I am going to start trading some ES futures. Anyone know who's the cheapest and best broker? I was looking at GoFutures and it says 99 cents per contract. Does that include exchange fees? I can't see how it could be that cheap when compared with the rest for small traders.. Anyone have experience with GoFutures?
You are looking to pay between 3.80 and 5.00 round trip. Here are some options: Interactive Brokers Mirus Futures Tradestation Securities Amp futures Infinity Futures TransAct
If a broker advertises a very low rate per side it is always without including the fees. CME retail fees for ES are $1.14 a side. NFA fee is $0.01 a side. For the most part best broker and cheapest broker are mutually exclusive. You have to decide what makes the best broker based on your trading requirements. There are issues such as intraday margin requirements, platform capabilities, platform stability, API availability, platform cost, data feed cost and interest paid on cash. The cheapest broker depends on your trading volume, account size and platform choice. Broker A is cheapest for low volume traders, Broker B is cheapest for medium volume traders and Broker C is cheapest for high volume traders. Published low end rates for ES range from $1.35 to $0.40 a side plus fees.
Adding to jeb's list: 1) The type of data feed (tick-by-tick or Interactive Brokers style) 2) Level of DOM data feed included 3) Charting software provided 4) Stability of intra-day margin requirements and when they start and end 5) Broker's margin policy 6) Initial equity to open account 7) Help\Customer service responsiveness 8) Trading problem resolution reputation 9) Methods\costs of getting money in and out of the account There are more but if you are comparing firms you should look at these items insofar as they affect the type of trading you plan to do . Jack
Cheapest and best are two different things. Some have excellent functionality. Some are a one-person introducing broker with little experience. Some have sucky reputations but are cheap. One of them cost me 30% of my trading account, due to a botched trade using their functionality. I personally want a major, well-established broker, with good margin rules, good auditing policy, good security, and a good industry rep. [I DON'T want a broker with $300 or $500 day margins. One of these days, a major disaster or even such a rumour ("dirty bombs detonated in 6 western cities") is going to blow up a vendor like this] How about if you contact the broker sometime, and you discover that someone claiming to be you wired out all your funds? "Sorry" is all they can say... So, is saving a few cents worth being a customer of the next Refco and having your account frozen for 6 months?
I just call Interactive Brokers in Montreal CANADA to ask info about opening an account and spoke to someone by the name of Sylvain,he gave me crap cause I bid not get the info of the web site!!!!! Now I know what the other posts where talking about! I have been calling for a week and half Infinity Brokers and they have been so polite and willing to help me!!! What a difference!
I would not touch IB for futures. What the other guy said about $500 margins has some merit but I trade with a broker who offers that. IMO...it's pointless to require overnight margins for intra-day positions but I can understand why brokers are doing that. I saw what the futures market did after 9/11. Thankfully I was flat!!! Probably the most important thing you should consider is the platform. The wrong platform absolutely will make the difference between profitability and not profitable. I can't make a dime using Tradestation's platform. Take a few platforms for a test drive, pick the one you like best. Many brokers offer the same platform.