BEST OF
12 Best Robo-Advisors of January 2021
Robo-advisors are quickly becoming mainstream, which is good news for consumers who are looking for low-cost financial advice. The number of online advisors continues to swell, as does the range of services. Many now offer socially responsible investment portfolios, access to human financial advisors and comprehensive digital financial planning tools.
Bottom line: There’s now a low-cost advisor option for every type of investor. We’ve covered the best choices below.
Robo-advisors are quickly becoming mainstream, which is good news for consumers who are looking for low-cost financial advice. The number of online advisors continues to swell, as does the range of services. Many now offer socially responsible investment portfolios, access to human financial advisors and comprehensive digital financial planning tools.
Bottom line: There’s now a low-cost advisor option for every type of investor. We’ve covered the best choices below.
Summary of Best Robo-Advisors of January 2021
| Broker | NerdWallet Rating | Commissions | Promotion | Account Minimum | Learn More |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Best for Overall | 0% management fee | Free career counseling plus loan discounts with qualifying deposit | $0 | on SoFi Invest's website | |
Best for Overall | 0.15% per year (approximately) | None no promotion available at this time | $3,000 | on Vanguard's website | |
Best for Overall | 0.25% management fee | Up to 1 year of free management with a qualifying deposit | $0 | on Betterment's website | |
Best for Overall | 0.25% management fee | $5,000 amount of assets managed for free | $500 | on Wealthfront's website | |
Best for Overall | $1 - $9 per month | 2 months free with promo code "nerdwallet" | $0 | on Ellevest's website |
Our picks for
Overall
on SoFi Invest's website
SoFi Automated Investing
Fees
management fee
Account Minimum
Promotion
career counseling plus loan discounts with qualifying deposit
on SoFi Invest's website
on Vanguard's website
Vanguard Digital Advisor
Fees
per year (approximately)
Account Minimum
Promotion
no promotion available at this time
on Vanguard's website
on Betterment's website
Betterment
Fees
management fee
Account Minimum
Promotion
of free management with a qualifying deposit
on Betterment's website
on Wealthfront's website
Wealthfront
Fees
management fee
Account Minimum
Promotion
amount of assets managed for free
on Wealthfront's website
on Ellevest's website
Ellevest
Fees
per month
Account Minimum
Promotion
with promo code "nerdwallet"
on Ellevest's website
on Stash's website
Stash
Fees
per month
Account Minimum
Promotion
cash credit to invest with qualifying deposit
on Stash's website
Our pick for
401(k) management
While Blooom is slightly different than the other robo-advisors on this list, the company deserves a mention for offering a unique and useful product: Blooom directly manages 401(k)s — a rare service among robo-advisors.
on Blooom's website
Blooom
Fees
per year
Account Minimum
Promotion
with code REEETIRE
on Blooom's website
Want to compare more options? Here are our other top picks:
Disclosure: The author held no positions in the aforementioned securities at the time of publication.
Last updated on December 22, 2020
Methodology
NerdWallet's ratings for brokers and robo-advisors are weighted averages of several categories, including investment selection, customer support, account fees, account minimum, trading costs and more. Our survey of brokers and robo-advisors includes the largest U.S. providers by assets under management, plus notable and/or emerging players in the industry. Factors we consider, depending on the category, include advisory fees, branch access, user-facing technology, customer service and mobile features. The stars represent ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best Robo-Advisors of January 2021
- SoFi Automated Investing: Best for Overall
- Vanguard Digital Advisor: Best for Overall
- Betterment: Best for Overall
- Wealthfront: Best for Overall
- Ellevest: Best for Overall
- Stash: Best for Overall
- Ally Invest Managed Portfolios: Best for Overall
- SigFig: Best for Overall
- Axos Invest: Best for Overall
- Wealthsimple: Best for Overall
- Schwab Intelligent Portfolios®: Best for Overall
- Blooom: Best for 401(k) management
Frequently asked questions
Robo-advisors automate investment management by using computer algorithms to build you a portfolio and manage your assets based on your goals and your tolerance for risk. Since portfolio management is handled by software rather than a human financial advisor, robo-advisors charge lower fees, which can translate to higher long-term returns for investors.
Robo-advisors use advanced software to handle many of the tasks that used to require expensive experts to manage. Services range from automatic rebalancing to tax optimization, and require little to no human interaction. A robo-advisor might be a good fit if you prefer to be largely hands-off with your investments and you don’t have the kind of complex financial situation that requires a direct relationship with a human financial advisor.
That said, many providers offer access to human advisors available for questions related to account management or long-term investment planning — though these services may cost more.
Here’s what you should consider:
Management fees. This is what you’ll pay annually to have an account at a robo-advisor.
Expense ratios. These are like management fees, only they’re paid not to the robo-advisor, but to the investments the robo-advisor uses. Mutual funds, index funds and exchange-traded funds all charge this annual fee to cover the costs of running the fund.
Account types. Investment accounts fall into two general categories: Retirement accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s, that offer tax advantages while adhering to certain rules; and taxable accounts, where there are no specific tax advantages but also no limits on contributions or distributions.
Investments. Most robo-advisors use low-cost index funds and ETFs.
Rebalancing. Portfolios are fluid, and market fluctuations can cause the mix of investments you hold to get out of sync with your goals. Rebalancing brings that allocation back to its original mix.
Access to human advisors. Many robo-advisors have merged computer-driven portfolio management with access to human financial advisors. Some services offer a dedicated advisor to individual clients; others offer only email or online chat with a team of advisors.
