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Compare online stock brokers for 2023

Plus tips for beginner traders and answers to frequently asked questions.

Compare online stock brokers

You don’t have to be a furious full-time day-trade warrior to make money buying and selling stocks online. You can start with a few dollars and few clicks. The emergence of investing apps has pushed fees down as low as $0, and many of them offer sophisticated tools to help you learn the ropes or reach the next level.

1 - 6 of 13
Name Product Available asset types Stock trade fee Minimum deposit Signup bonus
SoFi Invest
Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency
$0
$0
Get up to $1,000
when you fund a new account within 30 days.
Winner of Finder’s Best Low-Cost Broker award.
Finder Award
eToro
Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency
$0
$0
FINDER EXCLUSIVE: Get a guaranteed $15 bonus
when you sign up and deposit $100
Winner of Finder’s Best Broker for Beginners award. Not available in NY, NV, MN, TN, and HI.
tastytrade
tastytrade
Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency, Futures
$0
$0
Get $100 - $2,000
when you you open and fund an account with $5,000 to $100,000+
Highly commended for Best Derivatives Trading Platform award.
Robinhood
Stocks, Options, ETFs, Cryptocurrency
$0
$0
Get a free stock
when you successfully sign up and link your bank account.
Make unlimited commission-free trades, plus earn 4% interest on uninvested cash in your account with Robinhood Gold.
JPMorgan Self-Directed Investing
Stocks, Bonds, Options, Mutual funds, ETFs, Treasury Bills
$0
$0
Get $50 - $700
when you open and fund an account with $10,000 - $250,000+
E*TRADE
Stocks, Bonds, Options, Mutual funds, ETFs, Futures
$0
$0
Get up to $600 or more
when you open and fund a new account.
E*TRADE offers commission-free stocks, access to mutual funds and advanced trading tools. Other fees apply.
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*Signup bonus information updated weekly.

What is stock trading?

Stock trading is simply the buying and selling of stocks (shares) of a specific company in order to make a profit. Think of stocks as small individual pieces of a company. If you own stocks you own part of that company. Stock values change with each sale, depending on whether more people are buying (because they think the price will rise) or selling (because they think it will fall).

How do I make money trading stocks?

Here’s an example: a company is trading at $5 per share on January 1st and you buy 100 shares for a total of $500. By February 1st, the shares are trading at $5.50, so you decide to sell your shares, giving you a 50-cent return on each share for a profit of $50. This also works in the opposite direction: if the stock price was $4.50 when you decide to sell, you’d be losing 50 cents per share for a net loss of $50.

WATCH: How does the stock market work?

How do I start trading on the stock market?

Newbie investor? Never placed a trade before? Don’t worry, it’s never been easier to start trading. You simply choose a stock trading platform, open and fund an account then make your trades. Check out our guide for how to buy stocks online to get started.

Our top picks for stock trading platforms

Best for low fees

Finder Award

SoFi Invest


  • Trade stocks for $0 and no annual fee
  • Start trading with a $0 minimum deposit
  • Get up to $1,000 when you fund a new account within 30 days

Best for beginners

Finder Award

eToro


  • Easy to use platform with $0 stock trading & no annual fees
  • Social trading allows you to copy popular portfolios
  • FINDER EXCLUSIVE: Guaranteed $15 bonus when you sign up and deposit $100

Promoted for options trading

tastytrade


  • $0 commissions on stocks and ETFs
  • $0 closing commissions on stock and ETF options
  • Get $100 - $2,000 when you open and fund an account with $5,000 to $100,000+

Where do you trade stocks?

Traders buy and sell stocks throughout the trading day on the NYSE and Nasdaq, and other markets around the world. Here are some of the world’s biggest stock markets by market capitalization:

Stock exchangeShort nameMarket capitalization
New York Stock Exchange (US)NYSEUS$25.62 trillion
Nasdaq (US)NASDAQUS$19.51 trillion
Hong Kong ExchangesHKEXUS$6.76 trillion
Shanghai Stock ExchangeSSEUS$6.56 trillion
Japan Exchange GroupJPXUS$6.54 trillion

Here is a map of some of the world’s biggest exchanges

7 tips for beginner investors

  • Know your risk tolerance. Figure out what level of risk you can manage. Your personal risk tolerance should dictate which investments you choose.
  • Do your homework. Research the financial health of companies, review annual reports and follow the news. Get familiar with popular indices like the S&P 500. Use the research tools provided by your online trading platforms or use market research websites like Bloomberg or Yahoo Finance.
  • Buy what you know. Begin investing in industries and businesses you understand or that produce products that you use everyday.
  • Diversify. Spread your investments across a range of industries. This is called diversification — a fancy way of saying: don’t put all your eggs in one basket. You can be better protected against losses if one particular industry experiences a sharp downturn.
  • Explore blue-chip companies.Blue-chip stocks are America’s biggest, best-established companies. They’re typically a source of reliable returns and minimal risk.
  • Consider index funds. Index funds, like ETFs and mutual funds, offer you a way to invest in multiple companies at once rather than in just one company’s stocks. You invest in the shares of the fund instead of all the individual companies themselves that make up the fund.
  • Practice new strategies. Play stock trading games to master your craft. Or take an online trading course to advance your knowledge about different trading strategies.

Stock trading strategies you should know

Risks of stock trading

  • Losses. No investment is risk-free and any stock, no matter its performance history, carries the risk of loss. Stock prices can fall dramatically and even drop down to zero. This can mean significant financial losses for investors.
  • Time. Online trading can be a time-consuming process — especially when you hand-pick each of the securities in your portfolio. The more active your trading strategy, the more time you’ll need to be ready to invest in monitoring the performance of your stocks and staying abreast of impactful market news.
  • Stress. The stock market is always moving and can be volatile — a significant source of stress for those with investments that hinge on its performance and direction. If you can’t weather the ups and downs, you might be better off pursuing a more passive investment strategy, like a robo-advisor or managed portfolio.
  • Market events. Even after thoroughly researching a company, you can’t predict the future. Natural disasters, terrorist attacks, pandemics, bad company news and even changes in government policy can all occur unexpectedly and adversely affect the price of shares.
  • Lack of expertise. While investing in the stock market sounds easy in theory, it can get quite complicated if you don’t know what you’re doing. First-time investors should exercise caution while building their portfolio.

Bottom line

Investing in the stock market has never been easier. But before you dive in, make sure you compare trading platforms and carefully research the companies you want to invest in. Get familiar with your personal level of risk tolerance and make sure you diversify your portfolio in order to minimize losses. Ready to begin?

Frequently asked questions about stock trading

Stock trading glossary

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Finder is not an adviser or brokerage service. Information on this page is for educational purposes only and not a recommendation to invest with any one company, trade specific stocks or fund specific investments. All editorial opinions are our own.

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