best broker for beginner traders
The StockBrokers.com best online brokers 2021 review (11th annual) took three months to complete and produced over 40,000 words of research. Here's how we tested.
The best trading platform for beginners offers three essential benefits. First, the trading platform is easy to use. Second, the platform provides a variety of educational materials to encourage learning. Third, the best platform includes access to quality stock market research.
For our 2021 Review, we tested and scored 11 trading platforms, focusing on features that are essential for beginning investors. In addition to in-depth testing of each learning center, we also looked at which brokers offer unique features like webinars, live seminars, videos, progress tracking, and interactive educational elements (e.g., quizzes).
Best Trading Platforms for Beginners 2021
Here are the best online stock trading sites for beginners:
- TD Ameritrade - Best overall for beginners
- Fidelity - Excellent research and education
- Robinhood - Easy to use but no tools
- E*TRADE - Best web-based platform
- Merrill Edge - Great research tools
Other Trading Platforms
In addition to our top five trading platforms for beginners in 2021, we reviewed six others: Charles Schwab, Interactive Brokers, Ally Invest, Firstrade, TradeStation and Webull. Here are our high-level takeaways for each. To dive deeper, read our reviews.
Best Trading Platforms Pricing Comparison
Here's a comparison of pricing across TD Ameritrade, Fidelity, Robinhood, E*TRADE, and Merrill Edge. For more comparisons, use the online broker comparison tool.
| Feature | TD Ameritrade | Fidelity | Robinhood |
| Minimum Deposit | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Stock Trades | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| ETF Trade Fee | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | $74.95 | $49.95 | N/A |
| Options (Base Fee) | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Options (Per Contract) | $0.65 | $0.65 | $0.00 |
| Futures (Per Contract) | $2.25 | N/A | N/A |
| Broker Assisted Trade Fee | $25.00 | $32.95 | N/A |
Best Trading Platforms Beginner Education Comparison
Here's a comparison of the most popular educational features offered by beginner trading platforms. To compare 150+ features and fees side by side, check out our online broker comparison tool.
| Feature | TD Ameritrade | Fidelity | Robinhood |
| Education (Stocks) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Education (ETFs) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Education (Options) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Mutual Funds) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Education (Bonds) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Retirement Calculator | Yes | Yes | No |
| Investor Dictionary | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Paper Trading | Yes | No | No |
| Videos | Yes | Yes | No |
| Webinars (Monthly Avg) | 500 | 115 | 0 |
| Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | No |
| Progress Tracking | Yes | Yes | No |
| Interactive Learning - Quizzes | Yes | Yes | No |
Which online broker is best for beginners?
TD Ameritrade is the best all-around choice for beginners because it provides the best combination of ease of use, educational content, and research tools new investors need to succeed. Better yet, stock trades are free ($0).
Which trading platform is best for beginners?
The best trading platform for beginners is Power E*TRADE. E*TRADE offers Power E*TRADE as both a browser platform and mobile app. Power E*TRADE is excellent for beginners because it provides paper trading, HTML5 charts with automated technical analysis, and screening tools for both stocks and options.
What is the best stock trading app for beginners?
For beginners, our favorite trading apps are Fidelity and TD Ameritrade. Fidelity provides the best market research and stock analysis, alongside an in-depth learning center. Meanwhile, TD Ameritrade offers the most thorough selection of trading tools and provides access to its entire educational video library for beginners, easily searchable by filtering by topic.
How do I start trading for beginners?
To start trading as a beginner you must have a trading platform, an investment strategy and an expected time horizon to hold. Scan the market for trading ideas while taking baby steps to size your trades appropriately.
Trading platform: A demo or virtual account from a broker is a great way to learn the trading software you are using and understand how order types can help manage risk while entering and exiting positions.
Trading strategy: After opening a brokerage account, there are several decisions you will need to prepare for when trading as a beginner, such as what and when to trade and how much money to budget.
Time frame: Whether investing for the long term as a passive investor or trading more actively, you must focus on present market conditions and recent price activity when deciding how long you want to hold.
Baby steps: Fractional shares are another way to ease your way into the world of stock trading while taking less risk, focusing on percentage returns before increasing your trading budget.
Interested in more stock trading education, dive deeper with StockTrader.com's 10 Great Ways to Learn Stock Trading .
How do beginners trade stocks?
Here are common steps for beginners when learning how to buy stocks online:
1. Account setup: Open a self-directed brokerage account.
2. Navigate platform: Learn how the trading software works (website, mobile app or desktop).
3. Budget: Decide on a monthly amount you can afford to risk.
4. Strategize: Develop an investing style, such as buy and hold or short-term trading.
5. Manage risk and reward: Incorporate rules using order types (stop and limit orders).
6. Set goals: Focus on percentage returns and decide on your time horizon.
7. Find stocks to trade: Analyze news and research to find trading opportunities.
8. Avoid concentrated positions: Don't put too much into a single position.
9. Index funds: Consider incorporating low-cost index funds such to gain broad market exposure.
How do you buy stocks online?
To buy stocks, first, you need to open and fund an online brokerage account. Next, research which stock you want to buy. Last, go to the order ticket, enter the stock symbol along with the number of shares you want to buy, then place your trade.
What is paper trading?
Paper trading, or virtual trading, is a trading platform feature that enables trading stocks, ETFs, and options with fake money. Popular with beginners (and helpful!), paper trading is a great way to practice stock trading without risking real money. The two top-rated brokers that offer paper trading are TD Ameritrade and E*TRADE.
What are fractional shares?
A fractional share is a portion of a full share of a publicly-traded company. Fractional shares allow you to invest in shares of a company you might not otherwise be able to afford. For example, instead of needing over $2,000 to buy one Amazon (AMZN) share, a trader could purchase a $100 fractional share (1/20th of a share). Fidelity, Charles Schwab, Interactive Brokers, and Robinhood are the only online brokers that offer fractional shares trading.
What is a market order?
A market order is an order to buy or sell a security (e.g., stock) at the current best-available market price. Market orders are the most common type of order because they are the fastest and easiest way to buy and sell shares.
What is a limit order?
A limit order is an order to buy or sell a security at a pre-specified price or better. Since limit orders are fixed to a pre-specified price, they will only fill when the limit price is reached. Limit orders are best when you know the exact price at which you want to buy or sell a stock.
Is online trading safe?
Online trading is safe if you use a regulated online stock broker and never invest more than you are willing to lose. Trading stocks online is inherently risky. Start with a small amount of money, read investing books, and keep it simple by buying and holding for the long term instead of trying to time the market.
Summary
To recap, here are the best trading platforms for beginners.
Read Next
Explore our other online trading guides:
- Best Trading Platforms 2021
- Best Online Brokers for Beginners
- Best Day Trading Platforms
- Best Brokers for Penny Stocks
- Compare Online Brokers
Also explore educational content for various topics at our sister sites :
- 10 Great Ways to Learn Stock Trading - StockTrader.com
- Best High-Yield Savings Accounts - Investor.com
- Top Financial Advisor Firms - Investor.com
- 10 Great Ways to Learn Sports Betting - Moneyline.com
- Best Forex Brokers for Beginners - ForexBrokers.com
Methodology
For the StockBrokers.com 11th annual best trading platforms review published in January 2021, a total of 2,816 data points were collected over three months and used to score brokers. This makes StockBrokers.com home to the largest independent database on the web covering the online broker industry.
Participation is required to be included. Each broker completed an in-depth data profile and offered executive time (live in person or over the web) for an annual update meeting. Our rigorous data validation process yields an error rate of less than .001% each year, providing site visitors quality data they can trust. Learn more about how we test.
best broker for beginner traders
Source: https://www.stockbrokers.com/guides/beginner-investors
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