Simply Wall Street vs Morningstar 2024: Which is better?
Disclosure
This page may contain affiliate links. This means we earn a small commission (at no additional cost to you) if you purchase a product through our links.When it comes to personal finance and gaining financial independence, making profitable investment decisions plays a big role. Utilizing the proper investing strategies can help you enjoy impressive market returns from individual stocks.
However, many retail investors don’t have hours upon hours to spend researching stocks on their own. Instead, they turn to a stock research platform for expert stock recommendations.
Simply Wall Street is Better for: | Morningstar is Better for: |
Affordable unlimited access | Stock analyst opinions |
Easy-to-understand information | Investment research services |
Retail investors | institutional investors |
Some services—like Motley Fool Stock Advisor—simply tell individual investors which stocks to invest in, essentially acting like stand-in financial advisors. However, these services don’t allow investors a lot of flexibility when it comes to investing strategies, as they can only use the stock recommended.
That’s why using a more expansive stock research platform is the preferred method of many. By analyzing multiple asset types (like stocks, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds) while viewing relevant data (such as historical performance, average return rates, and financial statements), investors are able to make their own investment decisions.
There are many different platforms that you can choose from, but today, we’ll be taking a closer look at two. Find out which option is best for your individual investing goals in this Simply Wall Street vs Morningstar comparison!
Free Features | Global Markets Access, Company reports (5), portfolio stock analysis (5), watchlists (5) | Limited access to resources and charts |
Paid Features | Company reports, portfolio stock analysis, Stock Screener, Excel & PDF exports | Access to resources, charts, analyst reports, Premium Fund Screener, Cost Analyzer, X-ray tool, Bulls and Bears, Portfolio Manager, Investment Planning |
Annual Subscription Fees | $0-$20/month (billed yearly) | $34.95 (monthly) $249 (annual) |
Securities Analyzed | Stocks and other equities | Stocks, Mutual Funds, ETFs |
Investing Approach | Fundamental | Quantitative (starred) and qualitative (gold, etc.) approaches distinctly separated by different ranking systems |
Best Use | Stock research | Asset research |
Modest Money Review | Simply Wall St Review | Morningstar Review |
Current Promotion | Save $50 on an annual membership with coupon code MM50 | |
Modest Money Overall Rating |
Free Features | Global Markets Access, Company reports (5), portfolio stock analysis (5), watchlists (5) |
Paid Features | Company reports, portfolio stock analysis, Stock Screener, Excel & PDF exports |
Annual Subscription Fees | $0-$20/month (billed yearly) |
Securities Analyzed | Stocks and other equities |
Investing Approach | Fundamental |
Best Use | Stock research |
Modest Money Review | Simply Wall St Review |
Current Promotion | |
Modest Money Overall Rating |
Free Features | Limited access to resources and charts |
Paid Features | Access to resources, charts, analyst reports, Premium Fund Screener, Cost Analyzer, X-ray tool, Bulls and Bears, Portfolio Manager, Investment Planning |
Annual Subscription Fees | $34.95 (monthly) $249 (annual) |
Securities Analyzed | Stocks, Mutual Funds, ETFs |
Investing Approach | Quantitative (starred) and qualitative (gold, etc.) approaches distinctly separated by different ranking systems |
Best Use | Asset research |
Modest Money Review | Morningstar Review |
Current Promotion | Save $50 on an annual membership with coupon code MM50 |
Modest Money Overall Rating |
Simply Wall Street vs Morningstar Videos
Factor 1: Free Features
Although the news alone would likely be enough to inform you of stocks to avoid in a stock market crash, you never want to navigate a stock market crash—or even just the stock market in general—without some research resources.
In-depth stock research not only helps you monitor market performance, but a proper stock research report can also help you find undervalued stocks and give you stock ideas. However, comprehensive data usually isn’t free.
So what is?
Simply Wall Street Offers More for Free
- Simply Wall Street gives five reports per month
- Morningstar offers limited access to content & tools
- Simply Wall Street reports are extremely comprehensive
Simply Wall Street
This platform primarily focuses on stocks, although it does have some limited coverage for other assets like ETFs (exchange-traded funds). However, it doesn’t cover assets like mutual funds, bonds, or cryptocurrencies.
That said, free users will still be able to get plenty of stock ideas and investment ideas from Simply Wall Street. The free version of this platform allows users to look up a stock research report for five companies per month.
These reports include a lot of useful information including stock analyst data, historical performance, predicted growth, shareholder returns, and more.
Even with a limited number of reports (which are offered for both domestic and international stocks), investors will be able to easily identify and invest in undervalued stocks.
Morningstar
Morningstar saves the vast majority of its useful features for Morningstar Premium. Free users won’t have access to expert stock recommendations and in-depth analyses, but they will be able to access a bit of information for free.
Information on international stocks is limited. However, the platform covers a wide range of US-based stocks, mutual funds,exchange-traded funds, and other asset types. Free data is basic but includes crucial information such as the share price return and general market performance.
While you won’t be able to learn much beyond the general investment returns, investors already familiar with the market may at least be able to get a few actionable investment ideas from the free version of this platform.
Factor 2: Paid Features
If you want unlimited access to model portfolios, expert analyses, and the best investment ideas then it’s worth paying for subscription services. However, since each service’s business model for revenue growth is unique, they don’t all offer the same benefits.
Let’s see how the two perform when you’re willing to pay for their premium service.
Morningstar Has Superior Premium Services
- Morningstar provides in-depth, original analyst reports
- Simply Wall Street is sufficient for casual investors
- Morningstar covers more asset types
Simply Wall Street
Whereas the free plan of Simply Wall Street only offers a limited number of reports, the paid plans offer a wide range of additional services. Beyond viewing market returns, members on the “Premium” plan have access to detailed analyst reports on investment offerings, alerts, the stock screener, and personalized portfolio recommendations.
The “Premium” plan also raises the limitation on stock and company reports to 30 per month. However, the “Unlimited” plan grants unlimited access to these reports and analyses, in addition to enabling Excel & PDF exports.
Either of these paid plans should offer users enough information to find the investment ideas they need to get closer to financial independence!
Morningstar
As we’ve mentioned earlier, most of the best features of Morningstar are hidden behind the paywall of Morningstar Premium. However, this isn’t just an overrated service: it’s powerful enough to be used by retail and institutional investors alike!
Morningstar’s subscription services offer a huge range of benefits and features including rating systems (which makes it easy to compare investment ideas), investment tracking (to keep track of your investment returns and losses), fair value estimates, Portfolio X-Ray, investment screening tools, “Top Picks,” and more.
If you want to get all the data required to maximize your market returns on various asset types—from stocks to mutual funds—then Morningstar’s vast selection of investing tools is worth checking out. Learn about the platform’s true abilities by taking a look at this complete Morningstar review!
Factor 3: Subscription Costs
Paying for a service that offers great investment ideas and insights makes sense only if the investment returns justify the upfront costs. Prices vary widely between different financial services, so let’s see how much each service charges!
Simply Wall Street is the More Affordable Option
- Simply Wall Street costs a mere $20 per month
- Morningstar costs $249-$419.40 per year
- Simply Wall Street only offers annual billing
Simply Wall Street
At only $20 per month, Simply Wall Street provides excellent value for the money. If the information is properly utilized, you should have no problem outpacing the subscription costs with your average share price return!
That said, Simply Wall Street only offers annual billing, meaning you’ll need to pay $240 upfront for the entire year. A more flexible billing alternative would be appreciated.
Learn More About Simply Wall Street
Morningstar
Morningstar Premium is rather expensive, especially when compared to a budget-friendly service like Simply Wall Street. That said, it does offer flexible billing options.
You can pay for your Premium service annually or monthly. A monthly subscription will cost you $34.95 each month (or $419.40 per year). The annual billing must be paid in full upfront but offers a highly discounted rate of $249 per year.
Learn More About Morningstar
Factor 4: External Customer Reviews & Ratings
External Simply Wall St Reviews & Ratings
Site | Rating | |
Google Play Store | 4.7 from 5,491 votes | |
Trustpilot | ||
Apple App Store | 4.5 from 1,211 reviews | |
Millennial Money | 4.5 | |
Newton Advisor | 4.5 |
External Morningstar Reviews & Ratings
Site | Rating | |
Joy Wallet | 4.5 | |
Best Wallet Hacks | 4.5 | |
TrustRadius | 4.5 | |
Apple App Store | 4.1 from 6,519 review |
Simple Wall Street vs Morningstar: Our Thoughts
While both platforms are excellent options offering unlimited access (on premium plans) to features that will help you maximize your investment returns, the “best” one really depends on your individual needs.
If you’re a casual investor who only needs basic information on investment offerings such as company financial health, share price return, and some expert analysis, then Simply Wall Street offers an excellent value for the money.
You can sign up by clicking here.
On the other hand, if you’re the type of investor who requires every possible bit of data you can find, then Morningstar Premium is worth considering.
Expert analyses are the cornerstone of Morningstar. Using this information you’ll easily be able to maximize your investment returns, making decisions based on the opinions of multiple industry experts.
The service may be a bit more pricey, but for all the additional information you’ll instantly gain access to, we’d argue it’s worth the asking price.
Click here to save $50 off your Morningstar subscription (after a free seven-day trial!).
Simply Wall St Comparison Posts
https://simplywall.st/
https://simplywall.st/about
https://simplywall.st/plans
https://www.morningstar.com/
https://www.morningstar.com/help-center/faq/premum-membership-cost
https://www.morningstar.com/products#personal
https://www.morningstar.com/topics/sustainable-investing
https://www.morningstar.com/funds
https://www.morningstar.com/etfs
https://www.morningstar.com/stocks
https://www.morningstar.com/bonds
https://www.morningstar.com/markets
https://www.morningstar.com/portfolio-manager
https://www.morningstar.com/products/professional-investment-solutions
https://www.modestmoney.com/morningstar-subscription-cost/
https://www.modestmoney.com/is-morningstar-premium-worth-it/