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BEST OF

11 Best Options Trading Brokers and Platforms of September 2023

These brokers charge low or no options contract fees and offer investors the tools and research necessary for options trading.

Andy Rosen
Chris Davis
By Chris Davis and  Andy Rosen 
Edited by Robert Beaupre

Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.


The investing information provided on this page is for educational purposes only. NerdWallet, Inc. does not offer advisory or brokerage services, nor does it recommend or advise investors to buy or sell particular stocks, securities or other investments.

The best options brokers offer low (or in some cases, no) options contract fees, no trading commissions, quality trading tools, an abundance of high-quality research and the customer service necessary to support everyone from beginner investors to advanced traders.

While most of the brokers on our list of best brokers for stock trading would be a good pick for options as well, this list highlights brokers that excel in areas that matter most to options traders. Many of the below brokers also appear on our list of best online trading platforms for day trading.

Why you can trust NerdWallet's picks: Our writers and editors together have more than 50 years of experience writing about finance, and follow strict guidelines to maintain editorial integrity. We do a deep, independent analysis of dozens of investment firms, sorting through the details to find and evaluate the information investors want when choosing an investing account. To see our full methodology and learn more about our process, read our criteria for evaluating online brokers.

Unsure what you’re looking for? See our guide to options trading for more on what can make or break an options trading experience.

🤓Nerdy Tip

Investing can help outpace inflation — which is especially important when inflation is high.

Best Options Trading Brokers and Platforms

NerdWallet rating 

5.0

/5
Webull
Learn more

on Webull's website

Fees

$0

per trade

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

Get up to 12 free fractional shares (valued up to $3,000)

when you open and fund an account with Webull.

NerdWallet rating 

4.7

/5
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing
Learn more

on J.P. Morgan's website

Fees

$0

per trade

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

Get $50

when you open & fund a new account with $5K on Chase.com or the Chase Mobile® app.

NerdWallet rating 

5.0

/5
Fidelity
Learn more

on Fidelity's website

Fees

$0

per trade for online U.S. stocks and ETFs

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

Get $100

when you open a new, eligible Fidelity account with $50 or more. Use code FIDELITY100. Limited time offer. Terms apply.

NerdWallet rating 

4.6

/5
Robinhood
Learn more

on Robinhood's website

Fees

$0

per trade

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

1 Free Stock

after linking your bank account (stock value range $5.00-$200)

NerdWallet rating 

5.0

/5
Interactive Brokers IBKR Lite
Learn more

on Interactive Brokers' website

Fees

$0

per trade

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

None

no promotion available at this time

NerdWallet rating 

5.0

/5
TD Ameritrade
Learn more

on TD Ameritrade's website

Fees

$0

per trade

Account minimum

$0

Promotion

None

no promotion available at this time

Want to compare more options? Here are our other top picks:

More on the best brokers for options trades

Understand options fees

Options trades can come with two fees charged by online brokers: A trade commission, which is generally the same as the broker's stock trading commission, and a per-contract fee.

The trade commission is typically charged once for the transaction, no matter how many shares you trade. As you can see, none of the brokers on our list charge trade commissions; at most online brokers, these are largely a thing of the past.

The per-contract fee is still common among brokers, though for this, too, some have opted to eliminate it completely. An options contract typically represents 100 shares of the stock that underlies the contract, and the contract fee is charged per share of stock. If the broker charges an options contract fee of $0.50, one option would cost $50 (100 shares of stock X $.50).

Broker

Trade commission

Options contract fee

Interactive Brokers IBKR Lite
NerdWallet rating 

on Interactive Brokers' website

$0

IBKR Lite: $0.65 per contract. IBKR Pro: $0.15-$0.65 per contract depending on commission structure.

Webull
NerdWallet rating 

on Webull's website

$0

$0

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing
NerdWallet rating 

on J.P. Morgan's website

$0

$0.65 per contract

TD Ameritrade
NerdWallet rating 

on TD Ameritrade's website

$0

$0.65 per contract

Fidelity
NerdWallet rating 

on Fidelity's website

$0

$0.65 per contract

Robinhood
NerdWallet rating 

on Robinhood's website

$0

$0

Ally Invest
NerdWallet rating 
Read review

$0

$0.50 per contract

E*TRADE
NerdWallet rating 
Read review

$0

$0.65 per contract for fewer than 30 trades per quarter; $0.50 per contract for those who trade 30 or more times per quarter.

Firstrade
NerdWallet rating 
Read review

$0

$0

Merrill Edge® Self-Directed
NerdWallet rating 
Read review

$0

$0.65 per contract

Charles Schwab
NerdWallet rating 
Read review

$0

$0.65 per contract

Last updated on September 5, 2023

Methodology

How do we review brokers?

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).

For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.