Clarity vs Wealthsimple
Last updated: February 2026
Wealthsimple is a Canadian robo-advisor with strong managed-portfolio features, while Clarity is a US-first multi-asset tracker that aggregates banks, brokerages, crypto exchanges, and wallets in one view. Wealthsimple excels at hands-off Canadian investing; Clarity excels at broad asset coverage and detailed reporting across providers.
Who Should Choose What
Choose Clarity if...
Investors who hold assets across multiple providers and want a single dashboard covering banks, brokerages, and crypto.
- Hybrid investors with both traditional and crypto assets
- People who want automated categorization over manual budgeting
- Users who need a single net worth view across all accounts
- Crypto holders who need cost basis tracking for taxes
Choose Wealthsimple if...
Canadian investors who want a simple, managed portfolio with automatic rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting.
- Canadian investors wanting a local platform
- Beginners who want robo-advisor management
- Canadians who want commission-free trading
Rubric Comparison
Each criterion scored 0-5 with evidence sources. Hover over badges for details.
| Criterion | Clarity | Wealthsimple |
|---|---|---|
Account Coverage Range of financial accounts and asset types supported. | 5/5 Aggregates banks via Plaid, crypto exchanges via CCXT, and on-chain wallets via Alchemy. Internal | 3/5 Covers Wealthsimple-managed accounts plus limited external account linking. No direct crypto wallet or exchange aggregation. Docs |
Sync Reliability How consistently account data syncs without errors or manual intervention. | 4/5 Plaid connection reliability depends on institution; crypto syncs are direct API calls with retry logic. Internal | 4/5 Managed accounts are first-party so data is always consistent. External links can lag. Docs |
Setup Time Time from sign-up to a fully connected, useful dashboard. | 4/5 Plaid link flow takes a few minutes per institution. Crypto API keys require exchange-side setup. Internal | 5/5 Account creation and funding is streamlined into a single onboarding flow with minimal steps. Docs |
Pricing Predictability How transparent and stable the pricing is over time. | 4/5 Flat subscription pricing with no hidden fees or per-account charges. Pricing | |
Data Freshness How quickly new transactions and price changes appear. | 4/5 Syncs on-demand and via scheduled background jobs. Crypto balances update in near real-time. Internal | 3/5 Managed account data is real-time. External linked accounts may have a delay of several hours. Docs |
Historical Depth How far back transaction and portfolio history extends. | 4/5 Imports up to 2 years of transaction history via Plaid. Crypto history depends on exchange API limits. Internal | 3/5 Full history for Wealthsimple-managed accounts. Limited history for externally linked accounts. Docs |
Export & Reporting Ability to export data and generate financial reports. | 4/5 CSV export, cost-basis reports, and portfolio snapshots available from the dashboard. Internal | 3/5 Tax documents and monthly statements provided. No granular CSV export for custom analysis. Docs |
Privacy & Security Data protection practices, encryption, and privacy controls. | 4/5 Data encrypted at rest and in transit. Plaid tokenized connections. No credential storage. Internal | 4/5 CIPF member, bank-level encryption, two-factor authentication standard. Docs |
Developer Experience API access, webhooks, and extensibility for power users. | N/A No public API offered. Internal | N/A No public API offered. Docs |
Detailed Breakdown
Account Coverage
Your net worth is only accurate if every account is included — banks, brokerages, crypto exchanges, and wallets.
Clarity connects to thousands of US and Canadian banks through Plaid, plus dozens of crypto exchanges via CCXT and on-chain wallets via Alchemy. This means stocks, bonds, crypto, and DeFi positions all appear in a single dashboard without manual entry.
Wealthsimple covers its own managed accounts comprehensively, including stocks, ETFs, and crypto traded on its platform. External account linking exists but is limited to a handful of Canadian institutions, and there is no support for DeFi or non-Wealthsimple crypto.
If your assets span multiple providers and asset classes, Clarity provides significantly broader coverage.
Setup Time
Complex onboarding means more people abandon before getting value.
Clarity requires connecting each institution individually through Plaid or entering API keys for crypto exchanges. While each connection takes just a few minutes, users with many accounts will spend more time upfront.
Wealthsimple's onboarding is one of the fastest in fintech. You answer a risk questionnaire, fund your account, and the robo-advisor handles the rest. There is very little setup friction for managed accounts.
Wealthsimple wins on initial setup speed, especially for users who want a single managed account rather than multi-provider aggregation.
Export & Reporting
Your data should be portable. Tax season, accountant handoffs, and audits require clean exports.
Clarity offers CSV exports of transactions across all connected accounts, plus cost-basis tracking with FIFO and wash-sale detection for crypto. Portfolio snapshots let you review historical allocations over time.
Wealthsimple provides standard tax documents (T5, T3) and monthly performance statements for managed accounts. Custom data exports and detailed cost-basis reports are not available for self-directed analysis.
Clarity is the better choice for users who want to run their own analysis or need detailed tax-lot reporting.
Pricing Predictability
Hidden fees, usage tiers, and surprise price hikes erode trust.
Clarity charges a flat subscription fee regardless of how many accounts you connect or how much you have invested. There are no percentage-based fees, so costs stay the same as your portfolio grows.
Wealthsimple charges a transparent management fee of 0.4-0.5% of AUM with no trading commissions. While predictable, the dollar cost rises linearly with your portfolio size.
Both are transparent, but Clarity's flat fee is more predictable at higher portfolio values while Wealthsimple's percentage fee is cheaper for small accounts.
How to Switch
Switching from Wealthsimple
- 1Sign up for Clarity and connect your Canadian bank accounts via Plaid.
- 2Add any crypto exchange API keys for exchanges you use.
- 3Connect on-chain wallets by entering public addresses.
- 4Review imported transactions and verify account balances match.
- 5Optionally export data from Wealthsimple statements for historical reference.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Clarity if I'm in Canada?
Yes. Clarity supports Canadian bank connections through Plaid's Canadian coverage. However, Clarity is US-first, so some features like tax reporting are optimized for US tax rules.
Does Wealthsimple track crypto from external wallets?
No. Wealthsimple only tracks crypto purchased on its own platform. For external exchange or wallet balances, you would need a separate aggregator like Clarity.
Which is cheaper for a large portfolio?
Clarity's flat subscription fee does not increase with portfolio size, making it cheaper at higher AUM. Wealthsimple's 0.4-0.5% fee grows proportionally, so at $500K+ the difference becomes significant.
Can I use both Clarity and Wealthsimple together?
Yes. Many users keep their managed portfolio in Wealthsimple and use Clarity to get a consolidated view across Wealthsimple and other providers. The two tools serve complementary purposes.
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