TD Ameritrade versus Bank of America Online Brokerage
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Bank of America Brokerage does not exist anymore. Bank of America purchased Merrill Lynch and together they created
new online broker called Merrill Edge (Merrill Edge Review).
To compare TD Ameritrade and Merrill Edge, read
Ameritrade vs Merrill Edge review.
TD Ameritrade vs Bank of America Brokerage: Fees and Investments Offered
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- Stocks and ETFs: $9.99
- Stocks and ETFs broker assisted: $49.99
- Stocks and ETFs Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Telephone System: $34.99
- Options: $9.99 plus $0.75 per contract
- No-load mutual funds: $49.99
- Treasuries at auction: $25 flat fee
- All other bonds and CMOs, CDs: on a net yield basis
- Futures: $3.50 per contract (inclusive of exchange fees)
- Investment products: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options, ETFs, bonds, CDs, UITs, futures and forex
- Minimum to open TD Ameritrade account: $0 for cash account, $2,000 for margin account
- All TD Ameritrade fees
- Ameritrade login, TD Ameritrade promotional code
and Ameritrade referral code
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- Stocks and ETFs: $14 per trade ($10 for checking account customers)
- Telephone Orders: $32.50. Broker Assisted Trades: $42.50
- Options: $19.95 + $1.50 per contract
- Mutual Funds: 1,900 no transaction fee mutual funds, except when mutual fund shares held for 90 days or less are exchanged or redeemed;
$45 minimum per transaction for non-NTF funds
- Bonds: call 1.800.926.1111 to get pricing
- Investment products: stocks, treasury bills, notes & bonds, govt. agencies, municipal notes & bonds, corporate bonds, mutual funds, ETFs
- Minimum to open account: $0
- All Bank of America Brokerage fees
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- No surcharges on penny stocks, large orders and after-hours trading
- Large and well known company with many local branches
- Very good trading platform
- Free IRA accounts
- No maintenance and inactivity fees
- Free streaming quotes
- Large selection of independent, third-party research (S&P, Morningstar Associates, and ResearchTeamTM)
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- Full service brokerage available for wealthy investors
- Free dividend reinvestment
- Minimum to open: $0
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- $9.99 commission for stocks/ETFs and $49 commission for mutual funds are high
- Occasional poor order execution
- The website is sometimes very slow or even down on the high volume days
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- Very high commissions on all investments
- Poor customer service
- Semiannual maintenance fee: $50 (waived with personal checking account relationship)
- Messy account opening process
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TD Ameritrade versus Bank of America Brokerage: Comparison Summary
TD Ameritrade (TD Ameritrade Review) is one of
the largest brokerage firms in the nation.
Both companies have high commissions: $9.99 per stock and ETF trade (need checking account at BOA to get
this rate). Bank of America Brokerage also charges $50 semiannual maintenance fee.
BOA brokerage offers its customers good banking services and free dividend reinvestment.
The firm does not suffer from website slowness and order execution problems that happen at TD Ameritrade on
high-volume days. Bank of America, however, needs improvement at account opening, trading tools and customer
service.
Both firms do not have surcharges on penny stocks, large orders or extended hours trading orders.
They also don't charge IRA setup and annual IRA fees, though they did not made it into our
Top IRA Accounts
list, where one could find
Optionshouse,
Zecco (Zecco Review) and
Scottrade (Scottrade Review).
There are better brokerage companies for beginner investors that offer vibrant online communities where members
could ask questions, learn from more experienced traders and interact with each other. Check out
our Best Online Brokers for Beginners recommendations.
Commissions at both TD Ameritrade and Bank of America Brokerage are just too steep. There are five
Best Online Stock Brokers
with much lower trading costs and excellent customer services. Also, take a look at online brokerage reviews.
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