Best investment apps of November 2024

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $3 personal, $5 personal plus, $9 premium per month
• Assets: Managed portfolio of ETFs (including up to 5% in a Bitcoin-linked ETF)
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, custodial
• Robo-advisor: Yes

Why we chose Acorns as the best investment app for beginners

For new investors who just want to put their money to work, it’s hard to beat the Acorns investment app. With an intuitive, smart design and no deposit minimums, the platform is clearly focused on reducing barriers to entry. Plus, Acorns will add $20 to your account as soon as you make your first investment.

To get started, choose a pre-made portfolio that aligns with your goals. The portfolios are invested exclusively in ETFs, with the option to include up to 5% of your portfolio in a Bitcoin-linked ETF.

Acorns is known for its round-up feature, which rounds up purchases you make with your credit or debit card to the nearest dollar and invests those excess dimes. Round-up can also give you cash back with more than 450 Acorns partners.

Acorns also offers a checking account with no minimums and fee-free ATM access at more than 55,000 locations. And the Learn section of the platform empowers investors with videos, articles and tips to grow their investment knowledge.

Subscriptions start at $3 per month. Their top subscription, Acorns Gold, costs $12 per month, but it comes with greater customization of your portfolio, a 3% retirement account match, a 50% bonus match on your bonus investment earnings, and higher interest on a savings account.

Acorns is a great fit for investors entering the market who want to learn the basics while using an automated, passive portfolio solution. That said, It lacks more sophisticated robo-advisor features such as tax-loss harvesting, financial tools, and goal-planning components.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: None
• Assets: Stocks, ETFs and cryptocurrencies
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement
• Robo-advisor: No

Why we chose Robinhood as the best investing app for active trading

Founded in 2013, Robinhood set out to make it easier for anyone to buy and sell stocks, ETFs, options, fractional shares and cryptocurrencies. You can also buy fractional shares in different companies, rather than a full share. Robinhood will even buy your first stock for you.

Unlike traditional brokerages that charge per trade, Robinhood allows users to buy and sell stocks and other assets without incurring any fees. Investors can make multiple trades without worrying about high costs eating into their profits. Margin trading is also available for users who want to borrow to invest and preserve their cash.

There is an option to enroll in Robinhood Gold, which offers premium features such as 4.5% APY on uninvested cash, larger instant deposits, and Level II market data from Nasdaq. This service costs $5 per month.

Robinhood also offers educational resources and produces financial newsletters so users can stay informed about the markets. The platform also offers real-time market data, customizable watchlists, and detailed charts to help you make more informed trades.

Plus, a live customer support specialist is available to help you at any time.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $0 for stocks and ETFs. Options and mutual funds carry additional costs
• Assets: Stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, options
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, margin, trust, custodial, education
• Robo-advisor: Option with Fidelity Go account

Why we chose Fidelity as the best investing app for low fees

Fidelity is one of the most recognized names in the industry, thanks to a robust trading experience with surprisingly low fees. Fidelity is also the most popular investment app among Americans, according to our recent survey of investors.

The platform shines as a full-service broker. Investors can open just about any type of account and choose from stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds and options trading. Of note, however, forex and futures trading are missing from Fidelity’s lineup.

Fidelity offers commission-free stock and ETF trading, with thousands to choose from. Options trading is in line with industry standards, costing $0.65 per contract. Broker-assisted trading fees are higher than average at $32.95, however, so it’s best to utilize the online experience to trade.

Fidelity offers a wealth of educational material, helping everyone from beginners to advanced traders learn the nuances of sophisticated investing strategies. Numerous trading tools, calculators and charts empower investors to make better trades. Fidelity Go is also available for investors seeking an automated, passive approach.

The combination of available assets to trade, research, financial tools, customer support and solid user experience impress at the low price point.

• Account minimum: $10
• Fees: 0.15% annual advisory fees, 0.85% annual management fees for eRIET/eFund
• Assets: Real estate through REITs
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, trust

Why we chose Fundrise as the best app for investing in real estate

Don’t have enough cash for a down payment? You don't need a lot of money to invest in real estate. Fundrise makes it much easier to invest in real estate through real estate investment trusts (REITs).

The Fundrise app offers several real estate portfolios geared toward different investing goals. The minimum investment requirement varies greatly depending on the portfolio tier, beginning at $10 for the Starter Portfolio and reaching $100,000 for the Premier level.

Fundrise provides asset reports, letters to its investors, notices of dividends received, and tax document releases directly in the app. You can also explore your portfolio performance by year, all-time and time-weighted, plus real-time data.

Fees are on the higher side, though the investment strategy isn’t directly comparable to most competitors.

Fundrise recommends investing for a minimum of five years, and requires you to submit a liquidation request in order to redeem your shares. Real estate investments aren’t as easily accessible (or liquid) as other assets.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $0 for stocks and ETFs. Options and mutual funds additional cost
• Assets: Stocks, bonds, ETFs, options, futures
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, margin, trust, custodial, education

Why we chose TD Ameritrade as the best app for investing education

TD Ameritrade provides an unrivaled catalog of educational content that caters to investors of all experience levels. The quality of the content is outstanding, whether you prefer long-form articles, podcasts, videos, tutorials or webinars.

It's the second most popular investment app among Americans, according to our recent survey. It’s a well-rounded investing platform overall, boasting an extensive range of trading tools, asset options and account choices as well as handy user support.

The Immersive Curriculum area of the portal is one of the most comprehensive educational experiences out there, covering everything from executing trading strategies to concepts like learning fundamental analysis.

Investors also have access to financial calculators and goal-planning tools that help ensure they’re on track when pursuing their preferred investing approach. Client support center is outstanding as well. Investors will find consistent, quick responses via phone, email or chat.

While a few features are missing from this investing app, such as direct crypto access, you’d be hard pressed to find another platform that provides such a deep archive paired with a rich suite of tools.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $0 for stocks and ETFs on Lite platform. $0.0005 to $0.0035 per share on Pro. Other assets have additional charges.
• Assets: Stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, options, futures
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, margin, trust, custodial, education

Why we chose Interactive Brokers as the best app for sophisticated investors

Interactive Brokers shines as a powerful trading platform that empowers sophisticated traders with all the tools to pursue investment strategies that often involve on frequent trading.

Interactive Brokers Lite is geared toward investors who are less concerned with getting the most precise order routing execution, while Pro is built for large order quantities and features a pricing menu that reduces with volume.

Interactive Brokers offers a downloadable version, the Trader Workstation, and a robo-advisor under Interactive Advisors.

Users can trade practically any asset in practically any kind of account while leveraging some of the most powerful charting, research, analysis and calculating tools available in the industry. Backtesting capabilities are provided so investors can fine-tune the nuances of their trading strategies before going live in the market.

The sheer volume of features can make the experience overwhelming for beginners, and educational material and support options are also relatively limited.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $0 for stocks, ETFs and mutual funds. Options, bonds and mutual funds additional cost
• Assets: Stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, options, bonds, futures
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, margin, custodial, education
• Robo-advisor option

Why we chose E*TRADE as the best investment app for user experience

Whether you gravitate to their apps or their website, E*TRADE prioritizes a smooth, intuitive flow without sacrificing the ability to make complex trades quickly.

The platform pairs its dynamic user experience with a diverse collection of trading amenities, research content, analysis, charting functionality and investment options, designed to meet investors of every level and trading disposition.

The experience can be tailored to an individual’s experience level, as both passive investors using ETFs for long-term investing and active traders will feel equally at home.

Users can also choose from a robo-advisor management option, Core Portfolios.

The educational section of the E*TRADE investment app has been refreshed with up-to-date content. It contains a wide range of materials that is easy to navigate.

E*TRADE is also the third most popular investment app among Americans, according to our survey of investors. However, it does not offer some features you might expect from a sophisticated trading platform, like direct cryptocurrency exposure and international exchange trading.

• Account minimum: $1 for cash accounts, $500 for investment accounts
• Fees: 0.25% annually for investment accounts
• Assets: Portfolios built with ETFs, crypto funds, stocks (for accounts $100K+)
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, custodial, education

Why we chose Wealthfront as the best investing app for goal planning

Wealthfront stands out in the robo-advisor space for its features that allow you to identify your financial objective and make a plan to get there. Plus, it has a wide range of customizable, automated portfolio solutions.

Wealthfront offers more pre-built portfolio varieties than many robo-advisors. The Classic portfolio is a low-cost index fund with a globally diversified portfolio. Their Socially Responsible portfolio is designed around equity, diversity and sustainability. Investors can also allocate up to 10% of their portfolio to cryptocurrency.

One of its unique features is automated, daily tax-loss harvesting implemented through Wealthfront’s proprietary algorithm. It also automatically rebalances ETF weighting when it strays too far from the original allocation.

Wealthfront offers many ways to keep financial goals directly from your dashboard. You can set and track a goal such as retirement, a large purchase or buying a home. You can fine-tune your portfolio with interactive sliders and even link external accounts for a holistic sense of your progress.

• Account minimum: $50 ($500 for retirement accounts)
• Fees: No management fees or commissions (other fees may apply)
• Assets: Portfolios built with stocks and ETFs
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement, cash management, trust, custodial

Why we chose M1 as the best investment app for money management

M1 offers a rare combination of automated portfolio management paired with extensive customization. This feature fits a niche in the industry for users who prefer to have more fine control over their strategy, but don’t quite want to go all-in on managing a portfolio themselves.

More than 60 pre-built portfolio slices, or “pies”, are available to choose from and can be combined to make up an allocation that aligns with your preferred approach. These pies fall into seven categories:

● General investing; Responsible investing; Retirement; Income earners; Hedge funds; Stocks and bonds; and Other strategies,

Where M1 really differentiates itself is in its money management product. M1's digital banking options include a credit card and a feature that automatically allocates your money toward your goals.

• Minimum deposit: $100
• Fees: 1% fee for buying or selling crypto assets
• Assets: Cryptocurrency, Stocks, ETFs

Why we chose eToro as the best app for investing in crypto

eToro is a cryptocurrency trading and investing brokerage that’s ideal if you're looking to learn about digital currencies as well as invest in stocks and ETFs. It also has a unique CopyTrade feature that lets you mimic the top investors on the platform for a more socially-driven experience.

Overall, eToro is flexible, easy-to-use, and competitive with both brokers and crypto exchanges. However, it doesn't support certain asset classes you might expect from an online broker.

Our eToro review is covering everything this platform has to offer, the fees, and how to decide if it's worth using.

• Account minimum: $0
• Fees: $3 per month for the basic plan, $9 per month for advanced features
• Assets: Stocks, ETFs
• Accounts: Taxable, retirement
• Robo-advisor: Yes

Why we like Stash

For new investors, options for growing your wealth can be intimidating, confusing and even discouraging. And when your income level forces you to start small, the uphill climb may seem a little more … uphill.

That’s where Stash comes in. The app combines automated portfolio building with a do-it-yourself approach that’s both educational and empowering. Stash clients can get as involved as they desire or keep it simple and get a roboadvisor’s help.

Stash is great for fractional investing, which means you can invest a few dollars to buy a slice of a share. This allows investors with limited funds to participate in markets otherwise inaccessible due to the high cost of entry.

Stash allows you to round up¹ everyday purchases to the nearest dollar. As soon as your spare change reaches $5, the money is sent to your investment account.

The app’s fees are kept low, in part, because personalized guidance comes from robo advisors rather than humans. However, there are two drawbacks: The app’s Smart Portfolios lack tax-loss harvesting, and Stash doesn’t offer automated management of IRAs.