At first glance, TradeKing vs OptionsXpress isn’t even close. In fact, the TradeKing did a quick tally and although bias, the results heavily favored the cheaper discount broker. However, upon looking into it further, you can see why there are still so many people who love OptionsXpress. Here’s a comparison guide that you definitely should take a look.
TradeKing vs OptionsXpress – Trading Commissions Comparison
Equity Trades
- – $4.95 a trade, same price for a broker assisted trade
- OptionsXpress – $9.95 per trade, with no additional fees on broker assisted trade
Options Trades
Margin Rates Comparison
The numbers below represent TradeKing and OptionsXpress Margin Fees Schedule respectively.
- $0 – $49,999 – 6.50% vs 6.25%
- $50,000 – $99,999 – 5.50% vs 5.25%
- $100,000 – $249,999 – 5.50% vs 5.00%
- $250,000 – $499,999 – 4.50% vs 4.75%
- $500,000 – $999,999 – 4.50% vs 4.50%
- $1,000,000+ – 4.50% vs 4.00%
With the exception of one range, OptionsXpress’ margin rates are consistently lower than TradeKing’s rates. At over $1 million, the rate is significantly lower.
Other Features of the Two Brokers
Barron’s rank better in terms of customer support, research and trading platform. In my opinion, both trading platform is superb and it almost comes down to personal preference. TradeKing’s customer support is ranked higher, although I’ve always gotten my questions answered at both of these stock brokers. At the end, it may come down to price, which TradeKing clearly wins, except for those that want to borrow money through margins.
A brilliant idea that only OptionsXpress has is that they allow you to open a practice account and trade with virtual money. This way, you can get used to the trading platform without putting any of your real money on the line. Readers have told me that it’s also great for beginners, because it gives them a closer look at the market when they first start out. You can click here to learn more about the free practice account.
So TradeKing or OptionsXpress?
For some people, it’s all about the price so the answer is easy – go with TradeKing. For almost everyone else, what seems to work for them is to just open an account with both and play around with the platform for a while to see which one they like since it’s free to do so. The other advantage of doing this is to attend the free webinars and educational videos which are very valuable.
The bottom line is that they are both solid companies that will be sure to please your trading needs, so it all comes down to personal preference.
- – Official Site
- OptionsXpress – Official Site
Special Bonus Available Today
To make the offer more enticing, both brokers will reimburse your account transfer fees from your current broker if you switch to them.
- For , they reimburse you up to $150.
- For OptionsXpress, the reimbursement is up to $100.
In addition, OptionsXpress is giving away a free guide on trading options.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I like TradeKing but haven’t tried OptionsXpress before. Since it’s free, I may just take the offer to get the free investment book. Thanks for the heads up.
Anyone else have experience with OptionsXpress?
I have a small account in Optionsxpress but I don’t use it that much. The execution is good, but their platform is a mess.
While I agree that the “virtual money” account is a good idea, in fact that’s something any Forex broker offers, so there’s not much originality there.
Overall Optionsxpress is not good or bad. It’s average. I never used TradeKing so I can’t comment on that.