Robinhood Vs. TD Ameritrade: Which One’s Better?

People want to make money, and millions are doing it in the stock market.

As someone who’s been actively trading for a year, I’ve bounced back and forth between TD and Robinhood.

After my research and experience on both platforms, I have concluded. TD is better for day trading, and Robinhood is better for long-term investing.

In this article, I will go into all of both platforms' pros and cons and help you decide which one you prefer using for your investing venture.

Day-Trading Vs. Investing

First and foremost, we have to determine whether our goal is to be a day-trader or a long-term investor. Both are great options, but picking one strategy will be beneficial to growing your account.

Day-Trading

It can be far more stressful, but it can replace your day-job if you get good at it. People who day-trade are extremely active for the first 2 hours of the market’s open and the final hour before the market closes.

Your day-trades and consistent gains can add up over time and make you plenty of money that you can reinvest in other places or cash out on.

Investing

Investing can be lower stress because you're consistently contributing to your position in hopes that it’s going to grow over the long-run — which will most likely happen with the markets.

Your investments can be something you check on every once in a while and still grow your account. Do you want to get in and out of positions within seconds? Do you want to set it and forget it? What’s your goal?

The following pros and cons of Robinhood and TD Ameritrade will help you determine which platform is better suited for you.

Robinhood Cons

• You can lose money trying to day-trade on Robinhood because of its slow fill times.
• The charts are a second behind the actual market, which can be crucial to anyone trying to trade a certain stock.
• Robinhood’s customer service is prolonged to respond, and they don’t really help resolve issues that its customers have.
• Commission-free trades on the platform when buying and selling.
• When there’s high volume in the markets, you might even be stopped from being able to trade.
• You can only make 4 pattern day trades per week unless your account is over $25,000.

In Summary:

A lot of the cons with Robinhood have to do with the order fill times and the speed. In the markets, everything happens so fast, and speed is critical.

Robinhood Pros

• Easy to use interface within the app or on the computer
• Aesthetically pleasing to use the app and displays the things you’re trying to do clearly, even if you’re a beginner.
• Can buy and sell cryptocurrency on the app.
• Great for long-term investment because you can set it and forget it.
• Easy display if you’re up to or down money with it’s easy to manage portfolio capabilities.
• More people use Robinhood, so it’s more talked about and relatable when talking to other investors or traders.
• Simple search menu when discovering stocks and seeing their charts for the past 5 years.

In Summary:

Robinhood is great for the long-term investor or someone who wants to use a basic platform for investing or trading purposes. It’s in every app store and very well-known around the world.

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TD Ameritrade Cons

In Summary:

TD Ameritrade isn’t the common go-to platform for investing overall. More people know about Robinhood because of its marketing and word-of-mouth. But just because fewer people use TD doesn’t mean it’s a worse platform.

TD Ameritrade Pros

• Extremely quick and on-point trade-execution times and fills.
• Charting graphs on the TD ThinkOrSwim program on the computer.
• Pleasant sounds and visuals when your order goes through to keep you up-to-date.
• Incredible 24/7 support customer service that is professional and helpful.
• Clear display on profits or losses for the day.
• Once learned, the mobile app is simple and efficient to use.
• The desired platform for serious day-traders.

In Summary:

TD Ameritrade wasn’t my go-to platform. But when I started using them, I noticed that my profit margins increased significantly because there were fewer errors or failures within my brokerage account. I highly suggest using TD if you’re an intermediate to professional trader.

Useful Trading Tips

• Buy low and sell high on stocks.
• Know when to cut your losses on a losing position (10–15%)
• Have an exit strategy, and don’t get too greedy when things go your way.
• Remember that the market will reopen.
• Don’t risk all your savings to get rich quick overnight.
• Breaking even is better than taking a massive loss.
• Do your homework by researching your companies and seeing what drives the price up or down.
• Don’t over diversify. Stay within a few companies within a sector and master them instead of trying to be all over the place.
• Contribute a consistent amount of money to your trading account to not treat the market like a casino.
• There are winners, and there are losers. Not everyone makes money in stocks.
• Joining groups or other stock trading communities helps you learn more.
• Don’t act like you know everything because the market is unpredictable.

Both Platforms Have Their Pros and Cons

Choosing a platform to invest and trade comes down to personal preference. Robinhood and TD are both quality platforms.

Depending on your goals with the stock market, you’ll have to try each out to see what you like better.

The most vital difference between the two platforms is that TD’s trading execution fill times are significantly faster than Robinhood’s, saving you time and getting you in and out much faster.

The markets are still volatile, but now’s a great opportunity for everyone to take a stab at. Good luck, traders, and investors!