Investing · ETF deep dive
TBAL TD Balanced ETF Portfolio
The cheapest 60/40 in Canada — four index ETFs, monthly distributions, 0.17% all-in MER.
Best for: Balanced investors optimizing purely on cost and simplicity
Pros
- Cheapest 60/40 MER in the category (0.17%)
- Monthly distributions suit income-takers
- Radically simple: four ETFs, one bond sleeve, done
Cons
- No EM sleeve; bond exposure is Canadian-only (no global bonds)
- Snapshot weights drift between rebalances
- $343M — small next to the multi-billion rivals
What's inside TBAL
| Underlying fund | Weight |
|---|---|
| TD Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETFTDB | 39.9% |
| TD U.S. Equity Index ETFTPU | 25.2% |
| TD Canadian Equity Index ETFTTP | 19.9% |
| TD International Equity Index ETFTPE | 14.9% |
Canada 55.5% · US 24.5% · EU 8.2% (fund geography incl. the 40% Canadian bond sleeve) (TD fund card geography, point-in-time, bonds included) · holdings as of verification day (TD cards update daily)
The deep dive
TBAL strips the 60/40 to its chassis: one US equity index, one Canadian, one developed-international, one Canadian aggregate-bond sleeve — no EM, no foreign bonds, no hedging complexity, because there’s nothing foreign-currency on the bond side to hedge. At 0.17% it undercuts every rival at the rung.
The simplicity cuts both ways: skipping EM and global bonds removes diversifiers the big three include. For the investor who views those sleeves as noise (a defensible minority view), TBAL is the purest cheap 60/40 in the country; for world-portfolio completists it’s one sleeve short. Monthly distributions are the tiebreaker for income-takers.
Same family, different dose
The TD Asset Management ladder lets you change risk level without changing philosophy:
- TGRO — 90/10 target · 0.17% MER · monthly distributions
- TCON — 30/70 target · 0.17% MER · monthly distributions
Frequently asked questions
What does TBAL hold?
TBAL holds 60/40 target — led by TD Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF (TDB) at 39.9%, TD U.S. Equity Index ETF (TPU) at 25.2%, TD Canadian Equity Index ETF (TTP) at 19.9% (as of verification day (TD cards update daily)). Geographic mix: Canada 55.5% · US 24.5% · EU 8.2% (fund geography incl. the 40% Canadian bond sleeve) (td fund card geography, point-in-time, bonds included). Weights drift between rebalances — quarterly (per the 2023 restructuring).
What does TBAL cost?
Currently 0.15% management fee; 0.17% published MER (fund cards; MERs as at Dec 31, 2025). For context, the asset-allocation category now runs roughly 0.17%–0.25% all-in at the index families after the 2025 fee war — see the full cost table, and what fee gaps compound into with the MER calculator.
Should I pick TBAL or one of its siblings?
The TD Asset Management ladder runs TGRO · TBAL · TCON — same construction, different equity/bond dose. TBAL sits at 60/40 target. The risk level is the decision that matters; pick the rung whose worst year you could actually sit through (the asset-allocation calculator helps), then stay put. Comparing across providers instead? Start with the family-by-family guide.
The bottom line
The minimalist’s 60/40 at the minimalist’s price. Compare ZBAL (tax-aware bonds) and XBAL (fuller diversification) before defaulting.
This page is for educational purposes only and is not investment advice. Fund facts were verified at TD Asset Management's published fact sheets and product pages on June 10, 2026; holdings and weights are point-in-time and drift between rebalances; published MERs may lag recent fee changes (fund cards; MERs as at Dec 31, 2025). We deliberately do not compare or project returns. Read the fund facts document before buying. See our methodology.