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Best Investing Apps for Beginners: The Non-Negotiables

07 Okt 2021

Best Investing App for Beginners | VI

Planning to start your investment journey can be overwhelming. We want to make the most of every penny we save to invest in stocks; thus, we want to use just the best platforms, best tools, best knowledge, and best strategy.

Sometimes, however, some beginner investors underestimate the importance of choosing the best investing app. At times it’s because they’re too focused on learning about their strategy or they’re too occupied with analysing the stocks they’re interested in.

There’s nothing wrong with doing these things. What we’re saying is you also have to select the best investing app for you to get started. A well-planned strategy and a meticulous stock analysis won’t give you the returns you desire if the investing app you’re using is not suitable for your goals.

How do you then choose which investing app works best for you? We’ve listed four non-negotiables in the best investing apps for beginners.

1. Appropriate investing tools

We’ve mentioned this above, but it doesn’t hurt to remind you: Choose an app aligned with your investment objectives.

Will you be trading regularly? Will you need an app that allows you to invest in ETFs? Will you benefit from an app that does stock analysis for you?

Why do you need to assess an investment app based on your goals? It’s simple. You want to get the most value from the app. Hence, if you will be trading regularly, you have to consider the fees involved.

You wouldn’t want to use a platform that charges you a high amount every time you buy or sell. It’s just not worth it. You wouldn’t want to use an app that doesn’t let you buy ETFs when that is part of your strategy, would you?

Investing apps come in many forms. Some can be used as a brokerage platform (meaning, allows you to do trades) and as a stock analysis tool. Some just let you do either of the two. It’s important to understand your preference. You can even use two apps – one for trading and one for stock analysis.

Ultimately, it depends on what your goals are.

2. Justifiable fees

By now, you should’ve already memorised this line: “Price is what you pay, value is what you get.” And it doesn’t only refer to stocks. We’d say it applies to every purchase you made and will make – even in your investment in an app.

Some questions you ought to answer are the following: Are the fees reasonable? Is the percentage of fees small enough to not eat up the profits I’ll make? Will the value I’ll get from using this app justify the money I’ll be paying monthly or annually?

If you answered yes to the above questions, then you got this item covered.

3. User-friendly interface

We’re sure you know this consideration by heart. If this is not one of the features you look at in whatever app you download, whether it’s for investing or communication or banking or shopping, please rethink your choices.

An investing app with a user-friendly interface allows you to do several things without taking a lot of your time. It has to have the important buttons mindfully placed so you won’t struggle to find them and use them properly. You cannot settle for an investing app that loads too slowly or has a complicated interface.

Investing is intimidating as it is. You don’t need an app to further complicate things, do you?

See also: Best Tips to Handle Financial Stress

4. Good customer support

Customer service, and excellent service at that, should be non-negotiable. Choose an investing app that has a clear FAQ page. You must opt for an app that values you as a customer with needs and questions that require immediate support.

This way, you’re at peace that whenever you face difficulties in using the app, you know there’s somebody to support you. Nowadays, some apps even have a live chat option. Some have a feature that allows you to chat with an investment expert.

Investing is a journey, and you need as much help you can get. So choose the best investing app possible to have a great jumpstart to your journey.

Join our free investing class to learn about the brokerage and stock analysis apps that work best for our community of 60,000+ value investors.