Trading fees
- All stock and ETF trades in the United States are free with IBKR Lite.
- Pricing for IBKR Pro is as follows: $0.005 per share; $1 minimum, 1% maximum of trading value; volume discount available.
Account fees
$0 ACATS transfer-out fees
Supported assets
Stocks, ETFs, bonds, mutual funds, options, futures, forex, metals, cryptocurrency
Supported cryptocurrencies
BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH
Platform
Web, Mobile
Broker type:
Stocks, ETFs, bonds, mutual funds, options, futures, forex, metals, cryptocurrency
Education
Yes
Customer Service
24/hr Phone, Chat 24/7, Email
Pros
- Low commissions/fees
- Feature-rich platform
- A significant number of educational materials and research
- Reliable trade execution
Cons
- Beginners may find the platform overwhelming
- Complex tiered pricing
Interactive Brokers Review
When it comes to online brokerage services, Interactive Brokers has been at the forefront for many years. Interactive Brokers is an excellent choice despite the fact that its flagship IBKR Pro platform may be too complex for inexperienced traders. The company has also developed user-friendly mobile and web-based trading platforms.
For those interested in trading stocks, they provide competitive margin rates and inexpensive fees. This evaluation of Interactive Brokers will go through the firm’s pros and cons, as well as the trading platform, fees, and other factors to consider before deciding to create an account.
About Interactive Brokers?
Interactive Brokers has traditionally focused on serving the needs of active and professional traders, and recent efforts have made its platforms and customer assistance easier to navigate and more helpful to newcomers. Those enhancements complement its already potent trading platform and remarkably cheap margin rates. Traders can make use of Interactive Brokers’ free basic service tier, or they can upgrade to a paid tier where they will have access to the broker’s renowned trade execution. Investors can also choose from the best selection of no-transaction-fee mutual funds in the industry.
History of Interactive Brokers
In 1977, when Thomas Peterffy obtained a seat on the American Stock Exchange as an independent market maker, he also launched Interactive Brokers, which is now one of the largest electronic brokers in the world and is responsible for the execution of millions of trades each and every day. Interactive Brokers has a number of locations located all throughout North America, Europe, and Asia in addition to its headquarters in Greenwich, Connecticut. They have grown into a publicly traded firm that is listed on the Nasdaq, and they now employ more than 2,100 people.
Who Should Use Interactive Brokers?
For those who are serious about trading, whether as a career or a hobby, Interactive Brokers is the right choice. Their main product, the IB Trader workstation, is perhaps the most feature-rich environment for stock analysis and trading available.
When compared to other online brokers, Interactive Brokers’ commissions and fees are among the lowest. Their margin trading rates are also among the best. They provide investors with access to foreign markets in 33 countries and a diverse range of investment options, including nearly all major asset classes. True investors will have almost everything they need, and the overall experience should satisfy them.
Interactive Brokers also have good things to offer traders who are just starting out or who only trade occasionally. IBKR Lite provides commission-free trades on U.S. equities, ETFs, and mutual funds. Mobile and online systems are easier to use than the desktop IB Trader Workstation, although they offer fewer capabilities. Interactive Brokers’ AI technology can also answer inquiries and make trades.
Interactive Brokers may be daunting for novices, especially the IB Trader Workstation. It might be overwhelming to try to figure out where to start with all the available options and research features. They do provide a demo and several videos to help, but those who want to start trading with the least amount of hassle may find other platforms more suitable.
Is Interactive Brokers Safe?
Since Interactive Brokers has been around for a while, is publicly traded, and has been granted licenses by reputable regulatory agencies, it is safe to use.
The company is proud of the measures it takes to safeguard its customers’ financial interests and will not rest until they are secured and insured against any potential risks.
There are now more than 1 million customer accounts at Interactive Brokers, with a total of over $170 billion in client equity.
The Better Business Bureau has given the organization an A+ rating for trustworthiness, and it has received widespread recognition as the best company for international trading.
Interactive Brokers Platform & Features
Advanced Trading Options
The Interactive Brokers platform is only one of several available ones. The flagship product is the desktop IB Trader Workstation, which allows you to trade securities, manage orders, see charts, and keep tabs on the market all in one place. The Options Strategy Lab, Volatility Lab, Market Scanners, and Portfolio Builder are just some of the financial tools included.
Market data and reports from reputable sources like Reuters, Dow Jones, and Morningstar may be accessed in real-time on this site. You may also examine and make your own custom charts with a wide variety of research indicators and tools. Hundreds of investment-related metrics, such as market price, after-hours percentage change, and month-over-month change, may be monitored using the column customization tool. When you know what metrics are worth keeping an eye on, you can create a dynamic spreadsheet to track them.
With no additional software to download, you may access their streamlined interface immediately from their site. Trading, monitoring your portfolio, and seeing essential data like your net liquidation value are all simplified by this interface. Research options are limited compared to the desktop version, but you can still keep up with the market news and use certain technical analysis charts.
The Mobile App
IBKR Mobile is available for both Android and iOS smartphones. It has a lot of the functionality of the online service, but nowhere near as much as the desktop client. The mobile app provides users with access to the same set of tools for market analysis and trading as the desktop version.
Interactive Brokers has a chatbot named IBot that uses artificial intelligence to help traders with inquiries and tasks. Additionally, it employs a predictive algorithm to recommend follow-up actions, such as asking whether you’d want to make trade following your original inquiry.
Ease of Use
Interactive Brokers provide their clients with access to a variety of trading platforms to meet the needs of both day traders and investors looking to build a portfolio over the long haul. Investors that trade frequently and value a robust desktop trading interface have high praise for the company’s platform.
Here is Interactive Brokers’ available platform:
- Client Portal is the name of Interactive Brokers’ cutting-edge desktop trading platform, which is also very simple to use. When an investor uses this method, they may sign in and make a trade in a few simple clicks.Â
- With IB Trader Workstation (TWS), traders have access to a desktop trading platform with all the features (and more) that traders have come to expect from desktop solutions. Your display can be arranged in any way you choose. Every stock may have an unprecedented amount of data added to its watch lists, such as the firm’s P/E ratio and the average number of days it takes the company to sell its inventory. Screeners, option analysis tools, and backtesting capabilities abound in TWS.
- When it comes to mobile platforms, Interactive Brokers has you covered with a robust app for both iOS and Android. The applications provide users with real-time data, graphing tools, and the ability to make even the most intricate transactions from their mobile devices. The ability to trade from anywhere is made possible by mobile users’ access to more than 150 marketplaces across the world.
Those just starting out in the stock market may be intimidated by the sheer number of features available on the desktop platform. The platform’s design to provide access to a wide variety of marketplaces makes even the most fundamental aspects of it seem daunting.
Interactive Brokers Fees & Commissions
Trading costs charged by Interactive Brokers are competitively priced. If you engage in a significant number of trades on a regular basis, this is really helpful.
For PRO account members, Interactive Brokers’ pricing structure might be confusing. Stock and ETF commissions are free of charge for IBKR LITE users.
For American equities, PRO offers three distinct commission structures:
- Fixed per-share pricing of $0.005 with a minimum trading value of $1 and a maximum transaction value of 1%. All regulatory and exchange costs are included in this total.
- Tiered per-share pricing is calculated using the volume of monthly orders. There is a minimum charge of $0.35 per trade and a maximum charge of 1% of the trade value. This varies from a high of $0.0035 per share if you trade fewer than 300,000 shares per month to $0.0005 per share if you trade more than 100 million shares per month. All regulatory and currency costs are not included.
- The IBKR Lite program provides free trading for stocks and ETFs listed in the United States. In order to produce compensation for order flow, trades are routed (PFOF).
In general, stock and ETF trading fees at Interactive Brokers are rather low.
Cryptocurrencies Available on Interactive Brokers
Customers of Interactive Brokers have round-the-clock access to trading in a wide variety of cryptocurrencies, and the brokerage’s support for a growing number of tokens gives them even more options for making trades.
Those options are made possible by the company’s alliance with Paxos Trust, which is well known for creating the stablecoin Pax Dollar.
Based on monthly volume, Interactive Brokers reports that Paxos users pay a commission of 0.12% to 0.18% of transaction value in addition to the standard fees of the exchange (no spreads, markups, or custody costs).
Clients who want to handle their own crypto account funding can do so during normal US banking hours at Paxos, allowing them to trade Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Bitcoin Cash (BCH), among other coins, at any time of day or night.
Customers of Interactive Brokers in over 100 countries who have individual, joint, and certain types of institutional accounts can use the new crypto capabilities. Customers of Interactive Brokers have the added convenience of trading cryptocurrencies on the same streamlined interface that they use to trade equities, options, futures, bonds, and ETFs. Trader Workstation, Client Portal, IBKR Mobile, IBKR GlobalTrader, the firm’s straightforward new mobile software for worldwide stock trading, and the Paxos online application are all places where customers may engage in cryptocurrency trading.
How to Open An Account?
No initial investment is necessary to start a Cash account with Interactive Brokers. You are required to make a minimum deposit of $100 before you can begin trading. Margin trading, in which leverage is used, requires a minimum deposit of $2,000. To create an account, you can follow these steps:
- Start the application
Click “Start Application” under Individual Account to create an online account. Create a new account using these details:
Your username
Your password
Your legal residence
Interactive Brokers will send you an email to confirm that you wish to open an account.
Click “Verify” in this email. Remember to input your new username and password.
Once you log in, you may go to the next stage.
- Enter your personal info
In this part, you’ll answer questions about your legal residence (state or province), the sort of account you want to set up (an individual brokerage account), the currency you’ll be trading in, and how you heard about the firm.
Next, provide your personal and job information (name, address, number of dependents, marital status, etc.). Retirees, homemakers, and the jobless will be probed about supplemental income.
You’ll also be asked for your tax residence (presumably the U.S.) and SSN. If you live abroad, enter your Tax ID.
You’ll choose a cash, margin, or portfolio margin account. The cash option means you can only trade with money in your brokerage account. The other two alternatives are for more experienced investors and may require between $25,000 and $100,000 in your brokerage account.
Last, you’ll input account security questions at the bottom of the page. Fill these out, click continue, and continue.
- Enter regulatory and investment information
This part asks if you or a family member works for major financial institutions or stock exchanges. You’ll be asked if you or a family member own 10% of a publicly traded firm. These queries are probably “no.”
Next, add your net worth, liquid net worth, yearly net income, investment goals, and investing experience. Answer these questions and continue.
- Fund the account
After filling out the form and accepting the terms, you can fund the account. Most accounts are accepted within 1-2 business days, but you may speed up the process by funding the account immediately.
You can fill the account with cash or from another brokerage. You must choose a funding currency. You may always fund the account later if you like.
After entering your bank account data, you’ll get a confirmation page. After that, you will have successfully created an account with Interactive Brokers.
In Conclusion
When it comes to discount pricing based on trading volume, Interactive Brokers has long been a top pick among active traders. Considering that IBKR Lite allows for free transactions, even inexperienced investors may find Interactive Brokers to be a viable option. However, an investor who is just starting out may want a broker that provides a little more guidance.
Interactive Brokers is an excellent choice if you have trading expertise, are comfortable with navigating sophisticated platforms, and value open, low-cost trading.
Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is a leading online brokerage offering low commissions, a feature-rich platform, and extensive educational resources. It supports a wide range of assets, making it ideal for experienced traders. However, the platform's complexity and tiered pricing structure may be overwhelming for beginners. Overall, Interactive Brokers provides a comprehensive and cost-effective trading experience for those who are serious about investing.
Pros
- Low commissions/fees
- Feature-rich platform
- Extensive educational materials and research
Cons
- Platform may be overwhelming for beginners
- Complex tiered pricing
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Trading and Account Fees:
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Supported Assets and Platform Features:
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Customer Support and Educational Resources:
