Didnt find what you needed Let us know. Brokerage Products: Not FDIC Insured middot No Bank Guarantee middot May Lose Value optionsXpress, Inc. makes no investment recommendations and does not provide financial, tax or legal advice. Content and tools are provided for educational and informational purposes only. Any stock, options, or futures symbols displayed are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to portray a recommendation to buy or sell a particular security. Products and services intended for U. S. customers and may not be available or offered in other jurisdictions. Online trading has inherent risk. System response and access times may vary due to market conditions, system performance, volume and other factors. Options and futures involve risk and are not suitable for all investors. Please read Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options and Risk Disclosure Statement for Futures and Options on our website, prior to applying for an account, also available by calling 888.280.8020 or 312.629.5455. An investor should understand these and additional risks before trading. Multiple leg options strategies will involve multiple commissions. optionsXpress, Inc. (Member SIPC ) and Charles Schwab Co. Inc. (Member SIPC ) are separate but affiliated companies and subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation. Nothing here is an offer or solicitation of securities, products or services by Charles Schwab Co. Inc. or optionsXpress, Inc. in any jurisdiction where their offer or sale is not qualified or exempt from registration. copy 2017 optionsXpress, Inc. All rights reserved. Member SIPC . Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors. Please read Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options by visiting optionsclearingaboutpublicationscharacter-risks. jsp or available by calling (888) 280-8020optionsXpress Ease of Use As far as ease-of-use is concerned, optionsXpress has clients covered. The brokers all-in-one trade ticket is the best available anywhere, the site design is clean, and optionsXpress is the only broker to organize all site tools by experience level and type on one page. In 2014, the broker launched IRIS, a notifications assistant for all accounts. IRIS is an eye icon that rests in the upper right corner of the clients website. It displays accounts alerts, trade notifications, and tools updates. Clicking the eye icon will take you to the IRIS Notification Center, where customizations can be made and notifications filtered. Lastly, optionsXpress offers what they call Walk Limit order types for options. To prevent adjusting limit orders as they sit live, optionsXpress will walk your order to try to get the most favorable price within the National Best Bid or Offer (NBBO). We awarded the Walk Limit order type the Best New Tool in our 2013 Review. Today, the order type continues to thrive, as it is now customizable and available in mobile. Platforms Tools optionsXpresss flagship platform, Xtend, is offered in both desktop form and as individual tools on the website itself. Overall, the desktop version of Xtend is just okay. While it was very visually appealing, we found it to be sluggish speed-wise, and the charting was difficult to use, not to mention much weaker than charting available elsewhere. Another aspect of the Xtend desktop platform we did not particularly care for was the layout, which forces preset sizes and limited numbers of windows. Tools can be popped out of the platform area, but in the end, it is a poor user experience. If there is one positive highlight, it is the trade ticket functionality, which we found to be a similar experience to the website. Speaking of the website, the tools and functionality here were much smoother. By clicking the Toolbox link within the websites main header, clients are taken to a page that lists all available tools, their skill level, and type. Some tools, such as the Chart Patterns tool, are basic iterations of licensed third-party services, while others, such as Idea Hub, are more innovative and interesting. Idea Hub is a scanning tool that quickly breaks down potential trade ideas based on current market activity. All trade ideas can then be assessed with profit and loss charts alongside probability charts, then moved to a prefilled trade ticket for order entry. The tool can also be found in all mobile apps. We also enjoyed the options analysis tools available. The Trade and Probability calculator whips up profit and loss charts alongside probability charts for any trades being considered. Similar to Idea Hub, the Strategy Scanner is another useful options tool that generates trade ideas based on market outlook, risk, and symbol. Other Notes Although Charles Schwab owns and operates optionsXpress, the two brokers remain independent. As a Charles Schwab client, you can log in and then utilize the optionsXpress website however, as an optionsXpress client, you cannot access the Charles Schwab website without a Schwab account. As far as customer service is concerned, clients do not need to worry. After numerous support tests across phone, email, and live chat, we found optionsXpress above the industry average for overall quality. Mobile trading with optionsXpress is also a pleasant experience. The broker has apps for iPhone, Android, and iPad, as well as a mobile website. Besides ease of placing orders, charting was a big standout for us, as the broker supports 45 technical indicatorsstudies. Closing Thoughts Investors willing to pay more per options trade will receive ample functionality to justify the cost. optionsXpress is a high-quality offering in nearly every area except its active trader platform Xtend. optionsXpress likes to innovate with its tools and is likely to continue thriving under the Charles Schwab corporate umbrella. That said, clients should understand that in the next several years, optionsXpress will eventually be shut down. The best of what optionsXpress has to offer is being integrated into the Charles Schwab experience, and the final product will be better for it. Clients migrating to Charles Schwab can rest assured they will be in very good hands. Reviewed by Blain Reinkensmeyer Blain heads research at StockBrokers and has been involved in the markets since placing his first stock trade back in 2001. He developed StockBrokerss annual review format six years ago which is respected by broker executives as the most thorough in the industry. Currently maintaining funded accounts with more than a dozen different US regulated online brokers, hes executed thousands of trades through his career and enjoys sharing his experiences through his personal blog, StockTrader. Ratings Overall optionsXpress did not participate in the 2016 Online Broker Review, as a result the following data may not be up to date. optionsXpress did not participate in the 2016 Online Broker Review, as a result the following data may not be up to date. Commission Notes optionsXpress is an online broker with a more complex commissions structure. While known as one of the more pricey discount brokers, optionsXpress offers lower commissions rates for investors that trade more often on a per quarter basis. There are added fees though depending on the size of the order, amongst other situations. Details below. Stock Trades - optionsXpress announced a new lower flat commission rate of 8.95 per trade for all clients on 112911. There are no additional fees for broker assisted trades or for trading stocks under 1 per share (including OTCBB). For commission-free ETFs, optionsXpress offers the same 182 ETFs as its parent company Charles Schwab. Trade fees are reimbursed as a automatically credited commission rebate. Options Trades - optionsXpress charges 1.50 per contract if under 35 options trades per quarter with a 14.95 minimum. Otherwise it is only 1.25 per contract with a 12.95 minimum. The broker does not charge a options base fee. Thus, based on the 1.50 per contract rate, a 5 contract order would cost 12.95 (the minimum) and a 20 contract purchase would cost 30.00 (20 x 1.50). Exercises and Assignments are an additional 9.95 for currently active options traders (see above for designation), and 14.95 for non-active options traders. To buy-to-close penny options (contracts under .05), the rate is 4.95 .50 per contract. Other Investments - optionsXpress also offers mutual funds, bonds, and futures trading. Mutual funds cost 9.95 per trade plus any additional loads or fees charged by the fund itself. Trade Commissions Breakdown Select one or more of these brokers to compare against optionsXpress. All pricing data was obtained from a published web site as of 2162016 and is believed to be accurate, but is not guaranteed. The StockBrokers staff is constantly working with its online broker representatives to obtain the latest pricing data. If you believe any data listed above is inaccurate, please contact us using the link at the bottom of this page. For stock trade rates, advertised pricing is for a standard order size of 500 shares of stock priced at 30 per share. For options orders, an options regulatory fee per contract may apply. arrowdropup Back to top Disclaimer . It is our organizations primary mission to provide reviews, commentary, and analysis that are unbiased and objective. While StockBrokers has all data verified by industry participants, it can vary from time to time. Operating as an online business, this site may be compensated through third party advertisers. Our receipt of such compensation shall not be construed as an endorsement or recommendation by StockBrokers, nor shall it bias our reviews, analysis, and opinions. Please see our General Disclaimers for more information. Reink Media Group LLC. All rights reserved.
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