Where does money leak from a bank account?

The six most common leaks are monthly account fees, savings earning near 0%, forgotten subscriptions, overlapping services, the loyalty tax for never switching, and foreign-exchange/ATM fees. Together they cost the average Canadian several hundred dollars a year, usually unnoticed.

How much money does the average Canadian waste on bank fees?

Between account fees, low savings rates and forgotten subscriptions, it's common to lose $500 to $800 a year without noticing. A monthly account fee alone can be around $200 a year.

How do I stop money leaking from my account?

Read one full month of statements line by line, flag anything that isn't buying you something, and fix the biggest leaks first: move idle savings to a high-interest account, get your account fee waived, and cancel unused subscriptions. Then re-check every few months.

Money Talks / Fees

How to find money leaking from your bank account

Updated June 2026 · 6 min read · Fees

Money leaks from six predictable places: account fees, savings earning near 0%, forgotten subscriptions, overlapping services, the loyalty tax, and FX/ATM fees. Read one month of statements line by line, flag anything that isn't buying you something, and fix the biggest leaks first. Most Canadians find $500–$800/yr they never noticed.

Nobody steals your money. It just quietly leaks — a few dollars here, a forgotten charge there — small enough that you never feel it, until you actually add it up. Here are the six places to look, in order of how much they usually cost.

LEAK #1

Your monthly account fee

~$16.95/mo for "unlimited" transactions you don't use = about $200/yr. Most banks waive it with a minimum balance, and several accounts charge $0. Fixable in one switch.

LEAK #2

Savings earning almost nothing

Cash sitting at 0.01% while high-interest accounts pay 2.75%+. On $3,200 that's roughly $88/yr gifted to the bank for no reason. Move it and you keep 100%.

LEAK #3

Subscriptions you forgot

The average person pays for 2–3 subscriptions they don't use. That "free trial" from two years ago bills you every month — often $150–$250/yr in total.

LEAK #4

Overlapping services

Two streaming apps for the same nights in, two cloud storage plans, doubled-up insurance coverage. Trim the overlap: usually $100+/yr.

LEAK #5

The loyalty tax

New customers get the promo rates and the deals. You — the loyal one who never switches — get the worst pricing. Loyalty to a bank is not rewarded; it's quietly penalized.

LEAK #6

FX & out-of-network ATM fees

Foreign-transaction fees (~2.5%) on purchases and travel, plus $2–$3 every time you use another bank's ATM. Small each time, real over a year.

How to actually find yours (the 15-minute version)

Open your last full month of statements — chequing, savings, and credit card.
Go line by line. Highlight anything that isn't buying you something — a fee, a rate, a subscription.
Add them up and multiply by 12. That's your annual leak.
Fix the biggest three first (usually fee, savings rate, subscriptions).
Set a reminder to repeat every 3 months — the leaks creep back.

Or never do the statement homework again

Reading statements works — but it's tedious, and the leaks come back the moment you stop looking. Looni is being built to do exactly this automatically: watch your accounts every day, find each leak, and show you the one thing to do next. Canadian, and we only win when you keep more.

Join the waitlist Fix leak #2 first

Important: Figures are typical illustrative amounts as of June 2026 and vary by person and institution. This is general information, not financial advice. Looni is in development (waitlist open); features described are planned.