Featured
Public.com / Invest in Stocks and Engage in Community
- Public.com enables you to invest in stocks and funds, commission-free through an easy-to-use mobile interface.
- Community features allow you to follow friends and expert investors, share insights, and interact.
- No account minimums. Buy and sell fractional shares.
Promotion: Get a $10 share of stock for new signups.
Acorns / Invest Your Spare Change Automatically
- Acorns Invest is a micro-savings app that helps you invest your spare change from everyday purchases through Round-Ups.
- Best for beginners and those seeking an integrated financial app centered on investing.
Acorns Promotion: $5 signup bonus after your first investment.
M1 Finance / Invest Using Unique Pie-based Portfolios
- M1 Finance is a free finance app allowing you to invest, borrow, and spend in one platform.
- $0 account minimum. 100% commission-free trades and no hidden fees.
Promotion: Get up to $500 when you signup and deposit $1000 or more.
Kraken Crypto / Advanced Crypto Trading Features
- Kraken is a cryptocurrency exchange to buy Bitcoin and 50+ cryptos for beginners and experienced users.
- Get 24/7 support, lower fees, and versatile funding options.
Looking to buy and sell cryptos? Read our review of Coinbase and Crypto.com as alternatives.
Betterment / Investing & Saving with Personalized Investment Advice
- Betterment is a Robo-advisor helping you manage your money with guided investing, cash management, and retirement planning.
- No account minimums and low management fee.
Stockpile / Gift Cards, Investing for Beginners & Custodial Accounts
- Stockpile is an online brokerage enabling investors to buy and sell stocks or fractional shares of stocks, ETFs, ADRs, and every stock in the S&P 500.
- Open an individual brokerage or custodial account (under 18 years old).
SoFi Active Investing / Invest Starting with $5 – Stocks, ETFs
- SoFi Active Investing allows you to buy and sell stocks, fractional shares, and ETFs.
- No commission trades no account minimums.
SoFi Invest promo: Fund your account with $100 and get $25 in stock.
Stash Invest / Banking and Investing for Beginners
- Stash Invest is a robust financial app to start and grow your investments in stocks, ETFs, and fractional shares for as little as $1.
- Get investment and banking features to help you achieve your investing goals.
Stash Promotion: Get $20 for signing up and adding cash.
Acorns / Invest Your Spare Change Automatically
- Acorns Invest is a micro-savings app that helps you invest your spare change from everyday purchases through Round-Ups.
- Best for beginners and those seeking an integrated financial app centered on investing.
Acorns Promotion: $5 signup bonus after your first investment.
M1 Finance / Invest Using Unique Pie-based Portfolios
- M1 Finance is a free finance app allowing you to invest, borrow, and spend in one platform.
- $0 account minimum. 100% commission-free trades and no hidden fees.
Promotion: Get up to $500 when you signup and deposit $1000 or more.
Gemini Crypto Exchange / Buy, Sell and Store Crypto Assets
- Gemini Crypto offers 50+ cryptocurrencies to buy, sell, and store your crypto assets.
- A simple and secure platform to build your crypto portfolio.
Public.com Crypto / Buy, Sell and Hold Crypto Assets
- Public.com Crypto lets you buy, sell and hold crypto assets for as little as $1.
- Join a community of investors and access educational content and investing tools.
New Account Promo: Signup and get a $10 share of stock.
Masterworks / Invest in Million Dollar Artwork – Starting $1000
- Masterworks is an art investment platform for investors who want to own fractional shares of valuable artwork from famous artists.
- Invest with as little as $1000 and access a secondary market to buy and sell your shares of artwork.
PayPal Crypto / Buy and Sell Crypto
- PayPal Crypto lets you buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies–Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin.
- Start investing with as little as $1.
Cash App Crypto / Buy and Sell Bitcoin with Ease
- Cash App crypto is an easy way to buy and sell Bitcoin right from the mobile app.
- Get started with $1 and use your Cash App balance.
New Account Promo: Signup with Cash App and get a $5 bonus. Use Code: TDRCVVJ
Venmo Crypto / Buy, Sell and Hold Cryptocurrencies
- Venmo crypto allows you to buy and sell four types of digital assets–Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin.
- Get started investing with as little as $1.
New Account Promo: New Venmo users get $5 for signing up and making a payment.
SoFi Crypto / Trade Cryptocurrencies and Learn as You Go
- SoFi Crypto lets you buy and sell cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Ethereum Classic.
- Trade cryptos with as little as $5.
Promo: New SoFi Invest users–get $25 in stock after funding account with $100.
Robinhood Crypto / No-Fee Trading – Invest With as Little as $1
- Robinhood Crypto is a mobile app to buy and sell cryptocurrency with commission-free trading.
- Buy fractions of cryptos with as little as $1.
Binance / Buy and Sell Bitcoin, Ether and Altcoins
- Binance.US is a cryptocurrency exchange with more than 50 cryptos to buy, sell, and trade.
- Create an account in minutes, set recurring buys, and take advantage of low-cost trading.
What is investing?
Investing is the act of committing money to an endeavor with the expectation of earning additional income or profit. There are a number of ways you can invest such as stocks, bonds, index funds, mutual funds, real estate, or your own business. There are many pros and cons to investing but depending on your risk tolerance one may be a better fit for you. Learn more about the basics of investing.
Investment Account Types
Probably the two most common types of investment accounts are retirement accounts in the form of either IRAs or variations of the 401k and traditional brokerage accounts. But there are a few others that can be used for specified purposes.
How to Find Best Investing Apps
Your portfolio is basically the total amount of investments you have in one or more investment account. To get started with a portfolio, answer the following three questions:
1. What kind of investment account do you want to open?
2. Where do you plan to open that account?
3. How much risk can you handle?
Each type of investment account, whether it’s a 401k plan, IRA, standard brokerage account, college savings 529 plan, or health savings account (HSA) will have its advantages and disadvantages.
Where you open your investment account matters because different brokerages will require different investment minimums, charge different fees, and allow for different investments in the account.
You also need to know how much risk you can handle because stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, and other securities have different risks associated with market movements.
What are Discount Online Brokerages?
A discount online brokerage is often associated with companies like Charles Schwab and Ally Invest. A discount broker is a stockbroker that performs buy and sell orders at a reduced commission rate.
Most discount brokers operate using online platforms and mobile apps without the need to directly engage with a stockbroker.
Recently, most stock trading is now commission-free offered by the likes of Robinhood (who started the trend).
What are Micro-investing Apps?
Micro-investing apps help people accumulate investments in a small incremental way. Some apps allow investors to start with as little as $1 to buy a fraction of shares or ETFs (exchange-traded funds). The goal behind micro-investing is to open the stock market to people who may not have hundreds or thousands of dollars to get started.
What are Robo Advisors?
A robo-advisor is distinct from the other platform as it offers guided advice through an investment philosophy and proprietary algorithms.
A robo-advisor app gives smaller investors access to advisory services that were typically only offered to high net-worth individuals. These platforms offer you the opportunity to invest smaller amounts and pay lower fees compared to traditional investment advisors.