How ActiveACB Compares
Every Canadian ACB tool has a different design philosophy. This page compares the ActiveACB ACB calculator with AdjustedCostBase.ca, MyACB, and Sharesight on workflow fit and Canadian tax-calculation coverage, not an exhaustive feature audit.
| Feature | ActiveACB | AdjustedCostBase.ca | MyACB | Sharesight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broker import workflow | Yes: IBKR, Questrade, and Wealthsimple parsed directly; any other broker via the built-in column mapper | Manual: entry, CSV, or spreadsheet import | Partial: spreadsheet/CSV-based workflow | Yes: broad broker connectivity for portfolio tracking |
| Canadian ACB focus | Yes: built specifically for CRA capital-gains reporting | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Superficial loss handling | Yes: full CRA three-limiter formula | Manual: supported with more manual workflow | Partial: workflow varies by data source | No: not the core focus |
| FX cash pool ACB | Yes | Manual: possible with user-managed entries | Partial: depends on import quality and setup | No: no dedicated CRA cash-pool workflow |
| Options exercise and assignment | Full: all four CRA cases | Manual: can be recorded, but more manually | Partial: more limited workflow | No: not a primary tax use case |
| Corporate actions | Yes: splits, mergers, ROC, standard cost-base spinoffs; taxable spinoffs flagged | Manual: often user-entered or adjusted manually | Partial: some support, depends on workflow | Partial: primarily portfolio-reporting oriented |
| Per-leg FX conversion (buy-date cost, sell-date proceeds) | Yes: Bank of Canada daily rates on each leg | Manual: user supplies rates | Manual: user supplies rates | Partial: portfolio-level conversion |
| Verified ETF ROC and reinvested distribution data | Yes: 200+ Canadian funds from issuer primary documents | No: user-entered | No: user-entered | Partial |
| Reconciliation against broker figures | Yes: IBKR broker bridge plus a T5008 checker for any broker | No | No | No |
| Cross-account tax view | Yes: multi-account upload in one calculation | Partial: possible, but more ledger-style | Partial: possible with consolidated data prep | Partial: good account aggregation, weaker CRA-specific logic |
| Manual correction path | Yes: inline trade editor plus Raw Trades XLSX re-import | Yes: manual editing is the default workflow | Yes: spreadsheet/CSV cleanup workflow | Yes: portfolio transaction editing |
| Test transparency | over 2,800 automated tests | No: not published publicly | No: not published publicly | No: not published publicly |
| Best fit | Canadian investors who want direct-file tax calculation | Yes: investors comfortable maintaining a manual ACB ledger | Yes: users who need a spreadsheet-first ACB workflow | Yes: users who want broader portfolio tracking and reporting |
When to use a different tool
Frequently asked questions
How does ActiveACB compare to AdjustedCostBase.ca?
AdjustedCostBase.ca is a mature manual ACB ledger with excellent educational content, and a strong choice if you are comfortable maintaining entries yourself. ActiveACB is built for the point where manual maintenance becomes the bottleneck. It parses IBKR, Questrade and Wealthsimple exports directly, imports any other broker through a column mapper, and applies cross-account superficial loss detection, per-leg Bank of Canada FX conversion and verified ETF return-of-capital adjustments automatically.
How does ActiveACB compare to MyACB?
MyACB suits a spreadsheet-centric workflow where you prepare and map transaction data yourself. ActiveACB parses the three named brokers directly and imports any other broker’s trade-history CSV or XLSX through its column mapper. Match the columns once and the same tax engine runs the full calculation.
How does ActiveACB compare to Sharesight?
Sharesight is a broader investment-tracking platform with portfolio performance analytics, dividend reporting and wide broker connectivity. ActiveACB is narrower and specialized around Canadian tax-calculation correctness, covering ACB pooling, superficial losses, FX cash pools, options and corporate actions on a Schedule 3 report.
Is my broker’s T5008 enough on its own?
It can be if you buy and hold with no re-trades, no options, no U.S. securities and no superficial losses. CRA’s own T5008 instructions say Box 20 may or may not reflect your adjusted cost base. Beyond simple buy-and-hold that number is often not enough, which is why ActiveACB includes a T5008 checker that reconciles the slip against a full calculation.