Best Online Brokerage for 2018 – The Top Stock Brokers

Charles Schwab is the Nordstrom of the investment world, and customers virtually always leave happy. As a customer, you'll get access to virtually all the investment services that come standard at any major brokerage. However, if you're an active trader, you might find other firms with better options.

Fidelity is a full-featured discount brokerage service that includes virtually every investment and banking service you need. The mobile app is also one of the best for trading on the go. However, the service is slow to roll out new features.

Get complete access to all kinds of investment options with relatively low pricing from TD Ameritrade. One of its biggest advantages is it requires no minimum deposit to open an account. This is the closest we can find to a perfect online broker.

Use Vanguard to get a wide selection of low-cost, no-load mutual funds, ETFs, stock broker services, and financial planning. For investors wanting a one-stop shop for all their banking and financial needs, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Ally Invest is the online brokerage firm of Ally Bank, and its great pricing and customer service make it hard to beat. Unfortunately, the funding process can be tricky, taking up to 10 business days. And if you are looking for a local branch office, you'll have to look elsewhere.

E*TRADE, the grandaddy of online discount brokers, is still a good choice for active investors. Its platforms are easy to use, customer service is responsive, and trades execute quickly. However, there are now many less expensive rivals on the market.

Firstrade was one of the first online stock brokers around, but the company recently kicked things up a notch by offering free trades — even for options. The platform also offers plenty of tools and resources to help you get started if you're a new stock investor. However, unlike other stock broker options, Firstrade doesn't offer a robo advisor.

Theme-based Motif Investing is a unique and cost-efficient option for diversifying your portfolio. Its pricing is very competitive, and it's tax efficient, even if you don't trade stocks. But with a lack of advanced features, Motif is not ideal for active traders.

Merrill Edge offers helpful online tools to help investors simplify their financial goals and gain better control over their investments. However, the fees to use the service can be steep, and users have complained about poor customer service and slow updates on trades.

With TradeStation, you can get access to an excellent platform for serious and active traders that was previously available only to brokers. The downsides are that it can be too expensive for some traders, and the service's mobile app is inferior to others.

Interactive Brokers is perhaps one of the most comprehensive stock brokers for active and advanced traders. It offers professional customer service, and execution of trades is easy. However, for novice and less active investors, we recommend you look elsewhere.

If you think free stock trades are a fantasy, think again! Robinhood offers commission-free stock trades. No fees, really! If a free, simple, basic stock trading app with no extras sounds good to you, Robinhood might be the broker you’ve been looking for.

Active traders are a better fit to SogoTrade's pricing model even if it lacks the features that options traders really need.

Many brokerage firms today are competing on price, and all seek to offer the widest range of features and data to lure in and keep valuable clients like you. Lightspeed Trading is different from the rest. It is all about keeping things simple and cheap. If you are a confident investor and want to save money with a bare-bones brokerage, read on to learn more about Lightspeed.

Tastyworks is a brokerage platform from financial video network Tastytrade. Designed with options traders in mind, this low-cost, technology-driven platform is best for active traders looking to save a few bucks on stock, options and futures commissions. However, it's not for everyone, and some might find the site's investment options a bit lacking.

Use Kapitall to test out any stock market theories with a test account, while learning to hone and simplify your investment strategy.

Stockpile is a unique stock broker that allows users to purchase small amounts of household-name stocks through gift cards. It's a great way to get young people interested in investing, although the costs can add up.

Ustocktrade is an interesting concept, creating a truly community-based investment platform. It may be ideal for new and small investors, as well as early adopters, since the fees are very low and there are no account minimums. However, the service will probably be of very limited use to larger, more sophisticated investors.