Vanguard Trading Fees
| Investments | Commissions |
|---|
| Stocks and ETFs | $0 |
| Options | $1 per contract |
| Mutual funds | Vanguard mutual funds and no-transaction-fee funds - $0 online. Transaction-fee funds - $20 online |
| Certificates of deposit (CDs), U.S. government agency securities, and corporate bonds | New issues - $0. Secondary market - $1 per $1,000 face amount, $250 maximum |
| Municipal bonds | Secondary market - $1 per $1,000 face amount, $250 maximum |
| U.S. Treasury | commission-free |
| Mortgage-backed securities | $35 per trade |
| Investments |
stocks, options, mutual funds, bonds, CDs, ETFs, and unit investment trusts
|
| Minimum deposit to open an account | $0; mutual fund minimums vary by fund and share class, generally from $1,000 to $100,000 |
Vanguard Hidden Fees
Online brokerage companies charge customers a wide variety of fees. The most common type of fee is a “trading fee” or “commission fee.” Brokerages assess this fee for executing a trade or buying/selling financial securities. It’s usually a flat fee or percentage of the total trade value.
Brokerage companies also charge fees not related to buying and selling securities. These may include account service fees or wire transfer charges.
Account Service Fee
Vanguard charges a $25 annual “account service” fee for each brokerage account.
However, there are several exceptions where Vanguard waives this charge:
- Clients who have $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard assets.
- Clients who signed up for e-delivery of statements, reports, and updates.
- Clients who have an organization or trust account registered under an employee identification number (EIN).
- Brokerage accounts enrolled in an advisory program serviced by an affiliate of Vanguard.
Wire Transfer Fee
Vanguard charges a $10 fee per wire transfer.
Vanguard waives the wire transfer fee for transfers from retirement accounts and for clients with $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard assets.
American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) Fees
American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are financial instruments that allow U.S. investors to invest in foreign companies. Banks that hold ADRs on behalf of investors can charge specific fees as outlined in the ADR prospectuses.
One type of ADR fee is a “pass-through” fee, which is collected from Vanguard by the Depository Trust Company (DTC). Vanguard automatically deducts this fee from the client’s account.
The DTC may also collect other fees, including dividend processing fees.
Services Comparison
Foreign Securities Transactions Fees
For non-DTC-eligible securities (different from ADRs), there is a $50 processing fee. This fee is in addition to the commission, if applicable.
Vanguard may charge a commission for each day on which a trade executes if the trade takes multiple days to complete.
There may be additional fees if the trade is executed on local markets rather than through an intermediary.
Tax Filing for Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) in an IRA
Vanguard Fiduciary Trust Company (VFTC) is the custodian for MLPs held in Vanguard Brokerage IRAs. VFTC is responsible for required IRS Form 990-T filings and charges a $500 fee per account when a filing is required. The fee is waived for clients with at least $1 million in qualifying assets and for brokerage accounts enrolled in a Vanguard-affiliated advisory service.
Vanguard Trading Fees
For the most part, Vanguard charges $0 to trade stocks and ETFs online. However, mutual funds, options contracts, CDs, and bonds may incur trading fees or commissions. Further, trades placed by phone may incur additional costs.
Stocks
There are no transaction fees for stocks traded online. Stocks traded by phone incur a $25 broker-assisted commission, but Vanguard generally waives this fee for individuals with $1 million or more in qualifying assets.
ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds)
Vanguard has its own ETFs but also allows for trading ETFs managed by other companies. There are no transaction fees for ETFs traded online. However, ETF trades placed by phone incur a $25 broker-assisted commission. Vanguard generally waives this charge for individuals with $1 million or more in qualifying assets.
Mutual Funds
Like ETFs, Vanguard has its own mutual funds and allows trading mutual funds from other companies.
There are no transaction fees for Vanguard-managed mutual funds traded online. But some Vanguard funds may charge special purchase fees or redemption fees. These fees vary depending on the fund and range from 0.25% to 1.00% of the transaction.
Vanguard has minimum investment requirements for its mutual funds. The minimum varies by the fund and share class, generally ranging from $1,000 to $100,000, although some funds may have higher minimums.
Vanguard offers three categories of mutual funds managed by other companies:
- No-transaction-fee (NTF) mutual funds,
- Transaction-fee (TF) mutual funds, and
- Load mutual funds.
No-Transaction-Fee (NTF) Mutual Funds
There are no fees for NTF mutual funds traded online. There is a $25 broker-assisted commission for trades placed by phone for clients with less than $1 million in qualifying assets. Vanguard generally waives this fee for clients with at least $1 million in qualifying assets.
Transaction-Fee (TF) Mutual Funds
The fees for TF mutual funds depend on the amount of qualifying assets held at Vanguard. The costs also vary depending on whether transactions are placed online or by phone.
Clients with less than $1 million in qualifying assets incur a $20 fee per trade online and an additional $25 broker-assisted commission if they place the trade by phone.
For clients with $1 million to less than $5 million in qualifying assets, the first 25 eligible trades are commission-free, followed by an $8 fee per trade.
Clients with $5 million or more in qualifying assets receive 100 commission-free eligible trades and then pay $8 per trade after that.
Load Mutual Funds
The fees for load mutual funds vary by the share class: A, B, and C.
Class A shares may incur a front-end sales load that varies by fund.
Class B and C shares may impose deferred sales charges depending on the specific fund and share class.
Sales charges and minimum purchases are fund-specific.
Options Contracts
The fees to trade options also vary based on the amount of qualifying assets held at Vanguard.
For clients with less than $1 million in qualifying assets, there is a $1 per contract fee.
Clients with $1 million to less than $5 million in qualifying assets receive 25 commission-free eligible trades, and clients with $5 million or more receive 100 commission-free eligible trades. After that, the fee is $1 per contract.
All option exercises and assignments are commission-free.
Fixed-Income Securities
The cost of trading CDs (certificates of deposit) and bonds varies based on the instrument type and whether it is a new issue or traded on the secondary market.
New issues of CDs, U.S. government agency securities, corporate bonds, and U.S. Treasury securities have $0 commissions. Municipal bonds, mortgage-backed securities, and unit investment trusts are not available as new issues through Vanguard Brokerage.
Trades on the secondary market incur higher fees except for U.S. Treasury securities, which are $0 per transaction.
CDs, U.S. government agency securities, corporate bonds, and municipal bonds have a fee of $1 per $1,000 face amount with a maximum of $250. Online sales of CDs before maturity are commission-free.
Mortgage-backed securities and unit investment trusts (UITs) have a fee of $35 per trade.
In addition to the fees above, a $25 broker-assisted commission generally applies to secondary-market transactions placed by phone for clients with less than $1 million in qualifying assets.
Vanguard also has minimum investment requirements for its fixed-income instruments. The minimum investment for U.S. government agency securities, corporate bonds, CDs, and U.S. Treasury securities is $1,000. The minimum for municipal bonds is $5,000 and may also be subject to dealer minimums.
All Vanguard fees may be subject to change. Reach out to Vanguard for the latest updates and details.
Margin Rates
|
Debit Balance
|
Vanguard Margin Rates
|
|
under $19,999
|
12.25%
|
|
$20,000 – $49,999
|
11.75%
|
|
$50,000 – $99,999
|
11.25%
|
|
$100,000–$249,999
|
10.75%
|
|
$250,000–$499,999
|
10.25%
|
|
$500,000+
|
call 866-514-2805
|
Vanguard Review
Read complete Vanguard Review »
Updated on 10/5/2026.
Arthur Chachuna is a professional personal finance blogger, and the owner of Brokerage-Review.com.
He has been an avid investor for 25 years, and has a background in both applied math and programming.
|