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E*TRADE vs Firstrade 2019

StockBrokers.com | November 12th, 2019

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  3. E*TRADE vs Firstrade Review

Is E*TRADE better than Firstrade? Based on over 4,000 data points from our 2019 annual broker review, E*TRADE (83.68%) is better than Firstrade (67.1%).

E*TRADE

Best Web Platform - Open Account
Promo Offer: Get $100 when you deposit just $5,000 into a new E*TRADE account!

E*TRADE, with its $0 stock trades, finished fourth overall in 2019. E*TRADE was awarded 5 stars and #1 for Options Trading, thanks to its Power E*TRADE trading platform. The broker also won first place for Mobile Trading, and offers well-rounded access to quality research, trading tools, education, and more. Read full review.

Firstrade

Great For Chinese Americans - Open Account
Special Offer: Commission-Free Trading on 700+ ETFs

Founded in 1985, Firstrade has a long history of providing value for its customers. Known for its easy-to-use website, Firstrade offers $0 stock and options trading. Firstrade offers Morningstar research; however, its trading platform struggles to stand out against industry leaders. Read full review.

Overall Rating

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Overall 4 3.5
E*TRADE Review Firstrade Review

Trading Fees

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Minimum Deposit $0.00 $0.00
Stock Trade Fee (per trade) $0.00 $0.00
ETF Trade Fee $0.00 $0.00
Options Base Fee $0.00 $0.00
Options Per Contract Fee $0.65 $0.00
Mutual Fund Trade Fee $19.99 $0.00
Broker Assisted Trades Fee $25.00 $19.95
Commissions & Fees 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

Margin Rates

Feature E*TRADE
Open Account 		Firstrade
Open Account
Under $24,999.99 10.50% 9.50%
$25,000.00 to $49,999.99 10.25% 9.00%
$50,000.00 to $99,999.99 9.75% 8.50%
$100,000.00 to $249,999.99 9.25% 8.00%
$250,000.00 to $499,999.99 8.75% 7.75%
$500,000.00 to $999,999.99 8.25% 6.00%
Above $1,000,000.00 7.25% 5.25%
Commissions & Fees 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

Account Fees

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
IRA Annual Fee $0.00 $0.00
IRA Closure Fee $60.00 $0.00
Returned ACH Fee $0.00 $50.00
Returned Wire Fee $0.00 $50.00
Stock Certificate Processing Fee $0.00 $300.00
Stock Certificate Delivery Fee $75.00 $300.00
Paper Statement Fee $2.00 $5.00
Paper Confirmation Fee $0.00 $3.00
Domestic Wire Fee $25.00 $30.00
International Wire Fee $25.00 $50.00
Commissions & Fees 4.5 4

Investment Options

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Stock Trading
 Yes Yes
OTCBB / Pink Sheets
 Yes Yes
Options Trading
 Yes Yes
Complex Options Max Legs
 4 2
Futures Trading
 Yes No
Forex Trading
 No No
Commission-Free ETFs all all
Mutual Funds (No Load)
 6266 5234
Mutual Funds (Total)
 9062 12603
Bonds (US Treasury)
 Yes Yes
Bonds (Corporate)
 Yes Yes
Bonds (Municipal)
 Yes Yes
Advisor Services
 Yes No
International Trading
 No No
Offering of Investments 4.5 3.5
Winner check_circle

Order Types

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Order Type - Market
 Yes Yes
Order Type - Limit
 Yes Yes
Order Type - Stop
 Yes Yes
Order Type - Trailing Stop
 Yes Yes
Order Type - Contingent
 Yes Yes
Order Type - MultiContingent
 No Yes
Order Type - OCO
 Yes Yes
Order Type - OTO
 Yes Yes
Order Type - OTOCO
 Yes No
Offering of Investments 4.5 3.5
Winner check_circle

Trading Platforms

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Desktop Platform (Windows)
 Yes No
Desktop Platform (Mac)
 Yes No
Web Platform
 Yes Yes
Paper Trading
 Yes No
Trade Journal
 No No
Watch Lists - Total Fields
 125 13
Two-Factor Authentication Login
 Yes No
Heat Mapping
 No Yes
Platforms & Tools 4.5 2
Winner check_circle

Charting Features

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Charting - Trade Off Chart
 Yes No
Charting - Indicators / Studies
 118 58
Charting - Drawing Tools
 33 5
Charting - Historical Trades
 Yes No
Charting - Corporate Events
 Yes Yes
Charting - Automated Analysis
 No No
Charting - Save Profiles
 Yes No
Charting - Study Customizations
 6 6
Charting - Custom Studies
 No No
Platforms & Tools 4.5 2
Winner check_circle

Day Trading

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Stock Alerts - Basic Fields
 Yes Yes
Stock Alerts - Advanced Fields
 No No
Streaming Time & Sales
 Yes No
Streaming TV
 Yes No
Direct Market Routing - Stocks
 Yes No
Direct Market Routing - Options
 Yes No
Ladder Trading
 Yes No
Trade Hot Keys
 Yes No
Level 2 Quotes - Stocks
 Yes No
Level 2 Quotes - Options
 Yes No
Trade Ideas - Backtesting
 Yes No
Short Locator
 No No
Order Liquidity Rebates
 No No
Winner check_circle

Mobile Trading Apps

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
iPhone App
 Yes Yes
Android App
 Yes Yes
Apple Watch App
 Yes No
Trading - Stocks
 Yes Yes
Trading - After-Hours
 Yes Yes
Trading - Conditional Orders
 Yes No
Trading - Mutual Funds
 Yes No
Trading - Simple Options
 Yes Yes
Trading - Complex Options
 Yes No
Trading - Option Rolling
 No No
Touch / Face ID
 Yes Yes
Winner check_circle

Mobile App Features

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Watch List Syncing
Yes Yes
Stock Alerts - Basic Fields
 Yes No
Charting - After Hours
 Yes No
Charting - Drawing
 No No
Charting - Study Customizations
Yes Yes
Customizable Homescreen
 Yes No
Heatmapping
 Yes No
Stream Live TV
 Yes No
Barcode Lookup
 Yes No
Mobile Trading 5 3.5
Winner check_circle

Research Overview

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Research - Stocks
 Yes Yes
Research - ETFs
 Yes Yes
Research - Mutual Funds
 Yes Yes
Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB
 Yes Yes
Research - Fixed Income
 Yes Yes
Screener - Stocks
 Yes Yes
Screener - ETFs
 Yes Yes
Screener - Mutual Funds
 Yes Yes
Screener - Options
 Yes No
Screener - Bonds
 Yes Yes
Misc - Portfolio Builder
 Yes No
Misc - Portfolio Allocation
 Yes Yes
Research 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

Stock Research

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Stock Research - Reports
 4 1
Stock Research - Earnings
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - Insiders
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - Metric Comp
 No Yes
Stock Research - SEC Filings
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - Social
 Yes No
Stock Research - Balance Sheet
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - Cash Flows
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - News
 Yes Yes
Stock Research - ESG
 No No
Research 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

ETF Research

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
ETFs - Strategy Overview
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Top 10 Holdings
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Sector Exposure
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Risk Analysis
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Performance Analysis
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Ratings
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap
 Yes Yes
ETFs - Reports
 Yes Yes
Research 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

Mutual Fund Research

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Prospectus
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Reports
 Yes No
Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - Country Allocation
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - StyleMap
 Yes Yes
Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings
 Yes Yes
Research 4.5 4
Winner check_circle

Options Trading

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Option Chains - Streaming
 Yes No
Option Chains - Total Columns
 30 8
Option Chains - Greeks
5 5
Option Chains - Quick Analysis
 Yes No
Option Analysis - P&L Charts
 Yes No
Option Probability Analysis
 Yes No
Option Probability Analysis Adv
 Yes No
Option Positions - Greeks
Yes No
Option Positions - Adv Analysis
 Yes No
Option Positions - Rolling
 Yes Yes
Option Positions - Grouping
 Yes No
Platforms & Tools 4.5 2
Winner check_circle

Beginners

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Has Education - Stocks
 Yes Yes
Has Education - ETFs
 Yes No
Has Education - Options
 Yes Yes
Has Education - Mutual Funds
 Yes No
Has Education - Fixed Income
 Yes No
Has Education - Retirement
 Yes Yes
Paper Trading
 Yes No
Videos
 Yes Yes
Webinars (Monthly Avg)
 12 5
Webinars (Archived)
 Yes Yes
Live Seminars
 Yes No
Progress Tracking
 No No
Interactive Learning - Quizzes
 Yes No
Investor Magazine
 No No
Education 4.5 3
Winner check_circle

Banking

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
Retail Locations
 30 2
Member FDIC
 Yes No
Checking Accounts
 Yes Yes
Savings Accounts
 Yes No
Credit Cards
 No No
Debit Cards
 Yes Yes
Mortgage Loans
 No No
No Fee Banking
 No No
Banking 4 2
Winner check_circle

Overall

Feature E*TRADE Firstrade
E*TRADE Review Firstrade Review
Overall 4 3.5
Winner check_circle

The StockBrokers.com annual broker review assesses more than a dozen different brokers over six months, surfacing the best online stock brokers. This review compares E*TRADE vs Firstrade. Is E*TRADE or Firstrade a better online broker?

First, we will make a comparison of the stock and option trading fees for trading with both brokers. E*TRADE and Firstrade have equal fees for trading stocks (equities), $0 per trade. For options trading, both E*TRADE and Firstrade charge the same base fee of $0. Option contracts are pricier at E*TRADE, costing $0.65 versus $0 at Firstrade. Note that some brokers charge a per-share fee instead of a flat-fee commission. For a full breakdown of commissions, read our online broker reviews.

For our next comparison of these two brokers, being able to trade the way you want is a must. Firstrade offers clients Stock Trading, Options Trading and Mutual Funds while E*TRADE offers Stock Trading, Options Trading, Mutual Funds and Futures Trading. When it comes to mutual funds, Firstrade offers its clients access to 12603 different mutual funds while E*TRADE has 9062 available funds, a difference of 3,541.

Last but not least, by breaking down important features, tools, etc that each broker offers, we can really help to separate the two. E*TRADE offers virtual trading while Firstrade does not. For mobile trading, E*TRADE and Firstrade both have a iPhone App, iPad App and Android App. Furthermore, some investors like to bank online, and multiple brokerages provide these services to clients. Clients can have Checking Accounts and Debit Cards at Firstrade while customers at E*TRADE can have Checking Accounts, Savings Accounts and Debit Cards.

Overall, between E*TRADE and Firstrade, E*TRADE is the winner.

E*TRADE Review
Firstrade Review

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All pricing data was obtained from a published web site as of 02/18/2019 and is believed to be accurate, but is not guaranteed. For stock trade rates, advertised pricing is for a standard order size of 500 shares of stock priced at $30 per share. For options orders, an options regulatory fee per contract may apply.

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