Best Investing Apps For Minors

A growing number of apps that give underaged users the opportunity to invest have emerged, granting young people the chance to get their feet wet in stock trading while also building their financial literacy. All of the apps below offer a variety of parental controls as well as educational resources that can help guide teenagers in their investing journey. Additionally, many of the best investment apps for minors also allow teens to purchase fractional shares, allowing them to start with less money than would be required to buy a full share of an entire company.

Choosing an investing app for your teen involves careful consideration of many factors, especially parental control and guidance. Most of the investing apps above use custodial accounts for kids, meaning parents are legally responsible for all investment decisions and can deactivate their child’s debit card at any time. They also offer a variety of ways to monitor their child’s account, including allowing them to access statements or real-time alerts.

Fidelity Youth offers a free account for kids with an option to open a Fidelity brokerage account (or add one on the spot). While this app follows a similar custodial account system as other apps, it does provide some more freedom, giving teens their own login and access to their account information, as well as a range of tools, articles and videos that teach them about investing.

Greenlight is a prepaid debit card and money management app that allows teens to spend, save and invest, all in one place. It’s the most comprehensive app on our list in terms of parental controls and includes a variety of safety features like transaction alerts and pre-approved stores so teens don’t accidentally spend their money in inappropriate places. The app also has a feature that lets teens learn about the financial markets through interactive lessons and games while earning rewards for every level of learning they complete. Greenlight’s top tier plan costs $7.98/month, while the mid-tier plan is just $5.

Acorns Early is an investing app that’s known for its round-up system, which automatically invests the spare change from purchases made with a linked credit or debit card. It’s a great way for teenagers to get their feet wet in the stock market and can lead to a long-term savings habit. Parents can also 0pen a Fidelity UTMA/UGMA account on behalf of their children to have more control over investments, but any assets they acquire will be transferred to them once they turn 18.

Webull is an investment and trading app that offers low fees and no minimums for a taxable brokerage account. This app is intended for teens of all ages, and it uses a custodial account for younger teens and a regular brokerage account for older ones.

As an alternative to investing apps for teens, the UNest investment account is a tax-advantaged custodial account that can be used to pay for major milestones and expenses such as college, a vacation or a new car. It also has an automatic gifting feature, so friends and family can contribute to your teen’s investment journey with ease.