Broker/Web site

Market/Limit Order

Fees/Minimum Balances

Mutual Funds

Research

Bonds

Options

Tiers of Service

American Express americanexpress.com

$19.95 up to 1,000 shares, + 3 cents/share over 1,000

$10/quarter unless: account has $25,000+ in assets, or household

accounts total $100,000+,or there is one trade per quarter;$50

exit or $75 transfer fee;$4 order-handling fee

4,000+; $39.95 for no-loads not in no-transation-fee program

Standard & Poor's, WR Hambrecht; Lehman Bros. for accounts

$100,000 and up

No

No

3 (Under $100,000 assets, under $500,000, $500,000 and

above)

Ameritrade ameritrade.com

$10.99

$15/quarter inactivity fee if account is under $2,000 and has fewer

than four trades in previous 6 months

13,000; $17.99 to buy, sell, or exchange no-load fund; $17.99

to sell or exchange load fund

Level ll quotes and streaming quotes for Apex traders

$5/bond up to 50, then $2.50/bond ($40 minimum commission)

$10.99 + 1.50/contract

Basic or Ameritrade Apex (30 trades/3 months or $100,000 assets)

BrownCo brownco.com

$5/$10 + 1 cent/share over 5,000

$50 outbound transfer or sell-out

7,000+; $5 to trade no-load or to sell or exchange load funds

J.P. Morgan, S&P, Multex, Thomson First Call

$4/OTC bond; $50/order Treasuries

$5 (market) or $10 (limit) + $1.50/contract

Basic, Select ($1 million+ assets, 50 or more trades/6 mos. Or

$300,000 margin balance), Elite ($1 million assets or 250 trades/6

mos.)

E'Trade Financial etrade.com

$9.99

No

5,500; most no transation fee, $24.95 for others

S&P; Level ll and streaming quotes for Priority and Power

traders

$40, or an amount based on net yield basis

$9.99 + $1.50/contract (+$1.25/contract for 50 and above)

Basic, Priority (9 trades/quarter or $50,000+ assets), Power

(27+ trades/quarter)

Fidelity.com fidelity.com

$32.95/$37.95 + 2 cent/share over 1,000 (Bronze level); or

$14.95/$19.95 (Silver), or $8 (Gold)

$50 maintenance fee can be waived for higher assets, more frequent

trading, all-electronic communications delivery, or multiple accounts

5,000+; $75 to buy no-load funds not in no-transaction-fee program

Argus, First Call, Lehman Bros., S&P, Market Guide; streaming and

Level ll quotes for very active traders

No charge for Treasuries; $36 + $4 or $3 (26th bond and up)/bond

for corporates; markup or markdown for municipals

$25 + $2.25/contract (Bronze service tier) or $20 + $1.75/contract

(Silver) or $8 + $1 -- $1.50/contract (Gold)

Bronze (basic), Silver ($100,000 household assets, or $30,000

household assets and 36+ trade/12 mos., or 72+ trades/12 mos.), Gold

($1 million household assets, or $30,000 household assets and 120+

trades/12 mos.) and Active Trader Pro (36 trades/12 mos.)

Harrisdirect harrisdirect.com

$9.99 (if 60 trades/quarter), $14.99 (if 18 trades/quarter) or

$19.99 for 1,000 shares (5,000, for Select), then 2 cent/share

$15/quarter unless $10,000 assets, $2,500 margin balance, or three

trades/12 months

9,500 load and no-load funds; $35 for no-load, $20 exchange

between funds

S&P, Zacks, Thomson Financial Morningstar; Credit Suisse First

Boston for Preferred and Select

$0.25 - $3/bond

$25 + $1.75/contract or $22.50 + $1.50/contract (Select level)

Standard, Preferred ($100,000+ total assets), Select $500,000+

total assets), Active Trader (60+ trades/quarter)

Merrill Lynch Direct mldirect.ml.com

$29.95 + 3 cent/share over 1,000

$95 account-transfer fee

2,600; no additional fee

Merrill Lynch, S&P, Dow Jones news, BusinessWire

No fee over bond price and yield

$0.50 -- $1.50/contract + 1.2%--1.6% of principal if premiums under

$0.50; $23--$79 + 0.25% -- 1.3% of principal if premiums above $0.50

No

QuickandReilly quickandreilly.com

$19.95 (if $250,000 assets), $21.95 (if $50,000 assets) or $23.95

$25/quarter for accounts under $25,000; $50 exit fee

9,500+; fee for no-loads is 0.7% of principal up to $14,999, and 0.2%

after

Argus, S&P, First Call; streaming real-time quotes for some

tiers

No

$25, $32 or $34, plus $1.75 or $1.80/contract, depending on asset

level

3 based on assets level (under $50,000, $50,000 -- $250,000, $250.000

and up) plus Active Trader Program with 31 trades/quarter and $50,000

assets

Schwab schwab.com

$29.95/1,000 shares; 3 cents/share larger trades

$25-$250/quarter, depending on asset, advice, service level--waived

for high assets: $95 transfer-out/$50 partial transfer; $3 handling fee

for some trades

?3,100+; 20% discount off broker-assisted rate (0.7% of 1st $15,000

principal, then 0.2%), subject to a $49.95 minimum and $164.95 maximum for

no-load and low-load funds not in no-transaction-fee program

S&P, First Call, Reuters, Schwab ratings; Goldman Sachs, Argus for

top tiers

Corporate: lessor of $5/bond for first 25 bonds, then $3/bond or 1% of

principal. Treasuries: markup included in price

$29.95/first contract, then $1,40 or $2/contract (depending on service

tier) up to 30 contracts, then $1.10 or $1.75/contract (depending on

service tier)

5 (plus CT below) geared toward online investors; tiers available to

all investors but cost varies depending on asset and trading level

Schwab Trader CT schwabtrader.com

$9.95

$30/mo. (basic), $40/mo. (premium) if less than 10 trades; same

transfer fees as above

No

Real-time steaming quotes, Level ll quotes for Premium

No

$9.95 + $1.50/contract

Basic ($30/month unless 10 trades), Premium ($40/month unless 10

trades)

Scottrade scottrade.com

$7/$12

No

9,000+; no additional fees

S&P, Thomson Financial, Dow Jones news, Edgar, Value Line Fund

Analysis

$35 + $3/bond for listed: OTC varies

$1.50 above cost of market/limit order

Basic, ScottradeElite with $25,000 in assets

T. Rowe Price troweprice.com

$19.95 + 2 cents/share over 1,000; $5 extra for limit order

$25 annual fee waived with two trade or $10,000 in assets; $35

transfer-out fee

2,400+; $35 fee for some no-loads not in no-transaction-fee program

First Call, Edgar; Level ll quotes for active or high-asset

customers

No

10% off broker-assisted rate (0.015% of value of trade + $27 for up to

$2,500 worth, then 0.008% + $44 up to $10,000 worth, then 0.003% + $84)

2 -- additional free research for accounts with 20 trades or $250,000

minimum balance in 12 month period

TD Waterhouse tdwaterhouse.com

$17.95 (Choice tier), $12 (Premier), or $9.95 (Select and

Select Plus) $3 for limit orders unless 10 trades/month

$25/quarter unless $25,000 assets or more than two trades in previous

6 months

12,000; $30-$75 fee for no-loads not in no-transaction-fee program

Goldman Sachs, Argus, First Call, S&P; streaming and Level ll

quotes for active or high-asset customers

$45 flat fee for up to 9 exchange-traded bonds, otherwise traded on

net yield basis

Same as market order

Choice (basic), Premier (18 trades/quarter or $250,000 assets),

Premier Select (36 trades/quarter), Premier Select Plus (72

trades/quarter)