Which online stock trading broker is right for you? With so many choices, one must take time to choose the best online stock trading provider based on ease of use, site design, available research and content, quality of execution and of course commission expenses.

An online stock trading web site should be easy to use. It should be easy to enter orders. Some sites require a preview of the order before ththe order is placed. For some, this extra verification page slows down the entry of orders especially if your trading system requires instantenous executions. Some allow you to enter multiple orders at one time. Others like etrade let you view the stock quote while you are entering the order.

Does your online stock trading web site provide useful information? At the minimum, they should provide free real-time stock quotes, stock charts, news and fundamental data such as p/e ratios, dividend yield or book value per share. Some, such as TD Waterhouse provide research reports from Wall Street institutions such as Goldman Sachs. Fidelity on the other hand has a research tie-up with Lehman Brothers. You should be able to view consensus earnings estimates or brokerage recommendations, too.

Some online stock trading web sites offer stock screening tools, stock price email alerts. TDWaterhouse for example allows you to screen for stocks that are trading at a p/e ratio that is lower than their growth rates. Fidelity has a real-time stock price alert email service which notifies you if a stock has crossed the 50 day moving average. If you are a technical trader, you might like Fidelity's offering.

While quality of execution is another matter, unfortunately this is very hard to measure. Some web sites regularly review online brokers for the quality execution. Barron's or other finance magazines regularly feature columns that rate which online stock trading brokers offer the best executions.

Expenses are the biggest detractors of successful investing. Be ready to shop around for ther lowest commissions. Scottrade has a very low commission expense. Interactive brokers also charge very little commissions.

Sharebuilder is an idea whose time has come. It is a way for investors to buy stocks directly from the company you want to buy. For example, Microsoft has a sharebuilder program where shareholders can buy Microsoft shares directly for a very low, low commission.

Choosing the correct online stock trading broker also depends on your style of investing. If you are a technical trader, you might want the stock trading web site where commisions are very low, order entry is instantaneouse, and technical analysis tools are comprehensive. If you are a fundamental investor and you don't trade as often, you might prefer one where there are more research and fundamental analysis tools.

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