Investing

Investing differs from trading in that investing is for the long-term, usually years or decades. Investing is one of the key strategies to building long-term wealth and financial security.

Frequently Asked Questions
  • Can I start investing with $1000?

    Yes, many brokerages have no minimum account size and will offer zero-commission trading, allowing you to begin investing with even very small amounts. In fact, now with many brokers offering fractional shares, you can invest in stocks even if their share price is over $1000.

  • How do I invest in stocks?

    While there are many ways to invest in stocks, one of the easiest and best ways for beginning investors to do so is to open up a retirement account with a discount broker. These accounts have tax advantages when saving for retirement and many different brokers have ones that cost little or even nothing to have.

  • How can I invest with no money?

    While you can’t invest with zero money, you can invest with very little. Many stock brokers offer accounts with no minimum balance and no trading commissions so almost any amount you add to your account can be used to invest.

  • Why should I invest?

    You should invest because investing allows your savings to go farther than they otherwise would. Simply holding your savings as cash means it will just sit and be slowly diluted by inflation, whereas even in the safest investments it will earn some money for you, building on itself.

  • When should I start investing?

    As soon as you can afford to. Because investment returns compound, that is, the money you earn from investing then earns money, the sooner you begin investing, the more time you give for this process to work.

  • What time does the stock market open and close?

    In the U.S. stock markets major exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Nasdaq are open from 9:30 .a.m to 4.p.m Eastern Time. However, this varies around the world depending on what exchange you’re looking at and whether that day is a holiday.

Key Terms

How To Open an IRA
How to Open an IRA
Businessman reading financial stock market analysis
How to Buy Fractional Shares on Webull
Man and woman count cash on their counter
6 Best Investment Accounts for Handling Uninvested Cash
Business man trader investor analyst using mobile phone app and laptop
How to Invest in Commodities
Woman using smartphone to trade fractional shares at a coffee shop
How to Buy Fractional Shares
Over the shoulder view of Asian woman holding smartphone, analyzing investment trading data on crypto graph with smartphone and laptop while working at home. Cryptocurrency, bitcoin, digital ledger
How to Automate Your Investing
Investing in the stock market
How to Invest in Web 3.0
Gold bars are placed on United States banknote
How to Invest in Gold and Silver
A business person tracking the technical movement of a stock chart on a computer screen
How to Buy Alternative Investments
Young adult man using smart phone to monitor market and stock trading in AI
How to Invest in AI
Dunning-Kruger Effect Illustration
Dunning-Kruger Effect: Meaning and Examples in Finance
Elegant brownstones and townhouses in the Fort Greene area of Brooklyn for Rent
Best Ways to Earn Passive Income
Frustrated Man Looks at Laptop Screen
How Information Bias Can Lead to Poor Investing Decisions
Vintage Autographed Baseball Cards
Most Valuable Autographs
A Man Looks at a Stamp Collection
The Economics of Stamp Collecting
A man and a woman sit at a desk looking at a computer screen with charts and graphs on it
eToro vs. Webull
Ray Dalio
Who Is Ray Dalio?
Interactive Brokers vs Webull
Interactive Brokers vs. Webull
Young lady using a banking app on her phone
Robinhood vs. eToro 2024
Image shows eToro logo in the center of a purple background.
eToro Review 2024
Stock Markets
The Top 5 Ways to Hedge Against Inflation
Woman working on a laptop
5 Key Investment Strategies to Learn Before Trading
Lawyer and businessman working and discussing business contract papers in office.
10 Timeless Rules for Investors
Financial goals,saving money
Why Should I Consider Investing?
midsection of businessmen working on laptops with graphs and charts on the table around them
Investing vs. Speculating: What's the Difference?
A working group analyzing reports.
A Beginners' Guide to Managing Your Money
Defining Your Basic Investing Objectives: What to Factor in
An investor leans over the kitchen counter while examining investment opportunities on a laptop.
Best Stock Screeners for September 2024
Business Woman Thinking Account
Economic Indicators You Should Know for Investment
$1,000 Bill
7 Ways to Invest $1,000
Stock Market Graph Chart
8 Common Investing Mistakes to Avoid
Financial book roundup image
The 7 Best Investing Books
hundred dollar bills laid out
What Is the Best Way to Invest $100K in Cash?
Law angle view of business skyscrapers
Best Investment Accounts for Young Investors
Investor looking with dismay at his positions on monitor
The Costs of Investing
The Top 25 Investing Quotes of All Time
Young business man in suit looking at financial charts on computer monitor
Tips for Long-Term Investors in Volatile Markets
Business team present. Photo professional investor working new startup business project. Finance business meeting. Digital tablet laptop computer smart phone using.
How to Invest When You're Broke
Businessman hand holding computer mouse with laptop keyboard
How to Use Benchmarks in Investing
Businessmen holding pens and holding graph paper on a wooden table.
7 Steps to a Successful Investment Journey
coins being dropped in a jar next to two other jars that have more coins and all three having a growing plant
How to Invest in Uncertain Times
Aerial of Downtown Manhattan, NYC
How New York Became the Center of American Finance
Midsection of Businessman Using Calculator and Laptop at Desk
10 Tips for Successful Long-Term Investing
A young black man holding a phone and excitedly pumping his fist in the air in happiness.
Are You Investing or Gambling?
Investment Banker: An individual who often works as part of a financial institution and is primarily concerned with raising capital for corporations, governments, or other entities.
Investment Banker: What They Do, Required Skills, and Examples
Short-Term Investments
Short-Term Investments: Definition, How They Work, and Examples
How To Be a Conservative Investor
6 Investment Styles: Which Fits You?
Best Investing Courses of 2024
Best Investing Courses
Billions actor Damian Lewis poses in a tuxedo under a CBS News logo
The Investopedia Guide to Watching 'Billions'
Wall Street street sign
What Is Wall Street? Role in Investing and Why It's Famous
How To Talk Like An Investor
a man talking in a group of people
4 Tips for Joining an Investment Club
5 Advantages of Investing in Your 20s
A woman is writing in a holiday card.
How to Give Money (and Other Digital Assets) as a Gift
Dollar bill
The Affluent Millennial Investing Survey
A young investor reviews investments on a laptop and tablet
10 Investing Concepts Beginners Need to Learn
Young adult with beard reviews stock investments on phone while sitting next to a window.
How To Start Investing in Your 20s: Building a Strong Financial Foundation
Illustration of a woman admiring cards with different icons of businesses on them.
9 Women-Run Companies to Invest In
Illustration of a woman flying through space while surrounded by coins, pie charts, and stock tickers.
Women Are Investors: How To Shift Your Mindset