Stash is a financial platform designed for long-term saving and investing. With Stash, you get both a brokerage account and a checking account, and it’s easy to move money between the two. You can invest in fractional shares of stocks and ETFs, earn stock rewards for spending from your checking account, and get personalized help with building a portfolio.
So, is the Stash App right for you? In our Stash app review, we’ll cover everything you need to know about banking and investing with this platform so you can find out if this app is truly worth using. Ready? Let’s get started with this Stash App review!
Stash App Pricing Options
Stash offers 3 plans: Beginner, Growth, and Stash+.
The Beginner plan costs $1 per month and offers a checking account, a Stock Back debit card, and a standard brokerage account. It also comes with $1,000 in life insurance from Avibra.
The Growth plan costs $3 per month and adds Smart Portfolios, which are portfolios that are automatically rebalanced for you over time. You can also open a traditional or Roth IRA with the Growth plan.
The Stash+ plan costs $9 per month and includes two custodial investing accounts for children, double stock rewards for spending with the Stock Back debit card, and $10,000 in life insurance from Avibra.
Stash doesn’t offer a trial, but all plans are paid monthly and you can cancel at any time.
Stash App Features
Banking & Stock Back Debit Card
All Stash App plans include an FDIC-insured checking account from Green Dot Bank. It has no overdraft fees and no minimum balance requirement, and you can access over 19,000 in-network ATMs for free. Stash checking accounts enable you to save for goals by separating the cash in your account into different categories. You can also set up automatic transfers to your investment account and track your spending and saving over time.
The most unique feature of Stash’s bank accounts is the Stock Back debit card. This is a Visa debit card that offers 0.125% back on your purchase in the form of stock rather than cash. If you spend at major retailers, you receive fractional shares of stock from the company you shopped at. If you shop at local stores that aren’t publicly traded, your stock back rewards will be invested in the Vanguard Total World ETF.
Fractional Share Investing
Stash lets you invest in thousands of US stocks and ETFs, as well as a small selection of international stocks. Instead of forcing you to invest in whole shares, the platform enables you to buy fractional shares of companies from as little as $0.05 per trade. So, you can start building a diversified portfolio with as little as a few dollars to invest.
Stash offers basic information about stocks, including line price charts, a basic news feed, and dividend information. However, it provides no tools for fundamental or technical analysis, and doesn’t offer professional analysis of what stocks or ETFs are best to buy right now.
Stash doesn’t charge trade commissions, but it’s important to note that the platform only executes trades in batches 4 times per day. That means that Stash isn’t suitable for day trading, since it can be several hours before an entered purchase or sale is executed.
Smart Portfolios & Portfolio Builder
For Grow and Stash+ users, Stash offers smart portfolios. These enable you to designate a desired allocation for each stock in the portfolio. As the value of your assets change, Stash will automatically rebalance them for you to remain within +/-5% of your allocation targets.
Stash also has a portfolio builder tool that can help new investors get their portfolio off the ground. As you start adding investments to your portfolio, Stash will indicate how conservative or risky your portfolio balance is. This tool makes it easy to come up with a portfolio that’s considered moderate in risk, although it doesn’t provide context about whether that coincides with your investment goals.
Investment Guides
The Stash App offers a learning center for new investors that’s stacked with articles about basic investing principles. You’ll find guides to how IPOs work, information about portfolio diversification, and tips for managing your money.
Dashboard & Mobile App
Stash enables you to manage your checking and investment accounts online or through the Stash mobile app (iOS and Android). You can monitor your balances, see a full history of your transactions, and instantly transfer money between your bank and investment accounts. You can also keep track of your Stock Back card rewards and find in-network ATMs in your area. It’s also possible to enter trades on the mobile app and rebalance your smart portfolios.
Stash App Platform Differentiators
Since there are plenty of other personal finance tools and financial platforms out there, from M1 Finance to Personal Capital, you may be wondering what makes Stash different. The Stash App stands out for enabling you to manage your checking and investment accounts together. The platform makes it simple to set up automatic transfer for investing and you can see your bank and investment account balance side-by-side.
Stash’s Stock Back debit card is also very innovative. The rewards rate isn’t as favorable as what you might get with other debit cards, but that’s made up for by the fact that your rewards are automatically invested rewards commission-free. On top of that, since Stash buys shares of the companies where you shop, you can build a highly diversified portfolio just by shopping at a variety of different stores.
Once your portfolio is set up, it’s easy to forget about it and let it grow thanks to the smart portfolios feature.
Who is the Stash App Best For?
The Stash App is best for investors who need a combined banking and investment solution. It offers a variety of tools and resources specifically for beginner investors, as well as automatic investment tools for people who want to set up a portfolio and then forget about it.
It’s important to note that although Stash enables you to invest in individual stocks commission-free, it is set up for long-term investing rather than day trading. Orders are executed 4 times a day rather than instantly, which precludes active short-term trading.
Another thing to keep in mind is that while Stash’s fees may look small, they can be significant in a small account. The Beginner plan, for example, costs $12 per year – the equivalent of a 1.2% annual fee if you only have $1,000 in your investment account. For comparison, many top robo-advisors charge an annual management fee of around 0.25%. So, Stash makes the most sense if you have at least $5,000 to invest.
Pros
- Combined banking and investment accounts
- Stock Back debit card offers 0.125% reward in fractional shares
- Invest in individual US stocks and ETFs commission-free
- Buy and sell fractional shares from $0.05
- Smart portfolios keep your investments balanced
Cons
- Monthly fee can be significant for a small portfolio
- 0.125% rewards rate is low compared to other debit cards
