. CIPF protects property held at a failed member firm. It does not cover an option that expires worthless or a strategy that goes wrong.

What You Need and What You Get

10 Ways to Cut Options Trading Costs

These are cost-control habits, not trading strategies. None of them tells you what to buy or sell.

Illustrative Example: One Active Options Trader at Three Brokers

Meet the Experts Behind WealthScale

Sharad Gondaliya, CPAWriter and tax reviewerCPA Ontario No. 61040184

Sharad is a CPA Ontario member (No. 61040184) and a Certified Public Accountant licensed in Washington and Montana, with more than 15 years in accounting and tax, a Diploma in Banking and Finance and a Certificate in Small Business Finance. He checks WealthScale content against primary sources. WealthScale is independent of his firm, Gondaliya CPA Professional Corporation, and provides general information only, not personal financial, investment, tax or legal advice.

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Neha Gupta, CFAFinancial ReviewerCFA charterholder

Neha Gupta is a CFA charterholder based in Winnipeg who has worked in financial markets since December 2005. She has published more than 2,600 investment articles and is Head of Operations and Finance at Whiteland Real Estate. She reviews WealthScale’s investing pages for accuracy.

• CFA charter, CFA Institute (awarded 2023)
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