Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing 2024 (2024)

TD Direct Investing and Wealthsimple are among the best and most popular self-directed brokerage platforms in Canada.

TD Direct Investing is owned by the Toronto-Dominion Bank and gives you the confidence of investing with the second-largest Canadian bank by asset size, while Wealthsimple Trade is operated by a Wealthsimple affiliate.

Both platforms offer access to investment accounts to buy and sell securities in Canadian and US markets, but a few things set them apart.

This Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing comparison digs into their investment products, accounts, fees, and trading platforms so that you can confidently decide which trading platform best meets your investing needs.

Table of Contents Show

What is Wealthsimple Trade?

Established in 2019, Wealthsimple Trade is an online investment platform that allows self-directed investors to take control of their portfolios, slash trading fees, and maximize returns.

The platform is operated by ShareOwner Investment Inc, a Wealthsimple-affiliated investment dealer registered to operate across Canada.

Wealthsimple Trade allows users to trade and invest with registered trade accounts, like TFSA accounts, non-registered personal accounts, and crypto (via Wealthsimple Crypto).

With a trade account, you can buy and sell thousands of stocks and ETFs on major Canadian and U.S. exchanges, while crypto accounts offer a simple and secure way to buy and sell cryptocurrencies.

The platform doesn’t charge trading fees, has no account minimums, and is excellent for hands-on traders who love to manage their portfolios actively.

Wealthsimple Trade

What is TD Direct Investing?

TD Direct Investing is a popular self-directed brokerage platform in Canada owned by the Toronto-Dominion Bank. It dates back to 1984, following the launch of the TD Green Line Investor service.

In 1996, TD Bank introduced Web Broker, the first online Brokerage platform, which was renamed TD Waterhouse Discount Brokerage in 1999. It was then rebranded to TD Investing in 2012.

It is one of the best Canadian online brokerages that has been making investing easy and accessible to Canadians for decades. It has been ranked the #1 broker for Market Data for 8 years in a row by MoneySense.

The platform allows you to take control of your portfolio and invest in Canada and US markets with both registered and non-registered accounts, including Cash, Margin, RSP, or TFSA accounts.

Learn more in this review.

Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing: Investment Accounts

TD Direct Investing and Wealthsimple Trade offer registered and non-registered accounts to meet your investing and savings needs.

Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing: Investment Products

TD Direct Investing offers more investment products than Wealthsimple Trade. Wealthsimple Trade offers access to 3 products, while TD Direct investing offers 7 investment products.

WealthsimpleTrade investment products include:

Stocks
Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs)
Cryptocurrencies

TD Direct investment products include:

Stocks
Exchange-Traded Funds
Options
Mutual funds
Precious Metal Certificates
Fixed Income assets
Term deposits

Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing: Minimum Investment

Both Wealthsimple Trade and TD Direct Investing have no minimum investment requirement.

However, you may need to deposit at least $150 in your Wealthsimple Trade account to earn a $25 cash bonus.

Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing: No-Commission ETFs Trading Fee

Wealthsimple Trade is among the top fee-free trading platforms in Canada. And it offers commission-free ETFs and no fees for buying and selling stocks.

TD Direct Investing doesn’t offer commission-free ETFs, and you will incur fees when you buy and sell ETFs on the platform.

However, there is no fee to buy, sell, and switch mutual funds on the platform unless you hold the fund for less than 30 days. In that case, you’ll incur a short-term redemption fee of 1% or $45.

Wealthsimple Trade vs. TD Direct Investing: Trading Fees

Trading fees eat into your capital gains, hence an important factor when choosing the best online trading platform in Canada.

Wealthsimple Trade charges zero fees for buying and selling stocks and ETFs. It is to Canadians what Robinhood is to Americans: A platform that offers fee-free trading.

To make money, Wealthsimple Trade charges a base conversion fee + 1.50% on USD trades and a $10 monthly fee on Wealthsimple Trade Plus.

On the contrary, TD Direct Investing fees are among the highest in the industry. It features flat pricing for stocks and options, as follows:

	Stocks	Options
Standard trading fee	$9.99/trade	$9.99 + $1.25 per contract
Active trader pricing	$7.00/trade	$7.0 + $1.25 per contract
Telephone trades	Minimum fee of $43	$35 + $1.50 per contract

Only mutual funds held for less than 30 days incur a short-term redemption fee of $1 or $45; otherwise, there is no commission to buy, sell, or switch mutual funds on the platform.

Bonds, GICs, and term deposits have their fees included in the quoted prices, while Gold and Silver bullion trades cost $30 + $1/oz and $30 + $0.10/oz, respectively.

Wealthsimple Trade vs TD Direct Investing: Admin & Other Fees

Wealthsimple Trade doesn’t charge any fee for opening/closing accounts, withdrawing funds, inactive accounts, and electronic statements. A fee of $20 applies for paper statements.

There is also a $10 monthly fee for the Wealthsimple Trade Plus service that gives you access to real-time market data, USD accounts, and instant deposits up to $5,000.

TD Direct Investing assesses a quarterly maintenance fee of $25 if your total account balance is less than $15,000, though you can have the fee waived under some conditions.

You also incur a full/partial RRSP withdrawal fee of $25, $2 for mailed account statements, $5 for each duplicate statement, and $150 for partial/full account transfers.

TD Direct Investing offers more trading platforms, advanced charting tools, and order types than Wealthsimple Trade.

TD Direct Investing offers four trading platforms, including Web Broker, TD mobile app, advanced dashboard, and ThinkorSwim.

Wealthsimple offers two trading platforms, namely the Wealthsimple Trade app and a desktop web interface.

Customer Service

Wealthsimple Trade offers customer services via phone and email.

TD Direct Investing offers customer service via telephone and email. Their customer service reps are available Monday to Friday from 7 am to 6 pm for assistance.

Security

Nobody wants to wake up to nasty surprises. Thus, security is a top feature when choosing an online brokerage platform in Canada.

Both TD Direct Investing and Canadian ShareOwner – Wealthsimple Trade’s custodial broker – are members of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), which protects your account up to $1 million against insolvency.

The two brokers are also fully regulated by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).

Plus, TD offers an Online and Mobile Security Guarantee, and you will be reimbursed 100% if you suffer any loss due to fraudulent account activity. You also have the confidence of investing with the second-largest bank in Canada by asset size.

Wealthsimple Trade’s additional security features include 2FA account protection and state-of-art data encryption. It also enjoys hundreds of millions in investment backing from some of the world’s largest financial firms.

Open a Wealthsimple Trade account and deposit at least $150 within 45 days of registering to get a $25 cash bonus.

TD Direct Investing does not seem to offer any promotions or account opening incentives as of the time this is being updated.

You can view the promotions from other brokerage platforms here.

Wealthsimple Trade vs TD Direct Investing vs Questrade

The table below shows how TD Direct Investing compares with Wealthsimple Trade and Questrade.

	Wealthsimple Trade	TD Direct Investing	Questrade
Stock trading fees	$0	$9.99	$9.95
Options fees/contract	$0	$9.99 + $1.25	$9.95 + $1
Commission-free ETFs	Yes	No	Free to buy. $4.95-$9.95 per “sell” trades
Trading commission discount	Free to buy and sell stocks and ETFs	$7/trade for active stock traders	$4.95/trade for active stock traders.
Types of accounts	RRSP, TFSA, crypto, and personal non-registered accounts.	TFSA, RRSP, RESP, RRIF, DPSP, LIRA, Margin	TFSA, RRSP, RESP, RRIF, LIRA, and non-registered accounts.
Minimum investment	None	None	$1,000
Maintenance fee	None	$25/quarter for account balances less than $15,000	None
Platform	Mobile app and web	Web and mobile app	Web, mobile, and desktop app.
Transfer-in fees	Up to $150 on transfers of $5,000+	Up to $150 with transfers of $25,000+	Up to $150/account
Promotions	Open an account and deposit at least $150 to get a cash bonus	None	Fund your account with at least $1,000 to get $50 in free trades.

Wealthsimple Trade vs TD Direct Investing: Conclusion

Wealthsimple Trade and TD Direct Investing are top stock trading platforms that make investing easier for self-directed Canadian investors.

They both have no account minimums, offer access via mobile and web, and have great security.

However, Wealthsimple wins this comparison as the platform offers fee-free trading, zero maintenance fees, and a cash bonus account opening incentive. These features can help self-directed inventors cut their trading fees and maximize returns.

That said, TD Direct offers more account types, trading products, and tools than Wealthsimple Trade if you are an advanced trader.

Editorial Disclaimer: The investing information provided here is for informational purposes only and is not intended as individual investment advice or recommendation to invest in any specific security or investment product. Investors should always conduct their own independent research before making investment decisions or executing investment strategies. Savvy New Canadians does not offer advisory or brokerage services. Note that past investment performance does not guarantee future returns.