Best Stock Trading Apps of 2023

TD Ameritrade's mobile app was soft launched in 2017 and user-friendliness was of the utmost importance. You can open an account with TD without having to make a minimum deposit and most trades incur no commissions or other fees. The app itself is sleek and accessible, making it simple to navigate and manage your account. An account comes with free access to online courses that help clients learn about different investing concepts. A downside is the lack of access to fractional share investing, as of right now. Charles Schwab acquired TD Ameritrade in 2019 and they've offered fractional share investing since 2020.

Fidelity is one of the largest brokers in the world, managing more than $10 trillion in assets. You can open a traditional brokerage account, retirement accounts, 529 plans, or other education savings plans, and other types of accounts with the company. Fidelity offers zero-expense-ratio index funds, letting you build a diversified portfolio without having to pay any investment fees. However, the app is missing some options, such as futures trading, crypto, and other securities.

Tastytrade, a brokerage firm that was founded in 2011, is great for people who want to take a very active role in their trading and who want to trade more than just stocks and bonds. Where tastytrade shines is with derivatives such as options. Where many brokers will charge high commissions and fees for these types of trades, tastytrade keeps fees low and sets a cap on the fees it can charge in a single transaction. For stock and ETF options and crypto trades, the maximum fee is $10 per transaction, regardless of the size of the transaction. Due to the hands-on nature of tastytrade's app, it's better for more experienced traders and not ideal for beginners.

E*TRADE was founded in 1982 and acquired by Morgan Stanley in 2020. While many people looking for a mobile trading app want one because it makes it easy to make trades and manage their accounts on the go, some people want a helping hand when it comes to investing, which is where robo-advisors come in. What sets E*TRADE apart from the competition is its low fees, just 0.30% of your invested assets, whereas other advisors charge up to 0.50% of assets under management.

Interactive Brokers was formed in 1977 and is one of the first online brokerage companies. It's the ideal platform and app for professional and active day traders due to the variety of trading products and access to most world markets all on one platform. The pricing structure is transparent, with some trades being completely free and others fractions of a cent per share traded, with a maximum fee of 1% of the trade value.

Active traders also can benefit from the app’s analysis and investment research provided by Thomson Reuters Refinitiv, giving an edge over other traders and letting you find investment opportunities that match your requirements. There are additional research and analysis tools as well, however, they might not be enough for a beginner to take full advantage of what the app has to offer.