7 Best Robo-Advisors for Socially Conscious Investors of October 2022
These robo-advisors build socially conscious investment portfolios and manage them for you, so you can invest ethically without the effort.
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If you want to start investing but would prefer for your investment dollars to do some good in the world, you may want to consider working with a robo-advisor. Robo-advisors use computer algorithms to build and manage an investment portfolio for you, taking into account your investment time frame and risk tolerance. The below robo-advisors offer socially conscious portfolios, allowing you to not only invest in your future but in the future of the planet and society.
» New to this? Read up on the basics of socially responsible investing
Most of these robo-advisors choose their assets using the principles of ESG investing. ESG is a way to measure a company or investment’s environmental, social and governance impact. Research firms and advisors often use ESG scores as a way to grade sustainable investments.
Here are the details on some providers' portfolio offerings:
Betterment: Provides three impact portfolios to choose from: Broad Impact, Climate Impact and Social Impact.
Wealthfront: Offers a pre-made socially responsible portfolio. You can customize any portfolio with socially responsible ETFs.
Merrill Edge Guided Investing: Clients can invest in an ESG portfolio and request restrictions on certain ETFs.
Ally Invest: Offers a Socially Responsible Managed Portfolio option.
Marcus Invest: Goldman Sachs Impact portfolio includes ESG ETFs.
E-Trade: Gives access to a portfolio that includes an ESG ETF.
Axos Invest: Offers investments in themed areas such as clean energy and companies with a greater representation of women in senior leadership roles.
The bottom line: These robo-advisors can help you start investing in a socially conscious portfolio for no additional charge.
If you want to start investing but would prefer for your investment dollars to do some good in the world, you may want to consider working with a robo-advisor. Robo-advisors use computer algorithms to build and manage an investment portfolio for you, taking into account your investment time frame and risk tolerance. The below robo-advisors offer socially conscious portfolios, allowing you to not only invest in your future but in the future of the planet and society.
» New to this? Read up on the basics of socially responsible investing
Most of these robo-advisors choose their assets using the principles of ESG investing. ESG is a way to measure a company or investment’s environmental, social and governance impact. Research firms and advisors often use ESG scores as a way to grade sustainable investments.
Here are the details on some providers' portfolio offerings:
Betterment: Provides three impact portfolios to choose from: Broad Impact, Climate Impact and Social Impact.
Wealthfront: Offers a pre-made socially responsible portfolio. You can customize any portfolio with socially responsible ETFs.
Merrill Edge Guided Investing: Clients can invest in an ESG portfolio and request restrictions on certain ETFs.
Ally Invest: Offers a Socially Responsible Managed Portfolio option.
Marcus Invest: Goldman Sachs Impact portfolio includes ESG ETFs.
E-Trade: Gives access to a portfolio that includes an ESG ETF.
Axos Invest: Offers investments in themed areas such as clean energy and companies with a greater representation of women in senior leadership roles.
The bottom line: These robo-advisors can help you start investing in a socially conscious portfolio for no additional charge.
Best Robo-Advisors for Socially Conscious Investors
| Broker | NerdWallet rating | Fees | Account minimum | Promotion | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Wealthfront Learn more on Wealthfront's website | 0.25% management fee | $500 | Get $50 customer bonus when you fund your first taxable Investment Account | Learn more on Wealthfront's website | |
 Betterment Learn more on Betterment's website | 0.25% management fee | $0 | Up to 1 year of free management with a qualifying deposit | Learn more on Betterment's website | |
 Ally Invest Robo Portfolios Learn more on Ally Invest's website | 0.0% with Cash-Enhanced Managed Portfolio; 0.3% otherwise | $100 | None no promotion available at this time | Learn more on Ally Invest's website | |
 Axos Managed Portfolios Learn more on Axos Invest's website | 0.24% management fee | $500 | None no promotion available at this time | Learn more on Axos Invest's website | |
 E*TRADE Core Portfolios Learn more on E*TRADE's website | 0.30% management fee | $500 | None no promotion available at this time | Learn more on E*TRADE's website | |
 Marcus Invest | 0.25% advisory fee | $0 | None no promotion available at this time | Read review | |
 Merrill Edge Guided Investing | 0.45% management fee | $1,000 | None no promotion available at this time | Read review |
Fees
0.25%
management fee
Account minimum
$500
Promotion
Get $50 customer bonus
when you fund your first taxable Investment Account
Pros
Get $50 customer bonus when you fund your first taxable Investment Account (NerdWallet promotion).
Low ETF expense ratios.
Daily tax-loss harvesting.
Automatic rebalancing.
Cons
No fractional shares.
No large-balance discounts.
Why We Like It
Wealthfront has built client trust by offering free management on the first $5,000 — with NerdWallet’s promotion — and the company’s stock-level tax-loss harvesting service really shines.
Fees
0.25%
management fee
Account minimum
$0
Promotion
Up to 1 year
of free management with a qualifying deposit
Pros
Multiple portfolio options and customization.
Low account minimum and fees
Fractional shares mean all your cash is invested.
Robust goal-based tools.
Cons
No direct indexing.
Why We Like It
Betterment has maintained its status as the largest independent robo-advisor for a reason: The company offers a powerful combination of goal-based tools, affordable management fees and no account minimum.
Fees
0.0%
with Cash-Enhanced Managed Portfolio; 0.3% otherwise
Account minimum
$100
Promotion
None
no promotion available at this time
Pros
Solid investment selection.
Integration for Ally bank and brokerage clients.
Cons
No tax-loss harvesting.
Why We Like It
Ally Invest Robo Portfolios is best suited to retirement accounts or loyal Ally customers who want to house a managed account, a trading account and their bank accounts under one roof. The lack of tax-loss harvesting will be an issue for investors with taxable brokerage accounts.
Fees
0.24%
management fee
Account minimum
$500
Promotion
None
no promotion available at this time
Pros
Low account management costs.
Customizable portfolios.
Goal-based planning tools.
Cons
Limited account selection.
Why We Like It
Axos Invest stands out for the level of customization allowed by the service: The company allows investors to add or remove 32 investment types, including socially responsible investments.
Fees
0.30%
management fee
Account minimum
$500
Promotion
None
no promotion available at this time
Pros
Extensive investor tools and educational resources.
Strong customer service.
Low investment-expense ratios.
Specialty portfolio options.
Cons
No tax-loss harvesting.
Why We Like It
If you’re after a robo-advisor portfolio with actively managed mutual funds, E*TRADE is a strong option. Otherwise, you may be able to get more for less from a competitor, particularly if you hold a high balance in a taxable account.
Fees
0.25%
advisory fee
Account minimum
$0
Promotion
None
no promotion available at this time
Pros
Impact and smart beta strategies.
Marcus also offers a high-yield savings account product.
Cons
No human advisor access.
No tax-loss harvesting.
Why We Like It
Marcus Invest brings the investment expertise of Goldman Sachs to its robo-advisor offering for a 0.25% management fee. Marcus Invest has a higher investment minimum than most robo-advisors, but offers multiple investment strategies.
Want to compare more options? Here are our other top picks:
Last updated on October 3, 2022
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Methodology
NerdWallet’s comprehensive review process evaluates and ranks the largest U.S. robo-advisors. Our aim is to provide an independent assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgements on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.
We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, and conduct first-hand testing and observation through provider demonstrations. The questionnaire answers, combined with demonstrations, interviews of personnel at the providers and our specialists’ hands-on research, fuel our proprietary assessment process that scores each provider’s performance across more than 20 factors. The final output produces star ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.
For more details about the categories considered when rating robo-advisors and our process, read our full methodology.
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best Robo-Advisors for Socially Conscious Investors of October 2022
Frequently asked questions
For the most part, no. While some robo-advisors let you exclude certain investments, their function is to build a portfolio for you. If you want to pick your own investments, you’ll likely want to work with an online broker (here’s our roundup of the best brokers). There has been a recent explosion of exchange-traded funds and mutual funds that make it easy for investors to support their beliefs within a diversified portfolio (they are also the building blocks of most robo-advisors’ SRI portfolios). These funds eliminate the legwork of identifying individual stocks that match specific ESG criteria. If you’re looking for socially conscious investments you can choose yourself, see our top picks for ESG funds.
If you’d like to know exactly what kind of impact your investment has had, it’s a good idea to request an impact report from the fund or company you’ve invested in. This will outline things like carbon emissions, gender diversity and initiatives to have an impact on local communities.
