A robo-advisor builds a portfolio of low-cost funds for you and keeps it balanced, for a fraction of what a human advisor charges. Three things sort the options: what the fee costs at your balance, how much you need to start, and whether you can reach a person when you want one.
Top picks
Betterment
Fidelity Go
WealthfrontFees and minimums verified on each provider’s own site at this update. Investing involves risk.
Compare the best robo-advisors
| Robo-advisor | Management fee | Account minimum | Account types | Human advisor access | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Betterment | $5 a month, or 0.25% a year | $0 | Taxable, IRAs, solo 401(k) | Premium plan, $100,000 | See Betterment |
| Wealthfront | 0.25% a year | $500 | Taxable, IRAs, 529 plan | None | See Wealthfront |
| Fidelity Go | $0 under $25,000, then 0.35% | $0 | Taxable, IRAs, HSA | Coaching at $25,000 | See Fidelity Go |
| Vanguard | About 0.15%, up to 0.20% | $100 | Taxable, IRAs | None | See Vanguard |
| Schwab | $0 | $5,000 | Taxable, IRAs, trust, custodial | None | See Schwab |
| SoFi | 0.25% a year | $50 | Taxable, IRAs | One 30-minute session | See SoFi |
| Acorns | $4 to $12 a month | $5 | Taxable, IRAs | None listed | See Acorns |
| Ally Invest | $0, or 0.30% a year | $100 | Taxable, IRAs, custodial | Specialists on request | See Ally Invest |
| Merrill | 0.45% a year | $1,000 | Taxable, IRAs | Advisor version, $20,000 | See Merrill |
| Empower | 0.89% a year | $100,000 | Taxable, IRAs | Advisor included | See Empower |
The 10 best robo-advisors
1. Betterment
Best overallWhy we picked it Betterment has no minimum balance and lets you add human advisors later. It costs $5 a month until you set up $200 a month in recurring deposits or reach $24,000, then 0.25% a year.
- No minimum balance
- Tax-loss harvesting included
- $5 a month on a small idle balance
- Advisors need $100,000 and 0.65%
Advisory services are provided by Betterment LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Brokerage services are provided by Betterment Securities, member FINRA/SIPC. The 0.25% rate applies with recurring deposits of $200 or more a month, or $24,000 or more across Betterment investing accounts and Cash Reserve. Moving an account to another firm costs $75. Fund expenses are extra.
2. Wealthfront Automated Investing
Best for tax-loss harvestingWhy we picked it Wealthfront charges a flat 0.25% a year and runs daily tax-loss harvesting on taxable accounts, with direct indexing once an account passes $100,000. It is built to run without a person, so there is no advisor to call.
- Daily tax-loss harvesting
- 529 college savings plan
- $500 to open
- No human advisors
Advisory services are provided by Wealthfront Advisers LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Brokerage products are provided by Wealthfront Brokerage LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. Wealthfront says tax-loss harvesting benefits vary and that it does not give tax advice. Fund expenses are extra.
3. Fidelity Go
Best for balances under $25,000Why we picked it Fidelity Go charges no advisory fee until your balance reaches $25,000, and you can start investing with $10. At $25,000 the fee becomes 0.35% a year and you get unlimited one-on-one coaching calls.
- No advisory fee under $25,000
- Coaching calls at $25,000
- 0.35% a year from $25,000 up
- Tax-loss harvesting needs $25,000
Advisory services are offered by Strategic Advisers LLC, a registered investment adviser and a Fidelity Investments company. Brokerage services are provided by Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC. Fidelity says its coaching does not cover retirement income planning.
4. Vanguard Digital Advisor
Best for low-cost index portfoliosWhy we picked it Vanguard says an all-index portfolio costs about $15 to $16 a year for every $10,000 you invest, and no more than $20. You need $100 to enroll, tax-loss harvesting is included, and you pay no advisory fee for the first 90 days.
- About $15 to $16 per $10,000
- Tax-loss harvesting included
- All digital, no advisor to call
- Active fund option costs more
Vanguard Digital Advisor charges a gross advisory fee of 0.20% a year for index options and 0.25% for the active option, reduced by a credit for the revenue Vanguard keeps from your funds. Fund expense ratios are not included. The 90-day waiver covers your first eligible account. Vanguard Personal Advisor adds access to an advisor for $50,000 or more.
5. Schwab Intelligent Portfolios
Best with no advisory feeWhy we picked it Schwab charges no advisory fee and no commissions. There are two catches: you need $5,000 to open, and part of every portfolio sits in cash at Schwab Bank, which Schwab says is one reason it can skip the fee.
- No advisory fee
- 24/7 phone and chat support
- $5,000 to open
- Part of the portfolio stays in cash
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Member SIPC. You pay the operating expenses of the ETFs in the portfolio. Tax-loss harvesting is available at $50,000 or more if you turn it on. Schwab no longer accepts new enrollments in Intelligent Portfolios Premium, the version that came with a financial planner.
6. SoFi Robo Investing
Best for starting with $50Why we picked it SoFi lets you start with $50 and charges 0.25% a year. Its investment committee builds the portfolios with BlackRock, and members get one complimentary 30-minute session with a financial planner.
- Start with $50
- One free planner session
- 0.25% fee on every balance
- No tax-loss harvesting listed
Robo investing and advisory services are offered by SoFi Wealth LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. The 0.25% fee is based on your account value, and SoFi says brokerage costs are billed separately. Investments are not FDIC insured, are not bank guaranteed and may lose value.
7. Acorns
Best for investing spare changeWhy we picked it Acorns rounds up your purchases and invests the spare change in one of five ETF portfolios. It charges a flat $4 to $12 a month, which is steep on a small balance: $4 a month is $48 a year, or 4.8% of a $1,000 account.
- Invests your spare change for you
- IRA match with Silver and Gold
- Flat fee is costly on small balances
- Kids’ accounts need the $12 plan
Acorns is a member of SIPC. Round-Ups are invested once they add up to $5. Through this link, Acorns lists a $20 bonus investment after your first recurring investment of $5 or more, with no end date shown. Terms apply.
8. Ally Invest Robo Portfolios
Best for a built-in cash cushionWhy we picked it Ally gives you a choice. The cash-enhanced portfolio has no advisory fee but keeps about 30% of your money in cash, and the market-focused portfolio invests about 98% of it for 0.30% a year. Either one opens with $100.
- A portfolio with no advisory fee
- Opens with $100
- No-fee version holds 30% in cash
- Cash buffer is not FDIC insured
Advisory services are offered through Ally Invest Advisors Inc., a registered investment adviser. Ally Invest Securities LLC is a member of FINRA and SIPC. At this update Ally paid 3.10% annual interest on the cash portion, a variable rate. ETF expense ratios are extra.
9. Merrill Guided Investing
Best for Bank of America customersWhy we picked it Merrill Guided Investing costs 0.45% a year with a $1,000 minimum for growth strategies. Bank of America customers in the higher BofA Rewards tiers get 0.10% or 0.15% off, and a version with an advisor costs 0.85% with $20,000.
- Fee discount for BofA Rewards tiers
- Advisor version from $20,000
- 0.45% costs more than most here
- Income strategies need $50,000
Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Member SIPC, a Bank of America company. The BofA Rewards discount is 0.10% for the Preferred Plus tier and 0.15% for the Preferred Honors and Premier tiers. Selling ETFs carries a third-party fee of $0.01 to $0.03 per $1,000, and fund costs are extra.
10. Empower Personal Strategy
Best for $100,000 or more with an advisorWhy we picked it Empower is a wealth manager, not a pure robo-advisor. You get a financial advisor and a managed portfolio for 0.89% a year once you invest more than $100,000, and its retirement planning tools are free for anyone.
- A financial advisor is included
- Free retirement planning tools
- $100,000 minimum to invest
- 0.89% is the highest fee here
Advisory services are provided for a fee by Empower Advisory Group, LLC, a registered investment adviser. The 0.89% fee applies from $100,000 to $999,999, and lower rates start at $1 million. Empower says its average ETF expense ratio is 0.06%. Sign-up asks for a phone number, and Empower may call you about its advisory service. Read more in our Empower review.
What a robo-advisor does
A robo-advisor is an automated investing service. You answer questions about your goal, your timeline and how much risk you can stomach, and software builds a portfolio to match and manages it from there. The SEC’s investor bulletin on robo-advisers describes them the same way and notes that how much human help you get varies from one to the next.
Most build the portfolio from low-cost ETFs or index funds, then rebalance it when the mix drifts. Several also sell losing positions in taxable accounts to cut your tax bill, which is called tax-loss harvesting. What a robo-advisor does not do is pick winning stocks or promise a return. If you are brand new, start with our guide on how to start investing.
Every provider here manages taxable accounts and IRAs. Wealthfront adds a 529 plan, Fidelity Go adds an HSA, and Betterment adds a solo 401(k).
MoreThe types of IRAs and how to pick one
What the fee really costs in dollars
A percentage looks small until you turn it into dollars. Here is one year of each provider’s management fee on a steady $10,000 and $100,000, using the fees each one publishes.
| Robo-advisor | On $10,000 | On $100,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Betterment | $25, or $60 without $200 a month in deposits | $250 |
| Wealthfront | $25 | $250 |
| Fidelity Go | $0 | $350 |
| Vanguard Digital Advisor | About $15 to $16 | About $150 to $160 |
| Schwab Intelligent Portfolios | $0 | $0 |
| SoFi | $25 | $250 |
| Acorns | $48 to $144 | $48 to $144 |
| Ally Invest | $0 or $30 | $0 or $300 |
| Merrill Guided Investing | $45 | $450 |
| Empower | Not offered under $100,000 | $890 |
Fund costs come on top of these at every provider, because the ETFs and index funds inside the portfolio charge their own expense ratios. The two $0 options also have a cost you do not see on a statement. Schwab says it can skip the fee partly because of what Schwab Bank earns on the cash in your portfolio, and Ally’s no-fee portfolio keeps about 30% in cash. Cash will not fall with the market, but it will not grow with it either.
Flat fees cut the other way. Acorns costs the same $48 to $144 a year whether you have $500 or $50,000, so it gets cheaper as you grow. Betterment’s $5 a month works the same way until you set up $200 a month in deposits.
Robo-advisor vs. target-date fund vs. human advisor
These three do overlapping jobs at very different prices. The costs below are the providers’ own figures.
| Option | What you get | What it costs | Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robo-advisor | A portfolio built from your answers, rebalanced for you, with tax-loss harvesting at some providers | $0 to 0.45% a year on this page, or $4 to $12 a month at Acorns | $0 to $5,000 |
| Target-date fund | One fund that moves from stocks toward bonds as its target year gets closer | Vanguard says its Target Retirement Funds average 0.08% a year | $1,000 per fund at Vanguard |
| Human advisor | A person who plans around your whole situation, not only one account | About 0.30% a year at Vanguard Personal Advisor, 0.65% at Betterment Premium, 0.89% at Empower | $50,000 at Vanguard, $100,000 at Betterment and Empower |
If all you have is a retirement account and you want one decision, a target-date fund is the cheapest way to get a managed mix. A robo-advisor earns its fee when you have a taxable account that can use tax-loss harvesting, several goals, or no interest in rebalancing yourself. A human advisor is for questions software cannot answer, such as stock options, an inheritance or how to draw down savings in retirement.
MoreRobo-advisor vs. doing it yourself with index funds
When a robo-advisor is the wrong tool
Money you need within a few years does not belong in a stock portfolio, managed or not. Keep it in a high-yield savings account where it cannot lose value.
A robo-advisor also is not for you if you want to choose your own investments. An online broker lets you buy the same ETFs yourself with no management fee, and many investment apps will automate the deposits. M1 sits in between: you build the portfolio and it automates the buying, for a $3 monthly platform fee that M1 waives once you have more than $10,000 there. M1 says plainly that it is not a robo-advisor picking your portfolio. Our M1 Finance review covers how it works.
MoreBest short-term investments
Before you open a robo-advisor account
Four things new investors ask first.
Investments are not bank deposits. If a SIPC member brokerage fails, SIPC protects up to $500,000 in securities and cash, including a $250,000 limit for cash. It does not protect against a decline in the value of your investments.
Your money goes into stock and bond funds, and the balance falls when markets fall. Past performance does not tell you what comes next. Invest money you can leave alone for years.
The management fee pays the advisor. The funds inside the portfolio charge their own expense ratios, which come out of your returns. Empower, for one, says its average ETF expense ratio is 0.06%.
It does nothing inside an IRA. Fidelity Go starts it at $25,000 and Schwab at $50,000, while Betterment, Wealthfront and Vanguard list it as part of the fee. None of them guarantees a tax saving.
How we chose these
The management fee at small and large balances, the minimum to open and to invest, account types, tax-loss harvesting and access to human advisors.
Every fee, minimum and account type was checked on the provider’s own pricing page, product page or disclosures at this update.
Services that have closed, stopped taking new clients or turned into wealth managers with high minimums, and any whose terms we could not confirm on their own sites.
Robo-advisor FAQs
Betterment is our pick for most people. It has no minimum balance, costs 0.25% a year once you set up $200 a month in deposits or reach $24,000, and lets you add human advisors later. Fidelity Go is the better choice under $25,000 because it charges no advisory fee there, and Wealthfront suits a taxable account that can use daily tax-loss harvesting.
They are worth it if the alternative is leaving money in cash or paying far more for a human advisor. At 0.25% a year you pay about $25 for every $10,000, and in return the portfolio is built, rebalanced and at some providers tax-loss harvested for you. If you only have a retirement account and want one decision, a target-date fund does much of the same job for less.
A robo-advisor is an automated investing service. You answer questions about your goals, timeline and comfort with risk, and software builds and manages a portfolio of funds to match. Some are fully digital, and others add access to human advisors once you reach a certain balance.
Schwab Intelligent Portfolios charges no advisory fee, and so does the cash-enhanced portfolio at Ally Invest. Fidelity Go charges none while your balance is under $25,000. None is entirely free, because you still pay the expenses of the funds in the portfolio, and Schwab and Ally hold part of your money in cash.
Less than most people expect. Betterment and Fidelity Go have no minimum to open, and Fidelity Go starts investing at $10. Acorns invests from $5, SoFi starts at $50, and Vanguard Digital Advisor and Ally need $100. Wealthfront needs $500, Merrill Guided Investing $1,000 and Schwab Intelligent Portfolios $5,000.
Your investments are held at a brokerage, and SIPC protects up to $500,000 in securities and cash, including a $250,000 limit for cash, if a member brokerage fails. SIPC does not protect against a decline in the value of your investments. A robo-advisor portfolio can lose money when markets fall.
Use a robo-advisor if you mainly need your money invested and kept on track at low cost. Pay for a person if you need planning around taxes, stock options, an inheritance or retirement income. Some services give you both: Fidelity Go adds coaching calls at $25,000, Vanguard Personal Advisor starts at $50,000, and Empower includes a financial advisor for 0.89% a year once you invest more than $100,000.
