VV
The Valerie Vance Standard
"There is no free lunch on Wall Street. When an app advertises '$0 commission,' verify where they take their cut—whether through wide spreads, margin markup, or zero yield on uninvested cash. We audit what marketing hides."
Interactive Brokers
Best for Margin & DMAUS Stocks
$0 - $0.005
Margin Rate
~5.13% Base
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, FCA
✓ SmartRouting order execution & 150+ global exchanges
Saxo Bank
Best for Bank-Grade Custody & Asset BreadthUS Stocks
0.08% (min $1)
Custody Fee
€0.00 (Abolished)
Regulation
Danish FSA, FCA, MAS
✓ 70,000+ assets, €100k Danish bank protection & €0 custody fees
Plus500
Best for FTSE 250 Balance Sheet SolvencyCommission
0% Commission
Min. Deposit
$100 / €100 / £100
Regulation
FCA, CySEC, ASIC, MAS
✓ LSE-listed balance sheet, negative balance protection & guaranteed stop loss
Capital.com
Best for TradingView & Zero Inactivity TollsCommission
0% Commission
Min. Deposit
$20 / €20 / £20
Regulation
FCA, CySEC, ASIC
✓ Native TradingView charts, $0 withdrawal fees & zero inactivity penalties
Scalable Capital
Best for European ETF Savings PlansStock/ETF Order
€0.99 or Free
Savings Plans
€0.00 Free
Regulation
BaFin, Bundesbank
✓ 2,500+ free automated ETF savings plans & gettex Xetra-linked execution
Trade Republic
Best for Cash APY & Savings PlansStock/ETF Order
€1.00 flat
Savings Plans
€0.00 Free
Regulation
BaFin, ECB
✓ Full ECB cash sweep yield pass-through & 1% card Saveback into ETFs
DEGIRO
Best for Global Market AccessCore Selection ETFs
€1.00 Handling
US Stocks
€2.00 (€1+€1)
Regulation
BaFin, AFM, DNB
✓ Direct trading across 50+ global exchanges & flat-fee Core ETF catalog
Charles Schwab
Best for thinkorswimStock Commission
$0.00
Options
$0.65 / contract
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, SIPC
✓ Premier thinkorswim charting & 24/7 dedicated support
Fidelity Investments
Best for IRAs & IndexingStock Commission
$0.00
Cash Sweep APY
Auto High-Yield
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, SIPC
✓ Zero expense ratio index funds & fractional shares from $1
Trading 212
Best UK & EU Auto-PiesCommission
0% Commission
Min. Deposit
£1 / €1 / $1
Regulation
FCA, CySEC
✓ Automated portfolio rebalancing Pies & daily interest on cash
eToro
Best for Social CopyTraderUS Stocks
$0.00
Copy Trading
Free Included
Regulation
FCA, ASIC, CySEC
✓ Copy top-performing investors automatically with zero markup
Robinhood
Best for Beginners & IRA MatchStock Commission
$0.00
Min. Deposit
$0.00
Regulation
SEC, FINRA
✓ Up to 3% IRA deposit match & $0 per-contract options fees
XTB
Best for EU Real StocksReal Stocks
0% to €100k/mo
Platform
xStation 5
Regulation
FCA, KNF, CySEC
✓ Fast execution speeds, no account minimum, and European licensing
AvaTrade
Best for Vanilla OptionsEUR/USD Spread
0.9 pips
Min. Deposit
$100
Regulation
CBI, ASIC, FSCA
✓ AvaOptions risk management & $0 deposit/withdrawal fees
Webull
Best for Extended Hours & ChartingUS Stocks
$0.00 Commission
Trading Hours
4 AM – 8 PM EST
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, FCA, MAS
✓ Free Level 2 market data, 4 AM pre-market access & zero-commission options
Lightyear
Best for EU Central Bank YieldsETF Commission
€0.00 / £0.00
Currency Accounts
EUR, USD, GBP, HUF
FX Conversion
0.35% Flat
✓ Central bank interest pass-through on idle cash & zero-commission ETFs
Hapi
Best for LATAM US-Equity AccessUS Stock Commission
$0.00 Free
Local Deposits
Pix, PSE, SPEI
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, SIPC
✓ Buy fractional US shares from LATAM using local currency deposits without SWIFT fees
Pepperstone
Best for Raw ECN & TradingViewRazor Spread
From 0.0 Pips
Razor Commission
$3.50 / Lot (Side)
Platforms
TradingView, cTrader, MT5
✓ Institutional raw spreads, zero dealing desk & native TradingView execution
Moomoo
Best for Free Level 2 DataUS Stocks
$0.00 Commission
Market Data
Free Level 2 Depth
Regulation
SEC, FINRA, MAS, ASIC
✓ 60+ levels of real-time order book depth & 24/5 US equity trading
Tastytrade
Best for US Options PricingEquity Options
$1 Open / $0 Close
Option Fee Cap
$10 Max / Leg
Global Access
60+ Countries
✓ Capped option commissions ($10/leg) & free closing trades for global derivative traders
Mexem
Best European IBKR AlternativeUS Stocks
$0.005 / share (min $2.50)
Execution Engine
IBKR DMA
Regulation
CySEC, AFM, BaFin
✓ Interactive Brokers clearing technology with dedicated multi-lingual European support
IC Markets
Best for Algo & High-Volume CFDRaw Spread
From 0.0 Pips
Latency
< 1ms (Equinix NY4)
Regulation
ASIC, CySEC, SCB
✓ Deep interbank liquidity, ultra-low latency & unrestricted algorithmic trading
IG
Best for FTSE 250 Solvency & Spread BettingMin. Spread
0.6 Pips
UK Shares
£3 - £8
Regulation
FCA, BaFin, ASIC
✓ 17,000+ markets, LSE-listed FTSE 250 safety & tax-free UK spread betting
Hargreaves Lansdown
Best for UK SIPP & Wealth FortressPlatform Fee
0.35% (Funds)
Share Cap
£150 / yr Max
Online Shares
£6.95 Flat
✓ UK's largest wealth platform, 3,000+ funds & Bristol-based telephone support
Vanguard Personal Investor
Best for Low-Cost Index Funds & BogleheadsPlatform Fee
0.15% (Cap £375)
Dealing Fee
£0.00 / Trade
Small Pot Min.
£4 / mo (< £32k)
✓ £0 dealing fees on index trackers & 0.15% platform fee capped at £375/year
Admirals
Best for CEE MetaTrader 5 Physical EquitiesUS Stocks
From $0.02 / Sh
EUR/USD Spread
From 0.0 Pips
Regulation
CySEC, FCA, EFSA
✓ Real physical fractional shares & institutional CFDs inside MetaTrader 5
Firstrade
Best for $0 Options Contracts & Global Non-US AccessOptions Contracts
$0.00 / Contract
US Stocks
$0.00 Free
International
28+ Countries
✓ Zero-commission equities & true $0 per-contract options for global investors
Stake
Best for AU CHESS SponsorshipASX Shares
A$3.00 Flat
US Stocks
$0 Commission
Ownership
CHESS (Direct HIN)
✓ True CHESS-sponsored ASX share ownership & zero-commission US trading
Freetrade
Best Free UK Tax WrappersTrading Commission
£0.00 Free
ISA / SIPP
Free on Basic
Regulation
FCA, FSCS Protected
✓ Zero-fee Stocks & Shares ISA and SIPP pension wrappers for UK residents