To help you find the best discount brokers in 2022 for citizens in Pakistan, we went ahead and did the research for you. So what did we focus on? Fees, fees and fees. We don't like them and surely you don't either. After carefully checking 101 brokers for fees, 5 made it to the top. And now, without further ado...
The top 5 picks for the best discount brokers for Pakistani citizens in 2022:
- Interactive Brokers is the best discount broker in Pakistan in 2022. Low trading and non-trading fees, free stock and ETF trading for US customers.
- Alpaca Trading takes second place. Free stock and ETF trading, low non-trading fees.
- TradeStation Global rounds out the top three. Low trading and average non-trading fees.
- Zacks Trade is ranked fourth. Low trading and non-trading fees, high fund fees.
- CapTrader just made it to the list at number five. Average trading and non-trading fees.
| Broker | Info | Fees score | |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Interactive Brokers | International broker providing all asset classes | 4.5 stars |
| #2 | Alpaca Trading | US API broker | 4.9 stars |
| #3 | TradeStation Global | UK-based global stockbroker | 3.9 stars |
| #4 | Zacks Trade | US discount broker | 4.2 stars |
| #5 | CapTrader | Global broker providing all asset classes | 3.5 stars |
What makes a good discount broker? Well, did we mention low fees? This includes commissions, financing rates, and, let's not forget, non-trading fees like inactivity or withdrawal fees. The table above gives you a good hint; the scores include all fees, with 5.0 being the best. Besides low fees, a good discount broker should also offer access to a lot of markets and products, because providing low fees in more than one asset class is not an easy job. All brokers in our list offer real stocks, but we also looked into whether you can trade currencies, options or mutual funds.
These features may sound obvious and easy to list, but they're hard to figure out. We are testing brokers based on close to 500 criteria, using real accounts and real money. We know what's going on.
For a tailored recommendation, check out our broker finder tool. Answer 4 simple questions and get a list of the most relevant brokers.
And now, let's see the best discount brokers for Pakistani citizens in 2022 one by one, starting with the winner, Interactive Brokers.
#1 Best discount broker
Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers, one of the biggest US-based discount brokers, was founded in 1977. The broker is regulated by several financial authorities globally, including top-tier ones like the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Given that the broker has licenses from multiple top-tier regulators, Interactive Brokers is considered safe. The fact that it has a long track record and publicly disclosed financials while being listed on a stock exchange all point to IB being a safe service provider.
Interactive Brokers recently launched a new app for global stock trading: read our review of IBKR GlobalTrader.
In addition, Interactive Brokers also has an app you can use for ESG investing: read our review of IMPACT by Interactive Brokers.
#1 Interactive Brokers
Fees
Interactive Brokers has low trading fees and the best margin rates in the industry. For US clients, stock and ETF trading is free if they choose the Lite plan.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Low trading fees | None |
| • Free stock and ETF trading for US clients | |
| • Low margin rates |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $0.0 | $1.5 | $1.0 | $2.0 |
| UK stock | $4.2 | - | $2.4 | $16.8 | $11.2 |
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $10.4 | - | $10.4 | - | $13.9 |
| US stock index options | $6.5 | - | $15.0 | $7.8 | $35.0 |
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | - | $25.0 | $27.5 | $15.0 |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
#1 Interactive Brokers
Markets and products
At Interactive Brokers, you have access to an extremely wide range of markets and all product types are available.
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CFDs | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
#2 Best discount broker
Alpaca Trading
Alpaca Trading is a commission-free API stockbroker founded in 2015. Alpaca is based in San Mateo, CA. It is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), both top-tier regulators that bolster Alpaca Trading's safety for investors and traders.
Alpaca provides access to US stock markets, historical data, and fundamental data through their API. Alpaca's founders believe their software allows retail traders to capitalize on the machine learning and automation that historically only institutional investors have been able to use. Coders have the opportunity to build their own algorithms and contribute to the Alpaca developer community. Alpaca founders have expressed interest in eventually opening up pre-made algorithms to non-coders, but for now, their platform also includes capabilities for manual order-entry and research.
#2 Alpaca Trading
Fees
Alpaca Trading offers zero-commission stock and ETF trading and low margin rates. Non-trading fees are also competitive as no fee is charged for inactivity or most withdrawals.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Commission-free Stock and ETF Trading | None |
| • No inactivity fee | |
| • No withdrawal fee |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $0.0 | $1.5 | $1.0 | $2.0 |
| UK stock | $4.2 | - | $2.4 | $16.8 | $11.2 |
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $10.4 | - | $10.4 | - | $13.9 |
| US stock index options | $6.5 | - | $15.0 | $7.8 | $35.0 |
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | - | $25.0 | $27.5 | $15.0 |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
#2 Alpaca Trading
Markets and products
Alpaca Trading currently only provides access to US stocks and ETFs. Other asset classes, like options or bonds, as well as international market coverage, are not available.
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CFDs | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
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#3 Best discount broker
TradeStation Global
TradeStation Global is a brand of TradeStation International Ltd, which is based in the UK and is regulated by the top-tier Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
TradeStation Global is a combined product offered by Interactive Brokers (IB) and TradeStation for clients outside the EU/EEA. Here are its most important elements:
- The account opening, deposit/withdrawal options, and available products are the same as at Interactive Brokers.
- You can use both Interactive Brokers's and TradeStation's own desktop platform.
- TradeStation Global charges its own fees, and offers its own customer support and educational tools.
Both Interactive Brokers and TradeStation are reputable brokers, regulated by top-tier financial authorities. While Interactive Brokers is listed on the NASDAQ, TradeStation itself is not: only TradeStation's parent company Monex is listed, on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
#3 TradeStation Global
Fees
TradeStation Global has low trading fees, especially for stocks and ETFs. There's no inactivity fee and the first withdrawal each month is free. However, mutual fund fees are high.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Low trading fees | • High fund fees |
| • Low non-trading fees |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $0.0 | $1.5 | $1.0 | $2.0 |
| UK stock | $4.2 | - | $2.4 | $16.8 | $11.2 |
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $10.4 | - | $10.4 | - | $13.9 |
| US stock index options | $6.5 | - | $15.0 | $7.8 | $35.0 |
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | - | $25.0 | $27.5 | $15.0 |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
#3 TradeStation Global
Markets and products
With TradeStation Global, you can access the same range of product types and exchanges as at Interactive Brokers. This selection is one of the widest among online brokers.
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CFDs | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
#4 Best discount broker
Zacks Trade
Zacks Trade is a US-based discount broker and a division of LBMZ Securities. LBMZ Securities was founded in 1978 and is regulated by the top-tier US financial authorities SEC and FINRA.
LBMZ Securities's clearing and execution services are provided through Interactive Brokers, a global stockbroker regulated by many top-tier financial authorities globally.
If you're familiar with the services of Interactive Brokers, you might notice that many of Zacks Trade's services are the same. To sum up:
- Zacks Trade has its own, different fee structure, product selection, educational tools and customer support. Unlike at Interactive Brokers, trading forex, CFDs and futures is not supported.
- The account opening and deposit/withdrawal processes, trading platforms and research tools are the same as at Interactive Brokers.
Zacks Trade is considered safe because it has a long track record and is overseen by top-tier regulators.
Since Zacks is more expensive than IB, why would anyone favor Zacks over Interactive Brokers? We found two possible reasons:
- Zacks falls under SEC regulation and users have SIPC protection, no matter where they live
- Zacks provides free broker-assisted trading
#4 Zacks Trade
Fees
Zacks Trade has low trading and non-trading fees. Its stock, ETF and bond trading fees are especially low, while mutual fund fees are quite high.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Low stock and ETF fees / Free stock trading | • High fund fees |
| • No withdrawal fee | |
| • No inactivity fee |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $0.0 | $1.5 | $1.0 | $2.0 |
| UK stock | $4.2 | - | $2.4 | $16.8 | $11.2 |
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $10.4 | - | $10.4 | - | $13.9 |
| US stock index options | $6.5 | - | $15.0 | $7.8 | $35.0 |
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | - | $25.0 | $27.5 | $15.0 |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
#4 Zacks Trade
Markets and products
Zacks Trade offers international stocks, ETFs and bonds, which is fairly unique for a US broker, as well as US funds and options. However, you cannot trade futures or forex.
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CFDs | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
#5 Best discount broker
CapTrader
CapTrader was founded in Germany in 1997. It is an introducing broker to Interactive Brokers (IB), one of the largest brokers in the world.
- The account opening and deposit/withdrawal options are very similar to Interactive Brokers.
- The trading platforms and available products are exactly the same as at Interactive Brokers.
- Fees, however, are charged by CapTrader, not by Interactive Brokers.
- CapTrader offers its own customer support and educational tools.
CapTrader is considered safe because it has a long track record and is regulated by top-tier financial authorities. After Brexit, European users of CapTrader are being served through the Irish licence of Interactive Brokers.
#5 CapTrader
Fees
CapTrader has low stock and ETF fees, and margin rates are also low. On the other hand, forex, options and futures fees are high.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Low stock and ETF fees | • High forex fees |
| • One free withdrawal per month | |
| • Low margin rates |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $0.0 | $1.5 | $1.0 | $2.0 |
| UK stock | $4.2 | - | $2.4 | $16.8 | $11.2 |
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $10.4 | - | $10.4 | - | $13.9 |
| US stock index options | $6.5 | - | $15.0 | $7.8 | $35.0 |
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | - | $25.0 | $27.5 | $15.0 |
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
#5 CapTrader
Markets and products
Through CapTrader, you can access an extremely wide range of markets, and virtually all product types imaginable.
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CFDs | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
Best discount brokers
What makes a good discount broker?
You're probably wondering how we came up with this list. To get a better understanding, let's discuss the following three points:
- What is a discount brokerage?
- Why do we think these brokers are reliable?
- What were the most important criteria when we picked the best discount brokers?
What is a discount broker?
A discount broker is a brokerage company that executes your buy and sell orders at a low trading fee. Discount brokers can afford to charge lower fees because, unlike full-service brokers, they usually don't provide extra services such as research, personal investment advice, tax planning or robo-advisory.
The difference between full-service brokers and discount brokers has blurred somewhat in recent years. Discount brokers started to offer extra services as well, like research; while full-service brokers started to lower their fees. The traditional brokerage and wealth management industry is under fee pressure from increasingly cost-effective online broker companies.
Many US brokers have slashed their fees to zero and now promote commission-free trading, following in the footsteps of brokers such as Robinhood. Drawbacks for some of these commission-free brokers include the limited number of assets you can trade (for example, mutual funds are less likely to be offered), so some investors and traders still prefer traditional discount brokers, where order execution also tends to be better compared with zero-commission brokers.
Are these brokers reliable?
These brokers are all considered reliable. They are regulated by at least one top-tier financial authority. We at BrokerChooser distinguish between mid-tier and top-tier regulators, based on various factors with the most important being the investor protection amount.
How did BrokerChooser pick the best discount brokers?
We tested brokers based on almost 500 criteria, using real accounts and real money. When we selected the best discount brokers, the primary selection criteria were fees. Importantly, we only included brokers where you can trade real stocks. This means that we excluded brokers where stocks were only offered through CFDs.
We calculated the rankings based on trading fees for all asset classes, such as stock fees; as well as fees not directly related to trading, such as withdrawal fees. We also assigned a higher score to brokers that offer a wide range of asset classes, because providing low fees in more than one asset class is not an easy job and definitely a big plus for investors.
Lastly, we incorporated additional criteria to measure the overall quality of the broker: if the account opening process, customer service and other aspects of the broker are high quality, they all boosted the overall score.
Best discount brokers
Bottom line
You saw the details, now let's zoom out. Here are the best discount brokers in 2022 for citizens in Pakistan:
| Interactive Brokers | Alpaca Trading | TradeStation Global | Zacks Trade | CapTrader | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fees score | 4.5 stars | 4.9 stars | 3.9 stars | 4.2 stars | 3.5 stars |
| Stock and ETF fee scores | 4.8 stars | 5.0 stars | 4.7 stars | 4.5 stars | 4.5 stars |
| Markets and products score | 5.0 stars | 2.0 stars | 4.9 stars | 3.5 stars | 5.0 stars |
| Deposit and withdrawal score | 3.0 stars | 1.8 stars | 3.5 stars | 3.5 stars | 3.0 stars |
| Account opening score | 3.2 stars | 4.8 stars | 2.5 stars | 2.5 stars | 1.0 stars |
| Visit broker | Visit broker | Visit broker | Visit broker | Visit broker |
Interactive Brokers is our winner, the best discount broker in Pakistan in 2022. Low trading and non-trading fees, free stock and ETF trading for US customers.
All of these brokers are considered a great choice. Pick the winner or any runner-up, and save a lot of money on fees. Let us know what you think in the comment section.
Still unsure? Check out our broker finder tool and find the best broker for you, or learn more about how to invest your money.
