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
Brokerage firms charge investors many different types of fees. The fee people notice most often is a trading commission, which is charged for executing a buy or sell order for a financial security. This cost is usually a flat dollar amount or a percentage of the trade.
Brokers can also assess fees that have nothing to do with placing trades. These can include account-maintenance charges, transfer costs, and service-related fees.
Account Service Fee
Vanguard charges a $25 annual account service fee for each brokerage account.
However, there are several situations in which Vanguard does not assess this fee:
- Clients who have $5 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 for outgoing wire transfers unless the client is a Flagship or Flagship Select customer or is wiring money out of an IRA.
Vanguard waives the wire transfer fee for Flagship and Flagship Select clients, and it also waives the fee for wires sent out of an IRA.
American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) Fees
American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) let U.S. investors buy interests in foreign companies. Banks that custody ADRs for investors are allowed to charge certain fees, which are described in the ADR prospectuses.
One example is a “pass-through” ADR fee, which the Depository Trust Company (DTC) collects from Vanguard. Vanguard then automatically deducts that amount from the client’s brokerage account.
The DTC may also withhold other charges, including dividend-processing fees.
Foreign Securities Transactions Fees
For non-DTC-eligible securities (other than ADRs), Vanguard charges a $50 processing fee. This fee is added on top of the commission.
Vanguard may charge a separate commission for each day a trade executes if the order 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 IRAs at Vanguard Brokerage Services. When an IRS 990-T filing is required, VFTC charges a $500 fee per account for handling the tax filing.
Vanguard Trading Fees
In most cases, Vanguard charges $0 for online stock and ETF trades. However, mutual funds, option contracts, CDs, and bonds can still involve commissions or other trading-related charges. In addition, broker-assisted phone trades may come with added costs.
Stocks
Stocks traded online have no transaction fee. Stocks traded by phone cost $25 per trade, although Vanguard waives this charge for clients who have at least $1 million invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds.
ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds)
Vanguard offers both its own ETFs and ETFs from outside issuers. There is no commission for ETF trades placed online. However, broker-assisted ETF trades placed by phone cost $25 per trade for clients with less than $1 million invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds. Vanguard waives this fee for clients with $1 million or more.
Mutual Funds
Like ETFs, Vanguard offers both its own mutual funds and mutual funds from outside fund companies.
There is no transaction fee for Vanguard mutual funds. However, some Vanguard funds charge special purchase or redemption fees that are paid directly to the fund. These fees vary by fund and range from 0.25% to 1.00% of the transaction amount.
Vanguard’s minimum investment requirements vary by fund. Target Retirement Funds and STAR Fund require $1,000. Most index mutual funds require $3,000 for Admiral Shares. Most actively managed funds require $3,000 for Investor Shares or $50,000 for Admiral Shares. Most sector-specific index mutual funds require $100,000 for Admiral Shares.
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 is no fee to trade NTF mutual funds online. Like Vanguard mutual funds, these funds carry a $25 broker-assisted fee for trades placed by phone. Vanguard waives that charge for investors with $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds.
Transaction-Fee (TF) Mutual Funds
The fees for TF mutual funds depend on how much a client has invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds. The price also depends on whether the order is placed online or with broker assistance.
Clients with less than $1 million invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds pay $20 per trade online and an additional $25 per trade for broker assistance.
For clients with $1 million to $5 million in assets, the first 25 trades are commission-free and each trade after that costs $8.
Clients with more than $5 million in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds get 100 free trades and then pay $8 per trade after that.
Load Mutual Funds
The fees for load mutual funds depend on the share class: A, B, and C.
Class A shares have a front-end load that varies by fund and can be as high as 5.75%.
Class B and Class C shares have back-end loads. Class B charges generally decline to 0% over a period of years, while Class C redemption fees are usually smaller and commonly fall to 0% after 1 year.
All share classes may have sales charges and minimum purchases that depend on the specific fund.
Options Contracts
The fees to trade options also vary based on the amount invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds.
For clients with less than $1 million invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds, the fee is $0 plus $1 per contract.
Clients with $1 million to $5 million in assets receive 25 free trades, and clients with more than $5 million get 100 free trades. After that, the fee is $0 plus $1 per contract.
All option exercises and assignments are commission-free.
Fixed-Income Securities
The cost of trading CDs (certificates of deposit) and bonds depends on the type of instrument and on whether the bond is a new issue or is bought or sold in the secondary market.
There is no charge for new issues of CDs, U.S. government agency securities, corporate bonds, or U.S. Treasury securities.
Secondary-market trades can carry higher costs, although U.S. Treasury securities still cost $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.
Mortgage-backed securities and unit investment trusts (UITs) have a fee of $35 per trade.
In addition to the fees above, Vanguard adds a $25 broker-assisted fee to secondary-market fixed-income trades placed by telephone. Vanguard waives this fee for clients with $1 million or more invested in qualifying Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds and for fixed-income products that aren’t available for online trading.
Vanguard also has minimum investment requirements for many fixed-income products. 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.
All Vanguard fees may be subject to change. Reach out to Vanguard for the latest updates and details.
Margin Rates
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Debit Balance
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Vanguard Margin Rates
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under $19,999
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12%
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$20,000 – $49,999
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11.5%
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$50,000 – $99,999
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11%
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$100,000–$249,999
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10.5%
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$250,000–$499,999
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10%
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$500,000+
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call 866-514-2805
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Vanguard Review
Read complete Vanguard Review »
Updated on 4/20/2026.
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.
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