Reviews

Reviews and buyer's guides

Each guide shows you how to compare providers of one product: the features that matter to a trader, the costs to find, where to check a firm's registration and the signs that mean walk away.

Guides

Each guide starts with a checklist you can run against any provider, then goes through the costs that are easy to miss and the regulators' own tools for checking a firm before you send it money. Rates and fees change constantly, so the guides show you where to find the current figures and how to compare them.

If you trade actively, start with choosing an online broker. For the cash you keep outside it, the savings account and CD guides cover insurance limits and access.

Certificates of deposit How to Choose a CD, and When Locking Up Cash Makes Sense How to compare certificates of deposit: APY and term, early withdrawal penalties worked through, callable and brokered CDs, laddering, and FDIC coverage.
Crypto exchanges How to Choose a Crypto Exchange Without Taking Hidden Risks How to compare crypto exchanges on custody, state licensing, full trading and withdrawal costs, security, and what happens to your coins if the exchange fails.
Savings accounts How to Choose a High-Yield Savings Account for Trading Cash How to compare high-yield savings accounts for cash you keep outside a brokerage: APY versus APR, variable rates, fees, transfer speed and FDIC coverage.
Robo-advisors How to Choose a Robo-Advisor, and When a Trader Would Use One What a robo-advisor does, which costs and features to compare, how its tax-loss harvesting can clash with your own trades, and how to check its SEC registration.
Online brokers How to Choose an Online Broker for Active Stock Trading What an active stock trader should compare between online brokers: order types, execution reports, full fee schedules, margin, borrow, tax lots and SIPC protection.