Is E*Trade Safe?
E*Trade is one of the most well-known online brokers in the industry. Despite its popularity, some people might still wonder if E*Trade is trustworthy or if it’s a safe platform to use. In this review, we’ll answer those questions and provide an overview of E*Trade’s commissions, pricing, trading platforms, research tools, and more.
E*Trade's history dates back about 40 years, claiming to be the first company to execute an online trade for retail investors. Many Americans recognize the E*Trade brand from the iconic baby commercials aired during the Super Bowl. In the investment world, E*Trade is respected for its powerful, user-friendly trading tools and platforms.
In late 2020, Morgan Stanley acquired E*Trade in an all-stock transaction valued at around $13 billion. Although now under Morgan Stanley, E*Trade continues to operate under its own brand, website, tools, and services. In E*Trade’s last fiscal year before the acquisition (2019), they processed over 291,000 customer trades daily, held more than 7.2 million accounts, and generated nearly $3 billion in revenue.
E*Trade Better Business Bureau (BBB)
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a common place to check if a company is legitimate. E*Trade has a profile on the BBB, but it is not accredited. This simply means E*Trade chose not to pay for the accreditation, not that the company is any less reputable.
E*Trade has received 53 customer reviews with a 1.09/5 star rating, and 426 complaints closed over the last 3 years. Given that E*Trade serves millions of customers, this number of complaints represents a tiny fraction of unhappy customers. These complaints have been filed by clients who took the time to express their dissatisfaction through BBB reviews.
Is E*Trade Legitimate?
If you’re concerned about whether E*Trade is a legitimate broker, rest assured that multiple regulatory agencies oversee the company’s operations. As a financial institution handling people’s money, E*Trade is subject to significant regulatory oversight and is required to follow strict rules.
E*Trade is regulated by several organizations, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Additionally, E*Trade provides a Statement of Financial Condition on its website, showing its assets, liabilities, and equity.
Is E*Trade a Scam?
E*Trade is registered with both FINRA and the SEC. You can verify their registration using their CRD number with FINRA (29106) and SEC number (8-44112). E*Trade’s FINRA profile shows 226 disclosures, including 93 regulatory events and 133 arbitration events. You can find more details about these disclosures on E*Trade’s FINRA profile.
Is E*Trade Insured?
If you hold assets in any E*Trade brokerage account, you are covered by Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) insurance up to $500,000, including $250,000 for cash. SIPC insurance protects your securities and cash in case E*Trade goes bankrupt or out of business.
For E*Trade’s checking and savings accounts, which are offered through Morgan Stanley Private Bank, your cash is protected by FDIC insurance up to $250,000 or $500,000, depending on the account. FDIC insurance safeguards your money in the event the bank fails.
E*Trade offers an Extended Sweep Deposit Account for cash in non-retirement brokerage accounts and a Retirement Sweep Deposit Account for cash in retirement brokerage accounts. These sweep programs move your cash to up to five different banks, each with FDIC insurance. This provides you with up to $500,000 of FDIC coverage on your cash.
In addition to SIPC insurance, E*Trade customers benefit from supplemental insurance that covers cash and securities in excess of SIPC limits, up to $1 billion.
Is E*Trade Secure?
E*Trade employs several security measures to protect customer accounts, privacy, and data. The company follows the SEC’s Customer Protection Rule, which requires E*Trade to keep fully paid customer securities separate from its own assets.
Beyond this, E*Trade offers its own Complete Protection Guarantee, ensuring that any losses resulting from unauthorized use of your accounts will be restored. The guarantee also confirms that E*Trade will never sell your personal information to third parties or marketers.
To further safeguard your accounts, E*Trade has fraud protection teams, firewalls, and encryption. It also offers optional security features such as two-factor authentication (2FA) when logging in, as well as text and email alerts to notify you of suspicious activity.
Top Rated Brokers
Is E*Trade a Scam or Legitimate? The Verdict.
Based on the evidence, E*Trade is undoubtedly a legitimate company. It operates within a highly regulated environment and takes customer account protection seriously. E*Trade offers insurance for accounts, strong security protocols, and has built a solid reputation in the brokerage industry.
Website
E*Trade’s website also includes the Power platform as a browser-based tool. Charting is robust, offering over 100 technical studies, 10 chart styles, and multiple drawing tools. Graphs can be displayed in separate windows.
A key advantage of the browser platform over the mobile app is the integrated profit/loss diagram within the order ticket, providing a visual representation of maximum gain and loss for any trade.
The website includes a search function at the top-right to help you find securities by company name or ticker symbol. Additionally, an order ticket is available for traders who prefer using the website rather than Power.
Desktop Platform
E*Trade’s flagship platform, Pro, is available for desktop use but requires a minimum account balance of $1,000. Real-time quotes are free for non-professionals.
Once installed, Pro delivers some excellent features not found on Power, such as Level II data and direct-access routing.
Additional features include time & sales data, an economic calendar, strategy scanners, advanced option tools, and a margin calculator.
Other Tools
In addition to the desktop platform, E*Trade provides a mobile app for both iOS and Android, as well as a platform for Apple Watch. However, there are no apps for Apple TV or Amazon devices.
The mobile app also works on tablets.
Mutual Funds
E*Trade’s mutual fund center is equipped with various tools, including a portfolio builder that offers three pre-constructed portfolios: conservative, moderate, and aggressive. These portfolios require a $500 deposit and automatically allocate the investment across a variety of funds.
E*Trade also offers an All-Star Funds list, which highlights securities selected by their experts for their expected outperformance. Access to this list is free of charge.
The mutual fund screener provides 8,593 securities, with 4,414 of them being no-load and no-transaction-fee funds.
Exchange-Traded Funds
E*Trade’s ETF section is comprehensive, with categories such as the most active funds and top U.S. equity performers. One section highlights the top 5 performing categories, like technology and health care.
The ETF All-Star List follows the same format as the Mutual Fund All-Star list. Pre-built ETF portfolios are available at no cost.
A category analysis tool provides heat maps for major sectors over various time frames, and a comparison tool shows key data side-by-side.
Retirement and Taxable Accounts
Besides taxable accounts, E*Trade offers joint and custodial accounts. For retirement, it provides Roth, SIMPLE, SEP, traditional, beneficiary, and minor IRAs. Additionally, the Complete IRA is available for individuals over 59½ who wish to start making withdrawals from their IRAs.
Previous employer retirement plans can also be rolled over. Self-employed individuals can opt for solo 401(k) plans. Parents saving for their children’s education can open a Coverdell Education Savings Account.
E*Trade charges a $25 fee for early withdrawals, excess contributions, and recharacterizations on IRAs.
Cash Management Features
E*Trade owns its own bank, E*Trade Bank, which offers FDIC insurance and a variety of banking features.
The Max-Rate Checking account pays 0.05% interest, and it also provides unlimited ATM fee reimbursements nationwide. The monthly fee is $15, but you can avoid it in certain situations. Bill pay and the first set of checks are free.
If the interest rate is not appealing, the Premium Savings Account offers a 1.75% APY with no monthly fee.
Other Services
E*Trade offers a free Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRIP) that converts cash dividends into additional shares of securities. You can enroll a single asset or an entire account.
The brokerage also provides an automatic mutual fund investment service that lets clients make periodic deposits into mutual funds automatically.
E*Trade offers information on global stock markets, but it does not provide trading for global securities.
E*Trade Comparison
E*Trade excels in all categories we've reviewed, but it still lags behind some competitors in certain areas. For example,
Robinhood
has no options contract fees.
Charles Schwab has no restrictions on its desktop platform and more branch locations than E*Trade, plus no IRA fees.
Interactive Brokers offers forex, precious metals, and foreign stocks—none of which are available at E*Trade.
Fidelity has an app for Apple TV, while Charles Schwab has an Amazon Echo skill.
Recommendations
Beginners: E*Trade would be a great option for new traders due to its customer support, branch offices, and educational resources.
Mutual Fund Investors: E*Trade is one of the best brokers for mutual funds.
Individual Retirement Accounts: If you’re looking for an IRA, consider Firstrade instead of E*Trade, as their IRA fees can be high.
Active ETF and Stock Trading: E*Trade is a solid choice for frequent traders with at least $1,000 to invest, though Charles Schwab might be a better option.
Long-Term Investors and Retirement Savers: With target-date mutual funds, financial planning services, and 401(k) plans, we recommend E*Trade for long-term investors.
Small Accounts: E*Trade works well for taxable accounts with no minimum balance requirement.
E*Trade Review Summary
E*Trade is one of the best-known brokerage firms in the U.S. Though it’s smaller by total assets than some of its competitors, it still competes well with them.
Updated on 1/20/2026.
Paul Johnson is a Licensed Stockbroker with 7+ years of experience in the financial services industry. Paul enjoys teaching about investing and writing about financial topics. He is a husband and father of twin boys.
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