Scottrade and E-Trade are two of the biggest names in the online broker business, with millions of customer accounts each. That recognition is one reason why investors looking to open a new brokerage account often turn to these two first.
When the time comes to pick one, you need to make a head-to-head comparison. We’ve pulled together the pertinent details about these two brokers, so you can make an educated choice about which is the best home for your dollars: Scottrade or E-Trade.
- Commission: $7 per trade
- Account minimum: $0 for IRAs; $2,500 for brokerage
- Promotion: 50 commission-free trades
- See our Scottrade review.
- Commission: $9.99; volume discounts available
- Account minimum: $0 for IRAs; $500 for brokerage
- Promotion: 60 days of commission-free trades
- See our E-Trade review.
Scottrade vs. E-Trade at a glance
| Scottrade | E-Trade | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall |
|
|
| Stock trading costs | $7 per trade |
 $9.99 for fewer than 150 trades/quarter $7.99 for 150 to 1,499 trades/quarter $6.99 for 1,500+ trades/quarter |
| Options trades |  $7 + $1.25/contract |
$9.99 + $0.75 per contract. Base is tiered with stock commission to discount for active traders. |
| Account minimum |  $0 for IRA accounts; $2,500 for brokerage |
$0 for IRA accounts; $500 for brokerage |
| Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity) | No annual or inactivity fee; $75 outgoing transfer fee |
No annual or inactivity fee; $60 outgoing transfer fee |
| Trading platform | Browser trading and Scottrader Streaming Quotes platform available to all customers; ScottradeELITE for customers with balance of $25,000 or more who have placed nine or more trades in the past three months. |
E-Trade 360 for browser; desktop platform E-Trade Pro for customers who maintain at least a $250,000 account balance or execute at least 30 stock or options trades per quarter |
| Mobile app | Above-average capabilities |
 Advanced features mimic a desktop trading platform |
| Mutual funds | More than 2,500 no-transaction-fee mutual funds |
Over 1,300 no-transaction-fee mutual funds |
| Commission-free ETFs | None |
Over 100 commission-free ETFs |
| Research and data | Free |
Free and extensive |
| Tradable securities | • Stocks • Bonds • Mutual funds • ETFs • Options |
• Stocks • Bonds • Mutual funds • ETFs • Options • Futures |
| Customer support/branches | 500 local branches in addition to phone, email and chat support |
30 local branches in addition to 24/7 email and chat support |
| Promotion | Up to $2,000 in cash bonus plus 50 free trades. Accounts funded with $10,000 or more begin qualifying for tiered promotions. |
Commission-free trades for 60 days, plus up to $2,500 in cash bonuses. Accounts funded with $10,000 or more begin qualifying for tiered promotions. |
Fees and commissions
Neither broker charges inactivity or annual fees. But looking at straight-up stock trading costs, Scottrade is the pretty clear winner: The company’s $7 flat commission easily beats E-Trade’s tiered pricing structure for all but very high-volume traders. However, investors who trade 1,500 or more times per quarter — qualifying for the $6.99 reduced trade commission — will pay slightly less at E-Trade.
But options trading at Scottrade is expensive, with a $1.25 charge per contract tacked on to that $7 base commission. E-Trade’s options trading commissions are tiered with the stock trade commissions, but its contract charge is just $0.75. A trade of 20 contracts would cost $32 at Scottrade, compared with $24.99 at E-Trade.
Winner: Scottrade for stock-trading costs; E-Trade for options trading. But what if you do both? NerdWallet’s online brokerage search tool can help you estimate your potential costs based on your trading frequency and investment preferences.
Investment selection
E-Trade — which was our pick for best online broker for investment selection — has a leg up here, for a few reasons. The company offers more than 100 commission-free ETFs; that’s not a stand-out number compared with the rest of the online broker landscape, but it beats Scottrade handily, as the broker offers none. Also, E-Trade account holders can trade futures.
Scottrade edges out E-Trade for mutual funds, though, offering more than 2,500 no-transaction-fee funds; E-Trade has more than 1,300.
Winner: E-Trade, although mutual fund investors may prefer the larger selection of no-transaction-fee funds at Scottrade. Keep in mind that with no commission-free ETFs, you’ll pay a $7 commission for each trade.
Research, tools and trading platforms
Both E-Trade and Scottrade got docked a star in the trading platform portion of our reviews because their premium platforms (read: best and most advanced) have minimum balance requirements and are reserved for high-volume traders:
- ScottradeELITE: Available for customers with balances of $25,000 or more who have placed nine or more trades in the past three months.
- E-Trade Pro: Available for customers with at least a $250,000 balance or who execute at least 30 stock or options trades per quarter.
Of the two, E-Trade Pro will be most impressive to active traders. The platform offers robust idea-generating tools like Strategy Scanner, backtesting, a professional-level options screener and customizable charting.
E-Trade also steps it up in other technology-driven areas. Its mobile app is one of the best available from any online broker, with advanced features like stock and ETF screeners, options chain filters, educational videos, and real-time quotes, charts and CNBC Video on Demand. It does its best to mimic a desktop platform. E-Trade also has an innovative Google Chrome plugin that investors can use to research and trade right from their browser. The tool scans webpages for stock symbols and displays the current price.
ScottradeELITE wins for accessibility, however, because a $25,000 minimum isn’t quite as out of reach. It also has a few standout features, like Intraday Trader from Recognia, which helps investors spot trade opportunities and track and receive custom notifications about technical events. Many investors will also find that ScottradeELITE’s charting functionality is a step above E-Trade Pro’s.
Both brokers also offer basic browser-based platforms that are open to all customers, as well as free access to research and data. E-Trade’s offerings come from a wider selection of sources, including Credit Suisse, S&P Capital IQ, Thomson Reuters, MarketEdge and Morningstar.
Winner: It’s a bit of a toss up, given that E-Trade’s trading tools are a bit more advanced but the company has such a high minimum for E-Trade Pro. Still, we’ll give this one to E-Trade, with the note that investors who can’t qualify for E-Trade Pro’s $250,000 account minimum will be happy with ScottradeELITE (or Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade, which both offer high-quality trading platforms to all customers).
Which one is right for you?
The results are clear: E-Trade pretty cleanly edges out Scottrade on most of the factors that investors weigh heavily, including platforms, tools and investment selection. The broker also has a lower minimum investment requirement of $500 to Scottrade’s $2,500 (though both brokers waive their minimum for IRAs).
That said, most investors will pay lower commissions at Scottrade, and costs count. Scottrade is also known far and wide for its high-quality customer service; with 500 local branches, the company almost certainly has one near you. New or beginner investors may appreciate chatting with an expert in person, which is one reason why Scottrade landed on our list of best brokers for beginners.
There’s a reason many investors find a happy home with both of these brokers: They excel in different areas. Advanced investors, frequent traders and ETF investors are likely to prefer E-Trade, while Scottrade is a very strong match for beginner investors.
Arielle O’Shea is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: aoshea@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @arioshea.
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