VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Sunday, October 5, 2025

Head-to-head

GuruFocus vs Value Investors Club (VIC) comparison

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

Quick takeaways

GuruFocus adds Screeners, Stock Comparison, Portfolio, Backtesting, Investor Holdings, US Government Trades, News, Alerts, Calendar, GDP, Interest Rates, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, Commitment of Traders (COT), Yield Curves, Financials, Valuation Models, Scores, Transcripts, Insider Data, 13F, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings, APIs & SDKs, and Sheets / Excel Add-ins coverage that Value Investors Club (VIC) skips.

Value Investors Club (VIC) includes Forums categories that GuruFocus omits.

GuruFocus highlights: All-in-One Screener with hundreds of filters, historical screening, and custom filter creation., Backtesting with survivorship-bias-free data. Windows vary by plan: up to 3 years for Premium and up to 10 years for Premium Plus. Global coverage spans 80+ countries., and Guru portfolios tracking 13F and mutual fund holdings, real-time picks, and portfolio downloads to Excel..

Value Investors Club (VIC) is known for: Highly selective membership: applicants must submit a current idea to be considered; only a few hundred active members at any time., Members are required to post at least two ideas per year (up to six) and rate 20 ideas annually to maintain access., and Each idea has its own discussion thread, with members able to mark certain comments as private (visible to members only)..

GuruFocus ships a mobile app. Value Investors Club (VIC) is web/desktop only.

GuruFocus logo

GuruFocus

gurufocus.com

Editor’s pick Hands-on review

A global equity research and value-investing platform with robust screening, backtesting, and portfolio tools. Features and data access depend on plan tier—Premium vs. Premium Plus—while enterprise-level users can license data directly via API. Add-ins for Excel and Google Sheets extend workflows, though usage caps apply to lower tiers. Alerts and mobile apps are included across paid plans.

Platforms

Web
Mobile
API

Pricing

Free
Subscription

Quick highlights

  • All-in-One Screener with hundreds of filters, historical screening, and custom filter creation.
  • Backtesting with survivorship-bias-free data. Windows vary by plan: up to 3 years for Premium and up to 10 years for Premium Plus. Global coverage spans 80+ countries.
  • Guru portfolios tracking 13F and mutual fund holdings, real-time picks, and portfolio downloads to Excel.
  • Specialty trackers for insider trading and U.S. politician trades.
  • ETF profiles with current and historical holdings, including N-PORT data and timestamps.

Community votes (overall)

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Value Investors Club (VIC) logo

Value Investors Club (VIC)

valueinvestorsclub.com

Hands-on review

A legendary forum for deep-dive investment write-ups, founded in 1999 by Joel Greenblatt and John Petry. Membership is free but extremely selective, with obligations to contribute original ideas to stay active. Guests can read older ideas on a delayed basis, while full members have real-time access and can join discussions. Twice a month, the best write-up earns a $5,000 prize. The site carries no ads and no paid subscriptions, emphasizing community quality over monetization.

Platforms

Web

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

  • Highly selective membership: applicants must submit a current idea to be considered; only a few hundred active members at any time.
  • Members are required to post at least two ideas per year (up to six) and rate 20 ideas annually to maintain access.
  • Each idea has its own discussion thread, with members able to mark certain comments as private (visible to members only).
  • Guest users can browse delayed content: free signup grants access to 45-day-old ideas, while non-logged visitors see ideas after 90 days.
  • Robust search and filters for idea discovery, including long/short orientation, performance, ratings, and geography.

Community votes (overall)

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You haven't voted yet
Overlap

Shared focus areas

1 overlap

Both tools cover this research theme.

Where they differ

GuruFocus

Distinct strengths include:

  • All-in-One Screener with hundreds of filters, historical screening, and custom filter creation.
  • Backtesting with survivorship-bias-free data. Windows vary by plan: up to 3 years for Premium and up to 10 years for Premium Plus. Global coverage spans 80+ countries.
  • Guru portfolios tracking 13F and mutual fund holdings, real-time picks, and portfolio downloads to Excel.
  • Specialty trackers for insider trading and U.S. politician trades.

Value Investors Club (VIC)

Distinct strengths include:

  • Highly selective membership: applicants must submit a current idea to be considered; only a few hundred active members at any time.
  • Members are required to post at least two ideas per year (up to six) and rate 20 ideas annually to maintain access.
  • Each idea has its own discussion thread, with members able to mark certain comments as private (visible to members only).
  • Guest users can browse delayed content: free signup grants access to 45-day-old ideas, while non-logged visitors see ideas after 90 days.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

AttributeGuruFocusValue Investors Club (VIC)
Categories

Which research workflows each platform targets

Shared: Stock Ideas

Unique: Screeners, Stock Comparison, Portfolio, Backtesting, Investor Holdings, US Government Trades, News, Alerts, Calendar, GDP, Interest Rates, Inflation Rates, Unemployment Rates, Commitment of Traders (COT), Yield Curves, Financials, Valuation Models, Scores, Transcripts, Insider Data, 13F, ETF Overview, ETF Holdings, APIs & SDKs, Sheets / Excel Add-ins

Shared: Stock Ideas

Unique: Forums

Asset types

Supported asset classes and universes

Stocks, ETFs, Mutual Funds

Stocks, Bonds

Experience levels

Who each product is built for

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Intermediate, Advanced

Platforms

Where you can access the product

Web, Mobile, API

Web

Pricing

High-level pricing models

Free, Subscription

Free

Key features

Core capabilities called out by each vendor

Unique

  • All-in-One Screener with hundreds of filters, historical screening, and custom filter creation.
  • Backtesting with survivorship-bias-free data. Windows vary by plan: up to 3 years for Premium and up to 10 years for Premium Plus. Global coverage spans 80+ countries.
  • Guru portfolios tracking 13F and mutual fund holdings, real-time picks, and portfolio downloads to Excel.
  • Specialty trackers for insider trading and U.S. politician trades.
  • ETF profiles with current and historical holdings, including N-PORT data and timestamps.
  • Valuation and scoring tools: discounted cash flow calculators, GF Value, and GF Score frameworks.

Unique

  • Highly selective membership: applicants must submit a current idea to be considered; only a few hundred active members at any time.
  • Members are required to post at least two ideas per year (up to six) and rate 20 ideas annually to maintain access.
  • Each idea has its own discussion thread, with members able to mark certain comments as private (visible to members only).
  • Guest users can browse delayed content: free signup grants access to 45-day-old ideas, while non-logged visitors see ideas after 90 days.
  • Robust search and filters for idea discovery, including long/short orientation, performance, ratings, and geography.
  • Bi-monthly $5,000 “Best Idea” prize for the top member submission.
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 GuruFocus and Value Investors Club (VIC) both support?

Both platforms cover Stock Ideas workflows, so you can research those use cases in either tool before digging into the feature differences below.

Do GuruFocus and Value Investors Club (VIC) require subscriptions?

Both GuruFocus and Value Investors Club (VIC) keep freemium access with optional paid upgrades, so you can trial each platform before committing.

Which tool has mobile access?

GuruFocus ships a dedicated mobile experience, while Value Investors Club (VIC) focuses on web or desktop access.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

GuruFocus differentiates itself with All-in-One Screener with hundreds of filters, historical screening, and custom filter creation., Backtesting with survivorship-bias-free data. Windows vary by plan: up to 3 years for Premium and up to 10 years for Premium Plus. Global coverage spans 80+ countries., and Guru portfolios tracking 13F and mutual fund holdings, real-time picks, and portfolio downloads to Excel., whereas Value Investors Club (VIC) stands out for Highly selective membership: applicants must submit a current idea to be considered; only a few hundred active members at any time., Members are required to post at least two ideas per year (up to six) and rate 20 ideas annually to maintain access., and Each idea has its own discussion thread, with members able to mark certain comments as private (visible to members only)..

Curation & Accuracy

This directory blends AI‑assisted discovery with human curation. Entries are reviewed, edited, and organized with the goal of expanding coverage and sharpening quality over time. Your feedback helps steer improvements (because no single human can capture everything all at once).

Details change. Pricing, features, and availability may be incomplete or out of date. Treat listings as a starting point and verify on the provider’s site before making decisions. If you spot an error or a gap, send a quick note and I’ll adjust.