Public App Review

During trading hours it may be up to 2-3 hours before a human being comes into your chat, and you need to keep ignoring the chat bot and asking for human support.

Their other main channel of customer service is [email protected] and can that can result in faster response times depending on the time of day and subject of the question.

While the lack of phone support or a real person’s voice is disappointing, it is consistent with other ultra discount brokers like Robinhood who all rely on chat support and it’s part of the reason they can offer no fees or commission free trading.

In-app help is easy to access from a user’s profile. Simply go to the “Account” icon, then “Settings,” and choose “Contact Support” for access to the chat feature. Although they do not provide phone support, live chat is offered from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST on business days, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST on weekends. Users can also always email [email protected].

From the in-app demos advertised on the community feed to the help articles categorized by topic, the company puts a strong focus on customer service Phone support would be nice to see, but like many ultra low-cost brokerage services the companies have determined that it is too expensive to create a full-fledged call center.

Public’s Commitment to Execution Quality

This is a complicated question. On the one hand, Public as one of the investment brokers is absolutely committed to execution quality with stocks and ETFs, they do not accept PFOF (Payment For Order Flow) and only trade at the NBBO (National Best Bid or Offer) with no commission fees for stocks or ETF’s. For Stocks and ETFs they are totally committed to commitment to execution quality.

However, their Crypto trades are bought and sold at a widened spread which they refuse to call a “commission” and Public even receives some of that money earned by widened spread as revenue.

There is nothing intrinsically wrong with paying a widened spread to crypto trading, but Public is trying to have its cake and eat it too by claiming $0 commissions on everything when it’s technically not true.

Public Special Offers

Public has its own referral program. If you find other investors to sign up on the public app and start trading stocks in their new investment app, you both receive a slice of stock between $3 and and up to $300.

They may be fractional shares. The stock must be held 90 days before being sold.

You can have a username and password and use Capital’s educational resources, themed portfolios, and other features without depositing anything.

If you do want to use the public mobile app to invest, use a debit card or bank account to deposit funds which will have the usual wait times depending on the funds source (30 minutes for debit cards, 7 days for Account Transfers, etc.) Public is a great ETF trading app and stock trading app, with a good Crypto trading selection (with trading fees!).

Public Education

The public investing app has a rather basic but clear education section to help new investors navigate their app, inform them that all investments involve risk, elaborate on the business model, disclose account maintenance fees (which are $0)

It can also confirm that Public supports fractional share investing, explain the free stock promotion offered via Public, explain the chat support for questions while trading, list upcoming earnings events, and other personal finance questions.

The public app has good investing education depending on your personal financial situation. If you are looking for highly complex investor education, the Public app is not for you.

Is the app available on the Apple app store?

Yes the Public app is available on the Apple app store for IOS cell phones and the Google Play store for Andriod cell phones

Does Public offer options trading?

Public does offer publicly traded Options trading but no other type of Derivatives trading. This also applies to futures and FOREX trading and Public does not support mutual funds.

Why can’t I withdraw my ACH funds immediately?

ACH deposits take 7 days to settle, while wire transfers are available immediately depending on your bank or financial institution.

Can I trade cryptocurrency on Public?

Yes, you can use the public app to start investing in crypto. However, they widen the spreads on the crypto you trade so they are making money on your trade. I don’t think there is anything wrong with this, but calling it “no commission” is disingenuous. There are nicely developed Crypto investment advice and community investment apps with other investors to interact with.

Does Public support dividend reinvestment (DRIP) programs?

Yes, you can enable automatic DRIP reinvestment so you buy more stock every time the company pays a dividend.

Are OTC trades possible through Public?

No, Public only trades Stocks and ETFs actively traded on a major exchange such as the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange), they do not trade OTC trades or trades on the “pink sheets” (investments no longer traded on a major exchange), nor “penny stocks“. Investing in fractional shares is allowed in the public app.

Can I vote my Shares if I only have fractional ownership?

Yes, you have all the rights and responsibilities of proxy voting even if you only own a fraction of a share through investing apps.

Is Public registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?

Yes Public is registered with the SEC and has been since 2017

Does Public charge any fees?

Yes, mostly by widening the spread of the trade in crypto and uncommon fees such as escheatment and TOD clauses (moving assets on death).

Does Public charge Short Selling Fees?

Public does not allow short selling or securities lending, so does not charge for short selling fees.

How fast can I make my first trade?

Within 5-10 minutes after your money is deposited. If you use a debit card, it should be very fast.

Can I invest in fractional shares

You can start investing in fractional shares, socially responsible investing through an ETF, publicly traded companies, companies that pay dividends, sell stocks, or put money into uninvested cash balances, and read independent financial advice through Public community investing community.

With the low trade minimum of just $1, fractional shares offer the ability to own a slice of high value stocks or ETFs.

How many subscribers does Public have?

At last count, 500,000 DAU (Daily Active Users)

Do you pay taxes on Public?

Yes, you are still responsible for all taxes just like you would be if you bought securities on any other exchange.

Public Products Available

Public offers publicly traded stocks, ETF’s, and some cryptocurrencies in the investing app.

Does Public trade mutual funds for $0.00?

No, Public does not offer full load or no load mutual funds at this time.

Can you lose money with Public?

Absolutely. Although Exchange Traded Funds (ETF’s) are diversified, they can still take major hits in value if they are high technology or energy stocks for just two examples. You can definitely expect to lose money on some of your crypto investments, as most investing involves risk and crypto investing has a lot of risk.

Who is Public for?

Public is targeted at new investors looking for a fast way to get into the stock market and/or cryptocurrency trading, with a good community to talk about trades with and get support with their financial decisions.

Does Public provide research?

No. The public app does not provide stock market research, only links to research through the community personal financial advice.

Does Public have hidden fees?

Public does not have payment for order flow, so they do not have any fees for stocks and ETFs. However, they widen their spreads on cryptocurrencies to make extra revenue. They do disclose this, but they also say they have “no fees” so whether they have hidden fees is a matter of perspective.

You, as an investor using a Public account, should know that they they widen their crypto spreads when you invest with this Public app review.