Motley Fool vs Morningstar – Which Is Better for Investors?
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The stock market can come off as cold and hard for anyone looking to break into investing. But stock investing is great way to generate long-term wealth, especially if you follow the buy-and-hold investment strategy. But before you get to that part, you'll have to sink hours into investment research. Alternatively, you could pay a stock picking service to do the heavy lifting for you. These investment services are a great personal finance tool to own if you're inexperienced or just do not have the time needed for research.
Two such investment recommendation platforms are the Motley Fool and Morningstar, which are suitable for both novice and experienced investors.
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)
Related: The 10 Best Stock Picking Services
Jump To
About each brand
Motley Fool
Brothers Tom and David Gardner started The Motley Fool in 1993 to bring investing to the masses and lift the veil on investment strategies generally associated with professional investors. While The Motley Fool started as a service that made monthly stock recommendations, it has diversified to recommend real estate and ETFs. The premium service star is The Motley Fool Stock Advisor, which has consistently beaten the S&P 500. It was launched as The Motley Fool shifted to a subscription-based business model.
The Motley Fool is offering its top stock-picking service at 50% off for new members.*
*$89 is an introductory price for new members only. 50% discount based on current list price of Stock Advisor of $199/year. Membership will renew annually at the then-current list price.
Morningstar
If you're a value investor looking for investment ideas, Morningstar is the right place to start. Launched in 1984, the research service covers 621,370 investments, including stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and bonds. Morningstar is perhaps best known for the ratings it assigns to mutual funds, index funds, ETFs, and individual stocks. You can get going with a free basic or a Morningstar Premium membership that unlocks a host of tools like top picks for investment, analyst reports and ratings, and screeners.
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)
Key features
The Motley Fool
The Motley Fool offers several premium subscription services.
Stock Advisor
The Motley Fool is perhaps best known for its Stock Advisor product, which has beaten the S&P 500 three-to-one over the last 19 years. The service recommends large-cap stocks with long-term profitability. In addition to new stock tips that drop twice a month, you get a list of starter stocks (10 rock-solid stocks to help you build your portfolio), alerts for buying and selling a stock, news updates, and access to videos and podcasts.
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 Motley Fool is offering its top stock-picking service at 50% off for new members.*
*$89 is an introductory price for new members only. 50% discount based on current list price of Stock Advisor of $199/year. Membership will renew annually at the then-current list price.
Morningstar
Morningstar Ratings
Morningstar's claim to fame is the ratings it assigns to mutual funds, index funds, ETFs, and individual stocks on a scale of one to five. These ratings are highly sought after and are used frequently in marketing materials. A positive rating by Morningstar brings credibility to a fund's strategy. Morningstar started issuing ratings a year after it was founded, and these ratings are based on the fund's risk-adjusted return based on its performance over three, five, and 10 years and on its volatility. The final rating takes into account a stock’s current price, Morningstar’s estimate of the stock’s fair value, and the uncertainty rating of the fair value.
Portfolio X-Ray tool
Your free version gives you access to a basic version of this portfolio management tool, but a premium subscription lets you look at data for stock, mutual fund, or ETF. The downside is that you have manually input information on all of your stock holdings' ticker symbols, whereas other services connect with your brokerage account to make this process a breeze.
Screeners
You have access to a basic screener from the get-go, but Premium Stock Screener also unlocks ESG Screener, which helps you zero in on investments that meet your environment, social, and governance requirements.
Summary of Motley Fool and Morningstar
Service | Cost | Best for | Suitable for day traders |
The Motley Fool | $199 to $2,999 per year | Beginners and experienced investors | No |
Morningstar | $34.95 per month to $499 for three years | Experienced investors | Yes |
Costs
Motley Fool
Because The Motley Fool has so many products, their prices and terms vary. Some services come with a membership-fee-back guarantee, while others do not.
Stock Advisor costs $99 each for the first year and they come with a membership-fee-back-guarantee. At renewal, Stock Advisor will cost $199
The Motley Fool is offering its top stock-picking service at 50% off for new members.*
*$89 is an introductory price for new members only. 50% discount based on current list price of Stock Advisor of $199/year. Membership will renew annually at the then-current list price.
Morningstar
You can pay $34.95 for a one-month subscription to Morningstar Premium. There are also yearly tiers: $249 for one year, $399 for two years, and $499 for three years.
Pros and cons
The Motley Fool pros and cons
Pros
- The Motley Fool services are well suited to beginners and experienced investors.
- Services are open to non-accredited investors, and some even offer tax-planning assistance.
- Ideal for individuals following a long-term investment strategy.
- Signing up is easy, and your subscription unlocks a host of features like the entire stock pick history.
Cons
- All of their services are focused on long-term investing, which aggressive traders may find incongruous.
- Some services are very expensive and don't provide refunds, although The Motley Fool has a 30-day membership-fee-back guarantee
- Each service has its own frequency of recommendation; some do it quarterly, while others come with monthly recommendations.
Morningstar pros and cons
Pros
- Great tool for value investors looking to maximize returns.
- Different tiers for pro membership, from one month to four years.
- Access to industry-leading investment picks, research and analysis tools.
Cons
- Free trial only lasts 14 days.
- Many of the features are locked behind a paywall.
- Cost is on the high side.
FAQs
Is The Motley Fool a scam?
No. Although with many of their services posting market-beating returns, one would think The Motley Fool is too good to be true. But it's not and it counts more than a million people as members.
Are The Motley Fool's products suitable for day traders?
No, all of The Motley Fools subscription services are aimed at long-term investors.
Does The Motley Fool offer a money-back guarantee?
A few of their services come with a 30-day membership-fee-back guarantee.
Is it guaranteed that I'll make a decent return on investment using the Motley Fool?
No. While The Motley Fool has a solid track of consistently beating the markets. But as with all investments, there's a likelihood that a pick may not generate the desired payoff.
Which Morningstar subscription is better?
The monthly subscription costs $34.95, which adds up to $419 for a year. By comparison, an yearly subscription for one year costs $249.
Can I try Morningstar for free?
Morningstar offers a free and paid membership levels. If you subscribe to the paid plan, you can avail a 14-day free trial.
The bottom line
From what types of investments should you invest in to the average return you're targeting, everyone has their own investment goals. If you're a DIY investor who wants to make investment decisions and gets a kick from getting in on the action, then perhaps these services aren't for you. But if you'd like to outsource the homework part of investing, you may find one of these investment tools worth it.
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Writer
Jasir Jawaid is Joy Wallet's Assistant Editor. He has more than 13 years of experience as a journalist covering Wall Street, equities, financial policy and regulation, and cryptocurrency and blockchain.
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