Points to Know
• A brokerage account can be opened at either
Robinhood or
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing.
• Managed investment-advisory accounts are available through both firms.
• Mutual funds and bonds are available through
J.P. Morgan, but not through Robinhood.
Are you searching for your next brokerage account? If so, J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing and Robinhood are two firms worth comparing.
|
|
|
| Rating |
|
|
| Stocks, ETFs |
$0 online |
$0 |
| Options (per contract) |
$0.65 |
$0.00 |
| Mutual Funds |
$0.00 online |
n/a |
| Initial Funding Requirement |
$0 to open; $1 to start trading |
$0 |
| Inactivity Fee |
$0 |
$0 |
| IRA Annual Fee |
$0 |
$0 |
| IRA Termination Fee |
$75 |
$0 |
| Outgoing Wire Fees (Domestic) | $25 | $25 |
| Full Account Transfer Out | $75 | $100 |
| Partial Account Transfer Out | Not listed | $100 |
Incentives
Robinhood:
2% IRA match or 1% transfer match and a FREE stock worth up to $200 at Robinhood.
J.P. Morgan Chase:
$0 equity commissions with J.P. Morgan account.
Investment Services
Both Robinhood and J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing provide brokerage accounts. In these accounts, the following asset classes can be traded:
- Stocks
- Option contracts
- ETFs
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, but not Robinhood, also offers trading in fixed income, mutual funds, money market funds, and closed-end funds. Robinhood, but not J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, offers trading in cryptocurrencies, event contracts, and futures.
Investment advice is also available. Through
Robinhood Strategies, Robinhood offers managed portfolios that use ETFs and, for larger balances, individual stocks. J.P. Morgan no longer offers its old Automated Investing robo-advisor service. J.P. Morgan still offers advisor-led programs through services such as J.P. Morgan Personal Advisors and J.P. Morgan Private Client Advisor. These human-advisor programs are not available at Robinhood.
Every managed or brokerage account must have an account registration. Robinhood offers individual, joint, and retirement accounts. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing also offers individual, joint, and retirement accounts, while trust-focused services are available through other J.P. Morgan advisory channels.
Winner: Pretty even on the whole
Trading on Margin
A brokerage account with J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing can be opened as either a cash account or a margin account.
Choosing margin creates the ability to buy eligible securities with leverage. J.P. Morgan currently lists margin access for
stocks, ETFs, and options. J.P. Morgan publishes a tiered margin schedule based on debit balance, with lower balances starting at 11.75%.
At Robinhood, the cost of margin inside a brokerage account is a more comfortable 5.25% to 4.2%. Some option spreads are available. Short selling is also available to eligible customers after margin investing has been enabled.
Winner: Robinhood
Websites
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing begins the software comparison with a website through Chase.com. The brokerage side of the platform has an order ticket with 4 main order types:
- Market
- Limit
- Stop
- Stop limit
There are also 5 duration choices:
- Day
- GTC
- On open
- On close
- Immediate or cancel
Charts on the J.P. Morgan site include several useful features, although there is surprisingly no full-screen mode.
Robinhood solves this limitation on its own site. There are two charting choices: the standard website and Legend, a desktop web platform. Legend is on a slightly higher level because it provides more tools and customization. The website also has the more advanced order ticket with 6 trade types. Option trades include P/L diagrams on the website, too.
Winner: Robinhood
Mobile Apps
Moving to mobile software, we find similar results. The J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing platform again uses the Chase Bank app. The investing side includes a watchlist that syncs with the website. This time, a chart can be shown across the full width of the screen when the graph is rotated horizontally. The same trade ticket with the same choices appears. Major stocks have analyst ratings with price targets and free pdf reports.
Robinhood offers professional stock research from Morningstar to Gold members; a Gold subscription costs
$5 per month or
$50 per year.
For actual trading, the website’s order ticket appears again. Robinhood Legend charts are now available on mobile, too. Option traders will really appreciate the strategy wizard. It’s also possible to custom-build your own trade with up to 4 legs. P/L diagrams show:
- Maximum profit
- Maximum loss
- Breakeven points
Besides securities, cryptocurrencies, futures, and event contracts can be traded on the Robinhood app.
Winner: Robinhood
Supplementary Features
Fractional Shares: Trades can be submitted for stocks and ETFs in whole dollars at either firm in this comparison. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing has the higher minimum trade amount at
$5, while Robinhood’s minimum for fractional-share orders is
$1.
Dividend Reinvestment Plan: Dividends can be set to reinvest automatically at either brokerage firm in this survey.
Automatic Mutual Fund Purchases: Traders at J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing can create recurring purchases of mutual funds. Robinhood offers recurring investments for ETFs and stocks.
Fully-Paid Stock Lending: Robinhood clients can earn extra income by lending out eligible shares.
Extended Hours: Pre-market and after-hours trading periods are available at both firms. Robinhood also has overnight trading.
IRA Lineups: Retirement accounts are available at both broker-dealers. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing has an IRA termination fee of
$75. Robinhood has no listed IRA closeout fee, and it has an IRA match program for self-directed IRAs.
IPO Trading: Possible with a self-directed account at Robinhood.
Winner: Robinhood
Our Recommendations
Mutual Funds: Only J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing has mutual funds. On its fund screener, we counted 2,752 results.
Beginning Investors: We suggest an investment-advisory account at either firm in this challenge.
Small Accounts: For a small IRA, we propose Robinhood because J.P. Morgan has a termination fee. For a small managed account, Robinhood Strategies has a
$50 minimum investment requirement. J.P. Morgan advisor-led investing starts at
$25,000.
Retirement Planning & Long-Term Investing: Robinhood has a 1% IRA match for self-directed IRA contributions without Gold, or 3% for eligible self-directed IRA contributions with Robinhood Gold.
Active Equity Trading: Robinhood has better software, so we would go with it.
Promotions
Robinhood:
2% IRA match or 1% transfer match and a FREE stock worth up to $200 at Robinhood.
J.P. Morgan Chase:
$0 equity commissions with J.P. Morgan account.
Robinhood vs Chase Judgment
In a battle of David versus Goliath, David wins here. J.P. Morgan has plenty of work to do if it wants to compete successfully against the industry’s trading-platform leaders.
Updated on 9/27/2026.
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