TradeStation Pricing and Minimum Deposit
| Investments | Commissions |
|---|
| Stocks and ETFs flat-rate plan | $0 |
| Options | $0.60 per contract |
| Futures | $1.50 per contract |
| Mutual funds | $14.95 |
| Bonds | $14.95 + $5 per bond |
| Forex | commission-free with tight spreads and fractional pips |
| Investments | stocks, options, mutual funds, bonds, futures, forex, ETFs |
| Tradestation minimum deposit to open account | $0 for cash account, and $2,000 for margin account |
| Fees | Tradestation fees |
| Promotion link | Tradestation promotions |
Review of TradeStation Brokerage
TradeStation is known for catering to professional traders; but with a new $0 commission schedule, non-professionals should sit up and take notice. Here’s what the brokerage firm has to offer:
TradeStation Pros
Good software. TradeStation has a mobile app, a browser platform, and an advanced desktop trading environment. The latter program offers several apps for a variety of trading functions. We’ll take a look at these programs shortly.
Multiple pricing schedules to choose from. While many firms offer just one commission
plan, TradeStation has several.
Global stocks. TradeStation customers can trade directly on foreign exchanges, a rare service.
TradeStation Cons
Lack of fund resources. While mutual and exchange-traded funds are available, research materials are on the low end.
Some services are completely missing. As we shall see soon, some investment services are entirely absent at TradeStation.
Investment Vehicles
TradeStation clients can buy and sell equities, exchange-traded funds, mutual funds, closed-end funds, option contracts, fixed-income investments, cryptocurrencies, and futures. The last category includes options on futures and E-mini futures.
A separate account can be opened to trade forex, contracts for difference, precious metals, and global stocks (in partnership with Interactive Brokers).
Customer Service
TradeStation has a variety of phone numbers, each with its own purpose. For general customer support, a company rep can be reached on the phone anytime during the week from 8:00 am until 8:00 pm, EST. The broker does not operate any weekend hours. Technical support is available 24/7 starting Sunday at 3:30 pm and ending Friday at 8:00 pm.
TradeStation does not have any branch locations. It also fails to offer any foreign language service. There is an online chat service located inside the broker’s website after logging in; but it operates fewer hours than the broker’s phone service, and it’s oftentimes out of service.
An Artificial Intelligence makes an appearance on the front page of the site. Named TSbot, it is only capable of answering basic questions. It did not perform well during our testing.
Cash Management
TradeStation clients don’t get to use checks or a debit card. The brokerage firm does have ACH and wire transfer tools on its website; and that’s about all there is to report on.
ETFs
TradeStation does have a security screener (that’s coming up); but it is able to look only for
stocks and futures. If you have a ticker symbol, you can enter it into a research window; but it
returns only a minimal amount of information. The broker’s website does not have an ETF center, nor
are there any fund reports or commentary. All ETFs have $0 commission.
Mutual Funds
The state of affairs for mutual fund investors isn’t much better. There is no mutual fund screener,
which is a major blunder. In our TradeStation test account, there was no way to research mutual funds
or trade them. Apparently, they have to be traded over the phone with a rep. The broker-dealer
offers about 2,000 mutual funds from eighty fund families.
Pricing
After the broker price war in the U.S. saw equity commissions drop all the way to $0, TradeStation
responded by launching TS Select and TS Go. Both of them come with zero commissions on stock, ETF,
option, and futures trades. On the TS Select plan, options cost an extra 60¢ per contract; while
futures cost an extra $1.50. With TS Go, stock options are an extra 50¢, while futures cost 85¢.
Commission-free trading is only valid for the first 10,000 shares in a trade. Each additional share above that level costs 0.5¢. Directly routing stock trades carries the same fee. Direct routing of option orders costs an extra $1 per contract.
Both pricing plans charge a $50 annual fee. This antiquated charge can be avoided by maintaining a
$2,000 account balance or placing five trades per annum. The Select plan requires a $2,000 opening
deposit. Go requires nothing.
Both schedules offer free use of the broker’s mobile app and browser platform; although only Select accounts can use the desktop program for free. Go accounts can use it, but TradeStation charges commissions on those trades. Real-time data is free for both commission schedules.
TradeStation Promotion
Open Tradestation Account
Account Types
TradeStation customers can open several account types. On the taxable side, there are individual, joint, and custodial types. Businesses and trusts have their options as well. And TradeStation offers 4 IRA types: Roth, SIMPLE, traditional, and SEP. A former employer’s retirement plan can be rolled over into a TradeStation IRA.
The brokerage house does not have a self-employed 401(k), a 529 plan, a Coverdell Education Savings
Account, an estate account, or an Inherited IRA.
Website
The TradeStation site is used mostly for account management and transferring funds. Investments cannot be traded on it.
But the broker does have a browser platform. Launched from the website, the software provides a plain interface with effective trading capability. Charting on the software offers 4 graph styles, several technical indicators, and extended-hours price history. A graph can be expanded the full width of the monitor.
The trade ticket offers direct-access routing plus trailing, OCO, bracket, and stop order types. There are 13 duration choices, the most we have ever seen. Some esoteric options include 3-min and GTD+, which allows the user to specify a specific expiration date.
There is a watchlist on the platform; although it is entitled “Quotes.” An inactivity timeout can be turned off, and a hotlist shows the market day’s biggest movers.
Desktop Platform
Although we were quite impressed with the browser trading system, TradeStation customers who want more can move to the company’s desktop platform. As already mentioned, TS Select customers can use it without paying commissions; but TS Go clients have to pay to place trades on it.
The software recently underwent a major overhaul, and it was rebranded TradeStation 10. This new software has a lot of the same features the old platform had. Charting once again is on an advanced level with several tools.
Multiple tabs exist at the tom of the platform, such as “Day Trader” and “Balances, Positions, Orders.” These are default layouts that automatically deliver windows and an arrangement designed for the named activity.
There are many useful features on the platform for day and swing traders. During our examination, we found Level II quotes, direct access to market venues, time & sales info, a basket order tool, and an algorithm order tool.
An “Apps” store sells (yes, sells) additional software programs that advanced traders might be interested in—tools like technical studies.
Missing on TradeStation 10 is streaming video news.
Mobile Trading
TradeStation keeps the ball rolling here with another home run. A watchlist appears on the mobile app immediately after login. Many columns can be added and deleted, including last price, volume, the day’s high and low prices, and 52-week numbers. Besides stocks, futures and currencies can be added.
Security profile pages show a chart that can be rotated horizontally for better analysis (with tools). Option chains can be displayed for any asset that has them. Besides calls and puts, we found strategies like straddles and verticals.
The software’s trade ticket offers direct-access routing, one of the few mobile apps to do so. Other highlights include the same long list of duration choices available on the browser system, bracket orders, and OSO (order sends order) with bracket.
It’s easy to add an investment to the platform’s watchlist; just click on the star on the security’s profile. Besides stocks, the software permits trading in options and futures, but not mutual funds. A hotlist shows the day’s big movers. Another great feature we really like about this app is a demo login for practice trading.
Once again, streaming financial news is absent; and sadly, so is mobile check deposit.
Security Research
TradeStation doesn’t emphasize general investment education, but there are resources for that on the broker’s website. A “Learn” tab is in the top menu, and this opens up a large selection of articles and videos on many topics. Examples we found include how to use option chains and how to trade futures.
TradeStation has a channel at YouCanTrade. It hosts live webinars, a weekly newsletter, and daily insights.
TradeStation’s software offers a lot of financial research. News articles appear on all three platforms we have looked at: mobile app, browser, and desktop. The browser system and mobile app show pictures with news articles, which are usually courtesy of Benzinga.
Perhaps the best research tools are on the desktop. Here, we found a screener that can search the securities markets by many, many criteria not available on other scanners. Examples include long term debt to total capital, receivables turnover, and auditor name. We found the search tool harder to use compared to other scanners, however.
An options research window shows Greek values, historical volatility, projected price range, and many other advanced features.
TradeStation does not offer any third-party stock reports.
Cryptocurrency Trading
TradeStation now has a cryptocurrency trading service with a dedicated crypto
platform. Available digital currencies include
Aave (AAVE), Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), ChainLink (LINK), Compound (COMP), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Maker (MKR), Polygon (MATIC), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and USDC (USDC). Wallets are not yet available.
A securities account must be linked to the crypto account. As of now, it’s not possible to deposit or withdraw digital currencies.
The broker’s crypto platform offers data on selected currency pairs, such as LTC/BTC and BCH/USD. Charts show volume and price with a few technical indicators.
Securities Services
TradeStation customers get no DRIP service. The broker also doesn’t offer recurring deposits into the
few mutual funds it offers.
Global Trading
TradeStation customers can buy and sell foreign assets through a separate account. The service is a
partnership with Interactive Brokers. There is a $1,000 minimum deposit for the account. Some of the
available exchanges include Austria, the Netherlands, India, and Switzerland. Unfortunately, trades do
have commissions in this account.
Recommendations
Mutual Fund Investors: TradeStation has no mutual fund resources. We have to suggest Firstrade instead. The broker offers more than 12,000 funds with $0 commission.
Individual Retirement Accounts: Fidelity offers more IRA types than TradeStation and a long list of target-date mutual funds. Fidelity is our pick.
Beginners: Although TradeStation does offer security investigation tools, it doesn’t have many
resources geared towards beginners. In fact, the company seems to cater to sophisticated traders who
know what they’re doing. Beginners should go to
Chase.
Active ETF and Stock Trading: For stocks, TradeStation would be a good choice. For ETF’s, we recommend Webull.
Long-Term Investors and Retirement Savers: TD Ameritrade offers financial planning and better retirement options.
Small Accounts: Because of TradeStation’s annoying annual account fee, we can’t recommend it
for small traders. They should go with
Firstrade instead.
TradeStation Review Summary
TradeStation has made many improvements in the past year, bringing services closer in line with
industry standards. In some areas, it has already surpassed its competitors—mainly in crypto and
global trading. In other areas, it still lags behind with outdated fees and lack of resources.
TradeStation Promotion
Open Tradestation Account
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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