Merrill Edge fees & pricing
Complete commission schedule, margin tier ladder, cash-sweep yield, and PFOF stance.
Full fee schedule
Every documented Merrill Edge fee, grouped by category. Green = competitive; red = negative outlier; neutral = market-rate.
| Category | Item | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks & ETFs | US stock / ETF commission | $0 | — |
| Options | Options base + per-contract | $0 + $0.65 | Up to Level 5 (uncovered) approval |
| Mutual funds | Mutual funds — NTF | $0 | 800+ NTF funds; $40 short-term redemption if held < 90 days |
| Mutual funds | Mutual funds — non-NTF | $19.95 | — |
| Bonds | US Treasuries (new issue & secondary) | $0 | — |
| Bonds | Corporate / muni bonds | $1 / bond | $10 min, $250 max |
| Account & service fees | Broker-assisted trade | $29.95 | — |
| Account & service fees | Full ACAT transfer-out | $49.95 | Partial transfer $0 |
| Account & service fees | Wire (outgoing) | $24.95 | — |
| Margin | Base Lending Rate | 5.25% | May 2026; effective rate = BLR + spread |
| Margin | Effective rate < $25K | 8.625% | — |
| Margin | Effective rate $100K – $499K | 6.125% | — |
| Cash sweep | Default sweep APY | ~0.01% | Move to Preferred Deposit (2.89% at $100K+) manually for meaningful yield |
PFOF: Does not accept payment for order flow on equities; accepts PFOF on options. Does NOT accept PFOF on equities — material differentiator. Participates in exchange-sponsored options PFOF programs on NYSE American, NYSE Arca, Cboe, and Nasdaq options exchanges.
Margin rates by debit balance
Step-line — rate is constant within each tier. Overlay shows every other broker we’ve reviewed for context. Lower is better.
See margin tiers as a table
| Debit balance | Rate (APR) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ≥ $0 | 8.625% | BLR 5.25% + 3.375% spread |
| ≥ $25,000 | 7.500% | — |
| ≥ $100,000 | 6.125% | — |
| ≥ $500,000 | 5.875% | — |
| ≥ $1,000,000 | 5.250% | — |
| ≥ $5,000,000 | 4.750% | — |
| ≥ $10,000,000 | 4.500% | — |
Cash sweep
Default cash sweep
0.01%(Merrill default sweep (or Preferred Deposit at $100K+))
Default sweep is ~0.01% for most balances. Preferred Deposit (non-sweep) pays 2.89% at < $2.5M, scaling to 3.67% at $100M+, but requires a $100K minimum and manual movement.
As of May 13, 2026