Betterment vs Acorns

Betterment is a great robo-advisor for beginners with low fees, good tools, and tax strategies. How does it compare to Acorns? Read our comparison chart below.

Betterment offers automatic investing starting at an annual fee of 0.25% of your account balance. There is no fee to open an account and no minimum deposit required. All balances get automatic rebalancing, tax loss harvesting, and access to financial experts.

While Acorns is geared towards young investors who have trouble saving. This investment app automatically rounds up and invests your spare change whenever you make a purchase. The service fee starts at $3/month for accounts. There is no minimum to open.

Compare Betterment with Acorns, side-by-side. Read on for an in-depth look, including ratings, reviews, pros and cons.

	Betterment	Acorns


	SPECIAL OFFER Get up to 1 Year Managed Free - Learn More Read Betterment Review	SPECIAL OFFER $10 Sign-Up Bonus - Learn More Read Acorns Review
	Benefits and Features
Stock Trading		Part of service fee. No add-on trading fees.
Savings		No
Options Trading		No
Annual Fee	0.25% for accounts under $100,000 0.40% for accounts $100,000+	$3/mo for Acorns Personal (includes personal taxable account, IRA, and checking account) $5/mo for Acorns Family (includes everything in Personal plus investment accounts for kids)
Cryptocurrency Trading		No
Minimum Deposit	$0	$0
Mutual Fund Trading		No
Checking	No-Fee Checking	Yes
Commission Free ETFs		A selection automatically chosen by Acorns
Phone Support	Yes	Yes
Live Chat Support	No	No
Email Support	Yes	Yes
Human Advisors	Yes ($100k minimum)	No
Robo Advisor		Yes
Assets Under Management	$14 Billion	$4.7 Billion
Tax Loss Harvesting	Yes	No
Goal Tracker	Yes	Yes
Automatic Deposits	Yes	Yes
Broker Assisted Trades		Acorns automatically invest and trade for you
Good For		Beginners; Passive investors; Those who have trouble saving/investing on their own
Inactivity Fee		None, but you will keep paying the monthly fee
Maintenance Fee		Monthly fee for the service
Online Platform	Yes	Yes
iPhone App	Yes	Yes (4.7 stars, 760k ratings)
Android App	Yes	Yes (4.3 stars, 156k ratings)
Banking		Included in Acorns Personal ($3/mo). Free metal debit card, no minimum balance, no overdraft fees, and 55,000+ fee-free ATMs nationwide.
Mobile App	Yes	Yes
Two-Factor Authentication		Yes
Locations		No
Online Community		No
Seminars		No
Virtual Trading		No
Single Stock Diversification	No
Fractional Shares	Yes	Yes
Taxable Accounts	Yes	Yes
401k Plans	Yes	No
IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
Roth IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
SEP IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
Trust Accounts	Yes	No
529 Plans	No	No
	CreditDonkey® Reviews

Annual Fee
Minimum Deposit
Human Advisors
Customer Service
Mobile App
Ease of Use
Pros & Cons	Pros: No minimum investment Many customized portfolios Automatically invest extra funds Cons: Limited investment options High fees for large investors	Pros: No minimum investment Invest with spare change Cash-back program Cons: Fees are high for small balances No tax benefits Limited investment options
Bottom Line	Great robo-advisor for beginners with low fees, good tools, and tax strategies... Read full review	Investment app that automatically invests your spare change. Good for young investors to get into the habit... Read full review

	Get up to 1 Year Managed Free Get 1 Month Managed Free Get 6 Months Managed Free	$10 Sign-Up Bonus Acorns Checking: $75 Bonus $5 Sign-Up Bonus
Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the product website for details. Betterment: Pricing information from published website as of 04/04/2018 Acorns: Pricing information from published website as of 09/28/2020.

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New Betterment customers only. Accounts must be funded within 45 days of signup. Terms apply.

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Deposit $15,000 - $99,999 within 45 days and get 1 month managed free

Get 6 Months Managed Free

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Deposit $100,000 - $249,999 within 45 days and get 6 months managed free

$10 Sign-Up Bonus

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$5 minimum investment

Acorns Checking: $75 Bonus

Get $75 Bonus

Expires 12/31/2021

Setup Acorns Checking as your direct deposit method with your employer
Receive 2 direct deposits of at least $250 / deposit
$75 bonus will be deposited into your Acorns account within 45 days

$5 Sign-Up Bonus

Get $5 Sign-Up Bonus

Which is Better: Betterment or Acorns?

Still need help deciding which investing is better? Read the in-depth reviews below. You may also be interested in comparing Betterment or Ally Invest.

In short: Betterment's annual fee and customer service are noteworthy.

Articles on Betterment

Betterment Reviews

Betterment offers low fees and good returns. But there are risks you should NOT ignore. Read this review to see if Betterment is better.

Betterment Returns

Betterment has low fees and is good for beginners. But what about their returns? Let's take a look at this robo-advisor's performance.

Betterment Fees

Betterment offers no minimum deposit and good returns. But are the fees worth it? Read on to learn about this robo-advisor's costs.

Is Betterment Safe

Betterment offers low fees, no minimum balance and good returns. But is it a good idea? Find out if it's safe to invest your money with this robo-advisor.

Betterment Roth IRA

Is Betterment a good way to invest for retirement? What about the fees and withdrawals? Read on to learn how Betterment's Roth IRA account works.

Betterment vs Wealthfront

Betterment and Wealthfront are two of the oldest and most popular robo-advisors. Is there a difference? Which is better for you? Read on to find out.

Articles on Acorns

Acorns App

Acorns automatically invests your spare change. But can it help make you money? Find out if this app is safe and legit.

Acorns vs Stash

Is Acorns Safe

Acorns lets you invest spare change from every purchase. But is it safe to use? Learn just how secure the micro-investing app is.

How to Make Money Using Acorns

Acorns "rounds up" everyday purchases and invests it for you. What's the catch? Read this review to find out how to make money using the app.

Comments

Olivia Tabor from Texas
on April 2019 said about Acorns:
I have both Acorns and Robinhood and even though they each serve a different purpose I don't have the freedom of stock purchase that I really like. I believe Acorns diversifies for my needs more effectively.

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