thinkorswim Stock Brokerage Review
In continuation of TWI’s best stock broker for active traders, we will be looking at thinkorswim. Other brokerages being reviewed this week include: MB Trading and Interactive Brokers.
Also take a look at our stock broker reviews for all type of traders.
thinkorswim was rated number 1 online broker for 2009 by Barron’s, and has rapidly gained popularity for up-and-coming active traders. The broker was also recently acquired by TD Ameritrade. They have a blend of stock education and great trading resources. You can often find free live seminars hosted by thinkorswim.
With thinkorswim you can trade stocks, options, mutual funds, bonds, ETFs, and mortgage-backed securities. There are also various retirement and education saving plans.
Unlike the other brokers for active traders that we will be looking at, thinkorswim probably has the highest rates; however, there are many promotions that aim at giving you money back:
- $50 per new customer referral
- Replenish up to $100 on any transfer fees
- They will rebate the cost of internet if you make 40+ trades in a month
- 3 complimentary mutual fund trades per month
- Get a free TOS monkey when you fund your account
thinkorswim Pricing:
- $9.95 per stock trade (5000 shares max) or $.015 per share ($5.00 min)
- $500 account minimum
- Standard option rate – $2.95 per contract or $1.50 per contract $9.95
thinkorswim Tools:
One of the major advantages for thinkorswim are their powerful tools, which allow you to trade anywhere from a computer to your phone. There are 4 tools (all are free with your account):
- think Desktop – software-based platform
- Webbased trading
- think Anywhere – trade from your pda device
- think Mobile – mini-browser for your cell phone
Overall thinkorswim is the perfect stock broker for new active traders, traders that need accessibility from anywhere, and traders that want a lot of different investment vehicles available to them.
For those looking to enter the stock market, take a second to download my free guide to entering the stock market.
