Interest rates have largely levelled off, resulting in little change in high-interest savings accounts and guaranteed investment certificates (GICs) from the previous week. With the Bank of Canada holding its policy rate at 2.25 per cent on Dec. 10, most financial institutions are expected to keep their rates steady.
Meridian leads promotional savings rates at 4.70 per cent for four months, followed by Scotiabank at 4.65 per cent and several others including SCU, BMO, RBC and CIBC at 4.60 per cent.
These rankings have remained largely unchanged for weeks. After the promotional periods end, rates often fall below 1 per cent, which makes institutions with strong non-promotional rates more appealing for long-term savers.
Saven Financial currently offers the best non-promotional savings rate of 2.85 per cent, followed by Oaken Financial’s 2.80 per cent. Some fintechs are also offering strong savings returns, though often with conditions. Neo offers up to 3.0 per cent, but only if the deposit balance exceeds $20,000. KOHO offers up to 3.5 per cent, but only through its paid plan.
Different financial institutions are leading in GIC rates depending on the term length. Saven and WealthONE Bank continue to offer the best one-year rate at 3.65 per cent. For five-year terms, MCAN, Saven, Oaken, and Achieva are tied for the top rate at 3.80 per cent.
Overall, WealthONE Bank and Saven consistently provide some of the most competitive rates across multiple terms.
With the holiday season bringing slower activity from banks, significant rate changes are unlikely until the new year. This pause gives savers a chance to reassess their investment mix and consider how different assets perform over the long term before markets pick up again in 2026.
Interest rates are provided by WOWA.ca, which gathers, aggregates and freely disseminates data on mortgage rates, savings accounts, and GIC rates from 50+ Canadian financial institutions.
Sanika Purohit is a writer and content developer at WOWA.ca, a Canadian personal finance platform.
