The Best Time of Day to Buy XEQT on the TSX (And Does It Actually Matter?)

I set an alarm for 9:28 AM on a Wednesday last spring. Two minutes before the TSX opened. I had $5,000 sitting in my Wealthsimple TFSA, earmarked for XEQT, and I’d convinced myself that buying at the exact moment the market opened would get me the best price. I’d read something on Reddit about “catching the opening dip” and it sounded smart enough.

At 9:30 AM the price of XEQT jumped from $34.12 to $34.25 in about three seconds. Then it dropped to $34.08. Then back to $34.19. I froze. I placed a market order at $34.21, watched it fill, and then spent the next 45 minutes refreshing the app to see if I’d overpaid. By 10:15 AM, XEQT had settled at $34.16. I’d “overpaid” by about five cents per share – roughly $7 on my entire $5,000 purchase.

Seven dollars. I’d set an alarm, skipped my morning routine, and experienced genuine stress over seven dollars.

If you’ve ever Googled “best time of day to buy XEQT,” you’re probably overthinking it too. But since you’re here, let me give you the actual answer – and explain why, for most Canadian investors, it barely moves the needle.

1. TSX Trading Hours: The Basics You Need to Know

Before we talk about the best time to buy, you need to understand when you can buy. The Toronto Stock Exchange operates on the following schedule (all times Eastern):

For most Canadian investors using Wealthsimple, Questrade, or a bank brokerage, the regular session from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM ET is where you’ll be placing trades.

Here’s the key detail that makes XEQT different from a purely Canadian stock: XEQT holds underlying ETFs that track U.S. and international markets. Roughly 45% of XEQT is U.S. equities through XUU. The U.S. markets also open at 9:30 AM ET, so both markets run simultaneously. When U.S. markets are open, XEQT’s pricing is most accurate because those underlying stocks are actively trading in real time.

2. Why the First and Last 15-30 Minutes Are Volatile

If you’ve ever watched XEQT’s price right at 9:30 AM, you know what I’m talking about. The price bounces around like a pinball, the spread between the bid and ask widens, and it feels like every second matters.

Here’s why the opening 15-30 minutes tend to be rough:

• The opening auction. Buy and sell orders that accumulated overnight are matched all at once, causing the price to “gap” up or down from the previous close.
• Overnight news. Markets in Asia and Europe have been trading for hours. Any developments – a central bank decision, a global sell-off – get priced in all at once at the open.
• Wider bid-ask spreads. Market makers are still calibrating. They widen spreads to protect themselves, compounded by XEQT’s underlying U.S. ETFs also just starting to trade.
• Emotional trading. Retail investors who’ve been stewing overnight place orders at the open, creating volume driven more by emotion than fundamentals.

The closing 15-30 minutes have their own issues:

• The closing auction. Large institutional orders cluster here, pushing prices around as index funds and pension funds execute rebalancing trades.
• End-of-day positioning. Traders rush to close or open positions before the overnight break, adding volatility.

None of this means you’ll get a bad price during these windows. But you’re more likely to experience a wider spread and unpredictable price swings. For a $500 purchase, the difference is negligible. For a $50,000 lump sum, it could cost an extra $20-50 in slippage – not catastrophic, but avoidable.

3. The Sweet Spot: 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM ET

If you want the cleanest execution when buying XEQT, the window between 10:00 AM and 3:30 PM Eastern is your best bet. Here’s why:

• Both the TSX and U.S. markets are fully operational. Since roughly 45% of XEQT’s value is tied to U.S. stocks, having U.S. markets open means market makers can price the ETF based on real-time data. The price you see is more likely to reflect XEQT’s true net asset value (NAV).
• Liquidity is at its peak. More buyers and sellers means tighter spreads and better fills for both market and limit orders.
• Price discovery is most accurate. The market has digested overnight news and the opening volatility has settled. Prices are more stable and reflective of underlying value.
• The opening chaos has passed, and the closing rush hasn’t started. You’re in the calm middle, with XEQT trading at or very near its NAV.

If I’m making a manual purchase of XEQT (rather than using auto-invest), I usually buy between 10:30 AM and 2:00 PM. But anywhere in that 10:00 AM - 3:30 PM window is perfectly fine.

4. Bid-Ask Spread: What It Costs You at Different Times of Day

The bid-ask spread is the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay (the bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept (the ask). It’s basically a hidden transaction cost – and it varies throughout the day.

Here’s what the spread on XEQT typically looks like at different times during a normal trading day:

A few things to note:

• XEQT is a very liquid ETF. As I’ve written about in my XEQT liquidity deep-dive, it benefits from the massive liquidity of its underlying holdings. Even at the worst times of day, the spread is tight by any reasonable standard.
• The cost difference is small in dollar terms. The difference between buying at the widest spread (say, $17 per $10,000) versus the tightest ($3 per $10,000) is about $14. That’s real money, but it’s not going to make or break your retirement.
• These numbers are approximate. Spreads vary day to day based on overall market conditions. On volatile days (Bank of Canada rate decisions, U.S. jobs reports, global sell-offs), spreads can be wider across the board. On calm days, they can be razor-thin all day long.

The takeaway: if you’re buying a few hundred or even a few thousand dollars of XEQT, the spread cost at any point during regular hours is trivially small. If you’re making a large lump-sum purchase – say $25,000 or more – it’s worth being a little more intentional about when you execute.

5. Market Order vs. Limit Order for XEQT

This is probably the question I get asked most by people who are learning how to buy XEQT for the first time. Should you use a market order or a limit order?

Here’s the quick version:

For most XEQT purchases, a market order is perfectly fine. XEQT is one of the most liquid ETFs on the TSX. During regular trading hours, the spread is usually a penny or two. You’re going to get filled at (or extremely close to) the price on your screen.

I know investing forums insist you should always use limit orders. And they’re not wrong – limit orders give you more control. But I’ve placed dozens of market orders for XEQT over the years and never been meaningfully burned by the spread. Typical slippage during core hours is a penny or two per share. On a $2,000 purchase, that’s maybe $0.57 to $1.14.

When I use a limit order:

• Buying $10,000+ in a single order
• Markets are unusually volatile (e.g., a Bank of Canada rate decision just dropped)
• Buying within the first or last 15 minutes of the trading day
• I want extra peace of mind on a big purchase

My recommendation: if you’re buying a few hundred or a few thousand dollars of XEQT on Wealthsimple, use a market order during core hours and move on with your day. Buying a larger amount on Questrade or another platform? Set a limit a penny or two above the current ask. Either way, you’re going to be fine.

6. What About Wealthsimple Auto-Invest?

Here’s where I tell you that everything above might be irrelevant to you.

If you’re using Wealthsimple’s auto-invest feature – which I use myself – you don’t get to choose what time of day your purchase executes. You set up a recurring buy for XEQT, Wealthsimple executes the trade during regular market hours, and you go about your day. That’s perfectly fine. More than fine, actually.

• Wealthsimple executes during regular TSX hours. Your order runs when liquidity is reasonable and spreads are acceptable.
• The “cost” of imperfect timing is tiny. Even if your order fills right at 9:30 AM on a volatile day, the extra spread cost on a $500 purchase is measured in cents, not dollars.
• Consistency beats optimization. The entire point of auto-invest is dollar-cost averaging – buying regularly regardless of price. Optimizing the exact minute defeats the purpose.
• It removes decision fatigue. No more “Is now the right time? Should I wait?” Auto-invest silences that voice.

I run auto-invest for my core monthly XEQT contributions and have never once regretted it. I only make manual purchases when I have a larger lump sum to deploy – a bonus, a tax refund, extra savings. For those, I’ll pay a bit more attention to timing. For the regular monthly buys, auto-invest handles it.

7. When Intraday Timing Actually Matters

That said, there are a few scenarios where paying attention to the clock can save you real money:

Large lump-sum purchases ($10,000+). On a $50,000 purchase, the difference between a $0.01 spread and a $0.05 spread is about $72 (roughly 2,060 shares at ~$34.50). That’s worth a limit order during core hours.

Days with major economic announcements. Bank of Canada rate decisions (typically 9:45 AM ET) and U.S. jobs reports (8:30 AM ET, before market open) make the first 30-60 minutes significantly more volatile. If you know a big announcement is coming, wait until after 10:30 AM or 11:00 AM for things to settle.

Market-wide volatility events. When the VIX spikes – tariff announcements, geopolitical crises, banking panics – spreads widen across the board. On these days, a limit order is essential regardless of the time.

When U.S. markets are closed. The TSX and U.S. markets have some different holidays (U.S. Thanksgiving, Presidents’ Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day). When U.S. markets are dark, XEQT’s U.S. component is priced on stale data, and market makers widen spreads to compensate. If you can wait a day, it’s worth it for large orders.

For all of these scenarios, the solution is the same: buy during core hours (10:00 AM - 3:30 PM ET) and use a limit order set slightly above the current ask.

8. A Quick Cheat Sheet for Buying XEQT

Here’s a simple decision tree based on everything we’ve covered:

Are you using Wealthsimple auto-invest?

• Yes: Stop reading. You’re already doing it right. Let auto-invest handle the timing and focus on increasing your contribution amount over time.
• No: Keep reading.

How much are you buying?

• Under $5,000: Use a market order anytime during regular hours (9:30 AM - 4:00 PM). Ideally between 10:00 AM and 3:30 PM, but honestly, any time is fine.
• $5,000 - $25,000: Use a limit order during core hours (10:00 AM - 3:30 PM). Set the limit at the current ask price or a penny above.
• Over $25,000: Use a limit order during core hours. Consider breaking the order into 2-3 smaller orders spread over the day or across multiple days. Check the calendar for major economic announcements.

Is today a volatile day?

• Yes (major announcement, global sell-off, VIX spike): Wait until at least 10:30 AM or 11:00 AM. Use a limit order. Don’t rush.
• No: Standard approach. Core hours, market or limit order, you’re good.

Are U.S. markets open today?

• Yes: Great. XEQT pricing will be most accurate.
• No: Spreads may be wider. If you can wait a day, it might be worth it for large orders.

9. The Real Takeaway: The Best Time to Buy XEQT Is When You Have the Money

Let me zoom out for a moment.

XEQT is priced at roughly $35 per share as of mid-2026. Global equities historically return 7-10% per year. That means XEQT gains about $0.007 to $0.010 per share per day from market appreciation alone. The maximum you’d “save” by perfectly timing your intraday purchase is maybe $0.03 to $0.05 per share from tighter spreads – the equivalent of a few days of returns.

In other words, if you delay buying XEQT by even a week because you’re trying to optimize your intraday entry, the lost market exposure almost certainly costs more than whatever you’d save on the spread. This is the same principle behind the advice that the best time to invest is now.

Here’s what actually moves the needle over 10, 20, or 30 years:

• How much you invest. Increasing your monthly contribution by $50 dwarfs any intraday timing benefit.
• How consistently you invest. Dollar-cost averaging works because you buy regularly through ups and downs. The precise minute is noise.
• How long you stay invested. Time in the market beats timing the market – including intraday timing.
• How low your costs are. XEQT’s MER of 0.20% and Wealthsimple’s zero-commission trading keep costs minimal. The spread is a tiny sliver on top.

10. Don’t Let Intraday Timing Become Another Form of Analysis Paralysis

I’ll be honest: part of me worried that writing this post would create a new source of anxiety. You learn about bid-ask spreads and suddenly you can’t press the buy button without checking the spread first. You learn about opening volatility and you’re setting alarms and refreshing charts.

That morning with the alarm and the $5,000 order? I was so focused on saving a few cents per share that I forgot why I was buying XEQT in the first place: because it’s a simple, low-cost, globally diversified investment I’m planning to hold for decades. The exact price I pay on any given Tuesday matters approximately zero over a 30-year horizon.

Here’s my honest advice:

If you’re buying less than $5,000 of XEQT: just buy it. Market order, during regular hours, whenever you have the money. Don’t overthink it. Go back to your life.

If you’re buying $5,000 - $25,000: buy during core hours with a limit order. Takes an extra 30 seconds. Done.

If you’re buying $25,000+: buy during core hours, use a limit order, maybe split it across a couple of orders. Check the calendar for big announcements. Spend five minutes on it, not five hours.

If you’re using auto-invest: you’ve already won the game. The system handles the timing. Your job is to make sure the money goes in every month and then forget about it.

The best time of day to buy XEQT is a fun question with a mildly useful answer. But the best decision you can make isn’t choosing 10:15 AM versus 2:30 PM. It’s choosing to start investing consistently, keeping your costs low, and letting compound growth do its thing over the decades ahead. That’s the real edge – not the clock on your wall.