1. TradingView
TradingView is my favorite screening site because it offers the best overall combination of quality data and ease of use, and how it combines screening for fundamental data and identifying chart signals. It’s visually appealing and its prolific dropdowns make it efficient to use. You might not even need to create a custom screen, because there’s a wealth of useful presets.
There’s a vast selection of technical and fundamental indicators, and customizing data ranges is a breeze. Hands down, TradingView is my go-to site for free stock charts and free stock screening. It also won the award for No. 1 Stock Screener in the 2024 investor.com Annual Awards.
- Pros:TradingView’s fully featured stock screener has an excellent selection of fundamental data and an outstanding array of technical data. The free version is very functional for most investors.
- Cons: TradingView has a mobile app, but it doesn’t include a screener. This is a small quibble, but data exports and streaming real-time quotes require a paid subscription to TradingView Pro.
2. ChartMill
If you’re intimidated by TradingView and want a simpler screener that still gives you a decent amount of technical filters, ChartMill offers a perfect compromise between ease of use and useful indicators. I could easily imagine ChartMill as being indispensable to many casual traders and beginner investors (see our picks for the best brokers for beginners if you are just getting started or learning how to invest in stocks).
Finding appealing stocks with ChartMill is as simple as moving a few sliders and ticking a few boxes. If you don’t want to come up with your own definition of what makes a stock cheap or safe or growthy, ChartMill also has proprietary ratings and preset screens. The chart views are laid out in a logical fashion, and screen results pop up quickly.
- Pros: ChartMill is intuitive to use. There’s a good selection of fundamental filters, but not so many that it becomes overwhelming. Both traditional and candlestick pattern recognition are supported.
- Cons: The pricing is vague. A no-credit-card 14-day trial enables all the features, but once the free trial expires, users are granted a monthly budget of “credits,” which is confusing. A monthly full-feature subscription is $29.97/month.
3. FINVIZ
The FINVIZ stock screener ranks third on my list of top screeners because of its large selection of criteria, user-friendly interface, and overall functionality. FINVIZ offers a thorough selection of both fundamental and technical data and can present fundamental data visually. My favorite feature is the ability to hover the cursor over any stock ticker and instantly get a high quality chart thumbnail.
- Pros: Large selection of fundamental and technical criteria. A logical layout makes it easy to use. Quick hover stock charts.
- Cons: The free website version is dominated by ads and there’s no mobile app. Advanced features like data exporting, customized filters, and backtesting are locked behind FINVIZ Elite paywall.
4. Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha offers a wide variety of data and services, and its screeners are useful, but they now come only with the paid membership. The first month is $4.95, which renews at $299/year. That’s a steep commitment if you only want a stock or ETF screener.
The Seeking Alpha screener’s strength is in its stock ratings and preset screens. You can screen for quantitative ratings, Wall Street analyst consensus, and Seeking Alpha contributors’ opinions. I like having the contributor ratings, because they come from a sophisticated group of market watchers who aren’t beholden to Wall Street.
I found the stock screener to be far more focused on stock fundamentals than price action, which could lead traders to look elsewhere. I also, frankly, think the user interface is clunky. Creating custom screens took way too many clicks compared to other screeners, primarily because I needed to click a button to get to the filtering choices instead of having them always accessible at the top of the page.
- Pros: Seeking Alpha has excellent preset screens and the contributor ratings are unique.
- Cons: The workflow to create custom screens is annoying and there are only a few chart/price action filters.
5. Stock Rover
Stock Rover, a subscription-based web platform, offers features including screeners, portfolios, and watch lists, which are grouped under collections; and much more is packed under the hood. I found it simple to save an item to favorites and add a bookmark. Navigating the broker-platform-like layout was smooth as well.
Stock Rover offers a free 14-day trial and three premium options, including Essentials, Premium, and Premium Plus, which range from $7.99 to $27.99 per month; discounts are available for yearly commitments. Stock Rover is best suited for those who demand more than what their broker can offer, aren’t willing to change brokers, and are willing to pay a premium for better analysis and market tools.
- Pros: Extensive selection of tools and variables to conduct analysis and research. Numerical color-coded scores make it easy to assess rankings and sentiment. The fully loaded version brings over 600 metrics and greater access to additional data limits.
- Cons: The screener requires a $7.99/month subscription. Trading directly from Stock Rover is not supported — that is, it must complement the trading platform available from your online broker.
6. Yahoo Finance
The Yahoo Finance stock screener is basic, but what it lacks in depth of technical and fundamental criteria to be filtered, it gains in simplicity. The premium tier, Yahoo Finance Plus Essentials (that’s a mouthful) is comprehensive but costs $29.16 a month.
Alongside ease of use, the free stock screener includes free streaming quotes, ESG data filters, and results provide useful fundamental data.
- Pros: Yahoo’s screener is easy to use and includes streaming quotes and ESG filters. It's a simple option for investors who want to learn stock trading.
- Cons: There aren’t many criteria available for screening, and a ton of goodies are locked behind a paywall. The screener isn’t available on the Yahoo Finance app.
7. MarketSmith
Rounding out my list of top stock screeners is MarketSmith. MarketSmith is the charting package from Investors.com (Investors Business Daily). First, it is important to note that MarketSmith is neither free, nor cheap. To access the screener, which includes all the William O’Neil metrics and ratings, you have to subscribe. The monthly subscription rate is $149.95, though the first “trial” month is “only” $29.95. I think this is wishful pricing. Data, opinions, and investing methods can be found cheaper than this.
That said, the charting platform identifies growth stock ideas that fit IBD founder William O’Neil’s CAN SLIM criteria. If you’re comfortable with the CAN SLIM methodology (and CAN SLIM has been around for seven decades, give or take),then MarketSmith is worth a look.
- Pros: Excellent charting package includes access to the screener alongside IBD’s entire list of proprietary ratings.
- Cons: To gain access to the stock screener, you must sign up for MarketSmith, which costs $149.95/month after an initial month fee of $29.95.
Closing thoughts
My fave among stock screeners is TradingView’s website, which easily accommodates experienced traders. If you’re only trading casually, give ChartMill a try. It has most of the popular screening options and it’s a blast to use.
FAQs
What is a stock screener?
There are thousands of stocks out there that investors can choose from. Stock screeners allow investors to develop lists of stocks that fit their needs or interests, rather than going with only hot or recognizable names. A value investor might screen for stocks with high dividends, while a growth investor might screen for rapidly accelerating profits. Once an investor is satisfied with the screen results, he or she can either trade those stocks or research them further.
Are there any good free stock screeners?
Yes, there are good free screeners. The best free stock screener is on TradingView.com. It’s easy to use, visually appealing, and provides extensive filtering options suitable for both long-term investing and short-term trading. If you want to trade directly from a stock screener, consider trying the Stock Hacker screening tool on Charles Schwab's thinkorswim platform.
Are stock screeners worth it?
Stock screeners play an important part in the research process. They allow investors to focus their attention on stocks most likely to complement their market views and portfolio allocations. There is a wide variety of free stock screeners. The best free stock screener in my analysis comes from TradingView. The best stock brokers also often provide comprehensive stock screeners for free
What’s the best free stock screener app?
You'll find the best free stock screening on mobile on the best stock trading apps available from top-tier online stock brokers. That shouldn’t deter you because most of the best stock brokers don’t have a minimum investment or charge platform fees.
E*TRADE’s Power E*TRADE app has a powerful “Scanner” under its Live Action menu. Sophisticated investors will also like the staggering amount of options available in Interactive Brokers’ IBKR Mobile.
Why you should trust us
Blain Reinkensmeyer, co-founder of StockBrokers.com, has been investing and trading for over 25 years. After having placed over 2,000 trades in his late teens and early 20s, he became one of the first in digital media to review online brokerages. Today, Blain is widely respected as a leading expert on finance and investing, specifically the U.S. online brokerage industry. Blain has been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and Fast Company, among others. Blain created the original scoring rubrics for StockBrokers.com and oversees all testing and rating methodologies.
How we tested
- We used our own brokerage accounts for testing.
- We collected multiple data points for each broker.
- We tested each online broker's website and mobile app, where applicable.
- We maintained strict editorial independence; brokers cannot pay for inclusion or a higher rating.
Our research team meticulously collected data on features with particular importance to those saving for retirement, such as trading costs, management fees, availability of fee-free funds, ease of website and app use, and retirement planning tools and resources.
At StockBrokers.com, our reviewers use a variety of computing devices to evaluate platforms and tools. Our reviews and data collection were conducted using the following devices: iPhone SE running iOS 17.5.1, MacBook Pro M1 with 8 GB RAM running the current MacOS, and a Dell Vostro 5402 laptop i5 with 8 GB RAM running Windows 11 Pro.
Each broker was evaluated and scored in seven key categories: retirement account types, IRA fees, self-directed investment options, managed investment options, retirement planning tools, rollover experience, and ease of use.
Fidelity
Merrill Edge
E*TRADE
TradeStation
Interactive Brokers
Charles Schwab
tastytrade
eToro
