Robinhood vs Ally Invest is a very easy comparison. To get straight to the point, just about every broker is better than Robinhood, and Ally is the clear winner in this situation.
We wrote a detailed article explaining how Robinhood makes money by selling client order-flow to the highest bidder (Citadel, Vitru Financial, etc.) and thereby sacrificing any sort of quality execution for clients in the name of profiting. While Robinhood isn’t trading against their clients, other multi-billion dollar liquidity firms are, and they don’t fill client orders unless it’s advantageous and a profitable endeavorer.
More importantly, we also noted how Robinhood doesn’t offer basic investing necessities, like short selling, advanced options trading, mutual funds, OTC stock trading, or customer service available on the phone.
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tastyworks vs Robinhood 2018 |
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|---|---|---|
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 |
 |
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Robinhood |
Ally Invest |
|
|
Overall |
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|
|
Commissions & Fees |
|
|
|
Customer Service |
|
|
|
Trading Platforms |
|
|
|
Mobile App |
|
|
|
Overall Ease of Use |
|
|
|
Promotion Value |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Robinhood |
Ally Invest |
|
|
Minimum Deposit |
$0 |
$0 |
|
Stock Trade Fee |
Free |
$3.95 to $4.95 |
|
Options Ticket Charge |
Free |
$3.95 to $4.95 |
|
Options per Contract Fee |
Free |
$0.50 to $0.65 |
|
Mutual Fund Fee |
N/A |
$9.95 |
|
Market Data Fee |
Free |
Free |
|
Wire fee (outgoing) |
$25 |
$20 |
|
Inactivity fee |
None |
None |
|
Robinhood |
Ally Invest |
|
|
Stocks |
|
|
|
Options |
|
|
|
Futures |
|
|
|
Forex |
|
|
|
Bonds |
|
|
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OTC Stocks |
|
|
|
Penny Stocks |
|
|
|
Options on Futures |
|
|
|
Crypto |
|
|
|
Mutual Funds |
0 |
10,264 |
|
International Trading |
|
|
|
Advisor Services |
|
|
|
Robinhood |
Ally Invest |
|
|
Web-based |
|
|
|
Mobile App |
|
|
|
Downloadable (Mac) |
|
|
|
Downloadable (PC) |
|
|
|
Real-time Level II data |
|
|
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Real-time Charting |
|
|
|
Historical Option Data |
|
|
|
Options Analysis |
|
|
|
iPad App |
|
|
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Robinhood |
Ally |
|
|
In-person Branches |
|
|
|
Customer Service hours |
Email only |
24/7 |
|
Sum of Client Balances |
Not listed |
$150bn+ |
|
Member FDIC |
|
|
|
Savings Account |
|
|
|
Checking Account |
|
|
|
Free Online Banking |
|
|
|
Robinhood |
Ally Invest |
|
|
Under $24,999 |
N/A |
9.25% |
|
$25k-$49,999 |
N/A |
9.00% |
|
$50k-$99,999 |
N/A |
8.25% |
|
$100k-$249,999 |
N/A |
7.00% |
|
$250k-$499,999 |
N/A |
6.00% |
|
$500k-$1M |
N/A |
5.50% |
|
Above $1M |
N/A |
4.75% |
Final Thoughts on Robinhood vs Ally Invest
Although just about every stock broker is better than Robinhood, Ally Invest is a top-rated broker, and for good reason.
Ally has the lowest commissions in the entire online broker industry, tons of free trading tools and research, 24/7 customer service, access to deeply discounted futures trading through MB Trading, and so much more.
Without a doubt, Ally Invest is one of the top online stock brokers of 2018, and is dramatically better than robinhood in every category.
Although the “free” trades at Robinhood seem appealing, not saving $3.95 on a trade isn’t worth having to pay for margin trading, not being able to short sell, not being able to trade advanced options strategies, and not being able to trade OTC stocks.
