Brokers Offering Investment Education
Trading is a fairly complex activity, so make sure it's something you know a lot about before you seriously start participating in it. And if you're interested in investing, it's something you want to understand fully before you decide to commit your money to this effort. There's certainly a lot of opportunities to learn how to invest and trade. Investing is a lifelong learning process and brokers that offer a multitude of educational opportunities are worthy of your attention. Learning to invest in the market effectively requires the right guidance and resources. Following are some brokers that can offer you guidance.
TradeKing
- Access to the in-depth Technical Analysis Education section gives you the opportunity to browse through topics such as classic patterns, short-term patterns, indicators, oscillators and more.
- Learn all of the basics by watching the many top-rated investment videos from TradeKing in the comfort of your home.
- Get all of the latest tips, tricks and strategies for trading from the experts at TradeKing.
- You can attend live events either online or in person to improve your trading knowledge.
- Free access to blogs, forums, and other community based educational opportunities that allow investors to learn from the experiences of others.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $4.95 | $4.95 | $0.65 | $0.00 | $4.95 | $14.95 (no load) |
Scottrade
- Scottrade offers you a complete library of interesting articles designed to help educate you and assist you in making confident investment decisions.
- Each month Scottrade investors are treated to Know How News, a newsletter dedicated to market news, professional perspectives and expert insights.
- Free access to discussions in the Scottrade Community, giving investors the opportunity to learn from the experiences of other active traders.
- Select informative webcasts from Scottrade’s extensive library, or plan your financial future with interactive calculator applications.
- From investing basics to detailed analysis and research, the Investment Education section lets you learn at your own pace by offering a combination of tools, content, and visual educational modules.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $7.00 | $7.00 | $1.25 | $500.00 | $27.00 | $0.00 - $17.00 |
OptionsHouse
- OptionsHouse provides webinar-style educational modules designed to help investors advance their expertise in their chosen investment style.
- Get access to many external sources for educational materials from investing basics to advanced concepts such as index options and LEAPS.
- 14 day free access to personalized investment coaching and mentoring by investment professionals.
- Free access to a comprehensive trading platform for real time, hands-on investment education from order entry to strategy development.
- OptionsHouse Investment Coaching is an online learning environment that combines an online learning module, live sessions and one on one mentoring.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $3.95 | $8.50 | $0.15 | $0.00 | $3.95 | $9.95 |
Zecco
- Zecco has built a stock education center that brings investors what they need to become better investors including videos, articles, and interactive tools.
- ZeccoShare offers free access to forums and other community driven applications that allow investors the opportunity to learn from each other.
- Interactive goal setting tools allow you to identify and set financial goals and also lets you map out a plan to reach them.
- The comprehensive glossary takes the mystique out of learning the language of trading.
- Zecco offers an entire educational suite devoted strictly to learning the ins and outs of forex trading.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $4.50 | $4.50 | $0.50 | $0.00 | $19.99 | $10.00 |
E*Trade
- E*Trade offers the opportunity to have your portfolio analyzed either through an online review or through working one on one with an investment professional.
- Over 140 articles are offered free to E*Trade customers; the materials deliver the information you need to make good investment decisions.
- Free webinars, online tutorials, and articles are available to help you learn how to achieve investment success.
- The E*Trade rating system allows you to browse through articles with ease and select the ones that are the most helpful to you.
- E*Trade offers even the most experienced investors the opportunity to get professional advice through the Personalized Guidance program.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $7.99 - $9.99 | $7.99 - $9.99 | $0.75 | $500.00 | $45.00 | $0.00 - $19.99 |
OptionsXpress
- The OptionsXpress Education Center reflects commitment to trading education, with a vast library of regularly updated articles and tutorials covering topics that include: options, futures, stocks, bonds and mutual funds.
- The XpressMethod was developed by combining tutorials, webinars, and workshops to help teach you how to engage in the online trading process.
- OptionsXpress offers one-on-one guidance with a personal coaching program.
- Trading concepts are brought to life with daily live and on-demand webinars.
- OptionsXpress offers live, on-site presentations detailing innovative methods for taking control of your online trading.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $9.95 | $0.00 | $1.50 | $0.00 | $9.95 | $9.95 + LOAD FEE |
tradeMONSTER
- tradeMONSTER continually offers webinars and live events to educate investors; these events cover a broad range of topics ranging from using the tradeMONSTER platform to more advanced concepts in options trading.
- Informative Basics articles will introduce you to investment terminology, basic concepts, the mechanics of trading and much more, which will help you develop solid investing practices.
- Articles on investment strategy offer a learn at your own pace opportunity by helping you access a broad range of options articles and video tutorials.
- A comprehensive glossary section helps even the most experienced trader decode technical trading terms.
- tradeMONSTER's wide range of educational resources will help you build your expertise and understanding of basic and advanced core concepts.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Broker Assisted | Fund Trades |
| $7.50 | $0.00 | $0.50 | $2,000.00 | $7.50 | $0.00 - $15.00 |
ShareBuilder
- ShareBuilder’s free informative, six-part guide "The Essential Guide to Stock Market Investing" will help you better understand the risks and rewards of investing in stocks.
- Access to a complete suite of educational tools and articles for IPO opportunities.
- ShareBuilder offers a comprehensive library of educational articles designed to help novice investors navigate the complex world of investment trading.
- Access to advanced interactive tools designed to help you visualize the impact of your trading decisions, from profit and loss to tax implications and more.
- Free access to professional analysis and charting designed to help investors make the best decisions when it comes to choosing good investments.
| Stock Trades | Options Base | Options Contract | Minimum Deposit | Fund Trades |
| $9.95 | $9.95 | $1.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 - $19.95 |
TradeStation
- TradeStation Tutorials provide access to free, on-demand educational modules on a variety of topics including the TradeStation Environment, Order Entry and Market Analysis.
- TradeStation QuickTips offer a quick and efficient way to learn how to use the many advanced features of TradeStation, including the interactive tool suite and the online trading platform.
- TradeStation Labs offer an in-depth look at many investment topics including spreads, strategies, and charting techniques.
- Live on the Web offers interactive, webinar style tutorials designed to help traders of all levels improve and refine their trading strategies.
- Live courses reinforce good trading practices and introduce advanced trading concepts.
| Stock Trades | Options Base |
| $6.99 - $9.99 | $1.00 |
Interactive Brokers
- Stay connected to real time market action with our options and currency commentaries, which provide real time educational opportunities for traders at all levels.
- The Interactive Brokers Student Trading Lab provides details on trading agreements with post secondary educational institutions all around the world.
- Quick start guides and product users' guides help you get started in minutes.
- Traders' University offers a series of webinar-style courses designed to provide basic trading knowledge and offers downloadable trading tools that you can place on your desktop for easy access.
- Interactive Brokers offers an educational forum for customers to exchange experiences and information with other IB customers.
Where To Get An Investment Education
Stock market investing success can be highly elusive. Some traders spend years learning how to perfect strategies while many others never get the hang of it. As a matter of fact, an overwhelming 80% of investment and stock traders end up losing money in the market. So, how does an investor or trader get an edge? By continuously honing their skills and learning their craft.
More and more traders, especially those that rely upon do-it-yourself online models, are finding that that they are the most successful when they utilize brokers that offer cutting edge educational opportunities. These materials are designed to offer advice and sound investment principles to help traders succeed.
The main differences among brokers that offer learning opportunities are in how those opportunities are presented. A good brokerage will offer you a variety of educational channels in order to provide you with an effective training environment. You can learn by reading well written and researched articles as well as by using a more interactive environment. The key to finding the right broker for you is to find one that offers you the opportunity to gain knowledge and experience, hopefully at little or no cost. Here are a few tips on finding a broker with outstanding resources to help you beef up your knowledge base:
- Determine which educational methods work best for you. If you thrive in an environment that offers thousands of written articles involving the many different aspects of trading, then look for a broker that offers articles written by a variety of experts. If interactive tools are your thing, then find a broker that offers a virtual trading platform, strategy builders and analyzers and profit and loss calculators so that you can see your trade at work and how effective your strategies are.
- Find a broker with access to mentors. Educational material is good, but brokers that offer an inside perspective on why certain methods are effective or why a scenario didn’t work out as planned are particularly useful. Many brokers offer a multitude of educational materials that address the what, but few offer resources that address the why. Be careful though. Many brokers may offer access to professional traders but at a steep price. Ideally, access to a professional mentor should be free.
- The best brokers have all of the above. The best brokers in the industry know that traders who are actively engaged in their trading strategies are the ones that ultimately become successful and earn more money for the brokerage. Therefore, it’s a win-win situation for them to offer as many educational opportunities as possible. These are the brokers that offer free access to thousands of trading publications, a suite of interactive tools and even access to mentors and coaching opportunities that will give you a different perspective on your trading.
It’s true that every investor is different. Some want to take a more hands on approach to trading while others are content to stand back and let someone else take the wheel. But, no matter what type of investor you are, you can be sure that those that choose to refrain from becoming knowledgeable in trading will be the ones that end up on the losing end of the spectrum. Education and experience are the keys to trading success, so make sure that the broker you choose meets your expectations before you open an account.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
There’s some good information here that I will definitely recommend to my readers at fitfreaks.co.uk; will have them check your site for brokerage, investment and trading related info. The one thing I want to know is whether you have rated the brokers (in this page) by yourself, or are these viewers’ choices.
@Daniel,
The ratings here are currently determined by our editorial team based on reader behavior, commentary and yes, our own assessments from research and personal experience combined. But we are also working on features that will allow readers to rate the companies and sites that we showcase in our lists.