The best insider trading trackers in 2026, compared
Eleven tools that track Form 4 filings and Congress trades: what each costs, how fast it tells you, and who each one is for.
The InsiderBeacon team ยท October 22, 2026
A disclosure first. We make InsiderBeacon, one of the tools below. We have tried to describe every tool fairly, including where the others do more than we do, and to show each price as its maker lists it. Prices are as the vendors listed them in October 2026; check their pages before you buy.
What to look for
Every insider trading tracker reads the same public data: Form 4 filings on the SEC's EDGAR system, and for Congress, the disclosures members file under the STOCK Act. What differs is everything after that.
- Speed. A Form 4 is public the moment the SEC accepts it. Some tools tell you within a minute, some once a day, some only when you look.
- Alerts. A screener you have to check is a different product from one that tells you. Ask where the alert arrives (push, email, Telegram) and whether you can follow a person or a stock.
- Noise. Most Form 4s aren't open-market buys: they're option exercises, grants, tax withholding and pre-planned 10b5-1 sales. A good tracker throws those away or labels them.
- Interpretation. A CEO's first buy in years says more than a director's routine one. Look for a ranking or score you can read, and a record of what happened after earlier buys.
- Price and policy. Several tools don't refund, and some have no free tier or trial. Try before you pay.
The tools at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Price | Alerts | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| InsiderBeacon | Alerts the minute an insider buys, with a published score | Free during early access (every Pro feature, no card); then a Free plan with filings 24 hours behind, and Pro at $29 a month ($14 for early members) | Phone push, Telegram, email, within about a minute | Form 4 buys and sales, Congress, top Hyperliquid traders |
| OpenInsider | Free screening of every Form 4 | Free, with ads | None: you check it yourself | Form 4 buys and sales |
| SecForm4 | A free, readable Form 4 database | Free | None | Form 4 filings by company and person |
| Quiver Quantitative | Congress and alternative data, with backtests | Free; Premium $25 a month or $300 a year | Email, app push | Congress, insiders, government contracts, lobbying |
| Unusual Whales | Options flow, with Congress and insiders added | Free, delayed; $50, $75 or $120 a month | App push, Discord | Options flow, dark pool, Congress, insiders |
| Capitol Trades | Free Congress trade lookup | Free | None | Congress trades |
| CEO Watcher | A daily insider-buying newsletter | Free newsletter; Premium $20 a month | One email a day, 6am ET | Form 4 buys |
| InsiderScreener | Insider trades outside the US | $17, $29 or $59 a month | Daily email; real time on the $59 plan | Insiders in 17 markets |
| Finviz Elite | A stock screener with an insider table | Free; Elite $24.96 to $39.50 a month | Email and push on Elite, not insider-specific | Screener, charts, insider table |
| TipRanks | Analyst and insider ratings together | Free; $29.95 or $49.95 a month | Email and app on paid plans | Analysts, insiders, news |
| InsiderFinance | An options-flow dashboard with an insider tracker | $75 a month or $660 a year; no free tier or trial | Email, Discord, app | Options flow, insiders |
Prices are as the vendors listed them in October 2026; check their pages before you buy.
Each tool, in short
InsiderBeacon
Alerts for open-market insider buys within about a minute of the SEC accepting the Form 4, each scored out of 100 by a published formula (who bought, how much their stake grew, the size, whether other insiders bought too, the 52-week range, first or routine buy). It also alerts on sales by insiders you follow, reports Congress trades with how late each was filed, and follows the biggest moves by the top traders on Hyperliquid. Alerts arrive as phone notifications, on Telegram or by email, and the median alert time is on the public status page. Limits: it covers US filings only, it's newer than the others, and it has no options-flow data. Price: Free during early access (every Pro feature, no card); then a Free plan with filings 24 hours behind, and Pro at $29 a month ($14 for early members).
OpenInsider
The long-standing free Form 4 screener, with ready-made screens for cluster buys, CEO and CFO buys and penny stocks, and a deep history. Limits: there are no alerts or watchlists, so you check it yourself, and it gives no ranking or interpretation of a buy. Price: free, with ads. See also OpenInsider alternatives and InsiderBeacon vs OpenInsider.
SecForm4
A free database of Form 4 filings with a page per company and per person, easier to read than EDGAR itself. Limits: no alerts, no scores, and its tables are plain lists. Price: free.
Quiver Quantitative
A broad alternative-data site: Congress trades, insider trades, government contracts, lobbying and more, with backtests and an app. It grew a very large following by sharing Congress data. Limits: much of the data updates daily rather than live, and insider buying is one dataset among many. Price: free; Premium $25 a month or $300 a year; API plans from $30 a month. Head to head.
Unusual Whales
An options-flow platform (unusual options activity, dark pool prints) that added Congress and insider feeds, with a large app and Discord community. Limits: if you only want insider or Congress data, you pay for a full options cockpit; it does not offer refunds. Price: free with delayed data; $50, $75 or $120 a month. Head to head.
Capitol Trades
A free, clean lookup of Congress trades by member, stock and party. Limits: Congress only, and no alerts. Price: free.
CEO Watcher
A daily newsletter of insider purchases with commentary, plus a paid dashboard and Discord. Limits: one email a day, at 6am New York time, so a buy filed the previous afternoon reaches you the next morning. Price: free newsletter; Premium $20 a month.
InsiderScreener
Insider trades from 17 markets, which makes it the one to look at if you invest outside the US. Limits: the daily email is on the cheaper plans; real-time alerts need the top plan. Price: $17, $29 or $59 a month.
Finviz Elite
One of the most popular stock screeners, with an insider-trading table on every stock and a site-wide insider page. Limits: insider data is a side table, not a product of its own, with no insider-specific alerts. Price: free; Elite $24.96 to $39.50 a month. Head to head.
TipRanks
Analyst ratings, insider trades and news combined, with ratings of how individual analysts and insiders have done. Limits: insider trades are one part of a broad research site, without insider-specific alerts on the free plan. Price: free; $29.95 or $49.95 a month.
InsiderFinance
An options-flow dashboard with an insider tracker and real-time data. Limits: no free tier, no trial and no refunds, and the price is set for active options traders. Price: $75 a month or $660 a year.
Which one should you use?
- You want to know the minute an insider buys, on your phone: InsiderBeacon.
- You like to screen filings yourself, for free: OpenInsider or SecForm4.
- You mainly follow Congress: Capitol Trades (free) or Quiver Quantitative.
- You trade options and want flow data: Unusual Whales or InsiderFinance.
- You invest outside the US: InsiderScreener.
- You want one email a day to read with coffee: CEO Watcher, or InsiderBeacon's weekly letter.
Whichever you use, a filing is a fact, not advice: insider buying is a signal to look closer, and every tool here, ours included, can only tell you what was filed. Browse insider buying by stock to see the data for yourself.
Head to head
- InsiderBeacon vs OpenInsider
- InsiderBeacon vs Unusual Whales
- InsiderBeacon vs Quiver Quantitative
- InsiderBeacon vs Finviz
- InsiderBeacon vs AlphaYou
Questions
Is it legal to track insider trading?
Yes. When a company's officers, directors or 10% owners buy or sell its stock, they must report it to the SEC on Form 4 within two business days, and the filing is public the moment the SEC accepts it. Every tool here reads those public filings. Illegal insider trading is something else: trading on material information the public doesn't have.
Does insider buying predict returns?
On average, somewhat, and some kinds more than others. Lakonishok and Lee (2001) found that insider purchases carried information, mostly in smaller companies; Cohen, Malloy and Pomorski (2012) found that "opportunistic" buys, the ones that break an insider's usual pattern, carried the information, while routine buys carried little. Cluster buys, several insiders buying within days, are another pattern the research points to. None of it is a guarantee: insiders can be wrong, and any single buy can lose money.
What is the best free insider trading tracker?
For screening every Form 4 yourself, OpenInsider and SecForm4 are free. For Congress trades, Capitol Trades is free. If you want alerts instead of checking, InsiderBeacon is free during early access, and its Free plan afterwards shows every buy 24 hours after it's filed.
How quickly can I know about an insider buy?
The SEC publishes a Form 4 the moment it accepts it; insiders have two business days after the trade to file. A tool that checks EDGAR every minute can alert you within about a minute of that. Many tools update once a day or send a morning email, so the difference can be most of a trading day. InsiderBeacon publishes its own alert times on its status page.