Fidelity vs. Vanguard vs. T. Rowe Price

[blashmet]

Which of these is best for opening an IRA and/or buying mutual funds?

[disneysteve]

I think they are all equally good. They all have a good selection of funds, low expenses, good customer service, good websites, etc.

How do you choose? Roll a die maybe?

Personally, I'm with Vanguard but I honestly can't tell you why I chose them over one of the others.

[edg126]

I chose fidelity for some index funds for my kids based on convenience. my employer uses fidelity for my 401K and ESPP.

My takeaway from some brief research is that all 3 are basically the same if you are planning on investing in their standard index or mutual funds, like the S&P 500 or total index funds. You start seeing differences in the other things they sell.

If it wasn't for my employer, I would have chosen vanguard. They are based out of the philly area where i live, I like the concepts the founder created the company on, and that they are owned by the investors.

[feh]

I can't comment on TRP; I've never used them.

Fidelity and Vanguard are both good. I'd decide which fund(s) you want to buy and make your selection based on which one is the better provider of those funds.

[blashmet]

Thanks for the replies.

What do you guys think about Ameritrade? It looks like they are cheaper than Vanguard/Fidelity.

http://www.brokerage-review.com/compare/ameritrade-vs-vanguard-review.aspx

[feh]

Thanks for the replies.

What do you guys think about Ameritrade? It looks like they are cheaper than Vanguard/Fidelity.

http://www.brokerage-review.com/comp...rd-review.aspx

Buy Fidelity products from Fidelity, and the cost is $0. Buy Vanguard products from Vanguard, and the cost is $0.

See my previous comment. Plan on buying and holding, and transaction costs become irrelevant.

If you're thinking about trading, I can't provide advice.

[kv968]

Thanks for the replies.

What do you guys think about Ameritrade? It looks like they are cheaper than Vanguard/Fidelity.

http://www.brokerage-review.com/comp...rd-review.aspx

Ameritrade has the best trading analysis platform out there IMO but they're on the expensive side when it comes to commissions.

Like others have said, find what you want and go with that fund company (not necessarily a broker) and invest with them.

I use T Rowe Price for my Roth and I like their mutual funds but they're WAY too expensive for trading stocks and/or ETF's

Vanguard is great for indexing or for using their ETF's since there's no commission on trading them. Trading stock through their brokerage isn't bad commission-wise either.

Fidelity offers a ton of mutual funds and the commissions on their trading isn't too bad either. They also offer in-house ETF's and even some iShare's ETF's that you can trade commission-free.

To me it depends on what you really want to do. If you don't want to trade/buy stocks or ETF's then T Rowe might be best. However if you might want to buy a stock or ETF here and there then the others might be better.

Like I said, I use T Rowe but I'm going to open another Roth at Optionshouse because I want to trade options. If you were just going the mutual fund/index route I personally would choose either T Rowe or Vanguard.

[blashmet]

Ok, but how about just in terms of a Roth IRA\IRA? What are the important fees to look at?

[feh]

Ok, but how about just in terms of a Roth IRA\IRA? What are the important fees to look at?

There shouldn't be any fees associated with just owning the account. It's the expense ratio (ER) of the funds you will buy that matter.

Avoid all loads (those are fees to buy or sell a fund). Next, look at the ER.

Read this: http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Bogle...g_start-up_kit

[disneysteve]

There shouldn't be any fees associated with just owning the account.

Actually, I believe Vanguard has an annual account fee if your balance is below a certain amount ($10,000 sticks in my mind). I also think they waive that if you sign up for electronic statements. I'm sure you can get all of that info on their website.

[fruitbowlk]

TRP Account Minimums and Fees FAQs

http://individual.troweprice.com/pub...Fees-FAQs#What is the minimum amount needed to make an investment in T.*Rowe*Price funds

[lrodptl]

If you have over 100K in Price you get a free premium membership to Morningstar to use the fund screener. Price has a relationship with dozens of Funds,including Vanguard and Fidelity. No account service fees or annual maint fees for accounts with over 100K.

[Tabs]

If I recall correctly, Fidelity is good if you want something that is a one-stop shop, Vanguard if you want to focus on index funds and ETFs, and T Rowe Price if you want a company starts with low minimum balance requirements. Something like that, though in the end, they're all reputable.

[MakeAStash]

After trying those three for a few years my experience has been far better at Vanguard and Fidelity.

[jpham540]

I prefer Vanguard for their low cost fee and index funds. Some of their tools are useful too like the portfolio analyzer.