Pricing
Features
Customer Service
Ease of Use
Questrade Review
Questrade® is a Canadian owned and operated discount online brokerage. They are currently only accepting Canadians, U.S. citizens that are current residents in Canada, or Chinese citizens that apply in person in Canada. Questrade is quickly growing and receiving numerous accolades for their service, features and great pricing. They offer the best commissions in Canada, with direct access trades at $0.01/share, $4.95 minimum / $9.95 maximum. Options trades are $9.95 + $1/contract. Additional ECN/ATS fees may apply. Questrade gives you access to trade securities on Canadian and U.S. exchanges at these rates.
Questrade stands apart from most brokers by including FOREX trading, as well as gold bullion trading. Trading real gold within a brokerage account is an exclusive feature you can’t find with any other traditional online brokerage. Gold bullion trades are an incredible $19.95, for unlimited size. Most dedicated bullion brokers will charge you that or more on top of every ounce. A small storage fee of CAD $0.10/ounce will be charged to your account each month. You can even buy gold on margin, and borrow on the bullion you currently have in your margin-enabled account.
Questrade is a direct access broker, meaning your orders are routed to an ECN of choice to execute an order. This results in more flexibility, faster executions, and lower cost in most cases. You interface with the market via one of three different platforms.
- QuestraderWEB is a browser based platform, accessible anywhere. It gives you a direct access, intuitive order management and entry interface, news, quotes and charts. You can also filter stock based on custom criteria, as well as see insider trade filings. This platform is free of charge, but for streaming data you’ll have to add a Quotestream data package for $19.95/month. Level 2 data is not available. Making 10 trades/month will cover the base cost of QuestraderWEB with a rebate.
- QuestraderPRO is a software based platform that includes all of the functions of the latter platform in an intuitive, customizable interface with drag and drop functionality, custom charts, advanced order types, multi-account management. This platform is recommended for active traders. The monthly fee is $34.95 and includes streaming Level 1 data. Level 2 data upgrades are available. Making 20 trades/month will cover the base cost of QuestraderPRO with a rebate.
- QuestraderELITE is a professional grade software platform that adds even more functionality. It includes more advanced order entry and management tools, more technical analysis tools, professional order types and much more. The monthly fee is $54.95 and includes streaming Level 1 data. Level 2 data upgrades are available. Making 40 trades/month will cover the base cost of QuestraderELITE with a rebate.
As stated with each of these platforms, rebates for the platform fees are available and based upon monthly trade activity. Most traders that are active enough to take advantage of each given platform should have no issue covering most or all of the fees with the rebate.
Customer service is friendly, personal and knowledgeable. Support is available via phone, email, and live online chat.
Mobile trading may work on your web-enabled phone. There are no official apps supplied by Questrade at this time.
Opening a Questrade Account:
The application process at Questrade is very easy and fast. The application takes 5-10 minutes and is completed with an e-signature. Approval normally occurs by the next day, and an ACH setup and transfer from your bank typically completes in 1-3 days. All that’s left to do is select the trading platform that meets your needs. This is a very fast turn-around, and is competitive with the best brokerages in this manner.
Available Equities and Commissions: (Canadian and U.S. Exchange Securities)
- Stocks/ETFs – $0.01/share, $4.95 minimum / $9.95 maximum (plus applicable ECN/ATS fees, Broker Assisted – Additional $25)
- Options – $9.95 + $1 per contract
- FOREX – Spreads vary by market but are competititve
- Gold Bullion – $19.95 per trade (unlimited size) CAD $.010/month storage fee
- Mutual Funds – $9.95
- Bonds – $30 per trade
Other Details:
Inactivity/Maintenance Fees: None
Direct Access Trading: Yes, by default
After Hours Trading: Yes, no additional fee
Gold Bullion Trading: Yes
FOREX Trading: Yes
Penson Cleared: Yes
Software Platform Based Data/Trading: Browser and Software platforms to choose from
Web Based Streaming Data: Yes
Level 2 Quotes: Available in software platforms for additional fees
Online Trading Community: No
Virtual/Paper Trading: No
Live Online Chat Support: Yes
Mobile Trading: Regular website on some web-enabled devices
Questrade Account Pros:
-Low stock commissions
-Low mutual fund commissions
-Direct access trading
-Gold bullion trading with low fees built in!
-FOREX trading built in!
-Multiple trading platform options and a-la-carte data add-ons
-Penson cleared brokerage
-No inactivity/maintenance fees
-No penny stock surcharges (ECN/ATS fees do not apply to OTCBB/PinkSheets stocks)
-Up to 100% rebates on platform fees based on trade activity
-Rebate for trading course at Online Trading Academy, as well as a Free one-on-one session with a professional trader
Questrade Account Cons:
-Currently only available for Canadians, U.S. Citizens residing in Canada, and Chinese citizens who apply in person at a Canadian location.
-In some cases commissions are higher than the competition
-Options pricing is high
-No mobile trading apps or dedicated mobile website
-Not much in the way of research tools
The Verdict:
Questrade offers up a potent combination of available equities, currencies, and even gold bullion, with three optional trading platforms. If you want to trade gold bullion, that is reason enough to use Questrade as a secondary broker, if not as your primary broker. The FOREX solution and direct access market interface are just icing on the cake. Unfortunately, at this time U.S. citizens who reside in the U.S. are not eligible for an account at Questrade. If this policy changes you can bet we will update this review ASAP. For Canadian residents, however, Questrade is a powerful and affordable online brokerage. It may not be the most friendly broker for beginners, but anyone with a little trading experience will enjoy, and be able to grow with this broker given the available trading platforms and data feed options.
- Questrade Sign-up Promotion -
Click one of our links or ads and get up to a $50 trade rebate when you open and fund a new account (using Promo code: BrokerageReview) and complete 10 trades.
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