Best online stock trading site?

March 28, 2006 12:07 PM

I'm looking to do some casual stock trading...likely 1 or 2 trades a quarter, in amounts around $1000 or less. What online stock trader site is best for me?

I'm not looking for general investment advice, suggestions to diversify, or for people dissuading me from online trading in general. Ideally, people who have used multiple sites and/or match my frequency and quantity pattern will be able to make some suggestions.

posted by davebug to work & money (10 comments total)

I like Scottrade. Open an account with the $500 minimum and there's no inactivity/monthly/yearly fees. Stock trades are $7. Their selection of no-fee mutual funds is weak compared to the big fund brokers, however.
posted by rxrfrx at 12:17 PM on March 28, 2006

Scottrade.
posted by abcde at 12:24 PM on March 28, 2006

I had a good experience with InteractiveBrokers. But I was trading a bit more frequently, a 2week-ish timescale.
posted by Shutter at 12:26 PM on March 28, 2006

(Glib one-word answer serves as more of a prediction of the many people who will likely confirm me and rxrfrx, in better detail.)
posted by abcde at 12:27 PM on March 28, 2006

I like IB too, but their fee structure is a bit heavy for an occasional trader. Scottrade sounds even better than Ameritrade for the infrequent trader.
posted by b1tr0t at 12:41 PM on March 28, 2006

I have an Interactive Brokers account as well. Quality service, but the minimum balance is higher and you'll be paying about $20 a month in inactivity fees if you only trade once a month or less. The trades themselves are a buck each at low volume.
posted by rxrfrx at 12:49 PM on March 28, 2006

Scottrade has treated me well for about 5 years now, and I definitely fall into the infrequent trader catagory.
posted by iurodivii at 1:04 PM on March 28, 2006

You might also consider ShareBuilder. I chose it instead of Scottrade in January, though I can no longer remember why. It offer similar services, I believe.
posted by jdroth at 1:11 PM on March 28, 2006

Here is a list of rankings. Reading them will help you decide what is best for your trading style.

As a general rule of thumb, go with whichever broker is ranked highest in trade execution (within your price range). That is definitely worth a few extra bucks.
posted by srs at 2:06 PM on March 28, 2006

I like Ameritrade's Izone.. $5 a trade.
posted by duckstab at 2:40 PM on March 28, 2006