Who’s the best broker for options trading? With so many brokers out there, is one better than the other? We’ll take a look at a broker we believe is the best. However, with all the different options, no pun intended, for brokers, we do the heavy lifting to find the best.
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Who’s the Best Broker for Options Trading?
- Who’s the best broker for options trading? Hands down, Tastyworks is the best broker for options trading. If you’re new to trading options or a seasoned pro, there is no reason to use any platform other than Tastyworks.
Let’s take a look at Tastyworks a little closer.
Tastyworks opened its virtual doors in 2017. Now, this may seem insignificant except for one thing. Their infancy means they aren’t saddled with the legacy systems, so they often bog down their older competitors.
With unparalleled option order execution and some of the lowest fees on the market, Tastyworks is hard to beat. You’d be hard-pressed with commissions capped at $10 per leg to find a better deal elsewhere.
Read our Tasyworks review to learn more about it.
An Options-Focused Platform Geared Towards Profits
Without a doubt, Tastyworks’ entire platform’s geared towards evaluating volatility and the probability of profit. And since 90% of the trades placed are derivatives, they spend most of their time designing tools specifically for options traders.
So how exactly does Tastyworks do this? For starters, their analysis page displays charting on open positions. I will discuss this later, but it tells you how much you can gain or lose if you adjust your open position.
Further to this, just last month, Tastyworks introduced ChartGrid. This fantastic desktop application allows traders to load up to 10 underlying on a single page.
More importantly, all charts are customizable, and you can trade directly from them, which makes you the best broker for options trading.
A Consistent Look and Feel
There’s nothing worse than getting used to a broker’s specific charting platform only to face a different look on your mobile. Trading is hard enough as it is without struggling to find VWAP or level 2 data.
Luckily the look and feel of their mobile platform are quite similar to their desktop version. So users can breathe a sigh of relief as their watch lists are the same on mobile, web, and download platforms.
Although a newcomer to options trading might be initially uncomfortable, you’ll come to appreciate Tastyworks’ features in time.
The Ability to Analyze Multiple Scenarios on Your Open Positions
You can thank their analysis page for that. Let’s say you have a few different positions on Facebook, like an iron condor and a butterfly spread.
Within the page, you can analyze the risk profiles of combined positions and see how a possible adjusting position will change that trade outlook.
And even better, you can quickly modify your current position using the chart to enter/exit your trade rapidly. For this reason alone, Tastyworks is the best broker for options trading.
I can’t stress enough how remarkable this tool is. Any option trader will greatly appreciate the platform’s spectacular attention to detail.
What Is the Best Platform for Trading Options?
- ThinkorSwim is another platform you can look at for the best broker for options trading. It has a stellar charting system that can trade every option’s trading style. However, with ThinkorSwim’s issues as of late with their fills, Tastyworks is overtaking them.
Let’s Talk Money and Why Tastyworks Is the Best Broker for Options Trading
Pricing is one of Tastyworks’ strong points. And when it comes to options, they completely blow every other brokerage firm I know out of the water.
There is no comparison. First of all, there are no account minimums at Tastyworks. Secondly, their initial commissions are practically non-existent.
And finally, they have no commissions on closing trades. In all my years of trading, I haven’t seen any other broker do this.
Why Tastyworks Is the Best Broker for Options Trading
- Every tool you need to analyze and trade options are built into their platform.
- Their platform’s geared specifically towards the options trader. This means you can analyze your risk profile if you have multiple positions on a specific underlying.
- You can analyze all the different risk profiles of a combined position.
- With endless hours of trading videos, shows, and up-to-the-minute trade ideas, you can’t beat their educational support.
- $0 account minimum
- $0.00 stock trades, $1.00 to open options trades, $0.00 to close
- In addition to their attractive commission fees, Tastyworks doesn’t charge for the use of their software or access to data. This is a bonus!
Some Downsides of Using Tastyworks for Options Trading
- It can be overwhelming to newcomers at first. But isn’t every trading platform when you start?
- Poor tools for technical analysis
- Outside of ETFs containing bonds, there’s no fixed-income trading for those who want to put some of their assets into a more conservative asset class.
- Access to US-only markets leads to more limited trading in equities and futures.
- News and data aren’t the best. I suggest accessing your data elsewhere.
- You’ll need to log in to The Quiet Foundation if you want any additional portfolio analysis beyond profit and loss.
- No demo account to practice.
- No direct-access routing hinders day traders.
If you can use another platform to analyze and access data and news, TastyWorks is the best broker for options trading.
Who Tastyworks Isn’t For
Anyone who doesn’t trade options. If options trading isn’t your focus, I suggest you check out other brokers like Questrade or E*Trade. Even though Tastyworks fees are still competitive for futures and equities, you’ll find better value elsewhere.
Furthermore, the technical analysis and interactive chart functions are underdeveloped compared to other brokers. So if you trade stocks based on charts, this is not your platform.
Are You Ready to Learn Options Trading?
Now that you know the best broker for options trading, are you ready to learn? If so, you’re in the right place! With Bullish Bears, you will learn simple options trading strategies proven to profit.
You don’t need to have a huge understanding of all the different technical indicators. Nor will nor will you need to spend hours sifting through fundamentals.
