M1 Finance vs Betterment

M1 Finance is a no-fee robo-advisor that allows you to choose your own investments.. How does it compare to Betterment? Read our comparison chart below.

M1 Finance offers free automated investing with no commissions or account fees. Unlike other robo-advisors, M1 lets you select your own investments and their automation will manage it for you. This is great for investors who want a say. The downside is that there are no human advisors. The minimum to start is just $100.

While 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.

Compare M1 Finance with Betterment, side-by-side. Read on for an in-depth look, including ratings, reviews, pros and cons.

	M1 Finance	Betterment


	SPECIAL OFFER New Customers: Deposit $1,000 and Get $30 - Learn More Read M1 Finance Review	SPECIAL OFFER Get 1 Month Managed Free - Learn More Read Betterment Review
	Benefits and Features
Stock Trading	$0
Options Trading	No
Annual Fee	None	0.25% for accounts under $100,000; 0.40% for accounts $100,000+
Cryptocurrency Trading	No
Minimum Deposit	$100	$0
Mutual Fund Trading	No
Commission Free ETFs	All U.S. listed ETFs
Phone Support	Monday - Friday 9:30 am to 4 pm EST	Yes
Live Chat Support	No	No
Email Support	Yes	Yes
Human Advisors	No	Yes ($100k minimum)
Robo Advisor	Hybrid; You choose your own investments and M1 trades & manages your portfolio for you
Assets Under Management	$4.5 Billion	$14 Billion
Tax Loss Harvesting	Offers tax-efficient investing	Yes
Goal Tracker	No	Yes
Automatic Deposits	Yes	Yes
Broker Assisted Trades	Included
Good For	DIY investing with passive portfolio management
Inactivity Fee	$20 (for accounts with less than $20 and no activity for 90+ days)
Maintenance Fee	$0
Online Platform	Yes	Yes
iPhone App	Yes (4.6 stars, 33.3k ratings)	Yes
Android App	Yes (4.5 stars, 15.7k ratings)	Yes
Banking	All users can open a M1 Spend account with free debit card. No monthly service fees and no balance requirements.
Mobile App		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	No	Yes
IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
Roth IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
SEP IRA Accounts	Yes	Yes
Trust Accounts	Yes	Yes
529 Plans	No	No
	CreditDonkey® Reviews

Annual Fee
Minimum Deposit
Customer Service
Mobile App
Ease of Use
Research
Human Advisors
Pros & Cons	Pros: Choose your own investments Can invest in individual stocks No account fees Cons: No research No human advisors Can only trade once a day	Pros: No minimum investment Many customized portfolios Automatically invest extra funds Cons: Limited investment options High fees for large investors
Bottom Line	No-fee robo-advisor that allows you to choose your own investments... Read full review	Great robo-advisor for beginners with low fees, good tools, and tax strategies... Read full review

	New Customers: Deposit $1,000 and Get $30 Transfer Your Account and Earn Up to $2,500 Commission Free Stock Trading	Get 1 Month Managed Free Get 6 Months Managed Free Get 1 Year Managed Free
Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the product website for details. M1 Finance: Pricing information from published website as of 02/28/2020 Betterment: Pricing information from published website as of 04/04/2018

New Customers: Deposit $1,000 and Get $30

Start Investing

Expires 12/31/2021

Open a new M1 account.
Deposit $1,000 or more in your Invest account during your first 14 days.
Get a $30 bonus.

Transfer Your Account and Earn Up to $2,500

Initiate your transfer of another brokerage account within 60 days of signing up for M1 to receive a bonus.

Transfer	Bonus
$100,000 – $249,999.99	$250
$250,000 – $499,999.99	$500
$500,000 – $999,999.99	$1,000
$1,000,000+	$2,500

Payments for eligible transfers will be paid 90 days after the account transfer is received. Offer is valid for direct broker transfers received through the Automated Customer Account Transfer Service (ACATS) only. Offer is not valid with ACH deposits, wire transfers or direct 401k rollovers.

Start Your Transfer

Commission Free Stock Trading

Start Investing

M1 Finance allows investors the choice of ETFs and stocks. M1 charges no management fees or commission.

Get 1 Month Managed Free

View Terms

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

Get 6 Months Managed Free

View Terms

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

Get 1 Year Managed Free

View Terms

Deposit $250,000+ within 45 days and get 1 year managed free

Which is Better: M1 Finance or Betterment?

Still need help deciding which investing is better? Read the in-depth reviews below. You may also be interested in comparing M1 Finance or Ally Invest.

Articles on M1 Finance

M1 Review

M1 Finance lets you invest in stocks and ETFs without fees. But is it safe? Find out the pros and cons, and if it's legit.

Articles on Betterment

Betterment Investing

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.