If you aren’t familiar with the two companies, Robinhood and Firstrade are both online brokers that allow you to trade stocks, options, ETFs, and other investment vehicles without paying a commission.
They hold tons of valuable services for the fee but there is a pretty hefty price difference between them. In this post, we’ll be going over the differences between Firstrade and Robinhood as well as what led us to make the switch from one to another.
Firstrade Overview
Firstrade is an online broker that provides access to its services through Firstrade.com and a toll-free number. The company is based in Flushing, New York.
Touted as one of the best new online banks Firstrade has a straightforward fee structure, low trading costs, and a trading platform that makes it easy to place trades.
The Firstrade platform is user-friendly, easy to use, and available on your mobile device. They have a very good selection of research tools including Level II quotes, streaming data feeds, stock screening tools, and more.
Firstrade offers a wide variety of educational materials on its website designed to help investors learn more about investing from the ground up as well as deeper insight into specific trading strategies and investment types.
Read more about our Firstrade Review.
Firstrade Details
Firstrade is one of the most highly respected discount brokers in the industry. The account minimum is $0, making it great for first-time investors. It has low fees, a large selection of investments, and excellent customer service.
Account Types: Firstrade is known for being an online brokerage that caters to all types of investors, from beginners to seasoned traders. Along with its standard cash account, it offers individual and joint accounts (including Roth IRAs), education savings accounts, business accounts (including retirement plans), and custodial accounts.
There are no fee-based accounts at Firstrade, which means you never have to pay extra just to hold certain types of investments. This stands in contrast to many traditional brokerages where you have to pay annual fees just for holding certain investment types.
Firstrade also offers a very diverse range of research tools such as a stock simulator, stock screener, and real-time news feed. They also offer eSign paperless document signing services which are great for people who want to trade without having to print out forms or mail them off to the company via snail mail.
Overall it’s a pretty good choice if you’re looking for a new place to invest your money online. Get Started with Firstrade – Free Online Stock Trading
Firstrade Fees
Account Opening and Maintenance Fees – Firstrade does not charge an account opening fee or an annual maintenance fee. However, each security that you trade will be subject to a transaction fee, which is based upon the type of security (e.g., stocks, options, mutual funds) and it’s trading volume.
A Firstrade broker-assisted trade on stocks and options comes with a $19.95 flat fee, plus a $0.50 charge per contract.
Robinhood Overview
Robinhood is a stock brokerage that allows you to buy and sell stocks for free.
If you’re looking to invest your hard-earned cash, Robinhood is a popular brokerage app that is free to use. Robinhood is known for its no-frills, easy-to-use interface, and it’s a great way to dip your toes into the world of investing.
Trying out a new product or service before you buy it is a smart strategy. You can check out the interface, see how easy it is to use, and decide whether it fits with your financial plan before you commit.
Robinhood Details
Robinhood’s commission-free trades have made it one of America’s fastest-growing brokerage firms. The app is among the most popular for tracking your investments and market news, but Robinhood hasn’t yet expanded beyond the U.S.
Robinhood started as a free stock trading app and has since evolved into a full-fledged brokerage. While the app mostly caters to individual investors, it also has advanced tools for more sophisticated traders, like historical price charts and margin trading.
Robinhood’s trading platform does not charge commissions, making it a popular choice among young adults who want to invest without getting gouged by brokers. The company also offers instant deposits on ETFs and instant access to funds, as well as extended hours trading during market downturns.
The Robinhood app has a simple layout that displays market data in a readable format, with candlestick charts and real-time quotes all in one place. The app also integrates with third-party apps like Google Calendar and IFTTT to track market movements alongside your daily schedule.
In seconds, you can set up an account and begin buying stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrencies — all commission-free. Check out Robinhood and Get A Free Stock At Sign-Up
Robinhood Fees
Robinhood offers two basic service plans: Robinhood Free and Robinhood Gold. The free plan includes all of the same features as the paid version, but with limited investment choices. Gold members pay a 5$ monthly fee for access to premium features like margin trading and extended market hours. Members gain $1,000 in the margin, Level II market data, and instant portfolio transfers.
Firstrade vs. Robinhood: Which One is Right for You?
Competition in the brokerage space has never been more cutthroat than it is now. The emergence of firms like Vanguard, Fidelity, and Schwab enabled investors to trade stocks and ETFs at rock-bottom prices—or even for free—and that made life difficult for traditional brokerages.
Firstrade vs. Robinhood may seem like two similar services, but they actually offer very different value to investors. Both are commission-free online brokerages, but they differ greatly in terms of trading fees and investment options.
When it comes to the spreads on stocks, however, Robinhood gets the nod because they have no stock commissions (and no options either). However, they do charge a premium when it comes to ETF trading.
If you’re looking for a professional stock trading platform, then Firstrade is the one for you. Their mobile app is easy to use, there are plenty of educational resources and they offer three different trading platforms: Firstrade, WebBroker, and Firstrade Direct.
Tons of online reviews suggest that Robinhood is not the best place to trade stocks if you’re looking for speed, access to research, or customer service. This discount brokerage company is great for long-term investing. But if you’re interested in day trading stocks, then Firstrade offers a much more robust experience.
Final Thoughts
All in all, both Firstrade and Robinhood have distinct advantages over the other. That being said, there are features each of them can use to pull ahead of the other. If your top priority is access to advanced trading features, look into another platform like Firstrade.
Meanwhile, Robinhood may be a better fit if you plan on buying cryptocurrencies or options—its straightforward interface and streamlined operations make these activities much less complicated than they are with a traditional brokerage platform.
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