E*TRADE vs Robinhood 2026
Led by Jessica Inskip, Director of Investor Research, the StockBrokers.com research team collects thousands of data points across hundreds of variables. We evaluate features important to every kind of investor, including beginners, casual investors, passive investors, and active traders. We carefully track data on margin rates, trading costs, and fees to rate stock brokers across our proprietary testing categories.
Our researchers open personal brokerage accounts and test all available platforms on desktop, web, and mobile for each broker reviewed on StockBrokers.com. Learn more about how we test.
E*TRADE vs Robinhood pits a full-service veteran against the app that made commission-free trading the norm. For most investors, E*TRADE is the stronger all-around pick. It brings Morgan Stanley research, mutual funds and bonds, in-depth options tools, and a bank attached to the brokerage. Robinhood is the better deal for cost-focused traders. Options contracts are $0 there against $0.65 at E*TRADE, margin runs far cheaper, and it's the only one of the two with crypto and prediction markets.
E*TRADE vs Robinhood
- Minimum Deposit: $0.00
- Stock Trades: $0.00
- Options (Per Contract): $0.65
With two distinct platforms (E*TRADE Web and Power E*TRADE) the broker effectively serves both the "set-it-and-forget-it" investor and the high-volume derivatives trader. Whether you aim to construct a long-term retirement portfolio or deploy complex options strategies, E*TRADE provides a sophisticated, dependable environment that grows with your ambition. Read full review
- High-quality experience for both passive investors and active traders.
- Access to Morgan Stanley’s deep market analysis and interactive reports.
- Excellent bond resource center and a user-friendly ladder tool.
- Base margin rates, starting at over 12%, are significantly higher than top competitors.
- You can’t buy Bitcoin or Ethereum directly; crypto exposure is limited to ETFs and futures.
- You can’t buy fractional shares of individual stocks.
- Minimum Deposit: $0.00
- Stock Trades: $0.00
- Options (Per Contract): $0.00
Robinhood is best known for its commission-free trading, modern mobile and desktop platforms, and low-cost access to options, margin, and futures trading. Read full review
- Robinhood Legend offers 90+ technical indicators.
- 3% IRA match on contributions.
- The Investor's Guild explains complex topics.
- Futures trading and 24-hour trading.
- No economic calendars, sector heat maps, or Treasury yield curves.
- No deep fundamental research.
- Legend lacks critical tools.
- No mutual funds, individual bonds, custodial or trust accounts.
Robinhood vs E*TRADE at a glance
Our testing found a clear shape to this matchup. E*TRADE wins most of the categories we grade, from research to platforms to range of investments. Robinhood answers on price, on simplicity, and on a few modern products E*TRADE doesn't carry. The table below breaks it down.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall |
|
|
| Mobile Trading Apps |
|
|
| Advanced Trading |
|
|
| Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options (Per Contract) | $0.65 | $0.00 |
| Futures Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Crypto Trading | No | Yes |
Top takeaways for E*TRADE in 2026
- The research is Morgan Stanley-backed with scannable analyst reports and a standout sector valuation tool.
- Power E*TRADE won our #1 Active Trading Web Platform award, and building a multi-leg options trade on it is refreshingly easy.
- The product range runs from mutual funds to bonds to futures, with FDIC banking attached to the brokerage.
- The account lineup is deep, including SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, custodial, trust, and business accounts.
- Costs run higher for active traders. Options are $0.65 per contract and margin starts near 13%.
Top takeaways for Robinhood in 2026
- It's the cheaper broker for active trading, with $0 options contracts and margin starting at 5.75%.
- Robinhood is the only one of the two with crypto, listing 22 coins, plus prediction markets E*TRADE doesn't offer.
- Its education is the most readable I test, ordered so a beginner never gets lost.
- It automates the small things, with recurring buys and fractional shares in both stocks and ETFs.
- The gaps are real: no mutual funds, no bonds, no paper trading, and thinner research.
Robinhood vs E*TRADE: fees and commissions
Stocks trade free at both, and E*TRADE clears mutual funds and online Treasuries at $0 too. The gaps show up in options, margin, and what each broker lets you trade. We verified the pricing below.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $0.00 | N/A |
| Options (Per Contract) | $0.65 | $0.00 |
| Options Exercise Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options Assignment Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Futures (Per Contract) | $1.50 | $0.75 |
| Broker Assisted Trade Fee | $25 | N/A |
| Margin Rate Under $25,000 | 12.95% | 5.75% |
| Bond Trade Fee | Varies | N/A |
| IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Account Transfer Out (Full) | $75.00 | $100.00 |
Where Robinhood wins on cost
Robinhood is the cheaper home for anyone who trades actively. Options contracts are $0 with no exercise or assignment fees, where E*TRADE charges $0.65 per contract. The margin gap is wider still. Robinhood lends from 5.75% while E*TRADE starts near 13% on smaller balances. Robinhood is cheaper on futures too, at $0.75 a contract to E*TRADE's $1.50.
Where E*TRADE wins on cost
E*TRADE charges nothing to trade mutual funds or buy Treasuries online, two things Robinhood doesn't offer at all. Moving an account out is also less expensive, with free partial transfers and a $75 full transfer against Robinhood's flat $100. For the buy-and-hold investor who lives in funds, E*TRADE is the cheaper place to actually own what you want.
Verdict
Best for active options and margin traders: Robinhood.
Best for fund and bond investors: E*TRADE.
The split is clean. Robinhood is cheaper if your costs come from trading, and E*TRADE is cheaper if they come from owning funds and bonds Robinhood can't offer.
E*TRADE vs Robinhood: range of investments
E*TRADE is built to be a complete brokerage. Robinhood is built to trade a focused, modern slice of the market. That difference decides who each one suits.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Options Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Fractional Shares (Stocks) | No | Yes |
| Fractional Shares (ETFs) | Yes | Yes |
| Mutual Funds | Yes | No |
| Fixed Income (Treasurys) | Yes | No |
| Fixed Income (Corporate Bonds) | Yes | No |
| Fixed Income (Municipal Bonds) | Yes | No |
| Crypto Trading | No | Yes |
| Crypto Trading - Total Coins | 0 | 22 |
| Futures Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Futures Options | Yes | No |
| Forex Trading | No | No |
| Prediction markets | No | Yes |
| IPO Access | Yes | Yes |
| Order Type - After Hours | Yes | Yes |
| Order Type - 24 hr Extended | No | Yes |
| Order Type - Broker Assisted | Yes | No |
Where E*TRADE wins
E*TRADE simply covers more of the market. It trades mutual funds, a deep bond and CD lineup, futures, and futures options, none of which Robinhood offers. The account side runs deeper too, with SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, custodial accounts, trusts, and business accounts that Robinhood doesn't open.
Where Robinhood wins
Robinhood owns the modern lineup. It lists 22 cryptocurrencies to E*TRADE's none, runs prediction markets, and lets you buy fractional shares of individual stocks, not just ETFs. It also runs recurring buys in both stocks and ETFs, where E*TRADE automates ETFs only. For dollar-based investing in the names you choose, Robinhood is the more flexible app.
Verdict
Best for a complete, traditional lineup: E*TRADE.
Best for crypto, prediction markets, and fractional investing: Robinhood.
If you want mutual funds, bonds, or a trust account, only E*TRADE delivers. If you want crypto or to put $20 into a single share, Robinhood is the easier fit.
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Robinhood vs E*TRADE: mobile apps
Both score well on mobile, but they reward different users. Robinhood ships one clean app for everyone. E*TRADE ships two, a flagship app plus a separate Power E*TRADE app for active traders. Our testing compared research, charting, and order entry on each.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes |
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple Watch App | Yes | Yes |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Column Customization | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Create & Manage | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Column Filtering | Yes | Yes |
Where Robinhood's app wins
Robinhood is the easier app to live in day to day. The layout is sleek, placing a trade takes seconds, and the AI digests give a quick read on why a stock moved. Recurring buys run quietly in the background. For someone who checks in a few times a week rather than all day, nothing here gets in the way.

Robinhood’s mobile options chain features a clean, simplified layout, with percent breakeven shown by default for each contract. While this may appeal to short-term traders, it lacks key metrics, like the Greeks or probability of profit, that serious options traders often rely on. It’s a sleek experience, but one that leans more toward speculation than in-depth strategy analysis.
Where E*TRADE's app wins
E*TRADE puts real stock research in your hand. Pull up a company and you get Morgan Stanley reports built for a phone screen, scannable rather than buried in a PDF, plus analyst targets and earnings analysis. Serious traders also get the dedicated Power E*TRADE app, where the charts they built on desktop carry over. The flagship app's own options chain is basic, so options traders will want that second app.

Power E*TRADE’s mobile app delivers advanced charting tools designed for active traders on the go. This customized view shows a candlestick chart with 13, 26, and 40-week moving averages applied. The platform makes it easy to personalize technical charts and monitor market momentum from your phone.
Verdict
Best for simple, everyday investing: Robinhood.
Best for research and active trading on the go: E*TRADE.
Robinhood is the smoother daily driver. E*TRADE gives you more to dig into, especially if you research stocks or want a true active-trader app.
E*TRADE vs Robinhood: trading platforms and tools
E*TRADE gives you Power E*TRADE on the web plus a Power E*TRADE Pro desktop platform. Robinhood gives you its website and Robinhood Legend, a browser-based active trader platform. Neither offers backtesting, but the rest of the toolset splits sharply.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Trading Platform | Power E*TRADE | Robinhood Legend |
| Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | No |
| Web Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Mac) | Yes | No |
| Paper Trading | Yes | No |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 43 | 34 |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 121 | 90 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 37 | 26 |
| Charting - Adjust Trades on Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Custom Studies | No | No |
| Ladder Trading | No | Yes |
| Level 2 Quotes - Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| Trade Hot Keys | Yes | Yes |
| Trade Ticket - Margin Impact | Yes | Yes |
| Trade Ticket - Tax Lot Selection | Yes | Yes |
Where E*TRADE wins
E*TRADE is the better options platform, and it isn't close. On Power E*TRADE I built a bull call spread straight off the chain by clicking an ask and a bid, with the bid and ask shown for each leg and a snapshot analysis laying out max profit, loss, and breakeven. The tool suite goes further with an income backtester and a strategy optimizer that suggests trades to match your outlook. E*TRADE also brings paper trading, Level 2 quotes, conditional orders, and short selling, none of which Robinhood offers.

Power E*TRADE’s snapshot analysis makes options trading more approachable by visually mapping out key outcomes like max gain, max loss, and breakeven. In this example of purchasing a long call, the platform uses intuitive smiley face icons to highlight these critical points, adding a touch of fun to a typically complex strategy. It’s a great way to help traders quickly grasp potential risk and reward.
Where Robinhood wins
Robinhood Legend is the cleaner, more approachable canvas. Its drawings snap to exact prices, while E*TRADE's drawing tools fought me and wouldn't lock to a level. Legend is lighter to set up and quicker to move around, so if your day is mostly reading charts rather than building spreads, it's the nicer place to work.

Robinhood Legend is arguably one of the best-looking active trading platforms on the market, with a sleek, modern interface that’s a pleasure to use. However, that clean design comes with trade-offs: some advanced tools and features are missing compared to more robust platforms. It’s a great experience for visual clarity and ease of use, but power traders may find themselves wanting more.
Verdict
Best for options and active traders: E*TRADE.
Best for clean, chart-first simplicity: Robinhood.
If you trade options or want paper trading and conditional orders, E*TRADE is the real toolkit. If you mostly chart and want it smooth, Legend wins on feel.
Robinhood vs E*TRADE: research
This is the widest gap between them. E*TRADE carries institutional-grade research from Morgan Stanley, while Robinhood keeps things light and readable. We checked both feature by feature below.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| Screener - Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Screener - ETFs | Yes | No |
| Research - Mutual Funds | Yes | No |
| Screener - Mutual Funds | Yes | No |
| Research - Fixed Income | Yes | No |
| Screener - Fixed Income | Yes | No |
| Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB | Yes | Yes |
| Options Chains - IV | Yes | Yes |
| Option Chains - Total Greeks | 5 | 5 |
| Strategy Net Greeks | Yes | No |
| Options - Strategy Builder | Yes | Yes |
Where E*TRADE wins
E*TRADE gives you depth almost everywhere. Pull up a stock and you get six analyst reports, including Morgan Stanley research designed to be scanned rather than downloaded. Its sector tool plots valuation and growth metrics across all 12 sectors against the S&P 500, and the mutual fund and fixed income research are among the best I test. There's also a full options tool suite with a probability calculator and income finder.

E*TRADE’s market breadth tool offers a clear snapshot of advancers and decliners across the Nasdaq and NYSE, helping traders gauge overall market strength. With visual breakdowns of new highs and lows, plus exchange volume metrics, it’s a powerful data visualization tool for understanding market momentum at a glance.
Where Robinhood wins
Robinhood is the better quick read. Its in-house Investor's Guild and AI digests explain why something moved in plain language, where E*TRADE shows you more data than a casual investor needs. If you want a fast, human take rather than a research terminal, Robinhood gets you there with less effort.

Robinhood’s research tools present analyst ratings in a clean, visually appealing format, shown here with the buy, hold, and sell breakdown for Apple. The platform also includes concise “bulls vs. bears” commentary, giving investors a quick snapshot of both sides of the debate. While this type of data is common across brokerages, Robinhood’s design makes it especially easy to digest at a glance.
Verdict
Best for deep research and screening: E*TRADE.
Best for a readable market take: Robinhood.
The contrast is stark on data. E*TRADE has mutual fund and bond research, sector analysis, and full screeners. Robinhood still can't show you an economic calendar.
E*TRADE vs Robinhood: education
These two stumble in opposite ways. E*TRADE has more material, with strong webinars, excellent fixed income content, a top-notch tax center, and detailed retirement tools. The problem is finding any of it. Its library is sprawling and poorly ordered, and I had to search for almost everything, which would overwhelm a true beginner. Robinhood is the reverse. It offers no courses, webinars, or calculators, but what it writes is the clearest in the business, sequenced so a new investor moves from one idea to the next without getting lost.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Stocks) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (ETFs) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Options) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Mutual Funds) | Yes | No |
| Education (Fixed Income) | Yes | Yes |
| Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Webinars | Yes | No |
Verdict
Best for clear beginner reading: Robinhood.
Best for webinars and retirement and tax planning: E*TRADE.
If you're starting from zero and want to read your way up, Robinhood's writing is easier to follow. If you want live webinars and serious planning tools, E*TRADE has the deeper shelf, as long as you're willing to hunt for it.
E*TRADE and Robinhood: accounts and banking
E*TRADE is a bank as well as a broker, with FDIC-insured checking and savings, CDs, mortgages, and a debit and credit card sitting alongside the brokerage. Robinhood has no FDIC banking, no checking or savings, and no CDs. It offers a debit card and a cash-back credit card, plus an IRA match that vests like an employer 401(k) match. E*TRADE also opens the account types Robinhood skips, including SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, custodial accounts, trusts, and business accounts, which matters once your financial life grows past a single brokerage account.
Verdict
Best for banking and a full account lineup: E*TRADE.
Best for the IRA match and a simple card: Robinhood.
Final thoughts: Robinhood vs E*TRADE
For most investors, E*TRADE is the one I'd recommend. Its Power E*TRADE platform earned our #1 Active Trading Web Platform award this year, which tracks with how easily I built and analyzed an options spread on it. Add in Morgan Stanley research, mutual funds and bonds, a full account lineup, and a bank under the same roof, E*TRADE can handle a diverse portfolio of assets. If you trade options, research seriously, or want one place for your whole financial life, that's where I'd send you.
Robinhood still earns its place. It's cheaper for active trading, it's the only one of the two with crypto, and it took our #1 Prediction Markets award this year. Its app is simpler and its writing is clearer than anything in E*TRADE's library. If you trade with one eye on cost, want crypto in the mix, or just want an app you can understand in a minute, Robinhood is the better alternative.
Jessica's take
"E*TRADE has incredibly useful research, and it scores really high on the usefulness scale, which is hard to do in my world. Robinhood is the opposite. Outside of major news and the indices, I couldn't get much information on the markets. One is a research engine, the other isn't."
Jessica Inskip
Director of Investor Research
Overall verdict
Best for most investors: E*TRADE.
Best for low-cost trading, crypto, and simplicity: Robinhood.
| Feature |
E*TRADE
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall |
|
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| Range of Investments |
|
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| Mobile Trading Apps |
|
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| Advanced Trading |
|
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| Research |
|
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| Education |
|
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| Ease of Use |
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