I refuse to rank ten apps I haven't rigorously tested. Nobody has. Every "top 10 ETF screener apps" list on the internet is affiliate content in a lab coat, and the honest comparison starts by admitting that.
So here's what I'll actually give you: the real options, and the criteria that separate good from shiny.
The field splits in two. Broker apps: Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard. Convenient, because research and trading live in one place. Standalone apps: Yahoo Finance, Morningstar. Broker-agnostic, often better for pure research. The best ETF screener app for you depends on which camp you already live in, not on some universal ranking.
Now the criteria. Does the ETF screener show expense ratios and let you sort by them? Does it show holdings, not just the top ten? Can it check a candidate against the portfolio you already own, so you catch overlap before you buy? Does it show tracking difference and distribution history? Can you save a screen and get notified when something new matches? An app that only filters by category and past returns is a toy. The good ones answer three questions: what does this cost, what does it hold, does it duplicate what I have.
Free versus paid matters less than the lists claim. Basic screening is free nearly everywhere. Paid tiers add depth: more filters, longer history, no ads. Compare ETFs side by side on the criteria above and the winner usually picks itself.
Once the app narrows your shortlist, you still need a proper ETF comparison tool for the final decision. ETFCompare lines up 108 ETFs with fees, overlap, and returns in one view. Start at etfcompare.fyi.