Robinhood vs Fidelity (2025): My Unbiased Review!

[00:00] Hey everybody, I'm Matt, investments

[00:01] editor at Finder. Today we are diving

[00:03] into a head-to-head comparison between

[00:05] two very popular US brokers, Fidelity

[00:09] and Robin Hood. Now, Fidelity has been

[00:11] around since 1946. That's before credit

[00:14] cards, commercial microwaves, and the

[00:17] moon landing, if you believe that sort

[00:19] of thing. It's old, but that's not a bad

[00:22] thing. At 5.9 trillion in assets under

[00:26] management, Fidelity is one of the

[00:27] largest US brokers and it's got lots of

[00:31] investment options, retirement tools,

[00:33] and some of the lowest account fees that

[00:36] you will find among brokers. Robin Hood

[00:39] around since 2013, the same year the

[00:41] first Frozen movie came out. Not that

[00:44] I'm a fan.

[00:46] >> I'm just I just happen to know that. But

[00:49] Robin Hood is one of the fastest growing

[00:51] US brokers. Once catering to beginners,

[00:53] Robin Hood has expanded its trading

[00:55] platform to align with its maturing

[00:56] customer base, offering things like more

[00:58] tradable assets, a dedicated active

[01:00] trader platform, deeper analysis tools,

[01:02] things like that. And it's been racking

[01:04] up new accounts as if it offers free

[01:06] stocks for new customers or something.

[01:08] It does, and we'll put a link in the

[01:10] description so you can get them. Whether

[01:11] you are a beginner or an experienced

[01:13] trader, let's break them down and help

[01:15] you decide which broker is right for

[01:17] you. Fidelity offers a robust,

[01:20] user-friendly trading experience that's

[01:21] well suited for both beginners and

[01:23] active traders. It's got multiple

[01:25] platforms, including Active Trader Pro

[01:27] for desktop, trading dashboard for web,

[01:29] and a pretty solid mobile app. And then

[01:31] there's Robin Hood, which focuses more

[01:33] on simplicity. Its userfriendly,

[01:35] intuitive interface makes trading

[01:37] incredibly accessible, especially for

[01:39] beginners. Its clean design helps you

[01:41] place trades quickly without feeling

[01:44] overwhelmed. Both platforms offer zero

[01:46] commissions on stocks and ETFs, which is

[01:49] great, but there are some differences in

[01:51] other fees. For instance, Robin Hood

[01:53] doesn't charge per contract fees for

[01:55] options, whereas Fidelity charges 65

[01:57] cents per contract. Meanwhile, Robin

[01:59] Hood's highest margin rate is also lower

[02:02] at 5.75 compared to Fidelity's 12.575 at

[02:07] $5 per month or $50 per year if you pay

[02:10] annually. You can also upgrade to Robin

[02:12] Hood Gold, which unlocks the first

[02:13] $1,000 of margin interest free, 4% APY

[02:17] on your cash, Morning Star Research, and

[02:19] more. Fidelity doesn't charge for access

[02:22] to tools or research, and it doesn't

[02:24] charge an outgoing account transfer fee

[02:26] if you want to move your account to a

[02:28] different broker. Its cashewite yield is

[02:30] lower at 2.21% APY, but it doesn't

[02:33] require membership fee for you to get

[02:34] the APY. Now looking at available

[02:36] assets, Fidelity offers a wide range of

[02:39] investment options. Stocks, ETFs, equity

[02:42] options, index options, CDs, bonds,

[02:45] mutual funds, even precious metals, and

[02:47] cryptocurrency. In fact, Fidelity is the

[02:50] only of the three big brokers, the other

[02:52] two being Erade and Charles Schwab that

[02:54] offers access to crypto. You can only

[02:56] buy Bitcoin and Ethereum, but still,

[02:58] it's a start. All this makes it ideal

[03:01] for building a diversified portfolio.

[03:04] Now, Robin Hood has grown well beyond

[03:06] its beginner roots. You can trade stocks

[03:08] and ETFs, equity options, index options,

[03:11] over two dozen cryptocurrencies, plus

[03:14] event contracts, and futures. And with

[03:17] Robin Hood's recent acquisition of

[03:19] global cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp,

[03:21] we'd see an even expanded offering of

[03:23] cryptocurrencies and even things like

[03:25] cryptostaking, which let you earn

[03:26] rewards on the cryptocurrency that you

[03:28] hold. Robin Hood is a surprisingly

[03:31] versatile trading platform for beginners

[03:33] and active traders who want access to

[03:36] newer asset classes. Fidelity wins on

[03:39] traditional diversification, but Robin

[03:40] Hood's lineup is more competitive than

[03:42] ever, especially if you want crypto and

[03:44] futures exposure. Plus, for crypto

[03:47] traders, you cannot transfer your crypto

[03:49] off of Fidelity, whereas you can with

[03:51] Robin Hood. Fidelity has long been known

[03:54] for its powerful research and trading

[03:56] tools. It offers screeners, advanced

[03:58] charting, thirdparty research from firms

[04:01] like Morning Smart, and Zach, and a

[04:03] dedicated desktop trading platform,

[04:05] Active Trader Pro for advanced traders.

[04:07] Robin Hood 2 offers advanced charting

[04:09] and screeners enhanced further for gold

[04:12] members with Morning Star research and

[04:14] level two market access. But the game

[04:16] changer for Robin Hood is Robin Hood

[04:18] Legend. It's free web-based desktop

[04:21] style trading platform built

[04:22] specifically for active traders with up

[04:24] to eight simultaneous charts, dozens of

[04:27] technical indicators, inch chart

[04:28] trading, and real-time data. Between the

[04:31] two though, Fidelity remains the leader

[04:33] for deep multi-stage research and

[04:35] analysis. But Robin Hood Legend is a

[04:38] huge leap forward for the broker. It

[04:40] offers a desktop style trading

[04:42] experience for active traders at no

[04:43] additional cost. And it's proof that

[04:45] Robin Hood is committed to leveling up

[04:47] for more sophisticated traders. Now,

[04:49] looking at customer support, Fidelity

[04:51] has a long-standing reputation for

[04:53] delivering quality customer service. You

[04:56] can reach Fidelity support by phone chat

[04:58] or even in person at one of his

[05:01] branches. Robin Hood, on the other hand,

[05:03] has got 247 live chat and inapp

[05:06] assistance, but it does not offer

[05:08] in-person support. If you're investing

[05:10] for retirement, Fidelity is a top

[05:11] choice. It offers traditional Roth,

[05:13] rollover, SE IAS, and IAS for kids, plus

[05:17] a full range of retirement planning

[05:19] tools where you can track your finances,

[05:20] so your spending, saving, and retirement

[05:23] goals. Now, Robin Hood only offers

[05:25] traditional Roth and Rollover IAS, but

[05:27] it does pay a match on IRA

[05:29] contributions. With Robin Hood, get a 1%

[05:32] match on your IRA contributions or 3%

[05:35] with gold, which is a pretty valuable

[05:37] perk. in terms of available assets in

[05:39] IRA. In a Robin Hood IRA, you can trade

[05:42] stocks, ETFs, and options. In a Fidelity

[05:45] IRA, you can trade stocks, ETFs, bonds,

[05:48] mutual funds, CDs, and cryptocurrency.

[05:51] If you're looking for help building a

[05:52] portfolio, or you just prefer a

[05:54] hands-off investing experience, robo

[05:56] advisors and financial advisors matter,

[05:58] and both Robin Hood and Fidelity have

[06:01] something to offer. Fidelity provides

[06:03] robo advisory through Fidelity Go with

[06:05] no advisory fee on balances under 25,000

[06:08] and a 0.35% annual fee on balances above

[06:11] that. Once your account reaches 25,000,

[06:13] you're also eligible for unlimited

[06:15] 30inut coaching calls with a human

[06:17] financial adviser. That makes it ideal

[06:19] for investors who want automated

[06:21] investing plus personal support. Now,

[06:23] Robin Hood recently launched Robin Hood

[06:25] Strategies, an actively managed robo

[06:28] advisor that combines ETFs and

[06:30] individual stocks. It comes with a 0.25%

[06:34] annual fee that's capped at $250 a year

[06:37] for gold members. Portfolios start with

[06:39] as little as $50, adjust automatically,

[06:41] and include inapp market insights,

[06:44] future projections, and taxaware

[06:46] investing. But unlike Fidelity, there is

[06:48] no access to human financial advisors.

[06:51] In summary, Fidelity Go gives you robo

[06:53] advice plus access to human coaches.

[06:56] Ideal if you value both automation and

[06:59] personal support. And Robin Hood

[07:00] Strategies brings lowcost active robo

[07:03] management to everyone, not just gold

[07:05] users, but it doesn't include human

[07:07] advice. So great for anybody that wants

[07:09] to keep it digital. So which broker is

[07:11] right for you? If you're after a

[07:13] fullfeatured all-in-one platform for

[07:15] serious long-term investing with

[07:18] professional tools, and access to human

[07:20] advisors, Fidelity is hard to beat. But

[07:23] if you want a sleek, modern experience

[07:26] with active trading features, newer

[07:28] asset classes, broader crypto access,

[07:30] and a surprisingly capable robo advisor,

[07:33] all without the bulk, Robin Hood is a

[07:34] strong lowcost choice. So, what's your

[07:37] pick? Fidelity or Robin Hood? Drop a

[07:40] comment and let me know why. And hey, if

[07:41] this helped you out in any way, please

[07:43] hit that like button, subscribe for more

[07:45] investing content, and check out my

[07:47] other videos on market news, trading

[07:49] tips, and broker comparisons. And as

[07:51] always, if you want some free stocks,

[07:53] links are in the description.