Buying and selling stocks using mobile devices has become an everyday activity in today’s world. Some of the best stock trading apps even offer zero commissions stocks and ETFs. These apps are easy to use and provide a fully featured online trading experience whether you are a beginner or a seasoned active trader.
If you want to start investing in stocks, we have listed some of the top apps to buy stocks for free. These apps are great for technical analysis, understanding stock structure, finding and scanning trading stocks and most importantly assisting with your trading strategies.
Featured app to buy stock for free
Buying stocks is now easier thanks to the rise in popularity of stock trading apps that you can access on your smartphone. These platforms also solve a lot of the problems that most new traders have, including high commission fees.
Here are some of the top apps to buy stocks for free with minimal starting costs.
- Minimum investment: $100
- Commission: $0
- Monthly fee: $0
- Account Type: Taxable, IRA
- Best for: Beginners
M1 Finance is perfect for passive investors and those just starting out in the investment world. This platform combines the best low-cost brokers and behavioral alpha that can boost their confidence when investing.
The platform also facilitates streamlined investment strategies such as low-cost exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and individual stocks. M1 Finance also has a number of tools to help you set up your ideal portfolio and even automate donations.
M1 Finance also uses Assets Under Management (AUM) – a free Robo advisory service for its standard accounts. This free access feature allows M1 Fiance to compete with some of the cheapest players in the space, including SoFi Invest and Charles Schwab’s Intelligent Portfolio.
Furthermore, the app also offers free advice and allows investors to add small holdings to their portfolio. Besides automating investments, M1 Finance also offers automatic rebalancing to ensure you are buying low and selling high.
Other notable features include Smart Transfer for premium members, making it easier to transfer funds between their Spending and Invest accounts. The platform also recently added a line of credit to their users through a feature called M1 Borrow.
Advantages
- Many bonus offers
- Constantly adding more features and support
- Allow custodial accounts
Defect
- Not designed for active traders
- Minimum investment: $0
- Commission: $0
- Monthly Fee: $2 per month (Level 2 Subscription)
- Account Type: Taxable, Rolling IRA, Traditional, and Roth
- Best for: Experienced Traders
Webull is an electronic trading platform that does not charge its customers any time they buy or sell shares. This app is free to use and has no commissions or transaction costs. You can also trade and invest in thousands of individual stocks and ETFs using the app.
Unlike most of its competitors, Webull offers additional tools that make account management easier. The platform includes built-in vital research, data, analysis and charts to assist you in making more informed stock trading decisions.
Webull is great for technical traders thanks to its 20 charting tools and over 50 technical indicators. Furthermore, reversing your location requires a few taps on your smartphone. The platform also has extended trading hours during which you can trade during pre-market trading sessions.
It also has a paper trading engine that allows you to trade with virtual currency. Therefore, you can practice trading with a Webull virtual stock trading account without risking your real money.
Webull is also worth considering as they offer complex order types. Market orders, limit orders, stop loss orders and stop limit orders are all available to you. Unfortunately, they only accept account applications from US residents.
Advantages
- Free Stocks, Options and ETFs
- Low transaction fees
- Opening an account takes about a day
Defect
- It does not support bonds, mutual funds and pink sheet stocks
- Minimum investment: $0
- Commission: $0 on stock options, crypto, ETFSs
- Monthly fee: $0
- Account type: Taxable
- Best for: New Investors
Robinhood’s popularity as a commission-free stock trading platform has only grown during the recent GameStop short. However, even with all the controversy, the app is still a solid choice for beginner investors.
Its application is user-friendly and easy to use. Robinhood also allows you to trade and invest in hundreds of individual stocks and ETFs on its platform. There is no minimum amount required to open an account.
Furthermore, as part of automating your trades, the platform offers complex order types such as market orders, limit orders, stop loss orders and stop limit orders. By placing an order in advance, you can buy or sell your stock at the price you want.
Thanks to its integration with Robinhood Crypto, you can also trade cryptocurrencies without leaving the platform. You can use this service to buy, sell and exchange popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, etc.
However, because federal interest rates increase over time, Robinhood’s rates can fluctuate as well. Unlike its competitors, Robinhood is less restrictive on who can use the platform because they allow non-US residents to use the app as long as they hold a US visa.
Advantages
- Allows reinvestment of dividends and fractional shares
- Facilitating commission-free transactions
- Use security features like Apple Touch to sign in
Defect
- The platform has become a bit unreliable since the GameStop crash
- Minimum investment: $100
- Commission: $0 for stocks, ETFs, options
- Monthly fee: $0
- Account Type: Taxable, Trust, IRA, 401K, HSA
- Best for: New Investors
This industry leading online broker has one of the largest client bases. Both Fidelity’s website and app provide tools to help everyday investors monitor and manage their portfolios.
Furthermore, Fidelity is one of the few players that does not accept Payments to the Line (PFOF), saving you money when placing stock trades.
Fidelity is praised by many for its excellent research. Their stock screeners, mutual funds, and ETFs are data-rich and easy to use. The company uses the largest number of third-party research reports for both ETFs and stocks.
Another great benefit about Fidelity is that it doesn’t have any hidden fees or account service fees. However, there is a flat fee of $19.95 if you choose broker-assisted trades. Meanwhile, Fidelity also has a zero expense ratio mutual fund, which can save you even more costs.
The Fidelity app boasts a gorgeously designed and customizable dashboard. Its market cards include everything from watchlist insights to market news. What’s more, the app has a note-taking function, allowing you to save your thoughts on individual stocks.
However, one of the main disadvantages of Fidelity is its secondary active trader function. It has very few indicators available, only two on Android devices. By comparison, the industry average is more than 30 indicators. Therefore, it is not suitable for active traders.
- Minimum investment: $5
- Commission: $0
- Monthly fee: $0
- Account type: Taxable
- Best for: Small Time Investors
Public is a commission-free stock trading and investment platform. There is no account maintenance fee or monthly membership fee and no minimum account balance limit in the app.
Contrary to most people’s first impression, Public is not exactly a new player in the industry. It is a trademark of Matador, one of the pioneering application-based investment products in the country.
Public also has a beautifully designed and user-friendly smartphone app that you can download on Android and iOS. For as little as $5 you can start trading on the app. You can invest and trade thousands of individual stocks in ETFs if you list on a stock exchange.
You can also invest and trade small shares of stock, known as fractions, through the app. Instead of buying the entire stock, you can buy a small portion of it. Public also has a unique social layer, which includes a social community to chat with your friends. You can also contact industry leaders and experts in the investment field.
Another unique aspect of Public is that you can earn a substantial return on your cash balance. Uninvested money in your cash balance that is not invested in your Public Portfolio can cost you a modest percentage. However, they do not allow day trading, plus only US residents are allowed to join the platform — at least for now.
Advantages
- The app has social investment features
- Enable segment sharing for as little as $1
- Low barrier to entry
Defect
- Limited investment options compared to competitors
Welcome to the New Investment World
There are many other apps to buy stocks for free that you can download on Google Playstore or Apple store. However, those on the list are the most reputable, showing amazing results.
When choosing the best apps for buying stocks, it’s essential to consider their advantages and disadvantages. Furthermore, you should also take into account whether they offer additional services like access to cryptocurrencies.
