What are the differences between Robinhood and Webull? If you are into investing and are also looking for an app for the same, it is likely that you have come across two of the more popular platforms available in this space namely, Webull and Robinhood.
Both these platforms offer the users the ability to passively or actively make their investments according to their individual goals. However, there are also a few vital differences between the two services.
In this article you will come to know about the differences between these two platforms which will make it much easier for you to choose the right one according to your need, preference, and situation. Check out Differences Between Robinhood and TD Ameritrade.
Though there are a few similarities between Webull and Robinhood, such as in pricing, there are a few significant differences between them as well. Both these platforms come with their characteristic pros and cons as well.
This is why you should go through articles like this to know the full comparison of the two platforms in order to make a more informed and educated decision while choosing one between the two.
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9 Differences Between Robinhood and Webull
If you are given two options, Robinhood and Webull, to choose from, it may be a bit difficult if you do not know the differences between the two.
Though Webull ranks slightly higher than Robinhood and offers a one of its kind community experience, Robinhood is not one that you should overlook.
Here is the list of differences that you should look for before deciding whether Webull is a platform to choose than Robinhood or vice versa so that you can achieve your financial goals.
1. Basics
Robinhood is based in the United States but was founded in 2013. With its useful features it has revolutionized the industry and has made making investments easier.
On the other hand, much like Robinhood, Webull is a fintech startup that is located in the United States as well. However, it was founded in 2017. This makes Webull a comparatively younger platform than Robinhood only in age but not in its features and functionalities.
2. Best for
Considering the features and functionalities of the two platforms, it can be said that Webull is a much better platform to use by the active traders and the transitional investors. It is also a good platform to use by the options traders, and, of course, by the cryptocurrency traders.
On the other hand, Robinhood is one of the best platforms to use by the mobile users who are more focused on margin accounts, individual taxable accounts, and cryptocurrency.
3. Features and Trading Tools
Robinhood may offer an easy to use trading platform to meet the needs of most of the young and new investors but it lacks the features and trading tools. This may make everyday investing a bit difficult.
This is just a bare-bones trading platform that is good for the new investors and traders who are looking for a smooth user experience. The web platform of Robinhood is deliberately made simple to serve the purposes and needs of the beginners but it is good enough to support the basic needs of the investors as well.
The Webull trading platform, on the other hand, is particularly a browser-based trading platform that you can download easily on your desktop but it comes with advanced features such as screeners, trading charts, indicators, and customization.
In comparison, Webull comes with more refined trading features and tools that are aimed to cater to the needs of both the intermediate as well as the experienced and advanced traders.
4. Mobile App
The mobile app of Robinhood is a useful trading platform that will offer quite a high user experience. It includes news feed, customizable alerts, and candlestick charts. One of the unique aspects of the mobile trading platform of Robinhood is that it will provide you with the ability to listen to the earnings calls live.
On the other hand, the mobile app of Webull is equally useful but it comes with more advanced and better features such as trading charts and indicators, price alerts, paper trading, and voice command.
5. Research and Data
When you use Robinhood for your investment and trading needs, you will get adequate support for research through varied news and data. You will get all the current news from Reuters, WSJ Markets, Cheddar, Barron’s, and CNBC Business to choose one according to your needs.
If you are a Gold member and pay a monthly subscription of $5, you will also get access to research from Morningstar, NASDAQ, and NASDAQ Totalview level II Market Data in addition to that.
In comparison, Webull will also provide you with a lot of data and valuable info for research and analysis, albeit from different sources such as NASDAQ Totalview, Refinitiv, Lipper, Thomson Reuters, and OTC Bulletin Board. You will also get real-time quotes from Options Price Reporting Authority or OPRA for free with one or more options trades every month.
6. Customer Support Options
As for customer support, you may not need too much of it when you use Robinhood due to its website transparency, but, in case you need any, you can use the social media and email options for necessary help.
In comparison, the customer support of Webull seems to be slightly better with more options offered which includes emails, 24/7 phone support, and live chat support through the mobile app.
7. Referral Bonus
One significant aspect that makes Robinhood distinctly different from Webull is the referral bonus factor. As for Robinhood it is exciting for both the current or referring user as well as the new or referred users.
The existing account holders can earn as many as $500 worth of stock for free while making a referral. The valuation may be anywhere between 2 to 2.5 dollars depending on the price of the assets during the market close. However, it is subject to change without notice and the platform also imposes a strict restriction on qualified referrals.
On the other hand, Webull, as of now, does not have any such referral programs. However, it used to offer a referral bonus in the past and may start offering the same in the future.
8. Coin Support
Both Robinhood and Webull support different types of crypto coins. As for Webull, this platform supports investing in particular crypto coins such as Ethereum, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin through Apex Crypto. However, if you do not have the latest version downloaded in your device you may experience some difficulties while trading crypto coins.
In comparison, Robinhood offers support in investing crypto coins like Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Dogecoin, and Litecoin. This platform also supports trading a few minor crypto coins such as Monero and Stellar and you can use real-time data features for that matter as well.
9. Ease of Use
When it comes to ease of use, though both are same, you will however take a longer time to get accustomed with the features offered by Webull. This is because you will find a lot of things to unpack such as the technical trading indicators that are quite intimidating to a beginner in trading and investing.
Therefore, you will need to spend some time learning the features that will allow you to navigate between the watch list, your account balance, research articles and charts quickly once you get accustomed with it.
You can access all relevant information and data with a few taps and can even use a bit of automation by using the bracket trading orders.
The Robinhood platform, on the other hand, is one of the best investing apps for the beginners. It is sleek in design and you will not need to spend a long time to learn how to use it.
The easy to use interface will help you in every trade and even fund your trades instantly with the Robinhood Instant accounts making your trading experience much easier and better. However, there is a specific point to note here. The ease in use of the interface will not help you much in learning more about technical analysis.
Which is the Winner – Robinhood or Webull?
Choosing the winner between Webull and Robinhood is not an easy task because both serve the different purposes of different users.
When it comes to choosing one between the two, you should do so on the basis of the type of investor you consider yourself to be as well as the needs you want the platform to meet.
As it is evident from the list of differences between Robinhood and Webull, Robinhood has a slight edge over Webull when it comes to satisfying the needs of the beginners in investing.
With it offering an easy access to stock and options education, Robinhood helps the beginners in a lot of ways to make their investment quite productive.
There is no point choosing one over the other in terms of pricing because there is literally no difference in it between the two.
Both these platforms allow making transactions at zero charges.
However, you are requested to visit the respective sites to have a look at the complete fees and charges details before you make your final choice.
As for the offers made by the two platforms in investment, Robinhood scores a bit higher than Webull by offering a more diverse selection of options for the same as compared to Webull.
It includes stock trading, fractional shares and options trading but both do not offer mutual funds.
However, if you consider specific aspects such as trading tools, mobile apps, and research capabilities, Webull seems to eclipse Robinhood in all by offering a better user experience, advanced market research, and better mobile trading apps.
In terms of account minimum, both Webull and Robinhood have similar requirements, which is $0.
In the case of margin accounts, the regulatory minimum of both is $2,000.
The features of these two platforms make the working process of them quite different as well.
As for Webull, it is actually an investment trading tool that is designed with a specific goal to provide the users with better tools and information to make the right investment decisions and choices.
And, all these are offered at a low cost. Signing up is easy with Webull to create an account and it is free and does not need any minimum investments as well.
It is available as a desktop platform and as a mobile app as well that supports both Android and iOS devices.
It offers extended hours of trading and charges no commissions from the investors and traders who can trade stocks, ETFs, options, or cryptocurrencies.
You can also do fractional share investing for both stocks and ETFs, open an IRA, or trade in a traditional taxable brokerage account.
There are no extra monthly fees charged by Webull and the service and pricing levels are also not complicated.
You can even sign up with them for a margin account for trading on margin but for that you will need a $2,000 minimum account balance.
The rate of margin interest is inversely proportional and will vary depending on the size of the margin loan.
This means it will typically decrease when the size of the margin loan increases.
As for the working process of Robinhood, which is also quite well-known for its offer for commission-free trading, it primarily focuses on making the process of investing much easier for the individuals.
It is also a good platform for the beginners because it offers a lot of educational materials to help them learn the nuances involved in investing.
Here, once again, you are allowed to open an account for free needing no minimum initial investment.
Robinhood offers the option to buy fractional shares as well which you can do by investing as little as $1 just to start with.
While using Robinhood, your investment habits will be made easy with the automated dividend reinvestment feature offered by the platform.
You will simply have to toggle a switch and the orders along with it as well in order to make recurring investments.
This means that when you set this option, you will not have to remember when you should take these particular actions.
Apart from allowing you to trade cryptocurrencies, using Robinhood will also allow you to open a taxable brokerage account which is specifically useful for the new investors as it will keep things quite simple.
Using these accounts you will be allowed to buy stocks, options, ETFs, or cryptocurrencies.
However, if you want to use more powerful tools to make an investment, you can open a Gold account with Robinhood for a monthly subscription of $5.
This will provide you access to the research reports which will be very useful if you wish to do margin trading. However, as said earlier, for that you will need to have a minimum balance of $2,000 in your account.
Apart from that, you can also open a cash management account with Robinhood in order to earn interest on the cash that you have not invested yet.
In fact, the Robinhood platform will help you much in executing your trades easily after funding your account.
On the other hand, if you use the Webull platform, it will throw a lot of analysis requirements at you before you can execute your trades.
If you are worried about the security and regulation aspects of these two platforms, both are committed to provide a safe and secure environment for trading and investing. Both these platforms are regulated by the major financial bodies.
As for Webull, it is regulated by the US Securities and Exchange Commission or the SEC just like Robinhood is. Both of them are members of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority or FINRA.
However, Webull also offers Securities Investor Protection Corporation or SIPC protection of up to $500,000 for its investors.
There is one specific point that may influence your choice which you should remember. If you choose the Robinhood platform you should be aware of the fact that this particular platform has a few unpopular and less favored policies with respect to day trading.
There are several instances where the accounts of several experienced investors have been banned permanently or limited even though they were not involved in day trading.
However, the final choice is up to you since there is no distinct winner among these two platforms.
Conclusion
When it comes to comparing Robinhood and Webull side by side, it is not an easy task. However, things will seem to be pretty easy once you know the differentiating factors of the two, which was the sole intention of this article.
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