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Roundup · Free AI stock screeners Updated
The Best Free Stock Screeners with AI in 2026: 13 Tools Checked
By Daniel Mirkin · Updated · Free plans checked · 12 min read
The short answer: Most "free AI stock screeners" keep the AI on the paid plan. We checked 13 tools on their own pricing pages, and only 5 let you use any AI for free. Our pick is Trade Ideas: a free account opens our web dashboards (delayed data), and Holly, our AI, sends you a free trade idea every week. When you want the AI to build live screens for you, the AI Assistant comes with TI Standard.
Named to the Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies six years in a row (2017–2022).
Investopedia: Best Short Term Stock Screener, 2024
Same question, two AI screeners. Recorded August 12, 2026, no cuts. See the test ↓
The ranking: Trade Ideas for a free market-wide screener plus a free AI trade every week. TradingView for free AI screener presets. Danelfin for a free AI score on a few stocks a month. TrendSpider Sidekick for free AI chat about charts. Composer for free AI strategy ideas. ChartingLens for a free scanner, with its AI on the paid plan.
Written by Daniel Mirkin, CEO of Trade Ideas, which makes one of the tools compared here. We have built stock scanners since 2002, so weigh our view and try the free plans yourself.
Best free AI stock screeners by what you want
One honest pick for each job, what you get free, and what it costs when you want more:
Best free stock screener with AI, by job. Free plans and prices checked October 28, 2026 on each company's own site.
What we found when we read 13 free plans line by line.
The question
What "free with AI" really means
"Free AI stock screener" usually means one of two things. Either the screener is free and the AI is paid, or the AI is free with a small monthly limit. Both are fine, as long as you know which one you are getting.
Key point
Of the 13 tools we checked, 5 let you use some AI on the free plan: Trade Ideas, TradingView, Danelfin, TrendSpider Sidekick and Composer. Every one has a limit. The other 8 offer a free screener or free research, with no AI on the free plan.
Three questions tell you what a free plan is really worth:
How old is the data? Free plans are usually delayed. That is fine for research after the close, and not for trading the open.
How many results? Some free screeners show only the top 2, 4 or 10 results.
What does the AI do for free? A preset, a score, a few chat messages, or a trade idea. Read the limit before you rely on it.
Four tests
What makes a stock screener actually AI?
A chat window on top of the same filters is not much AI. These four tests separate real help from a label.
It builds the screen from your words. You type what you want, and a working screen appears without picking filters by hand. The Trade Ideas AI Assistant does this in every TI Pro plan, and TradingView does it with AI screener requests.
It covers the whole market. An answer is only useful if it includes every stock you could trade, not a sample. See the recorded test below.
It hands you a trade with a plan. Holly AI Signals come with an entry and a stop to manage risk, on TI Premium. The free weekly Holly trade is a taste of it.
You can test it first. In Trade Ideas, OddsMaker replays a setup on market history with no code (TI Premium), and paper trading lets you practice before real money.
Past results, including backtests, don't guarantee future results.
Same question, two assistants
Same question, two AI screeners
Key point
On Wednesday, August 12, 2026, during market hours, we asked two AI assistants for the day's top gainers. We typed "show me a top list of stocks that are up the most today" into the Trade Ideas AI Assistant, and "show me what stocks are up the most today" into TrendSpider Sidekick. Both screens were recorded in one take, with no cuts.
Full recording, 1:33, no cuts. The Trade Ideas AI Assistant is on the left and TrendSpider Sidekick is on the right.
Step
TrendSpider Sidekick
Trade Ideas AI Assistant
First reply
Asked which universe we meant, and said it had only partial market data for a subset.
Built a Top List sorted by biggest % gain today and opened it as a live window, on screen under 6 seconds after the prompt.
Stocks covered
After we replied "spx," it fetched data for 21 S&P 500 symbols.
Stocks on NASDAQ, NYSE, AMEX and NYSE Arca priced at $1 or more.
The answer
Five S&P 500 names, led by Akamai at +5.25%.
A ranked list led by BOXL, up 168.0% at the 0:25 mark, still updating while the clip ran.
Settings
Fairness note. This is one recorded test, on one day, with one prompt per assistant, worded slightly differently. Other wording, settings or plans may give different results. Sidekick has other strengths: it can read your charts, filings and news. Trade Ideas made the recording and publishes this page. The full write-up is on Trade Ideas vs TrendSpider.
Method
How we compared
A free plan earns its place by being useful before you pay. So every tool faced the same 7 questions. Each one is a column in the table.
Free plan: What you get for $0, with no trial clock.
AI on the free plan: What the AI does before you pay, in the company's own words.
Data on free: Live or delayed.
Free limits: Results per screen, messages or reports per month.
Whole market: Does the screen cover every stock you could trade?
When you pay: The cheapest plan that unlocks the AI, from the vendor's own pricing page.
Best for: The trader or investor each free plan suits.
Key point
A free trial is not a free plan. A 14-day trial, or a $19 trial, is listed under "When you pay". Sources are under How we checked.
At a glance
Free AI stock screeners, side by side
What each free plan includes. Checked October 28, 2026 on each company's own site (ChartingLens: October 7, 2026).
Not on free: the AI screener, pattern scanner and My Script scans are Premium
Not stated
10 results per scan; daily quotas; scans 2,000+ U.S. stocks
Premium $14.99/mo or $149/yr; Pro $29.99/mo or $299/yr
Traders who want a free scanner and cheap AI later
"Not stated" means we did not find it on the company's own pages. It does not mean the tool lacks it.
Ready to pay for live data? Our real-time stock screener guide compares refresh rates and streaming alerts.
A real Top List (Screener), ranking the market by your filters.
The list
The 6 best free stock screeners with AI in 2026
1. Trade Ideas: best free screener with a free AI trade every week
Trade Ideas gives first. A free account opens our web dashboards in your browser, with nothing to install, and they rank the whole U.S. stock market. Holly, our AI, sends you a free trade idea every week. When you want the AI to work for you all day, you upgrade.
AI that builds the screen. In every TI Pro plan, the AI Assistant turns a plain-English request into a live Top List or alert window. Top Lists update every 15 seconds, and Streaming Alerts can fire on every trade. You can also build your own from 308 alerts and 249 filters, with no code.
AI that finds the trade. On TI Premium, Holly AI Signals arrive during the session with an entry and a stop to manage risk. Holly hunts for large, long-term potential winners, so you choose whether to exit the same day or hold.
Trader tip
Test before you trust.OddsMaker replays a setup on market history with no code, on TI Premium. Paper trading lets you practice with no real money.
Price: Free account: $0, no card. TI Standard is $127 a month or $1,068 a year. TI Premium is $254 a month or $2,136 a year.
Trader tip
Worth knowing: Free dashboards run on delayed data. The AI Assistant is in TI Pro, not in the Web Dashboard. TI Pro is a Windows app; on a Mac, start with the Web Dashboard, or run TI Pro through Parallels. Trade Ideas covers U.S.-listed stocks.
Best for: Seeing the whole market for free today, then an AI that builds live screens and finds trades when you are ready.
2. TradingView: best free AI screener presets
TradingView is the chart many traders already know. Its free Basic plan includes screeners, and its pricing page lists preset AI screener requests on Basic.
Free plan
Basic is $0, with charts and screeners.
AI on free
Preset AI screener requests. TradingView's support page says presets don't count toward the monthly limit.
Data on free
Real-time data for some exchanges is an extra purchase.
Free limits
Presets only. Your own AI requests start on paid plans.
When you pay
Essential is $12.95 a month billed annually, with 100 AI requests a month. Plus has 150, Premium 250 and Ultimate 500. TradingView calls the AI screener a beta.
Worth knowing: TradingView's support page calls the AI Screener a paid feature, while its pricing page lists presets on Basic. Check it on your own account.
Best for: Chart traders who want AI to set up a screen. Plenty of them find the stock in Trade Ideas and chart it in TradingView.
Composer is a no-code strategy builder that can trade your strategy automatically. It is not a stock screener, but its free plan does include AI.
Free plan
Starter is $0, with unlimited backtests in the no-code editor.
AI on free
Trade with AI helps you find and evaluate strategy ideas.
Data on free
Not stated.
Free limits
The AI use limit on Starter is not stated. Strategies can have up to 200 nodes.
When you pay
Advanced is $10 a month, with more weekly AI use. Pro is $32 a month billed yearly.
Worth knowing: No stock scanner is listed. You build rules from blocks.
Best for: Investors who want a rule-based portfolio, built and tested without code.
6. ChartingLens: best free scanner if you add AI later
ChartingLens has a free scanner with filters and presets. Its own scanner roundup says its AI screener, pattern scanner and My Script scans are Premium.
Free plan
$0, no card, with daily quotas.
AI on free
Not on the free plan, by ChartingLens's own description.
Data on free
Not stated.
Free limits
10 results per scan. Its scanner covers 2,000+ U.S. stocks.
When you pay
Premium is $14.99 a month or $149 a year. Pro is $29.99 a month or $299 a year.
Worth knowing: ChartingLens lists 25 AI buy signals a day. We did not find which plan includes them.
Best for: Traders who want a free scanner now and low-cost AI later.
Some roundups describe Trade Ideas from old notes. Here are the facts, checked on our own pricing and product pages in October 2026.
"No free option." A free account, just an email and no card, opens our web dashboards on delayed data, and Holly sends a free AI trade every week.
"No AI assistant." The AI Assistant is in every TI Pro plan. Type what you want, and it builds the live window.
"Scanner only; you still need charts and a broker." TI Pro includes charts, paper trading and in-app trading through supported brokers.
"About $89 to $178 a month." Those are the yearly plans divided by 12. TI Standard is $1,068 a year or $127 month to month. TI Premium is $2,136 a year or $254 month to month.
Key point
Don't take anyone's word, ours included. Open a free account and look for yourself.
Free vs paid
Free vs paid: when the AI is worth paying for
Key point
If you look at stocks after the close, a free plan with delayed data may be all you need.
Pay when timing matters. The open moves fast, and a delayed screen shows you where a stock was. An AI that builds a live screen in seconds, or hands you a trade with a stop, is worth paying for only if you act during the session.
Research after the close: start free with Trade Ideas, TradingView or Danelfin.
AI that sets up your screens: TI Standard, with the AI Assistant and live data.
AI that finds the trade: TI Premium, with Holly AI Signals and OddsMaker.
Honest take
Who Trade Ideas is not for
Key point
Our paid plans pay off when you act while the market is open. If that is not you, stay on a free plan.
You only want a daily AI score. Danelfin's free plan is built for that.
Your market is crypto, forex or futures. Trade Ideas covers U.S.-listed stocks.
The price would be a big chunk of your account. Stay free, and practice in paper trading first.
If you are okay with static non-refreshing data, Trade Ideas is probably not your best choice.
Holly AI signals in the Channel Bar (TI Premium).
Method
How we checked
Free plans only. A trial with a clock, or a paid trial, is not counted as free.
Vendor sources only. Each fact comes from that company's own pricing, plans or product pages, or, for ChartingLens, its own scanner roundup.
"Not stated" is literal. We did not find it on those pages. The tool may still offer it.
Order. Trade Ideas is first because it gives the most before you pay: the whole market free, plus a real AI trade every week. The rest follow by how much AI their free plan lets you use.
Past results, including backtests, don't guarantee future results.
Our pick is Trade Ideas: a free account opens web dashboards that rank the whole U.S. market, and Holly, our AI, sends a free trade idea every week. TradingView lists free AI screener presets, and Danelfin gives a free AI score on a few stocks a month. We make Trade Ideas, so try the free plans yourself.
Is there a free AI stock screener?
Yes, with limits. Of 13 tools we checked, 5 let you use some AI for free: Trade Ideas, TradingView, Danelfin, TrendSpider Sidekick and Composer. Each has a cap, such as presets only, 10 reports a month or 25 messages.
Does Trade Ideas have a free version?
Yes. A free account, just an email and no card, opens the Trade Ideas web dashboards on delayed data, and you can get a free Holly AI trade idea by email every week. The AI Assistant and live data come with TI Standard at $127 a month.
Are free stock screeners real-time?
Usually not. Most free plans, including the Trade Ideas web dashboards and Finviz, use delayed data. That is fine after the close. For trading the open, you need a paid plan with live data.
Can AI build a stock screen for me?
Yes. The Trade Ideas AI Assistant, in every TI Pro plan, turns a plain-English request into a live Top List or alert window. TradingView offers AI screener requests, as presets on its free plan and your own requests on paid plans.
Is ChartingLens's AI screener free?
No. ChartingLens's own scanner roundup says its AI screener, pattern scanner and My Script scans are Premium, at $14.99 a month. Its free scanner shows 10 results per scan.
Can AI predict which stocks will go up?
No tool predicts every move. Holly only signals strategies that pass its nightly test on market history, and many signals won't work out. Treat any AI output as one input to your own plan. Past results, including backtests, don't guarantee future results.
