Is Stash Offered in Europe
Stash is not available in European countries (France, Poland, Germany, UK, Italy, Spain, Austria, Sweden, and others).
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Overview of Acorns, Stash, and Firstrade
While Acorns and Stash are more popular among younger investors, Firstrade is a traditional brokerage firm that offers services not available through Stash or Acorns. Are these younger investors using the right brokerage? Let’s take a closer look.
Broker Cost
| Broker Fees |
Stock/ETF
Commission |
Mutual Fund
Commission |
Options
Commission |
Maintenance
Fee |
Annual IRA
Fee |
|
Firstrade
|
$0
|
$0
|
$0
|
$0
|
$0
|
|
Acorns
|
na
|
na
|
na
|
$3, $5, or $9 per month
|
$3, $5, or $9 per month
|
|
Stash
|
$0
|
na
|
na
|
$3 or $9 per month
|
$3 or $9 per month
|
Services
| Broker Review |
Cost |
Investment Products |
Trading Tools |
Customer Service |
Research |
Overall Rating |
|
Firstrade
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Acorns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Stash
|
|
|
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Promotions
Firstrade: Get up to $250 ACAT rebate and $0 commission trades.
Acorns:
Get Acorns absolutely free and a $20 bonus.
Stash:
$20 in free stock when you open a new account.
Investment Vehicles
Stash customers can trade a limited selection of ETFs and stocks. While this is all Stash offers, Acorns provides even less, with just twelve ETFs.
Firstrade clients can trade:
- Stocks (including penny stocks and OTC instruments)
- ETFs (covering the entire U.S. market)
- Closed-end funds
- Options
- Bonds and other fixed-income assets
- Mutual funds (thousands available)
Firstrade also features an IPO center on its website.
Winner: Firstrade
Investment Methods
Acorns offers robo accounts, with no self-directed options. Their software handles all trading decisions. They also have a round-up service and a bonus investment program for shopping at certain retailers.
Stash only offers self-directed accounts, with no robo service. Like Acorns, they have a round-up service, but instead of a bonus investment program, they offer a stock-back service, rewarding fractional shares of stocks when customers shop at eligible retailers.
Firstrade, as a traditional broker, offers self-directed accounts with no frills. They don’t have a stock-back, round-up, or bonus investment program. The upside is that Firstrade doesn’t charge a monthly fee, while Acorns and Stash do. Acorns’ most expensive plan is $5, and Stash’s can go up to $9.
Winner: Toss up
Desktop Software
Since Acorns doesn’t offer self-directed trading, their platform lacks advanced trading tools. Their website does provide user-friendly account management features, but that’s about it.
Stash’s site includes an order ticket for placing trades and makes it easy to set up recurring investments.
At Firstrade, the experience is much more robust. The website features a permanent trade ticket at the bottom of the screen, allowing for orders on equities, ETFs, closed-end funds, and options. There are many customization options, including order types and time-in-force choices.
Firstrade’s site, using Morningstar’s software, offers good charting tools. It includes technical indicators, comparisons, and a strong stock and fund screener, far superior to what Stash or Acorns provide.
Winner: Firstrade
Mobile Apps
All three brokerages in this comparison offer mobile apps. Stash and Acorns have simple apps that are easy to use but offer limited tools.
Firstrade’s app offers charting in both vertical and horizontal modes. In horizontal mode, users can change the graph style, add technical studies, switch between logarithmic and linear scales, and display percent change on the vertical axis instead of price.
Firstrade’s order ticket on the app includes multiple trade types and duration choices. Additionally, the app allows for option trading, though mutual funds must be traded on the website.
Winner: Firstrade
Cash Management Tools
Besides investing, all three brokers offer banking tools, though they vary significantly.
Firstrade clients with at least $25,000 in assets can add checks and a Visa debit card to their account without any fees.
Neither Stash nor Acorns offer checkwriting, but they do offer Visa debit cards. Acorns’ card, made with tungsten and UV glass, isn’t available on the $1 per-month plan. For $3 per month, Acorns provides this card and reimburses all ATM fees.
Firstrade doesn’t offer this reimbursement, while Stash provides fee-free withdrawals only at Allpoint ATMs. Stash’s Visa card starts at $1 per month, with a $9 per month option for a metal card.
Winner: Draw
Miscellaneous Services
Dividend reinvestment program: All three brokerages offer a free DRIP service.
IRAs: Firstrade offers fee-free IRAs, while Stash and Acorns charge higher monthly fees.
Automatic mutual fund investing: Firstrade offers this service at no cost.
Winner: Firstrade
Our Recommendations
Beginners: Stash or Acorns.
Retirement savers and long-term investors: Firstrade.
ETF and stock trading: Definitely Firstrade.
Small accounts: Firstrade.
Round-up investing: While Stash and Acorns promote their round-up services, we recommend saving the change and making one monthly transfer (at no cost) into a Firstrade account via ACH. Instead of paying a monthly fee to save, learn to save on your own for free.
Firstrade vs Stash and Acorns Summary
Although Stash and Acorns might be good choices for new investors, Firstrade has many advantages that are hard to overlook.
Open Firstrade Account
Open Acorns Account
Updated on 8/21/2024.
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