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The Best Microinvesting Apps
I discovered microinvesting a few years ago when I began investing with Robinhood, but since then I’ve ventured into multiple other apps that I routinely recommend for anyone new to investing!
This article will focus on the main three apps that I use regularly: Robinhood, Acorns, and WeBull.
I will discuss the type of person I’d recommend each for, usability, the platforms, and what unique features each has to offer!
So, what is micro investing, you ask?
Micro investing has become an popular way for anyone to learn to invest – without the need for financial advisors or financial planner. In fact, most platforms are completely free to use, some give free stocks and cash, and others cost pennies a month in order to invest!
With Robinhood, Acorns, and Webull, you don’t have to worry about crazy fees that a brokerage firm would tack on, making micro investing far more user-friendly and affordable! Plus, it is a great option for those of you who don’t have thousands in available cash on hand, and want to start practicing and learning about how investing works!
Robinhood
Robinhood has grown to be a leader in mobile investing, with a simplified layout and both mobile and desktop versions for investing. The app is free but be sure to check out my link here to take advantage of the opportunity for a free stock!
Robinhood is an app I usually recommend to anyone who is new to stock investing and wants to learn how stocks and the market works.
I primarily use just their app, but both their desktop and app versions offer good analyses of stocks and offer you a good visualization regarding the movement of stocks over time. They also have a great news section that has “dumbed down” financial information about the economy that people like you and I can actually comprehend.
Why You Should Use Robinhood
With this in mind, here are 4 reasons to consider Robinhood to invest in stocks.
- First, Robinhood is a great app for both beginner and intermediate investors.
As I said initially, I started using Robinhood before any of these other investing apps, and I still enjoy using it. They offer enough information without it getting overwhelming for anyone new to investing.
- Second, they have a good referral program.
One great feature of Robinhood is that you can earn free stocks by having friends sign up and be able to learn how the stocks are affected by the daily economy, without spending any of your own money.
- Third, Robinhood has good analyst ratings that help you understand whether a stock is worth investing in or not.
This is a feature I’ve enjoyed when doing research on individual companies and stocks. It helps you learn the “why” behind if the stock or company is worth investing in, and it’s provided in a simplified way that you and I can actually understand.
- Last, they do offer more technical features if you are a more experienced investor.
What’s nice about Robinhood is that you can begin as brand new to all this investing stuff for free, then as you gain experience, you can purchase their Robinhood Gold membership. This membership costs $5 a month, which includes access to Morningstar Research Reports and NASDAQ Level II Market Data.
Acorns
I have found that Acorns makes the whole “saving and investing” process 10x simpler than any other option out there.
At the cost of $1/month, it’s a simplified way to save and invest money, with the minimum of only $5 to invest. It essentially works by linking to your bank account, and allowing Acorns to put aside the rounded up “cents” portion of your purchases, to invest!
For example, if you buy some coffee for $4.89 this morning, Acorns will set aside the remaining $0.11 – that would have made the purchase $5, for you to invest in stocks. You will accumulate money, and when you’re ready, you can choose what to invest in!
What’s even better is that you get $10 for free to invest when you create an account.
Acorns will allow you to learn about investing, start investing with spare change, and be a part of an innovative platform.
Why You Should Use Acorns
With this in mind, here are 3 reasons to consider Acorns to invest in stocks:
- First, Acorns is great if you don’t plan on learning a lot about stocks.
Unlike Robinhood and WeBull, you can use Acorns to more passively invest. You literally can set aside money without even opening the app.
- .Second, Acorns is a good option if you want the easiest platform available.
I really believe Acorns is the most basic and straightforward way to save and invest money. Although I see Robinhood as a beginner-friendly app, Acorns seems built specifically for people who need their hand held in the process.
- Last, they have a very beautiful app and great customer service.
As I’ve spent hours on the three apps discussed on this video, of all of them, I feel that Acorns really has been developed for the younger generations to help them learn to save and invest for their futures.
Webull
One huge difference that makes Webull different from other investing platforms like Robinhood is how technical it is – Webull provides much more detail and information about stocks than any other beginner-friendly platform I’ve used.
Webull promotes that it offers more stock options than other popular investing apps. Although not an important factor for me, this can be a huge decision maker for those of you who want to invest in single stocks, smaller stocks, or who want to practice with day trading!
Now, due to the amount of detail about stocks that Webull offers, the app is very appealing to investors who are more experienced with the market.
Another reason WeBull is appealing is that they offer more than just one stock for signing up. If you open an account and deposit $100 into the account within 30 days of opening your account, you get a second free stock that is valued up to $1400! This is much different than my experience with receiving stocks on Robinhood that are all around $2-$3 each. Follow this link to learn more about how to earn multiple free stocks through Webull!
Why You Should Use Webull
Here are my top 4 reasons to consider WeBull to invest in stocks:
- First, they offer expanded hours trading.
Unlike Robinhood, you can actually buy and sell after market with Webull!
- Second, they have more In-depth stock analysis of stocks.
Webull’s interface really is unlike any of the others. It is rich in technical content for more experienced investors to analyze stocks
- Next, I’ve really loved the Free computer software that they offer!
On top of having a free app and online experience, Webull is unique in how they offer a separate computer download to get an experience learning about stocks unlike any other investing app!
- Last, you can get Real-time quotes.
Unlike Robinhood and Acorns, the Webull app updates by the second. You can literally watch stocks rise and fall before your eyes. As a beginner myself, this feature is great to help with learning how the market works!
SUMMARY
Each of these investing platforms are targeted toward different subsets of people, and offer different features. I suggest you check out multiple platforms before fully deciding on just one. That way you know you won’t be missing out on what another app could be offering.