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Wondering whether to dip your toes into the world of investing?
58% of American adults (that’s more than 150 million) report stock ownership.
If you’re looking to join the ranks of amateur investors, the Stash app may be a great way to take the plunge. Stash aims to make investing accessible to everyone, even those who don’t have much cash to put away.
In this article, learn all about Stash, including how much it costs and how it fares according to real users.
What is Stash?
Stash is an investing app that allows you to invest in the things that matter to you, without paying a trading fee. After downloading Stash from either the App Store or Google Play, you’ll sign up and create an investment profile based on your tolerance to risk and whether you want to invest for the long-term or not.
Once you’ve verified your account, you’ll choose an amount that you’d like to invest per week. Stash offers fractional shares so you can invest in big companies with as little as $5 at a time. You’ll then need to connect your bank account to make your first deposit and set up recurring payments.
When your account is set up, you can decide what to invest in, depending on your personal beliefs or how aggressive or conservative you want your portfolio to be. There are specific themes to choose from such as:
- Clean & Green – green energy sources.
- Blue Chips – America’s best-known companies.
- Wireless Wonders – telecom companies.
- Copy the Experts – what professional investors are doing.
- Match the Market – low-cost E
Another thing that Stash offers is plenty of learning resources in the form of articles and tips on its website and within the app itself. Stash is soon to be launching a no-fee bank account and debit card, which will feature daily spending guidance and an automatic savings plan. With the debit card, you’ll be able to earn cashback to deposit into your investment account – watch this space!
What are the Stash fees?
You won’t pay any trading fees with Stash, which is good news. You will have to pay expense ratios, and you’ll also have to pay a flat fee of $1 per month until your balance reaches over $5,000. When your account reaches $5,000 or more, you’ll pay 0.25% per year.
So that’s at least $12 per year, which doesn’t sound much, but one thing to note is that if your Stash account balance is low, the costs will seem disproportionately high. As an example, if your account only keeps a balance of $120, that’s 10% in fees annually.
FIND OUT MORE >>>Check out the top apps like Stash
What real users think about Stash
In the App Store, Stash scores an impressive 4.7 / 5. While over at Google Play, it scores 4.3 / 5. There are thousands of reviews from users available, so we’ve summarised the main points we came across.
Many users feel that investing is simple with Stash, with ease of use being a common theme among the reviews. One beginner investor said that the app takes the fear out of investing. Others mentioned the educational resources as being very useful. Another reviewer said he went from knowing nothing to learning how to invest wisely and make money doing so. This person also recommended the Facebook group too.
On the whole, users highly praise the app. The negative reviews we’ve seen reflect technical issues when signing up, some users losing money (remember, all investments carry risk!) and more experienced investors wanting a bit more choice of investments.
Stash seems to offer a good level of customer support, both in responses to app reviews and by providing help via phone on 1-800-205-5164, Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6.30pm ET.
Is Stash legitimate?
Yes. In the app stores, some people are noticeably concerned that the app asks for a social security number when signing up. However, Stash is quick to address this, stating that the app is a real brokerage account and the SSN is required to validate a user’s identity, under the U.S. Patriot Act.
Stash doesn’t store your bank login information on their servers, and the money that you invest is protected (up to $500,00, including $250,000 in cash). Stash accounts are held by Apex Clearing; a registered broker-deal regulated by FINRA.
Should you use Stash?
If you’re a novice investor, the Stash app allows you to get started within a couple of minutes and with as little as $5. Stash encourages automatic investing, to help you get into the habit of saving regularly for your financial goals.
It’s worth thinking about how much you’ll be able to invest. Then you can calculate whether the fees are going to work for you. If the charges are a sticking point, an app like Robinhood may provide a better solution for you. However, you’ll have to do a bit more legwork in putting together a portfolio with Robinhood, compared to Stash.
Watch: Get inspired to invest with Stash!
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Mitchel holds a Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance from The Goizeta School of Business at Emory University and a Masters of Business Administration from The Haas School of Business at The University of California.
