Best Brokers

profile ranking · Primary query: best brokers for retirement accounts

Best Brokers for Retirement AccountsUpdated August 2026 · 12 brokers, every figure sourced

Written by
Juan Manuel Gonzalez
Published
Data verified

Quick verdict

Only the full-lineup firms are genuinely in contention. Fidelity publishes the widest coverage in our set — every IRA variant plus solo 401(k) and HSA. Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Vanguard and Merrill Edge all publish complete IRA lineups with custodial and trust accounts. Robinhood and Webull offer IRAs but little else, and eToro US offers no retirement account at all.

The ranking

Safety and regulation 30% · Fees and total cost 23% · Investment selection 9% · Account types and features 38% · Eligibility: Offers at least one IRA

Verified August 28, 2026

Sub-scores are integers, so the bars carry more information than the order does.

  • Safety and regulation
  • Fees and total cost
  • Investment selection
  • Account types and features

Showing 11 of 11 brokers, sorted by editorial rank.

  1. Rank 1 of 11

    Fidelity

    CRD 7784 · SIPC member

    Widest retirement coverage

    9.3

    Strong

    • Safety and regulation9
    • Fees and total cost9
    • Investment selection8
    • Account types and features10
    Account minimum
    $0No minimums to open an account
    Account fee
    None published
    To transfer out
    $0Transfer of assets
    Account types
    12/12
    Visit FidelityFull review →

  2. Rank 2 of 11

    Charles Schwab

    CRD 5393 · SIPC member

    8.8

    Strong

    • Safety and regulation9
    • Fees and total cost8
    • Investment selection9
    • Account types and features9
    Account minimum
    $0$0 account minimum, $0 opening and maintenance
    Account fee
    $0
    To transfer out
    $50 full, $0 partialTransfer (out) of assets, per account
    Account types
    10/12
    Visit Charles SchwabFull review →

  3. Rank 3 of 11

    Interactive Brokers

    CRD 36418 · SIPC member

    8.7

    Strong

    • Safety and regulation9
    • Fees and total cost9
    • Investment selection10
    • Account types and features8
    Account minimum
    $0No account minimums
    Account fee
    None publishedNo platform fees or account minimums
    To transfer out
    $0IBKR charges nothing for incoming or outgoing ACATS; the firm at the other end may
    Account types
    8/12
    Visit Interactive BrokersFull review →

  4. Rank 4 of 11

    E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

    CRD 149777 · SIPC member

    8.4

    Solid

    • Safety and regulation8
    • Fees and total cost8
    • Investment selection8
    • Account types and features9
    Account minimum
    Not verified
    Account fee
    Not verified
    To transfer out
    Not verified
    Account types
    10/12
    Visit E*TRADE from Morgan StanleyFull review →

  5. Rank 5 of 11

    Merrill Edge Self-Directed

    CRD 7691 · SIPC member

    7.9

    Solid

    • Safety and regulation9
    • Fees and total cost7
    • Investment selection6
    • Account types and features8
    Account minimum
    $0No minimum for general investing accounts
    Account fee
    None published
    To transfer out
    $49.95 full account; $0 partial
    Account types
    10/12
    Visit Merrill Edge Self-DirectedFull review →

  6. Rank 6 of 11

    Vanguard

    CRD 7452 · SIPC member

    Best for self-employment income

    7.7

    Solid

    • Safety and regulation9
    • Fees and total cost6
    • Investment selection6
    • Account types and features8
    Account minimum
    Not verified
    Account fee
    $25 per yearWaived with e-delivery of statements, $1m+ in qualifying assets, or advisory enrolment
    To transfer out
    $100Processing fee per account closure and full transfer out. Waived at $5m+ in qualifying assets or with advisory enrolment
    Account types
    11/12
    Visit VanguardFull review →

  7. Rank 7 of 11

    tastytrade

    CRD 277027 · SIPC member

    7.2

    Mixed

    • Safety and regulation8
    • Fees and total cost8
    • Investment selection7
    • Account types and features6
    Account minimum
    Not verified
    Account fee
    None published
    To transfer out
    $75Outgoing ACAT transfers, full or partial
    Account types
    7/12
    Visit tastytradeFull review →

  8. Rank 8 of 11

    TradeStation

    CRD 39473 · SIPC member

    6.7

    Mixed

    • Safety and regulation8
    • Fees and total cost6
    • Investment selection7
    • Account types and features6
    Account minimum
    $2,000Stated as the minimum to open and maintain a margin position; no cash-account opening minimum published
    Account fee
    Not verified
    To transfer out
    $125Outgoing account transfer, equities accounts. The largest exit charge in our set
    Account types
    6/12
    Visit TradeStationFull review →

  9. Rank 9 of 11

    Public

    CRD 127818 · SIPC member

    6.7

    Mixed

    • Safety and regulation8
    • Fees and total cost8
    • Investment selection6
    • Account types and features5
    Account minimum
    Not verified
    Account fee
    $0Account maintenance
    To transfer out
    $100Outgoing ACAT. Incoming is $0
    Account types
    4/12
    Visit PublicFull review →

  10. Rank 10 of 11

    Webull

    CRD 289063 · SIPC member

    6.6

    Mixed

    • Safety and regulation7
    • Fees and total cost9
    • Investment selection6
    • Account types and features5
    Account minimum
    $0No deposit minimum stated in the fee schedule
    Account fee
    None published
    To transfer out
    $75Per outgoing stock transfer; incoming $0.00
    Account types
    5/12
    Visit WebullFull review →

  11. Rank 11 of 11

    Robinhood

    CRD 165998 · SIPC member

    6.1

    Limited

    • Safety and regulation6
    • Fees and total cost8
    • Investment selection6
    • Account types and features5
    Account minimum
    $0No fees to open or maintain an account
    Account fee
    $0
    To transfer out
    $100ACATS outgoing. Charged on partial as well as full transfers
    Account types
    4/12
    Visit RobinhoodFull review →

Positions are computed from published sub-scores at build time. Fidelity, Charles Schwab, Interactive Brokers lead; their unrounded totals are 9.29, 8.77, 8.71.

Why these weights

Account types carries 38% — the highest single weight on the site — because a retirement ranking that ignores which wrappers a firm actually offers is not answering the question. Selection drops to 9%.

Winners by category

  • Widest retirement coverage

    Fidelity

    Traditional, Roth, rollover and SEP/SIMPLE IRAs plus solo 401(k) and HSA, all in the published lineup.

  • Best for self-employment income

    Vanguard

    Publishes a solo 401(k) alongside the full IRA lineup, with $0 on its own funds.

Wrapper coverage decides this ranking

A retirement account is a tax wrapper, and the wrapper you need is determined by your employment situation, not your investing style. Self-employment income opens up a solo 401(k), with contribution limits far above an IRA's. A high-deductible health plan opens up an HSA. Neither is available at most brokers.

In our published set, Fidelity offers both. Vanguard offers a solo 401(k). No other firm we scored publishes either. That single fact reorders this ranking relative to every other page on the site.

Costs inside a retirement account

Retirement accounts are long-duration by construction, so recurring costs matter more here than anywhere else. Vanguard's $25 annual account service fee applies per account and is waivable with electronic delivery — a setting worth changing on the day you open it.

The other cost specific to retirement investing is the fund transaction fee. Vanguard charges $20 per online trade on non-Vanguard transaction-fee funds; Merrill Edge charges $19.95, plus $39.95 if you sell a no-transaction-fee fund within 90 days. If you intend to hold funds from a house other than your broker's, check that schedule before opening the account.

Why each broker sits where it does

The figures that matter for retirement accounts, and the arithmetic that produced each position under this page’s weights. The same brokers rank differently elsewhere on this site because a different question is being asked; the sub-scores do not change, the weights do.

1.Fidelity

9.3/10

FIDELITY BROKERAGE SERVICES LLC · CRD 7784 · SIPC member

Account fee
None published
To transfer out
$0
Mutual funds
$0

Leads this ranking on 9.3/10. The largest single contribution is 10/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.8 of the total. Its 8/10 on investment selection adds 0.7 at 9%.

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

Every fee, source and sub-score for Fidelity

2.Charles Schwab

8.8/10

CHARLES SCHWAB & CO., INC. · CRD 5393 · SIPC member

Account fee
$0
To transfer out
$50 full, $0 partial
Mutual funds
$0

Ranks 2nd on 8.8/10. The largest single contribution is 9/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.4 of the total. Its 9/10 on investment selection adds 0.8 at 9%.

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

Every fee, source and sub-score for Charles Schwab

3.Interactive Brokers

8.7/10

INTERACTIVE BROKERS LLC · CRD 36418 · SIPC member

Account fee
None published
To transfer out
$0
Mutual funds
$0 on no-transaction-fee funds; otherwise the lesser of 3% of trade value or $14.95

Ranks 3rd on 8.7/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.0 of the total. Its 10/10 on investment selection adds 0.9 at 9%.

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

Every fee, source and sub-score for Interactive Brokers

4.E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

8.4/10

MORGAN STANLEY · CRD 149777 · SIPC member

Mutual funds
$0

Ranks 4th on 8.4/10. The largest single contribution is 9/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.4 of the total. Its 8/10 on investment selection adds 0.7 at 9%.

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

Every fee, source and sub-score for E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

5.Merrill Edge Self-Directed

7.9/10

MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH INCORPORATED · CRD 7691 · SIPC member

Account fee
None published
To transfer out
$49.95 full account; $0 partial
Mutual funds
$0 no-load NTF and load-waived; $19.95 no-load transaction-fee funds

Ranks 5th on 7.9/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.0 of the total. Its 6/10 on investment selection adds 0.5 at 9%, and is what holds it back here.

On account types and features: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for Merrill Edge Self-Directed

6.Vanguard

7.7/10

VANGUARD MARKETING CORPORATION · CRD 7452 · SIPC member

Account fee
$25 per year
To transfer out
$100
Mutual funds
$0 Vanguard and non-Vanguard NTF; $20 non-Vanguard transaction-fee funds

Ranks 6th on 7.7/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 3.0 of the total. Its 6/10 on investment selection adds 0.5 at 9%, and is what holds it back here.

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

Every fee, source and sub-score for Vanguard

7.tastytrade

7.2/10

TASTYTRADE, INC. · CRD 277027 · SIPC member

Account fee
None published
To transfer out
$75

Ranks 7th on 7.2/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on safety and regulation, weighted 30% here and worth 2.4 of the total. Its 7/10 on investment selection adds 0.6 at 9%.

On safety and regulation: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for tastytrade

8.TradeStation

6.7/10

TRADESTATION SECURITIES, INC. · CRD 39473 · SIPC member

To transfer out
$125

Ranks 8th on 6.7/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on safety and regulation, weighted 30% here and worth 2.4 of the total. Its 7/10 on investment selection adds 0.6 at 9%.

On safety and regulation: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for TradeStation

9.Public

6.7/10

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC INVESTING, INC. · CRD 127818 · SIPC member

Account fee
$0
To transfer out
$100

Ranks 9th on 6.7/10. The largest single contribution is 8/10 on safety and regulation, weighted 30% here and worth 2.4 of the total. Its 6/10 on investment selection adds 0.5 at 9%, and is what holds it back here.

On safety and regulation: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for Public

10.Webull

6.6/10

WEBULL FINANCIAL LLC · CRD 289063 · SIPC member

Account fee
None published
To transfer out
$75

Ranks 10th on 6.6/10. The largest single contribution is 7/10 on safety and regulation, weighted 30% here and worth 2.1 of the total. Its 6/10 on investment selection adds 0.5 at 9%, and is what holds it back here.

On safety and regulation: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for Webull

11.Robinhood

6.1/10

ROBINHOOD FINANCIAL, LLC · CRD 165998 · SIPC member

Account fee
$0
To transfer out
$100

Ranks 11th on 6.1/10. The largest single contribution is 5/10 on account types and features, weighted 38% here and worth 1.9 of the total. Its 6/10 on investment selection adds 0.5 at 9%, and is what holds it back here.

On account types and features: 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.

Every fee, source and sub-score for Robinhood

Every sub-score and why

The arithmetic behind every position on this page: each sub-score, the weight it carries here, and what it contributes to the total. If you disagree with a weight, these let you recompute the ranking yourself — that is the point of publishing them. The written reason behind each integer is on that broker’s review.

Fidelity9 / 9 / 8 / 109.3/10Strong
Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7
Fees and total cost9/10 × 23% = 2.1
Investment selection8/10 × 9% = 0.7
Account types and features10/10 × 38% = 3.8

Total 9.3/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full Fidelity review, with every fee and source
Charles Schwab9 / 8 / 9 / 98.8/10Strong
Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7
Fees and total cost8/10 × 23% = 1.8
Investment selection9/10 × 9% = 0.8
Account types and features9/10 × 38% = 3.4

Total 8.8/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full Charles Schwab review, with every fee and source
Interactive Brokers9 / 9 / 10 / 88.7/10Strong
Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7
Fees and total cost9/10 × 23% = 2.1
Investment selection10/10 × 9% = 0.9
Account types and features8/10 × 38% = 3.0

Total 8.7/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full Interactive Brokers review, with every fee and source
E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley8 / 8 / 8 / 98.4/10Solid
Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4
Fees and total cost8/10 × 23% = 1.8
Investment selection8/10 × 9% = 0.7
Account types and features9/10 × 38% = 3.4

Total 8.4/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley review, with every fee and source
Merrill Edge Self-Directed9 / 7 / 6 / 87.9/10Solid
Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7
Fees and total cost7/10 × 23% = 1.6
Investment selection6/10 × 9% = 0.5
Account types and features8/10 × 38% = 3.0

Total 7.9/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full Merrill Edge Self-Directed review, with every fee and source
Vanguard9 / 6 / 6 / 87.7/10Solid
Safety and regulation9/10 × 30% = 2.7
Fees and total cost6/10 × 23% = 1.4
Investment selection6/10 × 9% = 0.5
Account types and features8/10 × 38% = 3.0

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

Full Vanguard review, with every fee and source
tastytrade8 / 8 / 7 / 67.2/10Mixed
Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4
Fees and total cost8/10 × 23% = 1.8
Investment selection7/10 × 9% = 0.6
Account types and features6/10 × 38% = 2.3

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

Full tastytrade review, with every fee and source
TradeStation8 / 6 / 7 / 66.7/10Mixed
Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4
Fees and total cost6/10 × 23% = 1.4
Investment selection7/10 × 9% = 0.6
Account types and features6/10 × 38% = 2.3

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

Full TradeStation review, with every fee and source
Public8 / 8 / 6 / 56.7/10Mixed
Safety and regulation8/10 × 30% = 2.4
Fees and total cost8/10 × 23% = 1.8
Investment selection6/10 × 9% = 0.5
Account types and features5/10 × 38% = 1.9

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

Full Public review, with every fee and source
Webull7 / 9 / 6 / 56.6/10Mixed
Safety and regulation7/10 × 30% = 2.1
Fees and total cost9/10 × 23% = 2.1
Investment selection6/10 × 9% = 0.5
Account types and features5/10 × 38% = 1.9

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

Full Webull review, with every fee and source
Robinhood6 / 8 / 6 / 56.1/10Limited
Safety and regulation6/10 × 30% = 1.8
Fees and total cost8/10 × 23% = 1.8
Investment selection6/10 × 9% = 0.5
Account types and features5/10 × 38% = 1.9

Total 6.1/10 · sum of weighted contributions, rounded to one decimal

Full Robinhood review, with every fee and source

How we evaluated

Safety and regulation30%
Evidence: FINRA BrokerCheck entity record — legal name, CRD number, SEC file number and registration status — SIPC membership, and public enforcement actions from the regulator or SRO that brought them.
Fees and total cost23%
Evidence: The firm's own published commission and fee schedule, read in full.
Investment selection9%
Evidence: The asset classes named on the firm's own published pricing or product pages.
Account types and features38%
Evidence: The account types named in the firm's own published account lineup.

Five further pillars — access and eligibility, platform and usability, research and education, customer service, execution quality — carry no weight in any ranking, because none of them can yet be settled from a document a reader can open. What each would require is set out in the methodology.

Researched but excluded

  • SoFi Invest (SOFI SECURITIES LLC, CRD 151717) — Legal entity confirmed via FINRA, but the fee page returned HTTP 403 when we attempted to read it. Re-attempted on 30 August 2026 against the published fee schedule PDF and the SoFi support articles: both returned 403 as well. Secondary summaries of SoFi’s pricing are available and we are not using them — we will not score a firm from anything but its own document.
Read the full methodology

Frequently asked questions

Which broker has the best Roth IRA?
On published coverage and costs, Fidelity and Charles Schwab lead, with Vanguard close behind on fund costs and behind on the account service fee. Whether a Roth is right for you at all depends on your current and expected tax rates, which is a question for a tax professional.
Can I transfer an existing IRA to a different broker?
Generally yes, through an ACAT transfer that keeps the tax wrapper intact. What varies is the exit fee: Vanguard publishes $100 to close an account and transfer the assets out, Webull $75, and Merrill Edge $49.95 for a full transfer, while Fidelity publishes $0. Confirm the current fee with your existing firm before starting.

Sources

  1. [1]Fidelity — Commissions and margin ratesRead August 28, 2026
  2. [2]FINRA BrokerCheck — Fidelity Brokerage Services LLCRead August 28, 2026
  3. [3]Charles Schwab — Pricing and account feesRead August 28, 2026
  4. [4]FINRA BrokerCheck — Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.Read August 28, 2026
  5. [5]Charles Schwab — Pricing Guide for Individual Investors (April 2026)Read August 30, 2026
  6. [6]Charles Schwab — Margin rates and requirementsRead August 31, 2026
  7. [7]Interactive Brokers — Stocks, ETFs, warrants and structured products commissionsRead August 28, 2026
  8. [8]Interactive Brokers — Options commissionsRead August 30, 2026
  9. [9]FINRA BrokerCheck — Interactive Brokers LLCRead August 28, 2026
  10. [10]Interactive Brokers — Other feesRead August 30, 2026
  11. [11]Interactive Brokers — Mutual fund commissionsRead August 31, 2026
  12. [12]Interactive Brokers — Bond commissionsRead August 31, 2026
  13. [13]Interactive Brokers — Futures commissionsRead August 31, 2026
  14. [14]Interactive Brokers — Cryptocurrency commissionsRead August 31, 2026
  15. [15]Interactive Brokers — Margin ratesRead August 31, 2026
  16. [16]Interactive Brokers — Spot currency commissionsRead August 31, 2026
  17. [17]E*TRADE — Pricing and ratesRead August 28, 2026
  18. [18]FINRA BrokerCheck — Morgan Stanley / E*TRADE Securities LLCRead August 28, 2026
  19. [19]Merrill — PricingRead August 28, 2026
  20. [20]FINRA BrokerCheck — Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith IncorporatedRead August 28, 2026
  21. [21]Vanguard — Investment fees and commissionsRead August 28, 2026
  22. [22]FINRA BrokerCheck — Vanguard Marketing CorporationRead August 28, 2026
  23. [23]tastytrade — Pricing and commissionsRead August 28, 2026
  24. [24]FINRA BrokerCheck — tastytrade, Inc.Read August 28, 2026
  25. [25]tastytrade — Commissions and fees (last updated 30 July 2026)Read August 30, 2026
  26. [26]TradeStation — PricingRead August 28, 2026
  27. [27]FINRA BrokerCheck — TradeStation Securities, Inc.Read August 28, 2026
  28. [28]TradeStation — Service feesRead August 30, 2026
  29. [29]TradeStation — Margin ratesRead August 30, 2026
  30. [30]FINRA BrokerCheck — Open to the Public Investing, Inc.Read August 28, 2026
  31. [31]Public — Fee schedule (last updated 14 August 2026)Read August 30, 2026
  32. [32]Public — Account types and asset lineupRead August 30, 2026
  33. [33]Webull — Pricing and feesRead August 28, 2026
  34. [34]FINRA BrokerCheck — Webull Financial LLCRead August 28, 2026
  35. [35]Robinhood — Trading feesRead August 28, 2026
  36. [36]FINRA — Robinhood ordered to pay $3.75m restitution; fines for AML, supervisory and disclosure violations (March 2025)Read August 28, 2026
  37. [37]FINRA BrokerCheck — Robinhood Financial, LLCRead August 28, 2026
  38. [38]Robinhood Financial — Standard Pricing Fee ScheduleRead August 30, 2026

Affiliate disclosure

We currently have no affiliate or commercial relationship with any broker on this site, and every outbound link is a plain link. If that changes, it will be disclosed here and on the broker's row. Read the full disclosure.

Risk warning

Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Nothing on this site is personalized investment advice, a recommendation to buy or sell any security, or a solicitation. Figures are read from public sources on the dates shown and can change without notice — verify anything you intend to act on with the provider directly. Read the full risk disclosure.