VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

View Google Finance View MarketWatch Back to Home

Head-to-head

Google Finance vs MarketWatch comparison

Compare pricing, supported platforms, categories, and standout capabilities to decide which tool fits your workflow.

Quick takeaways

Google Finance adds Portfolio, and Stock Comparison coverage that MarketWatch skips.

MarketWatch includes Alerts, Calendar, Screeners, Paper Trading, Options, Analyst Price Targets, Insider Data, Short Interest, Interest Rates, Yield Curves, IPO, and Newsletters categories that Google Finance omits.

Google Finance highlights: Custom watchlists to follow securities and markets, with tailored news feeds for tracked symbols., Simple portfolio tools: add holdings with quantity, cost basis, and date; convert watchlists to portfolios; experiment with simulated “playground” portfolios; switch portfolio currency., and Performance tracking with one-day and total returns, plus portfolio value charts. Comparisons are based on time-weighted rate of return (TWR)..

MarketWatch is known for: Market data hub with stock and market screeners, mutual fund research, fund comparison, and multi-quote lookup tools., Personal watchlists available free with an account; syncs across web and mobile apps with customizable price and news alerts., and Comprehensive event calendars, including U.S. economic releases, corporate earnings, IPO schedules, and options-expiration dates..

MarketWatch offers mobile access, which Google Finance skips.

Google Finance

google.com

Editor’s pick Hands-on review

Free web portal for quotes, charts, news, watchlists, and simple portfolio tracking. Portfolios can include stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and crypto, with returns shown using time-weighted calculations. Data freshness varies by source: some exchanges stream in real time, while others are delayed (e.g., 15 minutes for many equities, 10 minutes for CME futures, end-of-day for mutual funds). Currency and crypto quotes update every few minutes. Google Sheets supports the GOOGLEFINANCE() function for live data pulls, though no public REST API is offered.

Platforms

Web

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

Custom watchlists to follow securities and markets, with tailored news feeds for tracked symbols.
Simple portfolio tools: add holdings with quantity, cost basis, and date; convert watchlists to portfolios; experiment with simulated “playground” portfolios; switch portfolio currency.
Performance tracking with one-day and total returns, plus portfolio value charts. Comparisons are based on time-weighted rate of return (TWR).
Interactive charts, quotes, and aggregated financial news across global markets.
Coverage across multiple asset classes with varied latency: U.S. equities often real-time, international equities typically 15-minute delay, futures about 10 minutes, crypto and currencies ~3 minutes, and mutual funds end-of-day.

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MarketWatch

marketwatch.com

Hands-on review

A global financial-news portal from Dow Jones that combines market data, news, analysis, and investor tools. Real-time Nasdaq last-sale quotes are included, while most other intraday prices run on a standard 15-minute delay. Premium newsletters and in-depth articles are gated behind a subscription. Mobile apps extend the experience with push alerts and watchlist syncing.

Platforms

Web

Mobile

Pricing

Free

Subscription

Quick highlights

Market data hub with stock and market screeners, mutual fund research, fund comparison, and multi-quote lookup tools.
Personal watchlists available free with an account; syncs across web and mobile apps with customizable price and news alerts.
Comprehensive event calendars, including U.S. economic releases, corporate earnings, IPO schedules, and options-expiration dates.
BigCharts advanced charting platform with multiple timeframes (intraday to monthly) and technical overlays; intraday data typically delayed 15 minutes.
Options coverage with full chains per symbol and an expiration calendar.

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Overlap

Shared focus areas

6 overlaps

Mutual strengths include Watchlist, News, and Data Visualizations plus 3 more areas.

Where they differ

Google Finance

Distinct strengths include:

Portfolio

Stock Comparison

Custom watchlists to follow securities and markets, with tailored news feeds for tracked symbols.
Simple portfolio tools: add holdings with quantity, cost basis, and date; convert watchlists to portfolios; experiment with simulated “playground” portfolios; switch portfolio currency.
Performance tracking with one-day and total returns, plus portfolio value charts. Comparisons are based on time-weighted rate of return (TWR).
Interactive charts, quotes, and aggregated financial news across global markets.

MarketWatch

Distinct strengths include:

Analyst Price Targets

Insider Data

Short Interest

Market data hub with stock and market screeners, mutual fund research, fund comparison, and multi-quote lookup tools.
Personal watchlists available free with an account; syncs across web and mobile apps with customizable price and news alerts.
Comprehensive event calendars, including U.S. economic releases, corporate earnings, IPO schedules, and options-expiration dates.
BigCharts advanced charting platform with multiple timeframes (intraday to monthly) and technical overlays; intraday data typically delayed 15 minutes.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

Attribute	Google Finance	MarketWatch
Categories Which research workflows each platform targets	Shared: Watchlist, News, Data Visualizations, Financials, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings Unique: Portfolio, Stock Comparison	Shared: Watchlist, News, Data Visualizations, Financials, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings Unique: Alerts, Calendar, Screeners, Paper Trading, Options, Analyst Price Targets, Insider Data, Short Interest, Interest Rates, Yield Curves, IPO, Newsletters
Asset types Supported asset classes and universes	Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Currencies, Cryptos, Futures, Bonds	Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Options, Futures, Commodities, Currencies, Cryptos, Bonds
Experience levels Who each product is built for	Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced	Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Platforms Where you can access the product	Web	Web, Mobile
Pricing High-level pricing models	Free	Free, Subscription
Key features Core capabilities called out by each vendor	Unique Custom watchlists to follow securities and markets, with tailored news feeds for tracked symbols. Simple portfolio tools: add holdings with quantity, cost basis, and date; convert watchlists to portfolios; experiment with simulated “playground” portfolios; switch portfolio currency. Performance tracking with one-day and total returns, plus portfolio value charts. Comparisons are based on time-weighted rate of return (TWR). Interactive charts, quotes, and aggregated financial news across global markets. Coverage across multiple asset classes with varied latency: U.S. equities often real-time, international equities typically 15-minute delay, futures about 10 minutes, crypto and currencies ~3 minutes, and mutual funds end-of-day. Google Sheets integration via =GOOGLEFINANCE() for fetching current and historical data (with limits on coverage, frequency, and history depth).	Unique Market data hub with stock and market screeners, mutual fund research, fund comparison, and multi-quote lookup tools. Personal watchlists available free with an account; syncs across web and mobile apps with customizable price and news alerts. Comprehensive event calendars, including U.S. economic releases, corporate earnings, IPO schedules, and options-expiration dates. BigCharts advanced charting platform with multiple timeframes (intraday to monthly) and technical overlays; intraday data typically delayed 15 minutes. Options coverage with full chains per symbol and an expiration calendar. ETF and mutual fund research, including top holdings for flagship funds like SPY and a comparison tool for side-by-side analysis.
Tested Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat	Yes	Yes
Editor pick Featured inside curated shortlists	Highlighted	Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

Which workflows do Google Finance and MarketWatch both support?

Both platforms cover Watchlist, News, Data Visualizations, Financials, ETF Overview, and ETF Holdings workflows, so you can research those use cases in either tool before digging into the feature differences below.

Do Google Finance and MarketWatch require subscriptions?

Both Google Finance and MarketWatch keep freemium access with optional paid upgrades, so you can trial each platform before committing.

Which tool has mobile access?

MarketWatch ships a dedicated mobile experience, while Google Finance focuses on web or desktop access.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

Google Finance differentiates itself with Custom watchlists to follow securities and markets, with tailored news feeds for tracked symbols., Simple portfolio tools: add holdings with quantity, cost basis, and date; convert watchlists to portfolios; experiment with simulated “playground” portfolios; switch portfolio currency., and Performance tracking with one-day and total returns, plus portfolio value charts. Comparisons are based on time-weighted rate of return (TWR)., whereas MarketWatch stands out for Market data hub with stock and market screeners, mutual fund research, fund comparison, and multi-quote lookup tools., Personal watchlists available free with an account; syncs across web and mobile apps with customizable price and news alerts., and Comprehensive event calendars, including U.S. economic releases, corporate earnings, IPO schedules, and options-expiration dates..

Keep exploring

Stay on top of related tools

Browse the categories and profiles that overlap most with this comparison to round out your shortlist.