Open an account now and fund it to earn a $50-$1,000 bonus. You must open the account by October 21, 2026, and fund it within 45 days of opening (eligibility is determined on day 45). After the determination, keep the funds in the account for at least 90 days. This account also lets you trade stocks commission-free, so if you move money in, you could buy something like VOO and put it to work.

The current sign-up bonus is tiered, depending on how much you deposit into the account:

  • Deposit $5,000-$24,999 to get a $50 bonus
  • Deposit $25,000-$99,999 to get a $150 bonus
  • Deposit $100,000-$249,999 to get a $325 bonus
  • Deposit $250,000 or more to get a $1,000 bonus

This is a pretty solid offer, so I added it to the rankings:

About J.P. Morgan Self Invest

These days, major banks all offer beginner-friendly investing platforms that focus on no trading fees, no monthly fees, and no minimum deposit. Chase’s J.P. Morgan Self Invest is one of these products. You can trade stocks and exchange-traded funds online for free, and the mobile app is built right into the Chase app, which is also convenient. It’s a great fit for beginners who want to learn how to buy and sell investments, while more advanced investors may find it lacking in available assets and tools.

Opening bonus

See the beginning of the article

Terms

  • This cash offer is limited to one per customer and applies only to one new You Invest Trade account (brokerage, Traditional IRA, or Roth IRA).
  • To qualify for the opening bonus, you must open the account through this page. Customers must transfer new funds from a non-Chase or non-J.P. Morgan account in order to open and fund a new You Invest Trade account. New funds must be transferred within 45 days of account opening.
  • On day 45, the bonus tier will be confirmed. The cash bonus will be credited to the account within 10 business days after the requirements are met. You can only receive one new-funds bonus every 12 months for You Invest, Chase Private Client Checking, or Sapphire Checking.
  • The new funds balance must remain in the account for at least 90 days after the transfer (excluding losses caused by trading or market fluctuations).

Trading fees

The main trading fees for this account are shown below, and you can see that online trades are basically free.

My take

Chase’s Self-Directed Investing account is similar to the zero-commission stock platforms out there, but it’s still pretty useful for loyal Chase customers.

That said, this account doesn’t offer a high yield on idle cash (for example, Moomoo, TradeUP, and Webull offer an extremely high 4%-8% yield). You can put the money into a money market fund such as VMMXX or VUSXX; these funds yield over 2% and are considered very safe, but they are not protected by FDIC insurance like a traditional high-yield savings account.

Also, based on feedback from readers, Sapphire Banking offers do not allow IRA funds to count toward the deposit amount, while Self-Directed Investing does. You can move IRA funds over with little to no cost. However, IRA transfers usually involve fees, so you should contact your current institution and Chase to find out about any transfer-in or transfer-out fees.

About investment platforms and bonuses

A lot of investment and stock accounts now offer very generous opening bonuses. You can pick a few good ones to open, and these accounts won’t affect your credit score, so it’s fine to open several. In most cases, the requirement to earn the bonus is simply to deposit funds, so if you have cash you can transfer, you can open one at each platform. Many platforms also pay high interest on uninvested cash, so you’re not really losing out.

Stock Investing Basics

Below are a few commonly used U.S. stock brokerages, along with their signup bonuses.

Overview Signup Bonus Quick Take
Moomoo $1,030 in stock + 8.1% APY Professional platform, no commissions, and free Level 2 market data. Good for both beginners and advanced traders. Chinese-language customer service available. Requires SSN.
TradeUp 50 shares of NVDA + chance to win 5 more shares + 4% for three months No commissions, supports both U.S. and Hong Kong stocks, and offers WebTrading. Chinese-language customer service available. Available globally.
Webull $100 Amazon + 12 fractional shares + 1 month of Premium membership No commissions, with frequent deposit bonuses that give free stock.
BBAE Up to $650 bonus 0 commission, 0 fees; Chinese-friendly, and you can open an account without an SSN/ITIN.
Robinhood 1 free stock No commissions, with an interest-bearing cash account option. Simple interface that works well for beginners.
Interactive Brokers Up to $1,000 Broad market access. Professional, comprehensive trading platform with high interest on cash balances.
TradeStation $250 Professional trading platform with a full set of supporting tools.
Schwab Up to $1,000 Professional and easy to use. Global ATM fee rebates and $0 stock commissions.
Fidelity Brokerage Account Sign-up link Well-established brokerage with no trading fees, plus TurboTax included.
BIT (formerly Matrixport) $400 in stock Supports direct crypto deposits and withdrawals, does not participate in China CRS, and allows registration directly with an ID card.
SoFi Invest $75 for opening an account No commissions and supports Stock Bits.
WealthFront $5,000 managed free Automated investing and wealth management.
M1 Finance $10 for depositing funds No commissions, with automatic investing based on your portfolio allocation.

If you do not have an SSN/ITIN but still want to trade U.S. stocks, take a look at the brokerages/platforms below. All of them allow registration using a full set of Chinese documents, and you can sign up with just an ID card or passport. None of them participate in China CRS.

  • BBAE: Chinese-friendly; you can open an account without an SSN/ITIN.
  • BIT (formerly Matrixport): You can open an account with just an ID card, and approval can be completed within a few hours.
  • Bitget: Identity verification can be completed with an ID card/Chinese passport.

Application link