If you’re in the market for a stock picking service, you might be asking yourself: Is a Motley Fool subscription worth it?
Great question, and we’re here to help you answer it.
The Motley Fool is a financial and investment advice company. It was founded back in 1993 by brothers David and Tom Gardner. It’s not a brokerage, although it does have two affiliates, Motley Fool Asset Management and Motley Fool Wealth Management, that manage assets and are regulated by FINRA.
If you’re someone who wants access to trustworthy stock picks, then a Motley Fool subscription might be right for you.
There are four subscription tiers offered by Motley Fool, and all are designed to help investors make smart decisions by providing monthly stock picks.
I’ve been a Motley Fool subscriber for a while now, and their picks have done very well. Take a look at these results!
You can see that my purchases of Motley Fool recommendations since 2016 have outperformed the S&P 500 by 28.8%, and since Stock Advisor’s inception, their picks have outperformed the S&P 500 by almost 600%!
In this review, we’ll provide insights and updates about Motley Fool to help you decide if it’s the right service to transform your investment journey. Is the Motley Fool legit and is a Motley Fool subscription worth it for you? Keep reading to find out!
Pro Tip:
If you sign up with The Motley Fool today, you will receive $100 off and unlimited access to Motley Fool Stock Advisor!
Motley Fool Subscription Type Overview
Motley Fool offers several subscription options and before you subscribe, you’ll need to get a handle on what they are and how they differ from one another.
| Subscription | Focus | Features | Price |
| Stock Advisor | Buy-and hold strategy for people with $25,000+ in their portfolios but also suitable for beginners | 2 stock picks/monthMonthly rankingsEntry strategiesGame Plan financial hub | $199 per year |
| Epic | Balanced mix of picks for people with $50,000+ in their portfolios | 5 stock picks/monthAdditional picks from Rule Breakers, etc.Fool IQAccess to 5Y Quant ratings | $499 per year |
| Epic Plus | Additional research, recommendations and trends for people with $100,000 or more in their portfolios | 9 stock picks/monthTom Gardner’s real money portfoliosOptions tradesMonthly recs & rankings | $1,999 per year |
| One | Access to the One Portfolio, plus all picks and additional features for people with $500,000 or more in their portfolios | 11+ stock picks/monthOne Portfolio with quarterly rebalancingMember Event accessInvestor Solutions Team access | $13,999 per year |
| Rule Breakers | Available as part of Epic memberships and above | 2 high growth stock recommendations per monthMonthly Round Table10 Best Buy alerts per month | Part of Epic, Epic Plus, and One bundles |
As you can see, each plan is geared toward investors based on their portfolio size and what type of information they want. Beginners who just want a couple of vetted stock picks each month will do best with Stock Advisor.
People who don’t mind spending a little more to get some extra picks may benefit from the Epic bundle, which gives access to the Stock Advisor Picks, plus Rule Breakers and a few other things.
Motley Fool Subscription Features Overview
| Motley Fool Subscription Type | Key Features | CTA |
| Motley Fool Stock Advisor | Monthly Stock Picks: 2Recommendations of companies you can buy and hold for the long termMonthly rankings in Stock AdvisorThree entry strategies across Cautious, Moderate, and Aggressive styles | Click Now to Subscribe (It will be enhanced based on the offers) |
| Motley Fool Epic | Monthly Stock Picks: 5Rule Breakers recommendations of high-growth stocksAccess to Fool IQMonthly recommendations and rankings from Rule Breakers, Hidden Gems, and Dividend InvestorPortfolio StrategiesQuant 5Y ratingsAccess to members-only podcast | Click Now to Subscribe (It will be enhanced based on the offers) |
| Motley Fool Epic Plus | Everything in Stock Advisor and EpicMonthly Stock Picks: 9Access to Options StrategiesIntro to Tom Gardner’s proprietary investing portfolioMonthly recommendations and rankings across Trends, Value Hunters, and Global Partners | Click Now to Subscribe (It will be enhanced based on the offers) |
| Motley Fool One | Everything in Epic PlusMonthly Stock Picks: 11+Access to One PortfolioQuarterly rebalancingFull access to all reportsMember Event accessTeam Solutions accessFull Industry Research, Company, & Market Coverage | Click Now to Subscribe (It will be enhanced based on the offers) |
Key Benefits of Using Motley Fool Subscription
Here are some of the key benefits of using a Motley Fool Subscription.
- Access to expert analysis about stocks and other investments. Motley Fool subscribers can use the company’s huge library of analysis to learn about investments and decide whether to add them to their portfolios.
- Access to educational content. New investors can learn all about how the stock market works, how to understand investment metrics, and much more, to get them off on the right foot in their investment journey.
- Access to portfolio strategies ideal for cautious, moderate, and aggressive investors.
- High-performing stock picks. The Motley Fool’s stock picks have historically performed very well when compared to the S&P 500.
You can see in this image that Motley Fool Rule Breakers Picks (included in the Epic, Epic Plus, and One bundles) have returned 284.9% since the service’s inception, outperforming the S&P 500 by 148.9%.
Pro Tip:
If you sign up with The Motley Fool today, you will receive $100 off and unlimited access to Motley Fool Stock Advisor!
Who Can Benefit Most from Motley Fool’s Services?
Let’s run through who can benefit the most from Motley Fool’s Services.
Beginner Investors
Motley Fool Stock Advisor is the best option for beginner investors who want to get their feet wet and start building a portfolio. By embracing the “buy and hold” strategy and buying each one of Stock Advisor’s monthly recommendations, you can increase your odds of beating the S&P 500.
Long-Term Stockholders
Long-term stockholders are the optimal subscribers for both Stock Advisor and Epic. Taking the long view in the stock market is wise because while prices may change from day to day, the overall trend of the market is up.
Growth-Seeking Investors
Growth-seeking investors can benefit the most from the bundles that include Rule Breakers picks, since they’re specifically focused on companies with significant growth potential. Having access to the regular Stock Advisor picks is useful because it can keep your portfolio balanced.
Pro Tip:
If you sign up with The Motley Fool today, you will receive $100 off and unlimited access to Motley Fool Stock Advisor!
Motley Fool Success Stories & Case Studies
Let’s look at two of the stocks that Motley Fool has recommended and see how they’ve performed.
Chewy is a pet supply company and received a Buy recommendation for aggressive investors from Motley Fool in April of 2024, when the stock price was $16.10. As of October of 2024, the price is at $29.53, representing a gain of 83.4% in about six months.
Analysts at The Motley Fool have recommended buying Tesla stock multiple times. We reviewed the performance starting on January 2, 2020 through mid-October of 2024. Here’s what it looks like.
The price at the beginning of 2020 was $28.68 per share, and as of mid-October of 2024, the price is $219.98 per share, representing a gain of 767%.
What these examples show is that the Motley Fool team does an excellent job of choosing stocks that will appreciate over time. Of course, they don’t always get it right, but if you buy every pick and use the recommended buy and hold strategy, there’s a chance that you’ll do very well.
How to Get the Most Out of Your Motley Fool Subscription
Now that you’ve got our take on the various subscriptions offered by Motley Fool, here are our tips to help you make the most of your subscription.
- After you subscribe, the first step should be creating a portfolio. You can’t link directly to a brokerage portfolio, but you can mirror your investments. Having your portfolio handy will help you use Motley Fool’s features and keep track of what’s happening with your investments.
- Go to your Settings and set up your alert preferences. We suggest setting up email or text alerts to be advised when Motley Fool issues new guidance or when new recommendations are made. You can also opt in for some newsletters.
- Regularly check your portfolio updates. That way, you’ll be able to see what’s happening with your investments and make informed buy/sell decisions.
Of course, the only way to take advantage of Motley Fool’s features is to subscribe – and start using these tips today.
Click here to start your Motley Fool subscription today!
FAQ
Motley Fool annual subscriptions range from $199 for Stock Advisor to $13,999 for the One bundle. Most investors don’t need to spend the money for the One bundle. The Epic Bundle offers everything in Stock Advisor plus access to extra features and picks, making it a good choice for most investors.
Motley Fool doesn’t publish the success rate of every subscription service, but Motley Fool Stock Advisors picks have beaten the S&P 500 by 583.9% since the service’s inception, and Motley Fool Rule Breakers picks have beaten the S&P 500 by 148.9%.
The primary difference is that Motley Fool Stock Advisor focuses on long-term growth and urges subscribers to stick to a ‘buy and hold” strategy to maximize their earnings. Rule Breakers is for aggressive investors who want stock picks with high growth potential and may want to take a more active role in managing their portfolios.
The Motley Fool One bundle offers over 11 picks each month, so that’s the service where you’ll get the most frequent picks. If you choose the Epic bundle, you’ll get 5 picks and with Epic Plus, you’ll get 9.
