I guess before we can start investing, we have to spend some time finding out where to trade and it begs the question: who is the best online stock broker? I’ve been with Datek which turned into TDAmeritrade and my friend has tried Etrade and he wasn’t too happy, but nothing pleases him so I’m not sure he’s the best judge of the best online stock brokers or any stock market brokerage.
For the most part, you are probably going to be OK with whoever you go with for your stock market investing. I’ve noticed that Scottrade does a lot of online advertising and Charles Schwab was a name that I have always known. You could go with the one who has the best offer. Many offer a bunch of free trades which is great if you are a daytrader which I am not (and I don’t recommend). So I wouldn’t base it on that. I’ve usually left them unused.
For our purposes here, I opted for Optionsxpress. Whether they are the best online stock brokerage, I am not sure but I am initially pleased. There customer service support has been very good whenever I have called although it’s not 24 hours. They do have a special promotion going with a $100 referral fee. I used it for a custodial account for my son. There are some stipulations. From what I can tell, you have to do the following:
- Go to the referral screen and enter their email address
- They have to use the email address you used to open their account.
- They have to fund it with an average balance of over $500 for the first six months
- They have to make one trade.
- Then you both get $100 forty five days later.
- You can collect referrals like this five times I think.
One of the other reasons I chose Optionsxpress is because there are no maintenance fees. I know that alot of firms let you do a 401k rollover to IRA for free but would charge you for regular accounts. There is no minimum needed so it makes it one of the best online stock broker for beginners because you can start small. If you have any questions about how to choose the best online broker for rollover, feel free to leave a comment below.
The actual account opening process was fairly easy process. The only hassle is the identification process. I know that I had to answer some questions about a guy whose mail got screwed up with mine and now the service that provides this verification process always asks me questions about him. Fortunately, I’ve got enough info on it to answer the questions but it seems stupid verifying I’m me when it’s really some else I am verifying.
To fund my account, I’m too lazy to write a check and to cheap to pay a wire fee. I chose the ACH transfer option. It takes a few days because you have to verify you own the bank account by making a couple small deposits.
Optionsxpress also has a detailed education center and a stock market simulation you can use to practice with. For me it’s the best online stock broker but your mileage may vary.
Related posts:
- How To Use An IRA To Buy Stocks
- How To Start Investing In The Stock Market Without A Broker
- Investing In The Stock Market Online
- 401k Rollover
- Beginner Stock Market Investing
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m trying to make a decision on an online broker. A friend recommended Ameritrade. I would like to know why you left Ameritrade?
Thanks for any input.
It’s been a few years now. I think if I remember right I was originally with Datek, which became Ameritrade, which I think then became TDAmeritrade. At some point in there I think one of them charged me a fee I didn’t agree with and I left them. From an execution standpoint everything was fine. In general, you’d probably be OK with Ameritrade although I have moved over to Optionsxpress. There customer service has been great so far and I like their educational tools better than TDAmeritrade. If you go with Optionsxpress, let me know and I’ll send you an email referral and we will both grab $100 in our account at some point depending on your deposit and trading activity. If you go with another online stock broker, feel free to comment here on your experience as others may have the same questions about who to choose as you did. Good luck!