It is understandable if you are paying less attention to your brokerage account these days, given the current market malaise. But the recent slide in stock and bond prices may represent a "generational investment opportunity," Ron Baron, a manager of several Baron funds and founder of Baron Capital, recently wrote in a letter to shareholders.
In short, it's a good time to be active as an investor. But it also pays to be selective in times like these, which makes the services offered by your online broker highly important, whether for you that means plying your brokerage's tools to sift for hidden gems in the stock bargain bin, finding smart fixed-income strategies or even getting professional investment guidance. With that in mind, we conducted our annual review of online brokers. This year, we have 10 contenders. Five are large, well-known brokers that cater to all kinds of investors, from novices to active day traders: Charles Schwab, E*Trade, Fidelity, Merrill Edge and TD Ameritrade. Schwab acquired TD Ameritrade in 2020, but the brokerages still work independently, and the firms asked to be reviewed separately, except in the category of advisory services. The remaining five firms are smaller in stature, but each has something to offer: Ally Invest, Firstrade, Interactive Brokers, J.P. Morgan SelfDirected Investing and Wells Trade, the brokerage arm of financial firm Wells Fargo.
Each company answered dozens of questions in seven categories, including commissions and fees; investment choices; advisory services; tools; research; and mobile, which tested the functionality of each firm's app. We also measured what we call user experience a general category for how many ways, and how well, a company interacts with its customers. The score in each category was based on information provided to us by the brokerage firms, which we vetted to the best of our abilities.
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