M1 Finance vs Merrill Edge Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

M1 Finance and Merrill Edge 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: M1 Finance vs Merrill Edge (2026)
Feature M1 Finance Merrill Edge
Website https://www.m1finance.com/ https://www.merrilledge.com/
Broker Type Self-directed discount brokerage Self-directed discount/online brokerage
Trading: Stock & ETF? Yes Yes
ETF & Stock commission $0 commission; $3/mo platform fee if assets <$10k (waived at $10k+ or with loan) $0 online commissions (ETF sales $0.01–$0.03 per $1,000 principal)
Fractional Shares? Yes (to 1/100,000th of a share) No
Percent Allocations? Yes (M1 Pies with custom target % allocations) No
Crypto Trading? Yes (Bakkt Crypto Account; BTC, ETH, LTC; US 18+) No
Crypto Fees Bakkt 1% (100 bps) on buys/sells (in exec. price); M1 $0 commission N/A
Options Trading? No Yes
Options Fee N/A $0 + $0.65 per contract online; $0 exercise/assignment. Broker-assisted extra.
Bond Trading Available? No Yes
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? Yes (receives PFOF ~$0.002/share) No; limited options-exchange payments
Interface: Web trading? Yes (web m1.com and iOS/Android apps) Yes
Desktop trading? No No (MarketPro is browser-based, not a downloadable desktop app)
API Trading? No No (no public retail trading API)
Mutual Funds: Offered? No Yes
Total Mutual Funds None Thousands
NTF Mutual Funds None Many NTF (exact count unpublished)
Non-NTF Fund Fee N/A $19.95 per online transaction (buys, sells, exchanges) for no-load TF funds
Early Redemption Fee? N/A No ($39.95 short-term redemption fee on NTF funds held <90 days)
Redemption Hold (Days) N/A 90 days (NTF funds)
Early Redemption Fee N/A $39.95 (NTF funds held <90 days)
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes; Individual/Joint brokerage accounts include M1 Margin Loan by default ($2,000 min equity). Not for IRAs. Yes
IRAs Offered? Yes; Traditional, Roth, and SEP IRAs available ($500 minimum). Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP)
HSAs Offered? No Yes (Individual HSA)
Money Market Sweep? Yes; High-Yield Cash Account has FDIC bank sweep. Invest-account cash does not auto-sweep (transfer required). Yes
CDs Offered? No Yes (brokered CDs)
Robo-Advisor: Offered No (self-directed Pies/auto-invest; optional non-discretionary M1 Advisory) Yes
Robo-Advisor Service M1 Pies (self-directed); M1 Advisory / M1 Advisor (AI, non-discretionary) Merrill Guided Investing
Robo-Advisor Fees $3/mo platform fee if <$10k assets (waived at $10k+ or Personal Loan); advisory currently 0% (up to 0.20%) 0.45% AUM online; 0.85% with advisor (monthly in advance). Preferred Rewards discounts 0.05-0.15%. Fund expenses extra.
Basics: Headquarters Chicago, IL New York, NY
Year Founded 2015 2010
Clearing Firm M1 Finance LLC (self-clearing Individual/Joint); Apex Clearing (IRA/Trust/Custodial) Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. (self-clearing)
Local Branches? No Yes (~3,530 Bank of America financial centers, U.S., as of Q2 2026)
New Account Minimum $100 (individual/joint taxable); $500 (IRAs) $0 (self-directed)

Once you’ve chosen a broker, find high-performing, investable model portfolios at RecipeInvesting.com


Picked a Broker? Now Build Your Perfect Portfolio

Find high-performing, investable model portfolios (Tactical, Strategic, and Managed) at RecipeInvesting.com.

Get FREE Access
Recipe Investing Logo

Compare M1 Finance to All Brokers