Public.com

Public.com launched in 2019 with a social investing angle — a community feed where investors could share ideas and see each other’s portfolios. That was the hook. What it has quietly become is more interesting: a platform experimenting with new ways to help investors explore ideas and put cash to work, especially in areas like thematic investing and fixed income.

In 2026, Public’s most compelling features have nothing to do with social trading. They’re the options rebate program — the only one of its kind at any broker in this series — a high-yield cash account that pays real yield automatically, and an AI toolkit that goes meaningfully deeper than most platforms at this price point.

Public isn’t aiming to compete with full-scale trading platforms. Its strengths lie in simplicity and innovation, while depth, advanced tools, and account flexibility take a back seat. For the right investor, that’s a compelling trade-off.

This review covers everything in between.

The Options Rebate: Public’s Most Unique Feature

Every other broker in this series either charges for options or offers $0 contract fees. Public does something no one else does: it pays you to trade options through a revenue-sharing program that returns $0.06 to $0.18 per options transaction — up to 50% of the company’s payment-for-order-flow revenue per trade.

Public estimates clients receive about $0.18 per contract traded and a net $0.15 per contract after factoring in regulatory fees, which are assessed at every broker. On a 10-contract trade, that’s $1.50 back in your pocket — every single time. At higher volumes, this adds up to meaningful cost savings that no other broker in this series can match.

Public is the only broker that offers an options rebate program. Full stop. For active options traders who are already paying $0 elsewhere, this tips the math in Public’s favor.

Fees & Commissions

Public’s core fee structure is clean and genuinely competitive across the board.

Stocks, ETFs, and equity options trades carry no commission and no per-contract fee. The options rebate on top of that makes it the lowest effective cost for options trading in this series.

Uninvested cash earns 3.6% APY via the High-Yield Cash Account with FDIC sweep protection across partner banks — automatically, without a premium membership. That’s competitive with Robinhood Gold’s 3.35% and significantly better than SoFi’s 0.01% or JP Morgan’s 0.01%.

Public offers a 1% IRA match on contributions and an uncapped 1% match on IRA rollovers and transfers.

The fee structure is not entirely free at all levels. Investment plan trades incur fees for non-Premium users, and generated assets carry a 0.49% annual management fee. The Premium membership costs $10 per month and unlocks additional features including lower fees on some products.

The Platform & AI Tools

Public’s platform is clean, mobile-first, and genuinely well-designed for the investor it’s targeting. The platform achieves 99.994% uptime — a meaningful reliability advantage over some competitors in this series that have reported outages during volatile markets.

Where Public goes further than most brokers at this level is in its AI toolkit. Public’s Alpha AI assistant delivers real-time insights into stock performance and market trends, while Generated Assets is an AI-driven tool that turns plain-language prompts into custom investable indexes you can backtest and hold alongside other positions. For example, prompting “US companies with accelerating revenue growth and strong free cash flow” screens for those criteria and creates a tradeable, customizable index — blending the flexibility of thematic investing with the simplicity of indexing.

The API is available to all members with no approval process required, offering full read and write access for real-time data and automated trading across stocks, ETFs, options including multi-leg strategies, and crypto. For investors who want to build automation without moving to an institutional platform, that’s a meaningful capability.

The Options Hub provides real-time insights into the most heavily traded contracts with a customizable options chain — useful for traders who want to scan for activity and flow without paying for a premium data subscription.

Quick Facts

Fixed Income: A Genuine Differentiator

Most brokers in this series treat bonds as an afterthought. Public has made them a feature. Public offers a Bond Account requiring an initial $1,000 minimum that allows you to invest in a portfolio of 10 corporate bonds locking in a set yield at the time of purchase. Fractional bond investing starts at $100 — significantly lower than the minimums at most traditional brokers.

For investors who want fixed income exposure without opening a separate account at a legacy broker, this is a convenient and accessible option. The caveat worth noting: the bonds offered are of medium credit quality, meaning there is an elevated level of default risk compared to higher-rated options.

The Downsides

• No mutual funds — investors who specifically want mutual funds will need to look elsewhere
• No phone support — Public does not offer telephone customer support, which may be a dealbreaker for some investors
• No paper trading — no simulated environment to practice before risking real capital
• Premium fees for some features — investment plan trades incur fees for non-Premium users at $10/month
• Limited account types — no custodial accounts or international accounts
• Crypto fees — 1.25% transaction fee is higher than dedicated crypto platforms
• Newer platform — Public is not quite as well-established as some competitors and lacks the institutional track record of Fidelity, Schwab, or IBKR
• No robo-advisor — unlike some other brokers, you cannot access robo-advisory services

Who It’s For

Public occupies a genuinely distinct lane in this series. The options rebate program alone makes it worth serious consideration for active options traders who are already using $0-fee platforms — being paid per contract rather than simply not charged is a structural advantage no other broker offers.

Beyond options, the combination of 3.6% APY on idle cash, fractional bonds, AI-powered investment tools, and a full API with no approval process make Public a surprisingly capable platform for investors who want innovation without complexity.

Where it falls short is breadth — no mutual funds, no phone support, no paper trading, and a newer institutional track record. For investors who prioritize those things, Fidelity or Schwab remain stronger all-around choices. But for a self-directed investor who trades options regularly, values cash yield, and wants access to AI-driven tools without paying for a premium data terminal, Public is one of the most interesting platforms in this series.

Common Questions About Public.com (FAQ)

Does Public really pay you to trade options?

Yes — Public offers a revenue-sharing program that pays options traders a rebate of $0.06 to $0.18 per options transaction, which is up to 50% of the company’s payment-for-order-flow revenue per trade. This makes Public the only broker in this series that effectively pays you per contract traded rather than simply waiving fees.

What interest does Public pay on uninvested cash?

Public’s High-Yield Cash Account pays 3.6% APY with FDIC sweep protection across partner banks — automatically, with no premium membership required. This is competitive with Robinhood Gold and significantly better than SoFi or JP Morgan’s default rates.

Does Public have an IRA? Yes — Public offers an IRA with a 1% match on contributions and an uncapped 1% match on IRA rollovers and transfers. Notably, you can trade options within the IRA with Public’s standard rebate structure.

Can I automate trading on Public? Yes — the Public API is available to all members with no approval process required, offering full read and write access for automated trading across stocks, ETFs, options including multi-leg strategies, and crypto.

Does Public offer direct indexing?

Yes — Public offers direct indexing with a $1,000 minimum, allowing you to invest directly in the companies comprising an index with more flexibility than an ETF, including tax-loss harvesting capabilities.

Is Public.com safe?

Brokerage services are offered through Public Investing, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and FINRA/SIPC member. SIPC protects cash and securities up to $500,000, and the High-Yield Cash Account provides up to $5 million in FDIC protection.