Etrade vs Merrill Edge (Merrill Lynch): Commissions and Investments 2012
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- Stocks and ETFs: $9.99 if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 if 150+ trades per quarter
- Options: $9.99 plus $0.75/contract if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 plus $0.75/contract if 150+ trades per quarter
- Mutual Funds: $19.99
- Futures contracts: $2.99 per contract, per side + fees
- Investment products: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, futures, options, ETFs
- Minimum to open Etrade account: $2,000 for margin account. For securities accounts (except retirement accounts), an account minimum deposit of
either at least $500 in cash or a deposit of securities is required within 60 days of account opening for the account to remain active. There is no initial minimum deposit requirement for retirement, custodial, or employee stock plan accounts. Accounts not meeting the minimum deposit requirement will be closed after 60 days.
- All Etrade fees
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- Stocks and ETFs: $6.95
- Stocks and ETFs Agent assisted: $44.95; Automated phone trades telephone system: $32.50
- Options: $6.95 + $0.75 per contract
- No Load, Transaction Fee Funds (TF) Mutual Funds: $39.95 per transaction
- Merrill Edge Self-Directed Mutual Funds: 0.75% gross proceeds, $50 minimum, $250 maximum
- Investment products: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options, ETFs, Bills, Notes, Bonds. Agency: Discount, Notes, Bonds. Zero Coupon Bonds: Corporate, Government, Agency
Municipal Bonds, Corporate Bonds, Brokered Certificates of Deposit
- Minimum to open Merrill Edge account: $0
- All Merrill Edge fees
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- Very good trading tools
- No IRA account fees, no minimums with electronic statements and confirms
- Minimum to open: $1,000 for cash account, $2,000 for margin account
- Banking products: checking, savings, money market accounts, CDs and credit cards
- No surcharges on large orders, penny stocks and extended hours trading
- Great research amenities
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- Free trades if meeting certain conditions
- Free checking account
- Great research tools
- Free DRIPs (have to call to get it)
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- High commissions on all investment products
- High margin rates
- Customer service complaints
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- High margin rates
- Limited, badly designed trading tools and charts
- Terrible executions
- Account balance discrepancies
- Technical issues
- Customer service complaints
- Mutual funds Self-Directed Short-Term Redemption fee if held less than 90 days: 0.75% gross proceeds, $50 minimum, $250 maximum
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Etrade vs Merrill Edge: Comparison Summary
Merrill Edge (formerly known as Merrill Lynch/BOfA/Bank of America brokerage - Merrill Edge Review)
has better commissions on stocks and ETFs than Etrade (Etrade Review):
$6.95 and $9.95 per trade respectively. Etrade charges $20 for mutual fund transactions versus $40 at the Merrill Edge.
Etrade comes ahead in banking services, trading tools and customer service. Out of these two firms, it is also a better choice
(but far from the best!) for a Brokerage for Beginner Investors.
The internet is full of complaints from Merrill Edge's customers on the whole range of issues: trading tools bugs,
account transfer fees, client features and mutual funds availability, order executions and customer service.
Both online brokerages do not have annual and setup IRA fees but they were not included in our
Best IRA Companies list.
Etrade would be our suggestion for a "buy-and-hold" investors. For everyone else we recommend researching other
Brokerage Firms that offer better commissions and more free services.
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