The best stock and ETF trading apps

For a long time, the stock market was only for professionals or the rich. Ever since there have been trading apps, everyone has been able to benefit from the ups and downs on the stock exchanges – even the normal earner or the stock market newbie. What does it take? A smartphone and a suitable app. Not even stock market knowledge is now absolutely necessary for trading shares. Because some app providers offer so-called social or copy trading for a fee – the imitation of successful investors.

But which trading app has the edge? The best trading app is always the one that suits your needs. Are you a long-term investor and mainly buy ETF and cryptocurrencies? Or are exotic stock exchanges important to you and CFD trading? Do you sometimes not trade at all for a longer period of time? Depending on how you answer these questions, different apps come into question for you.

The most important trading apps currently available include Etoro, Wikifolio, Plus500, Finanzen.net Zero, Scalable Capital and Trade Republic. All apps score with intuitive operation, you can install them on iOS or Android. Desktop versions of the apps are also available. The meanwhile great competition among the providers is also reflected in the costs: On some trading apps, trading in shares and ETFs is even possible free of charge. In contrast to classic online brokers such as Comdirect, ING and Co., who charge a good ten euros for an order. We take a close look at the offers and explain which app is suitable for whom.

Etoro is an app that allows you to trade cryptocurrencies, stocks, ETFs and so-called CFDs, Contracts for Difference. If you want to trade cryptocurrencies and CFDs, you should definitely check out Etoro. Because Etoro is one of the leading providers here.

In case you don’t know what CFDs are, they are highly speculative products. Put simply, with a CFD you bet on the rising or falling price of a stock or an index without owning the relevant security yourself. You can double or even tenfold your stake with a so-called lever. A very risky thing and not recommended for stock market beginners.

Important to know: You can buy the ETF that Etoro offers in Germany almost exclusively via CFD. With this construct, you do not own the corresponding ETF, but instead place a bet with Etoro that the ETF will rise – as with other CFDs. This is not recommended for private investors. You are on the safe side if you buy ordinary ETFs. Other stock exchange apps such as Finanzen.net Zero, Trade Republic or Scalable Capital are better suited for this.

Etoro is based in Cyprus and started in 2007. There is no German deposit insurance. However, that need not be a cause for concern: cash deposits and securities are insured for up to one million euros per customer. Since all trading at Etoro is settled in US dollars, as a euro investor you always pay conversion fees – no matter what you end up trading. Etoro is one of the largest social trading platforms on the market, which the company also likes to advertise with. Note: In the event of prolonged inactivity, a fee of ten euros will be charged.

The Austrian platform Wikifolio specializes in social trading. You can copy the portfolios of numerous successful investors on it by purchasing a suitable certificate. Compared to actively managed funds, the fees for this are comparatively cheap, but significantly higher than for ETFs. Wikifolio is not a substitute for a classic depot. You cannot buy cryptocurrencies on Wikifolio.

The Plus500 offer is tailored to short-term traders. At Plus500 you can only trade CFDs. But on all common underlying assets, including shares, cryptocurrencies, indices and commodities. Plus500 has been active since 2008 and is headquartered in Israel. The app is available in 30 languages. Plus500 does not charge any custody or trading fees.

Like other CFD brokers, Plus500 earns what is known as the spread, which is the range between the buying and selling price of a security. An example: If you buy a CFD worth 24.95 euros, it will cost you 25 euros at Plus500. If you sell it, you only get 24.90 euros from Plus500.

Plus500 also charges fees if you hold positions overnight, trade in foreign currencies or place a stop-loss order, i.e. if you want to sell a security automatically as soon as a certain price threshold is reached. On a free demo account you can familiarize yourself extensively with the functions of the app.

Finanzen.net Zero is the trading app of the Finanzen.net stock market portal, where you can also read stock market news. On Finanzen.net Zero you can trade stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrencies and derivatives. This makes the app suitable for most private investors who only want to invest in ETF and cryptocurrencies. As the name suggests, you pay no fees at Finanzen.net Zero. An exception: If you buy shares or other securities worth less than 500 euros, there is a surcharge of one euro. With its low fees, Finanzen.net Zero belongs to the group of so-called neo-brokers who want to attract a young target group to the stock exchange. The model for this is the US broker Robinhood.

If you are wondering how Finanzen.net Zero finances itself: The company receives so-called reimbursements from stock exchange operators. This means: As soon as you buy a share or an ETF, Finanzen.net Zero receives a fee from the stock exchange operator. One disadvantage: Finanzen.net Zero only processes its stock exchange transactions via Gettex, the electronic trading platform of the Munich Stock Exchange. You cannot buy securities via Finanzen.net Zero on other trading platforms such as Xetra or Tradegate.

The Berlin company Trade Republic started in 2019. The provider became known for its aggressive pricing policy. The Trade Republic Depot is free. Only one euro is charged for the purchase of a share or a security.

You can trade more than 8,000 shares and 2,000 ETFs on Trade Republic via the partner exchange Lang and Schwarz Exchange. Cryptocurrencies are also in the program. A special feature: On Trade Republic, the money you park in your depot earns two percent interest. This puts Trade Republic in competition with call money accounts.

However, you will only receive interest up to an amount of 50,000 euros. The money is deposited with a partner bank, but not in all cases with German deposit insurance. Another special feature: As a user of the app, you can only buy fractions of a share or a fund.

Scalable Capital is another neo-broker with cheap fees. The company is based in Munich. Different fee models are available. Anyone who chooses Scalable Capital’s free broker pays EUR 0.99 for each trade, regardless of whether it’s a share, ETF or derivative. Anyone who chooses the Prime Broker fee model can trade unlimitedly for EUR 2.99 per month. However, only trading via the Gettex exchange is free. Anyone who trades on the Xetra exchange pays a flat rate of EUR 3.99 plus a trading venue fee. Scalable Capital also offers interest on deposits. Currently, the interest rate is even 2.3 percent and applies to a credit balance of 100,000 euros. The prerequisite for this is the Prime Broker Plus subscription, which costs EUR 4.99 per month and can be canceled on a monthly basis.