- 1). Open a brokerage account with an online stock trader. According to the TopReviews website, a few of the popular brokers on the Internet include Scottrade, E*Trade, Sharebuilder and Charles Schwab. When choosing a broker, consider the amount needed to open an account and fees charged for making trades. As of 2010, brokers charged between $3 and $10 per trade. Brokers such as Scottrade, Fidelity and E*Trade required minimum account balances.
- 2). Transfer money into your brokerage account. You must link either a bank account or a PayPal account to your brokerage account by filling out the necessary information (such as routing numbers). Make transfers by selecting the "Deposit" option on your account and entering a numeric value for the amount of money you want to add to your brokerage account. It may take a few business days for the money to enter the account. Once you have funded your brokerage account, you can start purchasing stock.
- 3). Research companies before purchasing stock. Your online account should provide charts, company information and other tools you can use to research potential buys. According to The Wall Street Journal's "Complete Money & Investing Guidebook," websites such as marketwatch and thefool also provide useful information. For in-depth financial information on companies, read the company filings under the "Filings and Forms" tab at the Securities and Exchange Commission website.
- 4). Purchase stock by informing the online broker the company from which you want to purchase stock and how much you want to buy. For example, assume you want to purchase stock in Apple, which is trading at $300 a share. You want to purchase 100 shares of this stock. On the "Trade" page of your account, you would type "AAPL" (Apple's stock symbol) into the "Company" text box. In the price text box, type "30,000" and select the "Trade" option. You would be charged $30,000 plus any brokerage fees required by the account. The online company would find a seller or sellers of Apple stock and make the purchase for you. Your account would be credited with 100 shares of Apple stock.
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