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Written by: Oskar G. Updated: Dec 2022
Expert verified

Overview of Qtrade Direct Investing fees and charges

When it comes to brokerage fees Qtrade Direct Investing shows a mixed picture: some fees are high but some are low. First you need to figure out your approach or you should use our questionnaire to be able to tell whether Qtrade Direct Investing fees are an advantage for you. Continue reading about Qtrade Direct Investing fees and charges to see if this is the right brokerage for you or a similar broker like RBC Direct Investing or Questrade is better for you.

Here's a high level overview of Qtrade Direct Investing's fees

Qtrade Direct Investing Fees snapshot
Assets Fee level Fee terms
US stock fee Average CAD 8.75 per trade (CAD 6.95 if you make 150+ trades per quarter or have a CAD 500k+ account balance)
EURUSD fee - Not available
US tech fund fee Low No fee
Inactivity fee Low $25 per quarter, charged as account fee if you fail to make a minimum number of trades or deposits during a quarter

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Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing fees explained

We compare Qtrade Direct Investing fees with its closest competitors, RBC Direct Investing and Questrade.

Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing trading fees

Qtrade Direct Investing's trading fees are mid-tier which means you need to pay special attention to asset classes with high trading fees.

Let's break down the trading fees into the different asset classes available at Qtrade Direct Investing.

Trading fees

Qtrade Direct Investing's trading fees are average.

Stock fees and ETF fees

Qtrade Direct Investing has average stock trading fees.

Stock fees of a $2,000 trade
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
US stock $8.8 $7.4 $5.0
UK stock - - -
German stock - - -

Fund fees

Qtrade Direct Investing fund fees are low.

A $2,000 fund buy fees
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Mutual fund $0.0 $0.0 $10.0
EU mutual fund - - -

Bond fees

Qtrade Direct Investing has low bond fees.

Bond fees of a $10,000 trade
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
US Treasury bond $25.0 $18.5 $0.0
EU government bond - - -

Options fees

Qtrade Direct Investing's options fees are high.

Stock index options fees of 10 contracts
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
US stock index options $21.3 $16.6 $20.0
UK stock index options - - -
German stock index options - - -

Financing rates

Qtrade Direct Investing financing rates are .

If you want to trade on margin and prefer to hold your positions long, financing costs can be significant.

Qtrade Direct Investing yearly financing rates
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Apple CFD financing rate - - 7.3%
Vodafone CFD financing rate - - 5.7%
EURUSD financing rate - - 3.4%
EURGBP financing rate - - 2.4%

Leverage is a double-edged sword and can dramatically amplify your profits. It can also just as dramatically amplify your losses. Trading foreign exchange/CFDs with any level of leverage may not be suitable for all investors.

Currency conversion fee

Qtrade Direct Investing will charge a Currency Conversion Fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different to the currency of your account. The fee is charged as the following: 0.9% mark-up for positions under CAD 9,999.

Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing non-trading fees

When it comes to looking at all the non-trading fees Qtrade Direct Investing is a cheap broker. This means that they don't charge you a lot for non-trading related activities on your trading account, like withdrawal fee.

Non-trading fees include various brokerage fees and charges at Qtrade Direct Investing that you pay not related to buying and selling assets. Among some others, typical non trading fees are withdrawal fee, deposit fee, inactivity fee and account fee.

A high level overview of how Qtrade Direct Investing stacks up in non-trading fees
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Withdrawal fee $0 $0 $0
Deposit fee $0 $0 $0
Inactivity fee Yes No No
Account fee Yes Yes No

Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing deposit fee

Deposit fees are applied when you send money to your trading account from your bank account. Usually brokers don't charge money for that and Qtrade Direct Investing is not different: you will see the exact same amount on your brokerage account that you sent by any of the deposit methods Qtrade Direct Investing offers.

Qtrade Direct Investing deposit methods
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Bank transfer Yes Yes Yes
Credit/debit card No No Yes
Electronic wallets No No Yes
Deposit fee $0 $0 $0

Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing withdrawal fee

Unlike some online brokers we have reviewed Qtrade Direct Investing does not charge a withdrawal fee. This means that you'll see the same amount of money on your bank account that you transferred from your brokerage account.

Qtrade Direct Investing withdrawal fees and options compared
Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Bank transfer Yes Yes Yes
Credit/debit card No No Yes
Electronic wallets No No Yes
Withdrawal fee with bank transfer $0 $0 $0

Qtrade Direct Investing fees
Qtrade Direct Investing inactivity fee

Qtrade Direct Investing does apply an inactivity fee and it is $25 per quarter, charged as account fee if you fail to make a minimum number of trades or deposits during a quarter. This means that you need to be strategic about your trading activity to avoid getting charged after a longer time of no trade. The fact that Qtrade Direct Investing charges an inactivity fee makes it less ideal for you if you are a buy and hold investor.

Qtrade Direct Investing has low inactivity fee.

Qtrade Direct Investing RBC Direct Investing Questrade
Inactivity fee Yes No No
Inactivity fee $25 per quarter, charged as account fee if you fail to make a minimum number of trades or deposits during a quarter No inactivity fee No inactivity fee

Read more about Qtrade Direct Investing inactivity fee on their own site.

Author of this article

Oskar Golebiowski

Author of this article

Oskar's goal is to bring transparency to investors in the Canadian stock brokerage market. With a bachelor’s degree in finance and over 3 years of business experience, Oskar has tested many different investing platforms in the past. His aim is to provide unbiased and honest reviews of the best tools available to Canadian investors.

Oskar Golebiowski

Canadian broker expert

Oskar's goal is to bring transparency to investors in the Canadian stock brokerage market. With a bachelor’s degree in finance and over 3 years of business experience, Oskar has tested many different investing platforms in the past. His aim is to provide unbiased and honest reviews of the best tools available to Canadian investors.

Everything you find on BrokerChooser is based on reliable data and unbiased information. We combine our 10+ years finance experience with readers feedback. Read more about our methodology

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