HACKER Q&A
📣 max_

How do you buy stocks?


Hi,

I am in my mid 20's and thought that I needed to start accumulating wealth (besides savings).

I am thinking of accumalting a few stocks.

What platforms do u regard as the best for such activity?


  👤 mixmastamyk Accepted Answer ✓
Charles Schwab is not the absolute cheapest, but they are inexpensive and very helpful and ethical in the service department.

They offer a number of no-load mutual index funds which you can dollar cost average into. A good choice for new investors.


👤 ProjectArcturis
The platforms are more or less the same. Schwab, E-Trade, TD Ameritrade, even Robinhood, all will take your deposits and buy your stocks. If you're depositing $10k plus, some of them might give you $100+ to go with them.

Your bigger decision is whether to go active or passive. For 90% or more of the population in your situation, the best thing to do is buy a Target Retirement Date fund, contribute to it regularly, and gradually build wealth the safe and boring way.

There is a very small percentage of people who can genuinely beat the market. If you're asking the question in OP, you're not there yet. Go back to option 1, park your money there, and do a lot of reading. "Where Are the Customers' Yachts" and "You Can Be a Stock Market Genius" (terrible title, great book) are good places to start.


👤 psyc
TD Ameritrade for stocks. Vanguard for index funds. I’ve had better luck with letting $ sit in an S&P500 index fund for a few years, than with fooling around with individual stocks. YMMV.