A stockbroker, an individual or a company who executes a trade in lower prices than full-service brokerage price, but provides no investment advice is called Discount Broker. Previously, when the internet was not available to everyone, only wealth traders could afford broker service and participate in currency trading on the stock market. However, working with a discount brokerage can provide cheaper access to investments. This can lead to better decisions and bigger profits. At the same time, investors are not able to get as much detailed service as they would with a full-service brokerage.

The biggest advantage of working with a discount brokerage is that the investor can save money on transactions. When working with a regular brokerage, investors often have to pay large amounts of money in commissions to the broker. These commissions might be based on the volume of the trade or they might be a flat fee. If an investor trades frequently, these high commissions can add up quickly. By working with a discount brokerage, an investor can save significant amounts of money and increase profits. But on the other hand, discount brokers do not provide personal consultations, advice, research, tax planning, and estate planning services for customers.

Why Use a Discount Broker

The rise of online discount brokers has truly opened stock investing up to the average person, and over the years, they've evolved to offer some pretty impressive features, such as thorough investing education, portfolio guidance, and access to corporate research.

These types of brokerages generally do not offer investment advice, although it’s common for discount brokers to offer free research and educational tools to help traders make better investing decisions.

With a discount brokerage, traders can either execute a trade online automatically through a computerized trading system or call in one’s order with a broker over the phone, although the latter option is likely to cost more. Some discount brokers charge annual account fees, although it is not common. (For more details, see: Robo-advisor).

While traditional “full-service” brokers do more than just facilitate the buying and selling of a stock or bond. These types of brokers tend to offer a wide array of services and products, including financial and retirement planning, investing and tax advice and regular portfolio updates.

Choosing between a full-service or discount broker is an important decision for investors. To go with the straightforward, cost-effective product, or opt for the pricier, more service-oriented experience depends on trader's investing knowledge and skills, financial goals, ambitions and current financial status. Since commissions typically take most of investment and trading returns, some individuals choose to go for products offered by discount brokers instead.

Investors who frequently trade especially benefit from the lower commissions charged by discount brokers. Furthermore, if investors don't need advice, have small portfolios, or just want their trades executed are also usually better off using discount brokers.

When an investor has to pay a large commission, it can lead to bad investment decisions. For example, if the investor opens a trade, he or she knows the trade will have to make up for the commission before any profit is realized. The investor could hang onto a trade too long to make up for the commission and end up making a mistake. This can cause an investor to stay in a trade too long and lose money.

Where to Find a Discount Broker

Online discount brokers have been gaining in popularity for years, as more and more investors are deciding to take this low-cost, more independent approach to creating and managing their portfolios. With an online discount brokerage account, you can trade any stocks, bonds, and funds you want internationally, and they charge much lower fees than their full-service counterparts. 

First of all, to find s discount broker it is necessary to decide what type of account you want, such as a standard brokerage account, or an IRA to invest and save specifically for retirement. 

Then, compare several online brokers to find the one that best meets your needs. Look at the commissions each one charges, the support they offer, how large an initial deposit they require, and other factors.