Online Brokers: Reviews

Updated June 2012

When choosing an online broker, it's important to look at both expert reviews and customer surveys to get the full picture, as we did. Experts say, as with regular banking, you should check for fees and minimums as well as security features. Surveys shed light on customer service issues.

Fidelity

Best online broker overall

*Est. $7.95 per trade

Estimated Price

Fidelity offers a full range of services to online investors, from international trading to checking accounts. The firm is also known for its large selection of investment products. Fidelity's easy-to-use website provides sophisticated tools for education, planning and analysis to help you make the best choices. On Fidelity.com you'll spend $7.95 per trade, with no account inactivity, handling or maintenance fees, and no hidden fees. The minimum amount to open an account is $2,500. Fidelity provides applications for the iPad and other mobile devices, though not as many as other brokers do.

Compare Prices See Our Full Review

Scottrade

Best discount broker

*Est. $7 per trade

Estimated Price

Scottrade is perhaps best known for its large number of branch offices -- there are more than 500 nationwide -- where you can go for in-person service. You can also invest online, of course, and in 2011 the firm began offering online banking services. Scottrade consistently receives very high customer satisfaction scores. Reviewers note that its trading tools are not the most sophisticated, but they praise this broker for its $7 commission, which has been in place since 1998, and its relative lack of other fees. Experts also like the online research and education amenities offered by this broker. It takes only $500 to open a Scottrade account.

Compare Prices See Our Full Review

Interactive Brokers

Best for active traders

*Est. $0.005 per share

Estimated Price

Experts say Interactive Brokers is the best broker for frequent traders and international traders, with access to more than 100 markets around the world. They also praise its customizable trading platform and sophisticated research and analysis tools, including a tax-optimizer tool. IB is not geared toward casual traders: It takes $10,000 to open an account, and according to one reviewer, customer service is "not warm and fuzzy" for those without substantial accounts. However, trading costs are low; Barron's names the firm one of the four online brokers with the lowest costs for both frequent and occasional traders.

Compare Prices See Our Full Review

COMPARE PRODUCTS

See a side-by-side comparison of key features, product specs, and prices.