Merrill; Alyssa Powell/Business Insider
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- Merrill Edge offers advisors, online trading, investing, retirement, and education savings plans.
- Merrill Edge could be an especially good fit for active traders and Bank of America clients.
- Standard brokerage accounts have no minimums and offer unlimited free trades on stock and ETFs.
- Click here to open an account with Merrill Edge.
Is Merrill Edge right for you?
| Merrill Edge pros | Merrill Edge cons |
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Merrill Edge is a digital brokerage offering online investing, trading, retirement, education savings, and investment research solutions. The brokerage was formed after Bank of America (B.O.A.) acquired wealth management firm Merrill Lynch in 2009.
The company also offers margin lending, tax planning, step-by-step investing guidance, and investor education resources. Merrill Edge’s investor education center offers financial advice through a Morningstar Investing Classroom, videos and webinars, and tools and calculators.
Merrill Edge was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The brokerage has hundreds of millions in assets under management, with millions of active clients.
It’s also available on iOS or Android devices.
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Merrill |
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| Editor’s rating | 4.8 out of 5 |
| Fees | 0% (0.45% to 0.85% for robo-advice and guided portfolios) |
| Account minimum | $0 ($1,000 Guided Investing; $20,000 Guided Investing with Advisor) |
| Promotion | None at this time. |
| Open Account | |
Not sure if Merrill Edge is right for you? Keep reading to see how it stacks up against other online brokerages.
How does Merrill Edge compare?
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Merrill |
TD Ameritrade |
Fidelity Investments |
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Min. Investment $0 ($1,000 Guided Investing; $20,000 Guided Investing with Advisor) |
Min. Investment $0 |
Min. Investment $0 |
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Fees 0% (0.45% to 0.85% for guided portfolios and automated advice) |
Fees 0% (0.75-0.90% for automated advice) |
Fees 0% ($0 to 0.35% for automated advice) |
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Investment choices Stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, annuities, certificates of deposit (CDs), and bonds |
Investment choices Stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, futures, forex, cryptocurrencies, IPOs, and bonds |
Investment choices Stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, bonds, CDs, annuities, and IPOs |
| Open an account | Open an account | Open an account |
Merrill Edge, TD Ameritrade, and Fidelity all offer brokerage, automated, and other account types. The three brokerages allow investors to trade stocks, ETFs, and options without commissions. But each platform has varying fees and investment choices.
For instance, you’ll pay much more for automated advice at TD Ameritrade than you would with Merrill Edge. While Merrill Edge’s automated account has a $1,000 minimum and 0.45% annual fee, the TD Ameritrade equivalent has a $25,000 minimum and annual fee of 0.75% – 0.90%.
Automated advice at Fidelity, however, is less expensive than both Merrill Edge and TD Ameritrade. But TD Ameritrade may be the best choice for cryptocurrency traders.
If you’re still interested in exploring Merrill Edge, keep reading to see if it’s right for you.
Ways to invest with Merrill Edge
Self-directed brokerage accounts
If you’d like to take the DIY investing route, Merrill Edge offers the choice of individual, joint, or custodial accounts. The company’s brokerage accounts also allow for unlimited commission-free trades on stock, ETF, and options (though you’ll still pay $0.65 per options contract). And you can take advantage of its investment research materials to review the latest stock market news, price movements, company financials, and more.
You’ll also have access to mutual funds, bonds, treasuries, and CDs. Although you can avoid commissions on options trades, you’ll still have to pay $0.65 per contract. More advanced or active traders can utilize the Merrill Edge Market Pro platform for additional investment analysis, market insights, and trading features.
You can fund your brokerage account through one of four ways: real-time instant funding, wire transfers, checks, or account transfers.
Managed portfolios
Merrill Edge offers Merrill Guided Investing, an automated advisor, and another managed portfolio – Merrill Guided Investing with Advisor – for investors looking to work with professional advisors.
With Merrill Guided Investing, you get access to a portfolio that’s automatically constructed, monitored, and rebalanced for you. And once you set specific investing goals, Merrill Edge professionals create personalized asset allocations and investment strategies on your behalf.
Merrill Guided investing also offers socially responsible portfolios, which generally avoid certain types of stocks like tobacco in favor of more ethically minded investments. You’ll need at least $1,000 to use its robo-advisor, and you’ll have to pay a 0.45% annual fee.
Merrill Guided Investing with Advisor has a 0.85% annual fee and a $20,000 minimum account size requirement, but you’ll be able to work with a professional advisor to establish and work toward investing goals. In addition to one-on-one advice, this account also allows for periodic reviews with a financial advisor.
Retirement accounts
Merrill Edge has several retirement accounts for individuals and businesses. For individuals, the brokerage allows you to set up traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, rollover IRAs, and IRA transfers. And each IRA is completely free to set up and maintain.
Businesses, on the other hand, can utilize SEP IRAs, 401(k)s, and SIMPLE IRAs.
College saving & 529 plans
Interested in saving for college? Merrill Edge offers two options: 529 plans or custodial accounts (UGMA/UTMA).
Merrill’s 529 plans have a $25 minimum initial funding requirement, but you’ll pay $0 in account fees. These plans also let you make federal tax-free withdrawals and offer four different portfolios: age-based diversified portfolios, diversified portfolios, single fund portfolios, and stable principal portfolios.
Custodial accounts – technically known as Uniform Gifts to Minors Act/Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UGMA/UTMA) – let you set aside money for minors, or beneficiaries, until they reach termination age.
Merrill Edge’s custodial accounts are currently free to set up and maintain. Like its self-directed brokerage accounts, these accounts also offer unlimited commission-free trades for stocks, ETFs, and options.
Investment research and user interface
On the research side of things, Merrill Edge provides investing insights and third-party analysis from Morningstar, Inc., CFRA, Moody’s, and multiple other investment analysis companies. You’ll also have access to Bank of America Global Research, and you can skim the latest stock market quotes and commentary on the brokerage’s digital apps.
When it comes to its available platforms, you’ll have three to choose from: the Merrill Edge web platform, the mobile app, and Merrill Edge Market Pro.
B.O.A. Integration and Preferred Rewards program
Merrill Edge is also a competitive option for Bank of America customers since it lets you integrate your personal Bank of America accounts with your Merrill Edge accounts. You’ll also have access to 4,300 Bank of America financial centers if you need any in-person assistance, and you can get discounts or interest rate boosters if you enroll in the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program.
You’ll mainly need an existing B.O.A. checking account to be eligible to sign up for Merrill Edge’s Preferred Rewards program. The program has three tiers – Gold, Platinum, and Platinum Honors – that provide certain discounts for different account balances. Learn more about the rewards here.
Is Merrill Edge trustworthy?
Merrill Edge has received an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. The BBB rates companies using a grade scale range of A+ to F, so this is the highest score a company can receive. This rating also indicates that Merrill Edge generally interacts well with its customers.
When assigning ratings, the BBB also considers factors like a company’s complaint history, time in business, advertising issues, and more. But ratings can vary per investment app.
Merrill Edge generally hasn’t run into any major lawsuits or public scandals over the years. According to BBB data, the company has resolved more than 2,200 complaints in the last 12 months.
Rickie Houston is a wealth-building reporter at Personal Finance Insider who covers investing, brokerage, and wealth-building products.
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