Merrill Edge vs SoFi Invest Comparison: Fees, Features, and More (2026)

Merrill Edge and SoFi Invest 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 SoFi Invest (2026)
Feature Merrill Edge SoFi Invest
Website https://www.merrilledge.com/ https://www.sofi.com/invest/
Broker Type Self-directed discount/online brokerage Discount (self-directed online brokerage + robo-advisor)
Trading: Stock & ETF? Yes Yes
ETF & Stock commission $0 online commissions (ETF sales $0.01–$0.03 per $1,000 principal) $0 commissions
Fractional Shares? No Yes ($5 min on select stocks/ETFs)
Percent Allocations? No No
Crypto Trading? No Yes. SoFi Crypto offers 28 cryptocurrencies (as of May 2026); requires SoFi Checking & Savings.
Crypto Fees N/A Tiered 1.90%/1.50%/1.25%/0.90% of trade value by monthly volume (<$1k/$1-5k/$5-10k/$10k+); possible ≤0.10% spread.
Options Trading? Yes Yes. Options trading available (long calls/puts, covered calls, cash-secured puts; 0DTE and IRAs).
Options Fee $0 + $0.65 per contract online; $0 exercise/assignment. Broker-assisted extra. $0 commissions and $0 contract fees. Regulatory fees apply (e.g., ORF $0.02, OCC $0.025 per contract).
Bond Trading Available? Yes No. Individual bonds not offered; exposure via bond ETFs and mutual funds only.
Receives payment for order flow (PFOF)? No; limited options-exchange payments Yes. Receives payment-for-order-flow revenue share via Apex Clearing.
Interface: Web trading? Yes Yes. Full trading on SoFi mobile app (iOS/Android) and sofi.com website.
Desktop trading? No (MarketPro is browser-based, not a downloadable desktop app) No
API Trading? No (no public retail trading API) No
Mutual Funds: Offered? Yes Yes
Total Mutual Funds Thousands 6,800+
NTF Mutual Funds Many NTF (exact count unpublished) 6,800
Non-NTF Fund Fee $19.95 per online transaction (buys, sells, exchanges) for no-load TF funds 0.2% of purchase (max $20); 2% for interval/tender funds
Early Redemption Fee? No ($39.95 short-term redemption fee on NTF funds held <90 days) Yes (no SoFi short-term fee)
Redemption Hold (Days) 90 days (NTF funds) Fund-specific (CDSC varies by fund); no SoFi-imposed hold.
Early Redemption Fee $39.95 (NTF funds held <90 days) Fund-specific CDSC (varies); SoFi charges none (purchase tx fee 0.2% max $20).
Accounts: Margin Accounts? Yes Yes (Self-Directed; apply, $2,000 min).
IRAs Offered? Yes (Traditional, Roth, SEP) Yes: Traditional, Roth, and SEP IRAs.
HSAs Offered? Yes (Individual HSA) No
Money Market Sweep? Yes Yes (optional FDIC bank sweep via Apex).
CDs Offered? Yes (brokered CDs) No
Robo-Advisor: Offered Yes Yes
Robo-Advisor Service Merrill Guided Investing SoFi Automated Investing (Robo Investing)
Robo-Advisor Fees 0.45% AUM online; 0.85% with advisor (monthly in advance). Preferred Rewards discounts 0.05-0.15%. Fund expenses extra. 0.25% annual wrap/advisory fee plus fund expenses; $50 min.
Basics: Headquarters New York, NY San Francisco, CA
Year Founded 2010 2011
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

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