Best Free Stock and Commission-Free Trading Platforms

Get right to it: The best free stock and commission-free trading platforms are Ally Invest and Charles Schwab.

Smart investors know commission-free trades for stocks, exchange-traded funds, and options are the industry norm. You don't want to pay hard-earned money for trading fees. Suppose you're looking for the best free stock trading platform. In that case, you must look beyond fee-free trades and compare factors such as investment selection, options, contract fees, good customer service, and other educational resources.

Whether your portfolio is worth $100 or $100 million, you should expect commission-free trading. It's essential for both new and experienced investors. We've done the research for you. Find the best tried-and-true free stock trading platforms below.

Quick Look at the Best Free Stock and Commission-Free Trading Platforms:

• Best for Trading Ideas: Public.com
• Best for Socially Responsible Investing: Ally Invest
• Best for Fund Investing: Charles Schwab
• Best for Mobile Traders: E*TRADE 
• Best for Stock Research: Fidelity Investments
• Best for Beginners: Robinhood
• Best for ETF and Mutual Fund Investing: Vanguard
• Best for Active and Global Investors: Interactive Brokers
• Best for Chase Customers: J.P. Morgan
• Best for Mobile Investing: Firstrade
• Best for Bank of America Customers: Merrill Edge
• Best for Active Traders: Webull

Best Free Stock and Commission-Free Trading Platforms

Here are some of our top recommended free stock and commission-free trading platforms that you may want to consider joining.

1. Best for Trading Ideas: Public.com

At Public, stock and ETF trades are commission-free, offering $0 commission trading on self-directed individual cash brokerage accounts that trade U.S. listed securities placed online. While trades are free of commissions, other fees may apply, such as regulatory fees, subscription fees, wire transfer fees and paper statement fees. Public also provides users the option to voluntarily tip to support its mission of offering commission-free trades without accepting any payment for order flow (PFOF).

Unlike most online brokers, Public does not participate in payment for order flow on equities trades. PFOF typically involves brokers routing trades to market makers for execution, potentially creating a conflict of interest between the broker and the investor. Public eliminates this conflict by routing all orders directly to exchanges and other execution venues, prioritizing transparency and alignment with its users.

For those looking to expand their portfolios, Public offers access to over 300 select over-the-counter (OTC) stocks, primarily focusing on large-cap international companies. Each stock page on Public includes additional research, data and company-specific analysis, empowering investors to make informed decisions. The platform’s suite of tools is designed to enhance your trading strategies, with features like customizable recurring investments, built-in price alerts and extended-hours trading to provide greater control over your investments.

Public also supports a variety of other investment options, including ETFs, options, bonds and cryptocurrencies, making it a versatile platform for a wide range of investment strategies.

Why We Picked It: Public.com is a mobile app and site that allows you to make the most of your investments, especially if you are a novice or learning. Even so, all traders can save money on this platform and build their portfolio in their own way.

2. Best for Socially Responsible Investing: Ally Invest

Ally Invest stands out for its streamlined interface, which is easy to use for beginners. It offers a wide range of tools to simplify analyzing securities, including Impressive exchange-traded fund (ETF) screening tools. It also offers seamless integration between mobile and desktop offerings and with your Ally Bank account.

If you're looking for a hands-off option, Ally Invest offers diversified managed investment portfolios with a low minimum and no advisory fees. 

Why We Picked It: We love Ally Invest as one of the best free stock and commission-free trading platforms, especially for active traders, because of its low fees and simple interface. It's also available on IOS, Android and web.

3. Best for Fund Investing: Charles Schwab

As one of the leading brokerage platforms in the world, Charles Schwab has earned an excellent reputation. It offers four free trading platforms and a wide range of no-transaction-fee mutual funds, and $0 commissions for stocks, ETFs, and options. It is also known for exceptional customer service and a broad range of educational tools, including stock screeners to identify growth stocks. As an added bonus, Charles Schwab merged with TD Ameritrade, so you get both benefits in one. 

Why We Picked It: We love Charles Schwab as one of the best free stock and commission-free trading platforms because you can choose from a large fund selection, choose between four trading platforms with low or no fees, and use extensive research tools to educate yourself. It also offers a very good mobile app on IOS and Android, plus web access. 

4. Best for Mobile Traders: E*TRADE

E*TRADE remains one of the most popular online brokers for good reason. It offers $0 commissions and strong trading platforms that appeal to active traders. It also includes a large library of educational resources to help take your investing knowledge to the next level, including technical analysis tools. 

E*TRADE is also running a promotion where you can get up to $1,000 when you open and fund an E*TRADE account.

Why We Picked It: We love E*Trade as one of the best free stock and commission-free trading platforms because of its simple interface, educational materials and customer support. It also shines in diversity, with more than 4,000 no-transaction-fee mutual funds and a wide range of investment choices, from stocks to futures. The app is available on iOS, Android and the web.

5. Best for Stock Research: Fidelity Investments

Another big name in the world of brokerages, Fidelity is one of the largest and most well-established brokerages globally. In addition to offering no trading commissions, Fidelity has an extensive set of no-fee, no-minimum index funds. These are an excellent choice for new and experienced investors alike. It also stands out for its exceptional research tools and strong customer service. The only disadvantage? Higher-than-average broker-assisted trading fees.

Why We Picked It: Fidelity is one of the best free and commission-free trading platforms because it offers commission-free stock, options and ETF trades. Best of all, it has excellent expense-ratio-free index funds and high interest rates on uninvested cash. You can access Fidelity with IOS or Android apps and on the web. 

6. Best for Beginners: Robinhood

The Robinhood platform is designed to help the average investor access professional-grade trading insights and resources. With Robinhood, you can make free stock, options, ETF and cryptocurrency trades. However, it has no bonds or mutual funds. 

Robinhood regularly runs specials that give you a free stock worth up to $200 when you create an account. Its account minimum is $0, making it a good starting point for new investors. 

You can also opt for Robinhood Gold, a paid subscription offering a high interest rate on uninvested cash and low margin rates. 

Why We Picked It: We love Robinhood as one of the best free stock trading platforms because it offers commission-free stock, options, ETF and cryptocurrency trades. It also has an intriguing 1% IRA match and higher interest rates on uninvested cash. You can access Robinhood on iOS or Android apps and on the web. 

7. Best for ETF and Mutual Fund Investing: Vanguard

Vanguard is another big name in online brokerages. The Vanguard platform is a good choice for long-term, buy-and-hold investors. While it's good for low-cost investment, it lacks a strong trading platform that day traders or active traders require. 

It shines in educational resources, ultra-low-cost Vanguard mutual funds and ETFs, and decent money market funds with a low expense ratio.

Why We Picked It: We love Vanguard as one of the best commission-free stock trading software platforms because of its low-cost mutual funds and ETFs. It's great for long-term investors. You can access the platform on IOS, Android and the web. 

8. Best for Active and Global Traders: Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers is a comprehensive, quick desktop platform with mobile apps with full desktop version capabilities. It also has many tradable assets, including low-margin rates. It also offers enhanced screening options to make trading even easier. 

Other pluses? You can earn high interest on cash balances. You can access overnight trading on over 10,000 U.S. Stocks and ETFs. This can help you to react immediately to market-moving news and conveniently trade at almost any time. 

Why We Picked It: We love Interactive Brokers as one of the best free stock and commission-free trading platforms because its all-in-one cash management solution enables investors to manage their finances in one account, which is available for iOS, Android and the web. 

9. Best for Chase Customers: J.P. Morgan

J.P. Morgan's self-directed investing option is a great starting point for beginners and experienced investors. While it doesn't offer the same breadth of assets, tools and research options that some of the other platforms offer, it stands out for its low investment expense ratios, competitive account minimums and good customer experience. In addition to traditional brokerage accounts, you can choose from various retirement accounts, such as traditional, Roth and rollover IRAs.

Why We Picked It: J.P. Morgan is one of the best free stock trading platforms because it offers comprehensive and tailored investments and financial planning opportunities, including investment management with automatic rebalancing. You can also access expert-crafted portfolios for different financial risk tolerance portfolios and time horizons. It is available on IOS, Android and the web.

10. Best for Mobile Investing: Firstrade

Firstrade is a low-cost brokerage platform that offers free stock trading options. It provides various account types and investment opportunities, including ETFs, fixed-income investments, fractional shares, mutual funds, and stocks. You can choose from brokerage accounts ranging from custodial or Coverdell ESA to various types of IRAs, trusts, TIP, and individual or joint brokerage accounts. 

For options traders, Firstrade offers low fees and specialized options-focused functionality. However, its customer service has received criticism from some users. 

Why We Picked It: We appreciate Firstrade as one of the best platforms for free stock and commission-free trading due to its robust options-focused features and wide range of account types to satisfy long-term investors. It is available for iOS, Android and the web.

11. Best for Bank of America Customers: Merrill Edge

The Merrill Edge platform offers free research tools from reputable sources, making it stand out. Backed by Bank of America, Merrill Edge is one of the DIY brokerage space's most complete market research libraries. 

You can access Bank of America Global Research, the #1 ranked research report for institutional investors, plus 3rd-party reports from Morningstar and CFBA. It's also known for good customer service and easy integrations with Bank of America accounts. 

Why We Picked It: We love Merrill Edge as one of the best commission-free stock trading platforms because of its resource and education materials broken down into specific areas, making it easier to find what you need. Merrill Edge is available for IOS, Android and on the web.

12. Best for Active Traders: Webull

Webull will appeal to many investors, especially those who prefer a slick mobile interface. The brokerage offers an impressive array of tools for active traders and a wide selection of investments. Investment choices include stocks, options, ETFs, crypto, commodities, futures and fractional shares. However, its educational content is weaker than some competitors. It also doesn't give you access to bonds or mutual funds. 

Why We Picked It: We love Webull as one of the best free stock and commission-free trading platforms because it offers commission-free trading of stocks, ETFs and options, along with high-quality charting and analysis tools. Choose from cash, margin and IRA brokerage accounts. The platform is available for IOS, Android and on the web. 

How to Choose the Best Free Stock and Commission-Free Trading Platforms

When choosing the best free stock trading platform, look at your trading style, investment goals, risk tolerance and time horizon, as different brokerages cater to different trading styles. For example, it is useful to determine whether your trading strategy makes you a day trader, swing trader or long-term investor. 

Likewise, consider essential resources, like market reports, educational resources, research tools, advanced trading options and real-time data to find a platform that fits your needs. 

You'll also want to evaluate the fees and commissions for the type of trading you plan to do. Ensuring the platform provides commission-free trading for your preferred assets. Carefully check for hidden fees or additional costs that could cut into returns.

One advantage of a free trading platform is the low commitment. Before investing significant funds, you can test the platform's user experience and interface for ease of use. 

You can also read user reviews to see overall satisfaction and understand whether the platform works well for traders like you. You can also check out their customer support, webinars and tutorials to see if the materials can add to your investing knowledge. 

Finally, be sure that relevant financial authorities regulate the platform and use robust security measures to protect your investments. Carefully look at the platform’s reputation, financial stability and track record in the industry to ensure long-term viability.

If a platform will meet your needs, consider taking advantage of sign-up bonuses or promotional offers and using demo accounts to practice trading to earn or save even more. 

Frequently Asked Questions