Best Uranium ETF in Canada 2026: HURA, URNM, and the Nuclear Renaissance
The nuclear renaissance is not a headline anymore, it's a build cycle. With AI data centres locking in decade-long nuclear power purchase agreements and 22 countries pledging to triple nuclear capacity by 2050, Canadian investors are asking a simple question: what is the cleanest way to get uranium exposure through an ETF? This guide compares TSX-listed HURA against US-listed URNM and URA, shows what each fund actually holds, and walks through how large a uranium sleeve should be in a diversified Canadian portfolio.
Why uranium, and why now
Spot uranium (U3O8) traded near USD 30 per pound for most of the 2010s. By late 2024 it had touched USD 100, and by mid-2026 it sits in a structurally higher range on the back of three converging drivers: hyperscaler data centres signing 20-year nuclear power purchase agreements, the COP28 pledge from 22 countries to triple nuclear capacity by 2050, and a supply side that cannot ramp mine output in under 7 to 10 years. For a Canadian investor, that combination is why uranium keeps showing up in 'thematic' fund flows on the TSX and NYSE.
You do not need to pick a single miner to play this. There are exactly three funds that most self-directed Canadian portfolios end up choosing between: HURA (Sprott Physical Uranium Miners ETF, TSX), URNM (Sprott Uranium Miners ETF, NYSE Arca), and URA (Global X Uranium ETF, NYSE Arca). A fourth, U.UN (Sprott Physical Uranium Trust), is technically a closed-end trust rather than an ETF but is worth mentioning because it holds the physical commodity itself.
HURA vs URNM vs URA at a glance
| Fund | Listing | MER | Assets | Top holding | Currency exposure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HURA (Sprott) | TSX | 0.35% | About C$260M | Cameco (~17%) | CAD-hedged not offered, but priced in CAD |
| URNM (Sprott) | NYSE Arca | 0.75% | About US$1.8B | Cameco (~17%) | USD, unhedged |
| URA (Global X) | NYSE Arca | 0.69% | About US$3.4B | Cameco (~22%) | USD, unhedged |
| U.UN (physical) | TSX | 0.65% | About C$8B | U3O8 (98%+ physical) | USD-linked commodity |
Two things jump out. First, HURA is materially cheaper than URNM and URA on management fees, which matters more than most retail investors think over a 5-year hold. Second, all three miner ETFs are dominated by Cameco (TSX: CCO), the Saskatchewan-based producer that is roughly 20% of every fund. If you already own CCO directly, layering on HURA or URA is not diversification, it's concentration.
HURA: the Canadian-listed option
HURA is Sprott's TSX-listed uranium miners ETF, launched in 2019. It follows the North Shore Sprott Uranium Miners Index and holds around 40 companies, weighted by market cap with a tilt toward pure-play miners rather than diversified majors. The MER of 0.35% is the lowest of the miner ETFs available to Canadians.
For most Canadian self-directed investors, HURA is the default choice for three reasons. It trades in Canadian dollars so there's no Norbert's gambit or currency conversion friction. It's eligible for TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, and RESP without any US withholding tax on the fund level. And distributions are taxed as Canadian eligible dividends when paid, which is far more favourable than foreign dividends in a taxable account.
URNM vs URA: choosing between the US-listed options
If you specifically want US-dollar exposure or you have a large USD-denominated RRSP, URNM and URA are the two miner ETFs to compare. Both track uranium miners, both are dominated by Cameco and Kazatomprom, but they differ in construction.
URNM (Sprott)
- Pure-play focus: excludes diversified miners like BHP
- About 40 holdings, tighter concentration in top 10 names
- 0.75% MER
- Higher beta to uranium price moves
- Includes a small physical uranium sleeve via U.UN units
URA (Global X)
- Broader net: includes nuclear services and utility exposure
- About 45 holdings, slightly more diversified
- 0.69% MER
- Lower beta, less whippy in drawdowns
- No physical uranium exposure
The practical difference: URNM is the higher-conviction bet on uranium miners specifically. URA gives up some upside for a smoother ride because of its nuclear services and utility slice. In a 2022-style selloff URA held up about 8 percentage points better than URNM. In the 2023-2024 rally URNM outran URA by roughly 25 points. Neither is wrong, they're just different risk profiles.
Taxes: how each ETF is treated in your accounts
| Account | HURA (TSX) | URNM / URA (US) |
|---|---|---|
| TFSA | Fully sheltered | 15% US withholding on distributions (unrecoverable) |
| RRSP / RRIF | Fully sheltered | 0% US withholding (treaty exemption) |
| FHSA | Fully sheltered | 15% US withholding on distributions |
| Non-registered | Eligible Canadian dividends + CAD cap gains | Foreign non-business income + USD to CAD FX gains/losses |
The tax picture is the clearest reason to prefer HURA in a TFSA or FHSA. In an RRSP, the treaty exemption removes the withholding drag on URNM and URA, so the choice comes down to MER and USD exposure. In a taxable account HURA is meaningfully simpler at tax time because you avoid the T1135 foreign property reporting threshold and the annual USD-CAD reconciliation on distributions.
How much uranium should you actually hold?
Uranium ETFs are volatile. HURA had a 62% drawdown between April 2022 and December 2022 before rebounding. That behaviour is closer to a leveraged single-country tech ETF than to a broad equity index. Sizing matters more here than for any core holding.
SIZING A URANIUM SLEEVE
- Cap total uranium exposure (ETF + individual miners) at 5% of your equity allocation for most portfolios
- If uranium is your only thematic tilt, you can stretch to 7-8%, but no higher without a clear thesis and stop plan
- Split the sleeve: consider 60% miner ETF (HURA or URNM) for equity leverage plus 40% physical (U.UN) to dampen mining-specific risk
- Set a rebalance rule: trim back to target if the sleeve grows past 1.5x its target weight, top up if it drifts below 0.6x
- Never fund a uranium sleeve from your emergency fund or short-horizon savings
Which ETF should you pick?
Pick HURA if
- Your account is TFSA, FHSA, RESP, or non-registered
- You want CAD-denominated exposure with no FX conversion
- You care more about the 0.35% MER than the last 10 bps of tracking
- You dislike the T1135 reporting threshold on US ETFs
Pick URNM (or URA) if
- You're buying in an RRSP or RRIF where US withholding is waived
- You already hold significant USD balances and don't want to convert to CAD
- You want the deepest liquidity and tightest spreads
- You want a small physical uranium sleeve baked in (URNM only)
Two common mistakes Canadian investors make
- Doubling up on Cameco. Owning CCO directly plus HURA gives you a portfolio that is 30% or more Cameco. That's a single-company bet, not a thematic ETF play. Pick one exposure route and stick with it.
- Buying URA in a TFSA thinking it's tax-efficient. The 15% US withholding on URA distributions inside a TFSA is unrecoverable. HURA in a TFSA gets you the same underlying miners without the drag.
- Trading the ETF on emotion during drawdowns. The 2022 drawdown scared out most retail holders right before the 2023-2024 rally. If you would not hold through a 50% drop, size the position smaller.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best uranium ETF in Canada for 2026?
For most Canadian self-directed investors, HURA (Sprott Physical Uranium Miners ETF, TSX) is the default choice. It has the lowest MER of the miner ETFs at 0.35%, trades in Canadian dollars, and avoids US withholding tax in a TFSA or FHSA. URNM is the stronger option inside an RRSP where the US withholding treaty exemption applies.
Is HURA or URNM better for a TFSA?
HURA is materially better for a TFSA. URNM distributions get hit with 15% US withholding tax that you cannot recover inside a TFSA, dragging your net yield. HURA delivers similar underlying miner exposure with no US withholding at all.
Does HURA hold physical uranium?
No. HURA holds a portfolio of uranium mining and royalty companies, weighted by market cap. If you want direct physical uranium exposure, look at U.UN (Sprott Physical Uranium Trust) which holds the metal itself, not miner equities.
How is HURA taxed in a non-registered account?
Distributions from HURA are typically classified as Canadian eligible dividends, which qualify for the dividend tax credit. Capital gains on the units are taxed at Canadian rates with the 50% inclusion rate. There is no US withholding and no T1135 foreign property reporting requirement.
What percentage of my portfolio should be in uranium ETFs?
For most portfolios, cap total uranium exposure at about 5% of your equity allocation. If it is your only thematic tilt you can stretch to 7-8%, but higher weights turn a diversified portfolio into a concentrated commodity bet. Rebalance if the sleeve drifts more than 50% above or 40% below its target.
Is CCO (Cameco) a better bet than HURA or URNM?
Cameco is roughly 17-22% of each of the miner ETFs, so owning HURA or URNM already gives you significant Cameco exposure. Owning both CCO and a uranium ETF creates concentration, not diversification. Pick one route: either the single stock for a high-conviction bet, or the ETF for spread exposure across producers, developers, and royalty names.