Free Finviz Options Vs. Finviz Elite - What Should I Choose?

What is Finviz?

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Finviz (an abbreviation of FInancial Visualizations) is a versatile toolkit and a stock screener for investors and traders who are keen to trade on the US markets. This software offers key stock market and Forex insights and offers an array of functions that encompass stock screening, news updates, portfolio management, stock charts, and more.

The primary goal of Finviz is to equip its traders with the ability to carry out in-depth financial research and analysis, deploy visualization tools, and foster an environment of informed decision-making within the trading game. Through its dynamic user interface, Finviz provides and facilitates swift access to a variety of information. This enables traders and investors to make complex decisions more efficiently and act in a timely manner.

At its core, Finviz operates as a stock screener. It is tailored based on the needs of individual investors as it unifies additional functions like market visualizations, backtesting, financial statement analysis, real-time quotes, and even email alerts. Furthermore, it is ideal for both short-term and long-term traders, and the software helps users to spot profitable stocks aligned with specific search criteria through customizable filters. Presently, the platform boasts an assortment of filters spanning technical, descriptive, and fundamental categories.

Juraj Duris, the company's president, established Finviz in 2007. Its origins lie in Slovakia, stemming from Duris' personal passion for simplifying intricate financial data for individual traders and investors.

Who uses Finviz?

Finviz caters to a diverse and wide range of users thanks to its comprehensive collection of tools that encompass both fundamental insights and technical indicators. This range of features makes it accessible to a wide audience, both novice and experienced.

For instance, long-term traders can use its screening tool to identify stocks that fit a specific criterion. Seasoned traders can also leverage this function to spot businesses that are primed for technical shifts. An example is the use of the Relative Strength Index (RSI) to search for oversold stocks.

Swing traders can also use Finviz to identify potential trading opportunities with the platform’s heatmap and news feed features. Through this, they can stay aware of significant market trends and other economic events that may influence their trading decisions.

Moreover, newcomers to the investing realm can utilize Finviz to monitor their portfolios and access news updates concerning their preferred stocks. This multi-dimensional approach caters to investors across varying experience levels.

Key features of Finviz

Experts have reviewed the key features of Finviz for your better understanding.

1. Stock screening

Finviz platform

The Finviz stock screener focuses on around 8,500 stocks and ETFs, a substantial selection that captures many major assets. While it may not encompass the entire market, this tool proves highly valuable for most users. With 67 criteria available, both fundamental and technical, refining your search is straightforward. Additionally, the screener offers 30 charting signals, including insider transactions and chart patterns, assisting in identifying potential investments.

2. Visualizing with heatmaps

Finviz platform

Heatmaps present a clear visualization of industries and sectors in the market. These color-coded representations reflect performance and provide the current performance percentage. By clicking on an asset, you can access more details. Similarly, the "Groups" feature offers the same data, presented as bar charts.

3. Portfolio organization

Finviz platform

Finviz simplifies tracking with customizable portfolios or watchlists. The platform calculates performance metrics and dollar gains or losses for each portfolio, streamlining monitoring efforts. Additionally, portfolio management tools allow for the creation of segmented watchlists, facilitating focused trading strategies. Through this feature, users are empowered to create up to 50 unique portfolios with a limit of 50 tickers each (upgradable to 100 with a premium membership). Premium members can activate portfolio alerts, a benefit not offered to free users.

4. Analyzing sector performance

Finviz platform

Under the "Groups" section, visual tools assist in examining sector performance across sectors, industries, and themes. Metrics like P/E, market cap, and EPS aid in uncovering promising stocks within each segment.

5. Futures insight

Finviz platform

Finviz's futures charts provide heat maps for equity, commodity, and currency futures. This feature offers a quick overview of the futures market and helps identify correlations between contracts, offering insights into global markets, commodities, currencies, and more.

6. In-Depth charting (Elite-only feature)

Finviz platform

Charting stands out as a robust Finviz feature, offering five distinct chart types, including candle and line charts. Moreover, advanced and interactive options are accessible to subscribers. Time frames include monthly, weekly, daily, and intraday, with intraday available to paying members. Charts also offer supplementary data, like market cap and earnings, followed by comprehensive financial information below.

7. Strategy testing via backtesting (Elite-only feature)

Finviz platform

Reserved for Finviz Elite subscribers, the Backtesting feature delivers over two decades of data and more than 100 indicators. Investors can evaluate strategies over extended time frames. However, it's important to note that this feature provides a broad view and lacks detailed insights like trades and ratios.

Additional tools and benefits of Finviz

Staying informed with news and data

Apart from its robust screening and charting tools, Finviz serves as a hub for financial news and data aggregation, drawing from respected sources like Bloomberg, CNN Money, and the Wall Street Journal. This ensures users remain up-to-date with market news that could impact their investment choices. Furthermore, registered users receive real-time quotes, empowering them to make well-informed decisions grounded in the latest market information.

Insight into insider trading

Finviz presents a valuable feature that tracks insider trading activities. Users gain access to a record of transactions executed by company executives. This data can serve as an insightful indicator for investors looking to anticipate potential shifts in a company's stock performance.

Exploring futures and Forex markets

Finviz provides an overview of futures and Forex markets, complete with charts, quotes, and heatmaps covering various futures and Forex pairs. This feature is particularly advantageous for traders seeking to diversify their investment portfolios beyond stocks.

Intuitive user interface

A standout attribute of Finviz is its user-friendly interface. The platform is designed with simplicity in mind, making navigation effortless, even for beginners. The filters and tools are straightforward, and the visual presentation of data enhances the comprehension of market trends.

Unveiling stock correlations

Finviz introduces a correlations feature that aids in identifying relationships between different stocks. This tool is particularly valuable when one stock's performance affects others in a related manner. By inputting a stock's ticker symbol, users can access correlation and inverse correlation insights, providing a deeper understanding of market dynamics.

Enhanced screener capabilities

Finviz Elite offers advanced screener functionalities that amplify its capabilities beyond the free version. This includes:

The additional statistics can be beneficial for value investors and those with long-term investment strategies. The data export feature is a highlight, enabling users to download the entire content of a customized screener.

Notifications and price alerts

While the notification and price alert feature is included in Finviz Elite, it's important to note that trading platforms might offer more comprehensive alternatives. Users can set up alerts through the platform's settings, adding an extra layer of convenience to their trading experience.

Pros and cons of Finviz

Pros

Simplified market visualization

Finviz excels in presenting complex market data in a visual format. This makes it easier for traders and investors, regardless of experience, to grasp trends and patterns swiftly.

Real-time intraday data

The availability of real-time intraday data is a boon for traders who require up-to-the-minute insights. This feature enables quick responses to market shifts, enhancing the precision of trading decisions.

Long-term strategy testing

Finviz's 24-year backtesting capability provides users with the ability to evaluate strategies over extended historical periods. This feature aids in assessing the performance of various approaches in different market conditions.

Tailored portfolio tracking

The platform offers the convenience of tracking portfolios according to individual preferences. Users can monitor and manage their investments efficiently, promoting a more organized and informed trading approach.

Insights through heat maps

Finviz enhances decision-making by offering heat maps that visually represent sector and industry performance.

Cons

Absence of pre-built screeners

Unlike certain platforms that provide pre-constructed screeners, Finviz requires users to create their own filters. This demands more effort and time, particularly for those seeking quicker screening processes.

Limited chart overlays and indicators

While Finviz offers charting tools, it comes with limitations on the variety of overlays and indicators that users can apply. This might constrain advanced technical analysis and visualization capabilities.

Lack of auto-saving functionality

The absence of an auto-saving feature can be an inconvenience. Users need to remember to manually save their work, posing a risk of data loss in case of unforeseen interruptions.

Is Finviz free or paid?

When it comes to accessing Finviz, you have a range of choices that suit varying preferences and needs. Let's delve into the available plans:

1. The free plan

The Free plan presents a commendable starting point, offering access to Finviz's interactive charts, data visualizations, and screeners. It's a good option to explore the platform's tools. However, there are a couple of drawbacks to consider. The data may experience a lag of up to five minutes, and certain features such as intraday charts, portfolios, and screener presets are inaccessible without registering.

2. The Registered plan

Opting for the Registered plan involves a simple sign-up process, and it's still free. By registering, you unlock benefits like 50 stock screener presets, the ability to add portfolio tickers, and the capability to create portfolios. A notable advantage is the ability to save your stock screeners, enhancing your efficiency.

3. The Finviz Elite Plan

For those seeking the complete package, the Finviz Elite plan is the prime choice. This premium plan encompasses an array of advanced features such as real-time and pre-market quotes, advanced charts, intraday charting for screening, technical studies, backtesting, correlation analysis, and an option screener. Moreover, you gain the advantage of up to 100 portfolios, tickers, and screener presets. Additionally, opting for this plan removes the pesky ads from the site.

The cost of the Finviz Elite plan is $39.50 per month. Alternatively, you can save on expenses by opting for the yearly upfront payment of $299.50.

Is Finviz Elite's plan worth it?

Finviz Elite plan cost

The Finviz Elite plan can be very useful if you're an active trader or someone in need of in-depth data and sophisticated charting resources.

The inclusion of real-time data, advanced charting tools, and the perk of receiving email alerts are elements that have the potential to significantly elevate your trading endeavors. In fact, these features might not only enhance your trading performance but could also gradually offset the cost of the subscription fee.

However, before diving in, it's essential to evaluate your trading needs and preferences to determine whether the enhanced capabilities and tools offered by the Finviz Elite plan align with your goals. While it might not be a universal fit, for those who require these advanced features, the subscription fee could be a worthy investment over time.