Tornado Review – An Investing Platform for Beginners

Name: Tornado Review – An Investing Platform for Beginners
Item: Tornado
Rating: 8.5

Written By:

Last Updated:Apr 09, 2024

Tornado Review – An Investing Platform for Beginners

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Tornado is a great option if you'd like a hybrid approach to investing, where you can make investments yourself or seek guidance from experienced professionals.

8.5/10

Cost

9/10

Features

9/10

Ease of Use

8/10

Services

8/10

Tornado, formerly known as Nvstr (pronounced Nester), is an investing platform built exclusively for individuals who want to control their investing. If you’ve been looking for an easier way to access investment strategies instead of relying on a financial advisor or investment advice you “heard” from friends and family, this Tornado review is for you.

Many of us want to set aside money for retirement or long-term savings. We all know the benefits of planning money for the future. But so often, getting started is the stumbling block. What if you’re brand new and have no clue what you’re doing? Or maybe you have a few investment ideas, but you aren’t exactly sure how to execute them.

This is where Tornado comes in.

In this article

What is Tornado?

Tornado is an investment platform that offers advanced tools for investing or guidance when you need help with optimization. Allows you to individually purchase and sell both stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with a $0 minimum. It’s an online brokerage account, or you can perform all account functions through the mobile app. It is available on Android and iOS.

The company was founded to make intelligent investing accessible to everyone. The Tornado’s executive team consists of co-founders Patrick Aber and Bernard George. The company has famous investors, including former baseball player Alex Rodriguez.

How does Tornado work?

Tornado is an investment platform that offers a three-pronged approach for Tornado users who are beginners or experienced with investing.

First, there is investment education. Everyone has access to investor-grade research and tools to start making investment decisions for themselves. Secondly, a one-click portfolio optimization tool for new investors helps you customize your asset allocation. Lastly, there is a simulator trading option, so you can see exactly what your potential earnings would look like without actually having to spend any money.

Users pay a monthly subscription fee to access all of these features. It’s a combination of robo-advisors, where software optimizes your investments for you and tools so you can make informed investment decisions and set up trades yourself. The paid account includes up to 50 commission-free trades per month.

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How much does Tornado cost?

Access to investor education information is free and available to anyone who sets up an account. The monthly subscription includes up to 50 commission-free trades and is $9.99 monthly. If you don’t want to set up a recurring subscription, you can simply conduct a trade for $4.50 each after the first 50 free stock trades.

Features

Great for beginners

Tools are tailored specifically to you if you are completely new to investing and retirement savings.

$0 minimum to join

You can open your investing account with very little. Since there is no account minimum, you do not have to deposit any money in your account to get started.

Choose your own stocks

If you want to watch certain Nasdaq companies or choose stocks based on your goals or values (such as selecting companies supporting sustainability measures), you have this ability through Tornado.

Get guidance when you need it

Whether you want a set of ETFs or need help optimizing your portfolio allocations, support and tools for additional guidance are available.

Free access to data

Data, including Capital IQ financial analysis, is available to all Tornado users. This information provides a greater in-depth look into the companies behind the stocks. This type of investor-level data is costly to purchase individually, but it’s available to account holders.

Fully functioning app

If you prefer to invest or research on the go, the highly-rated Tornado investing app gives you access to all aspects of your account.

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- Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
- Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
- 2 New Stock Picks Every Month
- Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
- 30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
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Who is Tornado best for?

Tornado is a good choice for beginners overwhelmed by the thought of investing. It’s ideal for those who want to learn and like to conduct the research themselves; they just aren’t exactly sure how to go about it.

It’s also an alternative for those who don’t have much money to start investing. Since there’s a $0 minimum, you’re under no pressure to deposit money immediately.

Who should avoid using Tornado?

Tornado is not ideal for anyone who wants to invest beyond stocks and ETFs since you’re limited to these investments with a Tornado brokerage account.

If you want to talk to a human, you may not like working with them. Currently, the only option for customer service is to submit an email and wait for a response.

If you want to make multiple trades throughout the day, you may feel limited by the 50 trades per month that are included with the account.

Pros and cons

Pros

Accessible to everyone
Highly-rated app for on-the-go investing
Access to top-notch investment information and analytics
No money is required to open an account

Cons

Limited customer service availability
50 trades per month may be too limiting for some investors
Can only invest in stocks and ETFs at this time

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Over 100 Stock Picks with 100%+ Returns
Averaged Stock Pick Return over 593% (vs. 165% for the S&P)
2 New Stock Picks Every Month
Investment Community With 700,000+ Loyal Members
30-Day Membership-Fee-Back Guarantee
Joy Wallet Reader Deal: The Motley Fool is offering 50% off its top stock-picking service for new members (Limited Time)

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Tornado vs. the competition

Tornado faces plenty of competition from other online brokerage firms. How does it compare to other popular options?

Robo-advisor	Investment options	Minimum account opening	Cost
Tornado	Stocks, ETFs, fractional shares, options	$0	$9.99 monthly fee, includes 50 commission-free trades, then $4.50 per trade
Webull	Stocks, fractional shares, options, ETFs, American Depository Receipts (ADRs), crypto	$0	$0 commission trades but there are some fees associated with account
Robinhood	Stocks, ETFs, ADRs, fractional shares, crypto	$0 for any plan, $2,000 if you want margin trading	$0-$5 month
M1 Finance	Stocks, ETFs, fractional sharing, crypto	$100-$500	Free to open account, but fees are depending on the type of account

Webull

Webull also uses powerful analysis tools to help you make investment decisions. It also offers the most investment options among the robo-advisors on our list. For those who like working with someone, Webull even offers 24/7 customer service, including inquiries about your brokerage account. Because Webull allows you to access data in real-time, it’s more suited for those who prefer day trading or taking advantage of short-term stock market gains.

Read a full review on Webull.

Robinhood

Robinhood is a well-known investment platform also offering commission-free trades, like Tornado. It also lacks account fees or a minimum to open an account, which is why many beginner investors like working with Robinhood. You can invest in ETFs, stocks, and ADRs, but no retirement account options exist, such as IRAs or 401k. You also have the option to participate in margin trading, but to do so requires at least $2,000 in your Robinhood account.

Read a full review on Robinhood.

M1 Finance

M1 Finance is a portfolio-building platform for those who prefer to work with a robo-advisor and are more comfortable with investing already. M1 Finance offers more investment accounts, such as IRAs, and investment options, including mutual funds. Still, you cannot access any financial advisors when you work with this service.

Read a full review on M1 Finance.

FAQs

Is Tornado secure?

According to the Tornado website, data is stored using state-of-the-art 256-Bit AES encryption technology, the same level of encryption you find with online banking.

Are Tornado investment accounts protected by the SIPC?

Tornado is registered with FINRA and the SEC and is a member of SIPC. The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) covers a brokerage account with Tornado up to $500,000 in value of securities, including up to $250,000 of cash (this doesn’t cover market losses).

Does Tornado have any perks for college students?

If you are in college, have a .edu email address, and are age 18-25, you can receive a free Tornado account until your 26th birthday. You’ll have access to all the account features without having to pay the $9.99 monthly subscription fee.

The bottom line

Tornado is an investment platform ideal for those with minimal investing experience but who are willing to deepen their knowledge. The monthly fee gives you access to 50 commission-free trades and a level of investor knowledge that rivals a financial advisor. If you’re looking for a hybrid approach to investing, where you can make investments yourself or seek guidance from experienced professionals, Tornado may be a great option to get started with.

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Sara Coleman is a former corporate gal turned creative entrepreneur. She began writing professionally several years ago and now contributes to multiple websites, blogs, and magazines. She’s also an avid reader and can’t resist a great historical fiction novel. Sara holds a BA in journalism from the University of Georgia and can be found supporting her Bulldogs every chance she has. She resides in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her wonderfully supportive husband and three children. When she’s not ushering her kids to sports and dance lessons, she can be found creating content for her own website, TheProperPen.com.

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