The broker shortlist
Best Futures Broker
FuturesCompare
| # | Broker | Contract fee (USD) | MES margin (USD) | Platform | Data connection | Micro futures | Paper trading | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  AMP Futures | From $0.15 | — |    +1 | CQG | — | — | View broker |
| 2 |  E*TRADE | $1.50 per side | — | | Power E*TRADE | — | — | View broker |
| 3 |  MEXEM | $1.00 | — |  | Trader Workstation | — | — | View broker |
| 4 |  NinjaTrader | $0.09 to $1.29 | $50 | | NinjaTrader Desktop | Yes | — | View broker |
| 5 |  Optimus Futures | $0.25 to $0.75 | $50 | +1 | Optimus Flow | Yes | — | View broker |
| 6 |  tastytrade | $1 a contract | — | API, Desktop, Mobile, Web | Desktop | — | — | View broker |
| 7 |  thinkorswim | $2.25 per side | — | | thinkorswim desktop | — | — | View broker |
| 8 |  TradeStation | $1.75 per side | — | | TITAN X | Yes | Yes | View broker |
| 9 |  Tradovate | $0.09 to $1.29 | $50 |  | Tradovate Web | Yes | — | View broker |
| 10 |  Venom Trading | $1.25 per side | — |   | DAS Trader Pro | — | — | View broker |
How we rank a futures broker
Day margin comes first, because it decides how many contracts you can hold on your account size. Commission per side comes second, because you pay it on every trade whether you win or lose.
Then the fees that show up later: the platform fee, the exchange data fee, the inactivity fee and the wire fee. A broker with a low commission and a $100 monthly platform fee is not cheap for anyone trading 20 contracts a month.
Every broker is checked against its regulator, and where a firm has a disciplinary record the page says so.