This is a list of money management and brokerage resources we recommend to build wealth, save money, and increase performance and efficiency.
We try to avoid clutter and don’t like using many apps or having many memberships or accounts. So, this is what we consider the best and highest-impact products and services that are simple but powerful.
Full Transparency
We don’t run random ads on this site; you can check out all our affiliate disclosures here. If you subscribe to any of the services described below or become a customer, you automatically become a PRO member with access to all PRO content and resources. There are more options to choose from in the Closelooknet shop.
Personal Capital
Personal Capital is a valuable tool for keeping track of multiple financial accounts to get a holistic picture of one’s net worth and various financial exposures. The tool provides a complete picture of a user’s financial situation.
The tool displays the overall portfolio weighting across all accounts, like how much money there is in each type of investment owned. It also includes:
- A graph of your net worth over time.
- A detailed breakdown of where all your expenses go each month.
- A fee-scanner, to find hidden fees you might not be aware you’re paying.
- A retirement planner helps to figure out if you’re on track.
It has bank-level encryption for maximum safety. The free tool can be accessed here.
Investing with M1 Finance
M1 Finance is a platform for making investments. It is entirely free, with no annual fee or commission fees. A user can build a custom portfolio and re-balance it with or set it so that whenever new money is added, it automatically re-balances to the targets.
Unlike most Robo-advisors that only let users invest in a small number of ETFs, M1 Finance allows users to invest in a broad range of ETFs and individual stocks.
They offer pre-built portfolios from experts that you can invest in, or you can make one for yourself. Users can either keep it simple with just a small number of index funds or can add specific companies they want to own to their portfolio. For more advanced users, M1 Finance also offers some of the lowest margin rates in the industry.
Recommended full-service brokerages
Suppose you want to do more advantaged strategies like options trading or buy stocks directly on foreign exchanges. In that case, full-service brokerages offer more opportunities in exchange for higher fees. We recommend the following three ones:
Fidelity Investments: FI is an excellent one-stop-shop for index funds, individual stocks, and options.
Charles Schwab: Suited especially for individual stocks and options. There is free research, including Morningstar analysis.
Interactive Brokers: IBKR is the go-to broker for more advanced investors, especially those wishing to invest globally.
Not all brokers are the same. In addition to providing premium research (typically worth hundreds of dollars per year if purchased from the source directly), some have better order execution than others and can get users better prices on stocks, ETFs, or options, which usually more than make up for their commissions. The recommended ones also let you convert currencies and invest directly on foreign exchanges.
