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Robinhood brings an attractive and smooth mobile app to the trading best customer service brokerage firms game, allowing you to buy stocks, ETFs, options and cryptocurrency with no out-of-pocket commission. You’ll also get to buy fractional shares and Robinhood Gold members can earn an attractive interest rate on their cash balances here. Plus, Robinhood now lets you open an IRA and provides you a match on your contributions.
How we select the brokerage accounts that make this list
NerdWallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. Examples are hypothetical, and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Our estimates are based on past market performance, and Blockchain past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. Interactive Brokers continues to strengthen its offering with access to worldwide markets, improved trading platforms and more no-transaction-fee mutual funds. You won’t struggle to find securities to trade at TradeStation, which allows users to buy and sell traditional assets like stocks and ETFs, as well as less common ones like futures. Plus, you can do it all through the broker’s sophisticated mobile app or desktop trading platforms.
Best Brokerage Accounts for Online Stock Trading
Moomoo is a newer entrant to the brokerage world, but it’s been aggressive about https://www.xcritical.com/ attracting customers with good prices. It offers the usual no-commission trading on stocks and ETFs, but ups the game with no-cost options trading, too. Moomoo also offers low margin rates, making it an interesting place for traders looking for this feature.
Fees for Account Management or Inactivity
- We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, and conduct first-hand testing and observation through provider demonstrations.
- But if you choose to reenroll in Vanguard Digital Advisor during or after your fee-waiver period, you won’t be eligible for a second fee waiver.
- We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money.
- Moomoo may appeal to individual traders looking for low commissions on stocks, ETFs and options, as well as access to international markets such as Hong Kong and China.
- With its stripped-down trading interface, Interactive Brokers only looks like a no-frills broker.
However, there’s still time for investors to capitalize on the opportunity to earn more interest from uninvested cash — as you’ll see below, rates remain relatively high. Webull is a great pick for mobile trading, not only for no commissions on stocks and options but also for its new addition of futures. Vanguard is known for its low-cost funds, and the investment platform is really built for those looking to invest solely in mutual funds and ETFs.
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Schwab has been well known for decades for its customer-first approach. Charles Schwab does it all well, from low fees to solid research to no account minimum – all at a reasonable trading commission. Beginners will like the zero commissions and thousands of no-transaction-fee funds, while more advanced traders will appreciate the highly customizable thinkorswim platform brought over from the TD Ameritrade acquisition. EToro’s user-friendly interface and social trading features are appreciated by many customers, especially beginner investors. However, some customers report technical issues like slow loading times and occasional crashes, which present a challenge to active traders.
Interactive Brokers charges the lowest margin rates of the brokers we reviewed. Its rates are even lower for those traders with larger accounts who borrow sums in the six or seven-figure range. Interactive Brokers also offers its clients robust scanners to find the best opportunities to trade. It offers a large number of stocks and ETFs in its fractional shares program.
Most other fees can be sidestepped by simply choosing a broker that doesn’t charge them, or by opting out of services that cost extra. Common fees to watch out for include annual fees, inactivity fees, trading platform subscriptions and extra charges for research or data. You can still earn over 4% on uninvested cash in your brokerage account. But to do so, you have to choose a broker with a high cash sweep rate, like those listed here.
Our deep, independent analysis of online brokers cuts through the details to find and evaluate the information investors want when choosing a stock trading account. TradeStation caters to advanced traders, including sophisticated trading platforms and options tools, as well as the ability to trade futures. Charles Schwab is a great all-around broker, whether you’re just getting started investing or are more advanced, and it can bring the heat on almost anything you’re likely to need. Add on strong customer support, a wide investment selection, no-commission mutual funds, along with tons of research, and you have the makings of a five-star broker. Fidelity is a value-driven online broker offering $0 trades, industry-leading research, excellent trading tools and an easy-to-use mobile app.
If you enroll additional accounts at a later date, you can still take advantage of any remaining fee-waiver period. However, each additional account you enroll won’t trigger a unique fee-waiver period but will instead be commingled with your first enrolled account. If you unenroll before your fee-waiver period ends, you won’t owe an advisory fee. But if you choose to reenroll in Vanguard Digital Advisor during or after your fee-waiver period, you won’t be eligible for a second fee waiver. If you previously enrolled accounts in other Vanguard Advisers, Inc. (“VAI”), proprietary retail offers, you will not be eligible for the introductory fee waiver. This fee-waiver offer may be modified or discontinued anytime at the sole discretion of VAI.
There are some notable differences between retirement and nonretirement accounts. Lei Deng, founder of Savor Financial, says you are looking for trade commissions, other transaction fees, and advisory fees if you plan to delegate your investing to a broker. Overall, it’s a good platform for those new and experienced when it comes to investing.
The reasoning was that younger people might be more compelled to invest if they could visualize themselves retiring. In one recent report, eToro found Gen Z investors are twice as likely to discuss their portfolios with friends and family as baby boomers. Charles Schwab has $10.3 trillion assets under management (AUM) as of November 2024.
“For instance, some do not offer the ability to write checks like a bank would. Some limit the amount of transactions you can make in a particular month,” Hampton says. However, SIPC coverage doesn’t protect the value of money market funds, such as those that Fidelity and Vanguard sweep funds into by default. In other words, SIPC coverage doesn’t necessarily cover the exact dollar amount of cash in a brokerage account the way FDIC coverage does in a savings account.
Traders can trade stocks, options, currencies, bonds, futures, and funds in over 150 markets worldwide. Zacks Trade is a broker that should appeal to active traders with its advanced trading platform and ample research offering. New investors may be turned off by the high account minimum and fees for mutual fund trades. SoFi Active Investing does a lot right for newer investors, including no commissions on stocks, ETFs and options. SoFi’s fractional share plan allows clients to purchase partial shares of stock and reinvest any dividends in them, too, helping get all your money working for you. The brokerage account is a solid add-on option if you’re already working with the company another way, perhaps with a loan or bank account.
The Robinhood Legend platform lets you select from preset layouts or customize them to fit your needs, and its suite of learning content is easy to digest. If you’re new to investing or need a refresher, Fidelity’s Learning Center offers an array of educational materials. Plus, you can access expert-backed investment research and insights and work with an advisor through Fidelity Wealth Management. Schwab provides multiple trading experiences, giving you the option to choose between its flagship “thinkorswim” and Schwab platforms. Its extensive educational library is helpful for newer investors, and there are also podcasts, videos and in-person informational events from which to learn. Merrill Lynch serves as the main brokerage option through Bank of America.