You can manage your investments without relying on a traditional stock broker or financial advisor. In fact, you don’t even need a computer. With excellent investment apps, you can easily trade stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, and more directly from your phone, no matter where you are. These apps cater to both beginners and seasoned investors, offering options for active trading or hands-off automation. Some even provide advanced features like stock analysis and research tools.
The top investing apps offer more than just stock trading capabilities. While some focus solely on investing, others offer a comprehensive financial platform where you can manage your banking and loans alongside your investments. Whatever your financial goals, there’s an app tailored to meet your needs. Explore our selection of the best investment apps below.
6 Featured Picks From Our Best Investment Apps
There’s a plethora of options to sift through, even right here on this page. It can feel overwhelming! If you’re seeking a starting point, here are six investment apps recommended, along with the reasons I endorse them:
- Robinhood: Standout mobile brokerage app
- SoFi Active Investing: All-in-one banking and investing app
- Fidelity: Extensive investing research tools
- Webull: Mobile app trading platform
- M1 Finance: Investing and banking in one
- Public: Mobile app trading platform
When it comes to selecting the best investment app, we consider several key factors:
- Variety of investment options
- Low or zero fees
- Reasonable minimum account requirements
- Educational materials
- User-friendly interface
Here’s a different take on why these aspects matter and how to evaluate them:
- Diverse investment choices: Some apps focus solely on ETFs, while others offer a wider selection including stocks, bonds, options, and mutual funds, catering to different investor preferences.
- Fee transparency: Avoid hidden fees like annual charges, transfer fees, or penalties for account inactivity. Choose apps that are upfront about costs to maximize your returns.
- Account minimum flexibility: Whether you’re starting with a modest sum or a larger investment, look for apps that accommodate your financial situation.
- Educational resources: Opt for apps that provide valuable resources such as research tools and market analysis to enhance your investment knowledge and decision-making skills.
- Intuitive design: Ensure the app you choose has a user-friendly interface and positive reviews, making it easy and enjoyable to manage your investments.
Reviews of the best investment apps
Robinhood
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: A user-friendly platform for trading stocks and cryptocurrencies.
Robinhood introduced the concept of app-based investment platforms and remains a leader in the field. With zero commissions, including options trading, and the option for fractional share investing, it continues to set the standard. Access to over a dozen cryptocurrencies without trading fees is another attractive feature. While Robinhood Gold membership comes with a $5 monthly fee, the benefits, such as a 3% match on IRA contributions, often outweigh the cost.
Reasons Investors Might Favor Robinhood:
- Commission-free: trading on options and cryptocurrencies
- Ability to invest: in fractional shares
- Simplified: user interface
Reasons Some Investors Might Look Elsewhere:
- Lack of: mutual funds or fixed-income options
- Accessibility: to stock research requires Robinhood Gold membership
- Limited: tools for advanced investors and traders
SoFi Active Investing
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: A comprehensive financial app with extensive capabilities.
SoFi presents a compelling option for investors desiring a unified financial solution. With SoFi, users can access a robust active investing platform alongside one of the top robo-advisors, all within the same app where they manage their savings, checking accounts, mortgage applications, and more.
Reasons Investors Might Favor SoFi Active Investing:
- No trading commissions: including options, and no account minimums
- Availability: of fractional share investing
- Accessibility: to both active investing and automated portfolios within a single app
Reasons Some Investors Might Look Elsewhere:
- Limited availability: of certain investment types, such as mutual funds
- The trading platform may lack: advanced features for active investors
Fidelity
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: A comprehensive brokerage platform accessible via mobile devices.
Fidelity stands out as one of the largest and most renowned brokerage firms globally, providing an exceptional investment app rated highly by users. Through Fidelity’s app, clients can seamlessly trade a wide range of assets including stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds, and options, with the flexibility to open various investment accounts as needed. Notably, Fidelity distinguishes itself by enabling trading on international stock markets and offering fractional share investing, facilitating the creation of diversified portfolios even with limited funds.
Reasons Investors Might Favor Fidelity:
- Fractional share investing: Enables the construction of diversified portfolios with small investments.
- International trading: Access to 25 different international stock markets for expanded investment opportunities.
- Diverse account options: Offers a multitude of account types for app-based stock trading, including individual, joint, retirement, custodial, and trust accounts, with a wide array of investment options.
Reasons Some Investors May Look Elsewhere:
- Margin rates: Fidelity’s margin interest rates, particularly for smaller accounts, are relatively high compared to other platforms.
- Lack of cryptocurrency trading: Fidelity does not support cryptocurrency trading, unlike several other investment apps.
WEbull
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: Want an easy way to buy and sell stocks, especially for active traders.
Webull is designed to be the premier investing app for active traders. It offers $0 commission stock and options trades, fractional share investing, and a mobile platform that is far more feature-packed than those offered by other app-based brokerage firms. It also offers a few cryptocurrencies for trading on the platform as well.
Reasons Investors Might Favor Webull
- No commissions: Webull offers $0 commission trading on stocks and options.
- Mobile platform: Webull’s mobile platform is packed with advanced trading tools that many of its competitors can’t match.
- Cryptocurrencies: Webull offers Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin for trading on its platform.
Reasons Some Investors May Look Elsewhere:
- Education: Webull might not be the best choice for beginning investors, as one of its key weaknesses is a lack of educational resources.
- Investment choices: Webull doesn’t offer mutual funds, bonds, futures, or CDs.
- Account types: There are several popular account types Webull doesn’t offer, such as SIMPLE and SEP IRAs, custodial accounts, and solo 401(k)s. You also can’t open a joint account with Webull.
M1 Finance
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: A robo-advisor complemented by additional financial services.
M1 Finance serves as a core robo-advisor, streamlining users’ investment portfolios while also offering robust banking features and personal loans. With zero commissions or investment fees, a modest $100 minimum investment requirement, and automatic rebalancing, it stands out in the market.
Reasons Investors Might Favor M1 Finance:
- Fee-free structure: M1 Finance distinguishes itself by foregoing account management fees, making it an attractive option for cost-conscious investors.
- Integrated banking and lending: The platform provides a seamless experience with checking and high-yield savings accounts, along with a personal loan platform, consolidating various financial needs in one place.
- Retirement account support: M1 Finance accommodates traditional and Roth IRAs, rollover IRAs, and SEP-IRAs, catering to long-term investment goals.
Reasons Some Investors May Look Elsewhere:
- Absence of human advisors: M1 Finance lacks access to live investment advisors or personalized financial advice beyond its standard robo-advisory services.
- No tax-loss harvesting: This feature, crucial for investors with substantial accounts, is not provided by M1 Finance, potentially impacting tax liabilities.
Public
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Top Pick for Investors Seeking: A social investing platform with community features.
Public.com offers a unique social investing experience, allowing users to engage with a community of investors while managing their portfolios. With Public.com, investors can trade stocks and ETFs commission-free, with fractional share investing available. The platform encourages transparency and education, fostering discussions on investment strategies and market trends among users.
Reasons Investors Might Favor Public:
- Commission-free trading: Public.com eliminates trading fees for stocks and ETFs, making it cost-effective for investors of all levels.
- Fractional share investing: Investors can purchase fractional shares of stocks and ETFs, enabling diversification with smaller investment amounts.
- Community engagement: Public.com emphasizes social interaction, facilitating discussions on investment topics and enabling users to learn from one another’s experiences.
Reasons Some Investors May Look Elsewhere:
- Limited asset selection: While Public.com offers stocks and ETFs, it may not provide the same breadth of investment options as traditional brokerage platforms.
- Lack of advanced features: Investors seeking sophisticated trading tools or research capabilities may find Public.com’s offerings to be relatively basic compared to other platforms.
The Bottom Line
The best investing apps of 2024 offer a diverse range of features to suit every investor’s needs. Whether you’re looking for commission-free trading, social interaction, or automated investing, there’s an app out there to help you achieve your financial goals. By leveraging the power of technology and innovation, these six investing apps make it easier than ever to invest in your future and build long-term wealth.
