Written by Tessa Campbell; edited by Sarah Silbert
Updated Oct 31, 2024, 10:26 PM GMT+2 - Courtesy of Business Insider
If you're new to investing, the best investment apps should offer low fees and access to the types of accounts and investment products you care about most.
As a beginner, your investing app should suit your investment style and offer the tools you need (such as educational guides and/or courses, human advisor access, and strong customer support) to achieve your financial goals.
Best Investment Apps for Beginners:
· SoFi Active Invest®: Best overall investment app for beginners
· Vanguard: Best retirement-focused investment app for beginners
· Ally Invest: Best investment app for tax-optimized investing
· Betterment Investing: Best automated investment app for beginners
· Acorns Invest: Best investment app for micro-investing
· Public Investing: Best socially responsible investment app for beginners
· Stockpile: Best kids investment app for beginners
Best Overall Investment App for Beginners: SoFi Invest
Sofi® is a top investment app for beginners thanks to an easy-to-use interface paired with rock-bottom pricing. You can get started at SoFi Invest with just $1, and there are no commissions for trades and no recurring account fees. Even the managed portfolio product, SoFi automated investing, where your ETFs are all picked and managed for you, is free to use.
You can easily browse potential investment opportunities by sorting through categorized stocks and ETFs. Complimentary financial planning is available for all SoFi members outside of the app, alongside additional benefits. Work with certified financial planners (CFPs) who can help you reach your goals.
If you are a beginner and want help developing an investment strategy, SoFi investing is an ideal place to start.
Pros of SoFi:
· Financial planning help available
· Start investing with $1
· Commission-free trading
· No account fees
Cons of SoFi:
· Doesn't offer automatic tax-loss harvesting
Best Retirement-Focused Investment App for Beginners: Vanguard:
Vanguard is an undeniable leader in investing and one of the top online brokerages. Its holistic approach to retirement planning considers your entire financial situation when mapping out a long-term plan for growing your wealth.
Vanguard offers SEP IRAs, 401(k) rollovers, individual 401(k)s, and SIMPLE IRAs. With a retirement account, you'll get access to numerous ETFs, such as Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF and Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF. You can also access Vanguard's All-in-One retirement funds.
In addition to multiple retirement account options, Vanguard provides investors with a handful of retirement tools and exclusive financial planning resources, including tax loss harvesting features and ESG investing options.
Pros of Vanguard:
· Access to robust Vanguard all-in-one retirement funds
· Low-cost holistic approach to retirement planning
· Automated investing available
Cons of Vanguard:
· Robo-advise is pricier
· Limited options for advanced trading
Best Beginner App for Tax-Optimized Investing: Ally Invest
Beginners often do well with straightforward investment platforms. Ally Invest offers just that through its mobile app. You get access to expert-built stock and bond ETFs with the ability to focus on tax-optimized investment opportunities, generating income, or gaining exposure to the ESG market.
If you prefer the robo-advisor route, Ally Invest Robo Portfolios creates a personalized portfolio of ETFs for you. The app offers two robo-portfolio options: the cash-enhanced portfolio or the market-focused portfolio. Ally Invest's app is easy to navigate with a handful of accessible investment features like market screeners, performance charts, stock analytics, and a Smart Score ranking.
For no advisory fee, cash-enhanced portfolios set aside 30% of your asset allocations as an interest-earning cash buffer. Market-focused portfolios only use about 2% of your portfolio as a cash buffer with a 0.30% advisory fee.
If you prefer a more hands-on approach to investing, beginners can open a self-directed trading account for no account minimum and 24/7 market access. Customize your portfolio with hand-picked stocks, ETFs, options, bonds, mutual funds, and low-priced securities.
Pros of Ally Invest:
· Commission-free trading
· Tax-optimized portfolio
· Two options for automated portfolios managed by robo-advisors
Cons of Ally Invest:
· Ally Invest offers wealth management services, but you'll need at least $100,000 to get started.
Best Automated Investment App for Beginners: Betterment
Betterment Investing is one of the strongest robo-advisors for low-cost trading, account flexibility, access to CFPs, and goal-based investing. Investors receive a diversified portfolio of stock and bond ETFs based on their goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance.
Betterment Investing offers cryptocurrency portfolios, socially responsible portfolios, tax-loss harvesting, personalized retirement plans, and options for charitable giving. You can use the investment app's goal-building strategies, such as retirement savings and income, creating a financial safety net, meeting cash goals, and building toward a major purchase.
Pros of Betterment:
· No minimum deposit requirement
· Goal-based investing and financial planning
Cons of Betterment:
· Ongoing CFP access requires a $100,000 minimum (or $299 per session)