Get a good bonus just for signing up or trading one stock. Check out these investment services to get special offers to buy stocks, save for retirement, and build your savings.
Highly Recommended Investment App Bonuses
SoFi Invest: $50 Bonus BEST OFFER SoFi Invest: Earn $50 with Active Investing Account – Earn a $50 Bonus when you Fund a New SoFi Active Investing Account with $1,000, plus enjoy No Transaction Fees and No Account Minimums. Read more about Sofi here.
WeBull: 2 FREE Stocks BEST OFFER WeBull is offering a bonus for signing up where you get a free stock when you are approved for a new account. You will then again get another stock up to $1,200 when you add just $100 to the account. No trading needed for the bonus. You’ll also each get a share of free stock worth anywhere from $3 and $1,200 if you make a referral to a friend.
Moomoo: Sign Up & Get Up To 15 Stocks Worth $3-$2,000. Open account, get one free stock. Add $100 – $999.99, get five free stocks. Add $1,000+ and get 15 free stocks.
Public: Free Slice of Stock Public: Get $10 to Invest with Friends – Receive Free Slice of Stock (up to $10 value) when you download this Commission-Free Social Stock Trading App.
Acorns: $5 Free Bonus Invested Acorns: Get $5 in Free Investment Bonuses – Get 1 Free Share of Stock upon Account Approval and Trade for Free with this Zero-Commission Stock Brokerage Account.
Robinhood: Free Share of Stock Robinhood: Get 1 Free Share of Stock – Get 1 Free Share of Stock upon Account Approval and Trade for Free with this Zero-Commission Stock Brokerage Account.
Honorable Mention Investment App Bonuses
Betterment: Free Portfolio Management Betterment: Get up to 1 Year of Free Investment Management – Get up to 1 Year of Free Account Management Services with a Personalized Investment Account.
NextSeed: $20 Free Credit NextSeed: Get $20 Free Credit for Small Business Investing – Get a $20 Free Credit to Invest in Small Businesses just for Opening a Free Account and Linking Your Bank Account.
Ally Invest: $3,500 Cash Bonus Ally Invest: Earn up to $3,500 Cash Bonus – Get up to a $3,500 Cash Bonus and Commission-Free Trades for 90 Days when you Open an Online Stock and Options Broker with Low Trade Fees.
Investment apps are bringing stock market trading and financial planning to the digital age. Simply put, they offer a platform for investing your money independently, without the need for a stockbroker or financial advisor.
Betterment offers personalized investment options. It also automates the investment process from start to finish.
Betterment wants to make investing effortless and affordable for everyone. Based on your finances, needs, goals, and lifestyle, they give you a personalized portfolio of low-cost index funds.
They help you decide how much to invest and sync with your bank so that you have the option of regular automatic contributions. This robo-advisor makes financial decisions using a complex algorithm, but what’s great about Betterment is that you also have the option of speaking to a financial expert.
Pricing
$0 minimum and 0.25 percent annual fee for the standard account; $100,000 minimum and 0.40 percent annual fee for the premium account.
Pros
No prior experience required
Simple and effortless investing
Personalized
Financial advisor
Low fees
Cons
Rigid formula is not great for DIY-ers
Limited to managing Betterment accounts only
Stash
Stash is an easy investing app that’s accessible to everyone. You can start investing with as little as 1 cent!
Inspired by the weight loss industry, their philosophy is about making small, easy steps. Stash allows you to invest in fractions of shares, which means you can start with as small an investment as you want.
They offer you a choice of roughly 1800 single stocks and ETFs. So there is a lot to choose from based on your desired risk, financial situation, and lifestyle. What’s great about Stash is how easy they make the whole process. They explain everything along the way and they even offer financial advisory services.
Stash offers three different plans:
Beginner – This plan is $1/month and offers a personal investment account, debit account access, and free financial education.
Growth – This plan is $3/month and offers all the features of the beginner plan, plus tax benefits for retirement investing.
Stash+ – This is a $9/month plan that offers everything the other two plans offer, plus a debit card, an investing account for two of your children, and monthly market insights.
Pros
Low barrier to entry
Easy to use
Includes personal financial advisor
Cons
The cost can add up if you’re a small investor
Limited to their chosen portfolios
Open an account with Stash today. Special promotion: Sign up and add $5 to your investment account and get $5 added to your Stash banking account!
Acorns
Acorns allows you to choose from portfolios made by Nobel-Prize winning economist, and automatically invest your spare change.
Acorns links with your credit and debit card and automatically “rounds up” the spare change to the next dollar on every purchase.
For example, if you bought a latte for $3.60, they’d automatically deposit 40 cents to your investment account, which can potentially add up to quite a lot every month. Based on your desired risk, Acorns gives you the choice of five different portfolio options, which were created by Nobel Prize-winning economist Harry Markowitz.
This is a little different from robo-investors like Betterment that offer custom portfolios instead of the choice of a few pre-configured ones.
Pricing
$1 monthly fee for accounts with balance under $5,000; 0.25 percent of the balance annually on accounts over $5,000.
Pros
Easy way to invest without even noticing
No minimum balance
Cons
Your monthly spare change may not be enough for a solid routine investment
$1/month fee may not be worth it if you’re not investing enough
M1 Finance
M1 Finance offers automated investing in pre-selected portfolios, or you can choose from any stock or ETF.
M1 is meant for people who like the idea of automating their investments, but still want some say on where their money is going. M1 Finance allows investors to choose from any stock or ETF.
Unlike robo-investors, you’re not restricted to their pre-selected ETFs, but they do offer preset templates for beginners. You can also set up recurring automatic deposits on a weekly or monthly basis, or any custom time frame you desire.
Pricing
Free of charge; $100 minimum to open an account and $500 minimum to open a retirement account.
Pros
Offers an alternative to rigid robo-advisor formula
Simple, user-friendly
Free
Cons
Limited to 1 trade a day
Can be confusing for beginners
No human financial advisor
Personal Capital
Personal Capital is like a personal financial manager that offers advice, wealth management, and free financial tools
Personal Capital not only works as an asset manager service, but also provides helpful free financial tools. Personal Capital links to your financial accounts to summarize your finances and help you plan and budget your finances. You get a ton of features including a handy retirement planner or bill notification.
Personal Capital invests your money in a preselected portfolio of individual securities and ETFs, specifically to minimize added expenses and taxes. Every account also gets a dedicated advisor.
Pricing
0.89 percent fee for $1 million deposited or less; you need at least $100,000 to start using the service.
Pros
Affordable
Consolidates all your financial information
Free finance tools
Easy to use and set up
Cons
High minimum
Can’t customize your investment
More expensive than most robo-advisors
Robinhood
Robinhood is a simple stock trading platform with no transaction fee.
Robinhood offers a platform for buying and selling stocks and ETFs in real time. The best part is that you invest in anything with zero transaction fees. You can also schedule recurring deposits if you want.
Robinhood offers a super simple user interface that’s easy to use. You can see a simple overview of your investment performance with helpful charts and stats.
Pricing
Free; no minimum.They do charge a monthly fee!!
Pros
Absolutely free
Easy to use
Easy to sign up
Perfect for investment DIY-ers
Cons
You must do your own research
Easier to make rushed uncalculated decisions
No personalized investment recommendations
Stockpile
Stockpile is an investment brokerage app that allows you to buy fractional shares and offers stock gift cards.
If you want to buy a specific stock of ETF, but don’t want to pay for an entire share, Stockpile allows you to buy share fractions. What’s especially unique about Stockpile is that you can buy stocks and ETFs in the form of gift cards.
Trade can take up to a few days to get completed, it’s not ideal as a live trading platform. However, it’s a great option for casual investors or novices. It’s also a good way to learn about investing. Stockpile offers a bunch of learning resources and even lets kids create their own accounts with adult supervision.
Pricing
No minimum; $0.99 per trade; $2,000 maximum for gift card.
Gift cards cost $2.99 for the first stock and $0.99 for each additional stock, plus a three percent credit or debit card fee. The plastic cards cost $4.95-7.95 depending on the value of your gift.
Pros
Not limited to expensive stock buy-in cost
Unique gift card option
Low fee per trade and no annual fees
User-friendly interface
Allows minors to participate
Great way to learn about trading
Cons
Longer processing time
Not all stocks are available
Gift recipients are stuck using this platform
High gift card fee
No live customer support
Limited research tools
Wealthfront
Wealthfront is a robo-advisor that automates everything with the goal of keeping costs low. You can also get financial advice through the app.
How it works
Wealthfront looks to make you money with minimal effort from you. They create a custom portfolio for you based on your finances, goals, lifestyle, and risk level. They try to keep costs as low as possible by strategically choosing low-cost ETFs that minimize tax obligation.
Their whole interface is super simple. No complicated jargon, and the app has great resources. It can even answer your very specific questions about your goals and aspirations, like whether you can afford to take a year off to travel.
Pricing
$500 minimum investment; free for the first $10,000; 0.25 percent of your invested assets afterwards.
Pros
Low, straight-forward fees
Easy to use
Simple for new investors
Custom portfolios
Cons
No face time with financial advisor
High minimum investment
Stuck with rigid robo-advisor formula
Wealthsimple
Wealthsimple is actually based in Canada, but it’s available in the US. Wealthsimple is a robo-advisor that offers special investment portfolios you may not find elsewhere. These include SRI (socially responsible investing) portfolios and a Halal portfolio, consistent with Islamic Halal principles.
Wealthsimple offers three different SRI portfolio types for you to choose from. They include:
Conservative: More heavily invested in Local Initiatives and Affordable Housing, since those are bond funds. It essentially creates an allocation in which 65 percent of the portfolio is invested in bonds, and 35 percent in stocks.
Balanced: Has an even split of 50 percent stocks and 50 percent bonds. With the three different portfolio allocations, not only can you invest in SRI, but you can do so based on your own personal investment risk tolerance.
Growth: Has a higher concentration in the stock sectors, and particularly Low Carbon, which represents more than 46 percent of the portfolio. Local Initiatives and Affordable Housing represent just 20 percent of the portfolio combined. That results in a portfolio mix of 80 percent stocks, and 20 percent bonds.
Pricing
There’s no minimum investment required. Wealthsimple charges 0.50 percent per year of account balances up to $100,000; 0.40 percent per year for balances greater than $100,000. There is no additional cost for SRI investing.
Pros
Offers SRI investing
Offers Halal investing
No minimum investment requires
Cons
Higher fees than other investing platforms
Relatively new
How do investment apps work?
Investing apps allow you to start investing in a matter of minutes. There are many investing apps out there to satisfy the needs of all types of investors. Some apps help new investors effortlessly set up an investment portfolio from scratch. Others offer a simple bare-bones platform for quick low-fee trading.
The pros and cons of using an investment app
Pros
Simplicity for all
Investment apps empower anyone of any means or skill level to start investing easily. Your app can help you set up an investing account and offer financial advice based on your lifestyle and income.
They can also automate the whole process so that you can continue building your investment without much effort.
Cheaper
By replacing human advisors with an algorithm, apps have much lower overhead and can afford to keep their fees significantly lower. Some apps even offer free trading.
24/7 access
Gain access to your financial information, make adjustments, or buy and sell anywhere you can connect to the Internet. You don’t have to wait for the work day to start. The app works around the clock for you.
Cons
Enables bad decisions
The convenience of using these apps allows people to invest impulsively, instead of making a calculated investment decision. The benefit of investing the traditional way is that you have the advice of an expert to help second guess your decisions.
Lacks a human element
Although some apps give you the option of speaking to an advisor, many use algorithms to help guide you. What you’re missing is conversations that can reveal much more nuanced information. Advisors not only know about the market, but can offer advice that’s tailored specifically to you.
Many investors are finding that the massive advantages of investment apps make the risks worth taking.
App
Price
Minimum Investment Requirement
Betterment
Standard Account: $0 minimum and 0.25 percent annual fee
None
Stash
$1/month for balances under $5,000; 0.25 percent for balance of $5,000+
$5
Acorns
$1 monthly fee for accounts with balance under $5,000; 0.25 percent of the balance annually on accounts over $5,000
None – your purchases are rounded up to the nearest dollar
M1 Finance
Free
$100 minimum to open an account and $500 minimum to open a retirement account
Personal Capital
0.89 percent fee for $1 million deposited or less
$100,000
Wealthfront
Free for the first $10,000; 0.25 percent of your invested assets afterwards
$500
Wealthsimple
0.50 percent per year of account balances up to $100,000; 0.40 percent per year for balances greater than $100,000. There is no additional cost for SRI investing.
None
Robinhood
Free
None
Stockpile
$0.99 per trade
None
Investment apps FAQs
Don’t I need a financial advisor?
Financial advisors can be incredibly helpful resources. They also give you peace of mind that your financial decisions are backed by an expert. However, many apps can provide the same type of advice with an algorithm.
Are investment apps secure?
We don’t suggest anything that we haven’t personally vetted, all of these apps come with robust built-in security features.
How much money do I need to invest?
This really depends on how much you feel comfortable investing. There are many investment apps geared to a variety of investors. Apps like Stash have no minimum investment. You could invest as little as $5.
Why should I invest?
Whether or not you are saving up for something, investing allows you to squeeze the most out of your money. Investing doesn’t require much knowledge or a huge time commitment. Plus, a bunch of these apps make it easy for anyone can start investing.
What can I trade on these apps?
There are many trading options, depending on what app you choose. Robo-advisors like Betterment only trade ETFs, while live trading apps like Robinhood allow you to buy and sell stocks in seconds.
Schwab launched a promotion this week offering $101 in stock slices when new investors open an account and fund it with $50.
The Deal
Deposit $50+ in a new Schwab investment account & get $101 in stock slices for the top 5 stocks in the S&P 500.
Key Terms
Must fund your account with a minimum of $50 within 30 days of opening the account to qualify. Once funded, Schwab will deposit $101 in your account to purchase your stock slices.
Two business days after your account is opened Schwab will begin checking for deposits. Once your qualifying deposit has been received, Schwab will credit the $101 to your account and place your trades the next trading day. We’ll send you an email the night before that happens, so you’ll know when to expect your stock slices and the ability to review your orders.
Once the orders are placed, you will have a short period of time to cancel the orders. To cancel the orders, you will need to go to the Order Status page on schwab.com or to any of Schwab’s other trading platforms or call a Schwab representative at 800-435-5000. If you cancel your orders, you keep the $101 cash bonus and can save or invest it however you want. If you take no action, the orders will be executed shortly after market open the next trading day. You will see the stocks reflected in your account and Schwab will send you trade confirmations.
One of the biggest things of having a High Yield Investor Checking account from Schwab is to take advantage of unlimited ATM fee rebates when traveling.
If you’ve never opened a Schwab investment account though, this promotion is a great incentive to do so. Funding a new investment account with $50 will get you $101 in fractional shares for Amazon, Tesla, Apple, Alphabet (Google) and Microsoft (i.e. $20.20 in fractional shares per company).
This was a no-brainer smart stock move for my future. They added to my account $20.20 in Schwab Stock Slice for each of the top five companies on the S&P 500. For each slice order, they sent me a trade confirmation. I only invested $51 they invested all these other free dollars!
If you’re wary of investing in the stock market or would rather invest the $101 in another way, you don’t have to have the $101 invested in those five companies. The $50 (I funded $51 in mine) you initially fund your account with can remain there as cash or invested however you want. The terms then state you can cancel the automatically-placed orders for the stock slices so that the $101 cash bonus is available for you to save or invest however you’d like. You’ll have fewer than 13.5 hours to do that though, so keep an eye out for emails from Schwab after you’ve deposited your $50 so that you can cancel the orders for the five stock slices.
Nice, easy bonus here, especially for someone interested in opening a Schwab brokerage account. This is only for new Schwab customers and won’t work for existing users.
There’s also a separate Schwab offer for a bonus of between $100 – $1,000; that one requires large deposits to get. I don’t think you’d be able to do both of these offers so you’ll have to choose this easy $101 offer or the capital-intensive $100/$1,000 offer. We’ll add this offer as well to our List of Best Brokerage Bonuses.
E-Trade is one of our favoriteinnovative online discount brokerages. They are now offering up to $2,500 bonus plus Free Trades for 60 days when you open a new E*TRADE Securities Individual, Joint or Retirement account by April 15, 2022 and funded within 60 days of account opening. E-Trade is a leader in the industry with far superior tools for investing and related banking solutions, outstanding customer service, and ease of use for investors.
One of the best things about this offer is you not only get a bonus and free trades but you also get E-Trade Pro for Free for 90 days. Here’s how to get free E-TRADE Pro access: Receive complimentary access to E-TRADE Pro for 90 days when the new account enrollment is complete and qualifying deposit is made.
WeBull is a fee-free brokerage app, very similar to Robinhood (but no monthly fee like Robinhood) which a lot of people have used and who also has the same free stock offer.
They are offering a bonus for signing up and approved for a new account. You’ll each get a share of free stock worth anywhere from $12 and $1,400. Then add just $100 to your WeBull account and you will get another free stock issued to you. We love this app because there is no fee to open, no monthly fees, and no minimums.
Offer open to U.S. residents currently living in the U.S. who are at least 18 years of age with a valid SSN.
Around 95% of people will get a stock worth under $10. Odds of getting a stock worth $10-20 is about 4%, $50-100 is about .5%, $150-250 is about .3%, $1k is about .1%.
Customers may hold or sell the stock once the bonus is credited to their account.
Where required, 1099-Misc may be issued (probably only in the event of a stock higher than $600)
If you signup with a referral, both you and the referrer get a free stock. The referral tracks through the email address or phone number input on the initial signup page. (You’ll download the app separately – I assume they track the email input at signup and match it to the email input at download.)
WeBull Investing App Review
If you’re looking for a brokerage for active trading with low costs and a great mobile-first experience you should like this stock app. Webull quickly emerged from its fairly recent opening just a few years ago to be a favorite for active traders looking for a low-fee experience.
Webull orients its platform toward tech-savvy traders who can handle most of their accounts and trading needs on their own. If that sounds good to you, read more to learn about how Webull may be a good fit for your investment and trading needs.
Pros & cons
PROS
No commissions — You’ll pay no fees on the trades you make through Webull.
No minimum balance requirement — You can get started with pennies, gradually increasing your contributions as you get more comfortable.
Plenty of research resources — You’ll learn the market while you’re making money.
CONS
Online only — Your entire experience with Webull will be confined to the app.
Limited support — Although you can get customer support, you won’t find the guidance you get with other apps.
Completely self-guided — You’re on your own as you build and manage your portfolio.
WeBull Vs. Fee-Driven Robinhood
Webull is an online brokerage firm with mobile, desktop, and web trading platforms. It is free to use with no commissions to buy or sell stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and options. This platform was free before all of the big investment firms were doing it.
Webull’s main competitor is Robinhood. Robinhood also offers “free trading” but with less impressive active trading features. They also charge a monthly fee just for doing nothing. If you’re deciding between Robinhood and Webull, Webull is definitely the better choice today.
The brokerage has more than 9 million users around the world. It doesn’t disclose assets under management, but one estimate pegs it around $4 billion across all customer accounts.
Is My Money Safe?
Webull is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects the securities of its members’ customers up to $500,000 (including $250,000 for claims for cash).
Apex Clearing Corporation provides an additional insurance policy. From Webull’s website, “The coverage limits provide protection for securities and cash up to an aggregate of $150 million, subject to maximum limits of $37.5 million for any one customer’s securities and $900,000 for any one customer’s cash. Similar to SIPC protection, this additional insurance does not protect against a loss in the market value of securities.”
While Webull’s charting features are powerful, some might find charting a little difficult to use on a mobile app. On the other hand, if you find yourself always on the go but need access to in-depth stock market research and charting capabilities, Webull is definitely for you.
Chase bank is rolling out a digital investing service that comes bundled with free or discounted trades, a sophisticated portfolio-building tool and no-fee access to the bank’s stock research. Anyone who downloads J.P. Morgan’s mobile banking app or uses its website can get at least 100 free trades in the first year.
J.P. Morgan’s new digital brokerage service comes with free trades, portfolio building tool and access to research.
The bank’s new trading service will be available to its 47 million mobile or online users.
All customers get 100 free stock or ETF trades in the first year.
CEO Jamie Dimon hinted at this move in 2016, citing Amazon Prime as his inspiration.
This move from J.P. Morgan Chase comes a few years after Apps such as Robinhood have already attracted more than 5 million users and a $5.6 billion valuation.
This could be a threat to the current marketplaces as Chase is the the biggest U.S. bank and It already has financial ties with half of American households. More than 47 million people who already use the company’s banking app or website will gain access to the new service called “You Invest”.
The bank is known for their high fees such as charging $24.95 for online trades as recently as last year.
How to get Free Trades
Signing up through the bank’s app can be done in three minutes, and moving money between Chase accounts happens instantaneously. Users can also seamlessly fund their investments from outside accounts. You can actually see the offer inside the Chase Bank App on the left menu under J.P. Morgan. There is no minimum required to open an account.
All customers get 100 free stock or ETF trades in the first year, an offer that becomes permanent for those with Premier-level bank accounts, which require a combined $15,000 held at the bank.
Those with Chase Private Client, a higher account that typically requires at least $100,000 in holdings, get unlimited trades. The bank is currently considering adding other tiers that would incentivize people to pull money from other brokerages.
Users can construct diversified portfolios with an automated tool called portfolio builder by inputting their risk tolerance and objectives.
Compare to Popular Online Brokerages
The number of free trades a user has left is prominently displayed on the app. Most investors don’t typically need more than 100 trades a year, but if they exceed that amount, they’ll be charged $2.95 per trade, which is far cheaper than rivals E*Trade and Ameritrade.
TD Ameritrade and E*Trade charge $6.95 per trade. Charles Schwab charges $4.95 a trade. Although they do all offer free trades for a fixed amount of time for new clients who deposit enough money. Bank of America offers customers of its Merrill Edge service 30 free trades per month, but that perk begins at $50,000 in balances. Otherwise, trades cost $6.95.
Robinhood is a trending stock trading app that charges absolutely no commissions. They recently raised $110 million at a $1.3 billion valuation and are giving away tons of stocks with their latest promotion. They’ve started rolling out different promotions for referring new accounts as you will read below.
The most exciting of which is a free share of stock for new accounts. This is basically your sign-up bonus for trying out their app. Who would turn down a free stock of possibly Amazon, Clorox Bleach, McCormick or Apple?
What You Need to Know About Margin Loans
When investing, an individual can choose to operate a cash account or a margin account. With a cash account, the account holder buys stocks with his or her own money and is limited by the amount of money in his or her account. When an individuals buys on margin, he or she puts up some of the money to make a purchase and borrows the rest.
Example of a Margin Loan
Let’s say that a broker offers a 50 percent margin. This means that to buy a $100 stock, the buyer pays $50 of his or her own money and borrows the other $50. At some point, ideally after you sell a stock that has increased in value, you repay the loan plus interest.
Pros of a Margin Loan
The best reason to buy on margin is that you have more buying power. Typically, a broker will give you a margin of 4 to 1, which means you can trade $4 for each $1 that you have in your account. If a stock grows in value, your return is higher because you put up less of your own capital. For instance, if you paid $1,000 for $1,000 worth of stock in a cash account and you finished the day with $1,100, that would be a 10 percent gain. However, if you bought $4,000 worth of stock with that same $1,000 and the stock went up 10 percent, you would make a profit of $400. That would be a 40 percent gain on the money that you actually put up yourself to make that purchase.
Cons of a Margin Loan
A big downfall with margin trading is that you could lose more than you risked if the stock declines in value. Additionally, just as your gains are larger when stocks appreciate, the losses are amplified as well when you trade with a margin account. You also have to pay interest on the borrowed funds as you would with any other loan product. Finally, if the equity in your account drops below the minimum required amount, you could be subject to a margin call. This means you have to deposit additional money or risk having portions of your portfolio liquidated.
Who Offers Margin Loans?
Most major brokers offer margin loans assuming you have enough capital and want to trade with margin. Examples of those who offer such loans include TD Ameritrade, E*Trade and Fidelity. While Charles Schwab doesn’t offer margin trading, Options Xpress, which is operated by the company, does offer them.
Trading with a margin account carries risks that may not be suitable for all investors. Therefore, you should only trade with cash unless you can afford a potential margin call or are willing to accept the potential pitfalls that come with such a trading arrangement.
While margin loans may be good for some you should really check out the interest rates on these products as they have higher rates. One person called them the payday loans for stocks. So be careful out there investing with a loan with either a credit card or one of these options.
Investing these days is much simpler than it was in the past and is not always a one-size fits all for everyone. Mainly because as the market has grown people have different strategies, different goals with small vs. large amounts to invest in risky or conservative investments.
We have put together a list of ways to invest that are simple and do not require a huge amount of money. You can actually just invest pocket change to a few dollars each time.
These are different ways to invest that are not the norm compared to a retirement plan at work such as a 401(k) or 403(b) where your employer is in charge. These plans normally only deal with a brokerage and plan the employer choose. These are great for tax advantages and investing in your future especially due to the employer matching. In addition to your employer plan or if you do not work a traditional job and work from home you need ways to invest your money without all the brokerage hassles.
Acorns is a free mobile app with plans for a web-based application. This app allows you to automatically invest your digital spare change beginning with $5. You basically give the Acorns app permission to round up your purchases on debit or credit cards and then invest the difference by automatically pulling it out of your bank checking account.
TradeKing has a $200 New Account Bonus Offer which is one of the biggest in the industry that’s available through April 30, 2015. They usually offer a $100 bonus so this is one of their best. If you are not familiar with TradeKing they serve as a discount online broker and rated #1 in customer service by SmartMoney with a 5 out of 5 rating. You can do trades for only $4.95, which is at least half the price than most competitors. (more…)