11 Best Online Brokers for Stock Trading of July 2022
In our analysis, these online brokers stood out as the best for stock trading due to their low fees, strong trading platforms and tools and quality customer support.
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If you want to trade stocks, you’re going to need an online broker. We evaluated brokerage firms and investment companies on the services that matter most to different types of stock traders: For example, for active traders, we've noted online brokers with low or no commissions and robust mobile trading platforms and desktop trading capabilities. For people venturing into investing for the first time, we've included the best online brokers for educational resources (including webinars, video tutorials and in-person seminars) and on-call chat or phone support.
On these measures, the brokerage firms below earned their place on our list of the best online brokers for stock trading. Read on to see our picks, alongside links to our investing experts' in-depth reviews on each.
If you want to trade stocks, you’re going to need an online broker. We evaluated brokerage firms and investment companies on the services that matter most to different types of stock traders: For example, for active traders, we've noted online brokers with low or no commissions and robust mobile trading platforms and desktop trading capabilities. For people venturing into investing for the first time, we've included the best online brokers for educational resources (including webinars, video tutorials and in-person seminars) and on-call chat or phone support.
On these measures, the brokerage firms below earned their place on our list of the best online brokers for stock trading. Read on to see our picks, alongside links to our investing experts' in-depth reviews on each.
4.5
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Merrill Edge's website
Robust third-party research.
Integrated with Bank of America.
Advanced traders may find fewer securities on offer.
5.0
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Fidelity's website
Commission-free stock, ETF and options trades.
Large selection of research providers.
Strong customer service.
Expense-ratio-free index funds.
Highly rated mobile app.
Relatively high broker-assisted trade fee.
5.0
/5 NerdWallet ratingon TD Ameritrade's website
Commission-free stock and ETF trades.
Free research.
High-quality trading platforms.
No account minimum.
Good customer support.
Large investment selection.
No fractional shares.
4.5
/5 NerdWallet ratingon E*TRADE's website
Easy-to-use tools.
Large investment selection.
Excellent customer support.
Access to extensive research.
Advanced mobile app.
Commission-free stock, options and ETF trades.
Website can be difficult to navigate.
5.0
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Interactive Brokers' website
Large investment selection.
Strong research and tools.
Over 17,000 no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
NerdWallet users who sign up for IBKR Pro get a 0.25 percentage point discount on margin rates.
Website is difficult to navigate.
4.5
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Webull's website
Low costs.
Easy-to-use platform.
Advanced tools.
Access to cryptocurrency.
No mutual funds.
Thin educational support.
4.5
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Ally Invest's website
Commission-free trades on eligible U.S. stocks, options and ETFs.
No account minimum.
Strong web-based platform.
Robust research and tools.
No no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
No branches.
4.5
/5 NerdWallet ratingon TradeStation's website
High-quality trading platforms.
Comprehensive research.
Commission-free stock, ETF and options trades.
Advanced tools.
Active trader community.
Free trading on advanced platform requires TS Select.
No transaction-fee-free mutual funds.
Plans and pricing can be confusing.
4.0
/5 NerdWallet ratingon Zacks Trade's website
Ample research offerings.
Robust trading platform.
Access to international exchanges.
Trails competitors on commissions.
High account minimum.
Want to compare more options? Here are our other top picks:
Last updated on June 7, 2022
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Methodology
NerdWallet’s comprehensive review process evaluates and ranks the largest U.S. brokers by assets under management, along with emerging industry players. Our aim is to provide an independent assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgements on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.
We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, and conduct first-hand testing and observation through provider demonstrations. The questionnaire answers, combined with demonstrations, interviews of personnel at the providers and our specialists’ hands-on research, fuel our proprietary assessment process that scores each provider’s performance across more than 20 factors. The final output produces star ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.
For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best Online Brokers for Stock Trading of July 2022
Frequently asked questions
Not much. Note that many of the brokers above have no account minimums for both taxable brokerage accounts and IRAs. Once you open an account, all it takes to get started is enough money to cover the cost of a single share of a stock and the trading commission, if charged. (See “How to Buy Stocks” for step-by-step instructions on placing that first trade.)
Trading costs definitely matter to active and high-volume traders, but many brokers now offer commission-free trades of stocks and ETFs. Other factors — access to a range of investments or training tools — may be more valuable than saving a few bucks when you purchase shares.
One easy way is to invest in exchange-traded funds. ETFs are essentially mutual funds that are bought and sold just like individual stocks on a stock market exchange. Like mutual funds, each ETF contains a basket of stocks (sometimes hundreds) that adhere to particular criteria (e.g., shares of companies that are part of a stock market index like the S&P 500). Unlike mutual funds, which can have high investment minimums, investors can purchase as little as one share of an ETF at a time.
Your money is indeed insured, but only against the unlikely event a brokerage firm or investment company goes under. A broker’s SIPC coverage (Securities Investor Protection Corporation) doesn't cover any loss in value of your investments.
Your account choices boil down to a taxable brokerage account versus tax-favored retirement account, such as an IRA. Our guide to brokerage accounts goes into more detail about what’s involved in setting up a taxable account. Opening an IRA involves choosing which type, such as a Roth IRA, traditional IRA or SEP IRA. If you're new to this, we’ve got you covered in our guide to IRAs.
After you’ve opened the account, you’ll need to initiate a deposit or funds transfer to the brokerage firm, which can take anywhere from a few days to a week. Once that is complete, it’s off to the investing races! And by that we mean taking a thoughtful and disciplined approach to investing your money for the long-term.
Some key criteria to consider when evaluating any investment company are how much money you have, what type of assets you intend to buy, your trading style and technical needs, how frequently you plan to transact and how much service you need. Our post about how to choose the best broker for you can help you sort through the features brokerage firms offer and rank your priorities.
