Fidelity Review 2023 - Pros and Cons Uncovered (2024)

How we ranked fees

We ranked Fidelity's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

First, let's go over some basic terms related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Fidelity for each asset class. For example, in the case of stock investing the most important fees are commissions.

We also compared Fidelity's fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, E*TRADE and TD Ameritrade. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Fidelity alternatives.

To have a clear overview of Fidelity, let's start with the trading fees.

Fidelity trading fees

Fidelity's trading fees are low. We also liked the transparency of the fee structure.

Stock fees and ETF fees

Fidelity charges no stock and ETF commissions when you trade US stocks.On the other hand, international stock trade fees are relatively high. Still, it is not common for US brokers to offer non-US stocks at all.

There is also a small charge on sell orders, as they are subject to an activity assessment fee of $0.01-$0.03 per $1,000 of principal.

Fidelity charges flat per-trade commissions on most international markets, as detailed in the table below.

If you prefer stock trading on margin, you should check Fidelity's margin rates.

Trading on margin basically means that you borrow money from your broker and can purchase more shares than you could with just the available cash in your account. You have to pay interest on this borrowed money – the interest rate is called the margin rate. It can account for a significant portion of your trading costs.

Fidelity margin rates are high in an industry comparison.

Fidelity's margin rate is volume-tiered.There is a base marginrate, plus a premium or a discount depending on the borrowed amount.At the time of the review, the base rate was 10.075%, resulting in the followingfinancing rates:

*Effective since September 23, 2022

Fund fees

The fees for mutual funds are high for transaction-fee and non-Fidelity funds. Fidelity offers around3,500+ free mutual funds. However, If you sell these funds within 60 days of purchase, a $49.95 fee is charged.

For all other funds, a purchase costs either $49.95 or $75, depending on the fund. We used $49.95in our calculations because most popular mutual funds are charged this amount. You are only charged a fee for purchasing a fund, not when selling. That is why we halved Fidelity'sfee, to make it comparable with other brokersthat charge both for buyingand selling.

Bond fees

Fidelity has generally low bond fees. Bond fees vary by bond type. We calculated the fees for Treasury bonds traded on the secondary market.

Options fees

Fidelity's options fees are low,at $0.65 per contract.

Non-trading fees

Fidelity has low non-trading fees.There are no inactivity or account fees.

There are also no withdrawal fees for ACH and USD wire withdrawals. Non-USD wire withdrawals however cost 3% of the amount you withdraw. In our review, we tested an electronic (ACH) withdrawal, which worked without any problem

In addition, there is a currency conversion fee if you trade an international stock that is denominated in a currency other than your account's currency. The currency conversion fee depends on the amount you trade.