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Coinsmart vs Bitbuy: What Works Better For Canadians?

Oleg Galeev

Last updated September 7, 2023

CoinSmart and Bitbuy are probably the two most popular Canadian cryptocurrency exchanges. How do they fare for Canadians looking to buy crypto? The OCryptoCanada team did some extensive research to see how these two compare. Check our CoinSmart vs Bitbuy below.

CoinSmart is now part of WonderFi and the platform is not accepting new signups. If you're looking for the best crypto experience in Canada, we recommend signing up to Bitbuy, another licensed Canadian cryptocurrency trading platform operated by the same parent company, WonderFi. With Bitbuy, you will get access to an improved experience on web and mobile, staking rewards, Private Wealth services, and an advanced trading interface. Sign up using our referral link and get free $50 when depositing $250 on your account!

Description

CoinSmart is a Toronto-based Canadian crypto exchange that offers same-day deposits in CAD, EUR and USD. CoinSmart offers crypto trading for both beginners and advanced users.

Bitbuy was founded in 2016 and it offers nine of the most popular cryptocurrencies. It has an Express platform for beginners and a Pro platform for more experienced traders.

Coins

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Stellar, EOS, USDC, Cardano, Dogecoin, Polkadot, Shiba Inu, Chainlink, Uniswap, Solana and more

Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin, EOS, Stellar, LINK, AAVE, Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), Polkadot (DOT), Dogecoin (DOGE), Uniswap (UNI), Sushiswap (SUSHI), Polygon (MATIC), MANA and USDC

Fees

Interac deposit fee of 1% for deposits between $100 - $1999
Free Interac deposits for deposits of $2000+
Free wire and bank draft deposits
Withdrawal fees are 1%
Various crypto withdrawal fees
Trading fees are 0.20% for a single trade or 0.30% for a double trade
Up to 6% fee for credit/debit card purchases

1.5% CAD withdrawal fees for e-Transfer
0.5% fee for wire transfer
0.79% spread
0.1% Maker 0.2% Taker fees
Wire transfer 0.50% ($20k min)
0.00025 BTC crypto withdrawal fee

Pros

Low trading fees
Free deposits over $2000
Suitable for beginners
Advanced trading options
Interac e-Transfer available
$50 bonus
Trade crypto to crypto (no trading pairs needed)
Same-day verification
CAD, USD, EUR deposits

Offers seven of the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies
Express Trade and Pro Trade makes it suitable for beginners and advanced traders
OTC Desk available
Digital assets held in cold storage
$20 referral bonus
Interac e-Transfer available
Industry leader in compliance and security

Cons

There is a 1% fee for Interac deposits less than $2000
1% withdrawal fee

Deposits can take a few hours
1.5% Interac e-Transfer fee (both in and out)
Low Android app rating
Low rating on Trust Pilot

Account Limits

$100 min to $10,000 max for Interac deposits
$100 min to $5,000 max for credit/debit card buys
$10,000 bank wire min to $5M max

Deposit $100 - $10,000 via Interac daily
$50 minimum e-Transfer withdrawal
$20,000 minimum for wire transfers

App

Methods to buy

Credit/debit cards
Interac e-Transfer
Bank wire
SEPA (for EUR)

Debit card
Interac e-Transfer
Wire transfer

Security

CoinSmart is partnered with BitGo to keep customers’ crypto safe in cold storage. BitGo is insured by Lloyds of London for $100 million, so if something were to happen to CoinSmart, your funds might be insured.

CoinSmart offers two-factor authentication to help protect your account.

Up to 98% of digital assets are held in cold storage
Users can withdraw crypto to private wallets
Bitcoin backed 1:1 with Knox insurance policy

Mobile and Desktop Trading

CoinSmart has a fun look with bright colours and cartoons. It is enjoyable to use. The dashboard shows everything you need to trade including options to buy, sell, and trade. You can also view your wallets, activity and simple market information.

To use CoinSmart’s advanced features such as limit orders, you can use their advanced trading platform, which is accessible within your user dashboard.

CoinSmart’s iOS app has a 3.4-star rating with 309 reviews. Its Android app has a 2.6-star rating from 94 reviews. Users of the app say the app crashes, is slow, and often freezes. This is why we would recommend using their desktop version.

The Bitbuy app has a 4.6-star rating and 6,000 ratings on the Apple App Store. It has a 2-star rating with 1,000 ratings on Google Play. According to reviewers, the Android app has bugs that prevent them from logging in and verifying their account. They also claim customer support is poor.

The iOS app is easy to use and offers a modern interface like the desktop platform. There is live charting where you can find volume and order book data. Easily deposit funds to your account, and click on your profile tab for your referral details.

Bitbuy’s Express Trade is suitable for beginners or anyone seeking a quick market trade. The Pro Trade platform is geared toward more experienced traders who wish to place advanced order types.

Coinsmart

To use CoinSmart’s advanced features such as limit orders, you can use their advanced trading platform, which is accessible within your user dashboard.

Coinsmart App

Coinsmart App trading screen

Coinsmart mobile app interface

Coinsmart mobile app interface while trading

Bitbuy

Bitbuy’s Express Trade is suitable for beginners or anyone seeking a quick market trade. The Pro Trade platform is geared toward more experienced traders who wish to place advanced order types.

Express trade view

Pro trade view

Bitbuy app interface

Bitbuy app interface while trading

Security Compliance

Bitbuy is one of the safest crypto exchanges for Canadians. The Blockchain Intelligence Group has completed its third annual proof of reserves and due diligence report confirming that Bitbuy exceeds its mandate requiring 95% of customer funds to be held in cold storage. Bitbuy keeps 98% of Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum funds in cold storage, which is one of the highest percentages we’ve seen.

CoinSmart offers two-factor authentication to help protect your account.

As for Bitbuy, the Blockchain Intelligence Group has completed its third annual proof of reserves and due diligence report confirming that Bitbuy exceeds its mandate requiring 95% of customer funds to be held in cold storage. Bitbuy keeps 98% of Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum funds in cold storage, which is one of the highest percentages we’ve seen.

Regulatory Compliance

Coinsmart is fully compliant in Canada. Not only the exchange is registered with FINTRAC but they are also granted status by Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).

Bitbuy is an industry leader in Canadian regulatory adherence and compliance. In addition to being a Virtual Asset Service Provider and registered Money Service Business with FINTRAC, Bitbuy’s leadership team is a member of the IIROC Crypto-Asset Working Group, which helps to set high-quality regulatory standards and strengthen Canadian markets.

Customer support

CoinSmart states that it has a 97% customer satisfaction rate and this claim is backed up by the 70% excellent customer reviews on Trustpilot. CoinSmart offers 24/7 support via email and online ticketing.

Binance has FAQs and a knowledge centre on their website. They make it easy to submit a support ticket but the reply might take a while.

Binance has FAQs and knowledge centre on their website. They make it easy to submit a support ticket but the reply might take a while.

It’s clear that CoinSmart values good customer support.

Conclusion

Both CoinSmart and Bitbuy are great options for Canadians looking to trade crypto. CoinSmart has a lot of fun features such as its learn and earn program, the ability to send crypto invoices, as well as the ability to trade altcoin to altcoin and low fees. Bitbuys’ iOS mobile app and security are some of the highest-rated we’ve come across and its trading platform is also easy to use. While we think both exchanges are good choices, we think CoinSmart comes out slightly ahead because of lower trading fees, and insurance for your crypto.

Author

Oleg Galeev

Cryptocurrency Specialist

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.