Fidelity Review 2019

Fidelity was founded in 1946 and it is one of the biggest US stockbrokers. It is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Fidelity is considered safe because it has a long track record and is regulated by top-tier regulators.

Recommended for beginners, investors, traders looking for solids research and great trading platforms.

Fidelity pros and cons

Fidelity's research is at high-quality and channels a lot of tools, including trading ideas, detailed fundamental data, and a good charting. The web trading platform is easy-to-use with advanced order types. The stock offers covers many international stock exchanges, not just the US market.

Fidelity doesn't provide credit/debit cards for money transfer. The account opening is not fully digital. The fees for mutual funds are quite high.

Compare to other brokers

Fidelity review
Fees 4 stars

Fidelity has average trading fees and low non-trading fees. It even charges no commission for some ETFs, bonds, and mutual funds. On the negative side, the fees for mutual funds and the financing rates are high.

We ranked Fidelity's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

To get things rolling, let's go over some lingo relating to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees, financing rates, and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions or spreads.
• Financing rates or overnight rates are charged when you hold your leveraged positions for more than a day. A leveraged position means that you borrow money from the broker to trade.
• Non-trading fees include things like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

We also compared Fidelity's fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, Interactive Brokers and Charles Schwab. This selection is based on factors like products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc.

Let's start with the trading fees.

Trading fees

Fidelity's trading fees are low. The fee structure is transparent and easy to understand.

Stock fees and ETF fees

Fidelity has generally average stock trading fees. It has low US stock fees, but high international stock fees.

The fees for US stocks and ETFs are calculated as $4.95 per trade. There are ~500 free ETFs as well.

Fidelity charges a flat fee for international stocks as per the table below.

Fund fees

The fees for mutual funds are generally high. Fidelity charges only for opening a position, closing the position is free of charge. In our comparison table, we halved Fidelity's fee to be comparable with the other brokers, which charge both for opening and closing.

The fees for mutual fund purchase is different for each mutual fund, either $49.95 or $75. We calculated with $75 because most popular mutual funds are charged by this commission amount. 

It is a big plus that Fidelity offers ~3,600 free mutual funds. However, if you sell these free funds within 60 days after the purchase, a $49.95 fee is charged for the sale.

Bond fees

Fidelity has low bond fees. The bond fees vary among the different bond types. We calculated with the fees for Treasury bonds.

There is no commission for Treasury bonds. For other bonds, like corporate bonds, the commission is $1 per bond and there is a maximum of $250. The maximum fee is $50 for bonds maturing one year or less.

Options fees

Fidelity's options fees are generally average.

The options fees comprise a flat and a volume-based fee: $4.95 per trade plus $0.65 per contract.

Financing rates

Fidelity financing rates are generally high.

Financing rates are charged when you hold your leveraged positions for more than a day. It can be a significant proportion of your trading costs.

Fidelity financing rate is volume-tiered. It applies a base rate plus a premium depending on the financed amount. The base rate is set by its discretion, at the time of the Fidelity review the base rate was 8.575%.

Non-trading fees

Fidelity has low non-trading fees. It charges no inactivity and account fees.

There is no withdrawal fee if you use ACH transfer. The withdrawals to other banks using wire transfer cost $10.

We tested ACH, so we had no withdrawal fee.

Currency conversion is another fee category which could be important if you trade assets with a different currency than your account currency. Fidelity applies the following conversion mark-ups/mark-downs when currencies converted.

Fidelity review
Account opening 3 stars

Opening an account at Fidelity is easy and fast, but not fully digital. The application had to be mailed with the relevant ID's photocopy.

Can you open an account?

Fidelity is a US stockbroker and targets US clients. In this review, we tested Fidelity's services provided within the USA.

However, there is a handful country, where Fidelity is available through the Fidelity group's other subsidiaries. The Fidelity Investments Canada serves only Canadian customers, while Fidelity International has a strong presence in Western Europe (AT, DE, FR, NL, ES, SE, CH, UK) and South-East Asia (HK, JP, TW). The available product range and services differ from country to country.

What is the minimum deposit at Fidelity?

The required Fidelity minimum deposit is $0. The minimum deposit can be more if you trade on margin or prefer investing in portfolios.

*You trade with money borrowed from the broker, also called trading on leverage.

**You buy and sell an asset the same day

Account types

Fidelity offers several account types:

In this review, we tested the Brokerage Individual Account.

If you prefer trading with international stocks, you need a supplemental service attached to your brokerage account, called International Trading. The registration was quick and straightforward, you can initiate within your brokerage account.

How to open your account

The account opening is user-friendly, but in our case, it was not fully digital. After completing the online account opening form, you have to mail or fax the generated document and the photocopy of the relevant ID card to Fidelity. It took 2 business days for us to open the account.

Steps at Fidelity to open an account:

1. Choose the account type
2. Add personal information, like Social Security Number, residency, employment status, etc.
3. Add your investment/trading preferences
4. Review your information
5. Acknowledge the terms and conditions
6. Print and mail/fax the application

The online application took roughly 20 minutes and the account was opened and verified within the next 3 business day. 

Signing up for "International Trading" was quick and easy, it took 5 minutes after the brokerage account was verified.

Fidelity review
Deposit and withdrawal 3 stars

Fidelity offers bank transfer and electronic wallets as deposit and withdrawal options. Exceptionally wide range of base currencies is provided too. However, credit/debit cards are not accepted and the wire withdrawals are charged.

Account base currencies

Fidelity offers  a lot of account base currencies:

This offer is great compared with its competitors.

You can initiate a deposit or a withdrawal which converting USD into another currency, however, Fidelity charges up to 300 basis points (3%) and additional fees may also be applied including markup/trading spread.

Why does this matter? Because if you fund your account in the same currency as your bank account, currency conversion fees won't be charged.

A convenient way to save on the currency conversion fee can be to open a multi-currency bank account. Revolut or Transferwise both offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. The account opening only takes a few minutes on your phone.

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Deposit fees and options

Fidelity charges no deposit fees. 

Clients can use check, ACH, wire transfers, and PayPal for deposit. Fidelity offers the BillPay feature as an additional service. With a subscription you can make payments and manage your bills, using your brokerage account.

The credit/debit cards are not provided.

We tested ACH transfer and it took 2 business days.

You can only deposit money from accounts which are in your name.

Withdrawal fees and options

Fidelity charges no withdrawal fees if you use ACH withdrawal, but domestic and international wire transfers cost $10.

How long does it take to withdraw money from Fidelity? We tested the ACH bank transfer withdrawal and it was completed within 2 business days.

You can only withdraw money to accounts in your name.

How do you withdraw money from Fidelity? You can withdraw money from Fidelity by following these steps:

• Log into the account
• Go to the "Accounts & Trade", then select "Transfer"
• Select the withdrawal method you want to use
• Select your Fidelity account as "Transfer from"
• Select the account you want to withdraw the money to as "Transfer to"
• Add the amount you wish to withdraw, set the date
• Initiate the withdrawal

Compare to other brokers

Fidelity review
Web trading platform 5 stars

Fidelity's web platform is easy to use, has a lot of order types, and provides a two-step authentication. On the negative side, the web trading platform is not customizable.

Fidelity has an in-house developed web trading platform. It's available only in English.

Look and feel

The Fidelity web trading platform is user-friendly and provides a good user experience. However, it lacks customizability.

Login and security

Fidelity offers two-step authentication login option besides the default one-step login. If you set this feature, you'll get a random 6 digit number to your phone.

During the account setup, you shall choose 3 security questions&answers. When you first log in on a new device, you have to answer one security question. After all of these registrations, you can access your account using your regular ID and password combo.

Search functions

The search functions are OK. You can search by typing both a company's name or asset's ticker. Searching with company names gives relevant results.

If you enable International Trading, then you should search using the ticker and a country code syntax. Without the syntax, you will search within the US market. This feature could be improved to simplify the searching method. The search tab can be found at the upper right corner.

Placing orders

You can use a lot of order types, including more complex ones.

• Market
• Limit
• Stop
• Stop limit
• Stop trailing ($, %)
• Stop limit trailing ($, %)
• Multi-contingent
• One Cancels the Other (OCO)
• One Triggers the Other (OTO)
• One Triggers a One Cancels the Other (OTOCO)

If you are not familiar with the basic order types, read this overview.

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Day
• Fill or Kill
• Immediate or Cancel
• On the open
• End of Day

Alerts and notifications

You can set a wide range of alerts and notifications. From price to research alerts, you will find a lot of alert types in three main categories: "Account Services", "Research and Market Monitoring", and "Products and Offerings".

You can get notifications via email and SMS. If you download the mobile trading app, you can also set mobile push notifications. 

The alerts can be found on the Profile > Preferences > Alerts and Notification section or just simply search equity and click "Set alert". We liked the interlinkability of the alerts, aka as you set an alert one of the platforms, you can make it active in the other platforms as well within one click.

Portfolio and fee reports

Fidelity has a clear portfolio and fee reports. They can be found in the "Accounts&Trade" Accounts position section. 

You can download the reports, but only in CSV.

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Fidelity review
Mobile trading platform 5 stars

Fidelity has a great mobile trading platform. It is user-friendly and well-designed, however, it lacks a two-step login.

Fidelity mobile trading platform is available both for IoS and Android. In this review, we tested on IoS. The mobile trading platform is available in English.

Look and feel

Fidelity mobile trading platform is user-friendly. In design, it is more up to date than the web trading platform.

Login and security

Fidelity provides only a one-step login. 

Search functions

The search functions are good. It's easy to use and you can find the relevant options for the stocks easily.

You can search for international stocks using the country syntax. Without the country code, the search is conducted within the US.

We liked the wide research functions compared to the peer group's mobile platforms, you can set up even a heat map or see third-party evaluations in many equity categories.

Placing orders

You can use fewer order types than on the web trading platform. The conditional orders are missing.

• Market
• Limit
• Stop-loss
• Stop limit
• Stop trailing ($, %)
• Stop limit trailing ($, %)

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Day
• Fill or Kill
• Immediate or Cancel
• On the open

Alerts and notifications

You can easily set alerts and notifications on the Fidelity mobile platform. You can allow push notifications as well.

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Fidelity review
Desktop trading platform 4 stars

Fidelity's desktop platform is highly customizable, offers a lot of order type, and has a clear fee report. However, two-step login is not provided and in some cases, the platform loaded slowly.

Fidelity offers its in-house developed desktop trading platform, called Active Trader Pro. This desktop trading platform mainly for active traders and advanced investors. The platform is considered the extension of the web platform and integrates a lot of research functions with great flexibility. 

Similarly to the web and mobile trading platforms, the desktop trading platform is available only in English.

Look and feel

Fidelity's desktop trading platform is highly customizable.

On the negative side, the platform loads slowly in cases when the content opens in a new window or it is crosslinked to the web-based platform.

Login and security

In contrast to web trading platforms, Fidelity Active Trader Pro provides only a one-step login. A two-step login would be more secure.

Search functions

Fidelity Active Trader Pro has a great search function. You can search for an asset by typing its name or ticker. This searching area gives relevant results.

Placing orders

You can use the same order types as on the web trading platform.

Alerts and notifications

You can set alerts and notifications on the desktop trading platform. The alerts are synced with the web platform. Furthermore, you can use "Real-time Analytics", which analyses the historical data of your watchlist and makes signals if potential trading opportunities occur.

Portfolio and fee reports

Fidelity has a clear portfolio and fee reports. You can easily customize the tab and add commission, profit/loss balance, currency, etc. Reports can be found under the Account\History menu. 

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Fidelity review
Markets and products 3 stars

Fidelity offers a lot of asset classes, from stocks to options. Within the stock offer, both the US and international markets covered. On the negative side, forex and futures are missing.

Fidelity shines on the international stock market offer. The majority of US brokers don't give access to international stock exchanges. Fidelity's bond and mutual fund offers are also great, while the ETF and options offers are average.

Stock and ETF

Fidelity covers the US markets and many international stock exchanges. It is remarkable on the peer group, only Interactive Brokers can beat it.

You can trade with stocks on these US stock exchanges: NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, OTC. The following stock markets are provided globally:

Fund

Fidelity has a good mutual fund coverage. It is similar to Charles Schwab and has a significantly broader range than Interactive Brokers's.

You will find funds from the biggest fund providers like BlackRock, Fidelity or Vanguard and from smaller ones too. 

Bond

Fidelity has a wide bond offer. It is similar to Interactive Brokers.

Fidelity's bond offer covers both government and corporate bonds.

Options

Fidelity's options offer is average. This offer is better than Charles Schwab's but fewer than the Interactive Brokers'.

The following options exchanges are available: CBOE, AMEX, PHLX, ISE, ISE Gemini, BOX, NASDAQ, NASDAQ OMX BX, NYSE BATS, NYSE ARCA, MIAX, and C2.

Fidelity Managed Accounts

Fidelity offers a lot of managed account services which are great if you need help to manage your investments.

Fidelity review
Research 5 stars

Fidelity has great research tools. You can use many tools, including trading ideas, detailed fundamental data, and great screeners.

Fidelity offers many useful tools, which are great for fundamental analysis and strategy building. We tested the research tools on the web trading platform. Similarly to the trading platforms, the research tools are available only in English.

Trading ideas

Fidelity provides trading ideas for more asset classes: stocks, ETFs and mutual funds.

In the case of stocks, under "Analyst Opinions"  you can find a summarized score, which contains more than 20 researcher's vote. You can see instantly the best competitors' performance and the industry average.

Fundamental data

Fidelity offers wide fundamental data. You will find a lot of data for different assets, from stocks to funds.

You can easily reach the financial statement for 5 years, peer group companies, dividend calendar, etc.

Charting

Fidelity has good charting tools. We tested the web trading platform's charting toolkit. You can easily edit the charts and there are 50+ technical indicators. You can also save and download the charts.

News feed

The news is provided by third-parties, like Wall Street Journal or Bloomberg. It is easily readable but lacks visual elements, like charts or pictures.

Other research tools you will enjoy

There are great and sophisticated screeners for stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds. This is one of the best screener tools we have tested. From the basic company information to technical indicators, you can use a wide range of filters.

Compare research pros and cons

Fidelity review
Customer service 5 stars

Fidelity has great customer service. They give fast and relevant answers and are available 24/7.

You can contact Fidelity via:

• live chat
• telephone
• email

The customer support is available in English.

Fidelity has a fast live chat and the relevancy of the answers was mostly OK.

The phone support is great. The customer support team was very kind and gave relevant answers. The response time was OK as an agent was connected within a few minutes.

The email works well too. We got the answers within 1 business day and the relevancy was great.

It is also a big plus that Fidelity support team is available 24/7. 

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Fidelity review
Education 5 stars

Fidelity offers a lot of educational materials, like articles, demo account, webinars, etc. The quality of educational materials is also high-quality.

At Fidelity you can learn in the following ways:

• Demo account
• Platform tutorial videos
• General educational videos
• Webinars
• Quality educational articles

The online webinars' topics range from beginner to advance. There are ~5-10 new contents per month and you can watch the previous ones as well.

We liked Fidelity's FAQ, it compresses a lot of relevant information and the searching was easy.

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Fidelity review
Safety

Fidelity is regulated by top-tier financial authorities, like the SEC and FINRA. You are also protected by a high investor protection amount, $500,000 which includes $250,000 for cash. On the flip side, negative balance protection is not provided and Fidelity doesn't disclose its financial information.

Is Fidelity regulated? Yes, it is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Is Fidelity safe? To be certain, it is best to check two things: how you are protected if something goes wrong and what the background of the broker is.

How you are protected

This is important for you because the investor protection amount and the regulator differ from entity to entity.

With Fidelity, this is not an issue though as all customers are covered by Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC and the US investor protection scheme, called SIPC. The SIPC investor protection scheme protects against the loss of cash and securities in case the broker goes bust. The limit of SIPC protection is $500,000, which includes a $250,000 limit for cash. This amount is substantially higher than the amount most investor protection schemes provide. 

Fidelity provides additional total $1 billion coverage. There is no per-account limit on coverage of securities, but there is a per-account limit of $1.9 million on coverage of cash.

Fidelity does not provide negative balance protection.

Background

Fidelity was established in 1946. The longer the track record of a broker, the more proof we have that it has successfully survived previous financial crises.

You may have some troubles if you are looking for more information about the company. The amount of financial information is quite limited compared to other brokers. The company is owned by the Fidelity group's parent company, called FMR LLC.

Regulated by top-tier regulators, having a long track record, and providing additional insurance are all great signs for Fidelity's safety.

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Fidelity review
Bottom line

Fidelity Schwab is one of the biggest US stockbrokers regulated by top-tier regulators.

Fidelity's research is outstanding and covers many tools, including trading ideas and detailed fundamental data. The web trading platform is easy to use and offers advanced order types. The product offer covers international stock exchanges besides the US market, it's unique among the US brokers.

Fidelity has some drawbacks though. It doesn't provide credit/debit cards for money transfers. The account is not fully digital and the fees for mutual funds are quite high. 

As the research tools are great, the web trading platform is user-friendly, and no inactivity fee is charged, feel free to try Fidelity.

Fidelity main features and highlights

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