Is Ninety Nine free?
Ninety Nine is in fact a zero-commission broker when it comes to buying and selling stocks. Zero commission is especially useful if you trade relatively low volumes, like buying stocks for less than $500 per trade, because you won't be hit with any minimum fees the broker might charge.
We should note that the payment-for-order-flow model, which is used by some zero-commission brokers to generate income (rather than relying on commissions), could potentially create a conflict of interest between you and your broker. This could result in trade execution (like routing your orders to specific market makers) that might be unfavorable for you under certain market conditions, especially when using market orders (as opposed to limit orders, which seem to be less affected).
Keep in mind that at some brokers, you could incur non-trading charges like withdrawal or inactivity fees. Also, if you trade on margin, the margin rate charged by brokers can differ wildly. In the next chapter, we'll find out what these charges are at Ninety Nine and how they compare with fees charged by its closest competitors.
If you want to read our full review, including fees, deposit options and other platforms (like web and desktop) then skip to the Ninety Nine review.
Ninety Nine fees
Overview of Ninety Nine fees and charges
When it comes to brokerage fees, Ninety Nine is a mixed bag. To see how they may affect you, first you need to figure out your approach to trading - i.e. whether you are more of a buy-and-hold investor or if you want to trade frequently; or what type of assets and in what volumes you'll want to trade. Alternatively, use our questionnaire to help you tell whether Ninety Nine fees are beneficial for you. Continue reading about Ninety Nine fees and charges to see if this is the right broker for you, or if a similar broker like DEGIRO or eToro might suit you better.
Here's a high-level overview of Ninety Nine's fees
| Assets | Fee level | Fee terms |
|---|---|---|
| US stock fee | Average | Commission-free stock trading |
| EURUSD fee | - | Not available |
| US mutual fund fees | - | Not available |
| Inactivity fee | Low | No inactivity fee |
The fees were collected on 3 Aug 2021, but the actual rates are subject to change. To see current rates, check Ninety Nine's website.
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine fees explained
Online brokerages in general charge much lower brokerage fees than traditional brokerages do - this is largely because online brokerages' businesses can be much better scaled: from a purely technical standpoint, it doesn't make that much of a difference for them if they have 100 or 5,000 clients.
This is not to say, however, that they don't charge any fees at all. They make money by charging you various rates for various actions or events. Usually you need to keep an eye on the following three types of fees:
- Trading fees - these are brokerage fees that you pay when you actually carry out a trade, like buying an Apple share or an ETF. What you pay is either a commission, a spread or a financing rate. Some brokers apply all of these.
- A commission is either fixed or based on the traded volume.
- A spread is the difference between the buy price and the sell price.
- A financing rate or overnight rate is charged when you hold your leveraged positions for more than one day.
- Non-trading fees. These are usually related to some operations you carry out in your account, such as depositing money, withdrawing money, or not trading for an extended period.
We compare Ninety Nine fees with its closest competitors, DEGIRO and eToro.
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine trading fees
Ninety Nine's trading fees are mixed, which means that some asset classes come with high trading fees - be sure to check these carefully.
Let's break down trading fees according to the different asset classes available at Ninety Nine.
Trading fees
Ninety Nine's trading fees are average.
Stock fees and ETF fees
Ninety Nine has average stock trading fees.
| Ninety Nine | DEGIRO | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $0.0 | $1.0 | $0.0 |
| UK stock | - | $3.1 | $0.0 |
| German stock | - | $4.9 | $0.0 |
Currency conversion fee
Ninety Nine will charge a Currency Conversion Fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different to the currency of your account. The fee is charged as the following: 0.5% per conversion.
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine non-trading fees
When it comes to non-trading fees, Ninety Nine is a rather cheap broker.
Non-trading fees include various brokerage fees and charges at Ninety Nine that are not related to buying or selling assets. This can be a withdrawal fee, deposit fee, inactivity fee or account fee.
| Ninety Nine | DEGIRO | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $5 |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No | No | Yes |
| Account fee | No | No | No |
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine deposit fee
Usually, brokers don't charge anything for deposits, and Ninety Nine is no different.
| Ninety Nine | DEGIRO | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | No | No | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | No | No | Yes |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine withdrawal fee
Ninety Nine generally doesn't charge a withdrawal fee.
| Ninety Nine | DEGIRO | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | No | No | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | No | No | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee for bank transfer | $0 | $0 | $5 |
Ninety Nine fees
Ninety Nine inactivity fee
Ninety Nine does not apply an inactivity fee, which is great because your account won't be charged even if you do not trade for an extended period (like several months or years).
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