E*TRADE vs. Fidelity: 2024 Comparison
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If you're considering opening a brokerage account at E*TRADE or Fidelity, you should know there's no wrong choice: Both brokers offer competitive features for investors, including quality trading platforms, commission-free trading of stocks and exchange-traded funds and a wide selection of no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
While Fidelity edges out E*TRADE slightly in our analysis of customer support and research and data, E*TRADE excels in other areas, including offering a wider selection of tradable securities and volume discounts on options trades that make it the lower-cost broker for options traders. Here's a direct comparison of the two brokers:
E*TRADE is best for:
Frequent traders.
Beginner investors.
Research and data.
Retirement planning assistance.
E*TRADE at a glance
Account minimum | $0 |
Stock trading costs | $0 |
Options trades | No base commission; $0.65 per contract (volume discount available) |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | No annual or inactivity fee. $75 full transfer out fee. |
Interest rate on uninvested cash | 0.01% |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | More than 4,000 |
Tradable securities | • Stocks • Bonds • Mutual funds • ETFs • Options • Futures |
Trading platform | Two platforms available for free to all customers: • E-Trade Web • Power E-Trade |
Mobile app | Two apps: • E*TRADE mobile • Power E*TRADE Available on iOS and Android. |
Research and data | Free and extensive, with several external providers available at no cost. |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | Phone, email and chat support 24/7; 64 local and 2 national branches |
» Read our full review of E*TRADE
Fidelity is best for:
Frequent traders.
Beginner investors.
Research and data.
Retirement planning assistance.
Fidelity at a glance
Account minimum | $0. |
Stock trading costs | $0. |
Options trades | $0.65 per contract. |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | None. |
Interest rate on uninvested cash | 4.97%. |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | More than 3,300 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. |
Tradable securities | • Stocks. • Corporate, municipal and government bonds. • Mutual funds. • ETFs. • Fractional shares. • Options. • FOREX. • Precious metals. • Bitcoin and Ethereum. |
Trading platform | Fidelity.com and Active Trader Pro. Both free for all customers. |
Mobile app | Available for iOS and Android; advanced features. |
Research and data | Free and extensive. |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | Phone, email and live chat 24/7; more than 200 local branches. |
NerdWallet rating 4.9 /5 | NerdWallet rating 5.0 /5 | NerdWallet rating 4.1 /5 |
Fees $0 per online equity trade | Fees $0 per trade | Fees $0 per trade |
Account minimum $0 | Account minimum $0 | Account minimum $0 |
Promotion None no promotion available at this time | Promotion None no promotion available at this time | Promotion Get up to $700 when you open and fund a J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing account with qualifying new money. |
» Read our full review of Fidelity
Want to compare more options? View our full list of the best online brokers.
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For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.
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