I don't know much about the COW.TO product specifically, but some things I look for when comparing ETF's are:
1. Expenses (you've already mentioned this).
2. Holdings, and the % made up by the top 10 holdings - you may or may not want an ETF which is made up of only 5 holdings (see XIT - Canadian Tech) if you are looking for diversification.
3. How the index is constructed - market cap vs. fundamental weighting vs. other.
4. Average volume traded - if liquidity is important to you - e.g. the iShares EAFE index - the CAD$ ETF traded on the TSX has a MUCH lower volume of trading than the US$ NYSE equivalent.
5. Active vs. passive management
6. if investing in an index tracking ETF - what is the tracking error
Just a few things I could come up with on the top of my head. YMMV.
1. Expenses (you've already mentioned this).
2. Holdings, and the % made up by the top 10 holdings - you may or may not want an ETF which is made up of only 5 holdings (see XIT - Canadian Tech) if you are looking for diversification.
3. How the index is constructed - market cap vs. fundamental weighting vs. other.
4. Average volume traded - if liquidity is important to you - e.g. the iShares EAFE index - the CAD$ ETF traded on the TSX has a MUCH lower volume of trading than the US$ NYSE equivalent.
5. Active vs. passive management
6. if investing in an index tracking ETF - what is the tracking error
Just a few things I could come up with on the top of my head. YMMV.
