Are you seeking information on the best trading sites online? Perhaps you are looking for more options, to switch companies, or maybe you are just getting into the market. Every trading sites has its perks, but every site also has its rules, up front costs, or fees. Below is a list of the top websites for trading stocks, their fees, features, and everything else in between.
- Scottrade is a trading website that is designed around “options trading” with $7 trading fees. To open an account it will cost $500, however there are no inactivity fees which in turn makes this a great option for the occasional trader. Trades are executed immediately, no wait period besides the mandatory three day settlement, as per law. They also offer IRA, customer service, and they have a mobile website for on the go trading. The only downsides are that they offer no online banking, and their customer service is only available Monday through Friday.
- Zecco is considered quite unique in the world of online trading. They offer a more community driven service, and a very easy to learn system. They require no minimum deposit for accounts, and offer account protection up to $35 million. Trades start at $4.95 per trade, or $0.65 per contract, and they currently offer stocks for under $1, and over $1 too. You will be sure to find top notch customer service if you have any problems, and there is also a glossary of trading terms right on their website. There is also a site supported Firefox add-on that allows you to visit other websites, and still trade. This site is great for beginners to advanced traders.
- E-Trade Financial is geared towards traders that are either experts or intermediate in their trading knowledge. Not to say that a beginner couldn’t use their service but you may quickly find yourself overwhelmed, however they also offer a lot of free classes designed to help people of all levels too. They offer global trading with six different markets, and free independent trading research depending upon trading level. They do have a minimum account balance of $500 to open an account, and it must be maintained for 60 days. Fees are based upon the amount of available funds in your account but start as low as $7.99, and are as high as $12.99 with $0.75 per options contract fee. Online banking, IRA, global investing, and top of the line customer service. For the beginner trader, like said above, you may become overwhelmed easily with the website itself as it is loaded to the brim with information, however it really is a great place for a beginner, with the upfront costs, to really learn about trading, and investing.
Penny stocks are simply stocks that cost less than $1. If this is an area you are looking at for investing there are some pitfalls that should be avoided, and some basic rules of thumb for buying, and selling.
- Pay a company or service to research for you.
If you can’t imagine yourself having the time, or knowledge to do research on stocks, you can always pay a reputable company to handle the leg work for you. When looking at companies you will want to make sure they have the following, a working phone number, a free trial, and finally has the media covered the research company.
If you are new to stock trading all together try to learn as much of the terminology as you can, and don’t be afraid to use a cheat sheet of common terminology no matter how you decide to trade. Penny stocks are great for first time investors, investors with little start up money or investors with a lot of money that want to trade hazardously. However, if not careful, or you do not research well you may end up losing quite a bit of money. Keep in mind, that though most people start with the best penny stocks, a lot of people start with bigger firms, and make just as much money towards their retirement or income.