Best Trading Platforms for Beginners – Start Investing Now
Joy Wallet is advertiser-supported: we may earn compensation from the products and offers mentioned in this article. However, any expressed opinions are our own and aren't influenced by compensation. To read our full disclosure, click here.
I’m a little old school about making stock market trades through online brokers. I started as an investor in high school, and over the years, I’ve grown to enjoy the zero trading fees, research tools, retirement planning, and other services that many trading platforms promote to new investors.
Top-rated investing insights app for busy professionals
- Stock Recommendations that have beaten the S&P 500 by over 12% - Past 4 years & counting.
- Jargon-free market news with stock research, actionable in just 3-5 minutes.
- Data-drive analysis and personalized recommendations to empower you to make smarter investment decisions.
I’m confident in my ability to navigate trading apps and do stock trading, buy mutual funds, and buy other financial products online.
But I still want a face-to-face meeting with my broker every once in a while, and if not that, then I can call at least a phone number for help if I need it. I don’t want to wait for an email response or reach customer support through an online chat.
All that and more are available from many online brokers to help beginners feel comfortable managing their investment accounts. The best trading platforms have low fees, no account minimum, tons of free educational resources, and great customer service. Some offer free stock for opening an account.
Jump To
Overview of the best trading platforms for beginners
Trading Platform | Best For |
Fidelity | Managing all of your finances |
Charles Schwab | Educational resources |
Robinhood | Beginners |
E*/TRADE | Prebuilt portfolios |
Thinkorswim | Active traders |
Vanguard | Low-cost funds |
Ally Invest | Setting financial goals |
Merrill Edge | Bank of America customers |
Webull | Day traders |
Reasons To Use Stash For Investing
- Get $5 to Make Your First Investment
- Invest in Stocks and ETFs with $1 or Less
- Receive Your Paycheck up to 2 Days Faster
- No Overdraft Fees or Minimum Balances
Best trading platforms for beginners
Fidelity
Fidelity is one of the largest brokerage firms, with more than 200 investor centers in the U.S. It aims to serve beginning and long-time investors.
It offers every type of personal finance tool you could need, from running your daily financial life with savings accounts, credit cards, and bill-paying services, to building an investment portfolio with cryptocurrency, options trading, ETFs (exchange-traded funds), mutual funds, fractional shares of stock, retirement accounts, and stock trading.
Fidelity doesn’t charge per trade for online U.S. stocks and ETFs.
Fidelity’s customer service includes talking with a broker on the phone, via video call, chat, or email. It also has branch offices nationwide where customers can get in-person help.
Charles Schwab
Charles Schwab offers commission-free stock, options, ETFs, and more than 4,000 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. It also has thematic investing with more than 40 themes, such as artificial intelligence and renewable energy. Its robo-advisor can take your investing preferences and start you on your path to investing, and you can take it from there if you want through its many tools and educational resources.
Schwab’s educational materials are some of the best in the business. Among them are screeners to help customers take active control of their portfolios. Independent research from Morningstar, as is real-time charting to compare stocks in more than 100 criteria, is available.
Robinhood
Robinhood was built for beginning investors to give everyone easy access to the financial market.
It starts that process by giving new customers a free fractional share in a stock or ETF. This is less than a full share valued at $5 to $200, is illiquid outside of Robinhood, and isn’t transferable. The site is easy to use for new investors and experienced ones.
Robinhood also offers cryptocurrency trading and free options investing. A basic account is free and doesn’t require paying trading fees. However, Robinhood does pass along fees that it’s charged by regulatory agencies. For equity sells, it charges a trading activity fee of $0.000145 per share; for options shares, the cost is $0.002. per share. No fee is charged for trading 50 shares or less.
Customers can’t call Robinhood directly for assistance, but they can request a call back through the mobile app or computer. You’ll be notified when they’re next in line for a callback. Questions can also be answered via email.
Better banking is here.
- No account fees
- Earn up to 4.50% APY
- Up to 2-day-early-paycheck
- No-fee Overdraft Coverage.
- Do it all in one app.
- Up to $2M of additional FDIC insurance through a network of participating banks.
E*TRADE
E*TRADE is another online brokerage that has merged. It joined Morgan Stanley in October 2020, and its brokerage service is now formally called E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley. All E*TRADE bank accounts are now held at Morgan Stanley. If you trade through E*TRADE, it will remain a separate account, and you shouldn’t see any major differences.
An E*TRADE brokerage account offers a range of investment accounts. You can buy stocks, options, futures, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds, CDs, robo-advisor portfolios, and retirement accounts such as IRAs.
It makes it easy to start investing through prebuilt portfolios as a robo-advisor. The portfolios are made up of leading mutual funds or ETFs with strategies it says are conservative, moderate, aggressive, and income-generating. You can also customize your portfolio with the funds you choose.
The minimum investment is $500 for mutual funds and $2,500 for ETFs. No trading commissions are charged for the prebuilt portfolios.
The site doesn’t charge commission fees for trading stocks, ETFs, or more than 4,400 mutual funds. A contract fee of $0.65 is charged for less than 30 options trades and $0.50 for 30 or more. It doesn't charge for U.S. Treasury auctions or U.S. Treasury secondary trades online. For other online secondary trades, it charges $1 per bond. Broker-assisted trades cost an extra $25 commission.
Use Motley Fool's Stock Advisor To Invest
- Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
- Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
- 2 New Stock Picks Every Month
- Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
- 30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
- Joy Wallet Reader Deal: The Motley Fool is offering 50% off its top stock-picking service for new members (Limited Time)
Thinkorswim
Thinkorswim is the upgraded trading platform at Charles Schwab that’s ideal for investors trading multiple times per week. The trading platform says it’s meant for the “trading-obsessed” and continuously improves based on user feedback.
Its services include the ability to trade equities and derivatives, trading tools to test strategies and execute complex trades, and live stream news.
No commissions are charged for online stock, ETF, and options trades. It also offers mutual funds, futures trading, Forex, bonds, and CDs.
Schwab has 360 branches for in-person help.
- Earn money by testing apps, games, and completing surveys
- Get up to $225 per offer!
- "Excellent" Trustpilot score (4.6/5 stars) with over 54,000 reviews
- Cash out instantly via PayPal with a minimum of just $5.
Vanguard
Vanguard is well known for its over 400 low-cost funds, and many investors primarily use it for retirement planning. Vanguard pioneered the index fund to track mutual funds based on the performance of a group of diverse arrays of funds in one index.
Index funds are a common investment strategy for long-term investors, such as in retirement accounts. But Vanguard’s platform can also be used for other trades, including stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, and options trades.
Vanguard is a leader in low-cost expense ratios, commissions, and other investment fees. This allows customers to keep more of their investment returns.
Ally Invest
Ally Invest started as a low-cost brokerage in 2005. It offers self-directed trading of stocks and ETFs without commissions or account minimums. It also has a robo-advisor service to help investors meet their goals with managed portfolios after a minimum deposit of $100.
The managed portfolio plan through Ally Invest, it asks users what goals they’re working toward. The options include retirement, a major purchase, generating income, and building wealth. Your time horizon for any goals you list will also be required, such as five years or less or up to 21 years or longer. Your current personal finances are also factored in, as is the amount of risk you’re comfortable with in your investment strategy.
Ally Invest has a robust amount of educational materials. Its Youtube channel has a stock play of the day with real-time analysis of stock moves and market trends. Customers can access online articles, blog posts, and other resources to learn about investment strategies and market trends.
Merrill Edge
One of the best benefits of Merrill Edge is its integration with Bank of America. Bank customers can view bank and investment accounts with one login and transfer money seamlessly. Merrill Edge customers with a Bank of America account can join Merrill’s Preferred Rewards program, which has benefits such as higher rate savings accounts, discounted loan rates, and lower mortgage origination fees.
Bank of America has approximately 3,900 retail financial centers where Merrill Edge customers can go for help with their investment accounts. Merrill Edge was launched in 2010 after the merger of Merrill Lynch with Bank of America’s online investing business.
If you want to take a hands-on approach to investing and want to choose your investments actively, then Merrill Edge is a good choice. Its self-directed plan doesn’t require a minimum investment and doesn’t charge for stock, ETF, and options trades, though some fees may apply to option contracts.
Webull
Webull offers beginning investors retirement accounts and equity trading as a brokerage account. Still, its main focus seems to be on day traders and other active investors with its extended trading hours, in-depth analysis tools, and real-time data.
Fractional shares are also offered on Webull, which can appeal to new investors and get them interested in the daily ups and downs of the stock market. That’s not bad, and it could entice beginners to become active day traders. It also allows users to invest in cryptocurrency.
Webull charges $0 commission on stock, ETF, and options trades, like many other interactive brokers, and that may be enough to get you started as a Webull customer.
Another interesting benefit to beginners is the “paper trading” feature at Webull. Without putting any money up, users can virtually practice executing various investment strategies to learn how the financial markets work.
Use Motley Fool's Stock Advisor To Invest
- Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
- Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
- 2 New Stock Picks Every Month
- Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
- 30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
- Joy Wallet Reader Deal: The Motley Fool is offering 50% off its top stock-picking service for new members (Limited Time)
Best trading platforms for beginners summary table
Platform | Account Minimum | Trading Commission | Customer Service Options |
Fidelity | $0 | $0 | In-person, phone, video, chat, email |
Charles Schwab | $0 | $0 | In-person, phone, online |
Robinhood | $1 | $0 | Call-back, email |
E*/TRADE | $0 | $0 | In-person, phone, mail, fax, email, chat |
Thinkorswim | $0 | $0 | In-person, phone, social media |
Vanguard | $0 | $0 | Phone, email |
Ally Invest | $0 | $0 | Phone, email, chat |
Merrill Edge | $0 | $0 | In-person, phone, email, chat |
Webull | $0 | $0 | Phone, email |
FAQs
Can I lose money in a brokerage account?
Yes. Bad investments and losses aren’t insured. Your cash and securities in a brokerage account, however, are protected by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, or SIPC, but only if the brokerage goes out of business or assets are missing from your account. SIPC coverage is limited to $500,000, which includes a $250,000 limit for cash.
Should I pick a brokerage based on customer service?
That’s a personal call, but beginning investors may want a service with the best customer service around. That may include a physical office you can walk into and get in-person help if you need it, or you may be comfortable with an online-only service. If you have a question, you should be able to get it answered quickly. All of the services we reviewed have 24/7 customer service by phone and email, though Vanguard has limited phone hours on weekdays.
Is trading really free?
Yes, but only for stocks and ETFs, exchange-traded funds. Many of the companies also offer free trading of options, but a contract fee is often added. Look carefully at a brokerage’s list of fees, which can include an annual fee, monthly fee, management fee, and other account fees. Some fees from regulatory agencies may be passed on to customers.
Who should use trading platforms for beginners?
If you’re new to investing and just want to buy and sell stocks and exchange-traded funds, then any trading platform we reviewed should work for your purposes. Most sites are intuitive to use, and you should be able to make a trade online without help from a financial advisor. Many trading apps have excellent educational resources, so you should be able to do plenty of homework before stock trading.
Use Motley Fool's Stock Advisor To Invest
- Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
- Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
- 2 New Stock Picks Every Month
- Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
- 30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
- Joy Wallet Reader Deal: The Motley Fool is offering 50% off its top stock-picking service for new members (Limited Time)
The bottom line
The era of walking into a broker’s office and buying stocks through a broker you meet in person is long over. Many trading platforms make commission-free trading easy to buy and sell stocks online, and some offer in-person help if you need advice on how to run your account. That doesn’t mean they’ll give you stock tips or free expert advice on managing your portfolio. Such help may come with a fee or at least keeping a large portfolio with the brokerage. But for starting investors, low-cost or no-cost online brokerages can make it a lot easier.
Earn Real Money Fast by Filling Out Surveys!
- Sign up for FREE & complete your profile
- Earn points for taking surveys
- Redeem your points for cash or gift cards
- $55k+ Paid to Survey Junkie members daily
- Complete 3+ surveys a day, earn up to $100/mo.
Joy Wallet is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor, financial advisor, loan broker, insurance producer, or insurance broker. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. Joy Wallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Featured estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
Our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market. We are compensated by our partners, which may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on our site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice. Our editorials are grounded on independent research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.
We value your privacy. We work with trusted partners to provide relevant advertising based on information about your use of Joy Wallet’s and third-party websites and applications. This includes, but is not limited to, sharing information about your web browsing activities with Meta (Facebook) and Google. All of the web browsing information that is shared is anonymized. To learn more, click on our Privacy Policy link.
Images appearing across JoyWallet are courtesy of shutterstock.com.
Writer
Aaron Crowe is a freelance journalist who specializes in personal finance writing and editing. He has worked at newspapers, where he won a Pulitzer Prize, and has written for numerous online publications. These include AOL, US News & World Report, WiseBread, Bankrate, AARP, and many websites focusing on housing, credit and insurance. He lives in California with his wife and daughter.
Share this article
