9 Best Apps and Services for Investing

There’s no shortage of online financial management and investment platforms out there. While that’s great for choice, it means that you may have a harder time knowing where to start. Whether you’re looking to start investing small, or you need a service to manage your money for the long-term, here are some of the best financial and investment services online.

Stash

Investing can be incredibly intimidating to new investors. That’s something Stash is hoping to change. With the mobile app, you can start investing money in a variety of stocks and ETFs for as little as $1.

The goal is to make it accessible for beginner investors – from the start, you’ll prompted with a questionnaire that helps evaluate your risk and goals with investing. You’ll need to pay at least $1 per month¹ for an account, although that comes with access to an online bank account and debit card.² Stash will also give you a $5 bonus* to invest after you sign up and deposit at least $5 into your invest account.

DiversyFund

DiversyFund is a unique real estate investment firm that lets users get started investing in their real estate investment trust (REIT) for as little as $500. Unlike similar services, DiversyFund doesn’t have any platform fees.

Once you do, your money is pooled and used to buy properties handpicked by the company’s real estate experts. When real estate is managed, renovated, sold or otherwise turns a profit, it’s split between all of the investors.

FundRise

Since buying property is out of reach for many beginner investors, you can try your hand at the real estate market with FundRise for just $500. It’s essentially a crowdfunding platform that invests your money in property.

FundRise offers several different plans, including ones aimed at supplemental income and long-term growth. While there are platform fees, they’re far below what you’d pay for a traditional accreditor investment fund.

Robinhood

If you’re looking for an easy investment platform with no fees and no account minimums, consider Robinhood. It’s a mobile-first platform that lets you buy and trade various stocks, as well as popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereal.

Robinhood is 100% commission-free. And if you invite other users to the platform, you could earn free shares in popular companies. The platform also features research and market data via Robinhood Gold subscription and will soon support fractional shares.

WealthSimple

When it comes to investment platforms, many don’t offer services specifically aimed at socially responsible investing. WealthSimple does, with options aimed at clean technology in the developing world, supporting gender diversity in senior leadership, and efforts to reduce carbon exposure.

The Wealthsimple Basic plan also requires no account minimum and offers additional features like a smart savings account, free portfolio reviews, and a “roundup” feature. Unlike similar platforms, you can also get access to a team of human financial planners.

Acorns

Saving money can be tough, but even the smallest amount put away can add up in the long run. That’s the basic premise of Acorns, which is aimed at hands-off and easy saving that you don’t have to think about.

Acorns essentially takes the change from purchases that you make via linked accounts and invests them into an investment portfolio. There’s no minimum to open an account, but you’ll need at least a $5 balance to start investing.

WealthFront

WealthFront is an automated investment service that comes with some heavy-hitting features for power users. Once you sign up, you’ll get access to diverse investment portfolios, planning tools and a suite of tax-saving advice and strategies.

The service offers tax-loss harvesting on all taxable accounts daily, as well as a program that waives fees on $5,000 for you and your referral. There are also some top-notch planning tools, including a college savings plan that lets parents pick a college to project costs.

Betterment

Looking for a “robo-advisor” that doesn’t come with a minimum deposit? Take a hard look at Betterment, which offers a no-minimum Betterment Digital plan that uses exchange-traded funds across different asset classes — so you can tailor investing to your risk tolerance and goals.

The system also offers automatic account rebalancing and a competitive 0.25% management fee for its lower-tier plan. There are also automated savings tools, including a high-yield account called Everyday.

Blooom

Many investment platforms offer a slew of different options and tools. Blooom, on the other hand, has a laser focus: employer-sponsored retirement plans, as well as IRAs held at Vanguard, Charles Scwab or Fidelity.

There aren’t any account minimums and you’ll only pay a play $120 a year for management, regardless of account size. (That drops to $108 a year if you pay in a single installment.) Blooom also offers other financial advice for account holders.

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Disclosures:

*iDrop News is a paid non-client endorsement. See Apple App Store and Google Play reviews. View important disclosures. Promotion is not sponsored or endorsed by Green Dot Bank, Green Dot Corporation, Visa U.S.A. Inc., or any of their respective affiliates, and none of the foregoing has any responsibility to fulfill any funds earned through this promotion.

For Securities priced over $1,000, purchase of fractional shares starts at $0.05.

¹The Stash Monthly Wrap Fee starts at $1/ month. You’ll also bear the standard fees and expenses reflected in the pricing of the ETFs in your account, plus fees for various ancillary services charged by Stash and the Custodian. Please see the Advisory Agreement for details. Other fees apply to the bank account. Please see the Deposit Account Agreement.

²Stash Banking Account opening is subject to identity verification by Green Dot Bank. Bank Account Services provided by and Stash Visa Debit Card (Stock-Back® Card) issued by Green Dot Bank, Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. Visa is a registered trademark of Visa International Service Association. Investment products and services provided by Stash Investments LLC, not Green Dot Bank, and are Not FDIC Insured, Not Bank Guaranteed, and May Lose Value. 

Investment advisory services offered by Stash Investments LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Investing involves risk and investments may lose value.