How to Start Investing With Little Money

You do not need a pile of money or a finance degree. Here is the whole starter plan in four steps:

1. Open a TFSA with a low-cost provider (most people can do this online in an evening).
2. Buy one broad, low-cost index fund inside it. In Canada that usually means XEQT or VEQT.
3. Automate a small monthly contribution, whatever you will not miss, even $50.
4. Leave it alone and get on with your life.

That is it. You can start with a very small amount, because at the beginning the number barely matters. Starting early is what matters, because time does most of the heavy lifting.

Below: where to open the account, which tickers to search for, and the habit that matters more than the fund.

Two things worth sorting before you buy anything

If you are carrying a credit card balance at 19 or 20 percent, that is a guaranteed loss running against you every month, and no fund reliably beats it. Clear it first.

Then keep a small cash cushion separate from your spending account, even a few hundred dollars. If the transmission goes and every dollar you have is invested, you end up selling in a bad month to cover a repair.

Why the amount matters less than you think

Most men who have not started are waiting to feel ready, or waiting until they have "enough" to make it worthwhile. That instinct costs them the one thing they cannot buy back later, which is time in the market.

Put numbers on it and the argument ends. At a 7 percent average annual return, $100 a month from age 25 to 65 grows to roughly $262,000. Wait until 40, double the contribution to $200 a month, and by 65 you are at roughly $162,000. The earlier starter put in $12,000 less and finished about $100,000 ahead.

Fifteen extra years of compounding did that, and those years are available to anyone who begins now rather than next January. Run it on your own numbers with the compound interest calculator, and sit with the cost of waiting before you close the tab.

So do not be intimidated. No-fee trades, one-click index funds, automatic contributions. The whole thing fits on a napkin.

Where to open the account, and what it should cost

I use Wealthsimple, and it is what I point men to when they ask where to begin. A self-directed account has no minimum, ETF purchases cost no commission, and a recurring deposit can pull from chequing the day after payday, so the decision only gets made once. My longer review covers where it falls short. That link is a referral link. We both receive a bonus if you use it, and it costs you nothing.

Questrade does the job well too. The big banks' discount brokerages work, though several still charge a commission per trade, which is a real drag when you are buying $50 at a time.

Inside the platform, choose the TFSA. The 2026 contribution limit is $7,000, and your accumulated room is listed in your CRA My Account. If you are unsure whether the TFSA or the RRSP suits your income better, the RRSP vs TFSA tool will point you.

What to actually buy, and the ticker to search for

Inside the TFSA, the honest answer for most people is one broad, low-cost index fund that owns a slice of the whole market. Own the whole field, cheaply, for a long time. That is a better plan than trying to guess which company wins.

Two tickers do that in a single purchase:

• XEQT, the iShares Core Equity ETF Portfolio, with a management expense ratio of 0.20 percent
• VEQT, the Vanguard All-Equity ETF Portfolio, at 0.24 percent

Both hold thousands of companies across Canada, the US, and international markets, and both rebalance themselves. Type the ticker into the search bar, buy as many shares as your money allows, and you are finished for the month.

If you specifically want the S&P 500

Many men have heard of the S&P 500, the index of 500 large American companies, and want to own it. You do not need a US-dollar account. Three Canadian-listed ETFs track it, trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canadian dollars, and charge about 0.09 percent a year:

• VFV, the Vanguard S&P 500 Index ETF
• ZSP, the BMO S&P 500 Index ETF
• XUS, the iShares Core S&P 500 Index ETF

VFV is the one most Canadians name first, though all three do the same job at the same price. Each has a currency-hedged twin (VSP, ZUE, and XSP) that strips out the effect of the Canadian dollar moving against the US dollar, for slightly more. Over decades, most beginners are fine unhedged.

Here is the honest caveat. VFV owns 500 American companies and nothing else. No Canada, no Europe, no emerging markets. The last fifteen years have made that concentration look brilliant, and the next fifteen may not be so kind. XEQT and VEQT already hold those same American companies alongside everything else, which is why they stay the simpler first fund. Buy VFV if you want it, knowing you have placed a bet on one country.

The habit that decides more than the fund does

Markets fall. Your account will be down at some point in the first few years, and the temptation will be to pause the contribution until things settle.

That instinct costs ordinary investors more than fees do. Money tends to arrive after a good run and leave after a bad one, which is buying high and selling low on repeat. The fund you pick matters far less than whether you keep buying it in the month the news is bad.

Automation is the protection. When the contribution moves on its own the day after payday, there is no monthly decision left to get wrong. Check the balance quarterly at most.

Start this week

Open the TFSA tonight. It takes fifteen minutes. Fund it with whatever you can spare, buy one of the tickers above, and set the recurring deposit before you close the app. That one evening does more than another month of reading will.

For the fuller walkthrough with the theology underneath it, the Christian investing guide for beginners takes it step by step.

Money quietly set aside for decades is one of the ordinary ways a man provides for people he will not always be around to help. Set it up, trust God with it, and turn your attention back to what he has actually laid in front of you.

Common questions

How do I start investing in Canada?

Open a TFSA with a low-cost provider, buy one broad, low-cost index fund inside it, set up a small automatic monthly contribution, and leave it alone. That is the whole starter plan, and you can set it up online in an evening.

How much money do I need to start investing?

Very little. Most Canadian platforms have no minimum and no trading commission, so $50 gets you started. The amount barely matters at the beginning. Starting early matters far more, because time drives most of the growth.

What should a beginner invest in?

For most people, one broad, low-cost index fund held for decades. It quietly owns thousands of companies at once and charges almost nothing. You do not need to pick winning stocks to do this well. Boring and consistent beats clever nearly every time.

What is the ticker for the S&P 500 in Canada?

VFV is the Vanguard S&P 500 Index ETF, listed on the TSX in Canadian dollars with a management expense ratio of about 0.09 percent. BMO's ZSP and iShares' XUS track the same index at the same cost, and none of the three require a US-dollar account. The currency-hedged versions are VSP, ZUE, and XSP.

Is VFV or XEQT better for a beginner?

XEQT is the simpler first fund. It holds Canadian, American, and international companies in one ticker, rebalances itself, and already owns the S&P 500 companies inside it. VFV holds 500 large American companies and nothing else. That has performed very well recently, but it concentrates everything in one country. Buy it knowing you have made that bet on purpose.