11 Beginner-Friendly Apps For Anyone Who's Curious About Investing

~Slightly~ easier than manipulating the stock market.

Maybe you've been wanting to take the plunge into investing your money for a while now, or perhaps you just watched the recent GameStop/Reddit news go down. But if you're an investment newbie, starting can feel super overwhelming. Luckily, it's 2021, which means there's a plethora of apps to help you!

A lil' disclaimer: Keep in mind that investing does involve risk. No investment is guaranteed to pay off and you could lose money. So, don't invest money that you're going to need anytime soon and do plenty of research about the market before you make any big moves. Now let's get into it!

1. Invstr

Invstr / Via apps.apple.com

Ready to make investing actually seem ~fun~? Invstr gives you 1 million (fake) dollars to invest as you please in a fantasy investment game designed to let you learn without taking any risks. Afterward, you can start investing (with a small fee on each trade), join their community, take interactive courses, and even compete in leagues to see whose portfolios come out on top.

Promising App Store review: "Actually helps you learn how the markets work. Definite recommendation to those wanting to learn how the markets work, this app is better than those little games I put on my phone for entertainment!" —Game'in Horse

Perfect for: investors who want interactive learning

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

2. Public

Public / Via apps.apple.com

Public is a great place to start if you want to get into investing but don't know where to begin. Plus, the basic tools are all free! With no minimum, you can buy partial stocks of well-known companies for mere dollars and utilize their social media–esque design to learn from other people on the app. See what people are buying, partake in message boards, and get advice from more seasoned investors.

Promising App Store review: "Public provides the platform to develop my financial literacy in a less-intimidating setting, along with an active community with a wealth of knowledge to draw from. I will be moving my portfolio over to Public." —chase.dish

Perfect for: beginner investors who want to learn and spend little

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

3. Ellevest

Ellevest / Via apps.apple.com

The finance world is notoriously a boy's club, so Ellevest offers an investment app made by women, for women. Starting at $1/month, this membership offers investment options, but also virtual guides and workshops to help you better understand where your money is going. Plus, their hyper-specific algorithm factors in things like pay gaps, career breaks, and longer average lifespans.

Promising App Store review: "I love this app! I have been steadily auto-depositing money over the past year, and Ellevest invests all of it for me, making the process super easy! I especially love the informational graphics about investing, and I have found them to be super clear about my funds. This is my first time investing any money, and I was nervous in the beginning. But I knew that I wanted to build long-term wealth, and this is definitely helping me do that!" —Dnntrn

Perfect for: women-identifying investors (although anyone can sign up!)

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

4. Betterment

Betterment / Via apps.apple.com

Using Nobel Prize–winning research, Betterment helps you custom-build a portfolio that fits your needs. You can open an account specifically for investing in things like retirement, a safety net, or future education. Plus, you can choose a "socially responsible" portfolio, meaning your investments would go toward companies that focus on sustainable and/or socially beneficial business practices.

Promising App Store review: "My husband and I have been invested with Betterment for a number of years now and couldn’t be happier with it. The fees are very low, it’s easy to interface with and understand what’s happening, and our investments have done really well. We’re also really happy that we can invest in socially conscious businesses." —BH747

Perfect for: hands-off and socially-conscious investors

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

5. Acorns

Acorns / Via apps.apple.com

This "micro-investing" app lets you automatically invest your spare change (think rounding up your purchases) so you get hassle-free investing starting at $1/month. You can also set aside a specific amount from your paycheck to get auto-invested into a range of portfolios from "conservative" to "aggressive," so you can choose what's right for you.

Promising App Store review: "The app is super easy to use and navigate. It’s all easily broken down to where you can understand things and it’s perfect for someone who, like me, doesn’t make much every year. It’s a "set it and forget it" type of thing to where you can literally just have it pull $5 from your bank every week and add it to your portfolio and let it build itself. I’ve only been using the app for the last few weeks but I’ve already got up to $40 so far on my investing portfolio." —460BigBlock

Perfect for: hands-off investors who want to start small

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

6. Stash

Stash / Via apps.apple.com

Stash believes that anyone can begin investing with just $5 or less. Starting at $1/month, you can choose to manually or automatically invest certain amounts and Stash will invest in fractional shares of a variety of stocks. This is definitely long-term investing, but Stash also offers tools — like a "Stash Coach" — for gaining more knowledge around financial literacy that you can use in the future.

Promising App Store review: "I have always been interested in investing in stocks and didn’t really know how to get into it, so (and I 1,000% mean this) Stash is perfect for ANYONE looking to get into investing with an easy learning tool that motivates you, encourages and fosters good habits, and gives you a total view of your spending habits so that you can make the appropriate adjustments in your budget. It makes budgeting, saving for the future, and financial planning THAT much easier." —Orah B.

Perfect for: beginner investors who want to learn more

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

7. Webull

Webull / Via apps.apple.com

Webull lets you diversify your portfolio through commission-free stocks, options, and even investments in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. You can customize your account based on whether you're saving for retirement or just trying to break into the market. They do offer in-depth analysis tools if you want to kick things up a notch, but they could be a little overwhelming to a total beginner.

Promising App Store review: "I downloaded this initially for the free stocks; but after exploring the app for a few days, I quickly realized that Webull is SO much more powerful than any other stock market app I've tried so far. If you install it, be sure to create a watchlist and actually try it out for a week. There's a lot going on, so it seems overwhelming at first, but you'll find yourself ditching whatever app you used before." —SwypeFanSinceDayZero

Perfect for: intermediate investors

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

8. Wealthbase

Wealthbase / Via apps.apple.com

Another app on a mission to make investing fun, Wealthbase is basically social media for finance. Play free (and realistic) fantasy trading games and — when you're ready to actually invest — follow your friends to see what they're buying and selling in a regularly updated social feed to see whose stock choices are paying off.

Promising App Store review: "Great app for practicing investing strategies without any risk, and the games are fun to play with friends. Highly recommend!" —Eugene Cyckowski

Perfect for: investors who want a community

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

9. SoFi

SoFi / Via apps.apple.com

SoFi makes things easy by giving you the option of choosing what to invest in or just letting their automated system create a portfolio for you. You can also buy "Stock Bits," aka fractions of shares, so you don't have to go all in on one stock. With a minimum investment of just $1 (and no fees), you can definitely start small.

Promising App Store review: "Makes it super easy and fun to invest. I had no idea what I was doing but it is the perfect way to learn. I started investing with very little money. I literally made a dollar investment last night because it’s what I had to spend. I would have done this years ago if I knew it was possible." —katinkabelle

Perfect for: hands-off investors who don't want to spend a lot

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

10. Coinbase

Coinbase / Via apps.apple.com

You've probably heard all about cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin over the last few years but might not have any idea what it all means. Luckily, Coinbase is a cryptocurrency investing app that helps you learn while you buy! Its fees are high and the cryptocurrency market is known for being volatile; but if you are dead set on getting into the crypto game, this is a good place to start.

Promising App Store review: "Coinbase is a great way to begin learning about and using cryptocurrencies. It makes trading a digital currency efficient and easy. No longer is it confusing and time-consuming to figure out how to use a defi currency, like bitcoin or ethereum tokens." —20ADIO20

Perfect for: beginner cryptocurrency investors

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

11. Wealthfront

Wealthfront / Via apps.apple.com

A slightly more bougie option that takes a management percentage fee rather than a flat monthly rate, Wealthfront does allow you to really invest in your long-term plans. Their free tools let you save for — as an example — your retirement, while also factoring in shorter-term expenses like vacations or buying a home. This is a great app if you are a visual planner and want to map everything out before you start.

Promising App Store review: "My favorite finance app, period. The UI is incredibly intuitive and the product itself is amazing. I literally recommend it to ANYONE: best friends, strangers on the street, people waiting in line for the bathroom, etc. It takes less than 10 minutes to sign up and they have one of the highest APYs in the game. Wanna see your 401(k) status next to your credit card balance? Done. Want to have a tracker tell you your net worth? Done (but sad for me personally cause it’s low). I feel like I grew up tracking all of my investments, credit cards, and savings in one place." —Maddy_B93

Perfect for: multitasking investors

Download from: the App Store or Google Play

Note: Some reviews have been edited for length and clarity.

Me when I realize taking quizzes on the BuzzFeed app isn't making me any richer:

Starz

Happy investing!

Is there an investing app that you love that we missed? Let us know in the comments, and check out more of our personal finance posts.