With the recent rise in crypto prices, following the re-election of Donald Trump, Coinbase is looking to expand its userbase with a new promotion. It's been many years since they've offered a promotion (or at least one more than $5) and so if you've been waiting on the sidelines, it may be time to jump in.

It's one of the best crypto bonuses right now.

Coinbase New Account Promotion – $50 BTC

For new users, Coinbase will give you $50 in bitcoin once you open your account with the promo code GET50 and make your first trade (minimum of $1).

$50 BTC (of Bitcoin) will be added to your account within 48 hours. It's usually there in a few minutes.

You have to use the link below to open your account and qualify, you can't use a referral link (this offer will not stack with the $20 offer you get for using a referral link) to double up on rewards.

When you open an account, you'll need to provide identifying information like a driver's license or passport (you just upload a photo and they verify it that way). Then, you can link up an account (bank or PayPal, I suggest PayPal) and make a transaction.

The transaction will have fees ($0.99 usually) or you can sign up for Coinbase Pro (7 day trial) to pay nothing.

Get $50 from Coinbase

(Offer expires 11/22/2024)

The post Coinbase Promotions – $50 BTC for New Accounts appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Discover has been around for decades. Most people know about its credit cards, which were first introduced in 1985 by Sears. At the time, it was novel because it had no annual fee and offered cardholders a higher-than-average credit limit.

Today, Discover Bank (FDIC# 5649) is headquartered in Greenwood, DE. It offers a wide range of bank accounts, from savings, checking, and CDs to loans and credit cards.

At a Glance

• 4.00% APY
• No fees
• No miminum balance requirements
• Checking account, money market, and CDs are also available from Discover.

Who Should Use Discover Online Savings

If you are in the market for an online savings account, Discover is a solid choice. It consistently has a high interest rate and there are no fees.

The drawback is that there are no physical branches, so you’ll have to access the account through the Discover website or via the mobile app. You also can’t deposit cash.

Discover Alternatives

Savings APY	4.00% APY	1.00% APY	4.00% APY
Monthly fee	$0	$0	$0
Minimum balance	$0	$0	$0
	Learn more	Learn more	Learn more

Discover Bank Online Savings

Discover’s High Yield Savings account earns 4.00% APY with no minimum balance requirement. Interest is calculated daily and applied to the account monthly.

The account doesn’t charge a monthly fee or any other kind of fee. There is no excessive withdrawal fee, stop payment fee, returned item fee, or insufficient funds fee.

There are several ways to deposit money into this online savings account, such as direct deposit, online transfer from a checking account, mobile deposit, and mailing a check. However, you cannot deposit cash at Walmart like with the checking account.

If you set up direct deposit, you can receive your funds up to two days early with Early Pay.

Go to Discover

Other Discover Bank Accounts

Discover offers a full range of bank accounts with a few (good) twists.

Checking Account

Discover’s checking account has no fees and no minimum balance requirements. Also, its Cashback Debit card allows you to earn 1% cash back on up to $3,000 in spending per month on your debit card (see website for details). Cashback on a debit card is rare.

Since it’s an online bank, depositing cash is a little more difficult. Discover allows you to deposit cash at any Walmart in the U.S. for free. You can add cash up to four times per day, or seven times per week and the money will be available in your account in about ten minutes.

The ATM network is huge – 60,000 locations – and they use Allpoint and MoneyPass’s networks.

You can also enable Balance+, which acts as overdraft protection. This feature allows you to use your debit card to overdraw the account up to $200 with no fees. To qualify for Balance+ you must have direct deposit of at least $200 per month for two months.

You can also receive your direct deposit up to two days early with Early Pay.

Go to Discover

Money Market Account

The money market account earns 3.80% APY for balances under $100,000 and 3.85% APY for balances of $100,000 and above. There are no fees or minimum balance requirements on this account.

You will receive a debit card with this account and can access the account at over 60,000 ATMs for free. Like the checking account, you can deposit cash at any Walmart in the U.S. for free. If you have direct deposit to this account you can get your direct deposit up to two days early.

Certificates of Deposit

Discover offers several CD terms, all with competitive interest rates. To open a CD, there is no minimum deposit. The interest rates are as follows:

• 3-month: 2.00% APY
• 6-month: 3.90% APY
• 9-month: 4.00% APY
• 12-month: 4.10% APY
• 18-month: 3.80% APY
• 24-month: 3.60% APY
• 3-year: 3.50% APY
• 4-year: 3.40% APY
• 5-year: 3.40% APY

As with most CDs, there is a penalty if you withdraw funds before the end of the term. For example, CDs with terms less than 1 year have a penalty of 3 months simple interest, and CDs with terms between 1 and 4 years have a penalty of 6 months of simple interest.

Go to Discover

Discover Bank Fee Structure

Discover Bank doesn’t charge very many fees for its bank accounts.

• No monthly maintenance fee on any deposit account (checking, savings, money market, or CDs)
• No minimum balance on checking, savings, or money market accounts
• No fee on ATM withdrawals in-network (60,000 ATMs) on checking or money market accounts
• No fee on check reorders on checking
• No fee on online transfers on checking, savings, or money market
• No fee on online billpay for checking and market

If you’ve ever made an “excessive number of withdrawals” from a savings account, you were probably upset by the fee. It’s Regulation D limits the number of transfers you can make from a savings account. Well, Discover does not charge you a fee for that. They also don’t charge one for a stop payment or insufficient funds.

Discover Mobile Banking Smartphone App

Discover has a mobile banking app that is on par with any other online bank out there. Anything you would want from a branch or online is available – you can check your account, make transfers, find an ATM, and even deposit checks with mobile deposit.

If you have an Apple Watch, Discover Mobile is available on that too. You can access your account, get reminders, and Cashback Bonus notifications.

The mobile banking app gets 4.5 stars on Google Play and 4.9 stars on the App Store.

Go to Discover

Discover Alternatives

Capital One 360

Capital One, another bank known for its credit cards, also has some attractive banking options. The Capital One 360 checking has no fees or minimum balance requirements and earns 0.01% APY. When comparing this against Discover’s checking account, you’ll have to balance earning a bit of interest against getting 1% back on your debit card purchases.

Capital One also has a savings account that earns 4.00% APY with no fees. It also offers a wide variety of CDs with competitive rates, but no money market account.

Here’s our full review of Capital One’s 360 Savings account.

Go to Capital One

American Express

Ameican Express offers a rewards checking, a high-yield savings account and CDs. The checking account earns 1.00% APY on your balance. Compared to Discover’s checking account, this likely earns more as it earns interest on your whole balance, not just what you spend on your debit card. There are also no monthly fees and no minimum balance requirements.

It also offers a high-yield savings account that earns 4.25% APY with no monthly fees or minimums. It also has a variety of CDs with competitive interest rates with no minimum balance requirements.

Go to American Express

Ally Bank

Ally Bank is an online bank that offers a checking account and a high-yield savings account which earns 4.00% APY. Neither account charges a monthly fee or have minimum balance requirement.

Ally also offers several different types of CDs with attractive rates and it also has a money market account.

Go to Ally Bank

Is It Worth Getting?

If you do not have an online bank, Discover’s online savings account is a solid choice.

It has a competitive interest rate, nice range of certificates of deposit terms and rates, plus it offers a checking account reward – a rarity. They check all the boxes and add a cherry on top.

Their Cashback Debit account product is one of the biggest advantages. You do not see debit rewards very often and 1% cash back on up to $3,000 in purchases each month is very generous.

If you already have an online bank that you like, Discover Bank is similar (the rewards checking is nice but 1% of the maximum $3,000 is only $30, may not be worth switching). Discover Bank has no minimum balance or maintenance fees so it won’t cost you anything – plus you still get a high-interest rate on the account so you don’t lose out there.

Lastly, if awards are important to you, they have a 5 Star Rating Safe & Sound from Bankrate and a 5 Star Rating from Nerdwallet.

You can contact Discover Bank by calling 1-800-347-7000, and they accept general correspondence at Discover Bank, PO Box 30416, Salt Lake City, UT 84130.

Go to Discover

The post Discover® Bank Online Savings Account Review appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Whether it’s delivering restaurant meals, groceries, dry cleaning, or Amazon shipments, thousands of people are making money with delivery job apps. You may be familiar with names like Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Instacart, but there are many other apps that offer the potential to earn a side hustle income with your vehicle.

To help you find the right job, we list the best delivery job apps and explain which states and cities you can use them in, what requirements deliverers must meet, and how much money you might expect to make.  

1. Uber Eats

Expected pay: $15 to $25 per hour

What we like: Flexible delivery, scheduling, and payment options

Launched in 2014, Uber Eats is an offshoot of the Uber ridesharing app and one of the best ways to get food delivered right to your door. The service is available in over 6,000 cities and 45 countries worldwide.

You can deliver for Uber Eats using a car, scooter, bicycle, or foot. 

You can sign up for as little as an hour of delivery with Uber Eats. You’ll be shown the pay for a delivery job before you accept it, and 100% of the tips are yours to keep.

Pay is delivered automatically every week, or you can use InstantPay and cash out up to five times daily. 

In addition, Uber Eats lets you choose whether to be an employee working set shifts or an independent contractor setting your hours. 

Know that all Uber Eats applicants are subject to a background screening. Bicycle or foot applicants must be at least 18 years of age, and car or scooter applicants must be at least 19  years of age. 

✨ Related: 8 Jobs Like Instacart

2. DoorDash

Expected pay: DoorDash doesn’t publish pay rates; however, the job offers plenty of flexibility, and there are ways you can increase your income as a delivery driver.

What we like: Huge customer base.

DoorDash is available in over 7,000 cities in all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and Canada. Signing up to be a Dasher takes just a few minutes, and most Dashers start working within a few days.

You can drive with DoorDash if you have a car, bike, motorcycle, or scooter. There are no other vehicle requirements. 

The DoorDash app displays the pay you receive for each job before you accept it. It also shows you where to pick up the order and where to drop it off.

You keep all of the tips you earn. Along with your per-job pay and tips, there are other opportunities to earn, such as Peak Pay promotions and Challenges. 

Peak Pay pays you extra when you deliver during certain hours. Challenges pay you extra when you make a certain number of deliveries in a set amount of time. 

Customers are encouraged to tip generously, but not all customers will tip. Providing excellent customer service will help you to earn more. 

Learn more in our DoorDash review.

Learn more about DoorDash

3. Instacart

Expected pay: $7-$20 per hour, depending on your job position and how much you earn in tips.

What we like: Flexible job positions.

Instacart was founded in 2012 and operates in all 50 states. One nice thing about Instacart is that you can choose between two jobs: In-Store Shopper and Full Service Shopper.

In-Store Shoppers are responsible for hand-selecting items for customer orders and preparing the orders for delivery. 

As an In-Store Shopper, you don’t do the actual delivery part of the job. However, you must be 18 years old, have a smartphone, be able to lift 50 pounds, and be willing to create your own schedule.

As a Full-Service Shopper with Instacart, you will shop for customers’ groceries and deliver their orders. You must also be at least 18, have a smartphone, and be able to lift 50 pounds. You can set your own schedule too, but you need to have access to a vehicle.

In-Store-Shoppers are paid an hourly wage. Full-Service shoppers are paid per job and can also earn tips.

Getting started with Instacart is easy and only takes a few minutes. Once you’ve signed up, you’re usually approved to work within a few days.

Learn more about Instacart

4. Grubhub

Expected pay: $12-$20 per hour, depending on where you live and tips.  

What we like: The minimum pay thresholds.

Grubhub is a restaurant delivery service founded in 2004. Today, it serves nearly 4,000 cities across all 50 U.S. states. One thing we like about Grubhib is that all locations have a minimum payment threshold. 

That means if a job pays less than the area’s minimum pay threshold, Grubhub will cover the difference to bring it up to the preset minimum pay. This attractive feature helps ensure you’re earning a decent income with the company. 

You can drive a car or ride a bicycle while working with Grubhub. Car drivers must have a valid driver’s license, and bicycle riders must have a valid state ID.

Pay is directly deposited every week. However, an option for Instant Cashout allows you to get up to $500 of your pay daily. With Instant Cashout, you can get paid today if you work today.

Note that there is a $0.50 charge for each Instant Cashout transaction. You can choose scheduled blocks to work for Grubhub or sign on whenever you’re available and work when you want.

However, note that drivers who choose scheduled blocks get priority over non-schedulers. 

For more details, check out our DoorDash vs. Grubhub comparison.

Learn more about Grubhub

5. Amazon Flex

Expected pay: $18 to $25 per hour

What we like: The Amazon Flex Rewards program

As an Amazon Flex driver, you’ll deliver packages for Amazon Prime members, groceries for Amazon Fresh customers, and other deliveries.

You’ll sign up in preset blocks of two to six hours, depending on your location and the work you’re delivering. 

There are also Instant Offers for immediate and shorter blocks. Like Grubhub, Amazon has a minimum payment threshold, which you will see in the work offers you receive.

You can choose to get paid whenever you want, whether that be daily or weekly. You can even choose which day of the week you get paid. 

Amazon Flex also has a rewards program where you can earn points for delivering with them. You can use your points to get cash back, purchase discounts, and more. 

Note that you must be at least 21 years old and eligible to work in the U.S. to work at Amazon Flex. You’ll also need a midsize or larger sedan or SUV to deliver for Amazon. Smaller cars, trucks with open beds, scooters, or other motorized bikes do not qualify. 

6. Caviar

Expected pay: $15 to $25 per hour, possibly more with tips

What we like: Delivery from upscale restaurants

Caviar was launched in 2013 as a delivery service for restaurant patrons in the San Francisco area. It quickly expanded to Seattle and New York City and was purchased by Square in 2014. 

Caviar’s big boast was that it had access to deliveries from higher-end restaurants that wouldn’t typically partner with DoorDash and similar delivery companies. 

In 2019, DoorDash purchased Caviar from Square for a hefty $410 million in cash and stock options. 

Caviar still retains its list of high-end restaurants to which drivers can deliver. However, thanks to DoorDash’s acquisition, Caviar drivers can now deliver to a wider range of restaurants.

Driver requirements and pay match the parent company’s pay, the details of which you can find on the DoorDash website.

This partnership means more delivery opportunities at upscale restaurants and lower-end fast food places. Either way, the expanded opportunities can result in higher earnings for you. You might earn more significant tips if you can secure some Caviar deliveries.

7. Saucey

Expected pay: $10+ per hour, depending on location and tips. 

What we like: Limited overnight/late night shifts.

Saucey is a delivery service that focuses solely on delivering alcohol. You will deliver wine, beer, and other liquor to paying customers.

Because you deliver only when liquor stores are open, you probably won’t work many late-night or overnight shifts. 

Saucey operates in dozens of U.S. cities, including New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis, Dallas, and Orlando.

One thing to note about delivering for Saucey is that you’ll have to ID all your customers upon delivery. This is a requirement for deliverers. 

Saucey has a preset pay amount for every job, which is higher if you’re willing to schedule blocks of delivery time. You must be at least 21 years old and own a reliable vehicle to deliver with Saucey.

Saucey requires a clean driving record, and you must have insurance on your vehicle.

8. Shipt Shopper

Expected pay: $15 to $21 per hour

What we like: Ability to accept more than one order at a time

Shipt was founded in 2014 as a grocery shopping/delivery service and was purchased by Target in 2017. Since then, the service has expanded to thousands of U.S. cities. 

When you deliver for Shipt, you’ll also be expected to shop and need a good working knowledge of selecting quality produce. 

With Shipt, you can accept more than one delivery at a time, which helps you better use your working hours. Orders are paid for using your Shipt card, which has enough money to pay for your orders. 

To deliver for Shipt, you must be at least 18 years old. You also need a 1997 or newer vehicle with insurance and the ability to lift 50 pounds. 

Deliverers will earn a preset pay per order and be rewarded with discounts on products and services in their area. You can earn tips as a deliverer, too, and you’ll have the opportunity to earn perks and bonuses. 

Shipt deliverers are paid every Friday via direct deposit. It’s one of many flexible jobs for college students and others looking to earn extra cash.

✨ Related: Get Paid Today: 17 Ways to Make Money in Your Spare Time

9. Favor Delivery

Expected pay: $10+ per hour.

What we like: You can deliver a variety of items.

If you live in Texas, you might want to consider delivering for Favor. The company operates in dozens of cities, including Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin, Houston, etc.

Favor allows you to deliver groceries and restaurant orders. However, you may also have other opportunities, such as dry cleaning, pharmacy, or pet store deliveries. The variety can make the job more enjoyable.

If you’re delivering by car, you must have a valid driver’s license, but you can also deliver by bicycle with a valid state ID. 

Applicants are subject to background checks. Regarding pay, you can expect to get 35% of the delivery fee and 100% of the tips you earn. Pay is delivered via direct deposit. 

There are minimum pay guarantees if you’re willing to schedule yourself to work block shifts for the company. 

Note that you must be 18 years old to deliver for Favor.

10. Eaze

Expected pay: $18 to $26 per hour

What we like: Attractive pay rates.

Eaze drivers deliver cannabis products from licensed retailers to customers in California and Michigan. Eaze operates in hundreds of California cities and nearly 50 cities in three different Michigan counties. 

To deliver using the Eaze platform, you must be at least 21 years old and complete a criminal background check. Your vehicle must also be a 2005 model year or newer.

Eaze pay rates are higher than many other delivery services. Drivers can earn an hourly wage plus mileage and tips.

Eaze has the tightest driver requirements on our list, and it can take several weeks to get approved as a driver. However, the attractive pay rates may be worth the time and effort. 

11. Gopuff

Expected pay: $14 to $20 per hour

What we like: One central pick-up location.

Gopuff has been around since 2013 and now operates in over 650 locations throughout the U.S.

With Gopuff, you’ll pick up your deliveries at the Gopuff warehouse fulfillment center instead of going to various stores. Customers can order groceries, cleaning supplies, personal goods, alcohol, electronics, health and beauty items, and more. 

Gopuff drivers must be at least 21 years old, as they may be required to deliver alcohol. They must also pass a background check.

You’ll need a reliable vehicle, insurance, and a valid driver’s license to drive for Gopuff. 

You can sign up for on-demand deliveries or schedule a shift. There is a per-pay delivery amount, and you can also earn tips. 

Shift workers get a bonus pay rate for time spent waiting at the fulfillment warehouse. Some locations offer weekly bonuses and Boosts (per-order bonuses offered during high-demand delivery blocks.) 

12. Delivery.com

Expected pay: $16 to $20 per hour, depending on delivery location.

What we like: Driver support call center

Delivery.com is the longest-running delivery service on our list; it was founded in 1995. 

The company delivers groceries, alcohol, gifts, and dry cleaning, covering more than 33 states and thousands of cities in the U.S. 

Driver requirements are minimal; you’ll need a valid driver’s license and a car with insurance. You must also be 21 years old and agree to a background check. 

You’ll be offered a base pay rate for each delivery and keep 100% of the tips you earn. There are opportunities to earn bonuses as well. 

If you have questions about deliveries you’re scheduled to complete, the company’s driver support call center is available. You’ll get paid via direct deposit, but you can also choose daily pay for a fee.

13. Dolly

Expected pay: $50 per hour on average for Helpers and $35 per hour on average for Hands.

What we like: Highest earning potential

Dolly works a bit differently than the other delivery services on this list. When you work as an independent contractor for Dolly, you can work as a Dolly Helper or a Dolly Hand. 

Dolly Helpers must own a pickup truck, a car with a trailer, a cargo van, or a box truck to help customers move or transport items. 

Dolly Hands help people move items; no transporting is required. 

Both positions require you to be able to lift at least 75 pounds. You earn more money for being a Helper than a Hand, but both positions pay well. 

Pay is distributed via PayPal on Fridays and Tuesdays. You’ll work as an independent contractor when you deliver for Dolly.

That means you’ll be expected to keep track of your income and expenses and report them to the IRS at tax time. 

All applicants are subject to background checks, and they can expect to be approved to start working in five to ten days. Use the Dolly app to find jobs near you.

How to Choose a Delivery App

There are a few factors to consider when deciding on a delivery app. First, you’ll need to ensure the app is available where you live. Unless you live in a very rural area, most of the major apps, such as Instacart, DoorDash, and Uber Eats should be in the area.

Second, make sure you can meet the driver requirements. For example, to make alcohol deliveries for Saucy, you must be 21 or over. If you want to deliver for Dolly, you must be able to lift at least 75 lbs. Of course, there are the vehicle requirements. Depending on the app, you may need to own a reliable vehicle of a certain model year or newer.

Lastly, make sure the app works with your schedule. For example, if you’re never available during the evenings or on weekends, you might not be able to maximize your earnings during peak hours with certain apps.

How to Make More Money as a Delivery Driver

Delivery apps can make a great side hustle, but your earnings can get squeezed if you’re not careful. Here are some tips for maximizing your earnings as a delivery driver.

1. Drive during peak hours: If you’re going to spend your precious time delivering groceries or restaurant meals, you want to make it worthwhile. Try to work during the busiest times. This is often evenings, weekends, and holidays, but some restaurants are also busy during lunch.
2.  Watch your expenses: It doesn’t matter how much money you make if you can’t keep your expenses under control. And being a delivery driver can be costly. Try to drive an affordable, fuel efficient vehicle. Lastly, avoid hitting the drive thru and spending your hard-earned money on expensive fast food or lattes while you work.
3. Focus on providing great customer service: Being kind, cheerful, and helpful will result in more tips. Go the extra mile when you have the opportunity. People often give better tips for great service.
4. Work efficiently: Making the best use of your time by getting deliveries where they need to go quickly and safely is another way to increase your earnings. You’ll earn more tips and complete more jobs.
5. Take advantage of promotions and challenges, and peak hours: Many delivery companies offer higher pay when running promotions or challenges. Take advantage of these opportunities and increase your income. 

FAQs

Final Thoughts on the Best Delivery Job Apps

The best delivery job apps help you work around your schedule while making a decent wage. Some delivery apps allow you to work for more than one company simultaneously. You can create a successful side hustle stack by working for multiple delivery job apps. If you’re looking for a new way to earn extra cash, there’s no better time than now.

The post 13 Best Delivery Job Apps for Making Extra Money appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Most budgets are set up to be monthly.

Many of our bills are monthly so it’s a convenient way of managing your spending.

But many of us aren’t paid monthly, we’re paid every two weeks (biweekly). When you’re paid biweekly, a monthly budget can sometimes be a bit “off.” We have months where you’re paid twice and a couple where you’re paid three times.

And some of us are paid weekly, which means some months will have four pay periods and others will have five.

These non-monthly pay periods can throw off your budget, which is why some people prefer paycheck budgeting (which sounds better than weekly or biweekly budgeting, despite the alliteration!).

What is Paycheck Budgeting?

Paycheck budgeting is when you align your spending with your paychecks. This is best done with a planner of some kind (we have linked up our printables below).

For each month, you match your expenses with your income.

You begin at the top by listing your paychecks, the dates you will get them deposited, the amount, and any other notes you may have about that payment.

Next, list all of your month’s expenses, the amount, and their due dates. This is anything that is billed regularly on a month basis.

For example, you may have:

• Rent/Mortgage – 1st of the month
• Cell phone – 5th of the month
• Cable television – 10th of the month
• Netflix – 15th of the month
• Gym – 18th of the month
• Credit card #1 – 20th of the month
• Student loan – 25th of the month

Then, you want to match those expenses with specific paychecks so you have complete coverage of your expenses.

How to Budget by Paycheck

If you’re paid twice a month (1st and 15th), you know that those bills from the 16th to 31st are paid by the paycheck you received on the 15th. The bills from 1st to 15th will be paid by the paycheck received on the 1st. (you can also get an account that gives you your paycheck two days early)

Once you match up your fixed expenses, it’s now time to see what’s left over to apply towards your variable expenses, like groceries, gas, and savings.

Once you budget for those items, you have either a surplus or a deficit, which is carried over to the next pay period.

If you have a deficit, this is when you can start adjusting your variable expenses (or negotiating your fixed expenses) so that you have a surplus. If you have a surplus, great, you can still adjust and negotiate to increase that surplus.

Download Our Paycheck Budgeting Printable

Our paycheck budgeting printable is very simple because the concept of paycheck budgeting is very simple. Matching up expenses with your paychecks is a time honored technique because it works. The math supports it.

Our paycheck budgeting printable has five weeks so it covers any month of the year. If you are paid twice a month, treat each “week” as a pay period.

In 2024, if you are paid weekly, the five paycheck months are March, May, August, and November.

If you are paid biweekly, then the three paycheck months will depend on the day of your first paycheck:

• If paid on January 5th, you have three paychecks in March and August
• If paid on January 12th, you have three paychecks in May and November

In 2025, if you are paid weekly, the five paycheck months are January, May, August, and October.

If you are paid biweekly, then the three paycheck months will depend on the day of your first paycheck:

• If paid on January 3rd, you have three paychecks in January and August
• If paid on January 10th, you have three paychecks in May and October

👉 Get our Paycheck Budgeting Printable

The post What is Paycheck Budgeting? (plus Free Template Printable!) appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Tax loss harvesting is when you realize previously unrealized losses (sell stock that is down) to lower your realized capital gains on the year. It's one of the most popular year end tax moves you can make to reduce your taxable income.

Capital gains harvesting is when you take advantage of your taxable income situation and realize some unrealized gains (sell stock that is up) because you will be favorable taxes on that gain.

As always, consult with a financial professional before making any decisions.

How does capital gains harvesting work?

If you are sitting on large unrealized capital gains and expect to be in a lower tax bracket this year than in the future, you can sell those assets, realize the capital gain, and pay a lower rate.

This is most effective when realizing long term capital gains (gains on assets you've held for over a year) while you are in the 0% long term capital gains tax bracket.

For 2024, these are the income brackets for the 0% long term capital gains tax rate:

For 2025, they will be:

In 2024, if you are single and have no taxable income, you could harvest $47,025 of capital gains without paying any taxes. Remember, taxable income is your adjusted gross income minus any deductions (standard or itemized).

The idea is that because of your income, you can now realize a gain and reset its basis without being taxed on it. With taxable gain harvesting, there's no worry for a wash sale rule or anything like that. You can sell and buy back the asset immediately.

Is it worth it?

Like many similar tactics, it depends on your situation.

The benefit is in how much gain you're shielding from the dreaded 15% long term capital gains rates. You're saving 15% in long term capital gains tax but limited based on your current income.

If you're single and you made just $10,000 in taxable income, then you can shield $38,350 in long term gains. That's worth $8,752.50. You're also resetting the basis of the holding (assuming you buy back in) without any risk.

Whether that's worth your time depends on how much your time is worth!

Is there a catch?

You have to be very careful at the income crossover points.

In 2025, if you're single and your taxable income is $48,349, then you pay 0% on long term capital gains.

If you income was just a few dollars higher, such as $48,352, then you'll pay 15% on long term capital gains.

And since you'll have to make this decision before the end of the calendar year, it can be tricky to play too close to the limits.

It would be tragic if you forgot a few dollars of interest from some obscure bank you rarely use.

But other than that, there's no catch.

The post What is capital gains harvesting? appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Rocket Money is an app that can help you manage your finances, cancel unwanted subscriptions, and negotiate your current bills. In addition to subscription management, it allows you to monitor your credit and net worth.

The budgeting features sync with your accounts, allowing you to categorize your transactions against your budget easily.

There is a free plan and a “pay-what’s-fair” plan that costs between $6 and $12 per month.

At a Glance

• Subscription management and cancelation services
• Bill negotiation services
• Budgeting features
• Credit and net worth tracking
• Free and paid plan available

Who should use Rocket Money

Rocket Money’s best features are the subscription management and the bill negotiation service. If you struggle to overcome the friction of canceling unwanted subscriptions, Rocket Money is a must. It will pull all your subscriptions into one place. On the free plan, it gives step-by-step instructions on how to cancel and will cancel them for you on the paid plan.

The bill negotiation service is available on both plans; you’ll pay a percentage of your savings.

Alternatives to Rocket Money

Primary service	Budgeting	Net worth tracking	Bill negotiation
Pricing	$14.99 monthly or $109 annually	Free	50% of annual savings
	Learn more	Learn more	Learn more

What Is Rocket Money?

Rocket Money is a budgeting app for Android and Apple devices. 

There are both Free and Premium plans, each with various perks. 

Some of the member perks include:

• Account tracking
• Subscription management
• Balance alerts
• Subscription cancellation assistant
• Bill negotiation
• Budgeting
• Credit score tracking
• Net worth tracking

You’ll get the most from Rocket Money if you use it to monitor your spending and the subscription management tools. Its free tools make it an ideal budgeting app, but the premium subscription remains affordable if you don’t need hands-on budgeting help.

Go to Rocket Money

How Does Rocket Money Work?

You can follow these steps to join Rocket Money:

1. Download the Android or Apple mobile app
2. Link your financial accounts
3. Analyze spending habits
4. Look for ways to save money
5. Create budgeting and savings goals
6. Monitor financial progress with regular updates.

Rocket Money Features

Account Syncing

Rocket Money links your banking, credit card, and investment accounts through Plaid. This third-party service has read-only access and doesn’t store your sensitive details for extra privacy. 

Your account balances update daily the first time you log into your account. The app will send spending insights and alerts when direct deposits hit your account. Linking as many accounts as possible makes it easy to see how much you spend and earn accurately. 

After linking your accounts, you can begin categorizing your transactions. Rocket Money auto-categorizes most transactions, so the ongoing maintenance requirements are minimal.

Manage Subscriptions

This feature is one of Rocket Money’s most useful features.

You may intuitively have a ballpark estimate about your fixed living expenses, such as utility bills, food, and childcare. What about your subscriptions? Especially subscriptions that bill annually. It’s very easy to forget about these bills until it’s too late, and you’ve accidentally paid for another year.

After linking your accounts, Rocket Money looks through your transaction history for recurring subscriptions and lists them in one place so you can easily see them.

This feature is a good exercise in determining which services you regularly use and the others you can live without. 

Bill Cancellation

Premium subscribers can have the app cancel subscriptions on their behalf. Free users will receive step-by-step directions to stop service, which can save you time despite doing the hard work yourself.

This feature is helpful if you’re the type to keep putting off canceling because it takes too long or — if you’re like me — you aren’t exactly sure how to do it, so you just don’t. 

Go to Rocket Money

Bill Negotiation

All subscribers can see if Rocket Money will negotiate your existing bills for a lower rate. This is an excellent exercise to practice at least once a year for services you can’t live without to ensure you’re paying the best price.

Some of the best savings opportunities include:

• Cable or satellite TV
• Home Internet
• Postpaid phone plans (i.e., Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and T-Mobile)
• Satellite Radio
• Newspapers

Cable bills and contract cell phone plans have the most potential for discounts. The bill negotiator may see if they can switch you to a newer plan that has the same features as your existing plan but is cheaper. There may also be loyalty bonuses or limited-time promotions that can reduce your bill for the following year. 

The service claims to have an 85% success rate in lowering your bills. You pay a one-time success fee and get to decide how much of the first year of savings to contribute as payment.

Rocket Money can also try to save money on these expenses:

• Car insurance
• Bank overdraft fees
• Bill payment late fees

Budgeting Features

In addition to real-time spending alerts and direct deposit notifications, Rocket Money lets you create a simple spending plan. The budgeting tools are not as powerful as some free budgeting tools, but they can help you quickly see if you’re living within your means for the month.

This budgeting app generates a monthly report summarizing your spending and income patterns. It’s also possible to analyze these topics throughout the month:

• Bills paid
• Current spending
• The income left for savings.
• Money left for spending
• Monthly earnings so far

Most reports are available on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly period.

Premium members can create unlimited budgets and use account sharing so you can budget with another premium member.

Smart Savings

Premium subscribers can use the Smart Savings feature to contribute to their savings goals automatically. You can decide how much to save and how frequently to withdraw from your linked checking account. 

To prevent account overdrafts, the service skips withdrawals when you have insufficient funds in your account. 

Your cash goes into an FDIC-insured account until you’re ready to spend it. Unfortunately, you may not earn interest on these deposits. Instead, consider a high-yield savings account to make money on your short-term savings. 

Go to Rocket Money

Net Worth Tracker

Premium members can also track your net worth through your linked accounts. This feature may not be as essential as budgeting or tracking spending, but it’s another way to monitor your financial progress.

There are more powerful net worth tracking tools, but Rocket Money does an adequate job.

Credit Score Monitoring

Free users can view their Experian VantageScore 3.0 credit score for free. The app refreshes your score monthly. Although this isn’t the same score that most lenders use to make credit decisions (that would be the FICO Score from the Fair Isaac Corporation), it will give you a good estimate of your creditworthiness.

You can also see areas of improvement that can help you achieve a good credit score. However, free subscribers won’t be able to access their credit report.

Premium members can view their full Experian credit report. This report updates monthly, so be sure to access it regularly to avoid missing an update.

This is a nice feature, and it helps assess your complete financial picture. Keep in mind there are several ways to check your credit score for free with more constant updates. Other credit monitoring services may retrieve your score from more credit bureaus and possibly offer your FICO Score.

Rocket Money Pricing

Two different membership plan options are available: Lite and Premium. Pricing for Lite is free, and Premium is $3 – $12 but features a “Pay What’s Fair” option, which I’ll explain in more detail below.

A 7-day free trial is available on the Premium plan.

Free

The Lite plan is the standard option and is free for life. 

Its benefits can get the job done and include the following:

• Account linking
• Balance alerts
• Subscription management
• Spend tracking
• Daily account syncing

The free plan is best if you want to monitor your spending and account balances but don’t need hands-on help canceling or negotiating a lower price for recurring bills. 

The budgeting tools are limited to two categories, which can be sufficient to avoid overspending on your most significant monthly expenses.

Premium: $6-12 / month

The Premium plan offers a 7-day free trial, and then you choose to pay between $6 and $12 per month. This app follows a “Pay What’s Fair” strategy, so you can decide how much to spend.

According to Rocket Money, the average paid user pledges $6.99 monthly.

To help you decide if Rocket Money Premium is worth it, these are the available perks:

• Unlimited budgets
• Credit score and full credit report (vs. credit score only)
• Automated subscription cancellations
• Bill cancellation concierge
• Net worth tracking
• Real-time account syncing (vs. daily syncing)
• Shared accounts
• Premium chat
• Export data

You might want to upgrade to the premium plan if you want unlimited budgets, shared accounts, or automated subscription management tools.

Go to Rocket Money

Is Rocket Money Safe?

Yes, Rocket Money is a safe way to monitor your banking account transactions, look for ways to reduce spending, and track your credit score.

Most personal finance software apps use the same third-party service (Plaid) to connect to your accounts. This software doesn’t store personal information on its servers and uses bank-level security to protect your account. In addition, when you need to share your data with others, you can scramble it for additional privacy.

Alternatives to Rocket Money

Rocket Money can help improve your finances, but these other services can be better if you need hands-on help with a specific need. If none of these sound good, also check out our list of the best budgeting apps for couples.

You Need A Budget (YNAB)

If you want a serious budget and to stop living paycheck to paycheck, You Need A Budget (YNAB) is an excellent option. YNAB isn’t free, though; it costs $14.99 monthly or $109 annually, but there is a 34-day free trial to see if it’s a good fit.

The YNAB budget follows a zero-based budget approach, assigning each dollar to a specific task. So, you have to plan to spend or save every dollar you make, which is a well-tested and effective budgeting method.

The app walks you through the budgeting process and reviews many monthly expenses that are easily overlooked with basic budgeting tools like Rocket Money or Mint.

The spending and net worth reports are also robust. There are also several financial calculators to help you plan upcoming goals.

For more information, check out our full YNAB review.

Go to YNAB

Empower Personal Dashboard

Empower Personal Dashboard is arguably the best free net worth tracker available today, as you can link all of your banking and brokerage accounts and add manual accounts. The service includes basic spend tracking tools to categorize transactions and ensure you live within your means.

Creating savings goals and reviewing your investment portfolio’s asset allocation and fund fees is also possible. It has a suite of planning tools that are useful for retirement planning, but they will try to sell you on their wealth management services.

Read our Empower Personal Dashboard review for more information.

Go to Empower

BillCutterz

BillCutterz can negotiate your existing bills on your behalf, and you only pay if it saves you money. BillCutterz can save you on bills such as, cell phone, cable, internet, satellite radio, and more. It takes about 48 hours after you submit the bill to find out if you’ve received any savings.

BillCutterz charges 50% of the annual savings it negotiates for you. For example, if they save you $20 a month on your cell phone bill, they will charge $10 per month for 12 months or $120. You can pay monthly or get a 10% discount by paying in full right away.

Go to BillCutterz

FAQs

Is Rocket Money Worth It?

Rocket Money can be an effective way to make a free budget if you want to track spending easily and don’t need hands-on help. The paid subscription can be worth it if you need unlimited budgeting access and other money-saving tools. The “Pay What’s Fair” option makes it an even better value.

But while the app has several additional features, not everyone will find them all useful. If you’re looking for more in-depth tools for budgeting or tracking your spending, consider other options, such as YNAB or Personal Capital, in addition to Rocket Money.

Since it is free, it doesn’t hurt to try it out. You can also test drive the premium services to see if you find value in them.

The post Rocket Money Review: Is Rocket Money Safe? appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Ipsos iSay is a paid survey site open to 18+ residents of the United States and Canada. You’ll be redirected to a local Ipsos iSay survey site if you live elsewhere. You can sign up for free — never pay to join a survey site or panel — and immediately start taking surveys. While there is no signup bonus, iSay members earn points that can be redeemed for PayPal Cash, gift cards, prepaid Visa cards, and merchandise.

At a Glance

• Free to join
• No signup bonus
• Complete surveys to earn points
• Redeem points for PayPal Cash, gift cards, prepaid cards, and merchandise

Who Should Use Ipsos i-Say?

If you are looking for an easy way to earn a few extra dollars each month and enjoy taking surveys, you should consider online survey sites like Ipsos i-Say. It is free to join, and you can complete surveys while sitting on the bus, in a waiting room, or on your sofa at home.

However, if you’re looking for a side hustle with more income opportunities, don’t waste your time with paid surveys. You might earn enough to cover your monthly Netflix subscription or a few Starbucks lattes, but that’s about it.

Ipsos i-Say Alternatives

Sign up bonus	$0	$10	$5
Average payout (per survey)	Up to $2	Up to $3	$2
Min. payment threshold	$3	$5	$
Payment methods	PayPal, Gift Cards	Bank transfer, PayPal, Gift Cards	Gift Cards
	Learn More	Learn More	Learn More

What Is Ipsos i-Say?

Ipsos i-Say is an online survey company and division of Ipsos, one of the largest market research companies in the world. The Ipsos Group, founded in 1975 by Didier Truchot, is headquartered in Paris, France, has offices in 88 countries, over 16,000 employees, and is publicly traded. It’s legitimate.

You can sign up for online surveys within minutes. The process includes a few demographic and targeting questions because they like to get the pre-survey questions out of the way. They will ask about your gender, date of birth, marital status, education, race, household makeup, etc.

Afterward, you need to click on a confirmation survey and you’re off to the races.

The first survey is a pre-qualification one called the “Getting to Know You Survey” – it’s a very short interview. It’s basically a survey that fills out your demographic information, like employment status, and level of interest in surveys. It’s only about a dozen questions max and it’s a way for them to understand the people who join. This helps them put you into the right panels.

Visit Ipsos I-Say

How Ipsos i-Say Works

Unlike other survey sites, which will give you points for downloading apps, watching videos, shopping, playing games, and other activities; Ipsos i-Say focuses solely on surveys. You’ll get invites via email or you can look in the Dashboard for surveys that you qualify for.

There are surveys and “polls.” Surveys will start with qualifying questions and then move onto the survey itself. If you don’t qualify, you still get 5 points. If you do, the points will be much higher since it will take longer.

There are also polls. The polls are not surveys and so you don’t get points for answering them… but they are part of a bigger contest. When you finish a survey, you get to play Poll Predictor where you guess what percentage of people will answer Yes to the different polls. If you get it right, you get “chances,” which are entries into Ipsos i-Say’s prize sweepstakes.

Here’s a recent one where I had to guess how many people answered yes to this question – “Do you smoke a cigarette before leaving home every day?” I put 18%, the real answer was 15%, I earned 15 chances and immediately allocated them to the $300 Amazon.com gift card drawing.

(some of these are really wacky… like “If a stranger knocked on your door and asked to use the toilet, would you let them? What percentage of American women answered “YES” ? — I guessed 11%, and the real answer was 13%!)

In addition to earning points by completing surveys, you get Ipsos iSay loyalty rewards. If you finish five surveys, you get a 25-point bonus. If you do another five (and thus hit ten), you’ll earn another 50 bonus points. Finish 15 more (and thus hit 25); you’ll get another 100 bonus points. This is in addition to what you earn for the survey itself.

Bonus point schedule:

• Five surveys: 25 bonus loyalty points
• 10: 50 bonus loyalty points
• 25: 100 bonus loyalty points
• 50: 200 bonus loyalty points
• 75: 250 bonus loyalty points
• 100: 300 bonus loyalty points
• 125: 400 bonus loyalty points
• 150: 500 bonus loyalty points
• 200: 600 bonus loyalty points

They add up!

How Ipsos i-Say Points & Rewards Work

100 points on Ipsos iSay is worth $1. You trade the points in for gift cards for Amazon, Starbucks, Target, etc – the cards are delivered instantly. You can redeem i-Say points once you get to 500, which is lower than some other sites, and they don’t expire as long as your account is active.

You can also request a Paypal payment (slightly more expensive, 1530 points for $15) but that will take 3-4 weeks to process. You can also request a prepaid Visa card, $2000 points for $20, with no premium and that takes 4-8 weeks to get to you (it’s sent by USPS).

You can always donate your points to various charitable organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity and the Nature Conservancy.

Finally, you can cash in 250 iSay points for an entry into the prize sweepstakes.

Visit Ipsos I-Say

Ipsos i-Say vs. Alternatives

Survey Junkie

Survey Junkie is a popular paid survey site. Its primary focus is surveys, but you can unlock higher-paying surveys by sharing where you browse and shop online. At the time of writing, Survey Junkie was not offering a sign-up bonus, but they have a low minimum payout of $3 (e-Gift card). The company also offers monthly promotions that can help you boost your point-earning.

Visit Survey Junkie

Swagbucks

Swagbucks is a highly popular online rewards platform, but it differs from Ipsos i-Say in that it offers members several different ways to earn rewards, called Swagbucks. In addition to online surveys, you can earn points for shopping online, taking advantage of exclusive deals, searching the web, playing online games, and more. It currently offers an attractive $10 signup bonus with a low minimum payout of only $5.

Visit Swagbucks

MyPoints

MyPoints is similar to Swagbucks in that you can earn points different ways, including paid surveys, online shopping, product testing, scanning your grocery receipts, and playing online games. MyPoints has a $5 signup bonus and a low minimum payout of $3.

Visit MyPoints

FAQs

Visit Ipsos I-Say

Is Ipsos i-Say Worth It?

It will depend on you and how busy you are. The big challenge with any survey site is qualifying for surveys.

If you are lucky and happen to match a lot of them, then you could clean up. If you are unlucky and don’t happen to match a lot of them, you’ll get 5 points a lot. Some people find they qualify for a lot, others find it a struggle. This is something that I can’t give any advice on, we’re all different. I do know they have a lot of surveys, so it’s not because the pickings are slim.

Personally, I found that after the initial flurry and getting to around $7-8, I struggled for a bit to answer enough surveys to reach $10. I failed to qualify for many and eventually just waited to get those points rather than survey answering points.

If you’re OK with that result, my best advice is to give it a try and see how many you qualify for (for what it’s worth, their time estimates on surveys are too high — I usually finished them much faster than they estimated). Since the sign-up process is so quick, it’s low risk.

As for how much money you can make, it will not get you rich. It’s nice to get a few bucks every so often for answering iSay surveys, but that’s all it’ll be, a few bucks here or there. I think anyone who promises wealth and riches from a survey website is delusional.

The post Is Ipsos i-Say a Scam or Legit? (2024) appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

But Greenlight isn’t the only kids banking app worth considering. Here are five alternative kids banking apps that you should explore before deciding on the right one for your children.

The five Greenlight alternatives are summarized below:

	Best for	Learn more
	Low cost	Learn more
	Financial education resources	Learn more
	No recurring fees	Learn more
	Building credit	Learn more
	Provides investment option	Learn more

FamZoo

Best for: Low cost

• Minimum account balance: $0
• Spending roundups: No
• Allowance and chores: Yes
• Investment option: No
• Fees: $5.99 per month, with discounts up to 58% when you pay in advance

Much like Greenlight, FamZoo is built around a debit card for your child(ren), and while it offers more features overall, it’s limited in scope. For example, while Greenlight accounts pay interest, FamZoo provides for interest paid to children by their parents.

Also important is that the debit card provided is a prepaid card. No bank account is required to open an account, and there is a single fee plan for all users, which can be paid using a credit card on file.

The account provides instant card-to-card transfers, direct deposit of paychecks and tax refunds, card activity alerts, automated allowance and chores, and savings goal tracking. You can also set up specific accounts for spending, saving, and giving. If you do, percentage allocations of any funds received on the child’s account will go into each specific account.

Here's our full review of FamZoo for more information.

Go to FamZoo

GoHenry

Best for: Financial education resources

• Minimum account balance: $0
• Spending roundups: No
• Allowance and chores: Yes
• Investment option: No
• Fees: $5 per month per child, or $10 per month for up to four children

Like FamZoo, GoHenry provides prepaid debit cards for kids. Since the card does not have a bank account attached, parents make interest payments on savings allowances.

The card provides for allowance and chores and offers a wealth of educational tools to help your kids learn to become savvier in managing their finances. Those resources are conveniently tailored to your child’s age, providing progressively more challenging modules.

GoHenry allows you and your child to select from one of more than 45 customizable debit card designs. A companion app is available for parents, enabling you to track spending and savings activity, set spending limits and savings goals, and receive real-time spending notifications. The card can even be used to give to charity (the Boys and Girls Clubs of America) or to split a check with friends and family.

Here's our full goHenry review for more information.

Go to GoHenry

Chase First Banking

Best for: No recurring fees

• Minimum account balance: $0
• Spending roundups: No
• Allowance and chores: Yes
• Investment option: No
• Fees: No monthly service fees

Chase First Banking differs from some other apps on this list in that it is actually a bank account. That means it can offer some real-world benefits that standalone debit cards don’t, like the ability to gain experience with a live bank account. The account and debit card are designed for kids between the ages of 12 and 17. And while parents manage it, kids have access to multiple banking features.

Each participating child will receive a Chase debit card that can be used for both purchases and ATM access. Parents can set spending limits, as well as withdrawal limits, and receive alerts for account activity. As a parent, you will also have the ability to either approve or reject a child’s request for additional funds.

Kids can monitor the activity on their accounts using the Chase mobile app. In addition, your child will enjoy access to more than 4,700 Chase branches and more than 15,000 in-network ATMs.

Here's our full review of Chase First Banking for more information.

Go to Chase First Banking

Current

Best for: Building credit

• Minimum account balance: $0
• Spending roundups: Yes
• Allowance and chores: No
• Investment option: Crypto investing only with as little as $1
• Fees: No annual fees

Current offers a kids checking account and debit card through Choice Bank. It offers a unique benefit with the ability to use the account to build credit, at least if your child has a wage-earning job. This is done by qualifying for paycheck advances of $50 to $500. It’s even possible to increase the advance if the child’s income is stable and increases.

There is no credit check, and no interest is charged on the advance. Advanced funds are available in one to three days. The repayment is reported to the major credit bureau giving your child an opportunity to build credit.

Current offers another valuable perk. While the account doesn’t pay interest, you can earn a bonus of up to 4.00% APY annually on your savings. To help you build savings, your child can take advantage of the roundup feature to add a little money to savings with each purchase made with the debit card. 

Here's our full review of Current for more information.

Go to Current

BusyKid

Best for: Provides investment option

• Minimum account balance: $0
• Spending roundups: No
• Allowance and chores: Yes
• Investment option: Yes
• Fees: $4 per month (billed annually) for up to 5 cards

BusyKid is a chore management app with a debit card. But it distinguishes itself from the competition by offering an investment option.

Investing requires parents to open an investment account with BusyKid’s brokerage service, which is held with Apex Clearing. A section of the account is established for the child to make investments, which requires a minimum initial investment of $10. The child or teen will be able to make purchases and sales through the account, with the parents notified of each trade. 

Another interesting feature is the Savings Match. Parents can match a child’s savings contributions based on a percentage of the deposit made. Your child can also contribute to charities, subject to the parent’s approval. The debit card is a Visa card issued by Pathward, N.A., Member FDIC.

BusyKid also offers a wealth of financial education resources, including budgeting, compound interest, credit and credit scores, inflation, taxes, compound interest, 401(k) plans, and more.

Go to BusyKid

What are Kids Banking Apps?

Kids banking apps are simply apps designed to provide at least limited banking access to kids. They are generally available to kids between the ages of six and 17. While they have many of the services offered with a traditional checking account, there are notable exclusions.

For example, kid's banking apps don’t normally permit overdrafts or check-writing privileges. Instead, the entire app is built around a debit card. The child can use the debit card to make in-store and online purchases and often withdraw cash from ATMs.

Since kids are minors, kid's banking apps require parental monitoring. That means the parents are required to be included on the account and will have general oversight over any activity the child engages in. This gives parents the ability to know how much and what their kids are spending money on and to put limits on that spending authority.

Because there are so many different kid's banking apps, each offers a wide variety of features and services. As you can see from our list, some provide savings capabilities and even introduce kids to investing.

Because of the range of services and fees, parents should choose a kid’s banking app that provides the service level the parents are trying to help their children learn.

How to Choose a Kid's Banking App

If you’re looking for the best banking app for your kids, you don’t want to simply throw a dart and choose the cheapest one available. Start by evaluating exactly what you want a banking app to help your child with.

Major factors to consider include the following:

Do you want a debit card with a real bank account attached? A debit card with a bank account will give your child real-life experience with a bank account. What’s more, many banks will allow your child to convert the kid’s bank account to an adult checking account upon reaching the age of majority in your state.

But not all kids are ready for a whole bank account. If you just need a convenient way to give your child some money, a debit card without a bank account could be the perfect solution.

Do you want a kid’s banking app with an interest-bearing savings option or even investing? Many banking apps do provide an interest-bearing savings option. That can be a good way to help you show your child how to save money for future purchases. Fewer kid's banking apps provide an investment option. One that does is BusyKid. That will not only teach your child the basics of investing but also give him or her a head start on building a strong financial future.

Cost. The cost of a kid's banking app shouldn’t become a financial burden. Though many of the ones outlined above have small monthly fees, choosing one with no recurring fees is possible. Current and Chase First Banking are two examples.

Educational resources. One of the primary benefits of a kid’s banking app are the financial educational resources they provide. There’s a wide variety of resources among these apps. Apps like GoHenry and BusyKid offer resources to help your child learn about everything from budgeting to investing.

How to Open a Kids Banking App

Kids banking apps can be opened on Google Play or The App Store by downloading the banking app to a mobile device or by signing up for the app on the issuer's website.

You’ll need the information typically required to open any financial account in the US. Among the possible requirements are:

• Your email address.
• Mobile phone number.
• Your children’s names and dates of birth.
• Your legal first and last name.
• The physical address of all participants.
• Your date of birth.
• Your Social Security number.
• A valid government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license.

You will also be required to connect an existing bank account or credit card to the banking app for funding purposes.

What About Kids Checking Accounts and Prepaid Debit Cards?

Kids checking accounts or prepaid debit cards may be viable additional alternatives to Greenlight. 

Kids Checking Accounts

If your kids are a bit older, another option is to get them their own checking account.

Giving them their own checking account is a great way to start transitioning them into financial adulthood. It’s a stepping stone to their own adult checking account, as when the child turns 18, the account will automatically become solely theirs.

These accounts are typically free but require more responsibility on the child’s part to avoid overdrafts.

Kid checking accounts are tied to your own checking account and can be seen when you log into your online banking. This will give you access to see your child’s spending and monitor the balance, but you will not have control over their spending as you do with the kid's debit cards.

Transfers from your account to theirs are painless and can usually be done on your bank’s app.

If you have multiple children, getting them each their own checking account might be more of a hassle than it’s worth. If you have a lot of kids, this could mean a lot of extra hassle.

Here’s our list of the best free checking accounts.

Prepaid Debit Cards

What’s nice about the debit cards specifically designed for kids is that they pair with an app that gives you visibility and control over your child’s spending. But if you aren’t concerned about that, you may be considering a prepaid debit card.

Prepaid debit cards are exactly what they sound like: a debit card that you can load up with money and then spend at will. You can only spend what has been preloaded onto the card. Different cards have different methods of reloading. Most accept direct deposit, bank account transfers, mobile check deposits, and loading from an ATM or in the bank.

For example, if you wanted to put a set amount on your child’s prepaid debit card each payday, you could set that up through direct deposit from your paycheck. Your child would then have a card they could use whenever they wanted.

The drawback is that prepaid debit cards have notoriously high fees. If you go the prepaid debit card route with your child you’ll want to be crystal clear on all the different fees the card can charge before you begin. Sometimes, what can appear as a benefit (overdraft protection) can end up dinging you – here’s a warning about automatic billing overdraft loopholes on debit cards.

Here’s our list of the best prepaid debit cards.

Summary

Getting your child their own debit card can eliminate some of the little hassles in life, like struggling to pay your kid's allowance or worrying about them losing your cash when they go out with friends.

Plus, a service like Greenlight, or one of the alternatives listed in this article, gives you total control over where and how your children can use their debit card and how much they can spend at particular stores. You’ll also get access to where the card has been used–giving you control and security.

The post Greenlight Alternatives – Find the Best Debit Card for Your Kids appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

If you’ve been looking for a credit card that offers premium travel rewards and benefits – but without the high annual fee – look no further than the Capital One Venture Rewards Card. It combines high rewards, a large sign-on bonus, and travel perks available only with premium credit cards, all in a card with an annual fee of under $100.

At a Glance:

• Generous, easy to qualify for sign-on bonus.
• Earn 5X miles for every dollar spent on travel purchased through Capital One Travel.
• Packed with valuable travel benefits.
• High and unlimited rewards for other purchases.
• Multiple miles rewards redemption options, including transfers to other travel loyalty programs.
• Low annual fee.

Who Should Use the Capital One Venture Card?

While the Capital One Venture Card can be an excellent credit card choice for just about anyone – due to the combination of a very generous sign-on bonus and unlimited 2x miles per dollar on every purchase, every day – the card is designed specifically for frequent travelers.

That’s because the Capital One Venture Card provides enhanced travel benefits, like unlimited 5X miles on every dollar spent on travel booked through Capital One Travel. But the travel benefits don’t stop there. The Venture Card provides other valuable perks, like auto collision damage waiver, which is a benefit that is becoming increasingly uncommon even on travel cards, as well as no foreign transaction fees.

This is also an excellent choice if you want practically unlimited rewards redemption options. Capital One allows you to redeem rewards for new and previously booked travel purchases with Amazon.com or PayPal, gift cards to popular merchants, cash back in the form of a statement credit or a check, and other options.

While this card does have an annual fee, it’s only a fraction of the fee charged by competing credit card issuers that offer travel cards with this many benefits.

Alternatives to the Capital One Venture Card 

What Is the Capital One Venture Card?

Capital One Venture Card is a rewards credit card specifically focusing on travel-related rewards and benefits. Though the card pays unlimited 2x miles per dollar on every purchase, every day, you can earn 5X miles for every dollar spent on purchases through Capital One Travel. 

From there, the card also provides valuable travel benefits, including a credit of up to $120 toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, and auto collision damage waiver on car rentals. But the whole offer starts with a very generous sign-on bonus worth hundreds of dollars.

You’ll also enjoy 24/7 customer service, the ability to choose your due date, credit monitoring through Capital One’s CreditWise free credit monitoring service, security and account alerts, virtual cards, and $0 fraud liability protection against unauthorized charges.

All of those rewards and benefits come packed on a credit card with no foreign transaction fees and an annual fee of just $95.

Learn More about the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Sign on Bonus

The Capital One Venture Card starts you off with a very generous sign-on bonus, enabling you to earn 75,000 miles if you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of opening the account. That translates into miles worth $750, or nearly $0.19 for every dollar spent.

The bonus will be redeemable within two billing cycles after it has been earned. Like other Capital One rewards, your bonus miles never expire as long as your account remains open.

Current Capital One credit card customers are not eligible for this card or the bonus if they have received a new cardmember bonus on the same card within the past 48 months.

Capital One Venture Rewards

Capital One Venture offers three rewards level categories:

1. 5X miles on every dollar spent on travel purchases made through Capital One Travel. This includes hotel, car rentals, and vacation rentals – but not airfare purchases.
2. unlimited 2x miles per dollar on every purchase, every day, including airfare purchases.
3. 5X miles on Capital One Entertainment purchases, providing you with access to concerts, sporting events, and dining with exclusive presales, tickets, and suite access.

How to Redeem Capital One Venture Rewards

Capital One Venture Rewards are unlimited and won’t expire for the life of the account. They can be redeemed through any of the following methods:

• Travel booked through Capital One Travel.
• Reimbursement for recent travel purchases using your Venture card.
• Gift cards with your favorite merchants.
• Cash, in the form of either a statement credit or a check.
• For eligible PayPal purchases at millions of online merchants.
• To shop on Amazon.com.

You can also transfer your rewards miles to one of 16 travel loyalty programs, some of which include: 

• Aeromexico Club Premier
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Avianca Life Miles
• British Airways Executive Club
• Choice Privileges
• Emirates Skywards
• Qantas Frequent Flyer
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• TAP Miles&Go
• Virgin Red
• Wyndham Rewards

You’ll receive 1,000 miles or points when you transfer 1,000 Capital One miles to most participating travel rewards partners.

0% Introductory APR

Capital One Venture does not offer a 0% introductory APR at this time.

Other Card Benefits

Capital One Venture Card also comes with a laundry list of other valuable perks and benefits:

• Credit of up to $120 toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.
• Hertz Five Star status, entitling you to free status upgrades, a wider selection of rental cars, and the ability to skip the line.
• Average savings of 15% on flights with price prediction from Capital One Travel.
• Auto rental collision damage waiver when you charge a car rental, using the card.
• Elevate your stay – receive a $50 experience credit to use on Lifestyle Collection bookings at unique hotels.
• 24-hour travel assistance.
• Automatic accident insurance for a covered loss at no extra charge when you purchase airline tickets using the card.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• Capital One Shopping, a free browser extension that automatically applies the best available coupon codes at check out, and alerts you when prices drop on items you’ve viewed or purchased.
• Capital One Offers give you exclusive access to earn statement credits when you shop at popular online retailers.
• Extended warranty on purchases made using the card, at no additional cost.
• Capital One Dining gives you access to unique dining experiences in major cities around the world.
• 50% off handcrafted beverages every day at Capital One Cafes.

Learn More about the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Capital One Venture Card Fees

Like most credit cards, Capital One Venture Card charges some fees. Common ones are as follows:

• Annual fee: $95
• Balance transfer fee: 4% of the amount transferred
• Cash advance fee: the greater of $5 or 5% of the amount of each advance
• Late fee: $40
• Foreign transaction fee: 0

The Capital One Venture Card vs. Alternatives

Chase Sapphire Preferred 

Chase Sapphire Preferred comes the closest to matching Capital One Venture. It’s also a travel specific credit card, offering 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3x points on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on everything else (plus a $50 annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit), as well as no foreign transaction fees, auto rental coverage, and extended warranty protection.

However, Chase offers something the Venture card does not, with a 25% rewards points enhancement when points are redeemed for travel through Chase Travel. In that way, the 60,000 point sign-on bonus will be worth $750.

In addition, on each account anniversary, you’ll earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases made the previous year. That means $30,000 in purchases using the card will translate into an additional 3,000 bonus points.

Chase Sapphire Preferred also throws in some additional travel benefits, like trip cancellation and interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance, and travel and emergency assistance.

Read our full Chase Sapphire Preferred Review

Chase Button

Capital One Spark 1.5% Cash Select

Capital One Spark 1.5% Cash Select is something like a cousin to the Capital One Venture Card, except it’s designed specifically for businesses. It’s also a travel-centric card, offering unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase. Though the non-travel rewards are less generous than they are for Capital One Venture, Spark 1.5% Cash Select does pay rewards in cash. That can be either a statement credit or a check.

The sign-on bonus is also less generous than it is for the Capital One Venture Card at $500 if you spend $4,500 in the first 3 months from account opening. But once again, that bonus will be paid in cash, not points. As a business card, you can offer free employee cards with set spending limits, assign account managers, maintain purchase records, and get year-end summaries.

Learn more about Capital One Spark Cash Select

Discover it Miles Card 

If you prefer a travel credit card with a much simpler reward plan, Discover it Miles is worth checking out. Though it doesn’t pay an enhanced benefit on travel purchases, it does offer unlimited 1.5X miles on every dollar on all purchases.

It doesn’t offer a formal sign-on bonus, the way the Capital One Venture Card does, it does provide an automatic 100% match of all miles earned in your first year. That eliminates the need to meet a spending quota within the first three months of owning the card.

Discover it Miles offers an important benefit Capital One Venture Card doesn’t have, which is a 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months In addition, the card has no annual fee, and no foreign transaction fees. Your miles can be redeemed toward travel purchases or for statement credits against your bill. Your miles never expire, even if you close your account.

Discover button

FAQs

Should You Apply for the Capital One Venture Card?

Several premium credit cards offer the kinds of travel rewards and benefits provided by the Capital One Venture Card. However, those cards usually have annual fees of $500 or more, making them suitable only for very frequent travelers.

But if you are a not-so-frequent traveler, and want to enjoy premium rewards and benefits on a card with a low annual fee, apply for the Capital One Venture Card today.

The post Capital One Venture Card Review appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.

Anyone who trades stocks and pays attention to technical analysis knows how valuable a good stock screener can be. But with dozens of stock screeners to choose from, how do you find one that’s right for you?

Finviz is a popular choice for beginner and experienced investors alike, offering features like charts, heat maps, insider trading, and portfolio tracking.

In this Finviz review, I dive into everything Finviz has to offer, including its key tools and pricing. I also share a few Finviz alternatives.

At a Glance

• Beginner-friendly technical analysis of U.S. stocks
• Lots of features on the free plan
• Free plan allows up to 50 portfolios and 50 tickers per portfolio
• Paid plan allows up to 100 portfolios and 500 tickers per portfolio

Finviz Alternatives

Free plan	No	Yes	No
Pricing	starts at $249 per year	starts at $239 per year	starts at $79.99 per year
Proprietary ratings	Yes	Yes	Yes
	Learn more	Learn more	Learn more

What Is Finviz?

Finviz, which is short for Financial Visualizations, is an investment research site that can help you find investment ideas or dig deep into a specific ticker. You can use it for technical and fundamental analysis.

You can research the following asset types:

• U.S. stocks and ETFs
• Forex
• Futures
• Crypto

Finviz is one of the better free stock analysis tools because of its extensive, beginner-friendly tools, plus a surprising amount of data, which are generally behind a paywall with other platforms.

The technical research features go further than most online stock brokerages, which are great for fundamental analysis and typically offer in-depth charting, too.

Finviz Features

Finviz offers multiple research tools to help you evaluate potential investments and monitor your current positions. Here’s a closer look at its key features.

Homepage

The Finviz homepage makes it easy to digest what’s happening in the market and is divided into the following sections:

• Current trading day performance for the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow
• Top-performing and worst-performing stocks of the day
• Tickers with a trading price near a certain trading pattern (wedge, triangle)
• Headlines
• Market calendar
• Latest insider trading
• Earnings release dates
• Futures
• Forex and bonds

Other discount brokerages or advanced trading platforms may offer similar details, but with Finviz, anybody can access this information without creating an account.

The page layout is easy to understand thanks to the distinguishable categories and red or green performance indicators. Scanning the homepage can be an excellent way to monitor the market and decide where to start researching.

Stock Screener

Finviz’s stock screener makes it easy to compare U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, although you cannot compare ADR and OTC stocks or commodity stocks where the common stock trades on foreign exchanges.

Despite its limitations with common stocks, Finviz has many free and premium research tools. You can screen stocks through customizable filters, including:

• Descriptive: Exchange, industry sector, dividend yield, average volume, etc.
• Fundamental: P/E ratio, price-to-sales, insider transactions, EPS growth, etc.
• Technical: Simple moving average (20-day, 50-day, 200-day), RSI, etc.

You can select filters from the descriptive, fundamental, and technical tabs to see a list of stocks matching the criteria below.

From there, you can choose different tabs to compare the stocks by various metrics, such as:

• Valuation (P/E ratio, PEG ratio, and other investment ratios)
• Financial (Dividend rate, return on equity, gross margin, profit margin)
• Ownership (Outstanding valuation, insider ownership percentage, float short)
• Performance (Investment returns for the past week, month, quarter, year)
• Technical (Simple Moving Average, RSI, price change from open, gap)

Viewing the charts, heat maps, and news headlines for screened stocks is also possible.

Charting

Many stock trading apps have impressive charting tools that let you perform technical analysis and buy stock shares on the same platform, but many overlook research tools in favor of free trades and micro-investing.

Consider charting stocks in Finviz when your go-to investing app only offers a basic historical price chart. 

All users can view prices on daily, weekly, or monthly trading intervals. You can also adjust the candlestick display to your preferred setting, making it easier to spot trends.

Several basic upper and lower indicators automatically display on each chart:

• 20-day simple moving average (SMA)
• 50-day SMA
• 200-day SMA
• Volume

It’s important to note that you must upgrade to FINVIZ*Elite to overlay with over 100 technical indicators, have drawing capabilities, and view in full screen. You can also see if a paper trading simulator offers the features to test short-term strategies.

Heat Maps

The visually appealing heat maps feature lets you view the performance of individual stocks and ETFs. Companies are organized by industry (technology, communication services, healthcare, energy, railroads).

Bigger boxes indicate a larger market cap. A green shade suggests the stock trades at a higher price for the trading day, while a red hue is for lower pricing.

Extending the performance interval from one day to a year is possible. You can track year-to-date performance too.

The map can track additional metrics such as:

• P/E ratio
• Float short
• Dividend yield
• Analyst recommendations
• Earnings date

You can also filter the stock listings by S&P 500 or ETF.

The world filter displays a global map and places the stock ticker where the company headquarters are.

Groups

The Groups feature highlights the performance of sectors over a specific trading range. You can compare the performance of various industries, such as energy, finance, and real estate.

It’s also possible to look at the performance of subsectors within a particular industry. One example is comparing the performance of oil and gas exploration to midstream providers by selecting the Energy industry.

The color-coded bar charts make it easy to gauge the performance of a sector. Some of the graphs also break down the results by the underlying companies, which can make your research even easier.

To further explore an industry or sector, simply tap the chart row, and a separate tab opens with the screener page for the underlying stocks.

Portfolio

The Finviz portfolio tracker can help you monitor the performance of your holdings and watchlist positions.

Free accounts can make 50 different portfolios, and premium members can create up to 100. Being able to create so many lineups is a nice feature and helps personalize your user experience for research purposes.

Trackable metrics include:

• Current market value
• Total loss or gain
• Today’s performance

You can also evaluate your portfolio using interactive and portfolio-related heat maps.

One potential drawback is having to input each position detail manually. Accurate tracking means entering the acquisition date, average purchase price, and position size. Additionally, the tracking tools are relatively basic in several aspects.

Other portfolio trackers are better in this regard, as they can automatically upload your details, giving you more time to research investments.

Watchlists

Finviz recently added a watchlist feature to help you monitor potential investments within one of your Finviz portfolios.

When inspecting a stock or ETF, click “add to portfolio.” Next, you can choose “Watch” under the transaction type, with “Buy” and “Sell Short” being the other two options.

News

Many free and premium stock research services aggregate news headlines. You can see ticker-specific headlines or scan the “News” or “Blogs” columns to get a gist of what’s happening and potentially learn something new.

Many articles are free, but others hide behind the paywall or require a subscription after maxing out your monthly allotment of free articles.

You can access articles from the following outlets through Finviz:

• Bloomberg
• Fox Business
• MarketWatch
• Mish Talk
• New York Times
• Reuters
• Zerohedge

For investors who love staying on top of stock news, Finviz is one of the best ways to scan the headlines for free.

Insider Trading

If a company’s senior leadership buys or sells shares, it can indicate how the share price will trend. Corporate executives periodically sell shares and exercise options to receive monetary compensation. Still, there are times when their actions can encourage you to dig deeper in case you want to follow their lead.

These details are free to access as executives must file forms with the federal government disclosing sizable trades.

You can filter the data in the following ways:

• Latest insider trading (lists the most recent trades first)
• Top insider trading recent week (biggest trades by nominal value)
• Top 10% owner trading recent week (largest transactions from investors with a minimum 10% ownership stake)

Tracking down this data without the help of a service like Finviz can be time-consuming. You may also find that you overlook reported trades as you try to track several executives.

Futures

Investors who like to trade commodities or stock futures will find Finviz’s Futures feature helpful as you can view price quotes, performance, and charts for these investment options:

• Indices (DJIA, Nasdaq 100, Russell 2000, DAX, VIX, etc.)
• Bonds (Treasury Bonds: 2-year, 5-year, 10-year, 30-year)
• Currencies (USD, EUR, JPY, GBP, CAD, CHF, AUD, NZD)
• Energy (Brent crude oil, WTI crude oil, natural gas, gasoline)
• Grains (Corn, oats, soybeans, wheat) 
• Meats (Live cattle, feeder cattle, lean hogs)
• Metals (Gold, silver, platinum, copper, palladium)
• Softs (Cocoa, coffee, cotton, lumber, orange juice, sugar)

Forex

Aggressive forex traders can retrieve the pricing for currency pairs between international currencies. You can view the price chart at intervals of five minutes, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly.

Most comparisons measure the performance of a foreign currency to the U.S. dollar (USD). The research tools are relatively basic compared to the platform’s stock screener and heat maps, which more investors will probably use to buy long or sell short.

Crypto

If you dabble in cryptocurrency, you can easily see price quotes for highly traded tokens like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. Most quotes price the token in U.S. dollars and Euros.

Clicking on a price quote lets you view a basic price chart consisting of a 5-minute to one-year increment. Similar to stock charts, you will need to be an elite member to customize the chart display and indicators. These price quotes and charts can complement those offered by crypto portfolio trackers.

Alerts

Receive free alerts when a stock or ETF performs a specific action, such as:

• Crossing above or below a target trading price
• Fundamental or technical metrics
• Becomes overbought or oversold
• Significant insider trading

Premium members can receive alerts based on real-time data, while free users may need to rely on delayed inputs.

Backtests

Backtesting is one of the best reasons to upgrade to a paid membership. Portfolio analysis tools like Finviz can track your actual investment performance but also see how adjustments could change your historical performance.

While nobody knows how the stock market will perform in the future, backtesting lets you test your portfolio against similar market conditions so you can be prepared for more situations.

This service tests your portfolio against 24 years of historical information. You can also compare it against the SPY benchmark (S&P 500) and with 100 technical indicators.

How Much Does Finviz Cost?

Finviz offers two free plans and one paid membership tier. You may want to start with one of the free tiers to test out the platform to see if it’s worth upgrading.

Some investors will want to opt for the paid membership because of the ad-free experience, backtesting, and real-time price quotes.

Free

Anyone can use the stock screener and charting tools. You cannot save previous screens or track your portfolio, but you don’t have to provide your email address. This is uncommon, as many platforms want your contact details to market premium products.

Basic features include:

• Delayed quotes, charting, and streaming
• Maps and Groups are delayed 3 to 5 minutes.
• Three years’ access to statements
• Screener rows per page (20 tables/36 charts/10 snapshots)

Registered

Registering for a free account lets you save presets, track portfolio positions, and make basic customizations.

In addition to the Free tier features, you also get these perks:

• Portfolios: Up to 50 per user
• Tickers: Up to 50 per portfolio
• Screener presets: Up to 50
• Customization: Layout and signals

Creating up to 50 portfolios lets you track your investment returns for multiple strategies and thematic investing.

FINVIZ*Elite

FINVIZ*Elite is Finviz’s premium tier and is ideal for frequent traders and those who want full access to the program. You will pay $39.50 monthly or $299.50 yearly (that boils down to $24.96/month).

Upfront payment is necessary for either subscription plan, but you can request a full refund during the first 30 days. So, use the first month to test drive the platform.

Core benefits include:

• Real-time stock quotes (includes premarket and aftermarket data)
• Advanced charts (Intraday, overlays, drawing tools, full-screen layouts)
• Advanced screener (Data export, customized filters, statistics view)
• Correlations (Positive and inverse correlations between selected stocks and ETFs)
• Backtesting (24 years of historical data, 100 technical indicators)
• Alerts and notifications (Instant email and push notifications)
• Ad-free layout
• Eight years of financial statements (vs. three years for registered users)
• Up to 100 portfolios (vs. 50 portfolios for registered users)
• Up to 500 tickers per portfolio (vs. 50 tickers for registered users)
• Max 200 screener presets (vs. 50 for registered users)
• Screener rows per page (100/120 charts/50 snapshots)

Finviz Free vs. Elite

Whether you should stick with the free version of Finviz or upgrade to the elite tier depends on your research needs, current research tools, and trading frequency.

When to Use Finviz Free

The free version is best for casual investors who tend to be long-term holders or only place a few transactions yearly. Further, the free features are sufficient to monitor your current portfolio or keep an eye on the broad market.

Even if you trade frequently, you may use the screener to find watchlist candidates with your selected fundamental and technical metrics. Then, you can use your brokerage or standalone tools with better charting capabilities to research and place a trade.

When to Upgrade to Finviz*Elite

The premium membership is best for frequent traders who rely on real-time data and want advanced screening and charting tools. Getting the message box saying you need to upgrade to a paid subscription to continue researching is a nuisance.

The $300 annual fee is significant, and you will need to trade regularly and use the Finviz tools consistently to justify the price. Still, this fee is competitive with similar stock research apps and more affordable when purchasing an annual membership.

Alternatives to Finviz

The following websites are also excellent places to research potential investments and check up on current holdings. Before signing up with Finviz, I recommend checking out other platforms.

Morningstar Investor

Morningstar Investor is an appealing stock screener for fundamental investors. The screener contains over 200 filters to identify stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds matching your criteria. In addition, the Morningstar analyst team curates lists of the highest-rated stocks and funds for many categories, which serves as an excellent starting point.

A premium subscription also includes portfolio analysis and investment tracking tools that can help optimize your asset allocation and investment strategy. There is also much bullish and bearish commentary about the market and specific investments.

Read our Morningstar Investor review for more.

Learn More About Morningstar Investor

Seeking Alpha

Seeking Alpha has many overlapping research tools. You can read bullish and bearish commentary written by independent contributors for just about any stock and ETF. Finviz doesn’t really offer stock analysis but is better for researching stock metrics.

Seeking Alpha includes proprietary ratings that can make it easier to assess potential investments. Additionally, the premium version syncs with your brokerage accounts which saves time and prevents data input errors to quickly see the ratings of your holdings and track your investment performance.

You can learn about the differences between the free and premium memberships in our Seeking Alpha review, but compared to Finviz, the free research tools are somewhat limited.

Learn More About Seeking Alpha

Stock Rover

Fundamental investors and those with a buy-and-hold investment strategy may want to consider Stock Rover. Like Finviz, it’s got fundamental and technical stock screens, but the additional research tools cater to long-term investors instead of short-term traders.

Stock Rover’s customized stock screens can model legendary investors and prominent hedge funds, a unique feature. You can also read research reports and automatically sync your brokerage portfolios for effortless tracking and updates.

Four different plans are available, including a free membership. For more information, check out our Stock Rover review.

Learn More About Stock Rover

FAQs

Learn More About Finviz

Final Thoughts on Finviz

Finviz is an excellent stock research service that offers some of the best free research tools. It should be one of the first places you look for fundamental and technical analysis when you’re unsatisfied with your brokerage tools.

You can benefit from using Finviz whether you’re a short-term trader or long-term investor. It’s also an excellent research companion to investment newsletters, which provide a basic background for the monthly investment idea but still require further research before buying shares.

I don’t recommend Finviz if you prefer trading stocks from your phone since the site isn’t mobile-friendly and doesn’t have a stock screener app.

The post Finviz Review 2024: Is this Stock Screener App Worth it? appeared first on Best Wallet Hacks.