Has anyone carefully done a test to see if IB pro executions for stocks are better than the lite? Is it worth paying the commission for an active trader?
There was just a post created by someone complaining about getting horrible fills with the Lite version (zero commissions). https://www.elitetrader.com/et/threads/ib-limit-order-wont-execute.344357/ While to do “careful tests”, someone would need to have very professional setup and a reason to try to use free commission brokers professionally, and then to publish their findings here. Good luck with that. On another hand, my wife is using Robinhood and many times I’ve noticed her fills were better than mine at IB Pro using basic limit orders, on both stocks and options (sometimes getting filled at prices that I couldn’t). This could be due to Robinhood’s internal pool, myself not paying attention to getting better fills at IB during different times since that’s common , and/or IB not putting much work into zero commissions, and/or partially due to inability to perform such tests professionally. I assume it will be a mixed bag and you’ll get better fills at some zero commission brokers at different times, occasionally even beating IB Pro. But I’d doubt IB Lite’s ability to beat IB Pro at all.
I'll let others discuss the LITE vs Pro but please do not point to someone complaining of so called horrible fills when placing orders below the prevailing offer.
Why should it.? lite and pro is just software version. fills are based on first in line rule in the exhange. orders are filled depending on your line up. if you have orders ahead of you they get filled first. are you guys elite traders or amateurs to even ask these beginner niave questions. they are not market makers for stocks .
Hello IB rep, Do IB pro and lite produce the same fills? Do IB pro smart routed orders go to the same place as Ib lite orders?
Fill quality will differ as they do not get routed similarly. IB LITE orders get sent to HFTs who pay for the flow. IB PRO orders use our internal Smart Routing which route to pretty much every US exchange and a number of dark pools taking into account, rebates (which are passed on to clients choosing tiered commission), costs, price improvement, etc. Detailed stats on the quality of the Pro fills are published with our monthly metrics. Beatles - if there was one exchange, Price time priority would prevail. However, with all the internalization rules, multiple exchanges, dark pools, questions/games revolving around the SIP, what qualifies as price improvement, what qualifies as best ex, etc, it is not as simple as "fills are based on first in line rule in the exchange".
My friend was a 20 yr trader with IB. Heavy trader 50-100 k a day volume . He moved to Schwab using there street smart software with zero commissions .He does all mkt orders. He’s incredibly happy getting price improvement on 50-60% of his mkt orders . He’s saving around $200-$300 a day in commissions. If I were trading stock I’d definitely be looking at Schwab as there trading interface is very nice .
Do you know how many option and stock exchanges there are? First in line? This may have been a good answer 35 years ago but not today. If there is a 1 dollar wide market in a stock or option, it matters where your order is sent and who looks at if first, this will affect the fill quality.
Price improvements are not easily calculated, just like fill quality as mentioned by guru. It’s becoming very difficult to find a reason to pay commissions if you trade liquid stocks and take liquidity. And if you can’t pull limit orders quickly, there is probably no reason to pay commissions either. So I guess it comes down to the type of trading you do and qualify of service you get. Most people are better off with zero commissions, imo.