In any given year, the S&P 500’s top 20 performers typically gain 80-150% while the bottom 20 lose 30-50%. That 100+ point spread between winners and losers is exactly why stock screeners matter — and why you’re researching whether Finviz Elite is worth the upgrade from free.
Here’s the tension: Finviz’s free version is genuinely excellent. The paid version costs $300/year. So the question isn’t whether Finviz is a good screener — it clearly is. The question is whether Elite’s real-time data and advanced features justify 10x the cost of free.
Short answer: Yes, for active traders who screen stocks daily. No, for casual investors who check once a week.
Quick Verdict: Is Finviz Elite Worth It?
Finviz Elite is worth $299/year for traders who screen stocks regularly and need real-time data. The platform offers 70+ filters covering fundamentals, technicals, and ownership data — more than most retail investors will ever use. The free version’s 15-20 minute data delay is fine for long-term investors, but active traders lose real edge waiting for quotes to update.
| Factor | Rating |
|---|---|
| Screening Power | Excellent — 70+ filters, best-in-class for retail |
| Data Quality | Strong — real-time quotes, 8 years of financials |
| Ease of Use | Good — clean interface, some learning curve |
| Value | Good — cheaper than alternatives, but free version is solid |
| Overall | 4.0/5 — Best screener for the price, but free works for many |
Best for: Technical traders, active investors who screen daily, anyone who’s outgrown their brokerage’s basic screener.
Skip if: You’re a buy-and-hold investor who checks stocks monthly, or you need international market coverage.
What Finviz Actually Does
Before we dive into Elite vs. free, let’s clarify what Finviz is: a stock screening and market visualization platform for U.S. equities. It’s not a stock-picking service. It won’t tell you what to buy. It gives you tools to find candidates yourself.
Think of it as a metal detector for the stock market. You still have to dig — but at least you’re not digging randomly.
The Core Features
Stock Screener: Filter 8,000+ U.S. stocks by 70+ criteria including:
- Fundamentals (P/E, P/B, ROE, profit margins, dividend yield)
- Technicals (RSI, moving averages, patterns, volume)
- Descriptive (market cap, sector, industry, exchange)
- Ownership (insider buying, institutional holdings)
Heat Maps: Visual representation of market performance. Each rectangle shows market cap (size) and daily performance (color). One glance tells you which sectors are moving.
Charts & Patterns: Automatic pattern recognition for channels, wedges, triangles, and head & shoulders formations.
News Aggregation: Headlines from major financial sources, organized by ticker.
Insider Trading Data: Track what executives are buying and selling.
Try Finviz Elite — 7-Day Free Trial
Free vs. Elite: The Real Differences
Here’s where it gets interesting. Finviz’s free version isn’t a crippled demo — it’s a fully functional screener that most casual investors will never outgrow. The Elite upgrade matters only if you hit specific limitations.
What Free Gets You
- Full screener access with 70+ filters
- Heat maps and market visualization
- Basic charts and pattern recognition
- News and insider trading data
- 50 saved screener presets
- 50 portfolios with 50 tickers each
- 3 years of financial statements
What Elite Adds
| Feature | Free | Elite | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Speed | 15-20 min delay | Real-time | Delayed data kills momentum trades |
| Pre/After Hours | No | Yes (4 AM-8 PM) | See gaps before the open |
| Ads | Yes | No | Cleaner experience |
| Backtesting | No | Yes | Test strategies before risking capital |
| Export/API | No | Yes | Move data to Excel or your own tools |
| Screener Presets | 50 | 200 | More saved searches |
| Portfolios | 50 portfolios, 50 tickers | 100 portfolios, 500 tickers | Track more positions |
| Financial History | 3 years | 8 years | Better trend analysis |
| Custom Filters | No | Yes | Build your own screening criteria |
| Email Alerts | No | Unlimited | Get notified when stocks hit your criteria |
The Honest Assessment
Elite is essential if:
- You trade momentum or swing trade (15-minute delays kill edge)
- You want to backtest strategies before deploying capital
- You need to export data for deeper analysis
- You track 100+ stocks actively
Free is enough if:
- You’re a long-term investor making decisions over days, not minutes
- You use Finviz for initial research, not real-time trading
- You have fewer than 50 stocks you actively track
How the Screener Actually Works
The screener is Finviz’s core product, and it’s genuinely powerful. Here’s how to think about it.
Filter Categories
Descriptive Filters: Start broad. Exchange (NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX), market cap ($50M to $200B+), sector, industry, country.
Fundamental Filters: Value investors live here. P/E ratio, P/S ratio, P/B ratio, PEG ratio, dividend yield, profit margins, ROE, ROA, debt/equity.
Technical Filters: Traders live here. Price relative to moving averages, RSI levels, volume patterns, volatility (beta), gap percentages, analyst recommendations.
Pattern Filters: Automatic recognition of chart patterns — channels, wedges, triangles, double tops/bottoms, head and shoulders.
A Practical Example
Say you want to find undervalued growth stocks. You might filter for:
- Market cap: $2B-$10B (mid-cap, room to grow)
- P/E: Under 20 (not overpriced)
- EPS growth this year: Over 20% (growing fast)
- RSI: Under 60 (not overbought)
- Average volume: Over 500K (liquid enough to trade)
That query might return 30-50 stocks from 8,000+. Now you have a manageable list to research deeper.
The Limitation
Finviz won’t tell you which of those 30-50 stocks to buy. It narrows the universe — you still need to analyze the candidates. If you want someone to do that work for you, you need a stock-picking service like our Stock Advisor review or Alpha Picks review, not a screener.
Pricing and Value Math
Current Pricing
| Plan | Price | Per Month |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 |
| Elite Monthly | $39.50/month | $39.50 |
| Elite Annual | $299.50/year | $24.96 |
| Current Promo | $149.75/year | $12.48 |
The 50% “Black Swan Sale” brings Elite down to $149.75/year — about $12.50/month. At that price, the value math changes significantly.
The Breakeven Calculation
At $300/year (or $150 with the promo), you’re paying roughly $0.82-$1.64 per day for real-time screening access.
The real question: Has a 15-minute delay ever cost you more than $300 in a year?
If you’ve ever:
- Bought a stock at the open only to realize it gapped up 5% pre-market
- Missed an entry because your delayed quote showed a price that was already gone
- Held a position through a gap down you would have sold pre-market
…then Elite likely pays for itself. If none of those scenarios apply to your trading style, free works fine.
Compared to Alternatives
| Platform | Price | Strengths |
|---|---|---|
| Finviz Elite | $299/year | Best screener UI, heat maps, pattern recognition |
| TradingView | $179/year | Best charting, social features, alerts |
| Stock Rover | $179/year | Best for fundamental research, portfolios |
| Koyfin | $468/year | Bloomberg-lite for serious analysts |
Finviz isn’t the cheapest, but it’s the best pure screener for the price. If you need better charts, see our TradingView review. If you need deeper fundamental analysis, check our Stock Rover review. If you need the best screener interface with heat maps and visual tools, Finviz wins.
Try Finviz Elite — 30-Day Guarantee
The Trade-Offs: Pros and Cons
What Finviz Does Well
Screening power: 70+ filters is more than most retail investors need. The combination of fundamental, technical, and pattern filters in one interface is rare.
Visual tools: The heat maps are genuinely useful for seeing market breadth at a glance. You can spot sector rotations in seconds.
Speed: The interface is fast. Queries return instantly. No waiting for pages to load.
Clean data: Financial data is updated hourly. Quotes are real-time (Elite) or 15-20 minutes delayed (free).
18 years of operation: Finviz launched in 2007 and has operated continuously since. That longevity suggests a sustainable business, not a startup that might disappear.
What Finviz Lacks
U.S. markets only: No international stocks. If you want to screen European or Asian markets, look elsewhere.
No mobile app: Web-based only. The site works on mobile browsers, but there’s no dedicated app.
No options data: You can filter for optionable stocks, but there are no options chains or Greeks.
No direct trading: Finviz is research only. You can’t execute trades from the platform.
Learning curve: 70+ filters means complexity. New users may feel overwhelmed initially.
Futures still delayed: Even Elite subscribers get 20-minute delayed futures data.
Who Should Use Finviz Elite
Ideal Users
Active traders who screen stocks daily and need real-time data to catch momentum moves before they run.
Technical traders who use pattern recognition and technical filters to find setups.
DIY investors who want to find their own stocks instead of following someone else’s picks.
Investors who’ve outgrown their brokerage — if Fidelity’s or Schwab’s screener feels limiting, Finviz is the upgrade.
Data exporters who want to pull screening results into Excel or their own analysis tools.
Who Should Skip It
Passive investors: If you’re buying index funds or following a stock-picking service’s recommendations, you don’t need a screener.
Beginners: If you don’t know what P/E ratio or RSI means, Finviz’s power will overwhelm you. Learn the basics first.
International investors: Finviz covers U.S. markets only. No exceptions.
“Just tell me what to buy” investors: Finviz finds candidates. It doesn’t make decisions. If you want picks, explore our Stock Advisor review or Alpha Picks review instead.
Best Alternatives to Finviz
If Finviz isn’t right for you, here are the best alternatives:
For Better Charting: TradingView
We cover TradingView ($179/year) in detail — it offers superior charting with more technical indicators, drawing tools, and a social community. The screener is good but not as comprehensive as Finviz. Choose TradingView if charts matter more than screening.
For Fundamental Research: Stock Rover
Our Stock Rover review ($179/year) covers this platform in depth — it excels at fundamental analysis with deeper financial data, portfolio analytics, and research reports. The screener is solid but less visual than Finviz. Choose Stock Rover if you’re a value investor who cares more about financials than technicals.
For Professional-Grade Data: Koyfin
See our Koyfin review ($468/year) for the full breakdown — it offers Bloomberg-level data without Bloomberg pricing. Better for serious analysts who need institutional-quality research tools. More expensive than Finviz but more powerful for fundamental analysis.
For Stock Picks Instead of Screening: Stock Advisor
If you’d rather have someone do the work, explore our Stock Advisor review ($99/year) — it provides 2 picks per month with a long-term track record. Different product category — picks vs. tools — but worth considering if screening feels like too much work.
Final Verdict: Should You Upgrade to Finviz Elite?
Yes, upgrade to Elite if:
- You screen stocks at least weekly
- You trade momentum or swing trade
- You need real-time data or pre/after-hours quotes
- You want to backtest strategies
- You need to export data for analysis
- The free version’s limitations have cost you money
Stick with free if:
- You’re a long-term buy-and-hold investor
- You check stocks monthly, not daily
- You use Finviz for initial research only
- You’re happy with 15-minute delayed data
The bottom line: Finviz Elite is the best stock screener for active retail traders who want professional-grade filtering without Bloomberg pricing. At $299/year (or $150 with the current promo), it’s a reasonable investment for anyone who screens stocks seriously. But the free version is genuinely excellent — upgrade only when you hit its limits.
For a broader comparison of research platforms, see our guide to the best stock research websites.
Try Finviz Elite — 7-Day Free Trial, 30-Day Guarantee
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Finviz Elite worth the money?
Yes, for active traders who screen stocks regularly. At $299/year ($150 with current promo), you get real-time data, backtesting, and export features that justify the cost if you use them. The free version is excellent for casual investors, but Elite’s real-time quotes and advanced features pay for themselves if a 15-minute delay has ever cost you a trade.
What are the best alternatives to Finviz?
For charting: See our TradingView review ($179/year) for superior technical analysis tools. For fundamentals: Check our Stock Rover review ($179/year) for deeper financial research. For professional data: Explore our Koyfin review ($468/year) for Bloomberg-level analytics. For stock picks: Our Stock Advisor review ($99/year) if you want recommendations instead of screening tools.
Finviz vs TradingView: Which is better?
Finviz wins for screening — 70+ filters with better visualization and heat maps. TradingView wins for charting — more indicators, drawing tools, and a social community. Choose Finviz if you prioritize finding stocks; choose TradingView if you prioritize analyzing them.
How do I cancel Finviz Elite?
Cancel anytime through your Subscription page in account settings. Cancellation stops the next auto-renewal but maintains access through your current prepaid period. Refunds are available within 30 days of purchase by emailing [email protected] or using the contact form.
Does Finviz cover international stocks?
No. Finviz covers U.S. markets only — NYSE, NASDAQ, and AMEX. The company has stated they have no current plans to expand to international markets. If you need global coverage, consider our Koyfin review or TradingView review instead.
Is Finviz free version good enough?
For most long-term investors, yes. The free version includes the full screener with 70+ filters, heat maps, charts, and news. The main limitations are 15-20 minute delayed data, no backtesting, no exports, and ads. If you’re not trading intraday and don’t need to export data, free works well.
Does Finviz Elite have a mobile app?
No, Finviz does not offer a dedicated mobile app. The platform is entirely web-based and runs through your browser on any device. The website is responsive and functional on mobile browsers, but there’s no iOS or Android app available. Finviz has not announced plans to develop mobile apps. If mobile trading alerts are critical to your workflow, consider pairing Finviz with TradingView, which offers robust mobile apps with real-time notifications.
What data sources does Finviz use?
Finviz aggregates data from multiple institutional-grade sources. Real-time stock quotes come from major exchanges (NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX) with direct feeds for Elite subscribers. Financial statement data covers 8 years of history (3 years for free users) and updates hourly during market hours. Insider trading data comes from SEC Form 4 filings, typically posted within 1-2 business days of the official filing. News headlines aggregate from Reuters, MarketWatch, Benzinga, and other major financial outlets. Pattern recognition uses proprietary algorithms analyzing daily price and volume data.
Can I backtest trading strategies with Finviz Elite?
Yes, Finviz Elite includes backtesting functionality for your screening strategies. The backtester lets you run historical simulations on any screener configuration to see how stocks matching your criteria would have performed over time. You can test up to 20 years of historical data, apply custom holding periods, and analyze performance metrics including average return, win rate, and maximum drawdown. The backtesting feature works with all 70+ screener filters, so you can validate both fundamental and technical strategies before risking real capital. Free users do not have access to backtesting—it’s an Elite-exclusive feature.