J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing allows unlimited trades with $0 commissions and no minimums while J.P. Morgan Automated Investing offers robo-advisory services, albeit at a higher price than many competitors. Find out if this program is a good fit with our full J.P. Morgan Investing review.
Ratings Methodology
Open Account for J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing
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Our Rating:
Rating image, 4.0 out of 5 stars.
4.0 stars
Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. = Best = Excellent = Good = Fair = Poor
Bottom Line
To go with no minimum balance and industry-standard commission free trades, offering no mutual fund commissions makes this a smart choice for some investors.
Fees:
$0 per trade
Account Minimum:
$0 for self-directed, $500 for automated accounts
Open Account for J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing
OnJ.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing'sSecure Website.
Full J.P. Morgan Investing review
This broker is a good fit for: Investors wanting the versatility of a traditional brokerage account and robo-advisor in one. Chase banking customers can also more easily manage their varying money needs within one app.
Pros
- No minimum for self-directed investing
- $0 commissions for stocks and ETFs
- No transaction-fee mutual funds
Cons
- Limited account types
- Trading platform
- Robo-advisory services are more expensive than many competitors
Earn a bonus up to $700
To receive the bonus, customers must open and fund a J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing account with qualifying new money.
- $700 when you fund with $250,000 or more
- $325 when you fund with $100,000-$249,999
- $150 when you fund with $25,000-$99,999
- $50 when you fund with $5,000-$24,999
How J.P. Morgan Investing works
J.P. Morgan offers both a self-directed investing account and an automated investing account (AKA robo-advisor) under one roof. Accountholders aren't required to open both accounts, rather, they can choose to open one or both investing accounts.
Top perks
No minimum
With J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, there's no minimum balance requirement for a trading account. You can start investing for the price of a single share of whatever stock or exchange-traded fund (ETF) you want to buy. However, the automated investing robo-advisory service has a $500 minimum initial deposit requirement.
Commission-free trading
Most brokers, especially those that are app-focused, offer free online stock trading. J.P. Morgan's self-directed investing service offers $0 commissions on online and mobile stock, fixed income, options, and ETF trades.
No mutual fund commissions
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing is one of the only brokers with $0 commissions on all mutual funds, not just on a select group of no-transaction-fee (NTF) funds. Rivals have mutual fund commissions for as much as $49.99, so this can be a big money saver and is a key differentiator for J.P. Morgan.
Robo-advisor and brokerage account in one
Clients with at least $500 in their accounts can take advantage of J.P. Morgan Automated Investing to help design an asset allocation for their risk tolerance and investment goals. This robo-advisor charges a 0.35% management fee. Combined with J.P. Morgan's traditional brokerage offerings, investors have an array of investment options to be as hands on or off as they prefer.
Links with Chase accounts
It can be convenient to have your bank accounts and brokerage assets with the same company, as it usually makes smoother money transfers. Plus, you can manage your Chase credit cards, bank accounts, and any other J.P. Morgan investment accounts all in the same place.
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What could be improved
Lack of account types
Investors with J.P. Morgan can open individual and joint brokerage accounts, as well as traditional and Roth IRAs. And to be fair, this is sufficient for the majority of investors. However, if you want to open a SIMPLE IRA, SEP-IRA, trust, custodial account, solo 401(k), or any other specialized account type, you can't do it with J.P. Morgan.
Trading platform
J.P. Morgan primarily offers an app-based trading platform, which isn't quite as feature-packed or as well-suited to active traders as some of the desktop trading platforms offered by rival brokers. While the app is highly rated, many investors might prefer a broker with a more feature-rich platform.
Research
J.P. Morgan clients have access to J.P. Morgan stock research on more than 1,200 U.S. companies, but many rivals offer significantly more options when it comes to research access.
Some rivals offer the ability to buy and sell fractional shares of stocks and ETFs -- say, one-half of a share of Apple. This can be an especially valuable feature for newer investors and those without tons of money to commit to stock investing.
High fees for robo-advisory services
J.P. Morgan's Automated Investing comes at a higher price than many competitors. While J.P. Morgan charges 0.35% for advisory services, many big-name robo-advisors charge less.
Commissions
Like most online brokers, J.P. Morgan offers $0 commissions on online stock and ETF trades, in addition to fixed-income and options trading. (Options are still subject to a fee of $0.65 per contract.)
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing commissions
| Stocks and ETFs | Stock Options | Mutual Funds |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $0.65 per contract | $0 |
A couple of notes. First, keep in mind that these commissions are for online trades. Commissions are significantly higher for representative-assisted trades made over the phone.
Second, note that J.P. Morgan offers a $0 mutual fund commission, which is virtually unheard of in the brokerage industry. Many competitors have thousands of no-transaction-fee funds available, but it's rare to see a flat $0 mutual fund commission for all transactions. It's worth mentioning that there are other costs involved with mutual fund investing, such as the ongoing expense ratios charged by each fund. Plus, some may have upfront sales charges or short-term redemption fees if you sell within 90 days. Even so, a $0 commission on all mutual fund trades can be a major money saver, especially if the funds you're interested in are not offered commission-free elsewhere.
It's also worth mentioning that like many brokers, J.P. Morgan offers a robo-advisory service for investors who'd rather not pick their own stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds. It will invest your money in an appropriate portfolio for you for an all-inclusive 0.35% annual management fee.
J.P. Morgan Automated Investing fee
| Product | Advisory fee |
|---|---|
| J.P. Morgan Automated Investing fee | 0.35% |
Buying mutual funds
Buying mutual funds is another key differentiator for J.P. Morgan. It's one of the only app-based trading platforms to offer the ability to buy and sell mutual funds. Plus, it's one of the only brokers of any kind with no mutual fund commissions whatsoever.
Many rivals offer large numbers of funds (even thousands) that trade with no transaction fees. These are known as NTF funds. However, if the fund you want to buy or sell isn't on the broker's NTF list, you'll pay a commission, and these can be as high as $49.99 among online brokers. Therefore, depending on what mutual funds you're buying, the commission-free mutual fund pricing structure offered by J.P. Morgan can be a very attractive feature.
Fees
Most investors won't encounter any fees when using J.P. Morgan's Self-Directed Trading Platform, unless they choose to use the robo-advisory service or are involved in options trading. However, there are a couple of fees that are worth mentioning:
- Account transfer fee: JP Morgan charges $75 to transfer any securities out of the account. For example, if you want to move your entire stock portfolio to another broker, it'll incur this fee. This does not apply to cash withdrawals, just transfers of securities.
- Broker-assisted trades: If you choose not to use the online portal and would prefer to place trades over the phone with the assistance of a broker, it'll cost $25 per stock trade and $20 per mutual fund investment.
Trading platform
J.P. Morgan is primarily an app-based trading platform. The Chase Mobile® App provides a way for J.P. Morgan's Self-Directed Investing customers to trade on the go. And unlike some of the other leading app-based trading platforms, such as Robinhood and Webull, J.P. Morgan offers a range of investment products, including mutual funds and individual bonds.
Margin rates
Unlike many competitors, J.P. Morgan's Self-Directed Investing does not publish its margin interest rates on its website. However, the J.P. Morgan self-directed trading platform does offer margin trading at what the company refers to as "competitive" interest rates.
Research offerings
Access to stock research can be a valuable tool for seasoned investors, as well as beginners. J.P. Morgan investment clients have access to J.P. Morgan's proprietary stock research, which covers more than 1,200 publicly traded companies.
Alternatives to consider
If you want a more robust mobile-investing option: Robinhood is among the best when it comes to mobile app investing. Importantly, Robinhood doesn't charge commissions for stocks, ETFs, options (no contract fee too), fractional shares, and cryptocurrencies. But keep in mind that it doesn't offer mutual funds.
If you want to compare to a full-featured stock broker: TD Ameritrade has a deep bench of offerings that make it a fit for a wide array of investors. Its trading and research tools are also best-in-class. Simply put, it offers everything J.P. Morgan does, and more.
| Offer | Robinhood | TD Ameritrade |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | Rating image, 4.5 out of 5 stars. 4.5 stars Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. | Rating image, 5.0 out of 5 stars. 5.0 stars Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. |
| Commissions | $0 for stocks, ETFs, and options | $0 stock trades |
| Account Minimum | $0 | $0 |
| Next Steps | Open Account for Robinhood Read Full Review | Open Account for TD Ameritrade Read Full Review |
This brokerage is right for you if:
- You want to start investing in stocks, ETFs, bonds, or mutual funds and don't have a ton of capital to get started.
- You are a mutual fund investor who doesn't want to be limited to a broker's no-transaction-fee (NTF) fund list.
- You are a Chase credit card or banking customer, or you already have J.P. Morgan investment accounts.
- You don't need a fancy trading platform, access to extensive stock research, or an otherwise feature-rich experience.
INVESTMENT AND INSURANCE PRODUCTS ARE: NOT A DEPOSIT • NOT FDIC INSURED • NO BANK GUARANTEE • MAY LOSE VALUE
Our Brokerages Expert
By:Christy Bieber
Writer
Christy Bieber is a full-time personal finance and legal writer with more than a decade of experience. She has a JD from UCLA as well as a degree in English, Media and Communications with a Certificate in Business Management from the University of Rochester. In addition to writing for The Ascent and The Motley Fool, her work has also been featured regularly on MSN Money, CNBC, and USA Today. She also ghost writes textbooks, serves as a subject matter expert for online course design, and is a former college instructor.
