Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard, Robinhood. Four brokerages. Four very different types of investors.

Let me break down which one actually fits where you are right now. The difference is the tools, the funds, and who each platform is actually built for. Robinhood is built for simplicity. Clean app, easy to use, great for anyone who just wants to buy a stock or ETF quickly. Fractional shares on everything, but it has limited research tools, no mutual funds, and a design that could push you more towards trading than you should. I would not build long-term wealth on this platform. Vanguard is built for a long-term passive investor. They invented the index funds. Their funds like VTI and VOO are some of the best in the world, but the platform itself isn't that great if you are a set-it-and-forget-it investor who never needs to call customer service and isn't worried about fractional shares, then Vanguard works. Otherwise, it can be frustrating. Now, Schwab is excellent. Zero commissions, strong research tools, great customer service, a solid app. One thing to know is Schwab's fractional shares program on their site as of right now still shows limited to S&P 500 stocks only, but on online Reddit forums it says as of May it's fully fractional shares on almost everything. So I haven't confirmed this yet, but for now we will say that they don't. If you want a full-service brokerage with a great experience, it's goated. Now, Fidelity is my personal pick. Zero commissions, the best customer service of the four, fractional shares on thousands of stocks, and the zero expense ratio funds that I talk about all the time like FZROX and FZILX that literally cost nothing to own. The app is clean, the research tools are strong, and you can open up a Roth IRA with no minimum balance in minutes. Here's how I think about it. Just starting out and want simple, Schwab or Fidelity. Long-term passive investor who does not care about fractional shares and wants Vanguard's own ETFs, Vanguard. Or Robinhood if you just want to get started and you just want a mobile-friendly app experience with fractional shares. Pick one, open an account today. The best brokerage is the one that you actually use. Which brokerage are you using right now and why? And if you know the answer to the Schwab ETF fractional update, let me know in the comments.