J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing vs TradeStation 2024

Comparing brokers side by side is no easy task. We spend hundreds of hours each year testing the platforms, mobile apps, trading tools and general ease of use among online brokerages, as well as comparing commissions and fees, to find the best online broker.

Though many U.S. brokers offer basic trading features, such as an app, charting tools, stock research and educational content, the depth of those features can vary widely. Let's compare J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing vs TradeStation.

In stock trading, the more you know, the better you’ll do. Taking advantage of resources like articles, webinars, videos and interactive elements is a great way to shorten the learning curve. In our analysis, we examine the availability of several different types of educational materials.

For 2024, our review finds that J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing offers more comprehensive new investor education for beginning investors than TradeStation. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing offers investors access to Videos, Education (Stocks), Education (ETFs), Education (Options), Education (Mutual Funds), Education (Bonds) and Education (Retirement), while TradeStation offers investors access to Paper Trading, Videos, Education (Stocks) and Education (Options).

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing and TradeStation charge the same amount for regular stock trades, $0.00. Option contracts are pricier at J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, costing $0.65 per contract versus $0.60 per contract at TradeStation. For futures, TradeStation charges $1.50 per contract and J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing charges (Not offered) per contract. For a deeper dive, see our best brokers for free stock trading or options trading guides.

Looking at a full range of investment options, including order types and international trading, our research has found that TradeStation offers a more comprehensive offering than J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing ranks #10 out of 18 brokers for our Investment Options category, while TradeStation ranks #5.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing offers investors access to Stock Trading, Options Trading, OTC Stocks, Mutual Funds and Advisor Services, while TradeStation offers investors access to Stock Trading, Options Trading, OTC Stocks, Mutual Funds and Futures Trading. Neither have Fractional Shares and Forex Trading. Looking at Mutual Funds, TradeStation trails J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing in its offering of no transaction fee (NTF) mutual funds, with J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing offering 3500 and TradeStation offering 0.

In our analysis of top U.S. brokerages, we research whether each broker offers the ability to trade cash cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin and ethereum. Though crypto has risen steadily in popularity, availability still varies from broker to broker. Our review finds that neither J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing or TradeStation offer crypto trading.

To compare the day trading platforms of J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing and TradeStation, we focused on trading tools and functionality across both web and desktop-based platforms. Popular day trading platform tools include streaming real-time quotes, stock alerts, trading hotkeys, direct market routing, streaming time and sales, customizable watch lists, backtesting, and fully functional charting packages, among many others. For day trading, TradeStation offers a better experience.

After testing 25 features across the stock trading apps of J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing and TradeStation, we found TradeStation to be better overall. The best stock market apps are easy to use, have excellent design, and deliver a fully featured online trading experience. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing ranks #12 out of 18 brokers, while TradeStation ranks #8.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing Trading App Gallery

TradeStation Trading App Gallery

For research, J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing offers superior market research than TradeStation. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing ranks #8 and TradeStation ranks #10.

Over the years, we've found that the best brokers provide rich market commentary, a variety of third-party research reports, and thorough quote screens that are not just easy to navigate, but that also include a comprehensive selection of fundamental data. Robust stock, ETFs, and mutual fund screeners are also must-haves for trade idea generation.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing requires a minimum deposit of $0.00, while TradeStation requires a minimum deposit of $0.00. From our testing, we found that SoFi is the only broker that requires a minimum deposit.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing charges 13.25% for accounts under $25,000 while TradeStation charges a margin rate of 13.5%. The industry average of the 18 brokers we track is 9%.

Fractional shares are not offered by either broker. Our research has found that 46% of brokers offer fractional shares investing. Fractional shares allow traders to buy a part of a whole share of stock. For example, if Amazon is trading at $1,000, you could buy half a share for $500.

Both J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing and TradeStation allow you to trade penny stocks. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing charges $0.00 per trade while TradeStation charges $0.01. Penny stocks are companies whose shares trade for under $5 and are listed over the counter (OTC). For brokers that do offer penny stock trades, the average commission is $3.

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 offered by J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, while TradeStation offers neither of these.

StockBrokers.com partners with customer experience research group Confero to conduct phone tests from locations across the United States to thoroughly evaluate the quality and speed of brokerage customer service. (Read more about How We Test.) Here are the results of our current testing.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing could not be tested or rated due to the fact it does not offer phone support for prospective customers.

TradeStation was rated 7th out of 13 brokers, with an overall score of 7.98 out of 10.

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing makes it easy for Chase Bank customers to invest and allows access to J.P. Morgan research. On the downside, the broker features are sparse compared to industry leaders.

In the 2024 StockBrokers.com Annual Awards, J.P. Morgan Self-Directed ranked No. 1 for New Tool and placed among Best in Class for Bank Brokerage.

TradeStation supports casual traders through its web-based platform and active traders through its desktop platform. We like the web-based platform and mobile app, but the flagship desktop platform could use a refresh.

In the 2024 StockBrokers.com Annual Awards, TradeStation placed among Best in Class for Day Trading, Futures Trading, Investment Options, and Penny Stock Trading.