Etrade vs Thinkorswim 2012: Commissions and Investments
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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 flat-rate plan: $9.95 per trade on market or limit orders, 5,000 shares maximum
- Stocks and ETFs per-share plan: $0.015 per share, $5 minimum
- OTCBB (Pink Sheets): $9.99 for any stock trade regardless of size or order type for stocks $2 or less
- Options: the lesser of $2.95 per contract OR $1.50 per contract plus $9.95 (only one $9.95 charge for unlimited spread legs)
- Mutual funds: first three mutual fund trades in calendar month are free; $15 per trade after that
- Bonds: up to 6 months maturity - $1 per bond
- Over 6 months up to 1 year maturity: $1.50 per bond
- Over 1 year maturity: $2 per bond
- Listed Bonds: $1.5 per bond additional
- Treasuries: minimum order is $25,000 ($25 minimum commission)
- All other bonds: minimum order is for 10 bonds ($25 minimum commission)
- Futures: $3.50 per contract (inclusive of exchange fees)
- Options on Futures: $3 per contract (inclusive of exchange fees)
- Investment products: stocks, options, mutual funds, bonds, T-Bills, futures, forex, ETFs
- Minimum to open Thinkorswim account: $3,500
- All Thinkorswim fees
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Etrade vs Thinkorswim: Pros
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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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- Powerful trading platform, good risk management tools
- Lots of investment products to choose from
- No IRA fees
- Great customer service
- Virtual trading
- No surcharge for placing trade through broker
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Etrade vs Thinkorswim: Cons
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- High commissions on all investment products
- High margin rates
- Customer service complaints
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- High stock commissions
- In flat-fee plan there is additional charge of $0.005 per share on every share above 5,000
- All order types other than limit, marketable limit, and market orders will be charged per share rates
- Might be too complicated for beginner investors
- Browser trading is very slow
- High margin rates
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Etrade vs Thinkorswim: Comparison Summary
Etrade (Etrade Review)
and Thinkorswim (Thinkorswim Review)
offer very similar flat-rate commission structure: $9.95 per trade. Both companies don't have surcharges on
penny stocks and extended hours trades. Thinkorswim, however, charges $0.005 per share on every share above 5,000.
Thinkorswim excels in trading tools (one of the best trading platforms in the industry) and customer service, but its trading software has a steep learning
curve and will be too complicated for beginners. If you are new to investing, check out our recommendations for
Best Brokers for Beginners.
In this online broker comparison, Etrade comes ahead in banking services and independent research categories.
There is no IRA setup fee and no annual IRA fee at either company.
However, due to high commissions, they did not make it into our
Best IRA Accounts in 2012 list.
Both companies are pretty good but their commissions are higher than average in the industry. Thinkorswim is a decent choice for
active traders. Etrade would be our suggestion for "buy-and-hold" investors who trade a few times a year.
Most investors could save a lot of money over the years in commissions by
going with one of our Best Brokers recommendations.
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