Best Stock Trading Apps – Top 5 Platforms Reviewed
The great Warren Buffett himself is famous for recommending most people only need to invest in one thing – a total stock market index fund. This way, you’re about as diversified as you need to be while also exposing your portfolio to an acceptable amount of risk. However, discerning investors who are interested in taking on a bit more risk need not only access to trade individual stocks but also better tools that can help them make decisions. That’s where stock trading apps come into play.There are many stock trading apps available to traders of all experience levels. We put together a list to help you decide which one is best suited to your experience, budget, and trading style.
TD Ameritrade
There are many stock trading apps out there that could best be described as offering many features while being master of none. TD Ameritrade is a clear exemption from that rule as it provides great options for traders of all experience levels. If you’re a beginner or casual trader and still have some things to learn, the TD Ameritrade stock trading app is the best overall offering from not only a user interface perspective but also in benefits to traders.Not only that, but TD Ameritrade has an offering for traders who are more experienced and need more tools in the form of its subsidiary Thinkorswim. Thinkorswim offers a full desktop trading application with all the trading tools one might need to review markets at a microscopic level.Pros:
Accessible user interface offering great options for both long-term investors and short-term traders.
Commission-free stock, ETF, and options trades
No account minimum
All asset classes offered on web and desktop platforms can be traded on the mobile app
Cons:
Medium-term (swing) investors may find it difficult to get the tools they need on one platform or another.
No partial share trading
The recent acquisition by Charles Schwab may provide some uncertainty
Interactive Brokers
Many stock traders may have dreams of one day having access to a Bloomberg terminal (recently priced at $24,000 per year). Interactive Brokers may offer the next best thing for those requiring a professional-style platform. The platform, both desktop and mobile, are geared toward active traders who are constantly in need of real-time data to make decisions intraday.The mobile app is especially helpful and allows traders to not only monitor positions but assess the markets and place complex trades when they are away from their desk.Pros:
Mobile app allows nearly as much accessibility as the desktop app
Wide range of tools and indicators for active traders
$0 commission
No account minimum
Cons:
Users can only access data from one platform at a time
Drawing tools are absent
Webull
While perhaps offering a different approach to trading than the previous stock trading apps, Webull is one of the best out there for mobile trading. Despite not having a desktop app, there is a growing crowd of traders who play more of a buy and hold game in their stock portfolio. Webull offers a user-friendly platform with extensive features one might find on a professional desktop platform.The pricing is geared more toward active traders with smaller account balances – a higher account balance may incur additional fees depending on the size of trades you are attempting to fill. This is further obvious as the company does not offer educational material, despite clearly targeting newer traders. However, there is a community app where advice and guidance is posted for all to see, and the tools available make it an absolute bargain.Pros:
$0 commission (mostly)
$0 minimum balance
Excellent app features
Cryptocurrency for approved accounts
Cons:
Mobile app only
Longer clearing time for closed trades to show as usable funds
Tastyworks
Tastyworks may be a bit of an odd man out, but the stock trading app features are only the tip of the iceberg. It is important to note that this company caters heavily towards options traders, and it does so better than anyone in the business. However, stock trading is still extremely accessible and costs are on par with or even better than their competition.This company offers three different, fully developed platforms from which to place trades: web-based, desktop, and mobile app. Not only that, but Tastytrade, the sister company under the same roof, offers in-depth instruction on stock and options trading on a daily, live web feed from 7:00 AM US CST until 3:00 PM US CST. For traders interested in both actively trading and learning about markets, Tastyworks offers quality tools and solutions both at the desk and on the go.Pros:
No commissions on stocks, lowest commissions on options
Offers all asset classes, including stocks, options, futures, and cryptocurrencies
Access to portfolio for trading on web-based, desktop, and mobile platforms
Plethora of educational materials made by experts in the industry and live teaching of new traders in episodic shows during the trading day.
Cons:
Unable to open an account from the mobile app
Stock traders may get distracted by the heavy emphasis on options trading
Fidelity
Fidelity may be the last on the list of stock trading apps, but it is certainly not the least. It is mostly geared towards traders interested in a slower pace and who prefer buy and hold strategies to active trading. The app, offered on all major devices, offers the tools needed to manage your stock portfolio, though charting software is noticeably absent.For those strictly interested in stock, ETF, and options trades on longer-term hold strategies, Fidelity will provide everything you need and nothing you don’t, including $0 commissions and trading in several different account types. That’s right, Fidelity will allow trading in retirement accounts as well as conventional brokerage accounts.Pros:
$0 commission for stock, ETF, and options trades
Allows trading from several account types, including brokerage and retirements accounts
Extensive educational resources
Cons:
Advanced and active traders may find the lack of charting tools frustrating.
Options trades carry additional fees, as do other trades that aren’t stock, ETF, or options trades
Take Your Time Testing Stock Trading Apps
As you can see there are quite a few great stock trading apps out there. Each of them has its own benefits and downsides so it may be a good idea o try out a couple of different ones out and see which one works best for you.
