9 Super Cool Apps for Investing in US Stocks and ETFs

Investing in the stock market has never been easier thanks to the rise of user-friendly investing apps. With many commission-free trading platforms now available, you can buy and sell stocks and ETFs right from your smartphone.

These investing apps make it simple for beginners to get started in the stock market. But they also offer advanced tools for experienced investors to actively manage their portfolios.

In this guide, we‘ll highlight 9 of the top investing apps to use for trading US stocks and ETFs.

Overview of the Best Investing Apps

Here‘s a quick overview of the investing apps we‘ll cover:

• Ally Invest – Offers automated investing in premade portfolios. Great for hands-off beginner investors.

• M1 Finance – Allows you to create customized portfolios with stocks and ETFs. Automates recurring investments.

• Robinhood – Commission-free trading app with a simple interface. Popular with millennial investors.

• Acorns – Micro-investing app that automatically invests your spare change.

• Webull – Full-featured trading platform with advanced tools for active investors.

• Questrade – Canadian trading app with low commissions. Good for DIY stock and ETF investing.

• Betterment – Robo-advisor that builds and manages portfolios of ETFs for you.

• SoFi Invest – Automated investing combined with active stock/ETF trading. No management fees.

• Wealthfront – Robo-advisor with automated portfolios. Account minimum of $500.

Now let‘s take a deeper look at each of these top investing apps.

1. Ally Invest

Ally Invest is an automated investing platform that builds portfolios for you based on your goals and risk tolerance. It offers several different types of managed portfolios to choose from.

The platform is ideal for beginner investors who want a hands-off approach. Ally Invest will invest your money across diverse asset classes and automatically rebalance the holdings.

Some key things to know about Ally Invest:

• No advisory fee on their standard portfolio offerings, which include a 30% cash allocation. The cash acts as a buffer during market downturns.

• Low $100 minimum to get started. Easy to begin investing small amounts.

• Can open individual, joint, custodial, IRA, and Roth IRA accounts.

• Ally Invest is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), providing account protection up to $500,000.

Overall, Ally Invest is a great choice for novice investors who want an automated, low-cost way to gain exposure to the stock market. The premade portfolios provide broad diversification across stocks, ETFs, and cash equivalents.

2. M1 Finance

M1 Finance offers a unique approach that combines automated investing with the ability to customize your portfolio. Their "pies" feature lets you select individual stocks and ETFs to include in your investment mix.

Watch this short video to see how M1 Finance works:

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Some benefits of using M1 Finance:

• Create customized portfolios with stocks/ETFs of your choosing or use expert premade "pies".

• Automatically invests your money into your portfolio on a recurring schedule. Takes the discipline out of manually investing.

• No commissions to buy/sell stocks or ETFs on the platform.

• Maintains your target asset allocation through automatic rebalancing.

• Easy to set up automatic contributions from your bank account on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis.

M1 Finance is a great pick for beginner and intermediate investors who want to automate their own customized portfolio using dollar-based investments rather than shares. The recurring auto-invest feature promotes disciplined saving and investing habits.

3. Robinhood

Robinhood disrupted the brokerage industry by offering commission-free stock trading through their mobile app. It‘s become hugely popular, especially with millennial investors.

Some key advantages of using Robinhood include:

• No commissions to buy or sell stocks, ETFs, options, or cryptocurrencies.

• Extremely user-friendly mobile app interface. Easy for investing beginners.

• No minimum balance required to open an account. You can start investing with any amount.

• Supports fraction share investing, allowing you to buy pieces of expensive stocks like Google or Amazon.

• Good for dollar-cost averaging into stocks and ETFs commission-free.

The biggest drawbacks of Robinhood are the lack of retirement accounts and limited educational resources for new investors. But overall, it‘s a solid choice for investors who want an easy-to-use app to make commission-free trades.

4. Acorns

Acorns takes a unique approach to investing by allowing users to automatically invest their spare change from everyday purchases.

Here‘s how Acorns works:

• Link your bank account and/or credit card to automatically round up purchases to the nearest dollar. The change gets invested.

• Make one-time or recurring contributions if you want to invest more than just your digital change.

• Select a portfolio of ETFs based on your risk tolerance. Acorns will invest and manage your portfolio.

• Access educational investing content tailored to beginners right within the app.

• Minimal fees starting at only $1/month for accounts under $5,000.

Acorns makes the process of saving and investing completely automated. The app is perfect for hands-off, set-it-and-forget-it investing aimed at long-term growth.

5. Webull

Webull offers an advanced stock and ETF trading platform available via website or mobile app. It‘s geared more for active DIY investors who want advanced charting and research tools.

Some useful features of Webull include:

• Plenty of technical indicators and chart drawing tools to analyze stocks and ETFs.

• Virtual paper trading feature to test strategies risk-free.

• Research reports, analyst ratings, and earnings data on stocks.

• Commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs, and options. Cryptocurrency trading also available.

• User-friendly mobile app and desktop platforms.

The biggest downsides of Webull are the lack of educational content for investing beginners and limited retirement account options. But for intermediate to advanced traders, Webull provides all the tools you need.

6. Questrade

Questrade is a great investing app available to Canadian residents. It offers commission-free ETF purchases and low-cost stock trading.

Here‘s an overview of what Questrade provides:

• Commission-free ETF buying and low $0.01 per share commission stock trades.

• Access to investing in stocks, ETFs, options, mutual funds, and more.

• User-friendly website and mobile app designed for beginners.

• "Learning" resources to help develop investing knowledge.

• Registered accounts available including RRSP, RESP, TFSA, RRIF, and LIRA.

Questrade stands out for its educational content helping beginners learn about investing. And the low trading costs make it affordable for DIY investors with small portfolios.

The only downside is the lack of robo-advisor managed portfolios for hands-off investors. But overall, Questrade is a top choice for Canadian residents looking to invest in stocks and ETFs themselves.

7. Betterment

Betterment is one of the pioneering robo-advisor platforms. The automated service builds and manages diversified ETF portfolios tailored to your goals.

Here are some key things to know about Betterment:

• No need to pick individual investments – Betterment handles this for you based on your risk tolerance.

• Automatically rebalances your portfolio to keep your asset allocation on track.

• Flexible portfolios allow you to adjust your allocation to stocks vs bonds as needed.

• Access to certified financial advisors to help plan your finances and investing (premium plan only).

• Management fee of 0.25% annualized (or 0.40% for premium plan).

Betterment is perfect for hands-off investors who want an easy way to invest in a diversified portfolio consistent with their long-term financial goals. Everything runs on autopilot so you can take a passive strategy.

8. SoFi Invest

SoFi Invest combines automated investing through professionally managed portfolios with an active trading platform. Users can choose which experience they prefer.

Benefits of SoFi Invest include:

• No management fees on active trading or automated "automated investing" portfolios.

• Access to dedicated financial advisors for guidance at no extra cost.

• Automatic rebalancing and dividend reinvesting offered on managed portfolios.

• Low $1 minimum to start investing in the automated portfolios.

• Insured cash account returns 1% interest on uninvested cash.

SoFi Invest is a hybrid solution suitable for both passive, hands-off investors and those who want to take a more active role. The insured cash account provides a safe place to store funds as you build your portfolio.

9. Wealthfront

Wealthfront is a leading robo-advisor that offers fully automated investing managed for you. Like Betterment and SoFi Invest, Wealthfront handles building and managing your ETF portfolio based on your risk appetite.

Key features include:

• Automated rebalancing and dividend reinvesting to keep your portfolio aligned to targets.

• Tax-loss harvesting offered on taxable accounts to maximize after-tax returns.

• Portfolio lines of credit allowing you to borrow against your account balance if needed.

• Management fee of 0.25% annually charged on your invested balance.

• $500 minimum investment required to get started.

Wealthfront makes hands-off investing easy by automating the entire process for you. The portfolio construction and ongoing management is handled by advanced algorithms.

Found an Investing App That‘s Right For You?

Investing in stocks and ETFs is easier than ever thanks to intuitive mobile apps. Whether you want a hands-off robo-advisor or prefer picking investments yourself through an online brokerage, there‘s an app that fits your needs.

We covered the 9 best investing apps spanning both automated and active DIY investing strategies. Ally Invest, Betterment, and Wealthfront offer premade portfolios managed for you. M1 Finance, Robinhood, and Webull let you customize and actively trade stocks and ETFs commission-free. And Acorns provides effortless micro-investing by rounding up your transactions.

With everyone from total beginners to expert traders now accessing the markets through mobile apps, it‘s clear technology has unlocked investing for the masses. All you need to get started is download one of these top-rated investing apps, connect your bank account, and start putting your money to work in the financial markets.