Is E*TRADE better than Merrill Edge? After testing 15 of the best online brokers over five months, E*TRADE (91.53%) is better than Merrill Edge (88.87%). Founded in 1982 as one of the first online brokerages in the United States, E*TRADE understands what investors need to succeed in the market. E*TRADE highlights include $0 trades, two excellent mobile apps, and the Power E*TRADE platform, which is great for options trading.
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E*TRADE vs Merrill Edge 2020
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Promo Offer
$0 Commissions for online stock, ETF, & options trades. Join E*TRADE today! Open Account
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Special Offer
Get up to $600 when you invest in a new Merril Edge Self-Directed account. Open Account
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| Open Account | Open Account |
Overall Rating
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
| Overall | ||
| E*TRADE Review | Merrill Edge Review |
Trading Fees
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
| 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 | $0.65 |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $19.99 | $19.95 |
| Broker Assisted Trades Fee | $25.00 | $29.95 |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Margin Rates
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
| Under $24,999.99 | 8.95% | 8.63% |
| $25,000.00 to $49,999.99 | 8.45% | 7.50% |
| $50,000.00 to $99,999.99 | 7.95% | 7.50% |
| $100,000.00 to $249,999.99 | 7.45% | N/A |
| $250,000.00 to $499,999.99 | 6.95% | N/A |
| $500,000.00 to $999,999.99 | 6.45% | N/A |
| Above $1,000,000.00 | 5.45% | N/A |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Account Fees
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
| IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| IRA Closure Fee | $60.00 | $49.95 |
| Returned ACH Fee | $0.00 | $30.00 |
| Returned Wire Fee | $0.00 | N/A |
| Stock Certificate Processing Fee | $0.00 | $500.00 |
| Stock Certificate Delivery Fee | $75.00 | N/A |
| Paper Statement Fee | $2.00 | $5.00 |
| Paper Confirmation Fee | $0.00 | $3.00 |
| Domestic Wire Fee | $25.00 | $24.95 |
| International Wire Fee | $25.00 | $24.95 |
| Commissions & Fees |
Investment Options
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Trading |
Yes | Yes |
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Fractional Shares |
No | No |
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OTCBB / Pink Sheets |
Yes | Yes |
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Options Trading |
Yes | Yes |
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Complex Options Max Legs |
4 | 2 |
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Futures Trading |
Yes | No |
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Forex Trading |
No | No |
| Commission-Free ETFs | all | all |
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Mutual Funds (No Load) |
6663 | 2471 |
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Mutual Funds (Total) |
9291 | 3709 |
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Bonds (US Treasury) |
Yes | Yes |
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Bonds (Corporate) |
Yes | Yes |
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Bonds (Municipal) |
Yes | Yes |
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Interest Sharing |
No | No |
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Advisor Services |
Yes | Yes |
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International Trading |
No | No |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Order Types
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Order Type - Market |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Limit |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Stop |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Trailing Stop |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - Contingent |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - MultiContingent |
No | No |
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Order Type - OCO |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - OTO |
Yes | No |
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Order Type - OTOCO |
Yes | No |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Trading Platforms
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Desktop Platform (Windows) |
No | Yes |
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Desktop Platform (Mac) |
No | Yes |
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Web Platform |
Yes | Yes |
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Paper Trading |
Yes | No |
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Trade Journal |
No | No |
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Watch Lists - Total Fields |
125 | 285 |
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Heat Mapping |
No | Yes |
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AI Assistant Bot |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Charting Features
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Charting - Trade Off Chart |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Indicators / Studies |
119 | 100 |
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Charting - Drawing Tools |
32 | 22 |
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Charting - Historical Trades |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Corporate Events |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Automated Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Save Profiles |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
6 | 8 |
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Charting - Custom Studies |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Day Trading
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Alerts - Advanced Fields |
No | Yes |
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Streaming Time & Sales |
Yes | Yes |
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Streaming TV |
Yes | No |
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Direct Market Routing - Stocks |
Yes | No |
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Direct Market Routing - Options |
Yes | No |
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Ladder Trading |
No | No |
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Trade Hot Keys |
Yes | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trade Ideas - Backtesting |
No | Yes |
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Short Locator |
No | No |
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Order Liquidity Rebates |
No | No |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile Trading Apps
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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iPhone App |
Yes | Yes |
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Android App |
Yes | Yes |
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Apple Watch App |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - After-Hours |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Conditional Orders |
Yes | No |
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Trading - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Simple Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Complex Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - Option Rolling |
No | No |
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Touch / Face ID |
Yes | Yes |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile App Features
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Watch List Syncing |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Alerts |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - After Hours |
Yes | Yes |
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Charting - Drawing |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
Yes | Yes |
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Heatmapping |
No | Yes |
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Stream Live TV |
Yes | No |
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Barcode Lookup |
Yes | No |
| Mobile Trading | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Research Overview
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Research - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Fixed Income |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Mutual Funds |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Options |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - Bonds |
Yes | Yes |
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Misc - Portfolio Builder |
Yes | Yes |
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Misc - Portfolio Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Stock Research
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Stock Research - Reports |
5 | 3 |
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Stock Research - Earnings |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Insiders |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Metric Comp |
No | Yes |
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Stock Research - SEC Filings |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Social |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - Balance Sheet |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Cash Flows |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - News |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - ESG |
No | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
ETF Research
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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ETFs - Strategy Overview |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Sector Exposure |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Risk Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Performance Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
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ETFs - Reports |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Mutual Fund Research
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Prospectus |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Reports |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - Country Allocation |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - StyleMap |
Yes | Yes |
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Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings |
Yes | Yes |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Options Trading
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Option Chains - Streaming |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Chains - Total Columns |
30 | 69 |
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Option Chains - Greeks |
5 | 5 |
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Option Chains - Quick Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Analysis - P&L Charts |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Probability Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Probability Analysis Adv |
Yes | No |
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Option Positions - Greeks |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Adv Analysis |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Rolling |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Grouping |
Yes | Yes |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Beginners
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Education (Stocks) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (ETFs) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Options) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Mutual Funds) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Fixed Income) |
Yes | Yes |
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Education (Retirement) |
Yes | Yes |
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Paper Trading |
Yes | No |
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Videos |
Yes | Yes |
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Webinars (Monthly Avg) |
12 | 0 |
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Webinars (Archived) |
Yes | No |
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Live Seminars |
Yes | Yes |
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Progress Tracking |
No | Yes |
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Interactive Learning - Quizzes |
Yes | Yes |
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Investor Magazine |
No | Yes |
| Education | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Banking
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
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Retail Locations |
30 | 4300 |
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Member FDIC |
Yes | Yes |
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Checking Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
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Savings Accounts |
Yes | Yes |
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Credit Cards |
No | Yes |
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Debit Cards |
Yes | Yes |
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Mortgage Loans |
No | Yes |
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No Fee Banking |
No | No |
| Banking | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Overall
| Feature | E*TRADE | Merrill Edge |
| E*TRADE Review | Merrill Edge Review | |
| Overall | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Comparing brokers side by side is no easy task. For our 2020 annual broker review, we spent hundreds of hours assessing 15 brokerages to find the best online broker. Let's compare E*TRADE vs Merrill Edge.
Is E*TRADE or Merrill Edge better for beginners?
Merrill Edge is better for beginner investors than E*TRADE. Merrill Edge offers investors access to Videos, Education (Stocks), Education (ETFs), Education (Options), Education (Mutual Funds), Education (Fixed Income) and Education (Retirement).
What about E*TRADE vs Merrill Edge pricing?
E*TRADE and Merrill Edge both cost $0 per trade. For options trading, both E*TRADE and Merrill Edge charge the same base fee of $0. Option contracts at both of the brokerages are the same at $0.65 each. For a complete commissions summary, see our best discount brokers guide.
Does E*TRADE or Merrill Edge offer a wider range of investment options?
E*TRADE offers a more diverse selection of investment options than Merrill Edge. E*TRADE offers investors access to Stock Trading, OTCBB / Pink Sheets, Options Trading, Mutual Funds, Futures Trading and Advisor Services. Looking at Mutual Funds, Merrill Edge trails E*TRADE by 5,582 total mutual funds, with E*TRADE offering 9291 and Merrill Edge offering 3709.
Which trading platform is better: E*TRADE or Merrill Edge?
To compare the trading platforms of both E*TRADE and Merrill Edge, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, E*TRADE offers a better experience. With research, Merrill Edge offers superior market research. Finally, we found E*TRADE to provide better mobile trading apps.
Does either broker offer banking?
Online banking can be a benefit for investors, and some brokerages do provide banking services to customers. Checking Accounts, Savings Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards and Mortgage Loans are available to clients of Merrill Edge while E*TRADE offers customers Checking Accounts, Savings Accounts and Debit Cards.
Overall, between E*TRADE and Merrill Edge, E*TRADE is the better online broker.
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All pricing data was obtained from a published web site as of 01/20/2020 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.
