Guide · Duty by category · Updated 18 Oct 2026
Toys and small electronics.
0% duty into Canada, up to 15% into the US.
The category where a “no duty” claim is half true: it is right for Canada and wrong for the US. The same item priced on both sides of the border, with the band and the thresholds shown.
The answer, in one table
Toys, games and small electronics sit in the 3 – 15% band in the United States and at 0% duty into Canada — the pair where the two countries disagree most. These are the bands our engine prices against (rate table as of 15 Oct 2026):
| Class | US duty band | Canada duty | US duty on a $24.99 item |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toys & games | 3 – 15% | 0% | $0.75 – $3.75 |
| Electronics | 3 – 15% | 0% | $0.75 – $3.75 |
| Phone accessories | 3 – 15% | 0% | $0.75 – $3.75 |
Two consequences people miss. First, a "no duty on toys" claim is only true on one side of the border — it is right for Canada and wrong for the US, where the band runs to 15%. Second, the band is a range on purpose: US duty currently layers a base tariff and China-specific measures on top, and parts of that stack are under active litigation. A single confident percentage is a guess wearing a suit; ours is a band, with the as-of date printed next to it.
A worked toy: the same item, both markets
Item $24.99, freight quote $2.49. On the US side the answer is two figures; on the Canadian side the duty is zero — which is where the surprise is:
| Line | US — band low (3%) | US — band high (15%) | Canada, Ontario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Item | $24.99 | $24.99 | CAD 24.99 |
| Freight | $2.49 | $2.49 | CAD 2.49 |
| Duty | $0.75 | $3.75 | CAD 0.00 (0%) |
| Import tax | — | — | CAD 3.57 (HST 13% on the stack) |
| Delivered | $28.23 | $31.23 | CAD 31.05 |
Read the last column: Canada charges no duty on this toy and still lands within about a dollar of the US mid-band, because Canada taxes the stack — item + freight + duty — and the province sets the percentage. Alberta's 5% adds CAD 1.37 (delivered CAD 28.85); the Maritimes' 15% adds CAD 4.12 (delivered CAD 31.60). Zero duty is not zero cost.
Currency note: the US columns are in USD, the Canadian column in CAD, so the comparison is between two buyers paying in their own market. The engine prints the currency and the rate it used on every quote. As everywhere on this site: an estimate — not a customs ruling.
Where the money actually goes on a cheap import
On a $24.99 order the duty is the small line and the freight is not. That flips the usual instinct: on cheap goods the tariff is rarely what kills a product — the shipping quote and the tax base are. Two habits follow. Get the freight quoted for the quantity you are actually buying, because shipping is priced per carton, not per unit, and a quote at one unit does not scale to a hundred. And price the delivered number, not the listing price, because the listing price is the one number that never reaches your customer's door.
Canada's thresholds still exist (the US ones do not)
The United States suspended its $800 duty-free threshold on 29 August 2025 for all countries and all shipping modes, so a small US parcel now carries duty. Canada kept its thresholds — they are simply low, and they depend on the route: a courier parcel from outside the US and Mexico is free of duty and tax up to CAD 20; from the US or Mexico, up to CAD 40 is free and a parcel between CAD 40 and CAD 150 is duty-free but still taxed; by mail the threshold is CAD 20 from anywhere. Above them, duty and tax both apply. For a toy shipped to Canada, the threshold is the thing that matters most, because the duty on this category is already zero.
What to do with this
- Do not carry a "no duty" assumption across markets. Toys and electronics are the pair where the two countries disagree most — 0% into Canada, up to 15% into the US on the same item.
- Price at the top of the band in the US. On the worked toy the spread is $3.00 on a $25 item — 12% of the item price. If the band lands low, that is upside, not the plan.
- Re-check the number, not your memory. Every quote carries the as-of date of the rate table and a confidence signal; when the date is old, run it again. The remedy layers are still moving.
Price your exact toy, gadget or accessory on the free tool — pick the US or your province and it prints the line items. Ten lookups a month are free, no card, no account. For a full brief on one product — candidate suppliers, unit economics at 10 / 100 / 1,000 and the questions to ask — the $4.99 Source Report is the next step, and the sample report shows it before you buy.
Related
The categories where duty is big enough to change a decision · The four-line landed-cost recipe · Canada: the same parcel, province by province
Check your own numbers before you buy
Run any product through the tool and see the all-in delivered cost — item, live freight, duty and import tax — for the US or your Canadian province. Ten lookups are free every month; no card, no account.
Duty figures here are estimates with an accuracy promise, not a customs ruling. Rates and trade remedies are in flux — every number our tool shows carries a confidence band and an as-of date. See the sample report for exactly what you get.