Merrill Edge vs Public.com Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

Merrill Edge and Public.com 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: Merrill Edge vs Public.com (2026)
Feature Merrill Edge Public.com
Website https://www.merrilledge.com/ https://www.public.com/
Broker Type Self-directed discount/online brokerage Discount (self-directed online retail brokerage)
Trading: Stock & ETF? Yes Yes
ETF & Stock commission $0 online commissions (ETF sales $0.01–$0.03 per $1,000 principal) $0 regular hours (US-listed); $2.99 extended/OTC (waived for Premium)
Fractional Shares? No Yes ($5 min outside plans; $1 in Investment Plans)
Percent Allocations? No Yes (Investment Plans: custom 1% allocations; Direct Indexing weighting)
Crypto Trading? No Yes (via zerohash; 60+ assets including BTC/ETH; 24/7; $1 min).
Crypto Fees N/A zerohash: $0.49–$6.29 (≤$500); 1.25% (>$500). Recurring plans 1.25%. API volume-tiered (0.10–0.60%).
Options Trading? Yes Yes (stock, ETF, and index options; multi-leg strategies).
Options Fee $0 + $0.65 per contract online; $0 exercise/assignment. Broker-assisted extra. $0 commission/per-contract for stock/ETF options plus $0.06–$0.18 rebate/contract. Index: $0.35–$0.50/contract. Regulatory fees apply.
Bond Trading Available? Yes Yes (fractional Treasury/corporate from $100; Bond Account; municipals coming soon).
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? No; limited options-exchange payments Yes (receives PFOF on options and wholesale equity routing).
Interface: Web trading? Yes Yes (full web platform plus iOS/Android apps).
Desktop trading? No (MarketPro is browser-based, not a downloadable desktop app) No. Web platform and mobile apps only; no native downloadable desktop trading software.
API Trading? No (no public retail trading API) Yes. Public Trading API (stocks, ETFs, options, crypto, bonds) available to all members; no approval required.
Mutual Funds: Offered? Yes No
Total Mutual Funds Thousands None
NTF Mutual Funds Many NTF (exact count unpublished) None
Non-NTF Fund Fee $19.95 per online transaction (buys, sells, exchanges) for no-load TF funds N/A
Early Redemption Fee? No ($39.95 short-term redemption fee on NTF funds held <90 days) N/A
Redemption Hold (Days) 90 days (NTF funds) N/A
Early Redemption Fee $39.95 (NTF funds held <90 days) N/A
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes Yes
IRAs Offered? Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP) Yes (Traditional and Roth); no SEP
HSAs Offered? Yes (Individual HSA) No
Money Market Sweep? Yes Yes (High-Yield Cash Account bank sweep)
CDs Offered? Yes (brokered CDs) No
Robo-Advisor: Offered Yes Yes, via Public Advisors LLC automated Direct Indexing, Generated Assets, and Treasury Accounts.
Robo-Advisor Service Merrill Guided Investing Public Advisors (Direct Indexing, Generated Assets, Treasury Accounts)
Robo-Advisor Fees 0.45% AUM online; 0.85% with advisor (monthly in advance). Preferred Rewards discounts 0.05-0.15%. Fund expenses extra. Direct Indexing 0.19% AUM annual; Generated Assets 0.49%; Treasury Accounts tiered 0.09%-0.29%. Brokerage fees may apply.
Basics: Headquarters New York, NY New York, NY
Year Founded 2010 2019
Clearing Firm Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. (self-clearing) Apex Clearing Corporation
Local Branches? Yes (~3,530 Bank of America financial centers, U.S., as of Q2 2026) No
New Account Minimum $0 (self-directed) $0 (no account minimums; as little as $1 to start)

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