Open Firstrade Account
Firstrade Promotion Details
New customers who open an individual or joint account, or IRA (Roth, Traditional, or Rollover) by clicking on the link above and using Firstrade promotion code FREECOMM will receive free trades. Investment Clubs,
Partnerships, Corporate, ESA, and Custodial accounts are exempt. Offer is valid from February 22, 2018 until September 18, 2018.
Customers who deposit at least $0.01 will receive $100 in commission credits. A deposit of $500 will qualify for $500 worth of commission-free trading, while making a deposit of
$5,000 is good for $1,000 in commission credits. The deposit must be received within one month of account opening, and the free trades are valid for 60 days. The new account
must remain open with the minimum funding level for 12 months. Otherwise, Firstrade reserves the right to charge the account the amount of free trades awarded.
Firstrade will compensate the new account a commission credit within one business day from the funding date for each stock, option, or ETF trade placed in the new account.
Stocks and ETF’s must be priced above $1.00. This promo does not include option exercise, assignment, or per-contract fees.
Unused trades have no cash value. A single commission will be assigned to trades placed in multiple lots on the same trading day. Partial fills over multiple days will be assigned
multiple commissions.
This Firstrade promotion offer is not valid for current Firstrade accounts or internal transfers. It is not transferable. There is a limit of one offer per account category.
Firstrade will rebate ACAT fees charged by another broker, up to $100, for customers who complete an account transfer of $10,000 or more in
assets. This Firstrade incentive is on-going.
In addition to great promotion offers Firstrade has been delivering low-cost investment services for more than thirty years. Nevertheless, it isn't one of the first companies traders usually think of when choosing a broker.
It doesn't advertise as much, nor is it the most popular firm. All the same, this broker has several attractive features that many investors could find to be a good value.
Trading Fees and Account Minimums
The broker's charge for trading ETF's and stocks is just $4.95, definitely making the broker a low-cost firm. Derivative traders pay an extra $0.65 per contract for options, one of the lowest prices in the industry. Clients who prefer to place a trade with a live broker are charged an extra $13, another great value.
Accounts have no maintenance or inactivity fees. There is no minimum initial deposit requirement, making this firm a good broker to take for a test drive.
Margin accounts are available. Debits under $10,000 currently cost 9.75%, and those over $1,000,000 are 5.25%.
Investors who open a new Firstrade brokerage account will receive $100 of free trades. These credits must be used within one month. A token $1 initial
deposit is required within 30 days of account opening.
Since the broker recently lowered its stock and ETF commission to $0, the $100 is worth 33 trades. More trades are possible with larger deposits.
Putting $500 into the trading account earns $500 in free trades, while funding with $5,000 will get 200 commission-free trades. They all have to be
used within 30 days, however. IRA's are not eligible for this Firstrade promotion special.
Retirement Accounts
A unique feature of Firstrade is the availability to open IRA accounts such as Roth, SIMPLE, SEP, and Rollover retirement accounts. Managing the IRA follows the same commission schedule as mentioned above and closing out an IRA is free of charge. Mutual funds are also available on Firstrade from Allianz, BlackRock, Fidelity, and more.
IRA’s and Mutual funds are located in the navigation menu. Additional information and resources are also available here to educate users on savings techniques, goal setting, risk management, and business planning.
Outline
Firstrade and Scottrade are two low-cost brokers that have several similarities, but some important differences as well. Scottrade advertises more
frequently, so it's the better known of the two. The following article will try to see if one of these brokers is the better firm.
Update: Scottrade has been acquired by TD Ameritrade. Please visit this article for up-to-date information.
Technology
Handy menus appear at the top of Firstrade’s website. They make navigation quick and simple. A useful trade bar is at the bottom of the browser. It can be used to quickly find important security data and to place a trade for stocks, ETF's, or options. Charting on the site includes several technical studies and graph styles. Unfortunately, a chart cannot be expanded full screen or detached into a separate window. An advanced platform is available for traders who want something more than the website, although it carries frequent trader requirements.
Scottrade's website is also easy to use. Charting is more user-friendly compared to Firstrade. A graph can be detached into its own window, although the time scale doesn't fill the entire screen. Red and green are used to show down and up patterns. Strangely, users can't log onto the Scottrade website with a user-created ID. Like Firstrade, Scottrade has a trade ticket. Scottrade's appears in the lower-left corner, and unlike Firstrade, it can be detached. Scottrade also has a sophisticated desktop platform, and it too has account requirements.
Both firms offer mobile apps that are free of charge. They can be used on Apple and Android devices. Scottrade also has a mobile web site. Neither broker offers live streaming of business news or a platform for Apple Watch. The Firstrade app doesn't have bill pay, mobile check deposit, or funds transfer. Scottrade's app has all three.
Scottrade wins the first category.
Funds
The Scottrade website has more than 11,300 mutual funds that are open to new investors. Over 2,000 of these funds carry no load and no transaction fee. The broker charges $17 to buy and sell funds with transaction fees. Load funds are free on the buy side, although there is a $17 charge to sell. Regrettably, there are no commission-free ETF's at Scottrade.
Firstrade clients receive 700 ETF’s that are free to trade. The available fund families are Vanguard, iShares, and PowerShares. There is a minimum purchase amount of ten shares, and they must be held at least 30 days; otherwise a $6.95 charge is assessed.
Firstrade's mutual fund screener returns over 8,300 funds that are open to new investors. More than 3,200 have no load. Oddly, the screener does not have the ability to search for funds without a transaction fee. A Firstrade mutual fund information page shows 329 funds that come with no load and no transaction fee. The broker's 5,000+ load funds always have no transaction fee. No-load funds that come with a transaction fee are $9.95 per trade. Firstrade also charges $19.95 for sales of fund shares that are held less than 90 days. Redemptions less than $500 also incur a $19.95 fee. The broker does make an exception if the entire value of the fund is less than $500.
Overall, it's pretty even here.
Customer Service
Firstrade has representatives on the phone during the weekday from 8 am to 6 pm, EST. The broker's website also has an on-line chat service during those hours. Saturday and Sunday hours are not available. The broker does have office hours at its headquarters in Flushing, New York during the week and four hours on Saturday.
Unlike Firstrade, Scottrade has a nationwide network of branch locations. Currently, there are more than 500 Scottrade offices located in 47 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Representatives on the phone are available Monday through Friday from 5 am to midnight, and on Saturday and Sunday from 8 am to 6 pm. Scottrade customers can also receive assistance on the broker's Facebook and Twitter accounts.
This category goes to Scottrade.
Commissions and Account Requirements
Trading stocks and ETF's at Scottrade costs $6.95 per transaction. Option traders pay an additional 70¢ per contract. Firstrade is
charging $0 for equity transactions and 0¢ for derivatives.
Brokerage accounts with both firms come with no maintenance, annual, low-balance, or inactivity fees. Firstrade has no minimum opening deposit
requirement, while Scottrade customers must deposit $2,500 or more to open an account.
Firstrade wins easily here.
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Cash Management
Scottrade operates an FDIC-insured bank. The company's brokerage customers can open a checking or savings account if they have at least $500 in a securities account first. Checks and a MasterCard debit card are free of charge. Firstrade customers can add checks and a debit card to an existing brokerage account, too. However, the broker requires a staggering $25,000 account balance for checks and $50,000 for a debit card. Both come with fees, too.
Scottrade easily wins here.
Firstrade vs Scottrade: Results
Firstrade (read review) was successful in one category, Scottrade
(read review) triumphed in three categories, and there was one tie. Scottrade wins comfortably.
Despite the results, Firstrade is the better broker for bargain seekers.
Promotions
TD Ameritrade Promotion: Trade free for 60 days + get up to $600.
Firstrade Promotion: $0 commissions + up to $200 in transfer fee rebates.
Firstrade Promotion
reviewed by Brokerage-Review.com.
Rating: 4.5
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