If you keep up with the news, you've probably heard of Robinhood, the investing app of choice for the Reddit users who recently went on a buying spree at the video game retailer GameStop.
However, Robinhood does not have exclusive rights to the mobile investing market. Rivals Stash, Betterment, and Acorns make it simple to invest in the stock market, no matter how little knowledge — or capital — you have.
Stash
Stash is the only one of the three apps that offer SRI portfolios, which means you can stop investing in stocks and companies that don't agree with your personal beliefs.
Stash is also the app that gives you the best chance to learn as you go: you'll get tips when building your portfolio, but you'll also be able to choose what you want to buy and sell on your own.
Acorns
The key advantage of Acorns is that it is fully automated; you can spend as much or as little as you want without ever having to think about business complexities.
The ability to set up automatic recurring investments allows for a completely hands-off approach to growing your capital, and the round-up feature ensures that none of your spare change goes to waste.
Robinhood
Only Robinhood provides a free basic account with no trading fees, out of the three applications. It also has the most investment choices, allowing you to select and choose individual securities, options, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies based on your personal preferences.
The trade-off is that, of the three applications, Robinhood offers the least amount of new investor guidance, so there might be a steep learning curve if you're just getting started.
Acorns, stash and Robinhood are all good investment apps, and which one is best for you will be determined by your specific needs.
Stash is your best bet if you're a new investor looking to learn more about how the market works when building your portfolio. Acorns is the way to go if you take a “set it and forget it” approach to investing and don't want to be concerned with the inner workings of your portfolio.
Robinhood is an excellent alternative if you already know simple trading concepts and only want a low-cost way to buy and sell stocks, options, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies.
