At a glance
Composer and Horizon both automate investing without code, and they part ways on where the money sits. Composer is itself the brokerage: you open a Composer account and your rule-based portfolios, which it calls symphonies, trade there. Horizon runs strategies in the broker account you already have, including crypto exchanges, and adds a marketplace where you can copy strategies that creators are running live.
Side by side
| Question | Horizon | Composer |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | HorizonAn investing platform. Copy strategies that creators are running live, or describe your own idea in plain English and run it through your own broker. | ComposerAn automated investing app and brokerage. You build rule-based portfolios, called symphonies, and Composer trades them in a Composer account. |
| How you build a strategy | HorizonDescribe the idea in plain English. Horizon turns it into rules you can read, edit and test. No code. | ComposerA visual block editor or an AI assistant builds the portfolio logic: which assets to hold, how to weight them and when to rebalance. |
| Where strategies run | HorizonIn your own account at Binance, Bybit, Coinbase, Hyperliquid, Kraken, Robinhood, Webull, TradeStation, Tradier, E*TRADE, tastytrade and moomoo, or on Horizon Paper with simulated money. | ComposerInside a Composer brokerage account, taxable or IRA. It does not trade in an account you hold elsewhere. |
| Markets | HorizonUS stocks and ETFs through the stock brokers; crypto spot and derivatives through the exchanges. No forex or CFDs. | ComposerUS stocks and ETFs. Crypto depends on the account. |
| Backtesting | HorizonEvery strategy is backtested on historical data before it runs, and you see the rules it tested. | ComposerYes, on each symphony before you invest in it. |
| Paper trading | HorizonYes. Horizon Paper runs any strategy with simulated money at real market prices. | ComposerNot as a separate simulated account. You backtest, then invest. |
| Copying other people's strategies | HorizonYes. Discover lists creators' strategies with live track records. Creators keep 80% of what subscribers pay. | ComposerYes. You can copy symphonies other users share. |
| Pricing model | HorizonDiscover is free. The Builder plan is a subscription, monthly or yearly, with a 14-day money-back guarantee. | ComposerFree to build and backtest, a subscription to trade live. Current prices on composer.trade. |
| Holds your money? | HorizonNever. Funds stay with your broker. Horizon can place trades for a strategy but cannot withdraw money. | ComposerYes. Composer Securities is the brokerage that holds the account. |
Choose Horizon if
- You want automation in the broker account you already have, not a new brokerage.
- You trade crypto on an exchange such as Binance, Coinbase or Kraken.
- You think in entries, exits and risk limits rather than portfolio weights.
- You want to run a strategy on paper before it touches real money.
- You want to copy strategies with a live track record, or publish your own and earn from subscribers.
Choose Composer if
- You want one app that is both the strategy builder and the brokerage.
- You want a rebalancing portfolio inside an IRA.
- Your idea is an allocation across assets, rebalanced on a schedule.
