10-second breakdown:
It may not be easy enough for a baby to do it, but ETrade does make investing easy for young and retirement age folks (and everyone in between). Simplicity and educational resources make this a topnotch platform for beginners.
The good:
The mobile app’s capabilities are really some of, if not, the best in the online trading industry. Extremely intuitive and highly functional for anyone wanting to handle their portfolio from a smart device.
The educational resources available from ETrade have to be some of the most valuable information for those who are new to the game of investing. Even if you consider yourself somewhat knowledgable, there are some valuable nuggets for all levels of investors.
The entire platform and company is made with customer service in mind. From the design to the responsiveness of reps, you’ll feel like you’re being care for by a genuine company.
The bad:
The trades will cost you more than most other online platforms, a downer for anyone looking to do a high number of buying/selling.
To get the pro platform, you have to meet some stringent requirements that the average investor will have trouble attaining.
How it works:
ETrade is one of the best known names in online trading and has some slightly higher fees than lesser known platforms as a result. The pricing probably won’t be a shocker, but if you are an experienced trader who wants lower rates, less expensive options can be found.
If you are into a “set it and forget it” style of investing, you’ll probably be right at home here. Mutual fund trades are not only available, but actually some of the lowest per-trade fees in the industry. This low-cost structure means that those who are wanting less risk in their portfolio will also be saving money on the front and back end (not to mention saving other broker fees).
Once you get your account opened, you’ll be prompted to fund it. Brokerage accounts require $500. There are other account types that will require less or more depending on the specific account.
After you’re all set up and ready to trade, you’ll want to check out the relatively new dashboard. It is built with the beginner in mind. It’s truly easy, but will require some set up. There are multiple functions and elements that can be a part of your home base and to get things the way you want them is easy. There is a “drag and drop” style tool that allows you to shimmy things around until they are right where you want them.
Navigation on site is also a breeze. It really shows the effort ETrade has put into understanding which of their options are being used the most by their customers. In addition to your customizable homepage, there is a very clear and clean overview page to take a look at the snapshot of your accounts. In addition to being useful inside the platform, there is also a Google Chrome extension that will display all key data (again, customizable) right from your browser so you’ll never be out of touch with your portfolio.
Researching stocks is straight-forward. You search for a given equity or index and you’ll find all of the standard information including highs/lows, volume, and a chart from 1-day values up to 5 years of intel. Third party news outlets will also give you the skinny on the recent happenings of the given entity your researching. You’ll also see ratings from trusted sources around the web to help you make a decision on the stock in question. Overall, these resources aren’t as good as others on the market. That doesn’t mean the intel isn’t there, ETrade just doesn’t put them to the full advantage of a few other platforms.
There is a ton of information available from some of the best financial advisors in the world. Although, with so many options there always seem to be conflicting views. With so many saying a mix of buy/sell/hold it could leave you confused about your next move.
Charting on ETrade is highly beneficial and enjoyable. Charts can be viewed quickly on the stock’s overall breakdown, or can be enlarged. The platform does a beautiful job of taking information and data and blending them together so that the chart tells the story of the company’s performance.
There are two basic types of brokerage accounts—MarketCaster and ETrade Pro.
MarketCaster is for simple tracking and real-time data for your high profile stocks and streaming quotes. It’s something that can be left in it’s own window and minimized for easy access throughout your day (if you like keeping one eye on your investments). There are multiple customizations that can be made and it beats having CNBC open in a new tab.
ETrade Pro is for the serious investor who really likes to deep-dive into their research. It’s (at the moment) entirely web-based and requires you to have a minimum of $250,000 in your portfolio or make 30 trades (either stocks or options) in a given quarter.
If you meet these terms, you’re considered a “Pro Elite” and can access the pro research platform. If you still want the tool and don’t meet up to the prerequisites, you can purchase it for a hefty monthly fee.
Now, there are a lot of tools and abilities in Pro that any active trader would like. That said, most of these tools come standard with a couple of other platforms on the market. These tools include strategy scanners to help you plan trades, options help, and more in-depth charting capabilities. All-told, Pro is nice for beginners. Those looking for advanced level trading gadgets will feel underwhelmed.
ETrade’s strength is in their appeal for beginners. Everything you need to start and educate yourself alongside growing your portfolio.
For complete rankings of all online trading platforms, go here.
http://authority.org/online-stock-trading/etrade/ http://authorityorg.tumblr.com/post/149593251077
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