VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ FINANCIAL TOOLS & SERVICES DIRECTORY ★

PRICE: 5 CENTS

Monday, November 10, 2025

Home My Collections

Tool Comparison

Magic Formula Investing vs Variant comparison

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

Quick takeaways

Magic Formula Investing adds Screeners coverage that Variant skips.

Variant includes Market Sentiment, Forums, and AI categories that Magic Formula Investing omits.

Magic Formula Investing has a free tier, while Variant requires a paid plan.

In depth comparison

Magic Formula Investing logo

Magic Formula Investing

magicformulainvesting.com

Free stock screener based on Joel Greenblatt’s Magic Formula strategy. Covers only U.S.-listed equities, excluding financials and utilities. Users choose a minimum market cap and get either 30 or 50 ranked results. Prices are updated daily on trading mornings, and fundamentals refresh quarterly. Free registration is required.

Platforms

Web

Pricing

Free

Quick highlights

  • Straightforward screener with only two inputs: minimum market cap (USD, millions) and number of results (30 or 50).
  • Universe restricted to U.S.-listed equities, excluding financial and utility companies.
  • Ranks companies on two factors: high earnings yield (low P/E) and high return on capital, with minor accounting adjustments.
  • Update cadence: price data refreshed daily around 8:00 AM ET on trading days; financial data updated quarterly.
  • Underlying data source is S&P Compustat. Official guidance suggests focusing on larger caps for less volatility and holding at least 20 stocks.

Community votes (overall)

0% upvotes 0% downvotes
You haven't voted yet
View full profileVisit site
Variant logo

Variant

variantinsights.com

Invite- and approval-based platform for professional and student investors. Variant combines an AI-powered “Catalyst Finder” with buyside discussions and a predictions marketplace focused on public-company outcomes and earnings sentiment. All content is user-generated (never investment advice), with strict prohibitions against material non-public information. Access is available via professional approval, student programs at select universities, or invite-only flows.

Platforms

Web

Pricing

Other

Quick highlights

  • AI Catalyst Finder scans filings, transcripts, and other documents to surface potential catalysts in public-company situations.
  • Buyside discussion area with differentiated views and thousands of investor comments.
  • Predictions marketplace where users forecast outcomes and track sentiment on upcoming earnings events.
  • Structured prediction markets focused on company-specific outcomes and event-driven scenarios.
  • Access models include professional approval-based signup, student signup at partner universities, and invite-only admission.

Community votes (overall)

0% upvotes 0% downvotes
You haven't voted yet
View full profileVisit site

Where they differ

Magic Formula Investing

Distinct strengths include:

Screeners
  • Straightforward screener with only two inputs: minimum market cap (USD, millions) and number of results (30 or 50).
  • Universe restricted to U.S.-listed equities, excluding financial and utility companies.
  • Ranks companies on two factors: high earnings yield (low P/E) and high return on capital, with minor accounting adjustments.
  • Update cadence: price data refreshed daily around 8:00 AM ET on trading days; financial data updated quarterly.

Variant

Distinct strengths include:

Market SentimentForumsAI
  • AI Catalyst Finder scans filings, transcripts, and other documents to surface potential catalysts in public-company situations.
  • Buyside discussion area with differentiated views and thousands of investor comments.
  • Predictions marketplace where users forecast outcomes and track sentiment on upcoming earnings events.
  • Structured prediction markets focused on company-specific outcomes and event-driven scenarios.

Feature-by-feature breakdown

AttributeMagic Formula InvestingVariant
Categories

Which research workflows each platform targets

Shared: Stock Ideas

Unique: Screeners

Shared: Stock Ideas

Unique: Market Sentiment, Forums, AI

Asset types

Supported asset classes and universes

Stocks

Stocks

Experience levels

Who each product is built for

Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Intermediate, Advanced

Platforms

Where you can access the product

Web

Web

Pricing

High-level pricing models

Free

Other

Key features

Core capabilities called out by each vendor

Unique

  • Straightforward screener with only two inputs: minimum market cap (USD, millions) and number of results (30 or 50).
  • Universe restricted to U.S.-listed equities, excluding financial and utility companies.
  • Ranks companies on two factors: high earnings yield (low P/E) and high return on capital, with minor accounting adjustments.
  • Update cadence: price data refreshed daily around 8:00 AM ET on trading days; financial data updated quarterly.
  • Underlying data source is S&P Compustat. Official guidance suggests focusing on larger caps for less volatility and holding at least 20 stocks.
  • Suggested rules: equal-dollar weighting, annual holding period (sell losses just before 1 year, gains just after 1 year) to optimize after-tax results.

Unique

  • AI Catalyst Finder scans filings, transcripts, and other documents to surface potential catalysts in public-company situations.
  • Buyside discussion area with differentiated views and thousands of investor comments.
  • Predictions marketplace where users forecast outcomes and track sentiment on upcoming earnings events.
  • Structured prediction markets focused on company-specific outcomes and event-driven scenarios.
  • Access models include professional approval-based signup, student signup at partner universities, and invite-only admission.
  • Strict community standards: insights and analysis only, no investment advice, and zero tolerance for MNPI.
Tested

Verified by hands-on testing inside Find My Moat

Not yet

Not yet

Editor pick

Featured inside curated shortlists

Standard listing

Standard listing

Frequently Asked Questions

Which workflows do Magic Formula Investing and Variant 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.

Which tool offers a free plan?

Magic Formula Investing offers a free entry point, while Variant requires a paid subscription. Review the pricing table to see how the paid tiers compare.

How can you access Magic Formula Investing and Variant?

Both Magic Formula Investing and Variant prioritize web or desktop access. Investors wanting a mobile-first workflow may need to rely on responsive web views.

What unique strengths set the two platforms apart?

Magic Formula Investing differentiates itself with Straightforward screener with only two inputs: minimum market cap (USD, millions) and number of results (30 or 50)., Universe restricted to U.S.-listed equities, excluding financial and utility companies., and Ranks companies on two factors: high earnings yield (low P/E) and high return on capital, with minor accounting adjustments., whereas Variant stands out for AI Catalyst Finder scans filings, transcripts, and other documents to surface potential catalysts in public-company situations., Buyside discussion area with differentiated views and thousands of investor comments., and Predictions marketplace where users forecast outcomes and track sentiment on upcoming earnings events..

Keep exploring

Keep exploring

Stay on top of related tools

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

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.