The 3 Best Modern Investing Apps for iOS


Since Robinhood launched in 2015, we’ve seen a huge influx of both retail investors and retail investment apps. Even though Robinhood had its problems, they proved that the average person likes the idea of being able to invest when they want, how they want, and for little cost. This new model sent shock waves through the traditional investment world.
Now, eight years later, it seems like everyone from legacy banks to fintech startups has their own investment app, and it’s hard to know where to put your hard-earned money. I wanted to talk about three investment apps that are great for those starting or continuing their investment journey. Here are my favorite investment apps for iOS!
Before we begin
This is not investment advice; I am not a financial advisor. Please do your own research before investing in the stock market. All of the mentioned apps also have a crypto-investing feature, but I’ll avoid that and talk mostly about traditional stock investing (which is much safer). I also mainly look at these apps from an iOS lens. Some of these apps have a desktop view, but I like to use my iPhone for investing, so that’s where I judge my user experience! Let start it!
1. State investment
Public is a free investment app designed to make investing social and accessible to everyone. What drew me to this app was the community aspect; it was the first investment app that allowed users to share their trades and portfolios with each other. It was very similar to Twitter, but investing was the only topic. Public allows users to follow other investors and view their portfolios, trades, communications, and anything else they want to share. This was extremely helpful for me as a new investor when I joined. Public offers a wide selection of stocks, ETFs and cryptocurrencies, giving users plenty of options to choose from. The app also has a zero-commission policy, which means users can invest in stocks and ETFs without paying any fees.

Other notable features of the public
Aside from the community aspect of Public, they also offer a bunch of other useful features that really set it apart from the rest. They recently introduced a new Lessons feature that encourages users to go through a simple tutorial and quiz. Then, after completing the quiz, they receive a few dollars worth of stock from a company in that area. Everyone wins in the end. Because Public focuses on sharing between users, they adopted Twitter’s Spaces feature. Open “town hall” type meetings are held where company CEOs are invited to talk about the market and their company’s activities. It’s great to sit and listen to what they have to say and hear how they’re positioning themselves in the market.

Public also has great comparison tools so you can compare different stocks against each other and make an informed decision about your next purchase. Recently, they also opened a high-yield treasuries account where users can earn 5.3% APY on their money, which is the highest value so far. Public offers a paid tier of the app that adds additional features like portfolio management tools and after-hours trading, but the free tier is more than enough for me.
Overall, I think Public is a great investment app for anyone, whether they are just starting out or have been using it for a long time. It’s a great way to learn, build community, and interact with other people in a space you wouldn’t otherwise have. This has been my favorite app that I have personally used for the past two years.
SoFi Investing is an investment app that’s part of the larger SoFi ecosystem, which includes personal loans, student loan refinancing, and more. If you read my article on my top 3 modern banking apps, you’ll know that I use Sofi as my main bank. I love having my checking, savings, retirement, and investment accounts under one roof. SoFi Investing offers a variety of investment options including stocks, ETFs and cryptocurrencies. SoFi also offers the option to plan for retirement with easy-to-manage Roth IRA accounts from within the app.
What attracts me to SoFi investing is the education-first approach; SoFi gives you everything you need to know to understand the stock market at a basic level. Users are taught to make informed decisions based on what they learn about stocks and the stock market itself. They also provide insight into other traders’ accounts to show what their splits are. They show their earnings and stock market watchlist. This is a great way to get started.

There are some notable features to consider when using SoFi. They offer the same free trading options as other competitors, but some other features:
- Free after-hours trading
- Ability to invest in IPO companies
- Divide stocks into collections
- It offers well-known ETF investment opportunities
- Gamification with leaderboards
The outstanding features are the possibility of trading after hours and the possibility of investing in IPOs. If you have a SoFi investment account, you will be able to invest in companies before they go public. So, if you believe in an upcoming company that is about to go public, you can invest in them before everyone else!

One last feature worth mentioning is leaderboards. SoFi has slightly gamified the investment experience by creating rankings of how many percentages other investors have grown. So if you’re a competitive person and want to see how your portfolio stacks up against the rest, this feature is for you!
If you are already in the SoFi ecosystem, investing with them is not a problem. I use it as my retirement investment account as well as my IPO investment account; the main attraction of SoFi is the user interface of the app. You can see that they want people to invest from their phone and not from their desktop or computer, so investing with SoFi is an extremely pleasant experience.
Yes, you read that right, Cash App has made it to the list of best investment apps for iOS. Listen now! Cash App is known as money transfer app. People use it like they use Zelle or Venmo to pay friends or businesses. A few years ago they decided to offer their own investment services and I like it. Cash App Investing is the first app that got me into the retail investing space. If someone is entering the investment space for the first time, especially younger users, then start with Cash App.
Simplicity is the main feature
One of the outstanding features of Cash App Invest is its simplicity. The app is designed to be user-friendly, with a simple interface that makes it easy for anyone to start investing. In addition, Cash App Invest offers a variety of educational content, including articles and videos on various investment topics. The application is extremely simple. You get the portfolio amount front and center, then they give you relevant news, show you the stocks you’re following, and then give you stats about the rest of the market.

Creating an account is easy, and if you already have a Cash app account, it’s even easier. All you have to do is connect a bank card and start your investment journey. The best feature of Cash App Invest is its integration with the Cash App ecosystem. Users can easily transfer funds between their Cash App account and Cash App Invest, so their investments and other financial transactions can be managed in one place. The Cash App gives you all the tools to start investing – you get news and education, as well as a nice breakdown of each stock’s stats, allowing you to make an informed decision about where to go next.
Again, I know Cash App isn’t really considered an investment app, but it’s the investment app I recommend to all beginners. You will be surprised how much Cash App has to offer in terms of investment. The app’s familiarity and simplicity is what sets it apart.
Summary
Today we live in a world where you can download an app, check, link your bank account and start investing within five minutes. So, for me, what sets an app apart from the rest is how convenient and efficient we can make the investment process. I’m not a day trader so I don’t want to be in front of my computer trading 24/7 all day. I want to set up automatic investments, spend 10 minutes scrolling through my investment app to get news and get on with my day. Long-term investing is my goal, and these apps have helped me achieve it.
Use whatever works best for you. If your bank offers investment platforms, look there first. If you want to diversify a bit, feel free to check out some of these. Tell us what you think about these choices! Have you heard of these platforms? Have you used them before? What are you currently using to invest your money? Let’s discuss it in the comments!
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