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Written by Sam Levine, CFA, CMT, Blain Reinkensmeyer
Edited by Carolyn Kimball
Fact-checked by Steven Hatzakis
December 22, 2023
Webull is an excellent choice for beginning and intermediate traders. The user experience is outstanding, and Webull has better charts than its natural competitor, Robinhood. Options contracts are commission-free in the U.S., but crypto markups and markdowns are on the high side. Long-term active investors might prefer the deep research reports available at Schwab, Fidelity, and Merrill Edge.
Pros & Cons
Here are our top findings on Webull:
thumb_up_off_alt Pros
- Webull provides a terrific user experience across all devices thanks to its crisp layouts, easy configuration, and great graphic design.
- Options traders, get ready to party, because there’s zero commission options trading.
- Beginners can get their feet wet with simulated (paper) trading and fractional shares.
thumb_down_off_alt Cons
- Webull expanded the quantity of educational content this year, but quality has plummeted.
- Open-end mutual funds and fixed income are not available.
- Webull moved its crypto trading to a separate app.
Overall summary
| Feature |  |
|---|---|
| Overall |  |
| Investment Options | |
| Commissions & Fees |  |
| Mobile Trading Apps | |
| Platforms & Tools | |
| Research |  |
| Customer Service |  |
| Education | |
| Ease Of Use | |
Investment options
Webull offers stocks, ETFs, crypto, and options. Mutual funds, futures, forex, and bonds are not supported. Though it doesn’t offer debit cards and checking, it does have an attractive cash sweep account option.
Cryptocurrency: Webull transferred all crypto trading to its new wallet app Webull Pay this year. The main app and website have streaming quotes but no trading.
Webull separated crypto to insulate its traditional business from the regulatory heat directed at crypto trading. Though it’s slightly inconvenient to switch between two apps, Webull Pay carries over the feel of the main Webull app. It’s a minor inconvenience, but I expect other brokers to follow suit eventually.
Webull Pay offers eight cryptocurrencies for trading, including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Dogecoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin, Shiba Inu, and USD coin. New York state residents can only trade Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin.
Penny stocks: Webull allows liquidating penny stocks, but says that it “generally” does not support opening positions in OTC stocks trading at under $5 per share. Over-the-counter (OTC) stock trading is limited to a list of around 500 stocks, a big increase from last year’s hundred or so names.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| Stock Tradinginfo | Yes |
| Margin Trading | Yes |
| OTC Stocksinfo | Yes |
| Options Tradinginfo | Yes |
| Complex Options Max Legsinfo | 4 |
| Bonds (US Treasury)info | No |
| Futures Tradinginfo | No |
| Forex Tradinginfo | No |
| Mutual Funds (Total)info | 0 |
| Advisor Servicesinfo | No |
| Crypto Tradinginfo | Yes |
| Crypto Trading - Total Coinsinfo | 44 |
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Commissions and fees
Webull charges no commissions to U.S. customers for trading stocks, ETFs, and stock options (there are fees for index options). Webull U.S. makes money from margin lending, interest on cash balances, and payment for order flow. Most brokers accept payment for routing customer orders to market makers. A few brokers do not, such as Fidelity, Vanguard, and Public. Learn more about order execution quality here.
While most brokers covered in our Annual Stockbroker Review charged $0.65 - $0.75 for stock option contracts, Webull charges nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada. Firstrade, SoFi, and Robinhood are other brokers with zero cost option trading.
Other fees: Webull does not charge deposit or withdrawal fees if you use ACH transfers. Wire transfers are $8 to deposit and $25 to withdraw.
Like most U.S. brokers, Webull doesn’t have a minimum account balance to open an account. If you want to use margin, there is a $2,000 equity requirement, but that’s per the Federal Reserve.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0.00 |
| Stock Trades | $0.00 |
| Penny Stock Fees (OTC)info | N/A |
| ETF Trade Fee | $0.00 |
| Options (Base Fee) | $0.00 |
| Options (Per Contract) | $0.00 |
| Options Exercise Fee | $0.00 |
| Options Assignment Fee | $0.00 |
| Futures (Per Contract) | (Not offered) |
| Mutual Fund Trade Fee | N/A |
| Broker Assisted Trade Fee | N/A |
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Mobile trading apps
Webull's mobile app is sleek and user-friendly, presenting graphs and data in an easy-to-digest format. The community feed is prominent in the mobile app. Like most social media today, Webull’s community feed is best read for entertainment rather than as a source of actionable investment ideas.
Ease of use: Other than a few counterintuitive icon choices, navigation is a breeze. We suggest the first step all new clients take is to adjust notification preferences. With notifications left at the default, Webull bombarded us with emails, texts, and banner notifications.
Watch lists: Watch lists are very clean and very detailed. The vertical view keeps things simple. But once you turn your phone horizontally, there’s column after column of price data and fundamentals to scroll through. Clicking through takes you directly to the stock information and the charts.
Charting: Though the feature set is narrow compared to what’s available at the brokers we’ve rated as best for traders, Webull’s charting still felt top-notch. Scrolling, pinching, zooming, and drawing made many other brokerapps seem positively clunky in comparison. The mobile app supports a horizontal view, and all platforms have a solid range of tools, customization, indicators, and timeframes that will satisfy beginners and intermediate-level traders.
A walkthrough of Webull's mobile app.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| iPhone Appinfo | Yes |
| Android Appinfo | Yes |
| Apple Watch Appinfo | Yes |
| Stock Alertsinfo | Yes |
| Charting - After-Hoursinfo | Yes |
| Charting - Technical Studiesinfo | 56 |
| Charting - Study Customizationsinfo | Yes |
| Watch List (Streaming)info | Yes |
| Watch Lists - Create & Manageinfo | Yes |
| Watch Lists - Column Customizationinfo | No |
Other trading platforms and tools
While Webull's web and desktop platforms don’t have the extensive range of tools found on trading platforms such as Schwab’s thinkorswim and TradeStation, or the whiz-bang graphic design and analytics on tastytrade, Webull will satisfy most casual traders and delight many with a gratifyingly quick learning curve and attractive graphic design. The browser-based platform is very similar to the desktop version. Both are buttery smooth — no herky-jerkiness here. My compliments go out to Webull’s software engineers.
Charting: Charting is a treat on both the web and desktop versions. Chart trading is a welcome feature. I tried it out and found it well implemented. There’s a standard lineup of charting features, including several different chart types, adequate drawing tools, 59 technical studies, the ability to add hotkeys, and grid layouts to compare multiple charts.
Beginners will appreciate being able to practice first with paper trading and, once they’re ready, investing in fractional shares. More sophisticated and demanding traders can also code custom indicators. See best trading platforms for day traders.
Options trading: The options chain is presented logically and clearly. You can set up multi-leg trades and view a nice Profit/Loss graph on the position. Five Greeks are available and an options calculator lets you estimate the intrinsic value of contracts. If you want even more tools, check out our guide to the best brokers for options trading.
Robo advisor: I’m not impressed by Smart Advisor, Webull’s new robo-advisory service. The investment decisions appear to be delegated to State Street Global Advisors, which has a vested interest in using its own ETFs. I tested Smart Advisor by opening an account with $1,000.
My model holdings weren’t disclosed before I opened and funded an advisory account, which meant I couldn’t estimate the ETF management fees. Once I dropped in some cash and the portfolio was set up, I wasn’t too surprised that State Street Global Advisors only used State Street Global Advisors ETFs in my portfolio. I was, however, surprised that the fund used actively managed ETFs, because those are typically more expensive than straight index funds.
The weighted average fund management fees were 0.23%, more than the 0.20% Webull charges for the service. If the portfolio doesn’t change, my annual charges will be in the range of 0.43%, which is a hefty fee for a lazy portfolio. (See more on lazy portfolios on sister site investor.com.)
Quote data: As with Robinhood and Public, traders must pay a monthly fee to view Level 2 quotes once the free data subscription expires. At Webull, the Level 2 cost is only $1.99 per month. If you trade at least one options contract monthly at Webull, you get free real-time options data (OPRA); otherwise it’s $2.99 per month. Other brokers often provide this data for free.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| Active Trading Platforminfo | N/A |
| Desktop Trading Platforminfo | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Mac)info | Yes |
| Web Trading Platforminfo | Yes |
| Paper Tradinginfo | Yes |
| Trade Journalinfo | No |
| Watch Lists - Total Fieldsinfo | 35 |
| Charting - Indicators / Studiesinfo | 52 |
| Charting - Drawing Toolsinfo | 19 |
| Charting - Study Customizationsinfo | 2 |
| Charting - Save Profilesinfo | Yes |
| Trade Ideas - Technical Analysisinfo | No |
| Streaming Time & Salesinfo | Yes |
| Trade Ideas - Backtestinginfo | No |
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Research
Webull's research tools fall far short when compared to industry leaders Merrill Edge, Fidelity, and Charles Schwab, who also offer $0 stock and ETF trades. That’s understandable, as Webull is targeted more toward price- and volume-driven traders than long-term investors.
Stock research: For researching stocks, Webull offers a screener, analyst ratings, price targets, and company news. Many investors will miss the market commentary available at larger brokers.
I do like how Webull presents stocks’ financial data. Along with tables, it can be displayed graphically, making it easy to spot equity, revenue, and profitability trends. Snazzy.
The stock market views on the web and desktop platforms are a bit quirky. For example, there are tabs for the U.S. and Hong Kong/China, but not the rest of Asia, Europe, South America, or Africa.
Community feed: Webull’s mobile and desktop platforms have a Twitter-like… err, excuse me, X-like… social feed that has active community engagement, but there’s more emotional venting going on than insightful analysis. If you like reading real-time commentary from fellow retail traders, I recommend checking out eToro.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| Research - Stocksinfo | Yes |
| Stock Research - ESGinfo | No |
| Stock Research - PDF Reportsinfo | 0 |
| Screener - Stocksinfo | Yes |
| Research - ETFsinfo | Yes |
| Screener - ETFsinfo | No |
| Research - Mutual Fundsinfo | No |
| Screener - Mutual Fundsinfo | No |
| Research - Pink Sheets / OTCBBinfo | Yes |
| Research - Bondsinfo | No |
Education
Webull has frantically expanded its educational content since our last review, but the quality has unfortunately plummeted. Rather than ask you to take my word for it, let’s dissect one passage I found:
Definition of a portfolio
A portfolio is a collection of your financial assets. Your portfolio shows your investment scope and risk tolerance.For example, you plan to invest $10,000 in total. You have limited risk tolerance but want to take a chance at high-volatility investments. You decide that the maximum loss you can bear is $3,000. So, here is how you decide to allocate your money.
To be safe, you put $3,000 in municipal bonds and another $3,000 in utility stocks. You put $1,000 in an ETF tracking the S&P 500 index. For the remaining $3,000, you put $1,000 in an emerging medical stock and $2,000 in cryptocurrency. [Source]
Gentle readers, municipal bonds and utility stocks are not what any financial planner would call a “safe” portfolio. The writer may have meant that $3,000 in municipal bonds and $3,000 in utility stocks is the conservative part of your portfolio, but even that’s open to question.
Long-term bonds and utility stocks are subject to interest rate risk. It’s not unusual for them to drop by 20% or more over an economic cycle. It’s possible to lose far more than $3,000 in that portfolio. Theoretically, the portfolio can drop to zero, and that needs to be explicitly stated. That passage is just one out of several that concerned me. The takeaway: Learn your investing basics elsewhere.
| Feature | |
|---|---|
| Education (Stocks)info | Yes |
| Education (ETFs)info | Yes |
| Education (Options)info | Yes |
| Education (Mutual Funds)info | No |
| Education (Bonds)info | No |
| Education (Retirement)info | No |
| Paper Tradinginfo | Yes |
| Videosinfo | No |
| Webinarsinfo | No |
| Webinars (Archived)info | No |
| Progress Trackinginfo | Yes |
| Interactive Learning - Quizzesinfo | Yes |
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Customer service
To score Customer Service, StockBrokers.com partners with customer experience research firm Confero to conduct phone tests from locations throughout the United States. For this year's testing, 135 customer service tests were conducted over six weeks, with wait times logged for each call.
Customer service representatives were asked for assistance or details for prospective customers in several areas of broker services, including account opening, trading tools, apps, rollovers, active trading, and more. Here are the results for Webull.
- Average Connection Time: 4-5 minutes
- Average Net Promoter Score: 4.7 / 10
- Average Professionalism Score: 3.5 / 10
- Overall Score: 4.42 / 10
- Ranking: 13th of 13 brokers
Final thoughts
Webull, like Robinhood, has attracted a loyal following of customers because it is a joy to use, has an active investor community, and was one of the first brokers to offer $0 trades. But that’s standard fare among beginner-friendly brokers nowadays. Webull’s competitive strength comes from its snappy web and desktop platforms.
Between Webull vs Robinhood, I prefer Webull, Webull’s educational content excepted. When comparing Webull to the best online brokers offering $0 stock and ETF trades, Webull does a fine job for its target market of novice to intermediate short-term traders, but less so for long-term investors.
Here are our top takeaways on Webull for 2023:
- Webull is a trading-focused online broker that provides clean layouts, a friendly user interface, and an active trading community. The desktop application is super easy to customize and comes across as crisp and modern. The mobile app shares much of the desktop and browser experience.
- Experienced traders and long-term investors will long for additional features routinely offered by the most established brokers. For example, Webull does not currently offer mutual funds, bonds, or futures, and its investor education, advanced tools, and fundamental research pale when compared to Fidelity, E*Trade, and Interactive Brokers.
- Beginning traders will find Webull to be a very good fit and may be satisfied for years. It’s highly functional without being overwhelming. Long-term stock pickers and financial planning-focused investors will find better fits elsewhere.
Best Broker Guides
Explore our broker rankings:
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Is Webull good for beginners?
Beginning stock, ETF, and crypto traders will find Webull’s simplicity allows them to focus on their trades instead of operating the platform. Webull also has low costs (other than crypto) and offers both fractional shares and simulated trading. But if you’re looking for a huge library of educational articles or videos, you’ll have to find it elsewhere.
Is Webull good for options?
Webull is somewhat unusual among the brokers in our annual review for charging nothing on options contracts. Firstrade, SoFi and Robinhood also offer zero commission and fee options trading. If you trade one contract a month or more, OPRA real-time quotes are free. If you frequently roll positions or perform in-depth analysis, you’ll find it quicker to enter orders and analyze potential trades or scenarios at other brokers.
Can you trade futures on Webull?
Webull doesn’t offer futures trading. In our guide to futures brokers, we ranked the following as among the best for trading futures:
- Interactive Brokers - Best for professional futures trading
- tastytrade - Best for casual futures traders
- TradeStation - Great platforms and low commissions
- E*TRADE - Best trading platform for beginners
What is the downside to Webull?
Webull’s primary downside stems from its focus on short-term trading. Long-term investors looking for financial planning content, deep research into individual stocks, and extensive market commentary and videos should consider other brokers.
Can you trade forex on Webull?
Webull does not offer forex trading. Among the brokers we review, Interactive Brokers offers a beginner-friendly mobile app and a sophisticated, institutional-suitable platform, both with attractive forex pricing.
Can you make money with Webull?
You can make money with Webull as you can with other online brokers. Options traders will appreciate the $0 commissions. Rapid-fire crypto traders will find Webull expensive. Ultimately, your investing or trading results will depend more on your knowledge and ability than on the broker you use. Making money is never guaranteed.
Does Webull have hidden fees?
Webull’s fees are clearly listed on a “Pricing” page on its website, except for the one percent markups and markdowns applied to cryptocurrency trades. That highly relevant piece of information was on a separate page from the pricing.
Can Webull be trusted?
Webull is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects customers’ funds up to $500,000 in case a brokerage goes bankrupt. Its clearing firm, Apex Clearing, has additional insurance. However, it’s important to understand that SIPC does not protect against market losses, which is true for any broker.
About Webull
Webull is part of China-based Fumi Technology, a fintech company that provides real-time market data, analytical tools, and trading technologies. Webull’s technology team is based in Hunan, China, while customer-facing and brokerage operations are located in New York City.
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StockBrokers.com Review Methodology
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Our research team conducts thorough testing on a wide range of features, products, services, and tools for U.S. investors, collecting and validating thousands of data points in the process; this makes StockBrokers.com home to the largest independent database on the web covering the online broker industry. We test all available trading platforms for each broker and evaluate them based on a host of data-driven variables. All research, writing and data collection at StockBrokers.com is done by humans, for humans. Read our generative AI policy here.
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Compare Webull
See how Webull stacks up against other brokers.
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About the Editorial Team
Sam Levine has over 30 years of experience in the investing field as a portfolio manager, financial consultant, investment strategist and writer. He also taught investing as an adjunct professor of finance at Wayne State University. Sam holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and the Chartered Market Technician designations and is pursuing a master's in personal financial planning at the College for Financial Planning. Previously, he was a contributing editor at BetterInvesting Magazine and a contributor to The Penny Hoarder and other media outlets.
Blain Reinkensmeyer has 20 years of trading experience with over 2,500 trades placed during that time. He heads research for all U.S.-based brokerages on StockBrokers.com and is respected by executives as the leading expert covering the online broker industry. Blain’s insights have been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and the Chicago Tribune, among other media outlets.
Carolyn Kimball is managing editor for Reink Media and the lead editor for the StockBrokers.com Annual Review. Carolyn has more than 20 years of writing and editing experience at major media outlets including NerdWallet, the Los Angeles Times and the San Jose Mercury News. She specializes in coverage of personal financial products and services, wielding her editing skills to clarify complex (some might say befuddling) topics to help consumers make informed decisions about their money.
Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Research for ForexBrokers.com. Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1,000 published articles about the online finance industry. Steven is an active fintech and crypto industry researcher and advises blockchain companies at the board level. Over the past 20 years, Steven has held numerous positions within the international forex markets, from writing to consulting to serving as a registered commodity futures representative.
*Webull Disclaimer View Disclaimer.
From what I see in the article, Webull is reviewed extensively in terms of its offerings, features, and comparative analysis against other brokers. It covers various aspects like investment options, commissions and fees, mobile and desktop platforms, research tools, educational resources, customer service, and a comprehensive comparison against competing platforms.
Investment Options:
Webull offers a range of investment options including stocks, ETFs, crypto, and options. However, it doesn't support mutual funds, futures, forex, or bonds. It also segregates its crypto trading to a separate app, Webull Pay, for regulatory purposes.
Commissions & Fees:
Webull stands out with zero commissions on stocks, ETFs, and stock options for U.S. customers. It generates revenue from margin lending, interest on cash balances, and payment for order flow.
Mobile Trading Apps:
The mobile app is highlighted for its user-friendly interface, clean layouts, and ease of navigation. It incorporates a community feed, watch lists, and robust charting tools.
Platforms & Tools:
Webull's web and desktop platforms are sleek and smooth, although they might lack the depth of tools compared to some established brokers. The charting features are comprehensive, allowing various technical analyses and multi-leg options trading.
Research:
Webull's research tools are relatively limited, focusing more on price- and volume-driven trading than catering to long-term investors. It includes stock screeners, analyst ratings, and company news, but might lack in-depth market commentary found in larger brokers.
Education:
The educational content on Webull is noted to have expanded but with decreased quality. The review critiques certain passages for lacking accuracy in portraying investment principles, suggesting better sources for foundational investment knowledge.
Customer Service:
The evaluation of customer service places Webull lower in terms of professionalism and overall score compared to other brokers. It details average connection times and net promoter scores.
Final Thoughts & Comparisons:
The article concludes that Webull caters well to beginners and intermediate traders with its user-friendly interface and low costs. However, it might lack extensive features for long-term investors when compared to more established brokers offering broader investment options, education, and research.
FAQs About Webull:
The article also includes a section addressing common questions about Webull, such as its suitability for beginners, options trading, absence of futures trading, downsides, hidden fees, trustworthiness, and a brief overview of its ownership and operation.
The review methodology used by StockBrokers.com involves rigorous testing and validation, offering an in-depth analysis of various brokerages. The team consists of experienced professionals with years of expertise in investing, trading, and financial writing.
This comprehensive review provides potential users with a detailed understanding of what Webull offers and where it might fall short compared to other brokerage options.
