Fidelity and E*TRADE charge the same $0.65 per contract for options, so this comparison isn’t decided by price. It’s decided by two things: whether you can trade same-day expiration options at all, and whether you want to paper trade a multi-leg setup before you risk real money. Fidelity says no to the first. E*TRADE says no to the second. Which gap matters more depends on how you actually trade.
Key Takeaways
- Options pricing is identical: $0.65/contract at both brokers, $0 stock commissions at both (verified 2026-10-03).
- Fidelity blocks 0DTE trading on single-stock and ETF options unless your account holds $1,000,000+ in equity. E*TRADE has no equivalent net-worth gate.
- E*TRADE offers paper trading. Fidelity does not offer it at all.
- Fidelity offers fractional shares; E*TRADE does not.
- Neither broker runs a futures platform, and neither runs a public affiliate program, so neither link below is a tracked referral.
Pricing: a genuine tie
Most broker-vs-broker comparisons open with a cost gap. This one doesn’t have one. Both Fidelity and E*TRADE charge $0.65 per options contract to open or close a position, and both charge $0 commission on stock and ETF trades (both last verified 2026-10-03 against each broker’s own published fee schedule). E*TRADE adds one wrinkle Fidelity doesn’t: accounts that execute 30 or more stock, ETF, or options trades in a calendar quarter drop to a $0.50/contract active-trader rate. Fidelity has no comparable volume discount at this writing. If you trade enough to clear that 30-trade quarterly bar, E*TRADE is cheaper. Below it, the two brokers cost exactly the same.
The 0DTE wall: Fidelity’s real dealbreaker
This is where the two platforms actually diverge. Fidelity restricts zero-day-to-expiration (0DTE) trading on single-stock and ETF options to accounts holding $1,000,000 or more in account equity, citing assignment risk on the exchange-set expiration day itself. That’s not a typo and it’s not a tiered fee, it’s an outright block below that threshold. There’s one carve-out worth knowing: SPX and XSP index options are exempt from the restriction, so broad-market index 0DTE trading is open to Fidelity accounts of any size. It’s single-stock and ETF same-day expiration specifically that the $1M wall applies to (see our Fidelity options approval levels breakdown for how that interacts with the broker’s general options-tier system).
E*TRADE, through the Power E*TRADE platform, has no comparable net-worth-based gate on same-day expiration trading. If 0DTE strategies on individual names or ETFs are part of your plan and your account isn’t seven figures, Fidelity is not an option for that specific strategy. This alone is enough reason for some traders to rule Fidelity out before anything else gets compared.
Paper trading: the gap runs the other way
E*TRADE offers a full paper trading simulator inside its platform. Fidelity offers none at all, for any account size (see our Fidelity paper trading guide for the workarounds traders use instead). If you want to rehearse a four-leg iron condor or test a new rolling strategy before committing real capital, E*TRADE lets you do that natively. Fidelity doesn’t give you that option on its own platform; you’d need to model the trade elsewhere first.
This is a real, checkable differentiator, not a marketing point. A trader who wants to practice before going live has one clear answer between these two brokers, and it isn’t Fidelity.
What each platform actually is
Fidelity’s Active Trader Pro is built around a broker that also runs retirement accounts, mutual funds, and one of the deeper free research libraries in the industry, including Morningstar reports and analyst ratings most discount brokers don’t offer natively. It also supports fractional shares, which E*TRADE does not. If you already hold a 401(k) rollover, IRA, or brokerage account at Fidelity and want to add occasional options trading without opening a second platform, that consolidation has real value, 0DTE restriction aside.
E*TRADE, now owned by Morgan Stanley, runs a two-tier structure: a simplified E*TRADE Web for basic trading, and Power E*TRADE for active options traders, with real-time Greeks and strategy-focused order tickets built for income strategies like covered calls and credit spreads. The Morgan Stanley ownership also means banking and wealth-management cross-sell is available if you want checking, savings, and brokerage under one roof, similar in spirit to Fidelity’s all-in-one approach but built on a different parent company’s infrastructure.
Fidelity vs. E*TRADE: side by side
| Feature | Fidelity | E*TRADE |
|---|---|---|
| Options commission | $0.65/contract | $0.65/contract standard, $0.50 at 30+ trades/quarter |
| Stock commission | $0 | $0 |
| 0DTE on single stocks/ETFs | Blocked below $1M account equity | No net-worth gate |
| 0DTE on SPX/XSP | Allowed, any account size | Allowed |
| Paper trading | Not offered | Offered |
| Fractional shares | Yes | No |
| Futures | No | No |
| Platform | Active Trader Pro | E*TRADE Web / Power E*TRADE |
| Account minimum | $0 | $0 |
A hypothetical scenario
Say a trader with a $40,000 account wants to sell a same-day-expiration iron condor on a popular ETF to collect premium around a scheduled economic release. This is illustrative only, not a trade recommendation. At Fidelity, that single-stock/ETF 0DTE trade is blocked outright, since $40,000 is nowhere near the $1,000,000 equity threshold; the trader could still run the same 0DTE structure on SPX or XSP, just not on the ETF itself. At E*TRADE, there’s no equity gate on that ETF trade either way. For a trader specifically focused on 0DTE strategies on individual names or ETFs rather than broad index products, that single rule decides the broker choice before fees or platform features even enter the conversation.
Who fits each broker
Fidelity (open a Fidelity account) makes sense for someone who already banks their retirement and long-term investing there, trades options occasionally rather than as a primary strategy, wants fractional shares, and doesn’t need single-stock or ETF 0DTE access. E*TRADE (open an E*TRADE account) makes more sense for a trader who wants to paper-trade multi-leg setups before going live, needs 0DTE flexibility on individual names without a seven-figure account, and doesn’t mind giving up fractional shares to get it. Neither broker runs a public affiliate program, so both links above go directly to the broker’s own account-opening page rather than a tracked referral.
If you’re also weighing a third platform built for automation and futures rather than banking integration, see our E*TRADE vs. TradeStation comparison for how E*TRADE stacks up against a more active-trader-focused alternative.
Bottom Line
Fidelity and E*TRADE cost the same per contract, so this decision comes down to whether you need single-stock or ETF 0DTE access (E*TRADE, no net-worth gate) or want native paper trading (also E*TRADE). Fidelity’s advantage is account consolidation and fractional shares for traders who don’t need either of those two things.
FAQ
Q: Does Fidelity charge more than E*TRADE for options?
A: No. Both charge $0.65 per contract as of the last verification (2026-10-03). E*TRADE drops to $0.50/contract for accounts with 30+ trades in a quarter; Fidelity has no equivalent discount tier.
Q: Can I trade 0DTE options at Fidelity?
A: On SPX and XSP, yes, regardless of account size. On individual stocks and ETFs, only if your account holds $1,000,000 or more in equity.
Q: Does E*TRADE have a 0DTE restriction like Fidelity’s?
A: No. E*TRADE does not apply a net-worth-based gate to same-day expiration trading.
Q: Which broker lets me paper trade options first?
A: E*TRADE offers a built-in paper trading simulator. Fidelity does not offer paper trading at all.
Q: Does either broker offer fractional shares?
A: Fidelity does. E*TRADE does not.