As an algorithmic trader that codes in Python, I thought I'd share my experiences on the available choices out there for API trading of US equities. Since my trading algorithms fall under the category of automated, high-frequency trading, my absolute requirements for the platform are:
- Trading of US Stocks (NYSE, NASDAQ)
- Zero-Commission equity trades
- API trading enabled
- No re-authentication required for at least 30 days
Not required, but heavily preferred:
- Fractional trading
- Free NBBO Quotes
- Options trading
I investigated several brokerage firms and here's my report of them below:
Ally – Opened an account and API was easy to use. However, quotes from the API calls were 15 minutes delayed and later customer support directed me to a page on their website which explicitly states that no Automated or Algorithmic Trading is allowed, so I closed the account.
TD Ameritrade – Opened an account, but when I tried to request an API key, it states that new accounts requesting API trading are discontinued due to acquisition from Schwab. Will close account and wait to see how the integration with Schwab goes.
E-trade – Opened an account long time ago and API was easy to use, but it requires you to manually re-authenticate and renew token daily.
Webull – In process of opening an account. Their API documentation appears thorough. A hack with Google Chrome's Inspect mode is required to retrieve access and refresh tokens in order to bypass daily reauthentication of your tokens, but I haven't verified this yet.
Interactive Brokers – I've had an account with them for 3 years. Zero commissions on equity trades, they support fractional trades, and options trading. However, all trades must go through their TWS software (daily re-authentication) or you need to have an active gateway session opened. Their free quotes were NBBO quotes.
TradeStation – Opened an account and they informed me that they will send me an API key when my account reaches 10k in value. My equities and cash are all at this time in other exchanges and I haven't done any transfers, so I haven't received API keys yet. API documentation is thorough and similar in quality to Tradier and Alpaca. Zero commissins on equities, but they do not appear to support fractional trades. Overall, seems promising and may have potential to be better than Tradier.
Tradier – Opened an account and API was easy to use. Zero commissions. Consumer and token keys never expire. Their free quotes are NBBO. Only drawback is that they do not allow fractional trades for individual accounts, just institutional accounts. They have options trading. I'm very happy with them.
Alpaca – This is the platform I have been running algorithmic trades on for the last 2 years. Zero commissions and they allow fractional trades. Only drawback are their free quotes. They only supply you quotes from one of the exchanges (IEX) and I found the bid-ask spreads to be pretty wide and unreliable at times. You need to pay $99/month for their premium quote service. However, their real-time get_latest_trade API call is accurate and I use that in conjunction with their get_latest_quote API call, so the two combined is good enough for my algorithmic trading. This platform is my benchmark when comparing other brokerages.
Overall, I like Tradier and TradeStation the best. However, if my algorithm requires fractional trades then Alpaca is my go-to platform. Have you guys had similar experiences? Please comment if there is a brokerage firm that allows for API trading of US Stocks that's not in my list.
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