tastytrade vs Robinhood 2025
In this head to head comparison of tastytrade vs Robinhood, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
In this head to head comparison of tastytrade vs Robinhood, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
When choosing an online brokerage, both tastytrade and Robinhood present compelling options for investors, with each offering its own strengths. Tastytrade generally edges out Robinhood in terms of investment variety, especially with its offerings in options and futures. Both platforms provide access to traditional and Roth IRA accounts, but tastytrade's slightly more comprehensive range of investments earns it a higher rating in that area, at 4 stars compared to Robinhood's 3.5 stars. According to StockBrokers.com, tastytrade ranks 10th out of 14 brokers for range of investments, surpassing Robinhood, which stands at 12th place.
Both tastytrade and Robinhood offer standard trading options like stocks and margin trading, making them appealing to traditional traders. For those interested in trading smaller shares for a more diversified portfolio, both platforms allow fractional shares trading. However, neither supports trading in over-the-counter (OTC) stocks or mutual funds, keeping their focus more on direct stock market investments.
Cryptocurrency enthusiasts will find opportunities at both brokers, though Robinhood slightly surpasses tastytrade by offering 22 coins compared to tastytrade’s 17. As for forex trading, neither platform provides this service, but tastytrade stands out by offering futures trading, a feature Robinhood lacks. Furthermore, neither broker offers advisor services, meaning they both cater to investors who prefer a more hands-on approach to managing their investments.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Stock Trading | Yes | Yes |
Margin Trading | Yes | Yes |
Fractional Shares | Yes | Yes |
OTC Stocks | No | No |
Mutual Funds | No | No |
Options Trading | Yes | Yes |
Futures Trading | Yes | No |
Crypto Trading | Yes | Yes |
Crypto Trading - Total Coins | 17 | 22 |
Range of Investments |
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Dive deeper: Best Options Trading Platforms for 2025, Best Futures Trading Platforms for 2025: A Beginner-Friendly Guide to an Advanced Market
When comparing the online trading platforms of tastytrade and Robinhood, investors should consider their specific needs and preferences. Tastytrade and Robinhood are both popular choices, but they offer distinct features. Tastytrade shines with its comprehensive desktop platforms available for both Windows and Mac users, while Robinhood sticks to a streamlined browser-based platform. Tastytrade generally provides a more powerful set of tools, earning a 4-star rating compared to Robinhood's 3.5 stars. Despite this, Robinhood ranks closely behind in ninth place among trading platforms and tools, versus tastytrade's eighth place, based on StockBrokers.com.
Tastytrade provides traders and investors with a rich set of features, focusing on in-depth market analysis and a wide array of customization options. It boasts 308 technical indicators and 31 drawing tools for charting, alongside the ability to create custom studies. Users can adjust open orders directly on charts, add notes, and display historical trades, corporate events, and index overlays. The platform also allows users to save multiple chart profiles, supporting a more personalized trading experience. Watch lists are significantly enhanced with up to 33 columns of data, offering extensive market insights at a glance.
On the other hand, Robinhood caters to users seeking simplicity and ease of use, although at the cost of fewer advanced tools. The platform provides a browser-based experience with basic support for charting, limited to 16 technical indicators and 23 drawing tools. While it shares features like adjusting open orders and adding notes on charts, Robinhood lacks the ability to show historical trades and corporate events on its charts. Its watch lists are limited to just three data columns, and customization of chart studies is minimal. With ample room for chart profile saving, Robinhood remains user-friendly for those favoring straightforward trading over comprehensive analysis.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Web Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | No |
Desktop Platform (Mac) | Yes | No |
Paper Trading | No | No |
Watch Lists - Total Fields | 33 | 3 |
Charting - Indicators / Studies | 308 | 16 |
Charting - Drawing Tools | 31 | 23 |
Platforms & Tools |
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Dive deeper: Best Online Brokers & Trading Platforms for 2025, Best Paper Trading Apps & Platforms for 2025
When diving into the world of investing, both tastytrade and Robinhood serve as great resources for beginners looking to educate themselves on stocks, ETFs, and options. Both platforms provide webinars to help users grasp financial concepts, although neither offers educational videos or quizzes to reinforce learning. While tastytrade allows users to track their learning progress, Robinhood does not offer this feature. Additionally, neither platform supports mutual fund or bond education, nor do they provide the option for paper trading, which might be a consideration for those looking to practice trading without financial risk.
Despite their differences, tastytrade and Robinhood both receive a solid 4-star rating for education capabilities, affirming their effectiveness in aiding beginner investors. However, according to StockBrokers.com, Robinhood slightly edges out tastytrade in rankings, coming in at number 8 out of 14 brokers, just ahead of tastytrade in the 9th spot. Both platforms hold their ground as reliable educational resources, each with its own strengths, allowing new investors to tailor their learning experience to suit their needs.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Education (Stocks) | Yes | Yes |
Education (ETFs) | Yes | Yes |
Education (Options) | Yes | Yes |
Education (Mutual Funds) | No | No |
Education (Bonds) | No | No |
Paper Trading | No | No |
Videos | No | No |
Webinars | Yes | Yes |
Education |
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Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Platforms for Beginners of 2025
When choosing an online broker for stock trading, both tastytrade and Robinhood come highly rated at 4.5 stars each, however, they cater to slightly different user preferences. Robinhood holds a higher rank according to StockBrokers.com, coming in at #7 compared to tastytrade’s #10 among 14 brokers. Despite their equal ratings, your choice between the two might boil down to their specific features and how they align with your trading needs.
Both tastytrade and Robinhood offer iPhone and Android apps, ensuring mobile access for a wide array of users. Tastytrade offers the ability to view charts in landscape mode and provides after-hours charting, while Robinhood shines with its unique Apple Watch app and robust stock alert system. For traders who enjoy monitoring market activity beyond regular hours, both platforms offer after-hours stock trading. Furthermore, custom watch lists can be smoothly managed with both apps, although tastytrade allows additional customization through column adjustments.
In terms of charting capabilities, tastytrade offers multiple time frames, but Robinhood surpasses it with six available technical studies. Neither platform offers streaming live TV or video on demand, suggesting a shared focus on keeping their platforms streamlined and user-friendly. Although Robinhood and tastytrade each have their strengths, it’s clear there are distinctive features in each platform that cater to different trader preferences, which is a crucial consideration when making a choice.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
iPhone App | Yes | Yes |
Android App | Yes | Yes |
Apple Watch App | No | Yes |
Stock Alerts | No | Yes |
Charting - After-Hours | Yes | Yes |
Charting - Technical Studies | 0 | 6 |
Mobile Trading Apps |
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Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps for 2025
When deciding between tastytrade and Robinhood for online trading, it's essential to consider various fees and charges to identify which platform best suits your needs. Both platforms offer commission-free trading on regular stock trades and have no minimum deposit requirements, making them accessible to a broad range of investors. However, the difference in options trading fees, margin rates, and other charges might influence your decision based on your trading habits and investment strategies.
Tastytrade and Robinhood cater to options traders, but Robinhood takes the edge here by offering commission-free options trading, while tastytrade charges $0.50 per options contract. Margin rates at tastytrade start at 11% for balances below $25,000 and decrease slightly for higher balances, while Robinhood provides more competitive rates, beginning at 5.75% for balances up to $49,999 and decreasing to 5.55% as balances increase. Additionally, while both platforms waive IRA annual fees, tastytrade imposes a $60 charge for closing an IRA, whereas Robinhood keeps this service free of charge.
For account transfers, tastytrade charges $75 for both partial and full ACAT transfers, which is slightly more favorable compared to Robinhood's $100 fee. Moreover, tastytrade applies fees for options exercises and assignments at $5 each, while Robinhood side-steps these costs entirely. While both platforms have their strengths, your choice may ultimately depend on how you prioritize fees associated with options trading, margin rates, and account management services.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Options (Per Contract) | $0.50 | $0.00 |
Options Exercise Fee | $5.00 | $0.00 |
Options Assignment Fee | $5.00 | $0.00 |
IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 |
IRA Closure Fee | $60.00 | $0.00 |
Dive deeper: Best Free Trading Platforms for 2025
When comparing day trading features between tastytrade and Robinhood, both platforms have some limitations but also offer certain advantages tailored to specific trading styles. Neither tastytrade nor Robinhood provide streaming time and sales data for stocks, which can be a drawback for traders relying heavily on real-time information. However, tastytrade sets itself apart by offering streaming live TV, a feature Robinhood lacks, providing users access to financial news and insights directly through the platform. Both platforms do not offer the option for direct market routing or level 2 quotes, which might be essential for traders needing deeper insights into the markets.
Regarding supported trading strategies, neither tastytrade nor Robinhood offers basic or advanced backtesting capabilities, which might deter users who prefer to test their strategies before entering the market. Both platforms include ladder trading, offering a step-by-step order placement process, but neither supports keyboard trade entry through trading hotkeys, potentially slowing down trade executions for active day traders. While Robinhood doesn't have a dedicated tool for short selling, tastytrade provides a short locator tool to help traders find real-time availability of shares to short. Sadly, neither platform provides order liquidity rebates, potentially increasing trading costs for high-volume traders.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Streaming Time & Sales | No | No |
Streaming TV | Yes | No |
Direct Market Routing - Stocks | No | No |
Level 2 Quotes - Stocks | No | No |
Trade Ideas - Backtesting | No | No |
Trade Ideas - Backtesting Adv | No | No |
Short Locator | Yes | No |
Dive deeper: Best Day Trading Platforms for 2025
When it comes to market research capabilities, Robinhood slightly edges out tastytrade, but neither platform truly excels in this area. Robinhood earns a 2-star rating, while tastytrade follows closely with 1.5 stars. According to rankings by StockBrokers.com, Robinhood is positioned at #10 out of 14 brokers for market research, showing a slight advantage over tastytrade, which is ranked #13.
Both tastytrade and Robinhood provide stock and ETF research, but neither platform supports mutual fund research. Notably, Robinhood offers research on Pink Sheets and OTCBB, while tastytrade does not. For those interested in more detailed analyses, neither platform offers downloadable PDF research reports for stocks, ETFs, or mutual funds. The absence of downloadable content might impact users who prefer in-depth written analysis.
In terms of portfolio management, tastytrade offers a tool to view portfolio allocation by asset class, while Robinhood lacks this feature. Additionally, neither platform utilizes social media sentiment or ESG criteria in their research, which could be a downside for socially conscious investors. Although Robinhood provides a stock screener for trade ideas, both platforms lack ETF, mutual fund, and bond screeners, limiting comprehensive market strategy options. Overall, Robinhood and tastytrade provide basic market research offerings, but investors seeking more advanced tools might need to consider other options.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Research - Stocks | Yes | Yes |
Screener - Stocks | No | Yes |
Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
Screener - ETFs | No | No |
Research - Mutual Funds | No | No |
Screener - Mutual Funds | No | No |
Research - Bonds | No | No |
Screener - Bonds | No | No |
Research |
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When it comes to banking capabilities, neither tastytrade nor Robinhood provide traditional checking or savings accounts, which might be a drawback for those hoping to manage all their finances in one place. However, Robinhood offers a slight edge by providing debit cards and credit cards, adding some financial flexibility for its users. Tastytrade, in contrast, does not offer any debit or credit card options. Neither platform currently supports CDs or provides mortgage loans. For those seeking a more comprehensive digital banking experience, these offerings are important factors to consider when choosing between the two popular online brokers.
Feature |
|
|
---|---|---|
Checking Accounts | No | No |
Savings Accounts | No | No |
Debit Cards | No | Yes |
Credit Cards | No | Yes |
Mortgage Loans | No | No |
CDs | No | No |
Dive deeper: Best Brokerage Checking Accounts for 2025
After opening live accounts and testing 14 of the best online brokers, our research and live account testing finds that tastytrade is better than Robinhood. tastytrade finished with an overall score of 80.1%, while Robinhood finished with a score of 77.3%.
tastytrade isn’t for every investor, but its platform is ideal for frequent options and futures traders, offering efficient workflow, useful risk management tools, killer design, and online content that makes you feel like you’re on a trading desk.
Both tastytrade and Robinhood offer crypto trading to their users; however, while tastytrade provides access to 17 different coins, Robinhood slightly outpaces with a selection of 22 coins, making it a more diversified option for cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
Dive deeper: Best Online Brokers for Crypto Trading in 2025
Both tastytrade and Robinhood offer traditional and Roth IRA accounts with no annual fees, but tastytrade charges a $60 closure fee while Robinhood does not.
Dive deeper: Best IRA Accounts for 2025
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0 of 5Overall Rating | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
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Overall |
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Range of Investments |
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Platforms & Tools |
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Mobile Trading Apps |
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Research |
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Customer Service |
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Education |
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Ease of Use |
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Winner | check_circle | ||
Review | tastytrade Review | Robinhood Review |
Broker Screenshots | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
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Trading Platform & Tools Gallery (click to expand) | |||
Research Gallery (click to expand) | |||
Mobile Trading Apps Gallery (click to expand) | |||
Education Gallery (click to expand) |
Trading Fees | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
Penny Stock Fees (OTC) | N/A | N/A | |
Mutual Fund Trade Fee | N/A | N/A | |
Options (Per Contract) | $0.50 | $0.00 | |
Futures (Per Contract) | $1.00 | (Not offered) | |
Broker Assisted Trade Fee | $0 | N/A |
Margin Rates | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Margin Rate Under $25,000 | 11% | 5.75% | |
Margin Rate $25,000 to $49,999.99 | 10.5% | 5.75% | |
Margin Rate $50,000 to $99,999.99 | 10% | 5.55% | |
Margin Rate $100,000 to $249,999.99 | 9.5% | 5.25% | |
Margin Rate $250,000 to $499,999.99 | 9% | 5.25% | |
Margin Rate $500,000 to $999,999.99 | 8.5% | 5.25% | |
Margin Rate Above $1,000,000 | 8% | 5% |
Account Fees | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
IRA Annual Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
IRA Closure Fee | $60.00 | $0.00 | |
Account Transfer Out (Partial) | $75.00 | $100.00 | |
Account Transfer Out (Full) | $75.00 | $100.00 | |
Options Exercise Fee | $5.00 | $0.00 | |
Options Assignment Fee | $5.00 | $0.00 |
Investment Options | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Stock Trading | Yes | Yes | |
Margin Trading | Yes | Yes | |
Fractional Shares | Yes | Yes | |
OTC Stocks | No | No | |
Options Trading | Yes | Yes | |
Complex Options Max Legs | 4 | 4 | |
Futures Trading | Yes | No | |
Forex Trading | No | No | |
Crypto Trading | Yes | Yes | |
Crypto Trading - Total Coins | 17 | 22 | |
Mutual Funds (No Load) | 0 | 0 | |
Mutual Funds (Total) | 0 | 0 | |
Bonds (US Treasury) | No | No | |
Bonds (Corporate) | No | No | |
Bonds (Municipal) | No | No | |
Traditional IRAs | Yes | Yes | |
Roth IRAs | Yes | Yes | |
Advisor Services | No | No | |
International Countries (Stocks) | 0 | 0 |
Order Types | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Order Type - Market | Yes | Yes | |
Order Type - Limit | Yes | Yes | |
Order Type - After Hours | Yes | Yes | |
Order Type - Stop | Yes | Yes | |
Order Type - Trailing Stop | No | Yes | |
Order Type - OCO | Yes | No | |
Order Type - OTO | Yes | No | |
Order Type - Broker Assisted | Yes | No |
Beginners | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Education (Stocks) | Yes | Yes | |
Education (ETFs) | Yes | Yes | |
Education (Options) | Yes | Yes | |
Education (Mutual Funds) | No | No | |
Education (Bonds) | No | No | |
Education (Retirement) | No | No | |
Retirement Calculator | No | No | |
Investor Dictionary | Yes | Yes | |
Paper Trading | No | No | |
Videos | No | No | |
Webinars | Yes | Yes | |
Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No | |
Progress Tracking | Yes | No | |
Interactive Learning - Quizzes | No | No |
Stock Trading Apps | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
Android App | Yes | Yes | |
Apple Watch App | No | Yes | |
Trading - Stocks | Yes | Yes | |
Trading - After-Hours | Yes | Yes | |
Trading - Simple Options | Yes | Yes | |
Trading - Complex Options | Yes | Yes | |
Order Ticket RT Quotes | Yes | Yes | |
Order Ticket SRT Quotes | Yes | Yes |
Stock App Features | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Market Movers (Top Gainers) | Yes | Yes | |
Stream Live TV | No | No | |
Videos on Demand | No | No | |
Stock Alerts | No | Yes | |
Option Chains Viewable | Yes | Yes | |
Watch List (Real-time) | Yes | Yes | |
Watch List (Streaming) | Yes | Yes | |
Watch Lists - Create & Manage | Yes | Yes | |
Watch Lists - Column Customization | Yes | Yes |
Stock App Charting | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Charting - After-Hours | Yes | Yes | |
Charting - Can Turn Horizontally | Yes | No | |
Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | |
Charting - Technical Studies | 0 | 6 | |
Charting - Study Customizations | No | Yes | |
Charting - Stock Comparisons | No | No |
Trading Platforms | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Active Trading Platform | tastytrade | Robinhood Legend | |
Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | No | |
Desktop Platform (Mac) | Yes | No | |
Web Trading Platform | Yes | Yes | |
Paper Trading | No | No | |
Trade Journal | No | No | |
Watch Lists - Total Fields | 33 | 3 |
Stock Chart Features | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Charting - Adjust Trades on Chart | Yes | Yes | |
Charting - Indicators / Studies | 308 | 16 | |
Charting - Drawing Tools | 31 | 23 | |
Charting - Notes | Yes | Yes | |
Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | Yes | |
Charting - Historical Trades | Yes | No | |
Charting - Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
Charting - Custom Date Range | No | Yes | |
Charting - Custom Time Bars | No | Yes | |
Charting - Automated Analysis | No | No | |
Charting - Save Profiles | Yes | Yes | |
Trade Ideas - Technical Analysis | No | No | |
Charting - Study Customizations | 7 | 1 | |
Charting - Custom Studies | Yes | No |
Day Trading | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Streaming Time & Sales | No | No | |
Streaming TV | Yes | No | |
Direct Market Routing - Stocks | No | No | |
Ladder Trading | Yes | Yes | |
Trade Hotkeys | No | No | |
Level 2 Quotes - Stocks | No | No | |
Trade Ideas - Backtesting | No | No | |
Trade Ideas - Backtesting Adv | No | No | |
Short Locator | Yes | No | |
Order Liquidity Rebates | No | No |
Research Overview | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Research - Stocks | Yes | Yes | |
Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
Research - Mutual Funds | No | No | |
Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBB | No | Yes | |
Research - Bonds | No | No | |
Screener - Stocks | No | Yes | |
Screener - ETFs | No | No | |
Screener - Mutual Funds | No | No | |
Screener - Bonds | No | No | |
Misc - Portfolio Allocation | Yes | No |
Stock Research | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Stock Research - PDF Reports | 0 | 0 | |
Stock Research - Earnings | No | Yes | |
Stock Research - Insiders | No | No | |
Stock Research - Social | No | No | |
Stock Research - News | Yes | Yes | |
Stock Research - ESG | No | No | |
Stock Research - SEC Filings | No | No |
ETF Research | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
ETFs - Strategy Overview | No | Yes | |
ETF Fund Facts - Inception Date | No | Yes | |
ETF Fund Facts - Expense Ratio | No | Yes | |
ETF Fund Facts - Net Assets | No | Yes | |
ETF Fund Facts - Total Holdings | No | Yes | |
ETFs - Top 10 Holdings | No | Yes | |
ETFs - Sector Exposure | No | Yes | |
ETFs - Risk Analysis | Yes | No | |
ETFs - Ratings | No | No | |
ETFs - Morningstar StyleMap | No | No | |
ETFs - PDF Reports | No | No |
Mutual Fund Research | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Mutual Funds - Strategy Overview | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Performance Chart | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Performance Analysis | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Prospectus | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - 3rd Party Ratings | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Fees Breakdown | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Top 10 Holdings | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Asset Allocation | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Sector Allocation | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - Country Allocation | No | No | |
Mutual Funds - StyleMap | No | No |
Options Trading | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Option Chains - Basic View | Yes | Yes | |
Option Chains - Strategy View | Yes | Yes | |
Option Chains - Streaming | Yes | Yes | |
Option Chains - Total Columns | 20 | 17 | |
Option Chains - Greeks | 5 | 5 | |
Option Chains - Quick Analysis | Yes | Yes | |
Option Analysis - P&L Charts | Yes | Yes | |
Option Probability Analysis | Yes | No | |
Option Probability Analysis Adv | Yes | No | |
Option Positions - Greeks | Yes | Yes | |
Option Positions - Greeks Streaming | Yes | Yes | |
Option Positions - Adv Analysis | Yes | No | |
Option Positions - Rolling | Yes | Yes | |
Option Positions - Grouping | Yes | Yes |
Banking | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Bank (Member FDIC) | No | No | |
Checking Accounts | No | No | |
Savings Accounts | No | No | |
Credit Cards | No | Yes | |
Debit Cards | No | Yes | |
Mortgage Loans | No | No |
Customer Service | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
---|---|---|---|
Phone Support (Prospect Customers) | Yes | No | |
Phone Support (Current Customers) | Yes | Yes | |
Email Support | Yes | Yes | |
Live Chat (Prospect Customers) | Yes | No | |
Live Chat (Current Customers) | Yes | Yes | |
24/7 Support | No | Yes |
Overall | tastytrade | Robinhood | |
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Overall |
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Range of Investments |
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Platforms & Tools |
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Mobile Trading Apps |
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Research |
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Education |
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Ease of Use |
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Winner | check_circle | ||
Review | tastytrade Review | Robinhood Review |