Thursday, January 23rd
2025 Online Stock Trading Platform Reviews
E*Trade
- Bonuses at sign-up
- Owned by financial giant Morgan Stanley
- Volume discount on options contract fees
- Robust trading platforms
- Educational materials
No matter how much knowledge you have about stock trading, E Trade is all about simplifying all of your investment and trading - with an app that puts investing, banking, trading, research, and so much more right in your hand. Created in the early 1980s by a physicist and inventor, E Trade is truly the original online trading platform for retail investors - its creator was the first person in history to complete an online transaction sent to a stock exchange. This online trading platform was acquired by Morgan Stanley in October 2020.
Just the facts
- Costs
- $0 commissions on online US-listed stock, ETF, and options trades
- $0.65 per contract on options ($0.50 with 30+ trades/quarter)
- $0 for mutual funds transactions
- Minimum Deposit
- No minimum deposit required
Bonuses for signing up
At the time of our review, E Trade was offering a sign-up bonus of $50 to $6,000 (depending on your investment amount) for new E Trade clients who would open one new eligible brokerage (non-retirement) account and funded within 60 days of account opening with $1,000 or more of new funds or securities. If you decide to go with E Trade, make sure you look for special offers, which should be displayed on the top of the page.
Nice tools available on signing up
E Trade is as old as the internet - and they've had time to get it right. Their platforms have been rated Best Trading Technology by Benzinga's 2023 Global Fintech Awards and have tools to help investors and traders of any experience level. For active and more advanced traders, the Power E Trade web and app platforms can be used anywhere and will allow you to be able to trade a wide range of securities. Frequent traders can also earn discounts on option commissions. For the beginner, there is the basic version of the E Trade web and app, ideal for trading and tracking the markets, looking at research, increasing your knowledge, and giving you inspiration and ideas.
Offers an automated trading account
E Trade, like other stock trading platforms, offers automated accounts for those who would prefer not to spend a lot of time on learning about investments and stocks. Their Core Portfolios are monitored and managed for a low annual advisory fee of 0.30% and a $500 minimum. Signing up for the Core Portfolio is an 11-step process that includes a risk assessment to determine your investing risk tolerance. Once you answer the questionnaire, you will get your results, which will show you which plan best fits your risk tolerance. You then customize it based on your personal financial goals, and you get to use projection tools to explore how your portfolio might perform under different sets of circumstances. In the end, E Trade promises you a fully customized, automated portfolio.
Gets an "F” from the Better Business Bureau
E Trade has received a failing BBB rating for not responding to hundreds of customer complaints and for not resolving still other complaints. While they get high scores for their software, there have been complaints that since being absorbed into Morgan Stanley, the software has glitches and freezes - and in a business where time is money, this isn't really acceptable. Most recent complaints and comments online refer to lagging on the app and website, problems withdrawing money from E Trade, and overall problems with the app crashing. With a company as large as Morgan Stanley, this borders on ridiculous.
Customers get hit-and-miss service
Many customers say that they cannot transfer money out or close their E Trade accounts without a headache. Other people complain of it taking months for E Trade to approve and open an account for them. There are times when some customers had to wait on hold for over an hour. Customers also complain of being locked out of their accounts for days, while still others say that since Morgan Stanley acquired it, E Trade's customer service reps have lost important customer documents, showed complete incompetence and lack of understanding of the stock trading platform, and don't respond to urgent requests for help.
Look for a different platform with reliability
E Trade has been around for a long time and was once a trustworthy stock trading platform that really had done a fantastic job appealing to every kind of investor. Unfortunately, being competent and being trustworthy are two different things. While customers who choose to spend extra on the Power E Trade web and app platforms do report less glitchy service, they still have problems. The basic users have multiple, consistent problems with the platform that cost them money and time. When these glitches and crashes happen, customer service is sluggish at best and, at worst, unavailable. Even more disturbing is the lack of quality control on the account closing or money withdrawing experiences. Another company seems to have fallen victim to acquisition pains. We wouldn't feel comfortable giving E Trade a high rating as a stock trading platform.
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Which Online Stock Trading Platform is the Best?
This can be an overwhelming question for beginning investors - but that's a great place to start. First, ask yourself what level of skills or knowledge you have in investing and what your purposes for investing are. Are you brand new to the financial world of stocks, ETFs, fractional shares, and options? Are you trying to manage a large amount of wealth? Are you looking for a safe place to grow your savings over the next few decades?
Or, are you someone who has had a lot of experience in investing and wants to get back into the game or take your game to the next level? Are you wanting to take high risks, or are you more conservative in your approach? There are plenty of options out there and there are some who focus on everything and some who specialize in one or two niche markets.
Online Stock Trading Platform FAQ
Continued from above...
For beginning traders, there are platforms that have devoted a big part of their online presence into education. Some have partnered with banks so you can do all of your investing along with your banking.
For active traders, the best platforms will have advanced charting capabilities, responsive customer service, robust toolkits, and they will also offer high-quality research resources. We highly recommend those platforms that allow for backtesting - a way to put in a particular strategy simulation and see how it might play out before committing to the trade in real life. Be sure to ask questions and double-check that whatever stock trading platform you use, they will have the tools that fit your particular needs.
For example, if you are going to be trading mostly on your mobile phone, you will want to make sure the stock trading company you choose has a strong mobile platform. Some companies do a bare-bones mobile app, and that would not be a suitable fit. Be sure to check if software platforms have a history of outages or glitches, too.
Are you the kind of investor who doesn't want to actually pull the trigger on choosing which stocks to buy on your own? You might want to look into robo-advisors or a dedicated financial advisor or team of advisors. These accounts usually come with fees as a percentage of the total amount invested, but it can be well worth the cost if you don't want to be involved in the day-to-day management and strategy on your account.
Most advisor accounts (robo or personal) involve you completing a questionnaire and/or a phone call that considers your time frame, financial goals, and risk tolerance. From there, the company will create a portfolio matching the information you gave. This portfolio will be rebalanced automatically, and you don't have to do a thing. On those types of accounts, you can find options with no fees, and the ones that do charge fees are usually much less expensive than working with a human advisor one-on-one.
Keep in mind that most of today's online stock trading platforms very proudly advertise that they charge "$0 fees." That usually just refers to a $0 commission fee. There will definitely be at least one or two fees for most accounts. Whether it's for withdrawal or broker-assisted transactions, there are going to be some extra costs associated with your account.
So, which online stock trading platform is best for you? Here are some of the criteria to keep in mind:
- Intended investment strategy. Are you an active day trader? A buy-and-hold investor? A conservative investor taking the slow and steady way to build a retirement? Are you willing to take risks? Are you a natural researcher or do you want someone else to do that for you?
- Ease of use. Is the website difficult to figure out? Is it easy to open an account, or do you have to go through a lot of extra hoops? Do you prefer to talk to someone on the phone, or is live chat your go-to way to communicate? Are there tutorials and online help for learning how to use the platform?
- Tools. Do you want lots of tools, or do you just want someone else to worry about it? Do you want to have an app that is integrated with your bank? Is there a mobile app? Is it web-based or downloadable? Can you connect with research resources that match your level of expertise?
- Customer service. What do other clients say about their experiences with the company? How are issues handled by customer service? Are the financial advisors helpful?
- Reputation. Is this a service with a long history in the financial industry or a relative newcomer? Is the company insured or backed by government or private agencies? Do they have a history of litigation or being fined by FINRA or other agencies? Are they transparent?
To help you make the most of your investments, Top Consumer Reviews has evaluated and ranked today's most popular online stock trading platforms. We hope this information helps you reach your financial goals!
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