TD Direct Investing Review 2026

1. TD Direct Investing Review: Our Verdict and Score

The short version. TD Direct Investing names more trading platforms than any other broker we rate and has a strong safety score. It also has $9.99 standard commissions, a short list of account types on its account page and no published margin or cash rates. That combination scores 2.4 / 5, last of the 13 brokers on our best online brokers list, behind Scotia iTRADE (2.6) and RBC Direct Investing (2.7).

Why cost drags the score. Cost carries 35% of the score. On our active profile (two Canadian and one US trade a month) TD costs $359.64 in commissions plus account fees: 36 trades at $9.99, with no account fee on a $20,000 TFSA. On buy-and-hold (one Canadian trade a month) it costs $119.88. The average, $239.76, gives a cost sub-score of 2.0 of 5. Seven of the brokers we rate charge $0 commission on every trade in both patterns.

Where TD earns points. TD is one of only two brokers with a perfect 5.0 on platform features, with Interactive Brokers Canada. It offers partial shares, DRIP enrolment, options, two advanced tools (Advanced Dashboard and TD Active Trader) and a mobile app. Its safety sub-score of 4.5 reflects CIPF membership and bank ownership.

Where it loses points. TD’s account-types page lists only cash, FHSA, TFSA, RRSP and margin accounts for Direct Investing, so it scores 2.0 on accounts. Spousal RRSP, RESP, RRIF, LIRA, LIF, joint and corporate accounts were not listed on the page we checked, and we count only what is published. Margin and cash rates are not published either, which leaves 0.5 of 5 on cash and margin. US investing scores 0.75 of 5: US trades cost $9.99, and US dollar pricing for Direct Investing registered accounts is not stated.

The bottom line. The score rates TD Direct Investing. If your trading fits inside TD Easy Trade’s 100 $0 trades a year, your real costs at TD are far lower than the score suggests, and section 3 covers that app in detail. If you trade often or want a broad account lineup at one $0 broker, the brokers ranked above TD will usually cost less. The rest of this TD Direct Investing review prices each line.

2. TD Direct Investing Fees and Commissions

Standard pricing. TD Direct Investing charges $9.99 per stock or ETF trade, in Canadian or US markets. Active Traders, who place 150 or more trades a quarter, pay $7.00. Select ETFs trade at $0 when you buy them digitally, and partial-share trades cost $1.99. The list of $0 ETFs was not part of the figures we checked, so confirm that your ETF is on TD’s $0 list before you place an order.

The $25 quarterly fee and its waivers. TD charges $25 a quarter, or $100 a year, when your household’s balance is under $15,000. The fee is waived if household assets are above $15,000, if you make pre-authorized contributions of $100 or more a month, if you placed 3 or more commission trades in the previous quarter, if you hold an RDSP, during your first 6 months, or if your only account is an FHSA. A small account can meet one of these with a $100 monthly contribution.

What $9.99 costs on small purchases. A flat commission weighs most on small orders. $9.99 is about 2.0% of a $500 purchase and about 1.0% of a $1,000 purchase, before the investment has earned anything. Buying once a month costs $119.88 a year (12 x $9.99). Investors who add small amounts often either save up for fewer, larger purchases or use TD Easy Trade, where the first 100 trades of the year cost $0.

Active Trader pricing. At 150 trades a quarter, or 600 a year, the $7.00 price saves $2.99 a trade. Over 600 trades that is $1,794 lower: $5,994 at $9.99 against $4,200 at $7.00. Below 150 trades a quarter, the standard $9.99 price applies.

How TD fees compare. On our active profile TD costs $359.64 a year, against $0.00 at Questrade and Wealthsimple and $358.20 at RBC Direct Investing. CIBC Investor’s Edge charges $6.95 a trade and Scotia iTRADE $9.99. Our commission-free trading platforms page lists the seven brokers that charge $0 on every online stock and ETF trade.

3. TD Easy Trade: 100 $0 Trades a Year, Then $9.99

What TD Easy Trade is. TD Easy Trade is TD’s app-based investing service, part of TD Direct Investing. It runs on phones and tablets only. It offers cash, TFSA, RRSP and FHSA accounts, has no maintenance fees and lets you start with $1, with dollar-amount orders from $1.

The 100 $0 trades. Each client gets the first 100 stock and ETF trades of the calendar year at $0, across Canadian and US markets. After that, trades cost $9.99, or US$9.99 for US trades. The count resets each January. 100 trades a year is just over 8 a month, so a monthly investor buying two or three ETFs stays well inside it. An order for less than one share costs $1.99 (US$1.99 in US dollars), so whole-share orders are the cheaper way to use the allotment.

US dollars in Easy Trade. Easy Trade’s TFSA, RRSP and cash accounts each have a US dollar side, and TD says there are no fees for US dollar accounts. The FHSA is Canadian dollars only. US trades count toward the 100 $0 trades, then cost US$9.99 each.

What Easy Trade does not do. Options pricing is not stated for Easy Trade, and margin accounts are not among its account types. Spousal RRSP, RESP and RRIF accounts are not among the app’s account types. If you need those, they belong in TD Direct Investing or at another broker, and our best investing apps page ranks the app-first alternatives.

How Easy Trade compares. RBC’s GoSmart gives 50 $0 trades a year in its TFSA, FHSA and RRSP. Wealthsimple and Questrade charge $0 on every stock and ETF trade with no annual cap. Easy Trade’s 100 $0 trades, its $1 start and its US dollar sides with no account fee make it the low-cost way into TD for a regular investor. The 101st trade of the year costs $9.99.

4. US Investing and USD Accounts at TD

US commissions. TD Direct Investing charges $9.99 per US stock or ETF trade, or $7.00 for Active Traders, as of October 22, 2026. In TD Easy Trade, US trades count toward the first 100 $0 trades of the calendar year, then cost US$9.99, and an order for less than one share costs US$1.99. Twelve US trades a year cost (12 x $9.99 = $119.88) in Direct Investing and $0 in Easy Trade if they fit within the 100.

USD registered accounts. TD Easy Trade’s TFSA and RRSP have US dollar sides with no fee. TD does not state its US dollar pricing for registered accounts in TD Direct Investing, so our score gives it the “not stated” mark of 0.75 of 3. Please ask TD what a US dollar RRSP or TFSA costs in Direct Investing before you rely on one.

How the US score works. Our US investing factor gives 3 points for US dollars in registered accounts with no fee (1.5 if a fee applies, 0.75 if not stated) and 2 points for a $0 US commission (1.5 at $2 or less, 0 above). The score rates TD Direct Investing, which gets 0.75 for registered USD pricing that is not stated and 0 for its $9.99 US commission: (0.75 + 0 = 0.75) of 5. On our best brokers for US stocks list, which gives this factor a 40% weight, TD scores 2.0 / 5 and ranks 13 of 13.

US withholding tax. US dividends paid to a TFSA, FHSA, RESP or non-registered account are withheld at 15% when your Form W-8BEN is on file, or 30% without it. Dividends paid to an RRSP, RRIF, LIRA or LIF are exempt under Article XXI(2) of the Canada-US tax treaty once the account is documented. In a TFSA the 15% cannot be recovered; our guide to US stocks in a TFSA works through the numbers.

Dividend investors. TD ranks 7th of 7 on our list of the best brokers for dividend investing, which ranks brokers that offer DRIP by overall score. TD’s DRIP reinvests at no commission, but it buys whole shares only and you enrol by phone.

5. TD Direct Investing Account Types

What TD lists. TD’s page on choosing an investing account lists cash, FHSA, TFSA, RRSP, margin and Active Trader margin accounts for TD Direct Investing. Other account types, including spousal RRSP, RESP, RRIF, LIRA, LIF, joint and corporate accounts, were not listed on the page we checked. Our score counts only account types a broker publishes, so TD scores 2.0 of 5 on accounts. If you need one of the unlisted types, ask TD directly.

Registered accounts. The 2026 TFSA limit is $7,000, and total TFSA room for someone eligible since 2009 is $109,000 in 2026. The 2026 RRSP dollar limit is $33,810, and your own limit is the lesser of that and 18% of your 2025 earned income, adjusted for pension adjustments and unused room. An FHSA allows $8,000 a year up to $40,000 over your lifetime. Our guides to the TFSA, RRSP and FHSA explain each set of rules.

The FHSA exemption. If an FHSA is your only TD Direct Investing account, the $25 quarterly fee does not apply. That makes TD a workable home for a first-home saver who wants only an FHSA. TD ranks 11th of 11 on our best FHSA accounts list because the ranking uses the overall score.

Where TD ranks on account lists. TD is 13th of 13 on our best TFSA accounts and best RRSP accounts lists. It does not appear on our RESP, RRIF or LIRA lists, because those accounts were not listed on the page we checked.

Choosing between the two TD services. Easy Trade covers the four most common accounts with 100 $0 trades and US dollar sides that carry no account fee. TD Direct Investing adds margin, options, partial shares at $1.99, the advanced platforms and Active Trader pricing, at $9.99 a trade. An investor who needs only those four accounts, no options and no more than 100 trades a year can use Easy Trade alone.

6. TD Platforms, Tools and Research

Five ways to trade. TD names five platforms: WebBroker, its main web platform; the TD app; Advanced Dashboard, a more detailed trading screen; TD Active Trader, for frequent traders; and the TD Easy Trade app, for phones and tablets. No other broker we rate names as many.

Why TD scores 5 on platform. Our platform test gives one point each for fractional shares, DRIP, options, an advanced trading platform and a mobile app. TD offers all five: partial shares at $1.99 a trade, DRIP enrolment, options, Advanced Dashboard and TD Active Trader, and two mobile apps. Interactive Brokers Canada is the only other broker with full marks.

Partial shares. TD Direct Investing and TD Easy Trade both offer partial shares at $1.99 per partial-share trade, and Easy Trade accepts dollar-amount orders from $1. That lets a small investor own part of a high-priced share. At $1.99, a $50 partial-share order costs about 4.0% of its value, so partial shares make most sense for a few small, deliberate purchases.

DRIP at TD. TD Direct Investing reinvests dividends at no commission, but you enrol by phone and it buys whole shares only. Because it buys whole shares only, a dividend smaller than the price of one share is not reinvested.

Research and education. TD’s Direct Investing site includes learning articles, such as explainers on DRIP investing, fractional shares and choosing an account type. We do not score research tools, because there is no published measure that compares them across brokers. TD’s beginner platform sub-score is 4.5 of 5: full marks for partial shares, a mobile app and DRIP, and half marks because a Direct Investing minimum is not stated. Our how to invest in Canada guide covers the first steps on any platform.

7. Options, Margin and Active Trader Pricing

Options pricing. TD charges $9.99 plus $1.25 per contract on options trades, or $7.00 plus $1.25 for Active Traders. A 2-contract trade costs $12.49 and a 10-contract trade $22.49. Options are not priced for TD Easy Trade. TD scores 1.9 / 5 for options, rank 11 of 13 on our best options trading platforms list.

Reading the table. The Active Trader row needs 150 or more trades a quarter, far more than this pattern, so an options trader with this pattern pays the standard row. The $9.99 base fee is what makes TD expensive for small options trades: on a 1-contract trade it is $11.24, of which $9.99 is the base. Exercise and assignment fees were not part of the figures we checked.

Margin accounts. TD lists margin and Active Trader margin accounts, but its margin rates were not published on the pages we checked. That puts TD with RBC Direct Investing and BMO InvestorLine on the “not published” list on our lowest margin rates page. For comparison, published CAD rates under $100,000 run from 3.675% at Interactive Brokers Canada to 8.70% at Questrade. Please ask TD for its current rate in writing before you borrow.

Who TD suits for active trading. TD’s platform depth is its strength for traders: it names two advanced tools, Advanced Dashboard and TD Active Trader. Its prices are the weakness. At 600 trades a year, even Active Trader pricing costs $4,200, where a $0 broker charges nothing in commissions. An active trader who values TD’s tools pays for them through commissions.

8. Cash Interest and TD’s Managed Options

Interest on cash. TD did not publish a rate on uninvested cash on the pages we checked, for either TD Direct Investing or Easy Trade. Our score gives 0 for cash interest when no rate is published. If you keep cash in your account between purchases, ask TD what it pays, and compare it with a high-interest savings account; our best high-interest savings accounts page lists dated rates.

How others compare. Interactive Brokers Canada pays 1.675% on Canadian dollar cash above CAD 13,000 for accounts above USD 100,000 in net assets. Qtrade pays 0.00% up to $2,000,000, and Questrade’s formula works out to 0%. RBC Direct Investing and BMO InvestorLine do not publish a rate on the pages we checked.

TD Automated Investing. We could not confirm that TD Automated Investing, TD’s robo-advisor service, is still offered. TD’s investing hub lists Direct Investing, TD Easy Trade, TD Wealth and Invest with a Personal Banker, but not TD Automated Investing, and its product pages returned errors when we checked on October 22, 2026. We do not rate it or include it in our robo-advisor ranking.

Managed alternatives. If you want a managed portfolio, the four robo-advisors we can rate are Wealthsimple Managed Investing (4.2 / 5), Questwealth Portfolios (4.1 / 5), CI Direct Investing (3.7 / 5) and RBC InvestEase (3.4 / 5). On $50,000 their yearly cost, management fee plus fund costs, is $325, $185, $415 and $350. Our best robo-advisors page compares them.

The do-it-yourself route. A simple ETF portfolio in TD Easy Trade can cost $0 in commissions if you stay within 100 trades a year. You still pay each fund’s management expense ratio, and you make your own decisions about what to buy and when to rebalance. WealthScale does not recommend specific funds or portfolios.

9. Is TD Direct Investing Safe? CIRO and CIPF

Who holds your account. The TD pages we checked did not name the dealer behind TD Direct Investing. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. is on the Canadian Investor Protection Fund’s member list, and every CIPF member firm is a member of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), which oversees all investment dealers in Canada.

What CIPF covers. If a member firm becomes insolvent and client property is missing, CIPF covers the shortfall up to set limits per group of accounts. It does not cover losses from falling markets, unsuitable advice or a company you invested in going bankrupt. Crypto assets are excluded.

Our safety score. TD scores 4.5 of 5 for safety. Our rubric gives 3.5 when CIPF membership is confirmed and CIRO membership follows from it, and adds 1 for bank ownership. Brokers that state both memberships directly and are bank-owned, such as RBC Direct Investing, score 5.0.

CIPF and CDIC are different. Eligible bank deposits at a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation are covered up to $100,000 per insured category. Cash and securities held at an investment dealer fall under CIPF instead, with the limits shown above. Holding both a bank account and a brokerage account with one banking group does not make one protection replace the other. Our guide to CIPF vs CDIC explains both in full.

Your part. Use a strong, unique password, turn on any two-step verification TD offers, and read each trade confirmation. No protection fund covers money you send to a fraudster yourself, so treat unexpected calls or messages about your account with caution.

10. Opening a TD Account and Transferring In or Out

Opening. You can start TD Easy Trade with $1. A minimum for TD Direct Investing was not stated on the pages we checked. A TFSA requires Canadian residency, a valid social insurance number and age 18 or older (19 where that is the age of majority). The $25 quarterly fee is waived during your first 6 months, which gives a new account time to reach $15,000 or set up a monthly contribution.

Transferring out. TD charges $150 to transfer an account out, full or partial, for both TD Direct Investing and TD Easy Trade. If TD charges the fee on each account you move, two accounts cost $300. Several receiving brokers cover part or all of that fee; the calculator below shows which brokers cover it and how much is left for you to pay.

Transferring in. TD did not state a transfer-fee rebate for accounts moving to it, so a transfer to TD may leave you paying your old broker’s fee yourself. RBC Direct Investing, by comparison, reimburses up to $200 on transfers of $15,000 or more.

Keep registered transfers direct. Ask the receiving institution to pull your TFSA, RRSP or FHSA directly. A direct TFSA transfer does not affect your contribution room, while a withdrawal and redeposit counts as a new contribution. A withdrawal from an RRSP is taxable and subject to withholding of 10%, 20% or 30% outside Quebec. Our guide to transferring an investment account covers the forms and timing.

Customer support. Support hours and channels were not part of the figures we checked, so we do not score them. DRIP enrolment at TD is done by phone, so you will need to call at least once if you want dividends reinvested.

11. TD Costs for Four Investor Profiles

How we priced each profile. We applied each broker’s published standard online prices to four common patterns, counting commissions plus account fees. Exchange and regulatory pass-through fees, exercise and assignment fees, and promotions are left out. TD Easy Trade gets its own column because its pricing is different. Where a price is not published, the cell says so.

Profile 1: the monthly ETF buyer. At standard prices TD charges $119.88 a year (12 x $9.99). The same 12 trades cost $0 in TD Easy Trade, because they fit inside the 100 $0 trades, and $0 at TD Direct Investing if the ETF is on TD’s $0 list. RBC has the same two escape routes: GoSmart’s 50 $0 trades and its list of more than 50 $0 ETFs.

Profile 2: the active investor. This is the active profile our cost score uses. TD Direct Investing charges $359.64 (36 x $9.99). In Easy Trade all 36 trades fit inside the 100 $0 trades, so they cost $0.00. RBC Direct Investing charges $358.20 (36 x $9.95) at standard prices, and BMO and Wealthsimple charge $0.00.

Profile 3: the active US trader. TD Direct Investing charges $1,198.80 in commissions (120 x $9.99). In Easy Trade, 100 trades cost $0 and the other 20 cost US$9.99 each: (20 x US$9.99 = US$199.80). RBC charges $1,194.00 (120 x $9.95). BMO and Wealthsimple charge $0 on US stock and ETF trades, though Wealthsimple charges $10 a month for a USD account on Core if you choose to hold US dollars there.

Profile 4: the options trader. TD’s $9.99 base fee makes small options trades expensive: $12.49 for 2 contracts, $599.52 a year. BMO’s $0.90 a contract costs $86.40 for the same pattern, and Wealthsimple charges $0 on US equity and ETF options. Even TD’s Active Trader price of $7.00 plus $1.25 a contract costs $456.00.

Our scoring profiles. The cost sub-score uses the active profile (profile 2) and a buy-and-hold profile (profile 1) in a $20,000 TFSA, which is above TD’s $15,000 fee threshold, counting commissions plus account fees. TD costs $359.64 and $119.88, an average of $239.76, so its cost score is 5 minus $239.76 / $80, or 2.0. Our investment fee calculator adds fund costs to the same totals for your own pattern.

12. TD Direct Investing Pros and Cons

How to read this list. Each point comes from TD’s published pricing and account pages as checked on October 22, 2026, and from our published scores. The cons fall hardest on frequent traders and options traders; the pros matter most to TD clients who want advanced tools or invest small, regular amounts through Easy Trade.

The balance. TD’s pros are real but narrow: platforms, partial shares and a good app for small, regular purchases. Its cons hit the most common patterns, which is why it ranks last overall. Our best brokers for beginners page shows which brokers score higher for new investors.

13. TD Direct Investing Compared With Rivals

The rivals we chose. RBC Direct Investing is TD’s closest bank-owned rival. BMO InvestorLine is the bank-owned broker that charges $0 on online stock and ETF trades. Wealthsimple is the app-first $0 broker that TD Easy Trade competes with. Each figure below is from the provider’s published pricing as of October 22, 2026, and scores are as of October 23, 2026.

TD vs RBC Direct Investing. The two price almost the same: $9.99 against $9.95 a trade, with identical $1.25 options contracts. TD offers partial shares and more named platforms. RBC publishes a full account lineup and states its CIRO and CIPF membership directly, which is why it scores 2.7 to TD’s 2.4. RBC also charges no maintenance fee and reimburses up to $200 of transfer fees. Read our RBC Direct Investing review.

TD vs BMO InvestorLine. BMO charges $0 on online stock and ETF trades and $0.90 per options contract, which lifts its cost score to 5.0 against TD’s 2.0. TD has confirmed partial shares and more named platforms. BMO scores 3.8 / 5. BMO does not have a WealthScale review yet, so it is covered on our best online brokers page.

TD Easy Trade vs Wealthsimple. Both are app-first. Wealthsimple charges $0 on every stock and ETF trade with no annual cap and offers fractional shares from $1, but charges $10 a month for USD accounts on Core. Easy Trade caps $0 trades at 100 a year and charges $1.99 for orders under one share, but its US dollar sides carry no account fee. See our Wealthsimple Trade review.

Other options. For a $0 broker with a full account lineup, Questrade scores 4.3 / 5, first of the 13 we rate; our Questrade review covers it. For the lowest published margin rate, see our Interactive Brokers Canada review. Every review is listed on our broker and bank reviews hub.

14. Who TD Direct Investing Suits and Who Should Look Elsewhere

Small, regular investors who like TD. If you buy a few ETFs or stocks a month in a TFSA, RRSP or FHSA, TD Easy Trade’s 100 $0 trades a year cover you, with a $1 start and no maintenance fee. This TD Direct Investing review finds Easy Trade to be the cheapest way to invest with TD.

Investors who want US dollars in an app. TD Easy Trade’s TFSA, RRSP and cash accounts have US dollar sides, and TD says there are no fees for US dollar accounts, while Wealthsimple charges $10 a month for a USD account on Core. US trades count toward Easy Trade’s 100 $0 trades a year.

Traders who want TD’s tools. Advanced Dashboard and TD Active Trader suit investors who want detailed trading screens from a bank-owned broker and accept $9.99 or $7.00 a trade to get them.

Who should look elsewhere. Frequent traders, options traders and anyone who needs RESP, RRIF, LIRA or LIF accounts listed at one broker will usually pay less, or find more, at the brokers ranked above TD. Questrade, Wealthsimple and Qtrade all charge $0 on stock and ETF trades and publish the full account lineup; our Qtrade review covers the third.

Our conclusion. This TD Direct Investing review scores TD Direct Investing 2.4 / 5. Its strengths are platforms, partial shares and TD Easy Trade for modest, regular investing. Its standard $9.99 commission and short published account list place it last overall, so compare it with the brokers on our best online brokers list before you open or move an account.

What You Need and What You Get With TD

How to Open a TD Direct Investing or TD Easy Trade Account

1. Pick the service. Choose TD Easy Trade for up to 100 trades a year in a cash, TFSA, RRSP or FHSA account. Choose TD Direct Investing for margin, options, Active Trader pricing or the advanced platforms.
2. Open the account. Have your ID and social insurance number ready. Easy Trade starts with $1.
3. Plan around the quarterly fee. In Direct Investing, set up a pre-authorized contribution of $100 or more a month, or consolidate to $15,000, before your first 6 months end.
4. Transfer registered accounts directly. Ask TD to pull your TFSA, RRSP or FHSA from your old institution so the move does not use contribution room.
5. Enrol in DRIP. If you want dividends reinvested in Direct Investing, call TD to enrol your holdings.
6. Track your trade count. In Easy Trade, keep an eye on how many of your 100 $0 trades you have used before the calendar year ends.
7. File Form W-8BEN. If you will hold US shares in a TFSA or cash account, file the form so US dividends are withheld at 15% rather than 30%.

10 Strategies to Keep TD Direct Investing Costs Low

Illustrative Example: TD Easy Trade vs TD Direct Investing for a New Investor

Meet the Experts Behind WealthScale

Sharad Gondaliya, CPAWriter and tax reviewerCPA Ontario No. 61040184

Sharad is a CPA Ontario member (No. 61040184) and a Certified Public Accountant licensed in Washington and Montana, with more than 15 years in accounting and tax, a Diploma in Banking and Finance and a Certificate in Small Business Finance. He checks WealthScale content against primary sources. WealthScale is independent of his firm, Gondaliya CPA Professional Corporation, and provides general information only, not personal financial, investment, tax or legal advice.

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Neha Gupta, CFAFinancial ReviewerCFA charterholder

Neha Gupta is a CFA charterholder based in Winnipeg who has worked in financial markets since December 2005. She has published more than 2,600 investment articles and is Head of Operations and Finance at Whiteland Real Estate. She reviews WealthScale’s investing pages for accuracy.

• CFA charter, CFA Institute (awarded 2023)
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