Best brokers for millennials in 2020

What is the perfect broker match for millennials and young people?

It’s a good question and depends very much on each person’s individual taste and expectations. Based on our research and customer feedback we can see a clear trend though:

While fees are as important as for anyone else (no surprise here), millennials by and large put a lot of emphasis on the usability and features of the mobile platform.

With that in mind, we tested 71 quality online brokers with real accounts. 5 brokers made it to the top. We highly recommend all 5 to you. And now, without further ado…

The brokers for millennials in 2020 are:

1. Revolut is the winner. Free stock trading. Fast and easy account opening. Great mobile trading platform.
2. Robinhood in the second place. Free US stock and ETF trading. Great mobile and web trading platforms. Fast and fully digital account opening.
3. Webull rounded out the top three. Free stocks, ETFs, and options. Fast and easy account opening. Great trading platforms.
4. eToro, numero quatro. Free stock and ETF trading . Seamless account opening. Social trading experience.
5. Oanda Generally low fees. Easy-to-use web trading platform. Easy and digital account opening. Just made it to the list with being number five.

All 5 brokers are considered safe. They are regulated by at least one top-tier financial regulator.

For a tailored recommendation, check out the broker finder tool. You can enter your country and it will show only the relevant brokers.

So how did we come up with this list, the best brokers for millenials?

First, we selected 71 quality online brokers, then we tested them with real accounts. We evaluated their trading platforms, with a very thorough look at their mobile platform (imagine that some brokers still don’t have one) as well as their fees. Lastly, we checked that the overall score is high enough, so that you don’t run into other problems (like withdrawals, safety). We went deep, so you don’t have to.

And now, let's see the best brokers for millennials, one by one, starting with the winner, Revolut.

Revolut is a fast-growing fintech startup founded in 2015 and mainly known for its banking and payment services. In 2019, the company also launched its commission-free stock trading, which is provided by Revolut Trading Ltd. 

Revolut is regulated by multiple top-tier regulators, including the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Clients' assets are protected up to $500,000 ($250,000 cash) under the Securities Investment Protection Corporation's (SIPC) insurance. Revolut is also regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). 

Recommended for beginners looking for free trading and a great mobile-only trading platform

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#1 Revolut
Mobile trading platform

4.9

Revolut offers a great and user-friendly mobile trading platform, with Touch/Face ID login and good search functions. On the other hand, there is no two-step login.

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#1 Revolut
Fees

5.0

Besides trading stocks for free with Revolut, you also don't have to pay any inactivity or withdrawal fees. It only charges a 0.01% annual custody fee.

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#1 Revolut
Verdict

Revolut's fees are great. With all three types of accounts, you can trade US stocks for free (though monthly limits may apply). Account opening is easy, fully digital, and fast. You can use an awesome and user-friendly mobile trading platform.

Revolut has some drawbacks though. The product portfolio covers only US stocks and some crypto currencies. There are only a few research tools, while it offers no educational material at all. Customer service could also be improved. 

If you want to trade US stocks for free and are looking for an easy-to-use mobile platform, Revolut is a great choice.

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Robinhood is a US zero-fee discount broker established in 2013. The company is regulated by top-tier financial authorities, such as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Besides the brokerage service, Robinhood introduced a Cash Management service, which can earn interest on your uninvested amounts. It's a great and unique service. You can read more details here.

BrokerChooser is committed to bringing high transparency and clarity to our customers not just brokers, but also our partners: BrokerChooser's Advertiser Disclosure.

Recommended for beginners and buy-and-hold investors focusing on the us stock market

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#2 Robinhood
Mobile trading platform

5.0

The Robinhood mobile platform is one of the best we've tested. It is safe, well designed and user-friendly.

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#2 Robinhood
Fees

4.9

Trading US stocks and ETFs is free at Robinhood. It's also great that Robinhood doesn't charge an inactivity or withdrawal fee.

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#2 Robinhood
Verdict

Robinhood fees are great. US stock trading is commission-free, and there is no withdrawal or inactivity fee. Robinhood has awesome, user-friendly mobile and web trading platforms. Account opening is easy, fully digital and fast.

Robinhood has some drawbacks though. Most of the products you can trade are limited to the US market. Customer support is weak; you can only reach them via e-mail and it can take some time to get an answer. It provides educational articles but little else to guide you through the world of trading.

If you want to trade US stocks for free and are looking for an easy-to-use platform, Robinhood is your best choice.

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Webull is a US-based fintech startup offering zero-fee or discount brokerage services. The broker was founded in 2017 and it is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Webull is considered safe because it is regulated by the top-tier financial authorities and provides a maximum of $500,000 investor protection including a $250,000 limit for cash as part of the SIPC protection scheme.

Recommended for investors and traders looking for zero-commission trading and focusing on us markets

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#3 Webull
Mobile trading platform

5.0

Webull mobile trading is great, one of the best on the market. It's user-friendly, well-designed, and provides all important features, like advanced order panel, price alerts or two-step login.

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#3 Webull
Fees

4.7

Webull offers commission-free trades for US-based stocks, ETFs, and options. It charges no inactivity fee and withdrawal fee if you use ACH. On the negative side, the financing rates are higher and there are high fees for wire transfers.

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#3 Webull
Verdict

Webull's fees are great. You can trade with commission-free US stocks, ETFs, and options. The account opening is easy, fully digital, and fast. The platforms are easy-to-use and well-structured.

Webull has some drawbacks though. The product portfolio is really limited, covering only US stocks, ETFs, and options. You can use only bank transfer for deposit or withdrawal, and wire transfer is charged for both directions. The telephone and email customer support are hard to reach out to.

As the account opening is seamless, and Webull offers commission-free stock and ETF trades, feel free to try it.

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eToro is a well-known Israeli fintech startup, a social trading broker established in 2007.

eToro serves UK clients through an entity regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Australians through an Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) regulated entity. All other customers are served by a Cypriot entity that is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).

eToro is not listed on any stock exchange, does not disclose its annual report on its site and does not have a bank parent.

eToro is considered safe because its UK and Australian arms are regulated by top-tier financial authorities and it is a well-known fintech startup.

Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Recommended for traders interested in social trading (i.e. copying other investors’ trades) & zero commission stock trading

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#4 eToro
Mobile trading platform

4.9

eToro's mobile platform is well-designed and intuitive. It is a pleasure to use.

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Your capital is at risk

#4 eToro
Fees

4.5

eToro offers free stock trading. On the negative side, forex trading fees are high and there is a fee charged for inactivity or withdrawal.

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#4 eToro
Verdict

eToro has zero-commission stock trading. Account opening is swift and seamless. It also has a lot of innovative features, like social trading and copying other (successful) traders.

It has some drawbacks, though. Forex fees are high and eToro only allows USD accounts, which means that conversion costs on deposits and withdrawals can be high in some cases. Live chat is hard to reach and their educational materials could be better.

Overall, we would recommend eToro for its social trading feature and zero-commission stock trading.

Risk disclaimer

eToro is a multi-asset platform that offers both investing in stocks and crypto assets, as well as trading CFD assets.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Cryptoassets are volatile instruments that can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading crypto assets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework.

Past performance is not an indication of future results.

eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.

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Oanda is an American forex broker founded in 1996.

It is considered safe because it has a long track record, discloses its financials, and is regulated by top-tier authorities, such as the US Retail Foreign Exchange Dealer (RFED) and the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 73.5% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Recommended for forex traders who value a user-friendly platform and great research tools

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73.5% of retail CFD accounts lose money

#5 Oanda
Mobile trading platform

5.0

Oanda's mobile platform is similar to the web trading platform in functionality, and as a plus, you can also set alerts.

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73.5% of retail CFD accounts lose money

#5 Oanda
Fees

4.5

Oanda charges low CFD and low forex fees. Non-trading fees are low, though the withdrawal fee is quite high for bank transfers.

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73.5% of retail CFD accounts lose money

#5 Oanda
Verdict

Oanda is a good forex broker: its fees are great, and it has a good web trading platform where you will quickly feel comfortable. It provides a user-friendly and fully digital account opening process, as well as powerful research tools, especially API.

On the other hand, Oanda has a limited product portfolio, as only forex and CFDs are available. Customer support is slow, and bank withdrawal fees can be high.

Feel free to try Oanda: it is regulated by top-tier regulators, there is no minimum deposit, and the inactivity fee only kicks in after two years.

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73.5% of retail CFD accounts lose money

Not sure which broker? For a tailored recommendation, check out the broker finder tool. You can enter your country and it will show only the relevant brokers. Want more details? Compare brokers with this detailed comparison table.

Our most important criteria was the mobile platform.

An online broker and its trading platform can easily make or break your success in online trading. It greatly influences both your comfort and performance as a trader or investor.

If you would like to dig a bit deeper...

Fees were the second criteria when selecting the best brokers for millennials.

Comparing broker fees

If your primary focus is only fees, we recommend that you check out our article on the best discount brokers.

What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates or conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

You can compare below the trading fees of the four featured brokers with regard to the biggest stock markets, and most traded currency pairs and CFDs, as well as some non-trading fees.

There can be huge differences between trading fees, even if you want to do a simple US stock trade. To find out more about how the fares of different trading brokers stack up against each other, check out our ultimate comparison table.

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Let’s take a look at non-trading fees as well.

Keep in mind - safety

We recommend only quality brokers, so you can be sure that none of the listed online brokers are scams. In order to be sure, we check roughly 20 safety-related criteria, such as the regulation, investor protection amount and transparency of the broker’s financials. All the brokers you find on BrokerChooser are regulated by at least one top-tier financial authority.

However, financial companies can also go down. Remember Lehman Brothers? In these cases, it is important to know what happens with the securities, cash and derivative/leveraged positions on your account.

In a worst case scenario, for example if the broker commits fraud or just simply cannot pay you, you have a last resort – the investor protection of the country where the broker is regulated.

The investor protection amount differs from country to country, so it is worth checking this before you open an account.

You saw the details, now let's zoom out. Here are the best brokers for millennials in 2020:

All of these brokers are considered a great choice. Pick the winner or any runner-up and take the next step in your investment journey. Let us know what you think in the comments section.

Still unsure or you didn’t find your country? Use the broker finder and find the best broker for you or learn more about investing your money.