There are tons of stock brokers on the market but who's the best? Here's a summary of the more popular options and what I think of them.
Etrade Financial really messed up with its mortgage division. During the past 2 years, the brokerage have been posting consecutive quarters of losses and it doesn't even have anything to do with its brokerage firm. It's really letting Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade take its share and it's just going downhill slowly.
TD Ameritrade is also an early player and it's main competition is Charles Schwab and Etrade. They have good advertising but the interface isn't great and support is okay mediocre. However, they do have a solid following and trades are $9.99 no matter how much you trade or have with them.
Charles Schwab have been cleaning up in the last year or so, especially with the troubles of Etrade. Honestly, I've been thinking about moving my money to Charles Schwab as well since they offer everything you'd want.
TradeKing is the stock broker that I use after years with Etrade. While I've made a lot of money with Etrade, I just don't want any problems with it going bankrupt. TradeKing also offers commissions at half the cost of Etrade.
Zecco has the worst marketing ever but it is one of the few broker that offers free stock trades. If you have over $25,000 or trade 25 times or more, the trades are free. Otherwise, it's $4.50 per trade.
Sogotrade is a relatively new player and it plays the angle of cheap trades. With $3 per trade, it's hard to beat unless everything is just free. Sogotrade also ensures trading accounts for up to $5 million.
WellsTrade is Wells Fargo's self trading platform offering. The user interface is lacking and the logistics of trading is a little weird but if you have $25k with them, trading is free (actually, up to 100 trades a year). It's not for the frequent trader but for retail investors, it's a great option (who can say no to free?).
Bank of America also offers free trades and the details are almost exactly the same as WellsTrade. To me, it's essentially the same but since BofA acquired Merrill Lynch, there may be a better future path when your net worth increases.
OptionsXpress is known for its options trade. Instead of charging you per option like most firms, this company has a set pricing. They also claim to have no hidden fees so it might be a good option (no pun intended). - 23210
Etrade Financial really messed up with its mortgage division. During the past 2 years, the brokerage have been posting consecutive quarters of losses and it doesn't even have anything to do with its brokerage firm. It's really letting Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade take its share and it's just going downhill slowly.
TD Ameritrade is also an early player and it's main competition is Charles Schwab and Etrade. They have good advertising but the interface isn't great and support is okay mediocre. However, they do have a solid following and trades are $9.99 no matter how much you trade or have with them.
Charles Schwab have been cleaning up in the last year or so, especially with the troubles of Etrade. Honestly, I've been thinking about moving my money to Charles Schwab as well since they offer everything you'd want.
TradeKing is the stock broker that I use after years with Etrade. While I've made a lot of money with Etrade, I just don't want any problems with it going bankrupt. TradeKing also offers commissions at half the cost of Etrade.
Zecco has the worst marketing ever but it is one of the few broker that offers free stock trades. If you have over $25,000 or trade 25 times or more, the trades are free. Otherwise, it's $4.50 per trade.
Sogotrade is a relatively new player and it plays the angle of cheap trades. With $3 per trade, it's hard to beat unless everything is just free. Sogotrade also ensures trading accounts for up to $5 million.
WellsTrade is Wells Fargo's self trading platform offering. The user interface is lacking and the logistics of trading is a little weird but if you have $25k with them, trading is free (actually, up to 100 trades a year). It's not for the frequent trader but for retail investors, it's a great option (who can say no to free?).
Bank of America also offers free trades and the details are almost exactly the same as WellsTrade. To me, it's essentially the same but since BofA acquired Merrill Lynch, there may be a better future path when your net worth increases.
OptionsXpress is known for its options trade. Instead of charging you per option like most firms, this company has a set pricing. They also claim to have no hidden fees so it might be a good option (no pun intended). - 23210
About the Author:
So many brokerage firms out there but not enough time to test them all, Stock Trading Brokers try to help figure out which stock broker is really the best in the industry. Zecco Discount Broker, while not the most popular, certainly feel a certain niche because of its free stock trades.
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