Investors should know the best online stock brokers to trade with. The following top stock brokers offer investors the most value for their portfolios. Some online stock brokers are known for their award winning customer service while others are known for inexpensive stock trades or powerful trading tools. This guide will highlight some of the best stock brokers available today with tips and advice for selecting a new broker.

1. TD Ameritrade

TD Ameritrade was ranked # 1 Online Broker 2014 by StockBrokers.com* even with its $9.99 trades. Its platforms thinkorswim (ranked #1 Desktop Platform) and Trade Architect are loaded with tools and features. Add to that TD Ameritrades education, robust research, investment guidance, etc and what you pay for is what you get.

TD Ameritrade Offer: Trade free for 60 days + Get up to $600 with any new account.

2. ETRADE

ETRADE shines for its ease of use, platforms & tools, and its top notch mobile offering. The brokers customizable client dashboard, ETRADE 360, won Best Client Dashboard and ETRADE Mobile was rated #1 Smartphone App in the StockBrokers.com 2014 Broker Review *.

ETRADE Offer: Trade free for 60 days (500 free trades max) + Get up to $600 with any new account.

3. OptionsHouse

OptionsHouse was rated # 1 for Options Trading in the StockBrokers.com 2014 Broker Review*. OptionsHouse offers $4.95 flat fee trades alongside options trades for $4.95 + $.50 per contract. Their web based platform tradeMONSTER is also known for its ease of use which makes for simple, discounted trading.

OptionsHouse Offer: Trade Free for 90 Days .

4. TradeKing

TradeKing  offers investors great customer service with a 4.5 star rating, competitive trade commissions, quality research for stocks, ETFs, alongside mutual funds, and is home to the Trader Network with thousands of investors all sharing trade ideas, research, and market analysis.

TradeKing Offer: Get $150 in Transfer Fees Reimbursed .

5. Scottrade

Scottrade was awarded Best Overall Client Experience 2014 with its top of line customer support. The broker has over 500 local branch offices for personal service the largest network out of any of the online brokers and offers competitive $7 flat-fee stock trades.

Scottrade Offer: Switch and have up to $100 in transfer fees reimbursed .

Comparing Stock Brokers

When choosing your online broker, here are some great tips to remember to help you decide:

1. Narrow down a list of what is most important to you Just like when shopping for a new home, making a focus list of wants will help you separate choices to ultimately make a decision. For an investor that travels often for example, mobile trading will be more important than the cost of placing trades.

2. Choose a broker with high acclaim and that is well known Larger, established online brokers almost always offer more features, trade tools, better customer service, etc. Some brokers have millions of clients and these are the ones that almost always deliver a high quality experience for clients.

3. Be aware of miscellaneous fees Be conscious of what fees the broker is charging. I do not recommend any smaller brokers on this site specifically for this reason. There are usually many hidden fees that are only found by digging through the broker website. To see what extra fees brokers charge, I recommend reading through the full length stock broker reviews on StockBrokers.com.

Full Broker Chart

Compare online brokers also with the comparison chart here on StockTradingToGo that includes 9 online brokers. All the online stock brokers and discount stock brokers mentioned above are featured.

There are star ratings, pricing and fees information as well as a features overview section to see every brokers latest promotional offer.

Best Stock Brokers

Having the best stock broker to serve individual needs is very important for any investor. For example, cheap trades most often come at the expense of less research tools and a more simplified trade platform. Consider these 12 key factors to help compare all stock brokers and ultimately find the best broker to suite your needs.

1. Trade Commissions

What does it cost to buy shares of stock? Does the fee change based on the type of order or size of order? The best any investor can get from a broker are what are known as flat-fee trades, ie charging a flat rate regardless of the type, price of the stock, or size of the order.

2. Customer Service

When picking up the phone or emailing a broker, is a well trained customer service representative ready to assist? How any investor is treated as a client is more important to some than others. But, even for those that dont rely on customer support that often, to know that they have award winning service there when they need it is comforting.

3. Trading Tools