One additional point to add to the standard list of why exchange-traded funds are an excellent investing tool: Plentiful no-cost resources available online make them easy to research.
The standard ETF attributes include low cost, strong diversification and usefulness for all investing goals, from long-term wealth-building to trading. Don’t undersell those research tools, though. There are more than 1,600 ETFs listed for trading on Canadian exchanges and most aren’t worth even a glance for mainstream investors. You need tools to screen for funds and then dig into them. Here are six tools to consider:
Fund company profiles: Some ETF companies are way out in front in disclosure, but there’s an impressive median level of usefulness. You should be able to find information on fees, returns over a variety of timeframes, the amount and composition of distributions and holdings. If you want to look up changes in the fee over time, look for a link to the latest management report on fund performance. One piece of information that could be more prominent is the trading expense ratio, or TER, which is the cost of buying and selling securities for the fund. Combine the TER and the commonly displayed management expense ratio for a complete accounting of a fund’s cost of ownership. One area where fund profiles are deficient is in providing a plain-language explanation of a fund’s mission and investment style.
Globe Investor: Stock and ETF quotes include a news feed of Globe and Mail stories on the funds you’re researching, as well as charting tools and databases of historical distribution amounts and share price. Also, a tool called theETF Portfolio Builderthat helps you assemble funds into an effective portfolio.
Morningstar: The Canadian website for this independent investment analysis company offers free access to an ETF centre that features a steady parade of useful articles. Recent examples include a list of top balanced ETFs for Canadian investors and best international equity ETFs. Morningstar offers reports on individual ETFs, but they are available only to paying subscribers. Your digital brokerage may offer these reports through its ETF research page. Free fund profile information shows you quartile performance over various periods, which is useful in seeing how a fund has historically compared to its peer group.
TMX Money: The stock and ETF quotes on this website offer an extra level of detail compared to others, including average trading volumes over various timeframes and beta, which is a measure of volatility. There’s also a TSX ETF Centre with tools for comparing three funds side by side, and screening various categories to find funds of interest.
The 2025 Globe and Mail ETF Buyers Guide: The complete series includes all six instalments, covering Canadian, U.S. and international equity, Canadian dividend, bond and asset allocation ETFs. Fund are included in the guide based on fees, popularity with investors, length of track record, returns and more. The guide is meant to help focus on investors on ETFs worthy of consideration for mainstream, long-term investing.
Reddit :The Canadian Investor thread includes a lot of ETF content, including discussions about getting started in ETF investing and funds for people who want to avoid the U.S. market.