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Best Penny Stock Trading Apps of November 2025

Penny stocks are volatile, speculative, and often illiquid assets that trade for under $5 a share. Furthermore, they are sometimes traded over-the-counter (OTC), meaning the companies are not subject to the strict disclosure requirements for exchange-listed assets. Trading them requires skill, deep research, and robust trading technology. Traders who seek to trade these securities on a mobile device should consider apps that are comprehensive, easy to use, come with strong research capabilities, and offer good trading technology.   

After hundreds of hours of rigorous research with live platform demos and analysis of 21 online brokerage and trading platforms based on 29 different criteria, we found E*TRADE’s mobile app is the best overall for on-the-go penny stock traders due to its best-in-class user experience, robust portfolio management capabilities, powerful trading tools, and more. E*TRADE also topped our list of the best apps for traders looking for an easy-to-use penny stock trading app. Fidelity took the top spot for low-cost penny stock trading, and Charles Schwab is the best for novice penny stock investors. Finally, Investopedia found that Interactive Brokers offers the best app for risk management and for advanced traders, while TradeStation earned an honorable mention for its app’s advanced trading capabilities.

Best Penny Stock Trading Apps of November 2025

Best Overall, Best for Ease of Use : E*TRADE


ETrade logo
Courtesy of E*TRADE.

 ETrade logo

  • Account Minimum: $0
  • Fees: $0 for exchange-listed, $6.95 for OTC (drops to $4.95 if 30+ trades per quarter)

Best Overall

E*TRADE offers two exceptional trading apps that can cater to a diverse range of traders. While E*TRADE charges $6.95 for OTC trades when volume-based discount thresholds are not met, the mobile platform’s overall offering of excellent research capabilities, abundant educational resources, and powerful trading technology, all while providing an industry-leading user experience, creates the best app for handling the complexities of penny stock trading.

Best for Ease of Use

E*TRADE also wins our best for ease of use category due to its sleek, no-frills design. However, its simplicity is deceptive, as the app is the true powerhouse with smooth performance, easy to navigate news, research, charting, and abundant trading assets ranging from stocks to options and, of course, penny stocks.

Pros
  • Multiple mobile platforms for traders of all levels

  • Excellent education and research resources, with paper trading features

  • Access to many other financial instruments with good trade execution

Cons
  • High fees for penny stock trades

  • Margin rates are higher than competition

  • Interest rates for uninvested cash are very low

Founded in 1982 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, E*TRADE has always focused on technological improvements, and offers multiple highly capable platforms, particularly the mobile ones. E*TRADE provides traders with two highly adept mobile platforms. Traders who trade penny stocks on moderate volumes can choose the regular E*TRADE mobile app. It is easy to use, fast, and full of features that can satisfy the needs of average penny stock traders. 

More advanced traders, however, may opt for E*TRADE’s more sophisticated mobile platform, the Power E*TRADE app, designed specifically for traders needing advanced trading tools, robust charting capabilities, and great execution speeds. What makes this mobile platform stand out from other penny stock trading apps is E*TRADE’s Behind the Move feature, which alerts traders to significant price movements. Given the unpredictable nature of penny stocks, the Power E*TRADE app is a very solid choice for advanced penny stock traders.

E*TRADE also offers its users excellent educational resources and access to many tradable assets, such as stocks, bonds, options, and more. The platform also boasts exceptional execution speeds of 0.12 seconds, with 97.93% of trades executed at or better than the National Best Bid or Offer (NBBO). The company also reported an average $8.25 price improvement.

E*TRADE is a great platform to trade penny stocks, but it’s not without flaws. Margin rates are very high, ranging between 12.95% and 10.95%, and only high net-worth individuals with over $500,000 can negotiate better rates. E*TRADE also offers a cash management account for uninvested cash traders, but pays a very low interest rate, even for accounts above $1,000,000. 

All things considered, E*TRADE offers the best overall penny stock trading app. Traders who need more convincing can open a free demo account and see how they like it.

Read the full E*TRADE review.

Best for Low Costs : Fidelity


Fidelity Investments

Courtesy of Fidelity

  • Account Minimum: $0
  • Fees: $0 commissions for online stock/ETF/options trades

Investopedia found Fidelity to be the best penny stock trading app for low costs due to its $0 fees and commissions, but it’s not the sole reason why Fidelity won this category. Several other brokers also offer no-fee penny stock trading, but they cannot compete with Fidelity's service and the trading and research tools it provides on its app.

Pros
  • $0 online trade commissions

  • Sophisticated research and trading tools

  • Versatile brokerage service excellent for traders and investors

Cons
  • Fidelity is not available worldwide

  • Does not offer demo accounts

  • Margin rates between 8.25% and 12.575% are on the higher end

Fidelity was founded in 1946 and is currently headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Its no-fee trading offering, even for OTC stocks, and the great functionality and versatility of its app make it one of the industry's best penny stock trading apps. It’s no secret that while penny stocks may appeal to many traders, they are risky assets to trade. Fidelity’s trading app stands ready to assist traders by providing the necessary tools and research capabilities.

Traders will have access to many research platforms, including Argus reports, Zacks, and Trading Central. Fidelity also provides its own proprietary research, excellent charting, and a good selection of educational resources. Fidelity is a versatile platform designed for traders and investors alike. It allows trading financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, and options, along with the option to open a cash management account, which pays a very competitive interest on uninvested cash, or any of the many retirement accounts they offer to best support your needs.

There are a few things to keep in mind for penny stock traders. For instance, Fidelity is not available worldwide and only works for U.S.-based traders. Furthermore, Fidelity does not offer a demo account, so traders can’t test out the platform before opening an account. Also, traders who use a lot of margin may find its rates of 8.00% to 12.325% uncompetitive. With free penny stock trading, however, it may be a worthy trade-off if margin trading is not a part of your strategy.

Investing involves risk, including risk of loss

**$0.00 commission applies to online U.S. equity trades, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and options (+ $0.65 per contract fee) in a Fidelity retail account only for Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC retail clients. Sell orders are subject to an activity assessment fee (historically from $0.01 to $0.03 per $1,000 of principal). A limited number of ETFs are subject to a transaction-based service fee of $100. See full list of ETFs subject to this service fee [here]. There is an Options Regulatory Fee that applies to both option buy and sell transactions. The fee is subject to change. Other exclusions and conditions may apply. Employee equity compensation transactions and accounts managed by advisors or intermediaries through Fidelity Institutional® are subject to different commission schedules.**

The Fidelity ETF Screener is a research tool provided to help self-directed investors evaluate these types of securities. The criteria and inputs entered are at the sole discretion of the user, and all screens or strategies with preselected criteria (including expert ones) are solely for the convenience of the user. Expert Screeners are provided by independent companies not affiliated with Fidelity. Information supplied or obtained from these Screeners is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice or guidance, an offer of or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell securities, or a recommendation or endorsement by Fidelity of any security or investment strategy. Fidelity does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy or approach to screening or evaluating stocks, preferred securities, exchange-traded products, or closed-end funds. Fidelity makes no guarantees that information supplied is accurate, complete, or timely, and does not provide any warranties regarding results obtained from its use. Determine which securities are right for you based on your investment objectives, risk tolerance, financial situation, and other individual factors, and reevaluate them on a periodic basis. 

 ****Zero account minimums and zero account fees apply to retail brokerage accounts only. Expenses charged by investments (e.g., funds, managed accounts, and certain HSAs) and commissions, interest charges, or other expenses for transactions may still apply. See [Fidelity.com/commissions] for further details.

Before investing, consider the funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully. 

Best for Risk Management, Best for Advanced Traders : Interactive Brokers


Interactive Brokers

 Interactive Brokers

  • Account Minimum: $0
  • Fees: $0 (for IBKR Lite users)

Best for Risk Management

Interactive Brokers is Investopedia’s choice for risk management due to its wide selection of sophisticated order types, access to a plethora of financial assets for portfolio diversification, real-time monitoring features, vetted orders before a trade is executed, all while benefiting from the cost-efficient IBKR Lite plan.

Best for Advanced Traders

Interactive Brokers is also Investopedia’s choice for advanced traders. In addition to IBKR Lite, Interactive Brokers offers IBKR Pro, which provides access to IB SmartRouting and other sophisticated features such as advanced charting, backtesting, automated trading strategies, algorithmic trading capabilities, and more.

Pros
  • $0 fees and commissions for penny stock trades

  • A large variety of tradable assets

  • Access to sophisticated risk management and trading tools

Cons
  • There may be a learning curve to become proficient with the platform

  • The IBKR Pro plan tiered fee structure is complex

  • IBKR does not provide proprietary research

Interactive Brokers, also known as IBKR, was founded in 1977 and is currently headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut. It offers the best penny stock trading app for traders who value risk management capabilities and those who value advanced tools and features.

Penny stock traders who focus on risk management will find that IBKR’s trading app has a lot to offer. For instance, the traders will be fully informed with real-time position monitoring systems, along with real-time margining, and automatic liquidating features that can help mitigate loss. IBKR also provides a wide variety of advanced order types and unique conditional orders that are not found among its competitors. Traders will also have access to a large range of asset classes they can consider for diversification, including stocks, ETFs, options, futures, and more. Interactive Brokers also offers some of the most competitive margin rates in the industry, and pays a solid interest rate on uninvested cash.

Advanced traders will also enjoy the trading app as it offers other features that cater to sophisticated trading styles. For instance, IBKR Pro is designed for heavy-volume advanced traders, whose strategies require getting the best execution price possible. This can be a major factor for penny stock traders given how volatile they can be. The downside of IBKR Pro is the complex tiered fee structure. Unlike IBKR Lite, trades under the Pro plan will pay commissions, even for penny stocks, but access to the advanced tools and features may make it worthwhile. The costs for penny stock trading with IBKR Pro is $0.005 per share and the per trade commission is capped at 1% of trade value. Traders who want to test things out can start a free trial.

Overall, Interactive Brokers offers a highly capable and versatile platform. It needs to be noted that the platform will come with a learning curve, and IBKR aims to make it easier with its free Traders' Academy. Another consideration to keep in mind is that Interactive Brokers does not offer proprietary research, but this is forgivable since it offers over 60 news and research sources.

Read the full Interactive Brokers review

Also Great for Advanced Traders : TradeStation


TradeStation Logo

 Courtesy of TradeStation

  • Account Minimum: $0
  • Fees: $0.005 per share for a minimum of $1 to a maximum of $50 per order (capped at 5% of trade value)

Advanced penny stock traders seeking another platform that can handle their unique trading needs will find that TradeStation is a solid option to consider due to its sophisticated mobile features, such as advanced charting, simulated trading, customized alert capabilities, and reasonable fee structure. Overall, Traders will find TradeStation to be an excellent advanced platform for trading penny stocks.

Pros
  • Offers a demo account

  • Competitive fee structure for penny stock trading

  • Backtesting, automated trading, and algorithmic trading capabilities

Cons
  • High margin rates between 11.25% and 12.25%

  • Does not offer access to external research

  • Customer service is not very responsive

TradeStation was founded in 1982 and is currently headquartered in Plantation, Florida. It is Investopedia’s alternative choice for advanced traders. With over 40 years of servicing the industry, TradeStation offers clients sophisticated trading tools and high-quality execution speeds which can all be utilized on its trading app.

Sophisticated traders who have formulated their own trading strategy can backtest it by pitting against historical data of over 30 years. Furthermore, if the strategy proves viable and ready to be applied using real money and in real time, traders can take it a step further and automate it.  In addition, tech-savvy advanced traders can take advantage of TradeStation’s algorithmic trading capabilities. Keep in mind that users will need to be familiar with GitHub and have good coding knowledge to use the API successfully. 

Aside from its technical prowess, TradeStation has a fairly competitive fee structure for penny stock trading, with a rate of $0.005 per share up to a minimum of $1 and maximum of $50 per order (capped at 5% of trade value). There are, however, drawbacks to the platform. For instance, interest rates for margin trading are high. While high net-worth account holders can negotiate their interest rates, traders between $50,000 and $499,999 can expect to pay 11.25% in interest, whereas everyone with less than $50,000 will pay 12.25%. In addition, users do not get access to external research, and customer service can be challenging to reach. Still, the platform is a technological juggernaut, and if traders need to try it first to see how they like it, they can try the TradeStation demo account.

Best for Novice Penny Stock Investors : Charles Schwab


Charles Schwab Logo

Courtesy of Charles Schwab

  • Account Minimum: $0
  • Fees: $0 for exchange-listed, $6.95 for OTCs

Investopedia found Charles Schwab to be the best penny stock trading app for novice traders. Beginners will find Schwab's mobile platform to be sleek and straightforward, with access to high-quality education and valuable resources to guide them in their trading venture. In addition to Schwab’s highly esteemed thinkorswim platform and its mobile version, novice traders can also make use of Schwab Mobile, a well-designed and thought-through mobile platform well-suited for penny stock trading.

Pros
  • Beginning to advanced educational resources for free

  • Access to proprietary and external research

  • An excellent trading simulator

Cons
  • High margin rates

  • Low interest rate on uninvested cash

  • $6.95 fee for OTC Equities

Charles Schwab was founded in 1971 and is currently headquartered in Westlake, Texas. It is Investopedia’s choice for novice penny stock traders seeking a platform that will provide them with necessary guidance and tools to start trading penny stocks. While no platform is perfect for beginning traders, many traders will find that, regardless of experience or expertise, there will inevitably be a learning curve for all trading platforms. What makes Schwab a winner in this category is the fact that it goes far beyond other trading platforms to educate its traders.

Schwab offers both clients and non-clients access to numerous educational courses and training resources. It has live training videos that cover a wide range of trading strategies taught by industry experts, and offers on-demand videos, virtual workshops, and even in-person events. The best part is that Schwab offers all of this for free. Beginning traders will also have access to proprietary research conducted and collected by Schwab and reports from Morningstar, Argus, and Market Edge.

With all that Schwab offers, there are some drawbacks. Schwab has high margin rates ranging between 10.575% and 12.325%. While it may not matter for most beginning traders, as margin trading is risky, it's good to know what the rates are for the future. Schwab also has a low interest rate of 0.05% for uninvested cash, and beginning penny stock traders should note that Schwab also charges $6.95 for OTC stock trades, which will cut in any capital gains or amplify losses. Getting a broker to assist with a trade adds another $25 to that already high fee. Still, Schwab is an overall excellent platform for beginners. Traders on the fence about opening an account can try its demo offering to ensure it's the right platform. 

Read the full Charles Schwab review

Why You Should Trust Us

Investopedia has been helping readers find the best tools and platforms for managing their finances since 1999. Investopedia’s team of editors and research analysts evaluated 21 online brokerages and trading platforms based on 29 criteria that are critical to helping penny stock traders be successful. We used this data to review each platform for costs, trading technology, account amenities, and other key features to provide unbiased, comprehensive reviews to ensure our readers make the right decision for their investing needs.

Our research and ratings are entirely independent, with no influence from advertising partnerships, and our full-time team of expert writers and editors aims to be unbiased to ensure you’re getting the best recommendations when looking for an online futures trading platform. Investopedia’s staff editors, research analysts, and compliance managers work hard every business day to keep this article up-to-date and accurate by monitoring product changes on online brokerage websites and making changes to our content as needed.

How We Chose the Best Penny Stock Trading Apps

Investopedia is dedicated to providing investors with unbiased, comprehensive reviews and ratings of penny stock trading platforms. Our ratings of the best penny stock trading platforms are based on our own proprietary research of four categories and 29 criteria that are critical to readers choosing the right platform for trading penny stocks. 

The following category weights were used to rate each platform:

  • Cost: 30.50%
  • Features: 32.00%
  • Customer Experience: 26.50%
  • Trading Technology: 11.00%

We used this data to develop a comprehensive rubric for evaluating 21 online brokerage and trading platforms based on their research amenities, portfolio tracking features, fees and commissions, and other features to help our readers choose the right penny stock trading platform. For each company, Investopedia's team of researchers and full-time editorial staff analyzed data obtained directly from company websites and representatives. Our data collection process ran from Jan. 14 to Jan. 22, 2025.

Man trading on the best penny stock trading app

FG Trade Latin / Getty Images

Article Sources
Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.
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  2. E*TRADE. "Mobile Platforms.

  3. E*TRADE. "Power E*TRADE."

  4. E*TRADE. "Execution Quality.

  5. E*TRADE. "Power E*TRADE."

  6. E*TRADE. "Library."

  7. Fidelity. "We Are Fidelity.

  8. Fidelity. "Explore Research Firms.

  9. InteractiveBrokers. "About the Interactive Brokers Group.

  10. Interactive Brokers. "Risk Management.

  11. Interactive Brokers. "Order Types.

  12. Interactive Brokers. "Products."

  13. Interactive Brokers. "Commissions."

  14. Interactive Brokers. "Stocks, ETFs, Warrants and Structured Products."

  15. Interactive Brokers. "Experience the IBKR Advantage.

  16. IBKRCampus. "Traders' Academy."

  17. Interactive Brokers. "News & Research.

  18. TradeStation. "Pricing."

  19. TradeStation. "Trading your Automated Strategy.

  20. GitHub. "TradeStation.

  21. TradeStation. "Pricing."

  22. TradeStation. "Simulated Trading."

  23. Charles Schwab. "Market Research.

  24. Charles Schwab. "Pricing."

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