Stock pick services send you ideas to research, usually a few stocks a month. They are opinions, not advice, and past picks do not predict future results. This list only includes services whose picks or ratings are confirmed on their official pages.
Each tool gets an overall score out of 5 from 4 sub-scores: research depth (47%), features and data (5%), value for money (27%) and ease of use (21%). Facts come from official pages. We only use facts we could confirm there. The order updates when prices or features change.
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you subscribe through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. We score every tool on the same published criteria, using facts from official pages and our own testing. How we make money. This page is general information, not personal investment advice.
Research depth: Publishes a live record since July 2022 against the S&P 500; each pick comes with a written article; picks come from Seeking Alpha's own Quant system.
Ease of use (Our rating): 4.8 for picks (Seeking Alpha Alpha Picks).
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 29 Oct 2026. All Alpha Picks plans and facts · Read the review
Research depth: The PRO Quant Portfolio is built from Seeking Alpha's own Quant system and publishes a record since 30 May 2025 against the S&P 500 Equal Weight Index, but it is a hypothetical portfolio and the record is short; Top Analyst Ideas come with written articles.
Ease of use (Our rating): 4.7, same Seeking Alpha interface as Premium.
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 6 Nov 2026. All Seeking Alpha PRO plans and facts · Read the review
Research depth: ProPicks AI shows returns since launch, but without the launch date or the S&P 500 return for the same period (the long figures are backtests); picks come with short AI notes.
Ease of use (Our rating): 4.8 overall, 4.7 for ProPicks.
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 4 Nov 2026. All InvestingPro plans and facts · Read the review
Research depth: Publishes a live record since 2002 against the S&P 500; each pick comes with a written report from its analysts.
Ease of use (Our rating): Picks arrive as plain written reports with a short list each month, so there is little to learn. The members area has many sections.
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 8 Nov 2026. All Motley Fool Stock Advisor plans and facts · Read the review
Research depth: Built from Seeking Alpha's own Quant Ratings and Dividend Grades with published rules; it shows a record against the Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index, but only since 3 Jun 2026 and for a hypothetical portfolio.
Ease of use (Our rating): Same Seeking Alpha portfolio page and alerts as Alpha Picks: a short list of holdings and about two changes every two weeks, so there is little to learn.
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 29 Oct 2026. All Seeking Alpha Quant Growth & Income plans and facts · Read the review
Research depth: Publishes the Zacks Rank #1 record since 1988 against the S&P 500; picks are a rank list with short notes.
Ease of use (Our rating): Public pages are busy, with many lists, links and ads, and an older design. The Zacks Rank itself is simple to read.
The overall score combines these criteria with our own testing of each tool. How we score
Checked 22 Oct 2026. All Zacks Premium plans and facts · Read the review
Seeking Alpha sells several separate products, each with its own price. Not ranked on this page: Seeking Alpha Premium (main review). Bundles are not scored, because they combine products reviewed on their own. Want Alpha Picks and Premium together? The Premium + Alpha Picks bundle is $629 for the first year (list $798). Want growth and dividend picks together? The Alpha Picks + Quant Growth & Income bundle is $719 for the first year (list $998). See every Seeking Alpha plan side by side.
Past returns
These are the services' own published figures, copied from their official pages on the dates shown. We do not recalculate them. They are measured in different ways and over different periods, so do not compare them line by line. This table is not a ranking.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. General information, not personal investment advice.
Picks that were published at the time, then tracked. Listed A to Z.
| Service | Their figure | S&P 500 (as they show it) | Period | As of | How they measure it | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| InvestingPro ProPicks AI: Beat the S&P 500 | +44.38% since launch | - | Since launch | September 2026 | Investing.com labels this "since launch". Equal weight, monthly rebalancing per the ProPicks page.The page gives no S&P 500 figure for the same period. | investing.comRead by hand 22 Oct 2026 |
| InvestingPro ProPicks AI: Tech Titans | +203.09% since launch | - | Since launch | September 2026 | Investing.com labels this "since launch". Equal weight, monthly rebalancing per the ProPicks page.The page gives no S&P 500 figure for the same period. | investing.comRead by hand 22 Oct 2026 |
| Motley Fool Stock Advisor | +922% (average return of all picks) | +214% | Since launch, February 2002 | 22 Oct 2026 | Average return of every recommendation, each measured from the day it was recommended, compared with the S&P 500 over the same time. Includes dividends.An average across all picks. It is not the return of one portfolio, and not what any one member earned. | fool.comRead 22 Oct 2026 |
| Seeking Alpha Alpha Picks | +309.69% | +103.88% | Since launch, 1 July 2022 | 27 Oct 2026 | Live record of the Alpha Picks portfolio, calculated by Seeking Alpha from the day of launch, 1 July 2022, compared with the S&P 500.Read from the public, signed-out Alpha Picks page on 29 Oct 2026. Seeking Alpha says past performance is no guarantee of future results. | seekingalpha.comRead by hand 29 Oct 2026 |
| Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) | +23.82% a year (annualized) | +11.58% a year | 1 Jan 1988 to 5 Oct 2026 | 5 Oct 2026 | Equal-weighted average of all Zacks Rank #1 stocks at the start of each month, rebalanced monthly, compounded. Includes dividends. Excludes trading costs, so real results would be lower. Zacks says these are not backtests; periods from 1988 to July 2024 were examined by independent accounting firms.Calendar years from the same page: 2026 YTD +16.88% vs +13.03%, 2025 +22.41% vs +16.57%, 2024 +22.41% vs +28.02%, 2023 +20.63% vs +24.83%. | zacks.comRead 22 Oct 2026 |
A backtest applies today's model to past data. Nobody actually invested this way during those years, and a model can be tuned until the past looks good. Do not compare these with the live records above. Listed A to Z.
| Service | Their figure | S&P 500 (as they show it) | Period | As of | How they measure it | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| InvestingPro ProPicks AI: Beat the S&P 500 | +1,257.5% total, +20.8% a year | Outperformance +813.6% | Backtest from January 2013 (live only since the 2023 launch) | Picks updated 1 Oct 2026 | Backtest, same disclaimer as above. Sharpe ratio 0.86. 1 year +7.2%, 5 years +79.2%.Read while signed in. Mixes backtest and live years. | investing.comRead by hand 22 Oct 2026 |
| InvestingPro ProPicks AI: Tech Titans | +3,208.6% total, +28.9% a year | +443.9% (outperformance +2,764.7%) | Backtest from January 2013 (live only since the 2023 launch) | Picks updated 1 Oct 2026 | Backtest. Not actual investments. Includes reinvested dividends, may exclude costs and fees, hindsight bias. Monthly rebalancing, equal weight.Mixes backtest years (2013 to 2023) with live years. The page does not split them. | investing.comRead by hand 22 Oct 2026 |
| TipRanks Smart Score 10 | +17.0% a year (average annualized) | Alpha over S&P 500 +156.3% | Since January 2016 | Not stated | Backtest of US stocks with a Smart Score of 10 (market cap from $30M, NYSE and Nasdaq). Includes reinvested dividends, gross of fees and costs. | tipranks.comRead 22 Oct 2026 |
Figures are the providers' own. They may exclude costs, fees and taxes, and may include dividends. Your own results would depend on what you bought, when, and how much. Investing involves risk and you can lose money. Table last updated 22 Oct 2026. Figures marked "Read by hand" come from pages that need a login and are refreshed manually.
Want to know how often each service sends ideas and how it shows its record? Our guide to the best investing newsletters compares format, frequency and track record side by side.
Two of the best known names here sell different things. Seeking Alpha Premium is a research tool, and its Alpha Picks service sends two picks a month; Motley Fool Stock Advisor is a picks newsletter. Our Seeking Alpha vs Motley Fool guide explains which may suit a beginner.
How we score
4 sub-scores with published weights. 3 use a fixed rule on facts from official pages; ease of use is our rating, updated when we test the tool. Full methodology.
How much you get beyond a ticker: a published track record of past picks, written reasons for each pick, picks from its own analysts or model, and a trial or refund.
Rule: Track record (live with a benchmark 1, live without benchmark 0.75, backtest only 0.25) + clarity of picks (written reasons 1, score or short note 0.5) + own analysts or model (1) + trial or refund (1, unknown 0.5): score = 1 + 4 x (points / 4).
The capabilities this job needs, as confirmed on official pages.
Rule: Counts ratings or fair value, alerts, portfolio tracking, data export: score = 1 + 4 x (confirmed / 4).
What the cheapest paid plan costs, and whether you can try it free or get a refund.
Rule: 60% price (Cheapest paid plan at its lowest regular price per month (yearly billing if offered, first-year offers ignored): USD 10 or less = 5, up to 20 = 4, up to 35 = 3, up to 60 = 2, over 60 = 1) and 40% free plan, trial or refund (Free plan plus free trial of a paid plan = 5, free plan only = 4, no free plan but a free trial or money-back guarantee = 2, neither = 1).
Clear layout, plain explanations and how quickly a new investor finds their way.
Rule: Our rating for how clear the layout is and how quickly a new investor finds their way. We update it when we test the tool.
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