Online brokerage services have existed for over 20 years. Trading investments today has never been cheaper. So while the race towards cheap trades (in some cases free) is happening, other functionality is becoming more important when selecting a stock broker.
For this review, I compare Fidelity Investments and TD Ameritrade. Which one is better depends on your needs? So let's examine the major features first.
We've determined with online brokerages the most critical feature customers care about is the
cost per trade. The second most important feature is the minimum deposit, and the last is if the broker
offers mutual funds. Let's look at how Fidelity Investments and TD Ameritrade
stack up against each other on these points.
To start, we will consider the minimum investment required for both applications. In other words, how much does one need to invest to use the service? Out of the two, TD Ameritrade minimum investment of $0 is smaller than the deposit of required by Fidelity Investments.
Next I'll consider cost per trade for both brokers.
Out of the two, Fidelity Investments is cheaper per trade at $4.95 than TD Ameritrade at $6.95/trade.
Both Fidelity Investments and TD Ameritrade offer mutual funds. So this feature isn't a clear difference between the stock brokers.
Overall, Fidelity Investments rates 9.5 out of 10, while TD Ameritrade ranks 9 out of 10. For more information on either, you can read our full reviews on Fidelity Investments and TD Ameritrade.
Stock Brokers | Recommended | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Review | Fidelity Investments Review | TD Ameritrade Review |
| Overall rating as by Investor Junkie. Rating | 9.5/10 | 9/10 |
| Commissions & Fees | 9/10 | 8.5/10 |
| Customer Service | 9/10 | 9/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8.5/10 | 9/10 |
| Tools & Resources | 9/10 | 9/10 |
| Amount of Deals | 9/10 | 10/10 |
| Account Options | 8.5/10 | 8/10 |
| Promotions | None | Trade Free for 60 Days + Get Up to $600 Cash |
| Minimum Investment | $2,500 | $0 |
| Stock Trades | $4.95/trade | $6.95/trade |
| Options Trades | $4.95/trade + $0.65/contract | $6.95/trade + $0.75/contract |
| Mutual Funds |  | |
| Investment Types | Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Bonds | Stocks, Penny Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Bonds, FOREX, Futures |
| Accounts |
|
|
| Access | Website, iOS App, Apple Watch, Android App | Website, iOS App, Apple Watch, Android App |
| Broker Assisted Trade | | |
| Virtual Trades | | |
| No Fee ETFs | | |
| Customer Service | | |
| Autotrading |  | |
Sign Up | Sign Up | Sign Up |
About Fidelity Investments
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.
About TD Ameritrade
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.
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