Alpaca vs E*Trade Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

Alpaca and E*Trade are two leading discount brokerages offering commission-free stock and ETF trading. Use this head-to-head comparison table to evaluate fees, features, trading tools, and account options to help you decide which broker is right for you in 2026.

Head-to-Head Comparison: Alpaca vs E*Trade (2026)
Feature Alpaca E*Trade
Website https://alpaca.markets/ https://us.etrade.com/home
Broker Type API-first self-clearing broker-dealer (Trading API for retail/algo; web dashboard available) Online self-directed brokerage (Morgan Stanley; full-service advisors available)
Trading: Stock & ETF? Yes Yes
ETF & Stock commission $0 commission (retail US stocks/ETFs); plus SEC/FINRA/CAT fees. Elite Smart Router: $0.0005–$0.004/share $0 online US-listed stocks/ETFs (OTC $6.95; other fees may apply)
Fractional Shares? Yes (from $1 notional; 2,000+ US equities) Yes, select listed stocks/ETFs (up to 3 decimals, $5 min notional; expanding)
Percent Allocations? Yes, via API No (Prebuilt templates with suggested allocations; Core Portfolios managed)
Crypto Trading? Yes (most US states via API/dashboard; 24/7) Yes; BTC, ETH, SOL via linked zerohash account for US individual brokerage clients.
Crypto Fees Maker/taker 0.15%/0.25% (under $100k 30d vol) to 0%/0.10% ($100M+); on received asset 0.50% of notional value (no spread/markup); charged by zerohash (E*TRADE receives a portion).
Options Trading? Yes (Levels 1-3 equity/ETF; index options live) Yes
Options Fee $0 commission retail equity/ETF options; index $0.50/contract + ORF/OCC/exchange pass-throughs $0.65/contract ($0.50 with 30+ trades/quarter) plus regulatory/exchange fees.
Bond Trading Available? No (Broker API partners only; not Trading API/dashboard retail) Yes; 50,000+ bonds/CDs from many issuers.
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? Yes (receives PFOF rebates) Yes (receives PFOF on NMS stocks, ETFs, and options).
Interface: Web trading? Yes web dashboard; no official mobile app (third-party/TradingView yes) Yes; E*TRADE web/app and Power E*TRADE web/app/desktop.
Desktop trading? No Yes, Power E*TRADE Pro (Windows/Mac download)
API Trading? Yes (Alpaca Trading API) Yes (Developer Platform REST API; unattended algo orders prohibited)
Mutual Funds: Offered? No Yes
Total Mutual Funds None 5,000+ (6,000+ NTF listed on pricing)
NTF Mutual Funds None 6,000+
Non-NTF Fund Fee N/A $0 online (no-load NTF); loads per prospectus
Early Redemption Fee? N/A Yes (no E*TRADE fee; fund fees may apply)
Redemption Hold (Days) N/A None (0 days); E*TRADE charges no short-term redemption fee (fund prospectus fees may apply)
Early Redemption Fee N/A $0 from E*TRADE; fund prospectus redemption fees may apply
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes; all accounts opened as margin (limited margin if equity under $2,000). Yes
IRAs Offered? Yes; Traditional and Roth IRAs for US tax residents (Trading API). SEP-IRA in agreements. Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, others)
HSAs Offered? No No
Money Market Sweep? Yes; opt-in FDIC Bank Sweep/High-Yield Cash for uninvested cash (variable APY, up to $1M FDIC). Yes (Bank Deposit Program / BDP)
CDs Offered? No Yes
Robo-Advisor: Offered No Yes
Robo-Advisor Service N/A Core Portfolios
Robo-Advisor Fees N/A 0.30% annual advisory fee ($500 min.)
Basics: Headquarters San Mateo, CA Arlington, VA
Year Founded 2015 1982
Clearing Firm Self-clearing (Alpaca Clearing) Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC
Local Branches? No No
New Account Minimum $0 $0

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