Recommended for everyone
Company Background:
E*TRADE's beginnings can be traced back to 1982 when William Porter and Bernard Newcomb founded TradePlus. In 1991, TradePlus provided the startup capital for E*TRADE, which began as an online trading platform for AOL and Compuserve customers. E*TRADE soon moved to the web, where it became one of the most visible members of the first wave of online brokers. Since that time, E*TRADE has solidified itself in the online broker space with constant advertising, including popular ads starring a talking baby. In 2005, E*TRADE acquired the online broker Harrisdirect and BrownCo.
E*TRADE is publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol ETFC and currently has a market cap of $3.2 billion. The company is headquartered in New York, NY with Donald Layton as its CEO. Its clearing firm is E*TRADE Clearing LLC.
Platforms:
- Website: www.etrade.com
- Advanced Trading Platform: Power E*TRADE Pro (Java Application)
- Mobile Website: No
- iPhone App: Yes
- iPad App: Yes
- Android App: Yes
- BlackBerry App: Yes
Review Summary:
E*TRADE offers excellent charts and research tools, a good stock trading engine and is very good in most other aspects. The web based options trading engine is adequate only for basic order types but Power E*TRADE Pro does offer a better selection of advanced orders. Be aware of the $40 quarterly account maintenance fee for the minority of investors that may not qualify - see more details on the commissions and fees page. E*TRADE offers very competitive margin rates and an excellent Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRIP). The E*TRADE Mobile Pro iPhone and Android apps are good mobile trading platforms while the iPad app is slightly less impressive. Active traders will appreciate Power E*TRADE Pro thanks to its improved features across the board.
Detailed Reviews by Category:
- Registration: B
- Standard Stock Trading: B
- Power E*TRADE Pro Stock Trading: B
- Standard Options Trading: C
- Power E*TRADE Pro Options Trading: B
- Standard Charts: A
- Power E*TRADE Pro Charts: A
- Standard Research Tools: A
- Power E*TRADE Pro Research Tools: A
- Commissions and Fees: Pass
- iPhone App: B
- Android App: B
- iPad App: C
- Margin Rates
- Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRIPs): Yes
- Extended Hours Trading: Yes
- Tax Reporting
- Mint.com Compatibility: Yes
- Wikinvest Compatibility: Yes
- Clearing Firms
See our Summary Reviews Page to compare E*TRADE with other brokers