|
|
Compare OptionsXpress versus ShareBuilder
|
|
|
- Stocks and ETFs: $9.95 if under 1001 shares; $0.01 per share if over 1000 shares
- Options (0-34 trades/quarter): $14.95 (for one contract), $14.95 (for five contracts), $15 (for 10 contracts), $30 (for 20 contracts)
- Options (35+ trades/quarter): $12.95 (for one contract), $12.95 (for five contracts), $12.95 (for 10 contracts), $20 (for 20 contracts)
- Mutual Funds: $14.95
- Investments: stocks, options, mutual funds, bonds, futures, ETFs
- Minimum to open account: $0 for cash account, $2000 for margin account
- All OptionXpress fees
|
- Automatic Investments: Basic plan - $4 per investment
- Standard plan - $12/month, you get 6 automatic investments and each additional is $2
- Advantage plan - $20/month, you get 20 automatic investments and each additional is $1
- Real-time stock and ETF trades: $9.99
- Options: Early Exercise - $30 per early exercise, no trade commission; Automatic Exercise -
$20 per automatic exercise, no trade commission
- Mutual funds: 70 free funds including the ING Mutual Funds. 170 no-load funds from leading no-load mutual fund families
- Investment products: stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs
- Minimum to open account: $0
|
|
|
- Best customer service
- Many well-designed trading tools
- No hidden fees
- No fee IRA accounts
- Great research
- Free real-time and streaming quotes
- Free virtual trading
- $0 to open cash account
- Free account transfers
- Free instructor lead online classes
- Free broker-assisted trading
|
- Very low Automatic Investing Plans costs
- Free dividend and capital gains reinvestment
- No account minimum
- No-fee IRA and ESA accounts
- No inactivity or maintenance fees
- Ability to buy fractions of a stock
- $0 to open cash account, $2,000 for margin account
|
|
|
- High trading costs for stocks and options
|
- Real-time trades at $9.95 are somewhat expensive
- You don't know at what price you are buying investments with Automatic Investing Plans
- Weak trading tools
- Slow executions
- Few mutual fund choices
|
OptionsXpress or ShareBuilder Comparison Summary
ShareBuilder
is the only brokerage firm offering cheap automatic investing plans. This is ideal for people that
don't believe that you could time the market or don't have time to follow it and are looking to dollar-cost-average their investments
by arranging to have a set amount invested daily, weekly, biweekly or monthly.
If you are not the person described above, then
OptionsXpress is a brokerage for you. OptionsXpress easily beats
ShareBuilder in customer service, trading tools, investing choices and overall usability.
Both companies have promotions for new customers. OptionsXpress gives you $100 free for opening new account
(promo link below). You also get your transfer fees
reimbursed if you are transferring account from another institution - just email them after it's done.
ShareBuilder gives you $50 when you open new account - click link below and use promo code 50WCFA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|