TD Ameritrade vs Lightspeed Trading

TD Ameritrade vs Lightspeed Financial Comparison Table 2024
TD Ameritrade	Lightspeed Financial
Review 4	Review 4.2

TD Ameritrade is a leading discount brokerage offering a vast range of instruments including forex, stocks, futures, options and crypto. The company has nearly 40 years of experience and authorization from the SEC, FINRA and CFTC. Trading takes place via its well-known thinkorswim platform, which offers sophisticated tools and features including stock screeners and calculators.	Lightspeed Financial is a SEC-regulated broker specializing in intraday trading on US markets. Traders can access the full range of NYSE stocks plus futures and options via a wide selection of professional-grade trading platforms and discounts for loyal traders.
Comment by Reviewer
"Traders who want access to a huge range of stocks from a reputable broker with low fees should consider TD Ameritrade. On the downside, we miss access to the familiar MetaTrader 4 software."	"High-volume day traders will benefit from Lightspeed Financial's powerful tools and fast execution speeds. The broker stands out for its 15+ high-grade trading platforms."
Pros
Advanced order types, including OCO and brackets Automated trading capabilities, including robo-advisors Several trading platforms including proprietary award-winning software TD Ameritrade provides rich in-depth research and educational resources Extended 24/7 trading hours allow for international access to the markets The broker facilitates automatic syncing between desktop and mobile trading platforms There is access to over 350 technical studies, 20 drawing tools and 8 Fibonacci tools Active chat rooms to share ideas and communicate with thousands of experienced traders The Economic Data tool allows access to a range of data about the health of global economies Management Services and Essential Portfolios. Reviews of which show high levels of customer satisfaction Portfolio margin gives some users increased leverage by basing margin requirements on total portfolio risk	Huge selection of deep trading platforms and tools to choose from Low fees and tight spreads for active day traders Regulated by FINRA, the CFTC and the NFA Risk-assessment software packages Full access to NYSE stocks Futures and options trading
Cons
CFD trading not available No MT4 or MT5 integration Fractional shares are not offered No direct cryptocurrency trading Broker-assisted trade commissions are around $25 Stringent margin maintenance requirements and high fees New traders may be overwhelmed by the vast amount of information and tools available	Not suitable for beginners with a high minimum deposit of $10,000 / $25,000 Limited range of asset classes with no forex trading Trading platforms are complex for novice traders Margin trading limited to max 1:4
Awards
Best Broker for Beginners 2022 - Investopedia Best Online Broker Awards Best Online Broker for Stock Trading Platform and Research 2022 - NerdWallet's Best-Of Awards #1 Platform & Tools, #1 Active Trading, #1 Options Trading, #1 Customer Service, and #1 Phone Support 2022 - StockBrokers.com Online Broker Review
Instruments
Forex, Stocks, ETFs, Cryptos, Futures, Options, Commodities, Bonds	Equities, options, futures
Demo Account
Yes	Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0	$10,000
Trading Platforms
eSignal AutoChartist	eSignal
Payment Methods
ACH Transfer Automated Customer Account Transfer Service Cheque TransferWise Wire Transfer
Minimum Trade
$0	Variable
Regulator
SEC, FINRA, CFTC	FINRA, NFA
Margin Trading
Yes	No
STP Account
No	No
ECN Account
No	No
DMA Account
Yes	No
MAM Account
Yes	No
PAMM Account
No	No
LAMM Account
No	No
Demat Account
No	No
AI / Machine Learning
No	No
Robo Advisor
Yes	No
Negative Balance Protection
No	No
Market Maker
No	No
P2P Trading
No	No
Spot Trading
No	No
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android	Yes
App Review
TD Ameritrade offers currency trading via Android and iOS mobile and tablet apps. Users can speculate on over 75 currency pairs with low fees and advanced trading tools. Deposit funds and manage accounts in a few clicks.
Auto Trading
Yes - Auto trading available via bots	Yes
Copy Trading
No	No
Social Trading
No	No
Trade Signals
Yes	Yes
VPS Hosting
No	No
Tournaments
No	No
Demo Competitions
No	No
Ethical Investing
Yes	No
Custodial Account
Yes	No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No	No
Inactivity Fee
$0
Islamic Account
No	Yes
Account Currencies
USD
Stock Exchanges
Dow Jones Japan Exchange Group Nasdaq New York Stock Exchange S&P 500 Toronto Stock Exchange Taiwan Stock Exchange	New York Stock Exchange
Commodities
Cocoa Coffee Copper Corn Cotton Gasoline Gold Livestock Natural Gas Oil Palladium Platinum Silver Soybeans Sugar Wheat	Gold Silver
Forex Trading
Trade 70+ forex pairs including majors, minors or exotics via the desktop, mobile or webtrader app with no commission and 1:2 leverage. The choice of currencies is wider than most forex brokers.	Forex trading not offered
Forex App
TD Ameritrade offers currency trading via Android and iOS mobile and tablet apps. Users can speculate on over 75 currency pairs with low fees and advanced trading tools. Deposit funds and manage accounts in a few clicks.
GBPUSD Spread
Variable
EURUSD Spread
Variable
EURGBP Spread
Variable
Assets
75+
Cryptocurrency
Gain exposure to cryptocurrency markets through OTC crypto trusts, mutual funds and ETFs and Bitcoin futures. This offers portfolio diversification opportunities and trading vehicles beyond standard crypto CFDs.	Use Lightspeed Crypto to trade BTC, ETH, BCH, LTC and USDC in pairs with USD with low commissions. On the negative side, the choice of cryptocurrencies is limited vs alternatives like eToro.
Spread
Commission fees apply	Floating
Coins
BTC ETH MBT MET	BTC
Crypto Lending
No	No
Crypto Mining
No	No
Crypto Staking
No	No
Auto Market Maker
No	No

Review	Review
More Comparisons
TD Ameritrade vs	Lightspeed Financial vs