If you’re looking for a community-based investing platform that offers commission free trading, fractional shares, and a pretty user interface, then Public is the investment app for you.
While the Public investing app is fairly new, the company itself has been around for a while. Public is a re-brand of Matador, which was the first app to break into the mobile investing app market, so let’s see what Public has to offer and see if it’s worth your time.
How do we rate the Public investment app?
Our Rating
Google Play Rating
Apple Store Rating
I really hate to give public only 4.2 stars, because I actually really like the app, and the way it integrates the community into it is pretty neat, BUT Public just doesn’t have many features.
Public DOES have fractional shares and a Dividend Re-Investment Plan (DRIP), but users have to contact customer support to get the DRIP activated, which is inconvenient.
Their referral program is pretty solid, but really none of it’s strengths are a big enough deal to outweigh the limitations of the app.
Overall, we give the Public investing app 4.2/5 stars, Google play gives it 4.5/5 stars, and the Apple store gives Public 4.7/5 stars.
What services does Public have?
Public doesn’t offer a very big range of services compared to other apps, but it does it’s job. The one feature that it DOES have that’s pretty interesting is the ability to chat with other investors and see their investments.
I wouldn’t say that community feature makes up for the other features it’s missing though, but at least Public offers fractional shares and a DRIP.
| Public Features | Free Account | Premium Account |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Fee | $0 | N/A |
| Minimum Balance | $0 | N/A |
| Instant Deposits |  | N/A |
| Automatic Deposits | | N/A |
| Stocks |  | N/A |
| ETFs | | N/A |
| Options | | N/A |
| Cryptocurrency | | N/A |
| Fractional Shares | | N/A |
| DRIP/FRIP | | N/A |
| Bonds | | N/A |
| Mutual Funds | | N/A |
| Paper Trading | | N/A |
| Margin Accounts | | N/A |
| Retirement Accounts | | N/A |
| Banking Services | | N/A |
| Human Advisors | | N/A |
| Robo Advisors | | N/A |
| Stock Screeners | | N/A |
| Level 2 Market Data | | N/A |
| Other | In-app social messaging | N/A |
How simple is the Public investment app?
Simplicity is one of Public’s stronger points. It’s still not the most simple investing app in the market, Acorns and Cash App still are, but the developers did a pretty good job at keeping the app approachable and intuitive.
You won’t be getting confused by tons of different screens and even if you do have a question, there’s a social media-like community on the app that you can chat with.
Overall, there’s not a lot of investing apps that are more simple than Public is, so don’t worry about not being able to figure it out.
Public sign-up and referral bonuses
One of the best things about Public is it’s sign-up and referral program.
All you have to do to be eligible is sign-up with someone’s referral link, and open an account. Then you just pick a company that you’d like to own and Public will reward you with some stock in that company.
I received $7 in Microsoft, which I believe is the amount they give everyone, although I’m not 100% sure on that yet.
Public's stock research tools
As far as stock research goes, Public doesn’t have good research tools, there’s no point pretending it does.
If you’re interested in day-trading, which is more reliant on technical analysis than long-term investing, you’ll want to look at other apps that have more powerful tools, like Webull or Thinkorswim.
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What do you think about Public?
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If you don’t like Public, check out our homepage for more investing apps that may be a better fit for your needs.
Thank you so much and have a wonderful day!
