Best Brokers For Stocks And Options Trading (2024)
Choosing the right broker is vitally essential to the future success of your trading. From the simple trade of stocks to the complex trading of options, a broker is very much like buying a car. Choosing the right broker takes time and trial and error. You must try different brokers to make your final decision on which one is best suited for you. Here we recommend five of the best stock and options brokers that can meet your need. Not all brokers are created the same, and some are only available to US residents, while others are international.
Tradezero
Tradezero is an excellent platform for beginners and intermediate who needs an affordable and easy-to-use platform with a simple interface.
Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is considered highly trusted. Interactive Brokers is publicly traded, does not operate as a bank. They offer a large selection of tradeable securities.
'etoro'
Etoro is a trading platform that has become increasingly popular among traders, particularly those looking for a social trading experience or a copy trade system.
Speedtrader
SpeedTrader caters to investors and active day traders. Touting itself as a firm with the “highest level of trading services at the lowest cost possible,” it is known for its multiple routing options and fast execution.
Ironbeam
Ironbeam Trading Futures is a platform that allows traders to invest in futures contracts with a variety of markets, such as currencies, commodities, and indices
What Are The Best Broker?
A broker is a quick and easy way to access the stock market to exchange funds for stocks and/or options with the intent to make a profit.
Brokers take order from customers and try to fill them at the best price possible.
In return, they earn a fee known as a commission.
Today, many stockbrokers have transitioned to financial advisors or planners as online brokerage platforms allow users to enter their own orders via the web or mobile app
Here are the top picks for the best stock and options brokers.
1. Tradezero
Best Broker For Beginner And Intermediate
Our Take
The TradeZero trading platform is one of the most popular online platforms for trading stocks and options. It has been around for a few years now and has gained a great deal of popularity among traders due to its easy-to-use interface, great customer service, and competitive fees.
| Best For | Easy To Use |
|---|---|
| Price | $59.00/mo |
| Annual Discount | No |
| Promotion | Three Months Free |
Easy to use: TradeZero’s user-friendly interface allows traders to quickly and easily place orders and track their positions. It also offers a wide range of tools to help traders analyze and manage their positions.
Minimum deposit: TradeZero requires a minimum deposit of $250.00 to open an account. This means that traders can start trading with little money, although they recommend to start with $600.00 to have a margin account.
Low fees: TradeZero’s fees are among the lowest in the industry, making it an attractive option for traders who are looking to reduce their costs.
Variety of products: TradeZero offers a wide array of products including stocks, options, futures, and more. This gives traders the flexibility to choose the products that best fit their trading strategies.
Great customer service: TradeZero’s customer service team is highly responsive and helpful. They are always available to answer any questions and help traders with any issues they may have.
You can quickly contact the friendly customer care team through live chat, phone, or email.
With their assistance, you’ll be able to quickly solve any technical issues and create a successful online trading experience.
Excellent primary trading platform: TradeZero Pro and TradeZero Web platforms are robust, customizable trading platforms that have streaming level II quotes, news, and charting, and allow order routing for accounts with at least $5,000
Key Features:
- Improve your trading with multiple options or stock charts.
- 100% Free limit orders to all accounts.
- No pattern day trading rules Unlike many brokers that offer access to the US markets, TradeZero does not limit the amount of day trading that clients can do, based on the amount of money in their account. Day trade any account with as little as $500. There is no pattern day trading restriction, which states that only accounts that maintain at least $25,000 are able to day trade. Trade all you want, when you want with TradeZero, free commission stock trading.
- TradeZero provides clients up to 6 to 1 intraday leverage on their equity. 6:1 day trading leverage allows traders to maximize day trading opportunities in the market. Overnight positions are granted 2 to 1 leverage.
- TradeZero offers the best online free stock trading software in the industry. Our ZeroPro platform delivers the speed and functionality that active traders need to succeed. Our ZeroWeb, a powerful level 2 web platform with direct market access. ZeroFree offers a zero cost software solution for all traders. We also offer ZeroMobile for traders on the go. ZeroPro, ZeroWeb, ZeroFree and ZeroMobile deliver all the tools that you will need to become a successful trader
User Experience:
Easy-to-use. Tradezero platform can be used on all devices.
Pricing:
Tradezero offers options contracts for as low as .59 per contract.
Like/Dislike About Tradezero
Like:
- Reliable platform. Short locates.
- Commission free trades.
- Web and Desktop Platforms.
- Pre and Post market trading.
- Support: 24/7 live customer support.
Dislike:
- There is no access to mutual funds, futures, or commodities on the TradeZero platform. Platform fee: TradeZero charges $59 per month for customer accounts below $50,000 for its desktop and full web platforms. TradeZero has a free version with a mobile app, but TradeZero Free has limited features.
- High withdrawal fee.
Product Updates
- Minimum deposit is $250.00 Inactivity fee is $0.
Get started with Tradezero
2. Interactive Brokers
Best For International and Intermediate Investors
Our Take
| Best For | Day Traders And Investors |
|---|---|
| Price | $0.005/share, see website for schedule |
| Annual Discount | No |
| Promotion | None |
Clients in over 200 countries and territories trade stocks, options, futures, currencies, bonds, funds, crypto7 and more on 150 global markets from a single unified platform.
Fund your account and trade assets in 26 currencies.
By comparing the prices and financial metrics of global stocks in the same currency IBKR GlobalAnalyst helps you identify new investment oppportunities.
You can search for stocks by region, country, industry, market cap and currency to find undervalued stocks worldwide. The results show the current market price and various financial metrics, including all data related to P/E/G Ratio.
Active and casual traders alike will benefit from Interactive Brokers' advanced execution, strong trading platforms and rock-bottom pricing.
Their platform can be overwhelming in their complexities, but can be traded by third party platform like DAS.
Key Features:
- Low commissions starting at $04 with no added spreads, ticket charges, platform fees, or account minimums.
- IBKR BestXTM is a powerful suite of advanced trading technologies designed to help clients achieve best execution and maximize price improvement while minimizing market impact.
- Margin rates up to 50% lower than the industry.
- Earn interest of up to USD 4.33% on uninvested, instantly available cash.
- Earn extra income on your lendable shares
User Experience:
Charting can be complicated as with trading, but once you acquire the knowledge it is worth it.
The access to the various markets worldwide makes this broker a secure and internationally appealing.
Pricing:
With all the options that Interactive Brokers has to offer, please visit their website for all pricing.
Like/Dislike About Interactive Brokers
Like:
- IB TWS is exceptionally good, one of the best in speed, multi assets and reliable platforms for all types of accounts
- Fast and stable user interface.
- News integration and alerts can give added support to your trading.
Dislike:
- Complicated platform that takes time to adjust.
Product Updates
- Educational section offers endless knowledge in trading.
Get started with Interactive Brokers
3. 'etoro'
Best For International Multi Asset Trading
Our Take
'etoro' is an excellent choice for those interested in low-cost trading of stocks, CFDs, forex and cryptos on an outstanding mobile app.
| Best For | Range Of Tradable Assets |
|---|---|
| Price | Varies by Region |
| Annual Discount | No |
| Promotion | None |
eToro offers free stock and ETF trading, easy account opening, and one of the best crypto selections in the industry.
Its biggest appeal is copy trading, where you can track the trades and portfolios of other users. eToro’s trading platforms are intuitive and easy to use, making it suitable for beginners.
Still, there are areas where eToro disappoints, including high non-trading fees (for withdrawal and currency conversion), inflexible account plans and elusive customer service. eToro USA LCC does not offer CFDs, only real Crypto assets available.
One of the main advantages of Etoro is its wide range of markets. It offers a wide variety of markets including Forex, Commodities, Stocks, Indices, and Cryptocurrencies. This allows traders to diversify their portfolios and take advantage of different markets.
Copy Trading: Another great feature of Etoro is its copy trading system. This allows new traders to copy the trades of experienced traders, allowing them to learn from experienced traders and potentially make a profit.
. Social Trading: Etoro also offers a social trading experience. This allows traders to interact with each other and ask for advice or share trading strategies. This helps traders to stay up to date with market news and makes trading more enjoyable.
.
Mobile Trading: Etoro also offers a mobile trading app, allowing traders to trade on the go. This is a great feature for traders who are always on the move.
.
As with any trading platform, Etoro is subject to volatility. This means that traders can experience large losses if the markets are not in their favor.
Etoro also offers leveraged trading, meaning that traders can use borrowed money to increase their potential profits. However, this also increases the risk of losses.
Key Features:
- Invest in stocks with zero % commission.
- From technology to healthcare, New York to Hong Kong — with fractional shares, it’s easy to fill your portfolio with a variety of leading stocks from the world’s top exchanges.
- Invest in stocks without paying commission and without limits on trading volume.
- Trade a wide variety of leading cryptoassets and crypto crosses, using innovative tools that you won’t find anywhere else. eToro Crypto offers the ultimate crypto solution: trading platform, wallet, and exchange all in one, with the security of a regulated fintech leader.
- Take advantage of exciting opportunities in the world’s top resource markets. With one-click trading, flexible leverage, and deep liquidity, trading commodity CFDs allows you to choose an investment amount without being limited to units, such as a whole barrel of oil or an ounce of gold.
- Trade on the largest, most active financial market in the world — the foreign currency exchange, also known as FX. Buy and sell a wide variety of major USD pairs and other currency crosses, with up to 1:30 leverage (or up to 1:400 as a Professional Client) to gain greater exposure with less capital.
- Trade on the largest, most active financial market in the world — the foreign currency exchange, also known as FX.
- Expand your exposure with indices that you can trade.
- Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) allow investors a flexible yet comprehensive way of investing in the financial markets at a low-cost entry point and without management fees — making them ideal for portfolio diversification. eToro offers both investing in ETFs as the underlying asset, as well as trading them as CFDs.
User Experience:
- Fantastic for ease of use thanks to its user-friendly web platform and the eToro mobile app that is great for casual and beginner investors.
- eToro continues to expand its available range of markets as a multi-asset broker with over 3,000 symbols available.
Pricing:
'etoro' offers trading that can be done in crypto, stocks, forex.
Like/Dislike About 'etoro'
Like:
- Free stock and ETF trading.
- Seamless account opening.
- Social and interactive trading.
Dislike:
- High non trading fees.
- Only one based currency.
- Poor customer support that should be improved.
Product Updates
- Fractional shares are available.
- eToro is a good choice for beginners.
Get started with Wix
4. Speedtrader.
Best For Stocks And Options
Our Take
Seamless and fast day trading platform with a large selection of ECN order routes such as ARCA, INET, BATS, EDGX etc. Fast execution and efficient direct access order routing. The trading fees are relatively low when the account balance is over $25 000.
| Best For | Best Stocks And Options |
|---|---|
| Price | See Website For Details |
| Annual Discount | NONE |
| Promotion | Get Started With Demo Account |
Speedtrader.com is an online stock trading platform that provides users with a range of features designed to make trading stocks easier and more profitable.
The platform is designed for both novice and experienced traders, offering a range of tools and features to help them make better decisions and maximize their profits.
With Speedtrader.com, users can access a variety of different markets, including stocks, futures, options, and more.
They can also access real-time news and data as well as advanced charting and analysis tools. In addition, the platform offers a wide range of order types, including market, limit, stop, and trailing stop orders.
Wide range of markets: Speedtrader.com offers access to a variety of different markets, including stocks, futures, and options, making it easier for traders to diversify their portfolios.
Advanced analysis and charting tools: The platform offers users access to advanced charting and analysis tools, making it easier to make better trading decisions.
Low commissions: The platform offers competitive commission rates, making it more affordable for traders to make trades.
Variety of order types: Speedtrader offers a variety of different order types, including market, limit, stop, and trailing stop orders, allowing users to customize their trading strategies.
Key Features:
- Due to their high activity levels, advanced and active day traders have the potential to circumvent the quarterly inactivity fee and software platform fee. This category of traders can also take advantage of the ECN order route options.
- Online trading is available only for stocks and options. Therefore, stock and options traders can take advantage of all the features this brokerage firm has to offer.
- Pricing is either per-share or per-trade based, with per-share pricing starting at $0.0009/share and per-trade pricing starting at $2.49 per share. Options pricing start at $0.25/contract.
- Platform fees start at $0 to $99 per month plus the monthly commissions.
- SpeedTrader offers web-based desktop or mobile trading platforms, including a powerful level 2 desktop trading software called SpeedTrader PRO. SpeedTrader PRO offers direct access order routing and advanced orders.
User Experience:
Opening an account is fairly easy. You’ll need to complete an application online. Basic information needed includes social security number or tax identification number, valid photo identification (driver’s license, passport or government-issued ID card), bank account details.
SpeedTrader also offers a free virtual practice account with virtual buying power. If a change is required in the trade rate, you can request it via email. The change will become effective 1-2 business days from the time the request is received, but the change can only be done once a month.
Speedtrader is deisgned if you are an expert trader who understands and uses the multiple routing options available as well as direct access order routing.
Pricing:
Monthly prices for the platform usage range from $35 per month for the Web user stand alone, $20 for Fundamentals, $40 for trade signals and an additional $25 for a demo account.
Like/Dislike About Speedtrader
Like:
- Advanced analysis and charting tools: The platform offers users access to advanced charting and analysis tools, making it easier to make better trading decisions.
- Low commissions: The platform offers competitive commission rates, making it more affordable for traders to make trades.
- Speedtrader.com offers a variety of different order types, including market, limit, stop, and trailing stop orders, allowing users to customize their trading strategies.
Dislike:
- Limited customer service: The customer service offered by Speedtrader.com is limited, making it difficult to get help with technical issues or other problems.
- Limited research tools: The platform does not offer access to a wide range of research tools, making it difficult for traders to do in-depth analysis of potential investments.
- Limited educational resources: The platform does not offer access to a wide range of educational resources, making it difficult for novice traders to learn the basics of trading
Product Updates
- SpeedTrader PRO is designed for optimal performance so you can focus on what you do best: trading.
- Platform allows you to maintain a custom watchlist, create, save and load custom multi screen layouts.
If you are a beginner or intermediate day trader, or even swing trader Speedtrader has plenty of possibilities to fill your needs.
Get started with Speedtrader
5. Ironbeam
Best For Futures Trading
Our Take
Futures trading has become increasingly popular in recent years as a viable investment strategy, While trading futures has its advantages, there are also some potential drawbacks that investors should be aware of before they begin trading. Let's examine some of the benefits using Ironbeam.
| Best For | CME Exchange Futures |
|---|---|
| Price | Free – per contract and Platform fee |
| Annual Discount | None |
| Promotion | Demo account available |
Ironbeam offers some of the lowest commission fees on futures trading, making it a great option for budget-conscious investors. Traders can take advantage of Ironbeam’s low fees to save on trading costs.
Variety of Markets: Ironbeam offers a wide range of markets to choose from, including currencies, commodities, and indices. This allows traders to diversify their investments and take advantage of market movements.
Education Resources: Ironbeam provides educational materials to help traders learn more about futures trading. This includes webinars, videos, and other resources to help traders become more informed.
Key Features:
- Ironbeam is a CME Group clearing member firm and FCM
- There is no minimum deposit required to open your account.
- Ironbeam is an industry-leading futures broker and trading platform.
- You can deposit funds via wire transfer, ACH, or check. Wires are the quickest funding method. Checks typically take three business days to clear and ACHs take five business days to clear.
- IRONBEAM ranks 5th among 60 active competitors.
User Experience:
To fund your futures trading account, you can start with as little as $100 USD
A pattern day trader who executes four or more round turns in a single security within a week is required to maintain a minimum equity of $25,000 in their brokerage account. But a futures trader is not required to meet this minimum account size.
Education Resources: Ironbeam provides educational materials to help traders learn more about futures trading. This includes webinars, videos, and other resources to help traders become more informed.
Pricing:
The Ironbeam futures trading platform has no platform fees.Enjoy futures trading without a monthly platform fee.
Trade from any device and take your trading anywhere and anytime.
The day margin is set by Ironbeam. This is the amount required per contract to trade on an intraday basis. Day margins are in effect during all market hours except the last 10 minutes preceding the market close. The exchange margin is set by the exchange, and it is the amount required to carry a position past the market close. Ironbeam offers some of the lowest margin requirements in the industry, therefore affording you more purchasing power.
The level of customer support you receive is unparalleled. As most other brokers you must deal with email, Ironbeam offers real time phone calls.
Ironbeam Advanced comes with over 300+ indicators, as well as the ability to code and create your own.
Like/Dislike About Ironbeam:
Like:
- Low Costs: Ironbeam offers some of the lowest commission fees on futures trading, making it a great option for budget conscious investors. Traders can take advantage of Ironbeam’s low fees to save on trading costs.
- Variety of Markets: Ironbeam offers a wide range of markets to choose from, including currencies, commodities, and indices. This allows traders to diversify their investments and take advantage of market movements.
- Trade Crypto.
Dislike:
- A little more tutorial or help would be great for those just starting.
- Some small complaints issued to direct calls were made at times of busiest time of day.
Product Updates
- Ironbeam offers a vast array of fully-automated trading systems, and has relationships with many industry-leading CTAs and CPOs. Investors that are looking for a more hands-off approach to trading commonly seek out automated or managed futures trading systems instead of coming up with their own strategies and trying to learn the markets on their own.
- Ironbeam’s server-side cloud solution ensures that your orders, strategies, formulas, and workspaces are all stored securely so that you can take your futures trading anywhere on any device. Available on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux.
Get started with Ironbeam.
