When it comes to online brokers, there are many different options to choose from. But two of the most popular are Ally Invest and Interactive Brokers. Both platforms offer a variety of features and tools for investors, so it can be tough to decide which one is right for you.
In this article on AtoZ Markets, we will make a comparison between Ally Invest and Interactive Brokers to help you decide which one is the better broker for your needs. We'll cover everything from commissions and fees to customer service and account minimums. So read on to learn more about these two online brokers.
About Ally Invest
Ally Invest is an online broker that offers self-directed investors a simple way to trade stocks, options, bonds, and more. Ally Invest was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Ally Invest is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects customer accounts up to $500,000.
Ally Invest offers a variety of investment products and services, including:
- Online stock and options trading
- A comprehensive research center
- Portfolio management tools
- Retirement planning resources
Whether you're a beginner investor or a seasoned pro, Ally Invest has the resources you need to reach your investment goals.
Read Our Full Review of Ally Invest
Ally Invest Pros and Cons
Pros
√ No minimum deposit requirement
√ Low-cost fees ($4.95 per transaction)
√ A simple platform which is simple to utilize
√ Excellent selection in investment choices (stocks ETFs funds and options)
Cons
- There aren't enough resources for investment and research
- There are no physical locations
How to Open an Account with Ally Invest?
Visit Self-Directed Trading and then select Start Trading to go to the application.
Enter your personal details and select the account type and the funding options that you would like to use.
The email will be sent to you when we've approved your application.
About Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers is a global electronic brokerage firm that offers trading platforms and services to its customers. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut. Interactive Brokers has offices in more than 20 countries and offers its services to customers in more than 100 countries.
Interactive Brokers is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects the accounts of its customers up to a maximum of $500,000. The company is also a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which is a self-regulatory organization for the securities industry.
The company offers a variety of trading platforms and services to its customers, including the ability to trade stocks, options, futures, and forex. Interactive Brokers also offers a variety of research tools and resources, as well as a mobile trading app.
Read Our Full Review of Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers Pros and Cons
Pros
√ Low fees and commissions
√ Amazing platform with tons of features
√ There are many investment options available
√ Execution of trades that are highly reliable
√ Excellent library of research and educational materials
Cons
- Platform can be daunting to use, especially for beginners.
- Complex tiered pricing plans
- Telephone customer service can sometimes be poor
- The website and client portal could look better
- Selling order flow from IBKR Lite accounts to put those users at a trading disadvantage
How to Open Interactive Brokers Account?
Interactive Brokers account opening process is entirely accessible online, however it is a bit confusing.
Interactive Brokers accepts clients from nearly all countries.
Click"Start Application" to open the application on Interactive Brokers to start the process.
Make sure you have the details of your Social Security or tax identification number, employer, and bank account information available. The minimum amount needed at Interactive Brokers.
Interactive Brokers Vs Ally Invest: Products
Interactive Brokers and Ally Invest are both online brokerages that offer a variety of investment products and services. While both firms offer a variety of products, there are some key differences between them that investors should be aware of.
Range of Investments
Ally Invest offers all the usual investment options: options, stocks, bonds and options. This list now includes binary options. ETFs and mutual funds are also available. Ally Invest is among the few discount brokers that also offer forex trading.
Interactive Brokers is a better choice than Ally in this area. Interactive Brokers offers the usual assortment of securities, plus structured products, warrants and forex, futures options, futures, cryptocurrencies and access to foreign exchange market. This last option opens up a wide range of investment options. There were around 30 countries and 20 currencies represented, as well as 100 financial markets available to IB clients.
Also Read: Ally Invest vs eTrade
Mutual Funds & ETFs
Both brokerage firms offer mutual funds and exchange-traded funds. Interactive Brokers offers over 34,000+ mutual fund options. These products come with zero transaction fees. Some funds have no load. All ETFs offered by Interactive Brokers can be traded at no cost. Interactive Brokers has a number of great benefits in this category, including access to ETFs that trade on foreign exchanges. For mutual funds, Interactive Brokers charges $14.95
Ally Invest customers have the ability to trade 12,199 mutual fund funds. This list is more than is offered by most online discount brokers. There were 2,287 mutual funds that had zero load. Every mutual fund at Ally has a cost. The broker will charge $9.95 for any transaction, whether it's no-load or not. There is no transaction fee if a fund has loads, as most do. All ETF traders can trade all ETFs without commission with Ally.
Interactive Brokers Vs Ally Invest: Regulations
Interactive Brokers Regulations
Interactive Brokers is regulated by a number of important financial authorities, which makes it a trusted application. The primary authorities with which it is registered are Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), Securities Futures Commission (SFC), Japanese Financial Services Authority (JFSA), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Ally Invest Regulations
Ally Invest Securities LLC offers Securities Products and Services and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulation Authority (FINRA) and Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).
Ally Invest Advisors, Inc. provides advisory services and products. It is an accredited investment advisor in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Self-directed investors have access to forex (Forex) items and products via Ally Invest Forex LLC, which offers Forex goods and service. It is a participant in the National Futures Association.
Ally Bank, another subsidiary of Ally Financial Inc, is an FDIC member. FDIC and is an equally housing-friendly lender.
Ally Invest vs Interactive Brokers: Security
Ally Invest is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) which aids Ally Invest customers invest with claims for damages that exceed $500,000 as well as cash claims of up to $250,000. The SIPC assists in protecting your investments in the event that Ally Invest fails. However, it does not guarantee against losses in the market.
Ally Invest provides additional coverage that can be as high as $37.5 million, which is up to $900,000. The amount is $150,000,000 in cash.
Interactive Brokers safeguards your funds by observing a range of regulations and doing a range of other actions that go above the minimum standards. These are the basic requirements.
IB customers' cash is held to a large degree in the accounts of several large bank accounts, U.S. Treasury bills as well as FDIC-backed corporate bonds. federally-approved AAA rating money market fund (less than 2percent of assets owned by customers) -- all of which are subject to periodic review by the IB's top management.
100 percent of customer stock that is not on margin is kept in separate depository accounts at The Depository Trust Company in the U.S. or, outside the U.S., in equivalent "good control locations" in accordance with SEC regulations. This stock is not part of any of the proprietary stock positions held by IB as well as its associates. It is not used for any purposes other than those for IB customers. It is also not susceptible to any lien.
In addition to the above, all cash and securities in IB customers' securities accounts are covered with SIPC (Securities Investor Protection Corporation) protection that can be as high as $500,000 (including $250,000 in cash) per customer. Alongside the normal SIPC protection, IB has purchased excess SIPC coverage from Lloyd's of London insurers.
Interactive Brokers Vs Ally Invest: Fees and Commissions
Interactive Brokers Pricing scheme for Interactive Brokers is complex. It has three kinds of commissions applicable to U.S. equities:
- Fixed pricing per share for shares of $0.005 per share with the requirement of a $1.00 minimum and a maximum amount of one percent of the value of the trade. This includes all exchanges and the majority of regulatory charges.
- Pricing per share is dependent on the amount of orders placed monthly. The price ranges from a minimum amount of $0.0035 per share for shares less than 300,000 per month. It can go up to $0.0005 per share when there are more than 100 million shares traded each month. The minimum is $0.35 per transaction. It doesn't include regulatory and exchange fees.
- IBKR Lite is an IBKR Lite program that allows free trades in the U.S.--listed ETFs and equities (via IBKR Mobile and the Client Portal). Client Portal as well as IBKR Mobile). The trades are routed through IBKR Mobile to generate.
Ally Invest doesn't charge commissions on ETFs and stocks priced at $2 or higher. The lowest-priced securities will be charged with a $4.95 base commission and 1 cent for each share for the total amount. The definition of a "low-cost" security to be any equity less than $2. The general rule is that the commission charged cannot exceed 5 percent of the amount of the transaction.
Interactive Brokers Vs Ally Invest: Trading Platforms
Interactive Brokers offer different types of trading platforms. They have Client Portal which is a web based platform.
Trader Workstation is their flagship trading platform with a lot of features. They also have IBKR Mobile and IBKR GlobalTrader.
Ally Invest offers two different platforms for its customers: a desktop platform and a mobile app.
Ally Invest vs Interactive Brokers: Account Types
Interactive Brokers offer a wide variety of account types. They have accounts for individuals and for institutions. Some of the individual accounts are: Individual, Joint, IRA, Family Advisors and Non-Professional Advisors.
Some of the Institutional accounts are: Institutions Home, Registered Investment Advisors, Prop Traders, Hedge funds and many more.
Ally Invest vs Interactive Brokers: Customer Support
Ally Invest provides customer support by phone, seven days a week, from 7am-10pm ET. The broker-dealer's chat service is not available during normal business hours. Customers who are not from the United States can call one number. Support is also possible via e-mail.
Interactive Brokers is a global trading company. It has numerous phone numbers that can be reached by many nationalities. However, it does not provide 24/7 support for any of its clients. There is an online chat option. A chatbot is also available on the IB website.
None of the brokers manages a network of branches. It would be great to have physical branches.
Who should choose interactive brokers?
Interactive Brokers is the best choice for professionals investors, day traders, and anyone else who is serious about trading. Their flagship IB Trader platform is the best for tracking, investing and researching.
The commissions and fees of Interactive Brokers are very competitive. We found the lowest margin trading rates among all online brokers. You can access 33 international markets and a wide range of investment types through them. The experience is ideal for serious investors who will find almost everything they need.
Interactive Brokers offers many attractive benefits for both novice and experienced traders. IBKR Lite was designed to make it easier for beginners and provides commission-free trades on U.S. stocks, mutual funds and exchange-traded funds . Although they offer fewer features, the Interactive Brokers mobile platform and web platforms are easier to use than the desktop IB Trader Workstation. Interactive Brokers' AI tool is able to answer questions and execute trades.
Interactive Brokers can be overwhelming for beginners, especially if they are navigating to the IB Trader Workstation. It can be difficult to know where to start with the many research tools and features available. Although they offer a demo and many instructional videos, someone who wants to trade quickly may prefer to use other platforms.
Ally Invest vs Interactive Brokers: Which one to choose?
When it comes to online stock trading platforms, there are a lot of options to choose from. In this post, we'll compare Ally Invest and Interactive Brokers, two of the most popular platforms, to help you decide which is best for you. Both Ally Invest and Interactive Brokers offer a lot of great features for online stock trading.
But which one is best for you? It really depends on what you're looking for in a trading platform. If you're a beginner, Ally Invest might be a good choice for you. They offer a lot of educational resources to help you get started. And their fees are very reasonable, especially if you're just starting out. On the other hand, if you're an experienced trader, you might prefer Interactive Brokers. They offer more advanced features, like advanced charting and analysis tools. And they have very low fees, which can save you a lot of money if you're trading frequently.
Of course, there are other factors to consider when choosing a trading platform. But these are two of the most important things to keep in mind. So take some time to compare the different options and choose the one that's right for you.
Also Read: Ally Invest vs Vanguard