Fidelity charges $0.65 per contract to open an options position, and $0.65 per contract to close it. There is no free-close program here, and no published volume discount for standard accounts. If you are comparing brokers on cost alone, that combination puts Fidelity in the middle of the pack, not the cheapest, and it is worth knowing exactly what that $0.65 does and does not cover before you place your first trade.
Key Takeaways
- Fidelity’s options commission is $0.65 per contract, charged on both the opening and the closing trade. No per-order base fee.
- There is no volume-based discount tier for standard retail accounts as of this writing.
- Accounts classified as a “Professional Options Trader” under exchange rules pay an extra $0.50 per contract, for a total of $1.15 per contract.
- The Options Regulatory Fee (ORF) is charged separately, on top of the $0.65, on both buy and sell transactions.
- A 10-lot iron condor (40 total contracts across four legs) costs $26 to open and $26 to close at Fidelity, a $52 round trip before regulatory fees.
What Fidelity Actually Charges
Fidelity’s own current pricing page confirms a flat structure: $0 base commission on online options trades, plus $0.65 per contract. That rate applies whether you are opening a new position or closing an existing one. A single call or put costs $0.65 to open and another $0.65 to close it, for $1.30 round trip. Ten contracts run $6.50 each way, or $13.00 round trip.
This is the same headline rate Charles Schwab and Interactive Brokers Pro publish for standard accounts, so Fidelity is not an outlier on the number itself. What makes it worth a dedicated look is what the rate does not include, and how it stacks up once you add multi-leg strategies and account type into the picture.
The Professional Options Trader Surcharge
Fidelity’s pricing page discloses an additional $0.50 per contract fee for accounts that carry the exchange-defined “Professional Options Trader” designation, bringing the effective rate to $1.15 per contract. This classification is an exchange and regulatory status tied to how and why you trade (broadly, whether your trading is deemed to be for a business purpose rather than personal investing), not a tier you opt into for higher volume. Most retail traders will never be classified this way, but if you trade through an entity, manage outside accounts, or have been flagged in the past at another broker, confirm your status with Fidelity directly. It changes the math on every strategy below.
No Volume Discount at Fidelity
Some brokers lower the per-contract rate once you clear a quarterly trade-count threshold. Fidelity’s published pricing does not include a volume-based discount tier for options commissions on standard retail accounts. If you are an active premium seller running dozens of trades a month specifically to chase a lower marginal rate, that discount does not materialize here the way it might elsewhere, so factor the flat $0.65 into your cost basis regardless of activity level.
What the $0.65 Doesn’t Cover
The per-contract commission is not the only charge on an options trade. Fidelity’s pricing disclosure separately calls out an Options Regulatory Fee that applies to both buy and sell transactions, describing the fee as “subject to change.” This is a small, per-contract, pass-through charge that exchanges and regulators set, not something Fidelity keeps, and every broker that offers exchange-listed options passes some version of it along. The practical takeaway: your actual per-contract cost will run a few cents above the advertised $0.65 once this fee is included, and the exact amount moves periodically, so check Fidelity’s current fee schedule for the live number rather than treating $0.65 as the final figure to the penny.
The Real Cost of a Multi-Leg Trade
Commission math gets more interesting once you move past a single call or put. Take a hypothetical 10-lot iron condor: four legs (short put, long put, short call, long call), each with 10 contracts, for 40 contracts total to open the position.
| Action | Contracts | Rate | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open (4 legs x 10 contracts) | 40 | $0.65/contract | $26.00 |
| Close (4 legs x 10 contracts) | 40 | $0.65/contract | $26.00 |
| Round trip total | 80 | – | $52.00 |
That $52.00 is before the Options Regulatory Fee on each transaction. If you let the condor expire worthless instead of closing it, you skip the closing leg entirely and pay only the $26.00 to open, since Fidelity does not charge an assignment or expiration fee on options that expire out of the money. This is a genuinely hypothetical example for illustration, not a recommendation to trade an iron condor on any specific underlying.
How Fidelity Compares
Here is how Fidelity’s options pricing stacks up against the other brokers with verified commission data on file, checked as of the dates noted:
| Broker | Open | Close | Notable detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fidelity | $0.65 | $0.65 | No volume discount; $1.15 for Professional Options Trader accounts |
| Charles Schwab / thinkorswim | $0.65 | $0.65 | Same flat rate as Fidelity |
| Interactive Brokers (Pro) | $0.65 | $0.65 | Falls to $0.15/contract above 100,000 contracts/month; $1.00 order minimum |
| tastytrade | $1.00 | $0.00 | Higher to open, free to close, capped at $10 per leg |
| TradeStation | $0.80 | $0.80 | Volume-tiered down to $0 above 10,000 contracts/month |
| E*TRADE | $0.65 | $0.65 | Check current terms for any active-trader volume pricing |
| Webull | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.50/contract on index options; $0.10 surcharge above 500 contracts |
| moomoo | $0.00 | $0.00 | Small regulatory pass-through fees still apply, as at any $0-commission broker |
| Robinhood | $0.00 | $0.00 | No per-contract fee at any volume |
| Firstrade | $0.00 | $0.00 | No account minimums, no inactivity fees |
| Public.com | $0.00 (rebate) | $0.00 (rebate) | Pays a $0.06 to $0.18/contract rebate on stock and ETF options instead of charging a fee; index options priced separately |
Fidelity is not the cheapest way to trade options by contract count, and it is not trying to be. If your entire decision comes down to per-contract cost and you trade small size, Webull and Robinhood both charge nothing per contract on standard equity options. If you specifically want a free close on every position, tastytrade charges $1.00 to open but nothing to close, which can work out cheaper than Fidelity on trades you exit before expiration rather than letting run.
Why Traders Still Choose Fidelity Anyway
Commission is one line item, not the whole decision. Fidelity’s Active Trader Pro platform, $0 account minimum, and broad research tools are the actual draw for a lot of accounts that could pay less elsewhere. If commission cost is not your binding constraint, and platform quality, order routing, or existing Fidelity relationships are, the $0.65 rate is a reasonable price for what you get, not a reason on its own to switch. You can review Fidelity’s current options account setup directly on Fidelity’s account opening page.
One caveat worth flagging separately: Fidelity’s options approval process, including its unusually restrictive $1 million account-equity threshold for most same-day-expiring (0DTE) options (with an SPX/XSP exception), matters more to many traders than the per-contract commission does. That is a distinct topic from pricing and deserves its own read before you assume Fidelity fits your trading style.
Bottom Line
Fidelity’s $0.65-per-contract options commission, charged both to open and close with no volume discount, sits in the middle of the market rather than at either extreme. If per-contract cost is your top priority, Webull, Robinhood, Firstrade, or Public.com’s rebate model will save you more; if a free close specifically matters, tastytrade beats Fidelity on trades you exit early.
FAQ
Q: Does Fidelity charge to close an options position, or only to open one?
A: Both. Fidelity charges $0.65 per contract to open and $0.65 per contract to close, with no free-close program.
Q: Is there a discount for high-volume options traders at Fidelity?
A: Not a published one for standard retail accounts as of this writing. The $0.65 per-contract rate applies regardless of monthly trade volume; check current terms directly with Fidelity if your situation may qualify for something not publicly listed.
Q: What is a “Professional Options Trader” at Fidelity and does it cost more?
A: It is an exchange-defined classification tied to the purpose of your trading activity, not a volume tier. Accounts carrying this designation pay an additional $0.50 per contract, for a total of $1.15 per contract.
Q: Does the $0.65 per contract include all regulatory fees?
A: No. Fidelity itemizes an Options Regulatory Fee separately on both buy and sell transactions, on top of the $0.65 commission. The exact amount changes periodically, so treat $0.65 as the commission, not the full all-in cost to the penny.
Q: Which broker is cheapest for a trader who exits most positions before expiration?
A: Among the brokers compared here, tastytrade’s $0-to-close structure and Webull’s, Robinhood’s, and Firstrade’s $0 commission on both ends will generally beat Fidelity’s flat $0.65/$0.65 for someone who trades frequently and always exits early rather than holding to expiration.
Options data referenced here reflects Fidelity’s own published pricing page, checked August 27, 2026, and TraderC’s internal broker data, cross-checked the same day. Commission structures change; verify current rates directly with each broker before trading. For more on how these numbers play out across strategies, see TraderC’s strategy guides.