TradeStation has been always focused on providing service for experienced and active traders. The company’s goal going forward is to broaden its appeal and reach with pricing changes and new services. In 2019 broker acquired and relaunched a firm called YouCanTrade. It is dedicated to educate beginners. Also company launched a cryptocurrency brokerage called TradeStation Crypto Inc. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Our Rating
4.5 
Summary: TradeStation is the trusted broker for advanced and active traders. Moreover, it is now offering $0 trades to appeal to beginner traders and investors.
Tradestation also launched its TS GO pricing plan, which offers discounted rates for trading options and futures. We’ll look at how these changes have affected TradeStation’s ranking in a more competitive online brokerage industry, and whether they are enough to make TradeStation the right choice for your investment needs.
Type – Corporation (TradeStation Group. Inc)
Founded – 1982 (formed as Omega Research, Inc.)
Headquarters – Plantation, Florida, United States
Key people – John Bartleman, President
Products – Electronic trading platform
Services – Broker
Parent – Monex Group
In fact, at one time TradeStation served solely professional brokers and money managers. Now, retail investors have access to the broker’s high-octane tools. So, TradeStation is a top choice for serious investors seeking a truly professional-level trading experience. The big plus for retails traders is that company cut trading costs to $0 and lowered the minimum investment to $0 for its TS GO offering.
However, broker upgraded TS Select plan, which requires a $2,000 initial investment and it makes it less attractive for retail investors. On the other hand, this plan gives access to the broker’s full suite of tools, and free trades from the powerful TradeStation 10 Desktop platform.
Is TradeStation trustworthy broker?
Broker has received an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. This is the highest BBB rating a company can receive. In other words, it indicates that TradeStation interacts particularly well with its customers.
I want to pay your attention, the BBB also states that its ratings don’t guarantee whether a company will perform well or exhibit reliability. For this reason, it’s also important to do your own research when considering broker.
Key information
| Account minimum
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
TS GO: $0 TS Select: $2,000 |
|
Stock trading costs ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
TS GO and TS Select: $0 per trade (up to 10,000 shares). Per-share pricing: $0.006-$0.01 per share ($1 minimum per trade) based on trading volume. Unbundled pricing: $0.002-$0.01 per share ($0.50-$1 minimum) based on trading volume. |
| Commission-free ETFs
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
All ETFs are commission-free. |
| Options trades
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
TS GO: No base commission; $0.50 per contract. TS Select: No base commission; $0.60 per contract. Per-contract pricing:$1 per option contract (one contract minimum). |
| Account fees (annual, transfer, closing, inactivity)
⭐⭐⭐ |
$35 IRA annual account fee; $50 IRA account termination fee. $125 outgoing account transfer fee; $50 inactivity fee. |
| Tradable securities
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Bonds, Stocks, Exchange-traded funds (ETFs), Mutual funds, Futures, Options, Cryptocurrencies |
| Number of no-transaction-fee mutual funds | No no-transaction-fee mutual funds; fund commissions are $14.95. |
| Trading platform
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Extensive desktop platform; similar capabilities available on web trading platform. TS GO clients have limited access to online tools. |
| Mobile app
⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Available on iOS and Android. Offers core features of desktop platform. |
| Research and data
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Free educational resources, research and tools. Many premium tools only available for TS Select clients. |
Pros revealed
- TradeStation platform is extremely stable. No surprise it received a number of awards. Broker reports uptime of 99.999% over the last year, operating perfectly even during periods of high volatility.
- In fact, TradeStation 10 has just about everything a technical trader needs or could dream of. It enjoys a well-earned reputation for excellent charting and technical analysis tools.
- TradeStation’s portfolio analysis feature (Portfolio Maestro), offers advanced analytics to optimize user’s trading strategies. It makes so easy to find out what is working and keep it up, or find out what’s not working and fix it.
Cons revealed
- The platform is easy to use. But still it will take some time to get used to it and learn all features
- If you need educational materials, you have to go to a separate website to access TradeStation’s education offerings supplied by its new company, YouCanTrade.
- Fixed income transactions must be placed with a live broker. Also, there is no international trading available.
Why TradeStation over other brokers?
Ther are many good brokers. But there are few things that make Tradestation stand out among others.
- Award-winning platform and education: As mentioned above this platform was originally designed for professional and institutional traders. With TS GO account option, even retail traders can access professional-grade stock screeners, charting tools and more. The broker’s education center and real-time data access represent an excellent place to begin your trading journey or learn more about how to trade.
- Variety of available securities: From stocks to ETFs, futures contracts and cryptocurrencies, broker offers a wide variety of tradable financial instruments.
- Commission-free trades: TradeStation offers unbeatable $0 commissions on stocks and most ETFs.
In Conclusion
TradeStation is an excellent option for active traders or those who intend to grow into active traders. The trading platforms, lower futures commissions, and wide range of trading tools are geared toward active and professional traders. Without a substantial research offering, newer investors may find themselves wanting some direction, though broker is actively working on more features for beginner traders.
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