Optionshouse vs. TradeKing vs. EZTrader: Options Trading Platforms Compared

Optionshouse → http://www.optionshouse.com

⌊ in Options Trading

Optionshouse brokerage offers to its clients a professional grade options trading service, built by professionals, for the everyday investor. For a new investor this site has a very impressive service, a virtual trading service, which allows the user to use virtual dollars to test their hand on the ... read more...

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Optionshouse

TradeKing → http://www.tradeking.com

⌊ in Stock Trading

TradeKing is an online discount brokerage with an excellent trading platform and low transaction costs. TradeKing has all the tools a stock trader, options trader or investor could ever need. Here is a list of the trading and investing tools you will have available at TradeKing. Fundamental analy... read more...

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TradeKing

EZTrader → http://www.eztrader.com/

⌊ in Options Trading

EZ-Trader is a company in deals in online trading and has created binary options on its site for trading. Immeasurable trading sites have taken the step to copy the EZ-Trader ways of doing trading and the platform, which is providing success to this website. The main purpose of EZ-Trader is to give ... read more...

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EZTrader

Optionshouse

Optionshouse is an online brokerage firm that allows trading in stocks, exchange traded funds (ETFs) and they specialize in options trading. Optionshouse was founded in 2005 by PEAK6 Investments. PEAK6 Investments was founded in 1997 and is located on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. You can contact their customer service Monday through Friday, 7 AM to 7 PM CST at 1-877-653-2500.

TradeKing

TradeKing was founded in 2005 by current Chairman and CEO Don Montanaro. In 2012, Zecco and TradeKing joined forces, combing two fine brokerage firms. TradeKing offers trading in stocks, ETFs, forex and options. You can contact TradeKing at 877-495-5464, email or live chat for help. 

EZTrader

EZTrader is owned by WGM Services LTD of Cyprus and they are a little different in that they offer trading in binary options. EZTrader offers option trades where you pick either call or put at predetermined prices. They do not have all options available like other option trading brokerage firms. You have a choice of certain US and foreign companies and stock index options. EZTrader is located in Cyprus and you can contact them from the US at 1-800-435-7042.

Trading Platforms Compared

Optionshouse

Optionshouse is a brokerage firm that offers everything you need to trade options. They were ranked #1 for their mobile trading platform in 2012 by Barron’s. Their trading platform offers the following tools to help with your option trading.

• Multiple trading views
• You can customize the layouts and widgets
• You can also view multiple option chains
• A trade generator helps you find the best trades

Optionshouse also offers along with their trading platform the following tools.

• Risk Viewer that will help you estimate the risk of your current trading portfolio.
• Call Spread investigator scans all options to find you the best spreads.
• Covered Call Investigator finds the best covered calls with the highest theoretical returns.
• Put Spread Investigator finds the best put spreads.
• Streaming charts and news.
• Stock Screener helps you find the right stocks that fit your preferences.
• Probability Calculator lets you enter in price targets for an option symbol to find the probability for a trade reaching your goal.
• Profit and Loss Calculator.
• Volatility Charts will track the changes in both implied and historical volatility.
• Trade Generator finds trades that match your input and sentiment.

The Optionshouse trading platform is clean and easy to use. They have streamlined their trading platform for speed to enable your trades to go through quickly and without costly delays. 

TradeKing

TradeKing is a full brokerage firm that offers trading in stocks, mutual funds, fixed income, options, ETFs and currency trading. Their trading platform is fast and simple to use. TradeKing has the TradeKing Live trading platform that has the following tools.

• Intraday charts
• Historical charts
• Workbench option strategies
• Streaming option and stock quotes
• Your own streaming watch list
• Portfolio management
• Extra hours trading
• Auto trade, which will execute a trade that is based on your predetermined parameters.

With their trading platforms, you will have the following tools available.

• Options Pricing Calculator will forecast theoretical values bases on the Greeks and implied volatility compared to the current bid/ask price.
• The Probability Calculator will show you the potential profit and loss of a trade.
• Options Scanner and Strategy Scanner will let you screen for options and trade strategies based on up to 25 criteria that you can choose from.
• Stocks, ETF and mutual fund scanners.
• Tax Manager
• Technical Analysis has chart pattern recognition and price forecasting tools.
• TradeKing Forex is their currency trading platform that allows you to trade over 50 different currency pairs. 

TradeKing tutorials on YouTube

TradeKing was rated #1 in customer service by Smart Money in 2010, 2011 and 2012. They were also voted by Barron’s as the best for option trading in 2012. 

EZTrader

The trading platform on EZTrader is not like the other brokerage firm trading platforms. They don’t have charts or analysis tools. Binary options are not like regular stock and index options. Binary options are for the most part short term options though EZTrader does have longer term binary options.

EZTrader will set the price of the option and you can go long if you think that option will go higher in price or sell the option if you think the option will go lower in price. Most of the binary options will expire within an hour or by the end of the trading day. All you have to be is right by one tick of the price and you will profit by as much as 95%. If you are wrong in the direction, the most you can lose is the amount you invested in the option trade.

Their trading platform is simply the option strike price and the time when the option will expire. On their trading platform, you will see option’s underlying security, current real time price, trade call or put, the possible maximum payout and the time to expirations.

You can trade options in the following categories:

• Indices including the Dow Jones, NASDAQ, S&P500, CAC40, DAX30, FTSE and IBEX.
• US Stocks such as IBM, Apple, Microsoft, Netflix, eBay, Potash, Citigroup, Facebook, Google and Amazon.
• European and Asian stocks.

Due to US law, residents of the United States can only trade binary options based on stock and indexes. EZTrader also offers binary options in the following categories for customers outside of the United States.

• Commodities that include oil, gold and silver.
• Currency pairs like USD/JPY, EUR/USD and USD/CAD.

Mobile Trading Platforms

Each company offers their trading platforms for trading on various mobile devices.

• With Optionshouse, you can also trade using their mobile trading platform on the iPad, iPhone, Kindle Fire and Android devices.
• TradeKing has trading platforms for mobile trading on your iPhone and Android.
• EZTrader offers mobile trading apps for the iPhone and Android.

Conclusion

As you can see, Optionshouse and TradeKing are traditional online brokerage firms that offer trading in stocks, options, ETFs and mutual funds with many types of tools to make decisions from their trading platforms. EZTrader is strictly for trading binary options in stocks, currencies and metals with restrictions for traders in the United States. Optionshouse and TradeKing do not offer trading in binary options and their option prices are those quoted from the Chicago Board of Options Exchange (CBOE).