- FinTech
- Best Robo-Advisor Companies
Robo-advisors can help you invest for your future, from retirement to a big purchase, or something else. With accessible automated investing tools and money management options at a fraction of the cost of traditional actively managed brokers, a robo-advisor could could help you reach your goals.
Best Robo-Advisor Companies for 2024
Investopedia’s experts put 21 companies through a rigorous evaluation process to identify the best robo-advisor companies for you. We collected over 1,200 data points and used our subject matter expertise to develop a process for finding the best robo-advisors, focusing on goal planning, fees, portfolio contents and management, and more.
Winners
- Best Overall, Best for Goal Planning, Best for Portfolio Construction, Best for Portfolio Management: Wealthfront
- Best for Beginners, Best for Crypto Portfolio Selection, Best for Cash Management, Best for Tax-Loss Harvesting: Betterment
- Best for Low Costs: SoFi Automated Investing
- Best for Sophisticated Investors: M1 Finance
- Best for Those Who Struggle to Save: Acorns
- Best for Women Investors: Ellevest
- Best for Mobile: E*TRADE Core Portfolios
- Best for Education: Merrill Guided Investing
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you evaluate a robo-advisor?
To evaluate a robo-advisor, first take a look at the services provided. Many robo-advisors have standard tax-loss harvesting and automatic rebalancing at no additional cost. Next, compare the expenses you'll incur at each robo-advisor. Finally, evaluate the costs and fees charged by the robo-advisors you are interested in and weigh those against traditional advisors.
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What’s the difference between a robo-advisor and a financial advisor?
Robo-advisors can automate investing strategies that optimize the ideal asset class weights in a portfolio for a given risk preference. Financial advisors are often more than investment managers—they are communicators, educators, planners, and coaches to their clients. Some traditional advisors now offer robo-advisors-as-a-service as part of the portfolio construction and investment monitoring side of a more holistic financial planning practice.
Learn MoreRobo-Advisor vs. Financial Advisor: Which is Better?
Do robo-advisors beat the S&P 500?
This will vary significantly depending on the risk profile of the portfolio, broader market conditions, and the specific robo-advisor used. Some robo-advisor portfolios may outperform the S&P 500 in certain years or under specific conditions, while in others, they may underperform.
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How do you open a robo-advisor account?
Opening a robo-advisor investment account is as easy as opening an online financial or banking account. Most robo-advisory accounts will be opened online, although if you select Fidelity, Schwab, or another platform with a physical office, you can also open the account in person. You will need some personal info like address, Social Security number, and income, as well as banking info like account number and routing number, in order to open a robo-advisor account.
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Key Terms
Robo-Advisor
A robo-advisor (also sometimes spelled as roboadvisor) is a digital platform that provides automated, algorithm-driven financial planning and investment services with little to no human supervision. A typical robo-advisor asks questions about your financial situation and future goals through an online survey. It then uses the data to offer advice and automatically invest for you.
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Robo-Advisor Tax Loss Harvesting
Robo-advisor tax-loss harvesting is the automated selling of securities in a portfolio to deliberately incur losses to offset any capital gains or taxable income within many robo-advisor platforms.
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B2B Robo-Advisor
Business to business (B2B) robo-advisors are automated platforms that provide financial guidance and investment management services to other businesses. Unlike traditional human advisors, these digital platforms utilize algorithms and big data to offer tailored solutions.
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Robo Roth IRA
A robo Roth IRA is an automated investing, post-tax individual retirement account that grows tax free and has tax-free withdrawals in retirement.
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Automated Investing
Automated investing is a broad term for a technology-driven method of investment management that uses algorithms and mathematical models to invest money on behalf of clients. It offers a streamlined and cost-effective way to invest, particularly for investors who are comfortable with technology.
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FinTech
Other TechnologiesAutomated Investing