OptionsXpress are one of the more established names in the brokerage community having been around since 2000. In March 2011, they merged with Charles Schwab.

Fees & Commissions

OptionsXpress have competitive commissions with stocks costing a flat $8.95 per trade. You can also trade options, futures and bonds for $1.25, $6.95 and $9.95 respectively.

OptionsXpress Pros

OptionsXpress offer one of the most intuitive and feature rich trading platforms around. Unlike many brokers, their platform is not reserved for investors with the deepest pockets, all investors are allowed to use it.

Exceptional Customer Service

I have always found the customer service to be excellent with OptionsXpress. I have spoken to them online via their live person support and also over the phone. I have always spoken to a knowledge individual who has always been able to address any issues in a professional and prompt fashion.

No Deposit Required to Open a Cash Account

Many brokers require you to deposit funds into your account prior to opening. Some people don’t see this as a problem since you’ll have to transfer money into your account before you start trading anyway.

Personally, I would not be prepared to trade with real money until I was very familiar with a trading platform. Trading successfully is challenging enough without making execution errors because you are not familiar with your trading platform.

Instructor Led Classes

OptionsXpress offers a complete range of training webinars and tutorials that are considerably better than I have seen from any other discount broker. They cover everything from how to execute your first trade to developing a successful trading strategy. These are not only useful to beginners but also more seasoned traders who can learn some pretty advanced options trading techniques. Trading is not easy and you never stop learning, so resources like these are often worth a look.

Free Broker Assisted Trades

If you prefer to trade over the telephone, you wont be charged extra for this like with many discount brokers.

International Investing

OptionsXpress are one of the few brokers that take international clients. So if you are not in the US and would like to trade US equities, OptionsXpress could be perfect for you.

Wide Range of Instruments Offered

OptionsXpress offer a far wider range of instruments than most stock brokers. IRAs, futures, options, bonds, ETFs, you name it, they probably offer it.

Numberous Awards Won

OptionsXpress have won many awards from Barrons, Kiplinger, Options Insider and Smart Money.  Most recently they were rated 4 stars for options traders by Barrons.

OptionsXpress Cons

No online trading community

This may be a drawback for some traders, especially those starting out. Having discussions with other traders can often be helpful as it gives you other peoples insights into the market. Personally, it is not a big deal for me, as I find its often just noise that distracts me from making my own decisions, but that is just me.

Should I Trade with OptionsXpress?