Overview of Vanguard and J.P. Morgan Chase
In the realm of investment management, Vanguard and J.P. Morgan (JPM) are some of America’s biggest
players. But neither firm has forgotten self-directed traders. Here’s the rundown on these two:
Cost
| Broker Fees |
Stock/ETF
Commission |
Mutual Fund
Commission |
Options
Commission |
Maintenance
Fee |
Annual IRA
Fee |
|
Chase
|
$0
|
$0
|
$0.65 per contract
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Vanguard
|
$0
|
$20
|
$1.00 per contract
|
$20*
|
$20*
|
Services
| Broker Review |
Cost |
Investment Products |
Trading Tools |
Customer Service |
Research |
Overall Rating |
|
Chase
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vanguard
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Investment Services
Only self-directed accounts will be found at J.P. Morgan Investing. Vanguard has a robo account that
costs 20 basis points and has a $3,000 minimum deposit requirement.
Vanguard, but not J.P. Morgan, goes a step further by offering old-school account management packages. These obviously come with a human advisor and cost a little more (starting at 0.30%).
Self-directed traders will find the same investment lineup at both firms:
- Option contracts
- Exchange traded funds
- Closed end funds
- Mutual funds
- Bonds
- Stocks
Vanguard permits the trading of penny stocks (stocks below $5), which J.P. Morgan doesn’t allow. Moreover, Vanguard has limited trading in international stocks.
Vanguard offers more account types than J.P. Morgan Investing. These include trusts, custodial accounts, and 529 plans.
Winner: Vanguard
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Websites
During our testing of Vanguard’s website, we found it a bit difficult to navigate, although a search
bar at the top helps a little. Charts are on a rudimentary level, with only a few technical studies and no full-screen mode.
Vanguard’s trade ticket only has 4 order types and 2 duration choices. On the upside, it does have discrete selections for buy to cover and sell short. It also has links to Vanguard’s customer service and a tutorial that shows how to use the trade ticket.
J.P. Morgan displays similar links on its order ticket. It has the same order types as Vanguard’s ticket but more time-in-force choices.
As with Vanguard, charts on the Chase Investing site are on a basic level. There are more tools, though, including drawing tools.
Both websites have option chains on a security’s profile. These chains only offer calls and puts (no spreads) because only single-leg trades can be placed.
Winner: J.P. Morgan Investing
Mobile Apps
From basic websites we move to basic mobile apps. Vanguard recently overhauled its app, and this new design has eliminated many tools and features. It is pretty much bare bones now with zero graphs. It is not possible to trade options and non-Vanguard mutual funds on the app, and stocks have no profiles.
During our testing of Vanguard’s app, we were not able to get to the order ticket because it was under construction. Apparently, the brokerage house is still working on this very rudimentary app.
Although the J.P. Morgan Investing app also emphasizes simplicity, the situation improves a little. The order ticket is the same one that appears on the website. The graphing software is the same, although a graph cannot be shown in horizontal mode.
Winner: J.P. Morgan Investing
Margin Borrowing
Vanguard offers both cash and margin accounts. Those who opt for the latter will receive decent,
although not fabulous, interest rates. Currently, the brokerage firm starts at
12.75% and drops to 9%.
Vanguard closely follows Reg T requirements. Initial margin for a stock is 50% for both long and
short positions. Stocks below $5 aren’t marginable.
J.P. Morgan Investing also offers margin accounts. Margin rates range from
12.25% to 10%.
Winner: Vanguard
Security Research
The J.P. Morgan Investing website has screeners for stocks, funds, and bonds. There is no screener for options.
The broker’s stock screener has 45 search criteria. Examples include industry, market cap, and P/E ratio. Results can be sorted by many criteria, and there is a trade link for each entry.
Stock profiles have news articles, press releases, earnings estimates, and pdf reports. The brokerage house uses two analysts: CFRA and J.P. Morgan Equity Research.
Vanguard uses reports from Argus and MarketGrader. Equity profiles have more information on them compared to J.P. Morgan Investing’s Profiles. For example, Vanguard provides annual and quarterly numbers from financial statements. J.P. Morgan Investing’s profiles don’t have these figures.
Like J.P. Morgan Investing, Vanguard has predefined screens on its equity search tool. Examples include large cap income and small cap growth. Vanguard does not have a screener for options, although it does have a very basic search wizard for bonds.
Winner: J.P. Morgan Investing
Miscellaneous Services
Initial Public Offerings: Not available at either broker-dealer.
Banking tools: Vanguard no longer offers any cash management tools, other than an ACH transfer widget. J.P. Morgan Investing customers can link Chase Bank accounts, although that’s the extent of the broker’s banking service.
Fractional-share trading: Currently, only whole-share investing in stocks and ETF’s is available inside self-directed accounts at Vanguard and J.P. Morgan Investing.
IRA’s: J.P. Morgan has just two IRA types: traditional and Roth. Vanguard offers these 2
plus SIMPLE and SEP plans for small businesses. Vanguard doesn’t charge any fees on traditional and Roth plans. JPM has a $75 closeout fee.
Dividend reinvestment program: DRIP is available at no cost at both companies.
Extended hours: Vanguard clients can trade securities after the closing bell. J.P. Morgan Investing customers cannot.
Winner: Pretty even
Our Recommendations
Stock/ETF trading: J.P. Morgan has slightly better software. But we endorse
Charles Schwab.
Beginners: Either firm is good.
Mutual fund trading: Using Vanguard’s mutual fund screener, we found 6,851 securities. Over
at J.P. Morgan Investing, we found 3,042. J.P. Morgan Investing’s profiles display
Morningstar ratings. Vanguard’s
profiles don’t. Vanguard charges $20 fee for most funds, while Chase does not.
Firstrade
offers over 11,000 mutual funds free of charge. Take your pick.
Small accounts: Vanguard’s automated account service has a $3,000 minimum. Neither firm imposes
minimums on self-directed customers. J.P. Morgan Investing’s $75 IRA closeout fee causes us to recommend Vanguard for small IRA’s.
Long-term investors and retirement savers: Chase has more services for long-term investors.
Only Vanguard has SEP and SIMPLE retirement accounts. Plus, it has self-employed 401(k) accounts, which
J.P. Morgan Investing also lacks. Combined with traditional financial-planning services (for very large
accounts only), Vanguard is the better choice.
JP Morgan vs Vanguard: Results
Both Vanguard and J.P. Morgan Investing offer good resources for self-directed
investors and are very close in terms of quality, available services, technology, and customer
care.
Updated on 1/29/2025.
Chad Morris is a financial writer with more than 20 years experience
as both an English teacher and an avid trader. When he isn’t writing
expert content for Brokerage-Review.com, Chad can usually be found
managing his portfolio or building a new home computer.
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