Top 5 Stock Trading Platforms

A lot of investors want to understand the best stock trading platform. There are plenty of avenues to explore when it comes to online trading. Which one do you decide to use? For beginners, there are certain things that need to be considered before jumping in and taking action. How do you choose the best stock trading platform for you?

The best trading platform for beginners will help ease your decision into that online trading pool. I know we all want success; we all want that big payoff. However, we also want safety and security. It may sound like a cop-out answer but choosing one of the best stock trading platforms can provide safety and security while helping you achieve your financial dreams.

eToro: Best for Crypto Trading

Available via desktop, Apple iOS and Android App on Google Play
Best For: U.S. investors focused on crypto-trading
Sign up here

If you’d like to invest in more than just stocks or ETFs and also invest in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin, you might want a high-powered, user-friendly app like eToro.

eToro is the world’s leading social investing platform, offering a social trading feature where you can learn and copy the strategies of other traders.

If you are a profitable trader, you can have eToro users follow you and earn income based on how well you perform and how many people follow your trades.

The platform offers multi-asset trading capabilities with over 2,000 instruments available through the brokerage. You can trade crypto and other assets in 14 exchanges worldwide.

eToro can fulfill your needs for crypto investing by offering commission-free trading on 17 cryptocurrencies and other assets. Opening an account is simple and only takes $50 to start.

The bad news is that the forex fees are high and there is a $5 withdrawal fee charged.eToro | Free Crypto Trades & More

Sign Up and open $100K virtual account for free
Trade for free, including the 17 most popular cryptocurrencies
Start to replicate the trades of popular investors automatically, in real time
eToro USA LLC is a registered money services firm w/FinCEN

Libertex

Founded in 1997, headquartered in Cyprus, and regulated by CySEC, Libertex has a strong history of providing award-winning service for traders.

There are more than 250 tradeable assets available, including:

100 stocks
50+ Forex pairs
50+ Cryptocurrencies
16 commodities including metals, oil, gas, and agriculture
18 indices
10 ETFs

Using Libertex, traders can choose to trade using MetaTrader 4 or 5, as well as a proprietary platform that is available as an intuitive and exciting mobile app.

The Libertex platform on mobile includes a demo account preloaded with 50,000 Euro for practice on trading, using the functions and features, and trying out new strategies.

With the mobile app, you can have all your investments in one place and make trades on the go, with price alerts and notifications.

There are several deposit and withdrawal options, and while deposits are free, some withdrawal processes will have a small charge. You can use credit or debit cards as well as PayPal and other eWallet services for both.

CFDs are commission-based, with an average charge of $4 per round lot. Forex, on the other hand, has no commission, but the spread includes the broker fees.

In terms of education, Libertex has an in-depth beginners course that includes more than 30 high-quality videos, designed to take a trader from knowing nothing to being comfortable in different strategies. There are also regular webinars available. Research in the form of charts, timeframes and indicators can be used by traders to inform decisions.

As a simple to use broker that is regulated and transparent, Libertex is great – but the added withdrawal fees might put off international traders.

Visit Libertex

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 83% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Vanguard

Available via desktop, Apple iOS and Android App on Google Play
Best For: Investors looking for a simple index fund investing app
Sign up here

Vanguard has long been regarded as the low-cost index fund investing service provider. In fact, John Bogle originated the idea of index fund investing and first offered them to retail investors as mutual funds and eventually exchange traded funds (ETFs).

The company has slashed fees over the years in a bid to outcompete other companies in the space and will always advocate for a low-fee index fund approach to investing.

Vanguard excels as a free stock trading platform when you wish to buy and sell Vanguard securities like index fund ETFs. You pay no commissions on their products like VTI or VTSAX or VFIAX.

Recently, Vanguard also announced it will no longer charge trading fees on competitors’ ETFs as well, a departure from a long-standing position. Vanguard also carries no account minimums.

What Vanguard lacks compared to some of these other apps is its clunky nature. I use the app for managing my work’s 401k plan and will admit to its bloat and lack of clarity on calculating investment returns on a percentage basis.

My main beef with their interface is my performance statistics will not save after I add them to assess how my funds have performed. All that said, Vanguard might have made this by design, incentivizing you to check your funds less often and thus living by their index fund ethos.

TD Ameritrade

Available via desktop, Apple iOS and Android App on Google Play
Best For: Traders interested in more asset classes like Forex and Futures
Sign up here

TD Ameritrade is another one of the best stock trading apps on this list. It is a popular brokerage which recently purchased Scottrade and now is being purchased by the mega-retail brokerage Charles Schwab.

For the time being, the brokerage has managed to shed commissions on their clients’ stock and ETF trades (with competitive threats from Robinhood and Webull).

The company’s scale has garnered it a large retail trading presence and many have come to use the service for many of its free or low cost trading features.

You may have heard of the company through its thinkorswim stock trading platform, widely touted as a premier trading service. The company backs this platform by insights, education materials and a dedicated trading desk to place your trades.

It offers a fully-customizable trading experience which can pin down however complex of a trading strategy of technique you might want to employ.

You will want to be careful about TDAmeritrade for some investment choices. When sorting through the company’s security choices, make sure you filter for no load ETFs before you buy.

Likewise for mutual funds and equity trades, lest you get hit with a fee for trading certain stocks and equities.

Acorns

Available via Apple iOS and Google Android
Best For: Young investors for a complete personal finance solution
Sign up here

Acorns is an investing app for minors and young adults who wish to start with a small amount of money which will grow into a large portfolio over time. Hence the name, Acorns, and the company’s goal of maturing from an acorn into a mighty oak tree.

The service doesn’t charge money to make trades on your behalf, but it does charge an account fee depending on the services you select for your account. Currently, the service has two offerings including Acorns Personal for $3/mo and Acorns Family for $5/mo.

These subscriptions provide various products which fit well for goals of young adults and even allow the service to act as one of the best money apps for kids with its all-in-one platform (Acorns Family).

Their plans come as follows:

Acorns Personal ($3/mo):
- Acorns Invest: Invests spare change through the popular “Round-Ups” feature, earns bonus investments and provides access to financial literacy articles
- Acorns Later: Tax-advantaged investment options like IRAs
- Acorns Spend: Acts as your bank account, offering free withdrawals at over 55,000 ATMs nationwide and no account fees and the ability to earn up to 10% bonus investments
Acorns Family ($5/mo):
- Everything in Acorns Personal (Acorns Invest, Later and Spend)
- Acorns Early: This allows you to take advantage of the best way to invest for your child’s future and can teach you how to invest as a teenager or minor through opening a custodial account.

Learn more in our Acorns review.Our Micro-Investing App Pick Acorns | Invest, Earn, Grow, Spend, Later

From acorns, mighty oaks do grow. Grow your oak!
In under 5 minutes, get investment accounts for you and your family, plus retirement, checking, ways to earn more money, and grow your knowledge.
Famous for investing spare change automatically through Round-Ups, this all-in-one financial app helps younger generations start investing earlier.
Just $3 or $5/mo.
Bonus: Get $5 to start & $75 for taking specific actions in an Acorns Checking account

Robinhood

Best for: Millennials

This app is a favorite among millennials wanting to practice trading with small budgets. It is free to use with no commission fees.

Features include:

Real-time market data
Various investment options
Zero balance requirement to open an account
Instant access to deposited cash

While it does make trading accessible, the app lacks research and educational resources.

It is a straightforward app with limited portfolio analysis and customer service, but it does meet a trader’s basic needs.

Visit Robinhood

. IG

IG brokers in all stocks and cryptocurrencies but has high trading fees for stocks.

To open an account, you need a low minimum deposit, and the process can be relatively slow.

Interface-wise, the web platform is safe and user-friendly, but there is no desktop trading. IG offers excellent educational tools, interactive charts and trading ideas. Phone and email support are available while the live chat function is usually offline.

IG has no banking licence, but it is listed on the stock market.

It is a high-performing web platform that is ideal for experienced traders looking for something simple.

Visit IG

Stash

Available via desktop, Apple iOS and Android App on Google Play
Best For: Young investors looking for a complete personal finance platform
Sign up here

Stash is a mobile-friendly personal finance app that comes paired with investing options and a checking account. Stash acts as a low-cost, all-in-one financial platform.

It caters to hands-off investors looking to automate their investing as you spend money and make recurring deposits into your account.

Stash comes with a recurring monthly fee, therefore disqualifying it as a true free stock trading platform. While it does charge a monthly account service fee for its full-suite of products, it does not charge trading commissions for your investment holdings.Stash | Investing Made Easy

Stash is a personal finance app that simplifies investing, making it easy and affordable for everyday Americans to build wealth and achieve their financial goals.
By signing up and making a $5 deposit, Stash will also provide a $5 sign up bonus.

Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers is reported to have a complicated account-opening process and high inactivity fees. Its desktop and mobile platforms are not ideal for beginners as they have poor search functions and a complex design.

However, it offers:

Great research tools
Low trading fees
Several account base currencies
Two-step process
Clear, free reports
Trading in crypto, stocks and bonds

The educational tools are some of the best but only become available after registration.

Interactive Brokers is listed on the stock exchange and regulated. It is recommended to advanced traders looking for a professional trading environment.

Visit Interactive Brokers

Bonus

Zacks Trade

Provides Access to Extensive Market Research; Tools Designed for the Most Active Traders

Zacks Investment Research is a well-respected analyst firm that’s been on Wall Street since the late 1970s. In 1992, Zacks launched its investment management firm. Today, Zacks Trade has become one of the top platforms for traders and will likely continue to hold that position for some time due to the access it provides to extensive research alongside trading tools designed for the most active traders. Here are the key stats:

Minimums: The firm recommends all investors start out with a minimum of $2,500, but says on its website that you can fund your account with little money as you’re comfortable with. For margin accounts, you’ll need to maintain an account balance of at least $2,000.
Tools: The platform is fully customizable, making it a perfect fit for active traders. Zacks Invest gives access to all the trading indicators you could imagine as well as other nifty tools. For example, members gain access to the firm’s extensive research, which is done by some of the top analysts in the business.
Assets Available to Trade: Traders who use the platform have access to stocks, options, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs and forex markets.
Cost: When trading on the platform, you’ll pay competitive commission rates that vary from asset to asset. For example, on stocks and ETFs, you’ll pay $0.01 per share with a minimum commission of $1 per trade. On options trades, you’ll pay $1 for the first contract and $0.75 per contract after that. Margin interest rates clock in at 2.75% to 3.59%, making the platform one of the most competitive in the business.
Customer Support: Zacks’ customer service is second to none. Users have access to the customer service team via phone or email from 9am to 6pm Monday through Friday.
Simulated Trading: Zacks Trade doesn’t offer a virtual trading account, but does point investors to resources that do.
Margin Trading: With some of the lowest margin rates in the industry, the platform is a great option for margin traders.
Available Order Types: The platform gives active traders the ability to place all the standard types of orders you would expect and then some. In fact, the platform offers nearly 30 different types of orders.

All in all, Zacks is a great trading platform with all the bells and whistles you need to become a successful trader. While the relatively high suggested initial deposit is a turnoff for some, low margin fees, exceptional tools, and several types of orders make the platform well worth diving into.

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NinjaTrader

Provides Traders with a Wealth of Data and Technology; Powerful Stock Screener

Finally, founded in 2003, NinjaTrader was one of the pioneers in the online trading space. The company’s focus on data and technology gave it the ability to quickly climb into the leadership position and hold onto its spot for nearly two decades to date. Here are the key stats:

Minimums: The platform requires an initial deposit of $400 and investors are expected to maintain a $400 minimum balance.
Tools: NinjaTrader’s focus since inception has been on trading technology and providing traders with the tools necessary to give them a leg up in the market. As a result, the platform is jam-packed with features that allow you to curate data, screen for the best stocks, analyze opportunities with indicators, analyze order flow, and much more.
Assets Available to Trade: As a broker, NinjaTrader supports futures, options on futures, and forex. In addition, the company has partnered with Interactive Brokers and TD Ameritrade to offer access to other assets like stocks and ETFs.
Cost: NinjaTrader offers a free service, but if you want access to the extensive tools available, you’ll need to pay a membership fee, which ranges from $60 per month to $1,099 for a lifetime license.
Customer Support: NinjaTrader offers some of the best customer service in the trading industry. You can contact them by email or phone, and the company even has an emergency trade desk that provides support around the clock.
Simulated Trading: The platform comes with a trading simulator complete with all indicators and tools that you get when using a live trading account, making it easy to test and backtest your strategies before risking your hard-earned money.
Margin Trading: The platform is margin friendly, with rates ranging from less than 1% to more than 6% depending on the asset being traded, making it incredibly competitive.
Available Order Types: The platform offers several types of orders, including the traditional types like market, stop market, limit, and stop limit orders. It also includes several advanced types of orders like market-if-touched, one-cancels-other, and simulated stop orders.

The NinjaTrader platform is a great fit for the active trader looking for access to the advanced trading technology that will allow them to take their trading activities to the next level. At the same time, the company offers low margin rates, an extensive suite of tools and order types, and top-notch customer service, making it one of the best in the business.