Interactive Brokers vs M1 Finance Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

Interactive Brokers and M1 Finance 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 M1 Finance (2026)
Feature Interactive Brokers M1 Finance
Website https://www.interactivebrokers.com/ https://www.m1finance.com/
Broker Type Self-directed online discount broker Self-directed discount 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 commission; $3/mo platform fee if assets <$10k (waived at $10k+ or with loan)
Fractional Shares? Yes (eligible US/CA/EU stocks & ETFs, from $1) Yes (to 1/100,000th of a share)
Percent Allocations? Yes (TWS Rebalance Portfolio sets custom target %) Yes (M1 Pies with custom target % allocations)
Crypto Trading? Yes (spot crypto via Paxos/Zero Hash for eligible US IB LLC clients; permissions required; also futures/ETPs) Yes (Bakkt Crypto Account; BTC, ETH, LTC; US 18+)
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 Bakkt 1% (100 bps) on buys/sells (in exec. price); M1 $0 commission
Options Trading? Yes No
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 N/A
Bond Trading Available? Yes (US Treasuries, corporates, munis, CDs, 1M+ global bonds) No
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? Sometimes (Lite receives PFOF on US stocks/options; Pro generally avoids via SmartRouting) Yes (receives PFOF ~$0.002/share)
Interface: Web trading? Yes (Client Portal web; IBKR Mobile and GlobalTrader apps) Yes (web m1.com and iOS/Android apps)
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 No
Total Mutual Funds 50,000+ None
NTF Mutual Funds 20,000+ None
Non-NTF Fund Fee Lesser of 3% of trade value or USD 14.95 per transaction (US). N/A
Early Redemption Fee? Yes (no IBKR fee); fund companies may charge per prospectus. N/A
Redemption Hold (Days) None by IBKR (0 days); fund prospectus may impose. N/A
Early Redemption Fee $0 from IBKR; funds may charge per prospectus. N/A
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes (Cash, Margin, or Portfolio Margin; typically $2,000 equity for margin). Yes; Individual/Joint brokerage accounts include M1 Margin Loan by default ($2,000 min equity). Not for IRAs.
IRAs Offered? Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Inherited, Rollover). Yes; Traditional, Roth, and SEP IRAs available ($500 minimum).
HSAs Offered? No No
Money Market Sweep? Yes (Insured Bank Deposit Sweep Program). Yes; High-Yield Cash Account has FDIC bank sweep. Invest-account cash does not auto-sweep (transfer required).
CDs Offered? Yes (brokered CDs). No
Robo-Advisor: Offered Yes No (self-directed Pies/auto-invest; optional non-discretionary M1 Advisory)
Robo-Advisor Service Interactive Advisors M1 Pies (self-directed); M1 Advisory / M1 Advisor (AI, non-discretionary)
Robo-Advisor Fees 0.10%–0.75% AUM/year (varies by portfolio; IA 0.10%–0.20%, managers 0.25%–0.75%); no commissions $3/mo platform fee if <$10k assets (waived at $10k+ or Personal Loan); advisory currently 0% (up to 0.20%)
Basics: Headquarters Greenwich, CT Chicago, IL
Year Founded 1977 2015
Clearing Firm Self-clearing M1 Finance LLC (self-clearing Individual/Joint); Apex Clearing (IRA/Trust/Custodial)
Local Branches? No No
New Account Minimum $0 $100 (individual/joint taxable); $500 (IRAs)

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