RBC Offers Free iPad for Customers Switching to Eligible Accounts

Royal Bank of Canada has announced a special offer for customers who switch to one of their eligible bank accounts. As part of the promotion, customers will receive a new Apple iPad in their choice of four colours when they open an RBC Signature No Limit Account or an RBC VIP Banking Account.

This is the same annual free iPad offer we’ve seen from RBC for nearly a decade. Of course, a free iPad doesn’t come without conditions.

To qualify for the RBC iPad Offer, customers must complete two of the following by January 9, 2024: set up a direct deposit for payroll or pension, establish two pre-authorized monthly payments (PAPs), or make two bill payments to a service provider.

The RBC Signature No Limit Banking Account has a monthly fee of $16.95, while the more “exclusive” RBC VIP Banking Account comes with a $30.00 monthly fee.

Both accounts offer a range of benefits, including unlimited tap, swipe, and debit transactions, overdraft protection fee waivers, and savings on eligible credit card annual fees. Additional perks for VIP account holders include free Interac e-transfers, no RBC fee for using ATMs worldwide, and up to two additional CAD accounts and one USD account with no monthly fee and unlimited debit transactions.

The iPad you’ll get is the 2022 version (10th gen) that came with an all-new design, borrowing from the iPad Air. The iPad Wi-Fi includes a 10.9-inch display and the 64GB storage is the version you’ll get, worth $600 from Apple. Essentially, your monthly fees will pay for the iPad over 35 or 20 months, depending on the account you’ll open. Given Apple’s recent price increases across the board for iPads last fall, this is an okay deal if you were going to deal with the headache of switching banks anyways.

Customers who are not satisfied with their new account can take advantage of RBC’s Right Account Guarantee, which refunds up to three months of account fees, says RBC.