Interactive Brokers vs Firstrade Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

Interactive Brokers and Firstrade 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: Interactive Brokers vs Firstrade (2026)
Feature Interactive Brokers Firstrade
Website https://www.interactivebrokers.com/ https://www.firstrade.com/
Broker Type Self-directed online discount broker Discount (self-directed online brokerage)
Trading: Stock & ETF? Yes Yes
ETF & Stock commission IBKR Lite: $0 US-listed stocks/ETFs (US residents); IBKR Pro: $0.005/share fixed (min $1) or $0.0005–$0.0035/share tiered (min $0.35) $0 online ($19.95 broker-assisted)
Fractional Shares? Yes (eligible US/CA/EU stocks & ETFs, from $1) Yes (most U.S. stocks/ETFs; $5 min)
Percent Allocations? Yes (TWS Rebalance Portfolio sets custom target %) No
Crypto Trading? Yes (spot crypto via Paxos/Zero Hash for eligible US IB LLC clients; permissions required; also futures/ETPs) No
Crypto Fees 0.12%–0.18% of trade value (monthly volume tiers), USD 1.75 min/order (capped at 1% of value); no added spreads/markups/custody fees; possible $0.15/mo Paxos fee N/A
Options Trading? Yes Yes
Options Fee US: Lite $0.65/contract ($1 min; Pro rates after 1k contracts/mo); Pro $0.15–$0.65/contract (volume/premium tiers), $1 min/order + exchange/reg/clearing fees $0 commission and $0/contract; plus pass-through ORF (~$0.02/contract from Jul 2026) and SEC sell fees
Bond Trading Available? Yes (US Treasuries, corporates, munis, CDs, 1M+ global bonds) Yes (web only; net yield basis/markup)
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? Sometimes (Lite receives PFOF on US stocks/options; Pro generally avoids via SmartRouting) Yes
Interface: Web trading? Yes (Client Portal web; IBKR Mobile and GlobalTrader apps) Yes
Desktop trading? Yes; Trader Workstation (TWS) and IBKR Desktop. No
API Trading? Yes; TWS API and Web API for retail algorithmic trading. No
Mutual Funds: Offered? Yes Yes
Total Mutual Funds 50,000+ 11,000+
NTF Mutual Funds 20,000+ 11,000+
Non-NTF Fund Fee Lesser of 3% of trade value or USD 14.95 per transaction (US). $0 online; $19.95 broker-assisted (no-load)
Early Redemption Fee? Yes (no IBKR fee); fund companies may charge per prospectus. No ($19.95 if held <90 days)
Redemption Hold (Days) None by IBKR (0 days); fund prospectus may impose. 90 days
Early Redemption Fee $0 from IBKR; funds may charge per prospectus. $19.95
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes (Cash, Margin, or Portfolio Margin; typically $2,000 equity for margin). Yes (approval; $2,000 min assets; not IRAs/custodial/ESA)
IRAs Offered? Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Inherited, Rollover). Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Rollover)
HSAs Offered? No No
Money Market Sweep? Yes (Insured Bank Deposit Sweep Program). Yes (FDIC sweep via Apex; 0.15%; not margin/SIMPLE IRA/ESA)
CDs Offered? Yes (brokered CDs). Yes (primary $30; secondary net yield)
Robo-Advisor: Offered Yes No
Robo-Advisor Service Interactive Advisors N/A
Robo-Advisor Fees 0.10%–0.75% AUM/year (varies by portfolio; IA 0.10%–0.20%, managers 0.25%–0.75%); no commissions N/A
Basics: Headquarters Greenwich, CT Flushing, NY
Year Founded 1977 1985
Clearing Firm Self-clearing Apex Clearing Corporation
Local Branches? No Yes (Flushing, NY HQ office, Mon-Fri 10am-4pm ET); no nationwide network
New Account Minimum $0 $0

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