A must-read for Taiwan and US stock investors | Guide to choosing the right market analysis tools and trading platforms

The first step to successful investing is not stock selection, but choosing the right market monitoring tools. With the advancement of FinTech, the market is flooded with various APP applications. Each platform claims to be feature-rich and easy to use, but actual user experiences vary greatly. How can you find the most suitable tool among many options? This article summarizes the current mainstream stock and market monitoring applications for US stocks and Taiwan stocks to help investors build a more efficient trading system.

Market Monitoring Options for US Stock Investors

As a global financial hub, the US stock market attracts countless Taiwanese investors. Compared to Taiwan stocks, US stock market APP tools are more abundant, but the wide selection often leaves beginners unsure where to start.

All-in-One Trading and Market Monitoring Platforms

Mitrade has gained considerable attention among Taiwanese investors in recent years. This CFD trading platform has ratings of 4.4 on Google Play and 4.5 on the Apple App Store. It emphasizes simplifying the trading process, allowing users to complete market analysis, order placement, and monitoring within a single interface. The platform covers over 500 financial products, including 400+ US stocks, stock indices (such as S&P 500, Germany DAX40), Hong Kong stocks, and cryptocurrencies.

Mitrade offers Taiwanese investors many benefits: 1-2 free withdrawals per month, zero-fee deposits, commission-free trading, support for TWD deposits and withdrawals, and a minimum deposit of only 50 USD. The interface is clean and user-friendly, enabling beginners to open an account within five minutes, with 24-hour customer service responsiveness. However, as a CFD platform, it involves spread costs and overnight interest fees.

TD Ameritrade represents the strength of traditional brokerage firms. Founded in 1975 and merged with Charles Schwab in 2020, it now manages assets of 5 trillion USD and serves 25 million clients worldwide. Its technical analysis features are industry-leading, with dedicated customer service for Taiwan, an intuitive interface, and no minimum deposit requirement. On the downside, account opening can be complex, with approval taking over a month, and it mainly focuses on US markets, not supporting fractional share trading.

Interactive Brokers (IBKR), established in 1977, allows trading of products from 30 countries and 130 markets. It is regarded as one of the largest online brokerages globally. Its Trader Workstation (TWS) software offers professional-grade trading functions and has been rated as a low-cost broker by Barron’s for 18 consecutive years. IBKR has no minimum deposit, free fund transfers, but customer support lines are hard to reach, and it charges minimum commissions. Its interface is relatively complex, making it more suitable for experienced investors.

Professional Market Monitoring Tools

TradingView is a favorite among many US stock investors. The free version suffices for general use, with limitations on the number of charts and indicators. Known for its simplicity and ease of use, it boasts a vast library of technical indicators (including 100 pre-built indicators and over 100,000 community-developed ones). Both beginners and advanced traders can find suitable analysis methods. It also provides access to major global stock market data, facilitating fundamental analysis.

Investing.com is one of the world’s top three financial websites, founded in 2007 by Dror Efrat. It tracks global stock markets, covering over 70 exchanges and more than 100,000 financial instruments, including bonds, futures, forex, and options. Its economic calendar feature is particularly useful, providing release times for key economic data worldwide. The platform supports Chinese interface and allows users to create personal portfolios, making it an important source for understanding global market dynamics.

Market Monitoring Ecosystem for Taiwan Stock Investors

Taiwan’s stock market monitoring tools are mature, with a rich variety of options. Many investors have accumulated years of experience and have in-depth knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of various APPs.

Mainstream Comprehensive Platforms

Yahoo Finance (Yahoo Stock Market) is the most mainstream market monitoring website, with extensive coverage. It not only displays Taiwan stock quotes but also tracks global markets. Users can set up personal portfolios for real-time monitoring of holdings. Its stock screening feature is particularly practical, categorizing stocks by “Bullish,” “Bearish,” “Fundamental,” “Financials,” etc., helping investors systematically filter targets. The “Price Alert” function allows custom alerts for price or percentage changes, preventing missed trading opportunities.

Sanduo Stock Market was developed by Sanduo Information, founded in 1991, and is Taiwan’s largest mobile market monitoring software provider, collaborating with nearly 50 brokerages. It has ratings of 4.7 on Google Play and 4.8 on the Apple App Store, excelling in ease of use. Its cloud synchronization supports cross-platform viewing on mobile phones, tablets, and TVs, providing a user-friendly experience. Note that while it offers US stock quotes, they are delayed by 15 minutes, making it unsuitable for real-time US stock trading.

Professional Analysis Tools

Chips K-line by CMoney is a top tool for analyzing stock chips and investor behaviors, showing buying and selling actions of foreign institutions, major players, and retail investors, as well as shareholding changes. It offers 51 chip indicators to help judge market trends. Some features require payment to unlock, which may increase costs for those seeking full functionality.

Mr. Investment by Yuanta Securities features a simple, easy-to-understand interface, especially suitable for beginners. It provides visualized information and collaborates with Tonghuashun to offer comprehensive data on China, Hong Kong, and US stocks. The downside is that free use requires a Yuanta account.

Goodinfo! is a well-known Taiwanese stock information website, offering comprehensive Taiwan stock data, individual stock news, technical indicators, and more. It provides free tools such as stock pickers, financial report comparisons, and chip analysis. Its interface is relatively traditional, currently only available as a web version, making it more suitable for PC users.

Strategies for Combining Market Monitoring Tools

In actual investing, no single APP can meet all needs. Many experienced investors adopt a multi-tool approach: using information-rich websites for fundamental research and market calendar checks, while relying on trading-friendly APPs for order execution.

For example, use Investing.com on a computer to review weekly economic data and earnings dates, establishing a trading schedule. Once the trading direction and timing are confirmed, switch to a full-featured trading APP to place orders. Platforms like Mitrade, with low entry barriers, two-way trading, real-time quotes, and rich technical tools, are especially suitable for mobile trading. Their chart tools are optimized based on TradingView, reducing latency and improving efficiency, integrating nearly 100 analysis indicators and over 50 drawing tools.

Core Considerations When Choosing APPs

Different investors should select tools based on their own needs. If prioritizing ease of use and quick trading, focus on platforms with intuitive interfaces and low account opening barriers. For in-depth analysis and professional features, consider the completeness of indicators and research tools.

For investors trading both Taiwan stocks and US stocks, it is recommended to have at least one Taiwan market monitoring tool and one US trading platform, leveraging each platform’s strengths for complementary functions. Once tools are selected, trading efficiency and decision quality can greatly improve, embodying the principle of “a craftsman must first sharpen his tools” in practice.