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Although Robinhood is typically thought of as a beginner-friendly investing app, Fidelity has repeatedly earned title of Best Broker for Beginning Investors and the Best App for Investing in NerdWallet's Best-Of Awards. Robinhood may have an easier, quicker sign-up process, and its user experience is definitely built for a mobile-first generation, but Fidelity has several offerings you won't find at Robinhood: expense-ratio-free index funds, strong customer service and a large selection of research providers.
One change that happened in 2022: Robinhood launched IRA accounts, with a lucrative 1% match on contributions. That makes it a contender for retirement investors, especially those who plan to leave their IRA with Robinhood for the long haul. (The fine print allows Robinhood to take some or all of the matching funds contributed back when distributions are made within five years.) However, Robinhood still doesn't have the broad retirement investment selection traditional online brokers like Fidelity offer — there are no index funds or mutual funds available through the platform (only exchange-traded funds).
Fidelity is best for:
Frequent traders.
Beginner investors.
Research and data.
Retirement planning assistance.
Fidelity at a glance
Account minimum | $0. |
Stock trading costs | $0. |
Options trades | No base commission; $0.65 per contract. |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | None. |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | More than 3,300 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. |
Tradable securities | • Stocks. • Bonds. • Mutual funds. • ETFs. • Fractional shares. • Options. • FOREX. • Bitcoin and Ethereum. |
Trading platform | Fidelity.com and Active Trader Pro. Both free for all customers. |
Mobile app | Available for iOS and Android; advanced features. |
Research and data | Free and extensive. |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | Phone, email and live chat 24/7; more than 200 local branches. |
Robinhood is best for:
Mobile users.
Individual taxable accounts and IRAs.
Margin accounts.
Robinhood at a glance
Account minimum | $0 for brokerage accounts, Robinhood Gold accounts and IRAs. |
Stock trading costs | $0. |
Options trades | $0. Options not currently available in IRAs. |
Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | No annual, inactivity or ACH transfer fees. $100 ACAT outgoing transfer fee. (Robinhood Gold costs $5 a month.). Matching funds in IRAs may be taken back if money is withdrawn after less than five years. |
Tradable securities | • Stocks. • ETFs. • Options. (Not available in IRAs.) • Cryptocurrency. (Not available in IRAs.) • American Depositary Receipts for over 650 global companies. • Fractional shares. |
Crypto availability | 18 coins in 48 states. (Not available in IRAs.) |
Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | Not rated. |
Trading platform | Web platform is simple but meets basic investor needs. |
Mobile app | Mobile trading platform includes customizable alerts, news feed, advanced charting and ability to listen live to earnings calls. |
Research and data | News available from Benzinga, Reuters, Bloomberg and WSJ. Gold members have access to research from Morningstar, Nasdaq, Nasdaq Totalview level II Market Data for an additional $5 per month. Portfolio recommendations available for IRAs for no additional charge. |
Customer support options (includes how easy it is to find key details on the website) | Email, social media, chat, in-app request-to-call service 24/7. |
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NerdWallet rating 5.0 /5 | NerdWallet rating 5.0 /5 | NerdWallet rating 5.0 /5 |
Fees $0 per trade for online U.S. stocks and ETFs | Fees $0.005 per share; as low as $0.0005 with volume discounts | Fees $0 per trade |
Account minimum $0 | Account minimum $0 | Account minimum $0 |
Promotion Get $100 when you open a new, eligible Fidelity account with $50 or more. Use code FIDELITY100. Limited time offer. Terms apply. | Promotion Exclusive! US resident opens a new IBKR Pro individual or joint account receives 0.25% rate reduction on margin loans. Tiers apply. | Promotion Get up to $600 or more when you open and fund an E*TRADE account |
» Compare more options: View our picks for the best stock apps
Methodology
How do we review brokers?
NerdWallet’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 assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgements on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.
We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, and conduct first-hand testing and observation through provider demonstrations. The questionnaire answers, combined with demonstrations, interviews of personnel at the providers and our specialists’ hands-on research, fuel our proprietary assessment process that scores each provider’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.
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