|
Is Wells Fargo Good for Day Trading?
|
Day Trading at Wells Fargo
Did you know that you can day trade at WellsTrade? Yes, it’s true. WellsTrade does
permit this type of short-term trading. But you will still have to follow important account guidelines, margin rules, settlement rules, and WellsTrade risk controls. Here’s what you need to know:
Day-Trading Rules at WellsTrade
FINRA is a self-regulatory organization that oversees U.S. broker-dealers, and WellsTrade must follow applicable industry rules. Under the newer framework, the old pattern-day-trading rule no longer creates a $25,000 minimum equity requirement for day trading.
This does not mean day trading is unlimited or risk-free. WellsTrade customers still need to pay attention to:
1. Account type, including whether the account is a cash account or a margin account
2. Available buying power, account equity, and margin requirements
3. Settlement rules for securities trades and cash-account trading restrictions
Day Trading Without the Old PDT Rule
Since the old PDT rule is gone, the focus is no longer on avoiding a PDT flag or keeping a $25,000 balance for that reason. Instead, day traders should focus on whether the account has enough cash or buying power to support the trades they want to place.
A cash account can be used for day trading, but it has its own drawback: you can’t trade with borrowed funds. With a cash account, you’ll have to wait for a trade to settle before you can use funds from that trade without creating a cash-account trading problem.
With recent regulatory changes, stock trades now settle in T+1 (one business day after the trade date). Options and government bonds also settle in T+1. So you’ll have to have some extra cash sitting in your account to day trade multiple times in a cash account.
Another approach is to swing trade. This means entering a trade one day and exiting the next day or at some point within the next 2 weeks. Swing trading still carries market risk, but it can reduce the pressure of opening and closing positions on the same day.
WellsTrade is mostly designed for self-directed investing rather than high-speed day trading. It offers online trading in stocks, ETFs, options, no-load mutual funds, and money market funds. Bonds, Treasuries, and brokerage CDs can be traded by speaking with a fixed-income specialist.
Using WellsTrade’s Software to Day Trade
WellsTrade doesn’t have the kind of sophisticated trading software that active day traders may typically want. There is no professional desktop program or advanced active-trader platform. WellsTrade is available through Wells Fargo’s online and mobile platforms, but its trading tools are basic compared to platforms built for active traders.
The broker’s trade ticket doesn’t offer the same fast-entry tools, hot keys, advanced routing, or active-trader layouts found at stronger day-trading platforms. If you want to establish exit orders, you may need to enter them separately after your entry order.
Better Broker For Traders
For active traders, a good alternative brokerage firm is
Charles Schwab.
It has a number of advantages over Wells Fargo: paper trading through paperMoney, futures trading,
more products, and advanced trading platforms such as thinkorswim.
Charles Schwab Website
Visit Schwab Website
Updated on 6/4/2026.
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.
|