Best Brokers for Options TradingUpdated August 2026 · 12 brokers, every figure sourced

Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-23292), FINRA member since 1979, SIPC member. Long operating history under a single entity, with no headline retail enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost9/10 × 40% = 3.6

$0 equity and ETF commissions, $0.65 per options contract, no account minimum, no published account service or inactivity fee, and $0 to transfer assets. Options pricing is mid-pack rather than lowest.

Investment selection8/10 × 12% = 1.0

Stocks, ETFs, options, bonds, mutual funds, international equities and fractional shares are all offered. No futures, which caps the score below the multi-asset firms.

Account types and features10/10 × 18% = 1.8

Widest published lineup in our set: taxable, joint, all IRA variants, custodial, trust, solo 401(k) and HSA.

Total 9.1/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-47257), FINRA member, SIPC member, and part of a US-listed group. No headline retail enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost9/10 × 40% = 3.6

IBKR Lite is $0 on US listed equities for US residents. IBKR Pro tiered starts at $0.0035 per share with a $0.35 order minimum and a 1% of trade value cap, which is the cheapest published schedule in our set for large orders. Small Pro orders hit the per-order minimum, so it is not universally cheapest.

Investment selection10/10 × 12% = 1.2

The only firm in our set with every asset class we track published on one schedule, including futures, spot currencies, bonds, mutual funds, crypto and non-US listings across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.

Account types and features8/10 × 18% = 1.4

Taxable, joint, IRA and trust accounts are all named in the published IBKR Lite eligibility terms. No HSA or solo 401(k) identified.

Total 8.9/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-16514) with one of the lowest CRD numbers in our set, indicating long registration history. SIPC member. No headline retail enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

$0 listed equity and ETF commissions, $0.65 per options contract, $0 account minimum and $0 opening and maintenance fees. Marked down from 9 on 30 August 2026 after we read the April 2026 pricing guide, which adds three costs the headline schedule does not show: a $6.95 OTC equity commission, $50 to transfer a full account out, and a currency conversion markup of up to 3% of principal. Fidelity charges none of the three.

Investment selection9/10 × 12% = 1.1

Stocks, ETFs, options, bonds, mutual funds, fractional shares, a dedicated global account for international equities, and futures at $2.25 per contract confirmed from the April 2026 pricing guide. Below Interactive Brokers only on spot currencies and crypto.

Account types and features9/10 × 18% = 1.6

Published lineup covers taxable, joint, all IRA variants, custodial and trust accounts, plus managed portfolios from a $5,000 minimum. No HSA identified.

Total 8.6/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4

Accounts sit with an active SEC-registered Morgan Stanley broker-dealer (8-68191) that is a SIPC member. Marked one point below the long-single-entity firms because BrokerCheck lists the original E*TRADE Securities LLC registration as inactive, so clients have been through an entity migration.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

$0 on stocks, ETFs and mutual funds with a $0.65 options contract fee that falls to $0.50 at 30 trades per quarter. Futures at $1.50 per contract are the most expensive futures rate we recorded, and crypto at 0.50% is mid-pack.

Investment selection8/10 × 12% = 1.0

Stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, bonds, CDs, futures and crypto all appear on the published schedule. Fractional shares and direct international listings were not confirmed from the page we read.

Account types and features9/10 × 18% = 1.6

Full retail lineup including all IRA variants, custodial, trust and managed Core Portfolios, backed by integrated banking through Morgan Stanley Private Bank.

Total 8.2/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-7221) — the lowest SEC file number in our set, indicating a very long registration history — and a SIPC member within Bank of America. No headline retail enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost7/10 × 40% = 2.8

$0 online stock, ETF and options base commissions with a $0.65 contract fee and no balance minimum. Marked down for a $49.95 full account transfer fee, $24.95 wires, $19.95 transaction-fee funds and a $29.95 broker-assisted charge — a fee surface materially larger than the cheapest firms in our set.

Investment selection6/10 × 12% = 0.7

Stocks, ETFs, options, bonds and a large mutual fund range are published. No futures and no crypto. Fractional shares were not confirmed on the pricing page we read.

Account types and features8/10 × 18% = 1.4

Full retail lineup including all IRA variants, custodial and trust accounts, plus Merrill Guided Investing at 0.45% from a $1,000 minimum. No HSA or solo 401(k) identified.

Total 7.7/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-69649), FINRA member and SIPC member. Scored below the incumbents on operating history — its CRD number places registration in the mid-2010s — with no enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

Free equity trades and a $10 per leg cap that makes large multi-leg options orders unusually cheap, with nothing charged to close a position. Scored below the flat-zero firms because a single equity option contract costs $1 to open, against $0.04 at the cheapest firm in our set, and — read on 30 August 2026 — closing the account costs $75 on the way out.

Investment selection7/10 × 12% = 0.8

Stocks, ETFs, equity and index options, futures, options on futures and crypto are all published, including micro futures. No mutual funds, which rules out a common long-term building block.

Account types and features6/10 × 18% = 1.1

Taxable, joint, IRA variants, trust and margin. No custodial, SEP, solo 401(k) or HSA identified.

Total 7.5/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation7/10 × 30% = 2.1

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-69978) and SIPC member. Scored below the incumbents on operating history alone — its CRD number places its registration well after the established firms — not on any enforcement matter we identified.

Fees and total cost9/10 × 40% = 3.6

$0 on US-listed stocks, ETFs and standard options contracts, with regulatory fees itemised transparently. Held off a 10 by the $75 outgoing transfer fee, which is a real switching cost.

Investment selection6/10 × 12% = 0.7

Stocks, ETFs, options and fractional shares confirmed. No mutual funds. Futures and crypto not confirmed from the fee schedule we read.

Account types and features5/10 × 18% = 0.9

Taxable, traditional, Roth and rollover IRAs plus margin. No joint, custodial or trust accounts identified.

Total 7.3/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-21570) with a low CRD number indicating long registration history, and a SIPC member. No headline retail enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost6/10 × 40% = 2.4

$0 online stock and ETF trades and $0 on Vanguard and no-transaction-fee funds. Marked down twice: it carries the highest options contract fee in our set at $1.00, a $25 annual account service fee unless waived, $20 per trade on non-Vanguard transaction-fee funds, and — read on 30 August 2026 — a $100 processing fee to close the account and transfer assets out, the largest exit charge of any broker we publish. A low-cost fund house is not automatically a low-cost brokerage account.

Investment selection6/10 × 12% = 0.7

Stocks, ETFs, options, bonds and a deep mutual fund range are published. No futures and no crypto. Fractional share availability for individual stocks was not confirmed from the page we read.

Account types and features8/10 × 18% = 1.4

Broad long-term lineup including all IRA variants, custodial, trust and solo 401(k). No HSA identified.

Total 7.3/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-66049), FINRA member and SIPC member, with no enforcement matter identified in our sourced review. Its CRD number, 127818, is lower than those of Robinhood, Webull, tastytrade and eToro, which means the legal entity has been registered longer than the app’s launch date suggests. Still well short of the multi-decade registration records that earn a 9 here.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

$0 on US-listed stocks and ETFs in regular hours, $0 per stock and ETF options contract, and margin from 4.90% falling to 3.95% — the cheapest margin schedule we recorded, undercutting the next firm by more than six percentage points at the entry tier. Held to an 8 by three charges the headline pricing does not show: $2.99 per extended-hours or OTC trade without Premium, $100 to transfer the account out, and a 0.30% fee on currency conversion.

Investment selection6/10 × 12% = 0.7

Stocks, ETFs, equity and index options, OTC stocks, Treasuries, corporate bonds and crypto are all priced on the published schedule, and the bond range is deeper than most of the set. No mutual funds and no futures, which is the same double gap that holds the other app-first brokers at this level. Fractional shares are advertised but were not confirmed from a fee schedule or pricing table.

Account types and features5/10 × 18% = 0.9

Taxable, traditional IRA, Roth IRA, a crypto IRA and margin. No joint, custodial, SEP, solo 401(k) or HSA accounts identified; trust accounts are listed as not yet available. That rules the firm out for a large share of household situations.

Total 7.2/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-48711) and SIPC member with a registration history predating the newer app-first firms. No enforcement matter identified in our sourced review.

Fees and total cost6/10 × 40% = 2.4

Lowest score among the firms we publish. Share commissions are $0, but options and futures are priced per side on volume tiers that start above the flat-fee competitors, a $10 monthly inactivity fee applies unless waived, and the desktop platform with RadarScreen costs $99.99 a month for non-professionals.

Investment selection7/10 × 12% = 0.8

Stocks, ETFs, options and a deep futures range including micros. No mutual funds. Crypto and bond availability not confirmed from the pricing page we read.

Account types and features6/10 × 18% = 1.1

Taxable, joint, traditional and Roth IRAs, trust and margin. No custodial, SEP, solo 401(k) or HSA identified.

Total 6.7/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation6/10 × 30% = 1.8

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-69188) and SIPC member, so custody protection is equivalent to the rest of the set. Scored well below its peers because of two settled 2025 enforcement matters totalling roughly $75 million, one of which involved disclosure to customers about how their orders were handled.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

$0 commissions on stocks and ETFs and $0.04 per equity options contract — the lowest per-contract fee we recorded — alongside the lowest margin rates in our set, from 5.00% down to 3.95%. Marked down from 9 on 30 August 2026 after we read the standard fee schedule, which charges $100 to move an account out, on partial transfers as well as full ones. That is the joint-largest exit charge among the firms we publish.

Investment selection6/10 × 12% = 0.7

Stocks, ETFs, options and fractional shares are confirmed. No mutual funds. Bonds, futures and crypto pricing were not confirmed from a primary source at this revision, so they are recorded as unverified rather than counted.

Account types and features5/10 × 18% = 0.9

Taxable, traditional IRA, Roth IRA and margin only. No joint, custodial, trust, SEP or solo 401(k) accounts identified, which rules it out for a large share of household situations.

Total 6.6/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Safety and regulation7/10 × 30% = 2.1

Active SEC-registered broker-dealer (8-70212) and SIPC member, so custody protection matches the rest of the set. Scored lowest of the non-enforcement firms purely on operating history — it holds the highest CRD number here, meaning the shortest US registration record.

Fees and total cost8/10 × 40% = 3.2

$0 stock and ETF commissions with no per-contract options fee for US users, and $0 withdrawal fees. The full brokerage fee schedule, read on 31 August 2026, shows the costs the headline does not: $75 to transfer the account out, $10 a month in inactivity fees, and a 0.25% FX spread on non-USD wires. With crypto at a flat 1% as well, that is a wider fee surface than the zero-commission framing suggests.

Investment selection5/10 × 12% = 0.6

Stocks, ETFs, options, crypto and fractional shares only. No mutual funds, bonds or futures — the narrowest published range in our set.

Account types and features3/10 × 18% = 0.5

Individual taxable accounts only. No IRA, joint, custodial or trust accounts identified, which excludes retirement investing entirely.

Total 6.4/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal