E*TRADE Fees 2026 — Complete Fee Schedule Explained

E*TRADE charges $0 for stock and ETF trades with no account minimum and no annual fee. Active options traders benefit from a volume discount — $0.65 per contract dropping to $0.50 for clients placing 30+ trades per quarter. The main cost drawbacks are the $75 ACAT-out transfer fee and the $19.99 non-NTF mutual fund transaction fee.

E*TRADE Fee Schedule at a Glance

Trading Commissions

Stocks and ETFs: $0

All US-listed stocks and ETFs trade commission-free at ETRADE. There is no account minimum, no per-share fee, and no restriction on trade size. Both the standard ETRADE platform and the professional-grade Power E*TRADE platform offer $0 equity commissions.

Broker-assisted trades cost $25. Placing a trade by phone or through a representative adds a $25 surcharge. Use the platform or app for all standard trades to avoid it.

Options: $0.65/Contract, Dropping to $0.50 for Active Traders

E*TRADE’s options pricing has a volume tier:

The discount is $0.15 per contract. At 100 contracts, that is $15 less than the standard rate.

Example: You sell 40 covered call contracts in October. Fee: 40 × $0.50 = $20.00 (active trader rate). At the standard $0.65 rate, that same trade would cost $26.00.

Fidelity and Merrill Edge list a flat $0.65 per contract.

Mutual Funds: $0 for No-Load NTF Funds

E*TRADE’s pricing page lists $0 for no-load, no-transaction-fee funds and says to see the prospectus for the amount of any load on load funds.

Core Portfolios: 0.30% Per Year

E*TRADE’s Core Portfolios is a robo-advisor with a $500 minimum and a 0.30% annual management fee. This positions it between Schwab Intelligent Portfolios ($0 advisory fee but higher cash allocation) and Fidelity Go (free under $25K, 0.35% above).

Core Portfolios includes a socially responsible investing (SRI) portfolio option at no additional cost. The 0.30% fee is your total advisory cost — Core Portfolios selects low-cost ETFs, so underlying fund expense ratios are typically 0.05–0.15%.

The ACAT-Out Fee: $75 — E*TRADE’s Biggest Cost Drawback

E*TRADE charges $75 to transfer your account to another brokerage — the highest ACAT-out fee among major brokerages:

This fee is significant if you’re building a portfolio over time and might want to switch brokerages later. Many receiving brokerages offer transfer-fee reimbursements to win your assets — if you plan to move, check whether the receiving brokerage will cover the $75 before initiating the transfer.

Note: Closing individual positions and withdrawing cash does not trigger the ACAT fee. The $75 applies only to full account ACAT transfers.

Wire Transfer Fees

The $25 outgoing wire fee matches Schwab and Merrill Edge. Most clients use free ACH transfers; wires are needed only for same-day large transfers.

Margin Rates

ETRADE’s margin rates are competitive with other major brokerages and tiered by debit balance. Visit etrade.com for current rates. Active traders should compare ETRADE margin rates against Interactive Brokers, which typically offers the lowest margin rates in the industry.

What E*TRADE Doesn’t Charge

• No account minimum
• No annual maintenance fee
• No inactivity fee
• No DRIP fee — dividend reinvestment is free
• No incoming wire fee
• No fee to use Power E*TRADE — the advanced platform is free for all E*TRADE clients

E*TRADE vs Competitor Fees

E*TRADE’s options volume discount is a plus. Its $75 fee for a full transfer out is a cost to weigh if you may move your account later.

The Real Cost of Investing at E*TRADE

For a standard ETF investor, E*TRADE costs $0 per year in explicit fees. The meaningful costs:

1. $75 ACAT-out — if you ever switch brokerages
2. Mutual fund loads — load funds carry the sales charge in the fund’s prospectus
3. 0.30% Core Portfolios fee — if using the robo-advisor

Worked example: Alex holds $30,000 at ETRADE in three ETFs. He places 8 trades per year (all ETF rebalancing). Annual cost: $0 in commissions + $0 in maintenance fees = $0 out of pocket. His ETF expense ratios go to the fund companies, not ETRADE.

See the full E*TRADE review and compare all options at the best brokerage accounts guide.

Written by WealthVieu

WealthVieu researches and writes data-driven personal finance guides using primary sources including the IRS, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve, and Census Bureau.