How to buy Treasury bills at 15 brokerages: auction or secondary market, the minimum, the fee and auto-roll

A Treasury bill is a short-term IOU from the U.S. government, sold below its face value and paid in full at maturity. Fiscal Data, the Treasury's data site: “Treasury uses an auction process to sell marketable securities and determine their rate, yield, or discount margin.” At a brokerage you can buy a new bill at that auction, or buy one already issued on the secondary market. Below is how 15 brokerages, in alphabetical order, describe it on their own pages, read October 17, 2026.

• At auction, online, for $0: Fidelity, Charles Schwab, E*TRADE and Vanguard describe it. Merrill Edge lists Treasury auctions at $0 online on its price list but does not describe the order. J.P. Morgan says its auction trades are not available online.
• On the secondary market: 11 of the 15. Fidelity, Schwab, E*TRADE, Vanguard, J.P. Morgan and Merrill Edge charge $0 online; Ally charges $1 a bond ($10 minimum); Interactive Brokers 0.002% of face value (USD 5 minimum); Public and Webull charge a 0.10% markup on short Treasuries; Firstrade a markup.
• None at all: Robinhood, SoFi, eToro and moomoo sell no Treasury bills, only ETFs that hold them (see how to buy SGOV).
• The minimum is $1,000 of face value at Fidelity and J.P. Morgan (one bond), at Vanguard, and for most bonds at Ally; Public and Webull sell eligible bills from $100 of face value.
• Automatic roll at maturity: Fidelity's Auto Roll and Schwab's Auto-Rollover, for bills bought at auction only. Public reinvests inside a managed Treasury Account with an advisory fee. The other firms' pages do not describe it.
• Taxes: T-bill interest is federally taxable but exempt from state and local income tax. Compare it with savings in our cash yield after tax calculator.

Buying a T-bill, step by step

1. Choose auction or secondary market. Fidelity: “Newly issued Treasuries can be purchased at auctions held by the government, while previously issued bonds can be purchased on the secondary market.” At auction you pay what the auction sets; on the secondary market you see the price before you buy.
2. For an auction, choose the term and place a noncompetitive order between the Treasury's announcement and the auction. Fiscal Data: “With a noncompetitive bid, you agree to accept the high rate, yield, or discount margin set at auction.” Schwab: “The announcement date is typically a day or two before the auction, and the settlement date usually comes several days after the auction.”
3. Enter the amount as face value. At Fidelity “A quantity of 1 = $1,000 par value”; you pay a little less than the face value, because bills are sold at a discount. The SEC's definition of a discount note: “Short-term obligations issued at a discount from face value.”
4. Decide what happens at maturity. Turn on automatic roll where the firm offers it (Fidelity, Schwab), or let the face value land in your cash and buy again.
5. At maturity you get the face value. The IRS: “The difference between the discounted price you pay for the bills and the face value you receive at maturity is interest income.”

The T-bill auction schedule

Fidelity's table of the Treasury's schedule: 4-, 6-, 8-, 13-, 17- and 26-week bills are auctioned weekly, and the 52-week bill every 4 weeks. The dates of the next auctions, with when each bill is announced and issued, are in U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Treasury Securities Upcoming Auctions Data (read through its API); your brokerage's auction list shows which bills are open for orders. A reopening sells more of a bill already issued, with the same maturity date and CUSIP.

Firm by firm

Each section quotes what the firm itself publishes and links the pages we read.

Ally Invest

Ally Invest's help center lists among the securities you can trade “Fixed Income (corporate, agency, treasuries, municipals, strips & zeros, CDs, and new issues)”, and its fixed income terms list U.S. Treasury bills among the bonds on its online bond platform. We found no description of placing an order in a Treasury auction on the pages we read (trading help, commissions and fees, and the fixed income terms).

Price: the commissions page charges $1 a bond for “Bonds and Treasuries”, with “$10 minimum and $250 maximum required per transaction”. It adds that Ally may trade as principal instead: “When acting as principal, we will add a markup to any purchase and subtract a markdown from every sale.” Size: “The minimum order size for most bonds offered is $1,000 face value and trades occur in increments of $1,000 face value.” Hours: “The Platform will generally accept and process orders between the hours of 8:00 a.m. ET to 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday (except holiday hours).” We found nothing on automatic reinvestment at maturity or on Treasuries in IRAs.

Sources: Ally, Trading help; Ally Invest, Commissions and fees; Ally Invest, Fixed Income Securities Terms, Conditions, and Disclosures (updated June 12, 2025, PDF).

Charles Schwab

Schwab's pricing page lists “Treasuries, including Auction and Secondary: Treasury Bonds, Treasury Bills, Treasury Notes and TIPS” at $0 for online trades and $0 plus a $25 service charge with a broker. “Schwab clients can participate in Treasury auctions on Schwab.com.” The path: from the Trade tab, Bonds, then the Treasury Auctions link; “Investors who choose to participate will be prompted to enter order details, such as dollar amount and order type.” Secondary-market Treasuries are bought from the Fixed Income Offerings table on the same page.

Automatic rollover: “Auto-Rollover lets you instruct Schwab to automatically reinvest the principal of your treasuries when they mature. This feature is only available when buying treasuries at Auction.” For bills, “They can be rolled into 4-, 8-, 13-, 17-, and 26-week bills at auction.” “Treasury rollover orders are submitted at auction as non-competitive orders.” “The CD rollover limit is $250,000 and the Treasury rollover limit is $5,000,000.” “Interest earned will not be reinvested.” “There is no additional fee to participate in the rollover service.”

Deadlines: “Treasury instructions can be anytime until 7 days before maturity.” Once the new order is placed, “For Treasuries, you may cancel before our cutoff on the morning of the auction, typically 10:00 a.m. ET.” The pages we read do not state a minimum order or say whether IRAs can hold Treasuries; they describe Schwab.com, not the app.

Sources: Schwab, Pricing; Schwab, Fixed income pricing; Schwab, How Do Treasury Auctions Work?; Schwab, How to buy Treasuries (video transcript); Schwab, CD and Treasury rollover.

E*TRADE (Morgan Stanley)

E*TRADE's pricing page lists $0 for “U.S. Treasury auction” and $0 for “U.S. Treasury secondary trades online”; its FAQ says “Treasuries (auctions and secondaries) trade commission-free.” Where: “E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley customers can view the Treasury Auction Schedule and place orders or buy and sell Treasuries on the secondary market in the Bond Resource Center at any time.” By phone: “Broker-assisted trades placed through the Fixed Income Specialists are subject to online secondary pricing, plus a $20 commission.”

The pages we read (pricing, the bonds page, the trading FAQ and its guide to Treasuries) do not state a minimum, an automatic roll at maturity, an order cutoff before an auction, or whether the app offers auctions. E*TRADE's PDF guide to trading Treasuries is closed to automated reading by its site's robots.txt, so we did not read it.

Sources: E*TRADE, Pricing and rates; E*TRADE, Trading and investing FAQs; E*TRADE, A guide to US Treasuries; E*TRADE, Bonds and CDs.

eToro US

eToro's U.S. broker-dealer does not sell Treasury bills. Its customer relationship summary dated August 12, 2025: “eToro Securities does not offer mutual funds, retirement accounts, bonds, or proprietary products.” Treasury exposure there would come through an ETF; see how to buy SGOV.

Source: eToro USA Securities, Customer Relationship Summary (August 12, 2025, PDF).

Fidelity

“All US Treasury auction orders placed online on Fidelity.com are free of charge.” “If you prefer to place your trade through a representative, a $19.95 service fee will be charged.” Secondary-market bills are also free online: “$0 mark-up/down for US Treasuries traded online.” Size: “Treasury auctions, most new issue CDs, CUSCs and CorporateNotes Program offerings have a minimum quantity of 1 bond (typically costing at/around $1,000 per bond), with increments of 1 bond thereafter.” On the order ticket, “A quantity of 1 = $1,000 par value.” “For New Issue Treasury's or New Issue Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS), you can place a Market Order.” Hours: “You can enter orders during the standard market session, which is generally 8 a.m. ET to 5 p.m. ET.” Limit: “The Treasury limits non-competitive auction purchases to $10 million per household for each security type and term.”

Auto Roll: “Only Treasury auction securities, new-issue CDs with a term to maturity of 5 years or less, and certain CD strategies are eligible for this service.” For bills it covers “4-, 6-, 8-, 13-, 17-, 26-, and 52-week T-bills”, at the same face value and term. “No interest payments from these positions will be included in any auto roll position purchase.” “The Auto Roll Service requires that you subscribe to Fidelity Alerts.” After the reminder, “For Treasurys, you can cancel the purchase up until the end of the day prior to auction date.” Fidelity does not state a cutoff for ordinary auction orders or whether IRAs can hold Treasuries on the pages we read.

Sources: Fidelity, US Treasury Bonds; Fidelity, Commissions, margin rates and fees; Fidelity, Trading bonds and fixed income FAQ; Fidelity, How to Trade Auction Treasury Securities/TIPS (PDF); Fidelity, How to Trade Treasury Securities in the Secondary Market (PDF); Fidelity, Auto Roll Service; Fidelity, Auto Roll FAQ.

Firstrade

Firstrade's pricing page lists Treasury bills, notes and bonds on a “Net Yield Basis”: “Net Yield Basis means Firstrade acts as principal whereby the bonds will be subject to a markup or markdown.” Its fixed income markup disclosure (form FTFID202009) says that for Treasuries “the minimum of GTC is $40.00”, GTC being the gross trade credit, i.e. the markup. “Orders for Bonds and CDs can be placed through the Firstrade website.” “Fixed Income trading is not available on the Mobile App at this time.”

We found no description of Treasury auction orders, a minimum purchase, automatic reinvestment at maturity, or Treasuries in IRAs on the pages we read (pricing, the markup disclosure, the bond order help article and its guide to fixed income). The disclosure refers to markup percentage tables that are not in its text.

Sources: Firstrade, Pricing; Firstrade, Fixed income markup and markdown disclosure (PDF); Firstrade help, How do I place a bond order or CD order? (March 12, 2026).

Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers sells Treasuries on the secondary market at a commission: on its fixed income commission table for U.S. Treasuries (bills, notes, bonds), 0.002% of face value (0.2 basis points) on the first USD 1,000,000, 0.0001% above that, with a USD 5.00 minimum per order. Its own example: a USD 1,000,000 order costs USD 20.00, so a small bill order pays the USD 5.00 minimum. “At IBKR, bond trades are executed without hidden mark-ups or built-in spreads.” It also offers to “Trade US Treasuries around the clock five days per week”.

In its Trader Workstation guide: “Once you have subscribed to bond market data via the Portal, you can enter data and trade t-bonds, t-bills and t-notes.” The pages we read (bond commissions, the bonds marketplace page and the Treasury trading guide) say nothing about Treasury auctions, automatic reinvestment at maturity or IRAs. IBKR's commission-free Lite plan covers stocks and ETFs; its bond commissions page does not list a separate Lite rate.

Sources: Interactive Brokers, Fixed income commissions; Interactive Brokers, Bonds marketplace; IBKR Trader Workstation guide, Trade Treasuries (updated August 28, 2025).

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing

J.P. Morgan's pricing page lists U.S. Treasury bills, notes and bonds as “Secondary trades only”, at $0.00 online and $0.00 by phone, with “(1 bond equivalent to $1,000 par value)”. Its fee schedule adds: “Treasury auction trades are not available online at this time.” Its fixed income screeners, launched in 2025: “New filter options help investors find Treasuries, corporate bonds, municipal bonds and brokered CDs that match their criteria with just a few clicks.” Chase's own explainer puts the choice this way: “You can buy Treasuries directly from the government through its online TreasuryDirect system or in the secondary market through a broker.”

We found nothing on automatic reinvestment at maturity or on Treasuries in IRAs on these pages.

Sources: J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, Pricing; J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing, Fee and commission schedule (PDF); J.P. Morgan, New fixed income experience (June 20, 2025); Chase, Buying T-bills on the secondary market vs. at auction.

Merrill Edge

Merrill Edge's pricing page has a row for Treasuries, “including Auction and Secondary”, at $0 for online trades and a $29.95 per-trade service charge for broker-assisted trades. Its bond search covers “view Treasury bills, Treasury notes and bonds, inflation-indexed notes and bonds, Treasury STRIPS”.

We found no Merrill Edge page describing how to place a Treasury auction order online, a minimum, automatic reinvestment at maturity or Treasuries in IRAs (pages read: pricing, fixed income, and the fixed income search page). If you plan to buy at auction, ask Merrill whether the order is taken online or by phone.

Sources: Merrill Edge, Pricing; Merrill, Fixed income investments and bonds; Merrill Edge, Search for fixed income.

moomoo

moomoo's U.S. broker-dealer lists no bonds. Its customer relationship summary dated December 2024: “We currently offer trading services for listed stocks (including listed Mutual Funds), listed ETFs, and options trading.” The fee schedule for U.S. residents we read has no bond line. Treasury bills are offered by moomoo's Singapore business, which is not for U.S. accounts.

Sources: Moomoo Financial Inc., Form CRS (December 2024, PDF); moomoo, Fee schedule for U.S. residents.

Public

Public's customer relationship summary: “Our customers can use the Public platform to buy and sell US-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), OTC securities, corporate and U.S. government bonds, and options.” “The minimum value for a fractional bond order to buy is $100 face value in increments of $1.” The fee is a markup by time to maturity: $0.100 per $100 of par value for Treasuries maturing within 0-1 years (0.10%), $0.250 for longer ones. Orders are limit orders, and “Bond Orders are ‘good for the day’, which means if the order is not executed by the end of the trading day (4:00 pm EST) it will be canceled.” We found no Treasury auction orders on Public's pages.

Automatic reinvestment comes through a managed account. “A Treasury Account lets you invest in a ladder of US Treasuries with maturities from 3 months to 30 years.” “When your Treasuries mature, you have two options: you can automatically reinvest the proceeds into a new Treasury with a maturity matching the longest term in your ladder, or you can withdraw the cash.” “You can get started with as little as $1,000.” It costs an advisory fee on top of the markups: “Management fees are tiered, starting at 0.29% and decreasing to 0.09% based on account size.”

Public's summary also says “You can use our platform to open a separate brokerage account with Jiko Securities, Inc. and make recurring investments in 6-month Treasury bills.” Its fee schedule, last updated October 13, 2026, describes a Jiko Account as one that “certain customers may have opened” and lists a fee of “0.05% per month based on the average daily balance of your Jiko Account”. We could not confirm from Public's pages whether new Jiko accounts can still be opened.

Sources: Public, Customer relationship summary (PDF); Public, Fractional bond trading disclosure (PDF); Public help, Bond fees; Public help, How to place a bond trade; Public, Treasury Account; Public, Fee schedule (October 13, 2026, PDF).

Robinhood

Robinhood does not sell Treasury bills. Its customer relationship summary effective October 1, 2026: “We do not offer mutual funds or fixed income securities, except in the form of an ETF.” We also found no Treasury or bond article among Robinhood's U.S. support pages. Robinhood customers can buy Treasury bill ETFs; see how to buy SGOV.

Source: Robinhood Financial, Customer Relationship Summary (effective October 1, 2026, PDF).

SoFi Invest

SoFi describes bond access through funds only: “While SoFi offers access to bonds through exchange traded funds, it does not offer certificates of deposit currently.” Its self-directed account: “You can trade stocks, ETFs, or options through self-directed investing with SoFi Securities, or simply automate your investments with a robo advisor from SoFi Wealth.” We found no SoFi page offering individual Treasury bills.

Sources: SoFi, Bonds vs. CDs; SoFi, How to buy Treasury bills, bonds, and notes.

Vanguard

“You can purchase U.S. Treasury securities through TreasuryDirect or through your Vanguard Brokerage Account.” “Vanguard Brokerage Services® offer only noncompetitive bids limited to $10 million per security per household in one auction.” “Vanguard Brokerage Services doesn't charge commissions for any Treasury order placed online.” Its fee schedule lists U.S. Treasury securities at $0 for new issues and $0 on the secondary market, with a minimum investment of $1,000; broker-assisted secondary trades carry a $25 charge for clients with less than $1 million at Vanguard.

Timing: Vanguard's settlement table says Treasuries bought at auction typically settle in 3 business days. Selling early: “If you wish to sell your Treasury securities prior to maturity, Vanguard Brokerage Services can provide access to a secondary over-the-counter market.” The pages we read do not mention automatic reinvestment of a maturing Treasury, an order cutoff, or Treasuries in IRAs.

Sources: Vanguard, U.S. Treasury Securities; Vanguard, Trading on the primary and secondary markets; Vanguard, Investment fees and costs.

Webull

“U.S. Treasury and Corporate Bonds are available for trading on Webull.” “You can place bond orders through the mobile app, desktop platform, or WebTrade using cash, margin, or IRA accounts.” Price: “A 0.1% markup is applied to all treasury trades, regardless of size or term.” “Yes, the 0.1% markup applies to both buy and sell orders.” Webull spells out the effect on a short bill: “A 0.1% markup on a 2-month treasury ≈ 0.6% reduction in annualized yield.”

Size: “U.S. Treasuries that meet certain eligibility requirements are enabled for fractional trading.” “The minimum value for a fractional bond order to buy or sell is $100 face value (0.1).” Its fixed income page still says “Start investing with a minimum $1,000 per order”, which applies to bonds not enabled for fractions. Orders: “Webull bond trading supports Limit orders only.” “Bonds can be traded between 7:30 AM and 5:00 PM ET.” We found no Treasury auction orders or automatic reinvestment at maturity on Webull's pages.

Sources: Webull help, Trading bonds; Webull help, Bond basics; Webull help, Trading fractional bonds; Webull, Fixed income.

Quick answers

How do I buy T-bills on Fidelity?

At auction: News & Research, Fixed Income, Bonds & CDs, then New Issue and product type Treasury; choose a bill, enter the quantity (1 = $1,000) and choose Auto Roll yes or no. On the secondary market, search Treasuries and buy from the offering. Both are $0 online. See Fidelity.

How do I buy T-bills on Schwab, and in the Schwab app?

On Schwab.com: Trade, Bonds, then Treasury Auctions (or the Fixed Income Offerings table for the secondary market), $0 online. The Schwab pages we read describe Schwab.com, not the app. See Charles Schwab.

How do I buy T-bills on Vanguard?

In a Vanguard Brokerage Account, as a noncompetitive bid at auction or on the secondary market, $0 online, $1,000 minimum. Vanguard's pages do not describe an automatic roll. See Vanguard.

How do I buy T-bills on E*TRADE?

In the Bond Resource Center, from the Treasury Auction Schedule or the secondary market, $0 either way. See E*TRADE.

Can you buy T-bills on Robinhood?

No. Robinhood says it offers fixed income only in the form of an ETF. The same goes for SoFi, eToro and moomoo.

How do I buy T-bills on Merrill Edge or through Chase?

Merrill Edge lists Treasuries, auction and secondary, at $0 online; ask Merrill how an auction order is taken. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing (Chase) sells Treasuries on the secondary market only; its auction trades are not available online.

What is the minimum to buy T-bills?

$1,000 of face value at Fidelity, Vanguard and J.P. Morgan, and for most bonds at Ally. $100 of face value for eligible bills at Public and Webull. You pay slightly less than face value. The IRS describes bills as “generally issued at a discount in the amount of $100 and multiples of $100”.

Can T-bills auto roll?

At Fidelity (4- to 52-week bills) and Schwab (4-, 8-, 13-, 17- and 26-week bills), for bills bought at auction. Only the face value rolls; the interest stays in cash. The other firms' pages do not describe it, except Public's managed Treasury Account.

Is there a maximum at auction?

Fidelity and Vanguard put the noncompetitive limit at $10 million per household. Fiscal Data's notes on the auction process say “Noncompetitive bidding is limited to purchases of $5 million per auction.” Ask your firm if you are near either figure.

Can I buy T-bills in an IRA?

Webull says bond orders work in cash, margin and IRA accounts. eToro has no IRAs, and the other firms' pages we read do not say. For a Treasury holding in an IRA by ETF, see how to buy SGOV.

Are T-bills taxed by my state?

No. The IRS: “Interest income from Treasury bills, notes, and bonds is subject to federal income tax but is exempt from all state and local income taxes.” See Is SGOV state tax exempt? for how this differs for funds.

Before you buy

• The price can move if you sell early. Investor.gov: “But investors who sell a bond before it matures may get a far different amount.” “For example, if interest rates have risen since the bond was purchased, the bondholder may have to sell at a discount—below par.” Held to maturity, a bill pays its face value.
• Markups count against a short bill. A fee charged as a percentage of the price, like Webull's and Public's 0.10%, takes a larger share of the yield the shorter the bill.
• State tax: T-bill interest is exempt from state and local income tax; bank interest is not. Our cash yield after tax calculator compares a T-bill with savings in your state, and state tax exempt money market funds lists funds that hold Treasuries.
• The fund route: a Treasury bill ETF trades like a stock at every brokerage on this page; see how to buy SGOV at 15 brokerages. For inflation-linked savings bonds, see our I bond rate page.
• Cash while you wait: what these firms pay on uninvested cash is on brokerage cash sweep rates.

What this page does not cover

• Which choice suits your money. We report what each firm says, not which to use or what to buy.
• Buying from the Treasury at TreasuryDirect. TreasuryDirect's site is closed to automated reading under its robots.txt, so we did not read it.
• Current T-bill rates, and Treasury notes, bonds, TIPS and savings bonds.

Rechecks and changes

We will recheck every firm at least every three months, and sooner when a firm changes its prices. Every change is listed here with its date. If something is wrong, tell us.

• October 22, 2026. First published.

Sources used on the whole page

• U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Treasury Securities Auctions Data
• U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Treasury Securities Upcoming Auctions Data (read through its API)
• IRS, Publication 550, Investment Income and Expenses
• SEC Investor.gov, Discount Note
• SEC Investor.gov, Bonds, Selling Before Maturity
• Fidelity, US Treasury Bonds
• Fidelity, How to Trade Auction Treasury Securities/TIPS (PDF)
• Schwab, How Do Treasury Auctions Work?

Dollars Ahead has no affiliate relationship with any firm on this page, and the page contains no affiliate links. This page reports what each firm publishes; it is not financial advice.