Vanguard commissions structure on trading, buying, selling stocks. IRA, brokerage trading account fee schedule, margin rates. Vanguard annual, inactivity charges, cost of investing.

Vanguard Brokerage Commissions Schedule

Vanguard Fees

Online brokerage companies charge various fees. The most common fee is a “trading fee” or “commission fee,” which brokerages apply for executing a trade or buying/selling financial securities. This is usually a flat fee or a percentage of the trade value.

Brokerage companies also charge fees that aren’t related to trading securities, such as account service fees or wire transfer charges.

Account Service Fee

Vanguard charges a $20 annual “account service” fee for each brokerage account.

However, there are several cases where Vanguard waives this fee:

- Clients with $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard assets.

- Clients signed up for e-delivery of statements, reports, and updates.

- Clients with an organization or trust account registered under an employee identification number (EIN).

- Brokerage accounts enrolled in an advisory program managed by a Vanguard affiliate.

Wire Transfer Fee

Vanguard charges a $10 fee for each holding transferred via wire.

This fee is waived for clients with $1 million or more in qualifying Vanguard assets.

American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) Fees

American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) let U.S. investors invest in foreign companies. Banks holding ADRs on behalf of investors may charge fees as stated in ADR prospectuses.

One ADR fee is a “pass-through” fee, which the Depository Trust Company (DTC) collects from Vanguard. Vanguard automatically deducts this fee from the client’s account.

The DTC may also collect other fees, like those for dividend processing.

Foreign Securities Transactions Fees

For non-DTC-eligible securities (other than ADRs), there is a $50 processing fee in addition to the commission.

Vanguard may apply a commission fee each day if a trade takes several days to complete.

Additional fees may apply if the trade is executed in local markets rather than through an intermediary.

Tax Filing for Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) in an IRA

Vanguard Fiduciary Trust Company (VFTC) acts as the custodian for MLPs held in IRAs. The IRS requires VFTC to file MLP tax forms, and VFTC charges a $300 fee per account for these filings.

Vanguard Trading Fees

Most of the time, Vanguard charges $0 for trading stocks and ETFs online. However, mutual funds, options, CDs, and bonds may have trading fees or “commissions.” Trades placed by phone may also have additional costs.

Stocks

There are no transaction fees for stocks traded online. Stocks traded by phone incur a $25 fee, but this fee is waived for individuals with $1 million or more invested in Vanguard assets.

ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds)

Vanguard offers its own ETFs and allows trading of ETFs managed by other companies. There are no fees for ETFs traded online. However, ETFs managed by other companies have a $25 fee when traded by phone. This charge is waived for clients with $1 million or more invested.

Mutual Funds

Like ETFs, Vanguard has its own mutual funds and allows trading of mutual funds from other companies.

There are no transaction fees for Vanguard-managed mutual funds, but some may have purchase or redemption fees. These fees vary by fund and range from 0.25% to 1.00% of the transaction.

Vanguard has minimum investment requirements for its mutual funds, ranging from $1,000 to $100,000 depending on the fund.

Vanguard offers three categories of mutual funds managed by other companies:

- No-transaction-fee (NTF) mutual funds,
- Transaction-fee (TF) mutual funds, and
- Load mutual funds.

No-Transaction-Fee (NTF) Mutual Funds

There are no fees for NTF mutual funds traded online. Like Vanguard mutual funds, there is a $25 fee for trades placed by phone, waived for clients with over $1 million in Vanguard funds.

Transaction-Fee (TF) Mutual Funds

Fees for TF mutual funds depend on the amount invested in Vanguard ETFs and mutual funds. Costs also differ between online and phone transactions.

Clients with less than $1 million invested in Vanguard funds incur a $20 fee per trade online, with an added $25 fee if the trade is placed by phone.

Clients with $1 million to $5 million in assets have $0 fees for the first 25 trades online and $8 for each trade after that.

Clients with more than $5 million in Vanguard funds receive 100 free trades, then pay $8 per trade thereafter.

Load Mutual Funds

Fees for load mutual funds vary by share class: A, B, & C.

Class A shares have a front-end load that varies by fund and can be as high as 5.75%.

Class B & C Shares have a back-end load, which reduces to 0% over time.

All share classes may have specific sales charges and minimum purchases.

Top Rated Brokers

Options Contracts

The fees for trading options also depend on the amount invested in Vanguard funds.

Clients with less than $1 million in Vanguard funds pay $1 per contract.

Clients with $1 million to $5 million in assets receive 25 free trades, while clients with over $5 million receive 100 free trades. Afterward, the fee is $1 per contract.

All option exercises and assignments are commission-free.

Fixed-Income Securities

The cost to trade CDs (certificates of deposit) and bonds varies based on the type and whether it is a new issue or traded on the secondary market.

There is no charge for new issues except for mortgage-backed securities, which have a $35 fee per trade.

Trades on the secondary market generally have higher fees, except for U.S. Treasury securities, which are $0 per transaction.

CDs, U.S. government securities, corporate bonds, and municipal bonds have a $1 per $1,000 face amount fee, with a maximum of $250.

Mortgage-backed securities and unit investment trusts (UITs) have a $35 fee per trade.

For secondary market trades placed by phone, a $25 fee is added. This fee is waived for clients with $1 million or more invested.

Vanguard has minimum investment requirements for fixed-income instruments. The minimum for U.S. government agency securities, corporate bonds, CDs, and U.S. Treasury securities is $1,000. For municipal bonds, it is $5,000.

All Vanguard fees are subject to change. Contact Vanguard for the latest information and details.

Find a Financial Advisor

If you are looking for a professional financial advisor in your area, you can find top Financial Advisors on the Wiser Advisor website.

Visit Wiser Advisor