Generally speaking, E*TRADE will appeal to investors who want access to a wider range of investments — including index and mutual funds — as well as a high-powered trading platform, deep educational content and 24/7 customer support. Robinhood is a great option for investors who prioritize low costs and want an easy-to-use mobile platform. Robinhood also offers an IRA match while E*TRADE does not.
Here's a look at how E*TRADE and Robinhood stack up against each other:
E*TRADE is best for:
- Frequent traders.
- Research and data.
- Retirement planning assistance and educational resources.
E*TRADE at a glance
Account minimum | $0 |
Stock trading costs | $0 |
Options trades | $0.65 per contract (volume discount available) |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | Annual fee: $0 Inactivity fee: $0 Closing fee: $0 |
Interest rate on uninvested cash | 0.01% to 0.15% |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | Nearly 6,000 |
Tradable securities | Stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, options, bonds, futures and crypto |
Trading platform | Two: E*TRADE and Power E*TRADE |
Mobile app | Available for iOS and Android |
Research and data | Nine research providers, including Moodys, Refinitiv, Morningstar, MarketEdge and Smart Consensus |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | 24/7 phone support; live chat Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern. |
Robinhood is best for:
- Mobile-first investors.
- IRA investors.
- Margin traders.
Robinhood at a glance
Account minimum | $0 for brokerage accounts, Robinhood Gold accounts and IRAs. |
Stock trading costs | $0. |
Options trades | $0 for equity options. $0.50 for index options, or $0.35 for Gold accounts. |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | No annual or inactivity fees. $100 ACAT outgoing transfer fee. Robinhood Gold costs $5 a month or $50 per year. Matching funds in IRAs may be taken back if money is withdrawn in less than five years. Instant withdrawals cost 1.75% of the amount withdrawn, with a minimum fee of $1 and a maximum of $150. |
Interest rate on uninvested cash | 0.01% for free accounts, 3.35% for Gold accounts |
Tradable securities | Stocks, ETFs, Options, Cryptocurrency, American Depositary Receipts for over 650 global companies, Futures, Fractional shares. Bonds only available in the form of bond ETFs. |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | Not rated; no mutual funds. |
Trading platform | Robinhood's mobile and web platforms are known for their smooth sign-up, funding and trading processes. The broker now also offers a desktop platform, Robinhood Legend. |
Mobile app | Mobile trading platform includes customizable alerts, news feed, advanced charting and ability to listen live to earnings calls for some companies. Reviews are mostly positive, although the average star rating on both iOS and Android is below the 4.5 star line. |
Research and data | Access to professional research from Morningstar and Level II market data from the Nasdaq Stock Exchange (with Gold subscription). |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | 24/7 chat support. Phone support available from 7:00 a.m. ET to 9:00 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday. Decent suite of educational articles and webinar events, and an easily-navigable website. |
Brokerage firms | |
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» Compare more options: View our picks for the best stock apps
Methodology
Methodology
How do we review brokers?
All NerdWallet reviews and lists of the best investing products are created by our editorial team of full-time writers and editors, independent of any business relationships. In this case, our investing team's comprehensive review process evaluates and ranks the largest U.S. brokers by assets under management, along with emerging industry players. Our aim is to provide an independent, balanced assessment of brokerages to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgments on which ones will best meet your needs. Our highest priority is maintaining editorial integrity.
We collect data directly from brokerages through detailed questionnaires and conduct first-hand testing and observation through demonstrations. The questionnaire answers, combined with demonstrations, interviews of personnel at the brokerages and our specialists’ hands-on research, fuel our proprietary assessment process that scores each broker's performance across more than 20 factors. The final output produces star ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars).
For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.
