9 Smartphone Apps for Investors - Which is the Best One?
There are a lot of investment and money management apps available today. So how do you know which one is right for you and your investment situation? After reviewing many different apps, tools, and software programs, we’ve come up with a comparison list for smart investors. Here are some of the best smartphone apps for investors and why we recommend them.
In addition to sharing their best features, we explain what makes them right for you, and how they investment could be improved upon.
Although many of these apps are available on Google Play store, we’re featuring links to the iTunes Store since the Investor Junkie team uses Apple products.
Personal CapitalAcornsBanktivity InvestorQuickenSigFig InvestingBetterment InvestingMoneydanceStockTwitsBloomberg
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1. Personal Capital
Similar to Mint.com but with more enhanced features, Personal Capital is a favorite here at Investor Junkie. This free online software is aimed at helping investors make smarter financial decisions.Top Feature: Get a big picture overview of all your bank accounts, investments, and even credit cards.
Needs Improvement: Asset allocation is not customizable which can lead to incorrect categorization of assets.
Best For: Investors who prefer to focus on financial goals and investing instead of basic budgeting.
Cost: Free
In Depth Review »
2. Acorns
If you enjoy using your smartphone for just about anything, why not jump start your investing portfolio with Acorns? With just spare change, and a few dollars each month, you can create a custom portfolio of index funds to invest in.Top Feature: Their simple app is easy to use, and targets Millennials who enjoy using technology to invest and reach short-term financial goals.
Needs Improvement: The app is only accessible via your smartphone, so there’s no web application yet. However, this is something Acorns is working on launching soon.
Best For: Tech-savvy, beginning investors who aren’t sure where to start investing, or want to add another dimension to their diversified portfolio.
Cost: Free
In Depth Review »
3. Banktivity Investor
If you’re a Mac user, there’s nothing much better than Banktivity. It syncs with multiple Apple devices and allows for seamless financial organization on the go. And when it comes to their smartphone app, Banktivity Investor is one of the best. You’re able to have your portfolio in your pocket, see your holdings at a glance, and import transactions from your bank or investment broker.
Top Feature: Their improved investing tool feature allows for enhanced support for bonds and options trading.
Needs Improvement: The central investment summary reports are read-only, so you can’t make trades or changes.
Best For: Tech-savvy investors who are away from home and need updated access to their accounts.
Cost: Free (after purchasing desktop app)
In Depth Review »
4. Quicken
For desktop-installed software, Quicken tops our list as well. It links all of your financial accounts in one place, allowing you to set up projections, budgets and track your spending.Top Feature: The most comprehensive all-in-one finance tool for integrating all of your investing, saving, and financial transactions.
Needs Improvement: Syncing is always a problem for Quicken users, and many receive errors and categorization mistakes because of this.
Best For: Investors who want don’t want their information stored online and want an in-depth service that houses all their finances.
Cost: Free (after purchasing desktop app)
In Depth Review »
5. SigFig Investing
SigFig Investing ties into all your existing investment accounts, and is a simple-to-use personal finance app. It shows the latest news that pertains to your investments.Top Feature: Integrates with over 100 different brokerages and makes viewing simple by tapping the investment charts to see performance, allocation, risk, and more.
Needs Improvement: Investment recommendations are somewhat simple, so you may need more in-depth advice.
Best For: Investors who are looking for an all-in-one solution for linking up to all investment accounts, including; joint accounts, Traditional and Roth IRAs, and 401(k)s.
Cost: Free
In Depth Review »
6. Betterment Investing
Betterment’s allows investors to manage their portfolio using a customized, globally-diversified portfolio. With a simplified, sophisticated user interface, you don’t have to worry about creating a diversified and risk-appropriate portfolio.Top Feature: Create long-term goals for building wealth, buying a home, retiring, and more, through vehicles like a Roth IRA, 401(k), or a simple investment account.
Needs Improvement: Doesn’t allow you to pick certain stocks or bonds, but instead chooses from a preset basket of options.
Best For: Investors who prefer to use the dollar-cost averaging method to consistently sock away money and want to customize their risk profile.
Cost: Free
In Depth Review »
7. Moneydance
As an alternative to Quicken, Moneydance looks like a ledger and allows for you to either import transactions from your financial institution or enter them manually. It’s free to use up to 100 transactions.Top Feature: Track your entire investment portfolio, customize options, download current market prices, and take advantage of specific shares.
Needs Improvement: Transitioning from Moneydance, or other financial app, isn’t smooth, and increases the chance of duplicate transactions and errors.
Best For: Anyone who’s frustrated with Quicken for Mac or Windows, or who likes the old school spreadsheet type of feel for investing.
Cost: Free
In Depth Review »
8. StockTwits
Known as the Twitter of investing, StockTwits is an app that allows you to see which stocks are being tweeted about the most. You can see what’s trending and connect to the social network to see their trading habits.
Top Feature: Build a watch list of trending stocks to see what’s making news, moving, or popular with other top investors and traders, then use this info and turn a profit.
Needs Improvement: The information can be a bit overwhelming and some of the charts take time to decipher. Also if you don’t want other investors to know your stock choices, then this app isn’t for you.
Best For: Investors who enjoy using social media and interaction with other investors to create well-informed decisions about their portfolio.
Cost: Free
9. Bloomberg
Within the Bloomberg app, you get all of the features of the Bloomberg website including news articles, the ability to check prices, manage virtual portfolios, review charts, and listen to podcasts of Bloomberg Radio shortly after they air.
Top Feature: Track and manage your personal watch list of stocks and fund performances. You can also use the tools and charts available to gauge how your investments stack up.
Needs Improvement: Not able to link personal brokerage accounts so holdings of investments must be manually entered for tracking.
Best For: Investors who want to stay up-to-date on the market goings on so they can make the best-informed decisions for their portfolio.
Cost: Free
Got another app to add to our list? Leave a comment with your smartphone app favorites and why you like them so much.
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