Overview of Webull Financial
With both self-directed and investment-advisory programs, Webull has a lot to offer. Here’s our review
of the company:
Investment Systems
Previously, Webull only offered self-managed accounts. With the recent launch of an investment-advisory service, the company now offers robo accounts. These are managed by a software program that invests in a small collection of ETFs with low expense ratios. The funds are mostly SPDR funds.
On the self-directed side of things, a much larger list of tradable products will be found. These
include thousands of ETFs plus many more stocks, option contracts, bonds, futures, and closed-end funds.
The stock category in Webull’s self-directed service includes
over-the-counter instruments (OTC stocks), American Depository Receipts (ADRs), and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).
Either a self-directed or automated account can be opened as an individual taxable account or an IRA.
Other tax structures are not currently available.
Webull Pricing
| Investments | Commissions |
|---|
| Stocks and ETFs | $0 |
| Options | $0 |
| Mutual funds | not offered |
| Futures (all regular outright) | $1.25 per contract |
| Mini futures | $0.70 per contract |
| Micro futures | $0.25 per contract |
| US Treasuries (0-12 months) | 0.07% |
| US Treasuries (1-3 years) | 0.4% |
| Other Fixed Income | 0.07% |
| Investments | stocks, options, ETFs, futures, fixed income |
| Minimum deposit to open account | $0 for cash account, $2,000 for margin account |
| Fees | Webull fees |
| Promotion |
Webull promotions
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Webull’s robo service costs 0.20% annually. This fee is billed on a monthly basis with a $1 minimum. Thus, any account below $6,000 will pay more than 20 basis points.
Self-directed accounts have no recurring fees. From the very beginning,
Webull has been a zero-commission broker, and it remains so today. There are some exceptions, though. Some option trades will have a per-contract fee of 55¢, for example (exercises and assignments have no charges). Transactions of penny stocks in excess of 100k shares will have surcharges; so will trades of F-shares.
Free Webull Account
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Margin Trading
Self-directed accounts (but not robo accounts) at Webull can trade securities using borrowed money. This really nice service does, of course, come at a cost. Currently, the broker’s interest rates on long positions are very competitive:
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Debit Balance
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Webull Margin Rate
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under $25,000
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8.99%
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$25,000.01 - $100,000
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8.49%
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$100,000.01 - $250,000
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7.99%
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$250,000.01 - $500,000
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7.49%
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$500,000.01 - 1,000,000
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6.49%
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1,000,000.01 - 3,000,000
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5.99%
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>3,000,000.00
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4.99%
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Short margin rates will depend on the security borrowed and even on the day the position is held. Webull’s software does a good job of displaying this margin rate plus other details on specific ticker symbols. Examples include:
- Maximum shares to sell short
- Day trades left
- Overnight short leverage
- Day-trading leverage
- Maintenance requirement
Mobile App
Webull clients can research assets and trade them using the broker’s very good mobile app. The software platform has other resources, too. These include a community forum on every asset where users can comment on the news of the day and connect with other users. The relevant tab on the asset’s profile is Feeds. There is a Stock Sentiment score on this tab that reflects bullish and bearish opinions of Webull clients on the potential investment.
For actual trading, there are two order tickets. They are the Classic and Big Button forms. The Classic is the default. To switch to the Big Button ticket, open the Classic ticket and tap on the gear icon in the upper-right corner. As its name suggests, the Big Button ticket has large buttons that make order entry fast and easy. There are several possibilities, including buy at the market and sell at the bid. The Classic ticket has many more order types. These include stop limit, trailing, and OCO (one cancels the other).
Charts on Webull’s mobile app have a lot of resources. We found drawing tools such as polylines, Fibonacci retracements, and rectangles. Then there are the indicators. We found lots of them. Examples include RSI (Relative Strength Index), FSTO (Fast Stochastic Oscillator), and EMA (Exponential Moving Average).
There are three themes for the mobile app: bright, dark, and black. To find these and switch among them, head to the Menu tab and tap on the shirt icon in the upper-right corner.
The biggest downside of Webull’s mobile app is the lack of a check-deposit tool.
Website
Traders who don’t find a mobile device to be large enough for advanced trading can use Webull’s web-browser platform instead. It is launched from its website, which by itself is quite simple. The website proper only has account-management tools. But the trading platform is quite nice; we found many good resources on it during our investigation.
Of particular importance is charting. A graph can be expanded the full width of the computer screen, which delivers a great environment to do lots of analysis. Because the browser platform has more technical indicators than the mobile app and because they can be edited, it can get really advanced here.
The web-browser platform also has more order tickets than its mobile cousin. There are two additions here: an Advanced ticket and a Price Ladder. For the former, it’s possible to set up multi-leg trades with some really advanced order types, such as OTOCO (one triggers an OCO order). For the latter, it’s possible to fill a ticket simply by clicking on a bid or ask number in a vertical list of prices.
Other highlights on this very good platform include:
- Hotkeys
- Customization with themes and colors
- Watchlists that sync with other platforms
- Stock screener
- Market news
Desktop Platform
Option chains will be found on an asset’s profile. Just look for the tab at the top of the middle section with the other tabs. Whether single legs or spreads are specified, clicking on a bid or ask price automatically fills in the Advanced trade ticket with that particular contract or contract combination.
At the bottom of the trade ticket is a Graph button. Click on this to generate a P/L diagram where maximum loss and gain numbers are shown and where trade parameters can easily be adjusted.
Webull’s desktop environment offers the best charting experience of all its platforms. A chart can be detached to form its own window, and there are lots of tools. We counted 8 plot styles:
- Line
- Mountain
- Candlesticks
- Hollow candles
- Base line
- Bar
- Colored bar
- Heikin Ashi
The graphing window also has a right-click menu, which really helps for rapid order entry. It does default to the Advanced order ticket, which can be used to submit a single-leg or multi-leg trade.
Like the other two platforms we have already investigated, the desktop program has a simulated mode where practice trades can be made with zero risk. Look for the Paper Trading icon in the left-hand menu.
Open Webull Account
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Bonus Services
IPO Access: Initial Public Offerings are on tap at Webull. The broker’s mobile app maintains a current list of impending stock launches.
IRA Service: Traditional, Rollover, and Roth accounts are available at Webull
without any ongoing fees or minimums. The investment firm does not offer IRA margin, however, which means self-directed traders can’t short securities or trade option strategies.
Extended-hours Trading: Pre-market and after-hours trading are both available at no additional cost. Including the regular day session, there are
16 hours of trading total.
Fractional Shares: Webull clients can buy stocks, and ETFs in whole dollars or whole securities/coins.
Dividend Reinvestment Plan: Webull still has no DRIP service.
Stock-Lending Income Program: Through its clearing firm Apex, Webull offers its customers the ability to earn interest by loaning out shares of their stocks.
Recommendations
Beginning Investors: An automated account at Webull would be a decent way for newbies to begin.
Retirement Planning & Long-Term Investing: Although Webull does have IRAs and robo accounts, it doesn’t have much else that long-term savers may need. For example, the investment firm doesn’t have mutual funds, bonds, or annuities, all of which Charles Schwab does offer.
Stock and ETF Trading: Webull, with fractional-share trading and its very good software, which includes bracket orders, would be a good choice.
Small Accounts: A self-directed account at Webull has no minimum deposit requirement. A $100 minimum opening deposit is required to sign up for the robo program.
Mutual Funds: One of Webull’s weaknesses is the lack of mutual funds.
Firstrade has more than 11,000 of them, all with no transaction fees (and many with no loads).
Individual Retirement Accounts: Webull only offers three IRA types (Roth, Traditional, and
Rollover). Charles Schwab has many more than this with lots of retirement help.
Awards
Webull Review Summary
Webull does in fact offer a lot, although it falters in a few areas. High-powered traders will be in
good hands, thanks to the company’s excellent software. And the new robo program is a good option for
investors on the opposite end of the spectrum.
Webull Promotion
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Updated on 12/22/2024.
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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