how to buy a stock
If you are completely ready to purchase a stock with your money you have a couple of options at your hand.
1. a stock broker
A stock brokerage is the most common method to buying a stock. From here you have two options in terms of what type of brokerage you want to choose. There are full-service brokers which give you so called "expert" advice and help manage your account for a lot of money, or a cheaper discount brokerage which give you less individual attention. Both of these options charge a commission on the trades you make. The cost of the commission can often vary, but most of the time they are relatively cheap. There are tons of brokerages out there; some are banks like TD Waterhouse, while there are some like iShares which specialize specifically in this department. Whichever brokerage you choose, you should make sure that it fully meets your expectations.
2. drips & dips
Dividend reinvestment plans (DRIPs) and dividend investment plans (DIPS) are plans that are offered by the company itself. For a cheap cost, these plans allow the shareholders to directly buy shares from the company. With these plans you usually pay small amounts of money at regular intervals, instead of paying all at once. These companies must also offer a dividend, which is a common incentive of rewarding shareholders with extra cash.