TradeStation – trading platform overview

TradeStation – trading platform overview title=
1.7/5
The company is based in the US and is regulated by the major governing bodies in the US, which has some of the strictest financial regulations in the world.
Min. deposit
$500
Demo account
Yes
Currency
AUDCADCHFEURGBPJPYUSD
Supported languages
Eng
Active
Yes
Payment Methods
ACH Transfer
Instruments
CFDE-minisFuturesStocks
Min. trade price
Min lot size will vary
Regulated By
SEC
MetaTrader 4
Yes
MetaTrader 5
No
cTrader
No
OmniTrader
No
AlgoTrader
No
TradingView
No
Trading Central
No
Autochartist
No
eSignal
No
STP Account
No
ECN Account
No
DMA Account
Yes
MAM Account
No
PAMM Account
No
LAMM Account
No
Demat Account
No
Mobile Apps
iOS, Android and Windows
Margin Trading
No
Volatility Index
No
Spot Trading
No
Perpetual Swaps
No
ELWs
No
REITs
No
AI / Machine Learning
No
Robo Advisor
No
P2P Trading
No
Negative Balance Protection
No
VPS Hosting
No
Tournaments
No
Demo Competitions
No
Managed Accounts
No
Market Maker
No
Auto Trading
No
Social Trading
No
Copy Trading
No
Trade Signals
No
Islamic Account
No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No
Commodities
Soybeans
Crypto Lending
No
Crypto Staking
No
Crypto Mining
No
Crypto Auto Market Maker
No
Ladder Options
No
Boundary Options
No
Show all >>

* The amount that will be credited to the account in the case of a successful deal

*General Risk Warning: Your capital might be at risk

Trustpilot Real Time Reviews

Star

The Trustpilot rating is 1.7,
according to 169 reviews

4.5 Stars
Lorne
Lorne
stars
gb
It looks to me like many of the ratings below showing 1 star are fake - they seem to be promoting companies that prey on people that have been scammed - i.e. funds recovery service - In addition, these companies themselves do not have any reviews. I do believe people have had issues - these can be common with such businesses - transferring funds etc - compliance rules... I have had no problem with Tradestation so far. I do however have a problem with this rating - as my bank is refusing to allow me to transfer funds to them. I think a 'Nigerian Scam' is a bit far-fetched.

View all

Ryan Semmelmayer
Ryan Semmelmayer
stars
us
I'm really not sure what's with the 1-star reviews. I just got off their live chat feature and they answered everything is a super fast and accurate manner. It took about 10 mins and all my questions were answered. Honestly, a lot of the reviews look like scams here so don't listen to them. Do your own DD but I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get what I needed. I'm very new to the platform though so we'll see what happens in the future.

View all

TIMOTHY GENE MORRISON
TIMOTHY GENE MORRISON
stars
us
I have traded with Tradestation for a couple of years now. I have to say, their web platform and mobile app have revolutionized my trading experience. I absolutely love it! The look and user experience is first rate. The Matrix is a wonderful feature to show level 2 and price action. I also have found their customer service to be very good. My only complaint is the fact that pre mkt trading opens at 8:00 am EST instead of 7:00 am. Another thing I love about Tradestation is the intraday short locate feature, as I trade both long and short. Honestly, I'm shocked at all of the one star reviews here!

View all

Gerald Boham
Gerald Boham
stars
us
So far evrything is cool with the service.I would be happy if you could alert clients on intraday margin requirements as they have been changing quite so often such that it sometimes takes traders into margin voilation and penalties.Most of the micro/mini symbols margin requirements should also be regularly kept low enough for small traders.Thanks

View all

Gerald Boham
Gerald Boham
stars
us
The desktop trading software restricted me from closing my positions from 2pm wednesday August 23rd. The quick trade tab has both to close and cancel tabs frozen or blanked out.I had one open position and i had enough margin to carry it overnight also.I could not reach order desk until market close and after market close i still cannot close my trade by the app.I have recorded all situation to proof as evidence because its not my fault that the software has frozen whiles i have a position and market has closed.I would demand refund of any loses as a result. update:I managed to go on the mobile app and was able to close my position.The system was ok in the morning.

View all

Anthony S.
Anthony S.
stars
us
I was frustrated when TradeStation's bank account linking software failed to link my North American Savings Bank account to my TradeStation account. I had to obtain a letter from the bank and fill out a 2-page form! Then I was told it would take 2-3 business days for the account to be linked! The next business day I spoke to David in Client Services. He was very attentive and listened to my concerns. He called me back within 2 hours to let me know my account was now linked! Good job David!

View all

Content

The company is based in the US and is regulated by the major governing bodies in the US, which has some of the strictest financial regulations in the world. Best of all, it offers competitive pricing in terms of fees. But are customers happy with their TradeStation experiences? That’s what we’ll discuss in this article.

We will explore what TradeStation’s trading fees are, what other costs it charges, what trading conditions it provides, and in general whether its platform is really all it’s hyped to be.

Summary Pros and Cons of Trade Station

ProsCons
Low fees for US residentsVery poor TrustPilot rating
Competitive fees for non-US residentsConfusing pricing
Top of the line trading platform“Hidden” fees
Trade US stocks and options, US and European futures, and crypto all from one accountCan only trade US and some European markets

Is TradeStation Regulated and Safe to Trade With?

Is TradeStation Regulated and Safe to Trade With?

TradeStation is highly regulated in the US. Regulation is a requirement that many traders look for in a broker, as it assures the broker follows local laws and is unlikely to disappear with your deposit.

TradeStation is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFT), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and National Futures Association (NFA). These are the main governing bodies in the US, meaning this broker is legitimate.

broker is legitimate

While it may be legitimate, it has a bit of a customer satisfaction problem. The TradeStation TrustPilot rating is 1.5, with many people giving one-star reviews citing a plethora of issues: glitchy trading experience, problems depositing and withdrawing, money going missing, trades in limbo, hidden fees, and rude customer support.

It’s a reminder that “regulated” doesn’t necessarily mean “nice”.

Further reading

TradeStation Fees and Account Types

TradeStation Fees and Account Types

TradeStation fees can also get a little complex to calculate, as there are different fees depending on your account type.

Here is the basic fee structure below. This is pretty straightforward, and these prices are only available to U.S residents. There are $0 commissions on stocks and ETFs, $0.6 per options contract, $1.5 per futures contract, $0.5 per micro futures contract, and $1.50 per futures options contract. There are no data feed fees for real-market data on stocks, crypto, futures, or options.

no data feed fees

Crypto fees vary based on the amount traded, and is based on last month’s trading volume. At each level of trade volume, there are different “maker” and “taker” fees. Maker means you place a limit order which is waiting to be filled. Taker means you are removing liquidity from the market by transacting with someone else’s order.

If you are trading less than $1000 on TradeStation, there is a $2 flat fee plus 0.35% (maker) to 0.6% (taker). At $50,000 in trading volume, fees drop to 0.12% (maker) and 0.25% (taker). You need to trade $10,000,000 or more to get to 0.025% (maker) and 0.11% (taker). For reference, Binance charges a maximum of 0.1% for crypto trades, and fees drop for increased volume after that.

increased volume

TradeStation does offer other account types, and the fees vary. You can opt to not useTradeStation as a broker, and just use their trading platform for $149.95 per month. There is also an International Plan for traders outside the US. The main difference is the $5 commission on stock and stocks options trades.

There is also a Tiered Account, which reduces the futures trading cost the more you trade. If you trade stocks, ETFs, or options in small position sizes, you can pay a small commission on each instead of the $5 flat fee on the international plan (because the US standard plan has $0 commissions).

But there is a catch. You need to pay the $149.95 per month platform fee with the tiered plan unless you complete at least one of the following:

  • 10 round turn (open and close position) futures or futures options trades per month
  • or, trade 50 options contracts
  • or, trade at least 5,000 shares
  • or, have an account balance over $100,000

stocks options trades

Further reading

TradeStation Product Offerings

TradeStation Product Offerings

TradeStation offers a wide range of instruments, focused mainly on the US market.

TradeStation provides access to trade US stocks, ETFs, and options. You can also trade cryptocurrencies, as well as US futures and some European futures. US mutual funds and bonds are also available for purchase.

available for purchase

Further reading

TradeStation Deposit and Withdrawal Methods

TradeStation Deposit and Withdrawal Methods

TradeStation offers a minimal number of deposit and withdrawal methods, but these methods are adequate for most traders.

TradeStation offers the followed deposit and withdrawal methods:

  • Wire deposit/withdrawal ($25 fee for withdrawal)
  • ACH deposit/withdrawal
  • Check deposit/withdrawal
  • Transfer an existing outside account to TradeStation (cash and positions)
  • Transfer your TradeStation account to another broker (cash and positions, fee of $125)

It does not offer credit card deposit and withdrawals or payments through payment processors (such as PayPal or others).

Further reading

TradeStation Trading Platform and App

TradeStation Trading Platform and App

TradeStation is known as one of the first premiere trading platforms available, which is why it costs $149/month (without an account). But is it still one of the best?

The TradeStation platform offers functionality in a wide range of tools for trading stocks, options, and futures. One thing to keep in mind is that TradeStation is a trading platform meant for traders who want control over their trading. While you can certainly place the odd trade with this platform, it is meant for active traders. TradeStation is available via:

  • desktop platform
  • webtrading
  • mobile app

The mobile app has a 4 out of 5 rating on the Google Play Store and a 4.6 out of 5 rating on the Apple Store. One perk of the TradeStation platform is the wealth of historical data. If you like to study strategies or do backtesting, TradeStation is tough to beat.

They offer intraday stock data going back 28 years, intraday futures data going back 36 years, and intraday index data going back 35 years. They also offer a demo account so you can try it before signing up.

offer a demo account

Here are some of the other key features TradeStation offers:

  • RadarScreen – offers a real-time scanner, ranking up 1000 symbols using more than 180 fully customizable scanning criteria.
  • EasyLanguage – allows you to create your own indicators and trading strategies.
  • Back-Testing – allows you to run a simulation to see how your automated strategies perform on historical data.
  • Matrix – offers market depth, order entry, and order tracking in a single view.
  • OptionsStrategy Pro – offers highly visual options chains highlighting opportunities.

A reminder: for new traders, TradeStation may be overkill and hard to understand. More experienced traders may enjoy the features.

Further reading

TradeStation Education and Support

TradeStation Education and Support

In terms of educational material, TradeStation offers a wide range of materials to grow your knowledge about trading and the TradeStation Platform. As for support, however, a lot of traders have grievances.

The TradeStation Learn section of the website provides many articles, videos, and webinars on how to trade various products, and how to get the most out of the TradeStation platform. TradeStation also provides up-to-date market analysis on various futures contracts and the stock market.

However, many traders have complained that TradeStation customer support is not friendly and is slow to get anything fixed. Of course, individual experiences vary. The main ways to contact support are via live chat, phone, or email.

To contact a live representative using live chat, click the live chat button on the website between 8 am and 5 pm EST. To contact TradeStation by phone, click the “Call Me” button along the top of the website. They will call you back between 8am and 5 pm EST.

If you need help from a specific department, or with a certain product, the support hours may differ. Here are the phone numbers to use to contact a specific department: 800.822.0512 or 954.652.7900

TradeStation support

You can email TradeStation support at ClientServices@tradestation.com

Further reading

TradeStation International

TradeStation International

TradeStation does offer services to international clients outside the US via a separate website. However, the trading conditions are different.

TradeStation International (www.tradestation-international.com) doesn’t offer its own brokerage service. Rather, brokerage services are provided by Interactive Brokers and the trading Platform is provided by TradeStation.

Below are the commission costs for trading with TradeStation International. Depending on how you trade, it may simply be cheaper to trade with Interactive Brokers directly.

 Interactive Brokers directly

Cryptocurrency trading is not available on international accounts. Aside from these differences, most of the international information is similar to the US TradeStation information summarized in the rest of this article.

Further reading
TradeStation FAQs

TradeStation FAQs

How much does TradeStation cost?

Without a brokerage account, TradeStation can cost up to $149.95. This fee is waived if you have a TradeStation brokerage account with fixed commission costs in the US.

If you opt for the Tiered or International account, you will need to complete at least 10 round trip trades per month, or trade 50 options per month, or trade 5000 shares per month, or maintain a $100,000 account balance for the platform fee to be waived.

Where is TradeStation located?

TradeStation is based in the US, with its headquarters in Plantation, Florida. It originally began operations in 1982 under the name Omega Research Inc.

Who owns TradeStation?

The TradeStation Group, Inc owns TradeStation Securities, Inc, TradeStation Crypto, Inc., and TradeStation Technologies, Inc. Note that trading with TradeStation Crypto is not regulated by US regulators.

How can I use TradeStation?

Sign up for an account and download the trading platform. When starting with the platform, use Simulation Mode so that you can get used to the various features before trading with real capital. Like any trading platform, there is a learning curve to using it.

How to connect TradingView to TradeStation?

Log into your TradingView account and open a chart. Click the Trading Panel at the very bottom of the screen. You’ll see a list of brokers. If TradeStation doesn’t show up, click See All. Hover over the TradeStation badge and click Connect. Input your TradeStation credentials to trade your TradeStation account on TradingView.

How long does it take to open a TradeStation account?

Filling out an application usually takes less than 10 minutes. You’ll need ID, a utility bill which proves your address, an email address, and you’ll need to answer some questions on your employment, net worth, and trading experience. Once the application is submitted, you will typically get a response (and your account number) within 48 hours if your account is approved.

Final Thoughts on TradeStation

Overall, TradeStation is a good trading platform with competitive commission costs for the US market. It is highly regulated and the company has been around since 1982 (originally operating as Omega Research Inc.).

The one area it lags in is customer support. While support is available, many users complain about the customer support being rude or ineffective.

Beyond that, TradeStation is a solid broker and platform to consider for trading the US markets as well as some European futures. If you are an international trader, you may also want to check out brokers such as Interactive Brokers or Exante.

Further reading