Yahoo Finance 5 ways to get free stocks to kick up your investing
They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but free stocks are another matter entirely.
You might be surprised how easy it is to get free shares in a company if you know where to look. And unlike a free meal, free stock can actually appreciate in value as time goes on.
The recent rise in popularity of low-cost investing apps means there’s plenty of free stock being offered.
Many apps and trading platforms offer users free stock when they sign up.
Here’s a rundown of how you can net yourself some free stock.
1. Acorns
Free stock value: $10
Acorns is a micro-investing app that lets newcomers to the market trade stocks and ETFs without worrying about things like when to buy or sell.
When you sign up you take a few minutes to set up a portfolio based on your personal tolerance for risk. The app connects to your debit or credit card and rounds up your transactions to the nearest dollar. The leftover change is then invested on your behalf in ETFs.
You can automate investments if you want to grow your portfolio faster, and Acorns also offers bonus investment cash when you shop at one of their partnered brands.
The most basic Acorns account, Acorns Lite, is $1 a month. When you sign up and make your first investment you can get a $10 credit, which you can invest in the stock or ETF of your choice.
2. Robinhood
Free stock value: Up to $223.24
Robinhood is a full-service brokerage app that lets you buy and sell stocks, options, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and cryptocurrency, with no trading fees or commissions.
It also allows what’s called fractional trading, meaning you can buy partial shares in big companies with stock worth hundreds or even thousands per share.
Robinhood made headlines recently during the “Reddit rally,” which pushed its user base into the millions — and made a lot of folks a lot of money.
When you sign up for Robinhood, you can get a free stock. It’s awarded via lottery, so you could end up with stock in a major company like Apple or Visa, worth upwards of $200.
3. Stash
Free stock value: $5
Stash is another investment app that emphasizes ease of use and puts a focus on newcomers to trading.
A Stash Beginner account, their basic plan, costs $1 a month and gets you personalized recommendations of stocks and ETFs to buy based on your own risk tolerance.
And here’s where the free stock comes in: Stash will give you $5 to invest when you sign up, which you can use to buy a fractional share in companies like The Walt Disney Co. and Facebook.
4. Public
Free stock value: Up to $50
Public’s selling point is that it makes trading social. It emphasizes the ability to follow other investors and share insights as a way to increase your financial literacy.
You can also invest with your friends and share tips with a supportive community (a far cry from the clamor of Reddit), and Public has built-in safeguards to protect users. You won’t find any strange or confusing investment instruments, and Public doesn’t sell trades to “market-makers.”
This focus on community is also how you earn your free stock: through Public’s referral program. The free stock is worth up to $50 and is available to both the referrer and the referee.
5. Webull
Free stock value: $2.50 to $250 for signing up; $8 to $1,600 for $100 deposit
Webull is a no-commision investing app that lets users trade stocks, ETFs, options and cryptocurrencies through its mobile app.
You can get two free stocks by enrolling. Upon signing up for a Webull account you’ll get a randomized stock worth between $2.50 and $250. And by depositing your first $100 in your account, you’ll get another stock worth between $8 and $1,600.
Webull offers even more free stock if you refer other users to the service. If you do, the people you’ve referred will get a free stock and you’ll receive another.
