You’re able to begin your investment journey, but it surely may feel overwhelming to decide on the proper platform with so many options on the market. We get it—and we’ve got you covered.
Robinhood and Public.com are two of the most important names in the sport. How do you choose which one is correct for you? We all the time recommend learning about investment platforms before you utilize them.
On this Public vs Robinhood review, we’ll reveal what makes these two platforms similar, in addition to what makes each unique. We’ve included details about features, the user experience, fees and costs, and our tackle which kind of investor each platform is best fitted to.
By the point you’ve finished reading, you’ll have a handle on how Public and Robinhood compare and which platform it’s best to use to begin investing.
Overview of Robinhood and Public.com
Let’s start with an summary of every platform to offer you a solid base of understanding of what each has to supply.
Robinhood
Robinhood is a mobile-first electronic trading platform that got its start back in 2013, when Vladimir Tenev and Baiju Bhatt incorporated as Robinhood Markets, Inc. Their goal was to democratize investing by making it free, easy, and addictive. They launched the Robinhood app in March of 2015. The corporate is a licensed broker-dealer and a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, SIPC.
In its early years, much of the corporate’s growth was achieved by acquiring firms reminiscent of Say Technologies, Cove Markets, X1, and Chartr.
They’ve also grown by continually offering recent products. After they first announced the addition of cryptocurrency to their list of obtainable assets in 2018, they’d a waiting list with two million members, and had a similarly-long list 4 years later once they launched their crypto trading wallet.
Key features of Robinhood include trading stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies; a secure crypto wallet; and a straightforward and intuitive user interface.
Public
Public.com is an investing platform designed to make market investing accessible to all people. The corporate got its start in 2019 and have become the primary to permit for commission-free fractional share investing, something that many other platforms, including Robinhood, have since adopted. (Fractional shares aren’t recent and Public.com didn’t invent them, they simply democratized them.)
Public is a licensed broker-dealer and a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, FINRA member.
One in all the things that makes Public unique is the community aspect of their app. While there are other investment tools which have a social aspect, of which Looking for Alpha is an example, Public was the primary investing app to introduce that element.
Other key features include access to quite a lot of investment assets, prolonged trading hours, crypto trading, fractional trading, transparent fees, and no fees for order flow on stocks and ETFs.
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As of 2024, Public.com has greater than three million users (up from lower than a million at the top of 2020) and an estimated value of $1.2 billion.
| Robinhood | Public.com | |
| Asset classes available | Stocks, ETFs, chosen cryptocurrencies, ADRs | Stocks, ETFs, bonds, options, cryptocurrencies and treasuries |
| Commission on trades? | No | No |
| Allowable trades | Market orders, limit orders, stop orders, stop limit orders, trailing stop orders | Market orders, limit orders, stop orders |
| Educational resources | Articles and videos | Articles, screeners, and an investment calculator |
| Fees | No commissions; fees may apply for other transactions | No commissions; fees may apply for other transactions |
| Customer support | 24/7 chat support; phone support during business hours | Live chat, phone, and email |
We’ll get into more detail in regards to the fees charged by Robinhood and Public later on this review.
Public vs Robinhood – Features Comparison
Let’s do a deeper dive on a very powerful features of Public and Robinhood.
Trading Experience
The trading experience on Robinhood is supposed to be user-friendly and easy, and it delivers on each counts. Using the Robinhood app or web platform, it’s easy to initiate trades. In actual fact, a trade could also be accomplished in only a couple of minutes and with a couple of clicks, even for lively traders trying to conduct options trading.
The mobile trading experience on Public.com can be smooth and user-friendly. Trades and sales may take lower than a minute to finish. It’s also easy to fund your account and withdraw funds to your bank.
When it comes to trading experience, we’d say it’s a tie. Each platforms are easy to make use of and ideal for beginners.
Pro Tip:
Enroll with Robinhood today! You possibly can refer friends to earn as much as $1500 per 12 months in FREE STOCK!
Investment Options
Robinhood offers several kinds of investment options. It got its start by allowing investment in only two asset classes: stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). It has since expanded to permit for investment in 20 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, and USDC. Right now, it’s impossible to trade bonds or mutual funds on Robinhood, and that may pose a challenge on the subject of portfolio diversification.
There’s also an choice to arrange an IRA with Robinhood and get matching funds: 1% for normal members and three% for Robinhood Gold members.
On Public.com, users can trade stocks, ETFs, options, cryptocurrencies, American Depositary Receipts, fractional shares, and bonds. The inclusion of bonds is beneficial since it’s easy to diversify your portfolio. In total, Public.com allows for trading of 16 crypto coins through Bakkt Crypto. (It’s necessary to notice that Bakkt Crypto will not be affiliated with Public.com and never a FINRA member.)
Public com doesn’t have a retirement account, but they do offer a high-yield savings account that pays 4% APR, in addition to a high-yield bond account that pays 6.8%.
Fees and Costs
Each Public and Robinhood trades are subject to regulatory fees, and people fees are passed on to you as a user. Here’s a rundown of the opposite fees which will apply.
Robinhood charges $0.50 as an index options trading fee free of charge members, and $0.35 for Robinhood Gold members. ACH transfers are free, but there may be a $25 fee for outgoing wire transfers. There’s a full slate of regulatory fees, most of that are just fractions of a penny. You could find the total fee table here.
Public charges a flat fee of $2.99 for trades made during prolonged market hours and for OTC trades, not great for more lively traders. It also charges for multi-asset investment plan trades, which cost between $0.49 and $1.99 free of charge users. There’s a $75 fee to transfer your assets to a different broker, and there may additionally be fees involved if you ought to transfer money to your bank via wire. Try their full fee schedule here.
Each platforms have a premium option. Robinhood Gold costs $5 monthly or $50 per 12 months, while Public Premium costs $10 monthly or $96 per 12 months. Each plans offer users the possibility to lower your expenses on fees and access additional features.
Pro Tip:
Enroll with Robinhood today! You possibly can refer friends to earn as much as $1500 per 12 months in FREE STOCK!
Mobile App Usability
Robinhood’s mobile app is well-reviewed and popular. The interface is designed to be really easy to make use of that beginners can jump in and start trading immediately. It’s got a straightforward and easy-to-navigate menu. You possibly can get help inside the app while you need it, and it’s also possible to access Robinhood’s educational resources to learn more about trading before you jump in.
Public’s app is likewise well regarded and simple to make use of. Trades may be placed with just a couple of taps and it’s easy to access help and resources. Beginners can start trading instantly and so they may study investing on the app.
The 2 apps have nearly equivalent star rankings. Within the Google Store, Robinhood’s app gets 4.2 stars out of 5, and Public’s app gets 4.1 stars.
Who Should Use Public vs Robinhood?
Should you’re someone who wants a brief list of investments which are easy to know, and an app that’s beginner-friendly, then Robinhood could also be your best choice. You won’t get access to bonds and another asset classes, but you’re going to get access to a big selection of stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies.
We’d also recommend Robinhood for anybody who doesn’t have an employer-sponsored retirement account. Robinhood offers 1% matching free of charge members and three% for Robinhood Gold members.
Public.com offers a wider array of asset classes for investments, including bonds and options. It’s still a superb platform for beginners, but is perhaps barely more advantageous for intermediate to advanced investors.
We just like the social and community aspect of Public, too. Should you’re someone who likes to swap ideas with other investors, then Public has the sting in that regard, along with each platforms having advanced research tools.
Since each apps are free to make use of, it might be advantageous to establish accounts on each and see which one you favor.
Public vs Robinhood – User Experience Comparison
Robinhood users have quite a lot of good things to say in regards to the user interface and the general experience of using the app. People also praise the IRA contribution matching, low margin rates, and money sweep. Among the complaints include slow customer support response times for requests submitted through the app and the dearth of detailed investment tracking features. Most reviews comment that the app is best suited to beginners.
One in all the things that stood out as we read Public.com reviews is that the team there may be always working to enhance the app. They’re aware of reviews. Users have praised the app’s easy navigation and deposit mechanism, which allows users to deposit funds using a debit card and withdraw back to the cardboard, too. One of the crucial common complaints is that more features are being paywalled, reminiscent of more advanced research tools. One other is the dearth of advanced charting options.
Overall, we’d say the Robinhood UX is right for beginners while Public is barely more complex and offers more options for advanced users.
Conclusion
The underside line when comparing Public vs Robinhood is that each apps offer a streamlined user experience. We’d say that Robinhood is best fitted to beginner investors or those that need to make the most of IRA matching contributions, while Public has a couple of more bells and whistles which will appeal to more experienced investors.
Neither platform is basically fitted to in-depth investment research and charting, so it’s possible you’ll must upgrade to premium or to make use of these apps together with an investment research platform to get the most effective results.
FAQ
Is Robinhood higher than Public.com?
We predict Robinhood has a slight edge over Public com by way of usability for beginners. Should you’re someone who doesn’t have loads (or any) investment experience, we predict starting with Robinhood shall be useful.
Does Public.com offer cryptocurrency?
Yes, Public.com offers a complete of 16 cryptocurrencies through its partnership with Bakkt Crypto. Should you’re someone who desires to check out crypto investing, you’ll be able to do it with Public.com