Is RBC Direct Investing free?

RBC Direct Investing does charge a commission for real stock trading on US markets, so in this sense it is not a free-to-trade broker. However, it might still be a reasonable choice for some of you, as there are many other aspects other than commissions that are important when you choose a broker. If you wish to stick with RBC Direct Investing though, then you will find the fees they charge below. Alternatively, you could check our article detailing the best zero commission brokers and how their apps scored in our test.

We should note that the payment-for-order-flow model, which is used by some zero-commission brokers to generate income (rather than relying on commissions), could potentially create a conflict of interest between you and your broker. This could result in trade execution (like routing your orders to specific market makers) that might be unfavorable for you under certain market conditions, especially when using market orders (as opposed to limit orders, which seem to be less affected).

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When it comes to brokerage fees, RBC Direct Investing is a mixed bag. To see how they may affect you, first you need to figure out your approach to trading - i.e. whether you are more of a buy-and-hold investor or if you want to trade frequently; or what type of assets and in what volumes you'll want to trade. Alternatively, use our questionnaire to help you tell whether RBC Direct Investing fees are beneficial for you. Continue reading about RBC Direct Investing fees and charges to see if this is the right broker for you, or if a similar broker like Qtrade Direct Investing or Questrade might suit you better.

Here's a high-level overview of RBC Direct Investing's fees

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Online brokerages in general charge much lower brokerage fees than traditional brokerages do - this is largely because online brokerages' businesses can be much better scaled: from a purely technical standpoint, it doesn't make that much of a difference for them if they have 100 or 5,000 clients.

This is not to say, however, that they don't charge any fees at all. They make money by charging you various rates for various actions or events. Usually you need to keep an eye on the following three types of fees:

• Trading fees - these are brokerage fees that you pay when you actually carry out a trade, like buying an Apple share or an ETF. What you pay is either a commission, a spread or a financing rate. Some brokers apply all of these.
• A commission is either fixed or based on the traded volume.
• A spread is the difference between the buy price and the sell price.
• A financing rate or overnight rate is charged when you hold your leveraged positions for more than one day.
• Non-trading fees. These are usually related to some operations you carry out in your account, such as depositing money, withdrawing money, or not trading for an extended period.

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

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RBC Direct Investing's trading fees are mixed, which means that some asset classes come with high trading fees - be sure to check these carefully.

Let's break down trading fees according to the different asset classes available at RBC Direct Investing.

Trading fees

RBC Direct Investing's trading fees are average.

Stock fees and ETF fees

RBC Direct Investing has average stock trading fees.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

Fund fees

RBC Direct Investing fund fees are low.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

Bond fees

RBC Direct Investing has low bond fees.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

Options fees

RBC Direct Investing's options fees are average.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

Currency conversion fee

RBC 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: 2% mark-up.

Margin rates

RBC Direct Investing margin rates are average.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

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When it comes to non-trading fees, RBC Direct Investing is a rather cheap broker.

Non-trading fees include various brokerage fees and charges at RBC Direct Investing that are not related to buying or selling assets. This can be a withdrawal fee, deposit fee, inactivity fee or account fee.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

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Usually, brokers don't charge anything for deposits, and RBC Direct Investing is no different.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

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RBC Direct Investing generally doesn't charge a withdrawal fee.

Data updated on September 23, 2024

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RBC Direct Investing does not apply an inactivity fee, which is great because your account won't be charged even if you do not trade for an extended period (like several months or years).

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