TL;DR

  • Most free ETF screeners let you filter by expense ratio, asset class, and issuer — but the depth varies dramatically. ETF.com and ETFdb.com give you 40+ filter criteria without signing up. Morningstar locks the best data behind a $35/month paywall.
  • For US-focused investors, ETF.com offers the most comprehensive free screening with 2,800+ ETFs, detailed fund flow data, and no registration wall. ETFdb.com is the runner-up with excellent category taxonomy and head-to-head comparison tools.
  • For European investors, JustETF is the clear winner — 2,400+ UCITS ETFs, portfolio builder, and savings plan comparisons that simply don't exist on US-centric platforms.
  • TradingView is the only screener here that doubles as a charting platform. If you already use it for technical analysis, the built-in ETF screener eliminates the need for a second tool.
  • Wisesheets fills a niche nobody else covers: pulling ETF data directly into Google Sheets or Excel. Powerful for quantitative investors who build their own models, but overkill for casual screening.
  • No single free screener covers everything. The practical approach is pairing two: one for discovery (ETF.com or ETFdb.com) and one for analysis (TradingView or Morningstar free tier).

What Makes a Good ETF Screener

Before diving into individual tools, it helps to know what separates a useful screener from a glorified list. After testing dozens of platforms, these five criteria matter most:

Filter depth — Can you screen by expense ratio, dividend yield, tracking error, AUM, issuer, asset class, sector, geography, and ESG score? A screener with 10 filters is a starting point; one with 40+ filters is a research tool.

Data freshness — ETF holdings, flows, and performance shift daily. Some free screeners update weekly or monthly, which means the data you see may already be stale. Real-time NAV and intraday pricing are rare in free tiers.

Cost — "Free" means different things. Some platforms are genuinely free with ads. Others gate the best filters behind premium subscriptions. A few require registration just to access basic screening.

Export options — Can you download results to CSV or connect to a spreadsheet? If you're comparing 30 ETFs side by side, copy-pasting from a webpage wastes time.

Coverage — US-listed ETFs only, or international too? If you invest in UCITS ETFs through a European broker, most US-centric screeners won't help.

Comparison Table

Tool Price US ETFs Intl ETFs Filters Export Rating
ETF.com Free 2,800+ Limited 47 criteria No 4.3/5
Finviz Free (Elite $39.50/mo) 2,200+ No 18 criteria Elite only 4.0/5
Morningstar Free (Premium $35/mo) 2,500+ Limited 30+ (free: ~12) Premium only 4.5/5
JustETF Free No 2,400+ UCITS 35+ criteria Yes (CSV) 4.4/5
ETFdb.com Free 2,700+ Limited 42 criteria No 4.2/5
Wisesheets Free (Pro $49/yr) 2,500+ Limited Spreadsheet-based Native 3.8/5
TradingView Free (Plus $12.95/mo) 2,800+ Global 25+ criteria Watchlist 4.1/5

ETF.com Screener

ETF.com is owned by VettaFi (acquired from FactSet in 2022) and offers one of the most granular free screeners available. You can filter across 47 criteria including expense ratio, AUM, fund flows (1/3/12 months), asset class, strategy, issuer, and dividend yield — all without creating an account.

The fund profile pages are where ETF.com really earns its reputation. Each ETF gets a detailed breakdown: holdings, performance history, tax efficiency data, and a proprietary "Fit" score that evaluates how well the fund tracks its benchmark. This fit analysis is unique — Morningstar and ETFdb don't offer anything equivalent in their free tiers.

Where it falls short: International ETF coverage is thin. If you're screening for UCITS or European-domiciled ETFs, you'll find almost nothing here. The interface also feels dated compared to newer tools — functional, but not visually intuitive. There's no CSV export, so pulling data into a spreadsheet requires manual work or a third-party scraper.

Best for: US-focused investors who want deep fundamental ETF data without paying or registering.

Finviz ETF Screener

Finviz built its reputation on stock screening, and the ETF screener is essentially a side feature — functional but noticeably less developed. The free tier gives you 18 filter criteria: price, change, volume, P/E, beta, dividend yield, sector, and a handful of technical indicators.

The visual heatmap is Finviz's standout feature. It maps ETF performance by sector and size in a Treemap visualization, making it easy to spot which segments of the market are moving. For a quick morning scan of where money is flowing, the heatmap does what a table full of numbers cannot.

Where it falls short: The free tier limits you to delayed data (15-20 minutes), basic filters, and no export functionality. The ETF universe on Finviz is smaller than ETF.com or ETFdb — around 2,200 ETFs vs. 2,700+. Elite membership ($39.50/month or $299.50/year) unlocks real-time data, advanced filters, and CSV export, but at that price you're competing with Morningstar Premium.

The biggest gap is the absence of fund flow data, tracking error, and expense ratio filters in the free tier. These are fundamental ETF metrics, and not having them makes Finviz harder to recommend as a primary ETF screener.

Best for: Traders who already use Finviz for stocks and want a quick ETF overview in the same interface.

Morningstar ETF Screener

Morningstar needs little introduction. Their ETF screener in the free tier offers about 12 filter criteria — asset class, category, star rating, expense ratio, yield, and returns across multiple timeframes. The Morningstar star rating (1-5 stars) and analyst ratings ("Gold," "Silver," "Bronze") are proprietary metrics that carry genuine weight in the ETF industry.

The free tier is a tease. You see the star ratings and basic data, but the detailed analyst reports, fair value estimates, portfolio X-ray tool, and advanced screening criteria are locked behind Morningstar Premium at $34.95/month (or $249/year). User reviews on financial forums consistently rate the premium research at roughly 4.5 out of 5 — it's genuinely good, but it's not free.

Where it falls short: The free screener is frustratingly limited. Twelve filters are not enough for serious ETF research. The interface prompts you to upgrade constantly, which degrades the free experience. International ETF coverage exists but lacks the depth of JustETF for European markets.

Best for: Investors who trust Morningstar's analyst ratings and are willing to pay $35/month for the full research suite. For free users, ETF.com and ETFdb offer more utility.

JustETF

JustETF is the dominant ETF screener for European investors, and it does one thing exceptionally well: UCITS ETF screening. With 2,400+ ETFs listed across European exchanges, it covers ground that US-centric platforms completely ignore.

Filters include total expense ratio (TER), replication method (physical vs. synthetic), distribution policy (accumulating vs. distributing), fund size, domicile country, and savings plan availability at specific European brokers. The savings plan comparison alone — which shows you which brokers offer fee-free savings plans for a given ETF — has no equivalent on US platforms.

The portfolio builder tool lets you construct and backtest ETF portfolios with historical data going back 10+ years. It is completely free, which is remarkable given that comparable portfolio tools elsewhere (Portfolio Visualizer, Morningstar) either limit free access or charge subscription fees.

Where it falls short: If you invest exclusively in US-listed ETFs, JustETF is not for you. The platform focuses on ETFs available through European exchanges (Xetra, London Stock Exchange, Borsa Italiana, etc.). US ETFs appear only as reference benchmarks, not as investable options. The interface is in English and German only.

Best for: European investors who buy UCITS ETFs. Nothing else comes close for this audience.

ETFdb.com

ETFdb.com (also VettaFi-owned, like ETF.com) offers a different angle: category and thematic classification. Where ETF.com excels at individual fund data, ETFdb shines at helping you discover ETFs by theme — "artificial intelligence ETFs," "lithium ETFs," "covered call ETFs" — with curated channel pages that group related funds.

The screener itself covers 42 filter criteria and includes a head-to-head comparison tool that lets you stack up to 4 ETFs side by side with performance, holdings overlap, and expense ratio comparisons. The ETF Stock Exposure tool shows you which individual stocks appear across your ETF holdings, helping you spot unintentional concentration risk.

Where it falls short: The comparison and screener tools generate a lot of data, but exporting it requires manual copy-paste. No CSV export in the free tier. Some pages load slowly due to heavy advertising. International ETF coverage is limited to US cross-listed funds.

Best for: Thematic investors looking for ETFs around specific trends or sectors. The category pages save hours of manual searching.

Wisesheets

Wisesheets occupies a niche that none of the others touch: it's a Google Sheets and Excel add-in that lets you pull ETF data directly into your spreadsheet. Instead of screening on a website and then re-entering data manually, you write formulas like =WISE("SPY","expense_ratio") and the data appears in your cell.

The free tier supports up to 100 API calls per month — enough to build a comparison sheet for 20-30 ETFs across 3-4 data points. The Pro plan ($49/year) unlocks unlimited calls, historical data, and financial statement data.

For quantitative investors who build their own scoring models in spreadsheets, Wisesheets eliminates the most tedious part of the workflow. The data quality is solid — sourced from the same providers that feed Bloomberg and Refinitiv terminals.

Where it falls short: This is not a traditional screener. There's no visual interface for filtering — you need to already know which ETFs you want to analyze, or build your own filter logic in the spreadsheet. The learning curve is steeper than any web-based screener. The 100-call monthly limit on the free tier runs out fast if you're pulling data for more than a handful of ETFs.

Best for: Spreadsheet power users who want ETF data inside their own models without manual data entry.

TradingView ETF Screener

TradingView is primarily known as a charting platform, but its built-in stock and ETF screener is surprisingly capable. The ETF screener offers 25+ filter criteria including performance, volatility, volume, technical indicators (RSI, MACD, moving averages), and fundamental data.

What makes TradingView unique here is the integration between screening and charting. Find an ETF in the screener, click it, and you're immediately looking at a full-featured chart with 100+ indicators, drawing tools, and the ability to set price alerts. No other free screener offers this workflow — on ETF.com or ETFdb, you find a fund, then open a separate charting tool.

The free tier gives you the full screener, real-time data for many exchanges, and basic charting. Paid plans ($12.95-$49.95/month) add more simultaneous charts, alerts, and indicators. The TradingView platform also covers stocks, forex, crypto, and futures with the same screener interface — useful if you trade more than just ETFs.

Where it falls short: The ETF screener lacks fund-specific metrics that dedicated platforms offer — no tracking error, no fund flow data, no expense ratio comparisons in the screener view (though expense ratio appears on individual fund pages). The screener is more technical-analysis oriented than fundamental, which reflects TradingView's DNA as a charting platform.

Best for: Traders who want screening and charting in one platform. If you already use TradingView for charts, the ETF screener is a natural extension.

Common Issues Across All Free Screeners

No free screener is complete. Here are the recurring gaps:

  • Holdings overlap analysis is missing from most free tools. If you own 3 broad-market ETFs, you may unknowingly hold the same stocks three times. Only ETFdb's stock exposure tool and Morningstar Premium's X-ray tool address this.
  • Tax efficiency data is rare. ETF.com shows capital gains distributions, but tax lot optimization and after-tax return comparisons require paid tools or manual calculation.
  • Real-time data is limited. Most free tiers show 15-20 minute delayed prices. For long-term ETF investors this barely matters; for tactical traders it can.
  • Emerging market and frontier ETFs are poorly covered across all platforms. If you're screening for Vietnam or Nigeria ETFs, prepare for thin results everywhere.
  • ESG scoring varies wildly between platforms. One screener may rate an ETF as "high ESG" while another flags it as "average." There's no standardized methodology.

FAQ

What is the most accurate free ETF screener?

ETF.com and Morningstar (free tier) pull data from institutional-grade sources. ETF.com updates fund flows and performance daily; Morningstar refreshes NAV and holdings data daily for most US ETFs. For accuracy, either is reliable — the difference is in depth of analysis, not data quality.

Can I screen for international ETFs for free?

JustETF is the only platform here that excels at international (specifically European UCITS) ETF screening. TradingView covers global exchanges but with fewer ETF-specific filters. The US-focused platforms (ETF.com, Finviz, ETFdb) have minimal international coverage.

Do free ETF screeners include expense ratio filters?

Yes — ETF.com, ETFdb.com, JustETF, and Morningstar all include expense ratio (or TER) as a filter in their free tiers. Finviz includes it in the Elite tier only. TradingView shows expense ratio on individual fund pages but not as a screener filter.

Is TradingView good for ETF screening specifically?

TradingView is good for technically-oriented ETF screening — filtering by RSI, moving averages, volume, and performance. It is weaker for fundamental ETF analysis (no tracking error, fund flows, or holdings overlap). If your ETF selection process is primarily fundamental, pair TradingView with ETF.com or Morningstar for the research layer.

Verdict

For most investors, start with ETF.com for discovery and research — 47 filters, no signup, and the best free fund profiles available. Supplement it with ETFdb.com for thematic browsing and head-to-head comparisons.

If you trade ETFs actively and want charts alongside your screening, TradingView is the most efficient single-platform workflow. European investors should go directly to JustETF — nothing else serves UCITS ETFs as well.

Skip Morningstar unless you're willing to pay $35/month for premium research. The free tier is too limited to be a primary screener. Finviz is fine as a supplement but shouldn't be your primary ETF research tool. Wisesheets is worth exploring only if you already build models in spreadsheets.

The uncomfortable truth about free ETF screeners is that they're designed to get you 80% of the way there, then upsell you on premium data. For buy-and-hold investors screening a few ETFs per quarter, 80% is more than enough. For active tactical allocation, expect to eventually outgrow the free tier on whichever platform you choose.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. ETF investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Some links in this article are affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Always do your own research before making investment decisions.