TradeStation Review: Is It Legitimate and Reliable

TradeStation is a well-established online brokerage firm that has been around since 1982. It's a legitimate and reliable platform for trading stocks, options, futures, and forex.

TradeStation offers a range of trading tools and services, including its proprietary platform, which allows users to design, test, and execute trading strategies. The platform is available on desktop, web, and mobile devices.

One of the unique features of TradeStation is its ability to backtest trading strategies using historical data. This allows users to evaluate the performance of their strategies before risking real money.

TradeStation is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects user accounts up to $500,000, including a $250,000 limit for cash claims.

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TradeStation has a user-friendly interface that makes it easy to get started, with the account opening process taking just a single day. The website is also easy to navigate, allowing users to learn about the company's products and costs.

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The platform offers multiple platforms, including a desktop version, a web-based platform, and a mobile app for iOS and Android. All platforms provide real-time news and streaming data, support drawing tools on charts, and allow the creation of custom watchlists.

Users can easily go from researching fundamentals and technicals for an issue to trading, setting defaults for position size. The platform is also highly customizable, with a series of built-in apps that users can choose to utilize or not.

Here are some key features of TradeStation's platforms:

TradeStation's mobile app is also highly intuitive, with a customizable home screen and easy access to charts and order entries.

We combined industry research, subject matter expertise, and investor survey data to guide the research and weightings for our online broker awards. This comprehensive approach ensures that our reviews are unbiased and thorough.

We sent a digital survey with 110 questions to each of the 26 companies we included in our rubric, which was completed between Feb. 19 and March 19, 2024. This extensive data collection process allowed us to gather a wide range of information about each company.

Our team of researchers verified the survey responses and collected any missing data points through online research and conversations with each company directly. This hands-on approach helped us to get a better understanding of each company's strengths and weaknesses.

We developed a proprietary model that scored each company to rate its performance across 11 major categories and 89 criteria. This model is designed to provide a comprehensive and accurate assessment of each company's performance.

The score for each company's overall star rating is a weighted average of the criteria in the following categories:

This scoring system allows us to provide a clear and concise assessment of each company's performance.

TradeStation's usability is one of its standout features. The account opening process can be completed in a single day, making it quick and easy to get started.

The TradeStation website is easy to navigate, allowing users to learn about the company's products and their costs with ease. This is especially helpful for new users who may be unfamiliar with trading and the platforms.

TradeStation offers multiple platforms, including its flagship TradeStation 10 desktop platform, a web-based platform, and a full-featured mobile app for iOS and Android. This means users can choose the platform that best fits their needs and preferences.

All platforms provide real-time news and streaming data, support drawing tools on charts, and allow the creation of custom watchlists. This makes it easy to stay up-to-date on market news and trends.

Navigating the platforms is relatively straightforward, even with many bells and whistles. This is especially true for users who are familiar with trading and the platforms.

Here are some key features of TradeStation's usability:

TradeStation takes security and reliability very seriously, and it shows in the robust measures they have in place to protect users' accounts.

TradeStation employs sophisticated tools, anti-fraud, and anti-money laundering specialists to monitor trade and customer accounts, detecting suspicious activities and prompting action to curb fraudulent activities.

The platform offers two-factor authentication (2FA), which adds an extra layer of security to login processes. You can also use biometric fingerprint or facial recognition for mobile app logins.

TradeStation's website and applications use 256-bit data encryption to protect and secure transactions and communication online.

The platform's advanced firewalls prevent unauthorized parties from accessing systems and accounts.

TradeStation also offers Lloyd's of London insurance, which goes beyond SIPC insurance protection, insuring each account up to $24.5 million, subject to a $900,000 per account maximum for cash, with an aggregate firm limit of $200 million.

Here are some of the key security features offered by TradeStation:

TradeStation's commitment to security and reliability is evident in its use of advanced technology to protect users' accounts and transactions.

Tradestation is not the cheapest broker online, but it's also not the most expensive. Certain fees like margin fee, fixed income fees, and mutual fund fees do apply, so it's essential to research and understand the fees before starting to trade.

The account minimum for Tradestation is $0 for TS GO and $2,000 for TS Select. There are no account fixed fees, but be aware that fractional shares are not available.

If you plan to trade options, you'll pay $0.60 per option for stocks and ETFs, with an additional $0.50 per contract applied to all directly routed orders. Futures trading costs $1.50 per contract, per side, while micro futures cost $0.50 per contract, per side.

Here's a breakdown of the fees for various market vehicles at Tradestation:

Some other fees to be aware of include an inactivity fee of $10 per month if you have less than $5,000 on average in your account at the end of each month or make fewer than 10 trades within the previous 90-day period. There's also a platform fee of $99.99 per month for non-professionals and $199.99 for professionals if you use the TradeStation platform without a brokerage account.

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TradeStation's trading platform is highly regarded by its users, with an average rating of 4.35 out of 5. The platform is easy to navigate and use intuitively, making it a great choice for both beginners and experienced traders.

One of the key features of TradeStation's platform is its flexibility and advanced tools. Users can easily go from researching fundamentals and technicals for an issue to trading, where they can set defaults for position size.

The platform offers a wide range of apps that users can choose to utilize or not, including Chart Analysis, Hot List, Radar Screen, Matrix, Time and Sales, TradeManager, and OptionStation Pro. These apps can be linked together to provide a seamless trading experience.

TradeStation's mobile app is also highly rated, with a 4.6 out of 5 rating on the App Store. The app provides streaming quotes and news by Benzinga, as well as biometric screening by fingerprint or facial recognition.

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Here are some of the key features of TradeStation's platform:

TradeStation's platform is also highly customizable, allowing users to tailor their experience to their specific needs. The platform is designed to be easy to use, even for those who are new to trading.

TradeStation's customer support is also highly rated, with users praising the ability to speak with a live human in real-time. The platform's customer support is available 24/7, making it easy to get help whenever you need it.

Overall, TradeStation's trading platform is a great choice for anyone looking for a reliable and user-friendly trading experience.

Additional reading: Tradestation Customer Service

TradeStation offers a range of research information to clients on the platform. This information is not qualitative research, but rather fundamental and technical information that can be used for trading.

TradeStation provides a number of research tools, including screeners, news, charting, and calculators. These tools are geared more toward traders than passive investors.

The platform's research tools include time and sales, market depth, and research that provide fundamental and technical indicators. However, these tools may not be suitable for longer-term investors or less active traders.

TradeStation's desktop platform, TradeStation 10, includes powerful tools designed for active traders. These tools include RadarScreen, EasyLanguage, and Strategy back-testing.

Here's a list of some of the tools available on TradeStation 10:

TradeStation offers research information to clients on the platform, but it's not qualitative research. It provides fundamental and technical information for trading.

The platform offers a range of research tools, including screeners, tools, news, charting, and calculators. This can be helpful for traders who need to analyze market data and make informed decisions.

TradeStation's research tools are geared more towards traders than passive investors. If you're looking for tools for portfolio management, retirement, or event planning, you might find TradeStation's offering a bit limited.

You can use TradeStation's research tools to find potential investments, but it's worth noting that the platform doesn't offer a lot of analytical tools for longer-term investors.

Here are some of the research tools available on TradeStation:

TradeStation also provides a basic fixed-income screener to help investors find potential investments. However, trading fixed income at TradeStation requires broker assistance, so active fixed-income traders might want to look elsewhere.

If you're using TradeStation's desktop platform, you'll have access to more advanced research tools, such as RadarScreen, EasyLanguage, and Strategy back-testing. These tools can help you scan for stocks, create custom indicators, and test trading strategies.

TradeStation's Portfolio Maestro app is a free tool that allows you to backtest and analyze the performance of your trading strategies. It's a useful resource for traders who want to optimize their portfolios.

Keep in mind that TradeStation's research tools are geared towards active traders, so if you're a longer-term investor, you might find the platform's offering a bit limited.

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TradeStation offers a variety of account types to suit different needs and preferences.

You can open a taxable or non-taxable account as an individual user, and both cash and margin accounts are often available with these options.

TradeStation supports multiple account types, including joint accounts with right of survivorship, joint tenants in common, and custodial accounts.

Here's a list of some of the account types available on TradeStation:

TradeStation also offers accounts for retirement, including Traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, SEP IRAs, and Simple IRAs.

TradeStation offers educational content in multiple formats, including articles, videos, webinars, and live events/seminars. This content is designed to help new traders get up to speed.

The learning page is well-organized and easy to navigate, with separate links to content for beginners and more advanced traders. It covers essential topics like how to use TradeStation and market insights.

TradeStation's trading simulators are a valuable educational tool, allowing new traders to practice and test their strategies in a risk-free environment. These simulators can be used in conjunction with backtesting to see how different strategies would have performed.

The trader education content is managed through an affiliate called YouCanTrade, which provides a platform for users to ask questions and interact with coaches.