When you switch to Public from M1 Finance you gain a communal investment space tailored to empowering your portfolio and your financial future. Public’s investment app allows you to trade sliced shares of stocks and ETFs in real-time with zero commission fees or hidden paywalls. Our goal is to make investing in the public markets accessible to every individual who has the desire to grow their prosperity.
Buy stock with sliced shares
Part of realizing our mission to open the investing world up to the masses involves making sliced shares the norm. That’s why all of our available stocks and ETFs are offered to Public members in sliced, accessible shares. Fractional trading in real-time with zero commission fees is at the heart of what makes Public an enticing option for investors of all financial means. When you invest with us, you buy and sell stocks using dollar amounts instead of the number of shares, saving you thousands of dollars upfront.
 | M1 Finance | |
|---|---|---|
| Fractional trading | ✔ | ✔ |
| Real-time settling of investments | ✔ | - |
| Real, registered brokerage | ✔ | ✔ |
| Free service, no subscription | ✔ | ✔ |
| Invest in U.S. stocks | ✔ | ✔ |
| Invest in U.S. ETFs | ✔ | ✔ |
| Commission-free | ✔ | ✔ |
| Automatic dividend reinvestment | ✔ | ✔ |
| See what brands a company owns | ✔ | - |
| Search stock by brands the company owns | ✔ | - |
| Discover companies based on themes | ✔ | - |
| See other people's trades | ✔ | - |
| Comment on other people's investments | ✔ | - |
| iOS app | ✔ | ✔ |
| Android app | ✔ | ✔ |
| In-app live chat support | ✔ | - |
Streamlined investment platform
Simplicity is key in an investment world that’s fast-paced and often full of intimidating buzzwords. We created the Public app to streamline investing. You won’t see any unnecessary fluff here like pie charts or additional tiered price plans that complicate your experience. You also won’t have to wait to gain access to our investment services. It takes mere minutes to create a Public account and start trading sliced shares. See for yourself by creating a free account for Apple or Android today.
No minimum balance
The services and functionality Public provides all members are the same across the board. To help every individual invest in the market, we think the platform you use to do it shouldn’t cost you extra money. With Public, you can start your investment journey with any amount of money you feel comfortable investing. And you’ll be treated with the same respect and attention that the investors with thousands of dollars in the market receive.
Create your own portfolio
Flexibility, accessibility, and control are three factors we believe empower investors on the Public app. When you create your Public account, you have complete and total control over the brands that you choose to invest in. Our goal is to provide you with an intuitive platform with which you can make decisions that best fit your financial life and risk tolerance.
Browse stocks by brands & themes
A key feature of the Public app is our built-in brand transparency. The brands you invest in to build your portfolio should reflect the values and ideals you hold most dear. That’s why we make it easy to examine brands by the companies they own and by the larger industries they occupy. With over 50 theme categories, Public organizes available shares into themes that appeal to your specific interests and values. Want to invest in brands that actively engage in green practices? We’ve got a theme for that. You can even browse by e-Sports, AI + Robots, Blockchain and Race to Space.
Reinvest your dividends automatically
After you spend the time carefully crafting your investment portfolio, we think you should have the option to streamline what happens to your dividends. That’s why we offer automatic dividend reinvestment for all Public app users. Simply activate the feature in your account and indicate which stocks and ETFs you want your dividends to be reinvested in. You also have complete control over how much of your dividends are reinvested. Public provides the flexibility to reinvest, transfer to your linked bank account or leave the funds untouched.
Gain the support of a community
We are all about empowering our members to make their own informed decisions. But that doesn’t mean we think that investment decisions should happen in a vacuum. When you join Public, your account provides you with access to a community of like-minded investors. You can follow fellow investors’ activity, comment on their investments in real-time, and exchange ideas.
Live chat without leaving the app
Providing options to access our friendly support team is also something that’s important to us. We integrated an in-app chat function right at your fingertips so that you can reach a support team member right away. We’re committed to connecting real people with a dedicated support team made up of other humans. That’s why chatbots will never have a place on the Public platform.
Insured investments
By making the world of investing available to everyone, we understand that not everyone will feel comfortable extending their finances without some measure of insurance in place. Investing shouldn’t induce anxiety, and inspiring a sense of safety and trust is one way to make investing a little easier. That’s why every Public member’s investments and securities accounts are automatically insured for up to $500,000 by SIPC. The Securities Investor Protection Corporation is a nonprofit entity that provides insurance for investors on affiliate brokerages. We’re proud to be a partner. Learn more at www.sipc.org.
