Is Firstrade better than Lightspeed? After testing 15 of the best online brokers over five months, Firstrade (76.33%) is better than Lightspeed (61.3%). Firstrade offers $0 stock, ETF, and options trades, and is best known for its easy-to-use website, alongside its Chinese language services. While Firstrade offers Morningstar research and a variety of tools, its overall offering struggles to stand out against household name brands who are also priced at $0.
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Firstrade vs Lightspeed 2020
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Special Offer
Commission-Free Trading on 700+ ETFs Open Account
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| Open Account |
Overall Rating
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
| Overall | ||
| Firstrade Review | Lightspeed Review |
Trading Fees
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
| Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $10,000.00 |
| Stock Trade Fee (per trade) | $0.00 | $4.50 |
| ETF Trade Fee | $0.00 | $4.50 |
| Options Base Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options Per Contract Fee | $0.00 | $0.60 |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $0.00 | N/A |
| Broker Assisted Trades Fee | $19.95 | $25.00 |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Margin Rates
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
| Under $24,999.99 | 8.75% | 7.50% |
| $25,000.00 to $49,999.99 | 8.25% | 7.50% |
| $50,000.00 to $99,999.99 | 7.75% | 6.50% |
| $100,000.00 to $249,999.99 | 7.25% | 6.50% |
| $250,000.00 to $499,999.99 | 7.00% | 5.75% |
| $500,000.00 to $999,999.99 | 5.10% | 5.25% |
| Above $1,000,000.00 | 4.50% | 5.00% |
| Commissions & Fees | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Account Fees
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
| IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $35.00 |
| IRA Closure Fee | $0.00 | $95.00 |
| Returned ACH Fee | $50.00 | $30.00 |
| Returned Wire Fee | $50.00 | $30.00 |
| Stock Certificate Processing Fee | $300.00 | $75.00 |
| Stock Certificate Delivery Fee | $300.00 | $50.00 |
| Paper Statement Fee | $5.00 | $5.00 |
| Paper Confirmation Fee | $3.00 | $2.00 |
| Domestic Wire Fee | $30.00 | $20.00 |
| International Wire Fee | $50.00 | $50.00 |
| Commissions & Fees |
Investment Options
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
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 | 4 |
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Futures Trading |
No | Yes |
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Forex Trading |
No | No |
| Commission-Free ETFs | all | 0 |
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Mutual Funds (No Load) |
10746 | 0 |
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Mutual Funds (Total) |
14939 | 0 |
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Bonds (US Treasury) |
Yes | Yes |
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Bonds (Corporate) |
Yes | No |
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Bonds (Municipal) |
Yes | No |
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Advisor Services |
No | No |
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International Trading |
No | No |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Order Types
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
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 | Yes |
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Order Type - MultiContingent |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - OCO |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - OTO |
Yes | Yes |
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Order Type - OTOCO |
No | Yes |
| Offering of Investments | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Trading Platforms
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
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 |
No | Yes |
|
Trade Journal |
No | No |
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Watch Lists - Total Fields |
47 | 141 |
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Heat Mapping |
Yes | No |
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AI Assistant Bot |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Charting Features
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Charting - Trade Off Chart |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Indicators / Studies |
58 | 20 |
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Charting - Drawing Tools |
8 | 8 |
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Charting - Historical Trades |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Corporate Events |
Yes | No |
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Charting - Automated Analysis |
No | No |
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Charting - Save Profiles |
No | Yes |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
6 | 4 |
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Charting - Custom Studies |
No | No |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Day Trading
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Stock Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Alerts - Advanced Fields |
No | No |
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Streaming Time & Sales |
No | Yes |
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Streaming TV |
No | No |
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Direct Market Routing - Stocks |
No | Yes |
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Direct Market Routing - Options |
No | Yes |
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Ladder Trading |
No | No |
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Trade Hot Keys |
No | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Stocks |
No | Yes |
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Level 2 Quotes - Options |
No | Yes |
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Trade Ideas - Backtesting |
No | No |
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Short Locator |
No | Yes |
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Order Liquidity Rebates |
No | Yes |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile Trading Apps
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
iPhone App |
Yes | Yes |
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Android App |
Yes | Yes |
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Apple Watch App |
No | No |
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Trading - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Trading - After-Hours |
Yes | No |
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Trading - Conditional Orders |
No | No |
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Trading - Mutual Funds |
No | No |
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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 | No |
| Winner | check_circle |
Mobile App Features
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Watch List Syncing |
Yes | No |
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Stock Alerts |
No | Yes |
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Charting - After Hours |
No | No |
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Charting - Drawing |
No | No |
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Charting - Study Customizations |
Yes | No |
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Heatmapping |
No | No |
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Stream Live TV |
No | No |
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Barcode Lookup |
No | No |
| Mobile Trading | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Research Overview
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Research - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - ETFs |
Yes | Yes |
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Research - Mutual Funds |
Yes | No |
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Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB |
Yes | No |
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Research - Fixed Income |
Yes | No |
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Screener - Stocks |
Yes | Yes |
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Screener - ETFs |
Yes | No |
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Screener - Mutual Funds |
Yes | No |
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Screener - Options |
No | No |
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Screener - Bonds |
Yes | No |
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Misc - Portfolio Builder |
No | No |
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Misc - Portfolio Allocation |
Yes | No |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Stock Research
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
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Stock Research - Reports |
1 | 0 |
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Stock Research - Earnings |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - Insiders |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - Metric Comp |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - SEC Filings |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - Social |
No | Yes |
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Stock Research - Balance Sheet |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - Cash Flows |
Yes | No |
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Stock Research - News |
Yes | Yes |
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Stock Research - ESG |
No | No |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
ETF Research
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
ETFs - Strategy Overview |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Sector Exposure |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Risk Analysis |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Performance Analysis |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Ratings |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap |
Yes | No |
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ETFs - Reports |
Yes | No |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Mutual Fund Research
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
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Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Prospectus |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Reports |
No | No |
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Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - Country Allocation |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - StyleMap |
Yes | No |
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Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings |
Yes | No |
| Research | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Options Trading
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Option Chains - Streaming |
No | Yes |
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Option Chains - Total Columns |
8 | 60 |
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Option Chains - Greeks |
5 | 5 |
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Option Chains - Quick Analysis |
No | Yes |
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Option Analysis - P&L Charts |
No | Yes |
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Option Probability Analysis |
No | No |
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Option Probability Analysis Adv |
No | No |
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Option Positions - Greeks |
No | Yes |
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Option Positions - Adv Analysis |
No | No |
|
Option Positions - Rolling |
Yes | Yes |
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Option Positions - Grouping |
No | Yes |
| Platforms & Tools | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Beginners
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Education (Stocks) |
Yes | Yes |
|
Education (ETFs) |
No | No |
|
Education (Options) |
Yes | Yes |
|
Education (Mutual Funds) |
No | No |
|
Education (Fixed Income) |
No | No |
|
Education (Retirement) |
Yes | No |
|
Paper Trading |
No | Yes |
|
Videos |
Yes | Yes |
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Webinars (Monthly Avg) |
6 | 1 |
|
Webinars (Archived) |
Yes | Yes |
|
Live Seminars |
No | No |
|
Progress Tracking |
No | No |
|
Interactive Learning - Quizzes |
No | No |
|
Investor Magazine |
No | No |
| Education | ||
| Winner | check_circle |
Banking
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
|
Retail Locations |
1 | 0 |
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Member FDIC |
No | No |
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Checking Accounts |
Yes | No |
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Savings Accounts |
No | No |
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Credit Cards |
No | No |
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Debit Cards |
Yes | No |
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Mortgage Loans |
No | No |
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No Fee Banking |
No | No |
| Banking |
Overall
| Feature | Firstrade | Lightspeed |
| Firstrade Review | Lightspeed 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 Firstrade vs Lightspeed.
Is Firstrade or Lightspeed better for beginners?
Lightspeed is better for beginner investors than Firstrade. Lightspeed offers investors access to Paper Trading, Videos, Education (Stocks) and Education (Options).
What about Firstrade vs Lightspeed pricing?
Lightspeed charges more than Firstrade for placing regular stock trades ($4.50 and $0, respectively). Looking at options, the base fees charged are the same for both brokers, $0. Each option contract then costs $0.60 at Lightspeed and $0 at Firstrade. For a complete commissions summary, see our best discount brokers guide.
Does Firstrade or Lightspeed offer a wider range of investment options?
Firstrade offers a more diverse selection of investment options than Lightspeed. Firstrade offers investors access to Stock Trading, OTCBB / Pink Sheets, Options Trading and Mutual Funds. Looking at Mutual Funds, Firstrade offers its clients access to 14939 different mutual funds while Lightspeed has 0 available funds, a difference of 14,939.
Which trading platform is better: Firstrade or Lightspeed?
To compare the trading platforms of both Firstrade and Lightspeed, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, Lightspeed offers a better experience. With research, Firstrade offers superior market research. Finally, we found Firstrade 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 and Debit Cards are available to clients of Firstrade while Lightspeed offers customers none of these.
Overall, between Firstrade and Lightspeed, Firstrade 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.
