Public.com Review 2026 — Fees, Custody, and Where It Fits

At a glance

Rates change weekly. Verify on the official site before making any decision.

How it works

Public Holdings, Inc., operating as Public.com, is a US brokerage and fintech founded in 2017 (originally as Matador), headquartered in New York. Public Investing Inc. is the broker-dealer, a FINRA member and SIPC member. The platform's product menu spans US-listed stocks, ETFs, options, individual Treasuries, corporate bonds, a High-Yield Cash Account (FDIC-insured via partner banks), and crypto trading. A premium tier (Public Premium) reduces or eliminates several non-Premium fees. Public also offers Investment Plans for automated recurring purchases and a Bond Account product for laddered fixed-income exposure. The platform deliberately does not accept payment for order flow on equities (PFOF policy publicly disclosed). The fee picture (verify current terms on the official site): High-Yield Cash Account APY has historically been quoted around 3.30% (May 2026). Stocks/ETFs $0 commission in regular hours; $2.99 after-hours / OTC for non-Premium. Options $0 base with $0.50/contract on index options ($0.35 for Premium). Crypto 0.49% to 1.25%. Public Premium $10/mo or $96/yr removes several fees. Bond Account yield varies by purchase; the listed APY on the marketing page is a model yield to maturity. SIPC up to $500,000 (including $250,000 cash). Rates change weekly; verify on the Public fee schedule before deploying.

Where it fits in a system

Yield venue with strong bond and Treasury depth. Pairs with M1 or Ally as a fixed-income complement to equity-heavy robo accounts. Public fills yield venue (multi-asset brokerage with strong fixed-income depth) and cash layer (High-Yield Cash). It does not fill on-ramp or redundancy anchor. In a redundancy-first system, Public.com gets one clear job and is paired so a single outage or policy change never freezes the whole stack. The point is the system, not any single platform.

Real talk

Pros

• Direct Treasuries access: Public lets retail users buy individual Treasuries inside the brokerage without going to TreasuryDirect. The Bond Account ladders them automatically.
• Corporate bonds at retail accessibility: Public surfaces individual corporate bonds with retail-friendly minimums. Most retail brokerages either hide bonds or require phone-desk trades.
• No payment-for-order-flow on equities: Public publicly states it does not accept PFOF on equities. Execution quality and revenue model align more cleanly with the user.
• Integrated High-Yield Cash Account: Cash awaiting deployment earns the HYS APY without leaving the brokerage. FDIC-insured via partner banks.
• Premium tier reduces fees materially: Public Premium ($10/mo or $96/yr) removes several non-Premium fees (after-hours, OTC, instant withdrawal). For active users this often pays for itself.

Cons

• Non-Premium fees can add up: After-hours/OTC trades carry a $2.99 fee on non-Premium accounts. Crypto fees run 0.49% to 1.25%. Several smaller fees apply on non-Premium.
• Bond Account is a structured product, not a sleeve: The Bond Account bundles bonds into a managed laddered structure with a yield. Users who want to pick individual bonds manually can still do so, but the headline-yield product is the Bond Account.
• Direct-indexing complexity adds friction: The platform offers direct-indexing products that introduce complexity around individual security ownership and tax treatment. Useful for some, overwhelming for others.
• Crypto trading is not low-cost: Crypto routing fees of 0.49% to 1.25% are well above dedicated crypto exchanges. Use Coinbase or Kraken for crypto, not Public.
• Cash APY can change: Like all variable-APY cash products, the High-Yield Cash Account rate moves. The advertised rate today is not guaranteed to persist.

What's inside the full breakdown

The public review above covers the framework function and pros and cons. The full breakdown — written post plus video walkthrough — lives inside the Obsidian Metrics Classroom. Specifically:

• The specific systems in the Obsidian library that include Public.com as a function slot.
• Exact allocation percentages and rebalance cadence for each system.
• Which partner platforms complete each system and why.
• Video walkthrough of the Public.com sign-up flow and first deployment.

Open the full breakdown in the Classroom (Premium $19/mo) or buy Platform Stack 101 standalone ($100).

Frequently asked questions

Is Public.com safe to use?

broker-dealer / investing platform; SIPC member with brokerage and bond accounts covered up to $500,000 including $250,000 cash claims; High-Yield Cash Account uses partner banks and is FDIC-insured up to program limits. Every platform carries risk: Variable cash APY. This is educational only, not financial advice — verify the current protections on the official site before making any decision.

What are Public.com's fees in 2026?

High-Yield Cash Account APY has historically been quoted around 3.30% (May 2026). Stocks/ETFs $0 commission in regular hours; $2.99 after-hours / OTC for non-Premium. Rates and fees change; verify the current schedule on the official site.

Where does Public.com fit in a money system?

Public.com sits in the yield venue slot — Public fills yield venue (multi-asset brokerage with strong fixed-income depth) and cash layer (High-Yield Cash). It does not fill on-ramp or redundancy anchor.

What does Public.com not do well?

Non-Premium fees can add up: After-hours/OTC trades carry a $2.99 fee on non-Premium accounts. Crypto fees run 0.49% to 1.25%. Several smaller fees apply on non-Premium. Size and pair it accordingly inside a redundancy-first system.

Platform library entry

See the Public.com library breakdown — category, redundancy role, and integration notes.

Compare head to head

• M1 Finance vs Public 2026
• Robinhood vs Public.com 2026

Put it into a system

• Compare after-tax yield across venues — free calculator
• Track holdings across platforms — Tracker