While big brokers TD Direct Investing, CIBC Investor's Edge, BMO InvestorLine, RBC Direct Investing and Scotia iTRADE are still going strong, they’re not the only brokers in town anymore. There are now a number of online brokerages in Canada that offer user-friendly platforms, convenient features and low fees.
The exact steps for creating an investment account online vary between platforms, but generally, you’ll need to choose an account type (TFSA, RRSP, cash, margin etc.) and enter personal, employment and financial information like your name, contact details, Social Insurance Number and income.
Upload a copy of valid ID, such as a driver’s licence or passport, to verify your identity. Submit your application and wait for approval, which often takes 1–2 business days.
If buying and selling stocks still seems intimidating, you could consider using a robo-advisor. Robo-advisors are algorithms that invest in a mix of stocks (and bonds) according to your risk tolerance, financial situation and investing timeline. This passive investing approach saves time too, as you don’t need to research what shares to buy and sell and when to do so.
While you can open an account with most brokers without a minimum deposit, you can’t trade until you have sufficient funds in your account to cover the cost of the transaction.
One of the easiest ways to do this is to link your bank account and transfer funds via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). EFT transfers take between 1 and 3 business days to complete, but some brokers offer a feature called instant deposits, which allow you to trade before the funds have settled.
Other funding methods include wire transfer, cheque deposit and account transfers from other brokerage accounts. Credit cards are typically not permitted as a brokerage account funding method.
Where do you get investment ideas? In other words, how do you choose the best stocks to buy?
A good place to start is with an industry that interests you and then explore the different companies in that space. Identify key players and young companies with potential for growth but also figure out which companies are falling, or have fallen, out of favor. If you want to follow a Warren Buffett saying, “never invest in a business you cannot understand.”
Tools like stock screeners can help you narrow down stocks by sector, industry, price range and more. Search for companies by name or ticker symbol. If you’re on the fence about a purchase, add the stock to your watchlist to keep an eye on its performance. Analyst research reports can give you valuable insight into companies and guidance as to whether a particular company is a good investment.
At the end of the day, perform as much in-depth research as possible until you’re comfortable investing.
With a stock in mind and funding in place, it’s almost time to invest. But before you buy any shares, you should know how much money you want to invest in any particular stock.
Consider your budget, investment goals and your portfolio allocation. With the advent of fractional shares, you no longer need the entire share price to invest. Instead, you can invest specific dollar amounts in a stock. However, not every broker offers this feature.
The ideal number of stocks for your portfolio depends on your investment goals and level of desired diversification. Renowned value investor Benjamin Graham put this number between 10 and 30 stocks. New investors may hold fewer stocks, while experienced traders may feel comfortable monitoring a wider range of securities.
Almost anyone can invest in the stock market, and it’s possible to invest with as little as a few dollars. Here are some of the most popular methods for investing in stocks in Canada:
There are two ways to purchase stock: placing a market order or a conditional order.
Once you’ve entered details like the type of order you want to execute and the number of stocks you’d like to purchase, submit the order.
To make comparing even easier we came up with the Finder Score. Trading costs, account fees and features across 10+ stock trading platforms and apps are all weighted and scaled to produce a score out of 10. The higher the score the better the platform - simple.
The cost to buy stocks depends on which trading platform you’re using, with trading commissions often ranging from $0 to $9.99.
Some online brokerages like Wealthsimple charge no fees or commissions to trade stocks, and some require a minimum deposit to open a trading account. Other brokers charge extra for specialized investment products. High-value trades are often charged as a percentage of the total trade value, rather than a fixed fee.
If you’re an active trader, you could qualify for discounted trading fees. Requirements vary between brokerages, but usually this involves placing around 150+ trades per quarter.
You can compare the fees and features of the best stock trading apps here.
Once the broker executes your order, you’re considered a shareholder. Congratulations! And now you can either hold the stock or sell it. Buy-and-hold investors hold on to stocks in the hopes that they will eventually increase in value. They may hold a stock for months or years before they decide to sell it—hopefully at a profit.
Active traders, on the other hand, may offload a stock quickly. Specifically, day traders buy and sell a stock over a single trading day. The aim is to take advantage of sudden price changes. This type of trading is complex, fast-paced and requires a deep understanding of the market, so it’s not suitable for beginners.
Ultimately, what you do with the assets in your portfolio depends on your investment goals, strategy and risk tolerance. Make sure to check in occasionally on your investments to track their performance and ensure your portfolio still aligns with your investment goals.
Dollar-cost averaging is a strategy investors use to minimize losses from market volatility and maximize their long-term returns. Instead of investing a large sum of money all at once, investors gradually purchase stocks over time, often at regular intervals.
Say you have $1,000 to buy stocks online. Instead of investing the entire $1,000 at once, you dollar-cost average by investing $100 every month for 10 months. This means you purchase shares at various prices—some low, some high—which is better than buying at one time when the shares might be overpriced.
The process of selling your shares is equally as important as buying them. But not every investor follows the same playbook.
Some experts say you should consider selling your stocks if the company’s fundamentals change for the worse or if the competitive landscape changes. For instance, you may decide to sell your stock in a company whose earnings continue to steadily decrease or whose performance has dramatically weakened compared to industry peers.
Another reason to sell might be that you need the money for a more attractive investment.
Ideally, investors want to sell when it will be the most profitable. But timing the market is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, and can be costly. This is why it’s important to develop a strategy and stick to it.
Yes, all of Canada’s Big Five Banks offer stock trading platforms and apps. Here’s a quick breakdown of the platforms each bank offers to help you narrow down your options for how buy stocks in Canada.
TD offers Canadians a stock trading platform and app where you can put your investments into a variety of registered or non-registered accounts. TD Direct Investing also provides users a host of learning resources and research tools to help you make smart investments. Trading comes with reasonable commission rates, but you may find cheaper options depending on the type of investments you plan to make.
RBC Direct Investing offers a robust investing platform and trading dashboard either online or through the RBC Mobile app. Active traders will save on commissions. RBC Direct Investing also offers margin trading and the ability to get real-time quotes for stocks and ETFs. One unique selling point for this platform is the option to use a demo account where you can practice stock trading in Canada without using real money.
Scotia iTRADE offers a highly rated stock trading platform and app for Canadians. Its commission rates decrease when you trade more. Scotia iTRADE also offers a practice account with a fictional portfolio of $100,00 so you can learn how to buy stocks in Canada with what is essentially play money.
BMO InvestorLine also provides users with both a web-based trading platform and app. You’ll only pay a fee per trade if you have less than a specified minimum in your account. A nice perk of using BMO InvestorLine is that it makes its investment research available to its users.
Unlike many other brokerages run by major Canadian banks, NBDB offers fee-free stock and ETF trades. But you’ll pay an exchange rate mark up when converting currencies to trade non-Canadian securities.
Generally speaking, yes, it’s safe to buy stocks from an online brokerage in Canada. Most trading platforms employ safety measures like 24/7 infrastructure monitoring and two-factor authentication as standard protocols along with maintaining a membership or good standing with the IIROC. But, like with anything on the internet, there are still some things to watch out for:
Over half of Canadians (51.05%) prefer investing in stocks over other types of investments, according to the Finder: Consumer Sentiment Survey January 2025. Mutual funds (39.86%) and GICs (36.76%) are the next most preferred types of investments. Crypto meme coins (4.1%) and crypto ETFs (5.69%) are the least preferred, suggesting that, where investing is concerned, most people are leaning towards safety and convention over the gamble of decentralized finance.
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