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Personal Finance · head to head

E*TRADE vs Moneydance

E*TRADE logo

E*TRADE

Personal Finance

Express your investing style

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Moneydance logo

Moneydance

Personal Finance

Cross-platform personal finance management

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: E*TRADE stock and ETF trades were $0 commission but options carried a $0.65 per-contract fee, broker-assisted trades added a $25 surcharge, and margin interest rates ranged from 12.70% to 13.20% depending on balance tier (Internet Archive capture, 3 January 2023); Moneydance the free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions
  • They diverge on capability: E*TRADE covers Advanced trading tools, Moneydance covers Bill tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which E*TRADE and Moneydance actually diverge.

Attributes where E*TRADE and Moneydance differ
AttributeE*TRADEMoneydance
Pricing modeltransactionone-time
PlatformsWeb, IOS, AndroidWindows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android
Founded19562001

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in E*TRADE

  • Advanced trading tools
  • Options and futures
  • Research tools
  • Mobile trading
  • Wire transfers
  • Web support

Only in Moneydance

  • Bill tracking
  • Investment monitoring
  • Budget tracking
  • Financial forecasting
  • Investment accounts
  • OFX import
  • Windows support
  • Mac support

Both cover

  • Bank accounts
  • IOS support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

E*TRADE

  • Budget Managementnot Moneydance
  • Expense Trackingnot Moneydance
  • Investment Trackingnot Moneydance

Moneydance

  • Desktop personal finance management on macOS, Windows and Linuxnot E*TRADE
  • Importing and reconciling bank and credit card transactions locallynot E*TRADE
  • Tracking investments and budgets without a cloud-only servicenot E*TRADE

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

E*TRADE

  • Stock and ETF trades were $0 commission but options carried a $0.65 per-contract fee, broker-assisted trades added a $25 surcharge, and margin interest rates ranged from 12.70% to 13.20% depending on balance tier (Internet Archive capture, 3 January 2023)

Moneydance

  • The free trial is limited to 100 manually entered transactions
  • A one-time Buy Once purchase covers Moneydance 2024 plus one free upgrade to the next major release, not all future versions
  • Bank connection features are sold separately as the Moneydance Plus subscription rather than included in the one-time purchase
  • Business use requires one licence per computer, while the household licence covers personal use only

Pricing, plan by plan

E*TRADE

On request
  • Stock & ETF TradingFree
    • Commission-free trades
    • Real-time quotes
  • Advanced Trading$undefined/month
    • All Stock & ETF features
    • Options, futures
    • Advanced tools

Moneydance

On request
  • Perpetual License$59.99/month
    • Full feature set
    • Free updates

Which should you pick?

Choose E*TRADE if

  • You need advanced trading tools.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want options and futures.
E*TRADE review

Choose Moneydance if

  • You need bill tracking.
  • You work on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
  • You also want investment monitoring.
Moneydance review

Questions people ask

Is E*TRADE or Moneydance better?
Neither clearly leads. E*TRADE starts at On request and Moneydance at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, E*TRADE or Moneydance?
E*TRADE starts at On request and Moneydance at On request.
Does E*TRADE or Moneydance run on more platforms?
E*TRADE runs on Web, IOS, Android. Moneydance runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, IOS, Android.
What is E*TRADE best used for?
E*TRADE is most often used for budget management, expense tracking, investment tracking. Of those, budget management and expense tracking are not what Moneydance is typically brought in for.
What can E*TRADE do that Moneydance cannot?
E*TRADE covers Advanced trading tools, Options and futures, Research tools, Mobile trading. Moneydance covers Bill tracking, Investment monitoring, Budget tracking, Financial forecasting. Both handle Bank accounts, IOS support, Android support.
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