Betterment (2024)

Betterment LLC was recognized as the Best Overall Robo Advisor for 2024 by the Buy Side from Wall Street Journal on January 12, 2024. It was considered amongst 20 robo advisors based on a criteria including but not limited to, their fees, investment strategies and investor services, including financial planning, tax-loss harvesting and availability of a premium service, with information from the robo advisors’ websites, augmented conversations with communications personnel, and additional third party reports featuring the robo advisors. No compensation was exchanged for this award. The author is a client of Betterment; views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store. For more information, visit https://www.wsj.com/buyside/personal-finance/best-robo-advisors-01657136733.

Betterment LLC received a 5 star rating for 2024 from Nerdwallet as of January 2, 2024 for a review period of August - October 2023. It was considered amongst an unknown number of competitors, and based on 16 factors, including account fees and minimums, investment choices, customer support and mobile app capabilities; Betterment replied to a Nerdwallet questionnaire that was used in the rating of this award. No compensation was exchanged for this award. The author is not a client of Betterment. ©2017-2024 and TM, NerdWallet, Inc. All Rights Reserved. For more information, visit https://www.nerdwallet.com/reviews/investing/advisors/betterment

§ App store rating is as of 6.04.2024 and is based upon all ratings and reviews received by Apple App Store® since the Betterment app was launched September 10, 2010. Current rating can be found on Betterment’s App Store and is subject to change. App Store rating is calculated and generated by Apple based on the average of all total app reviews. Count of total ratings and reviews reflects the combined total of App Store rating and Google Play store ratings. No compensation was exchanged for reviews or ratings. Rating may not be representative of the Betterment client experience, advisory services, or investment performance. For more information, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store.

Betterment LLC was awarded the Best Robo-advisor for Beginners for 2024 by Investopedia on March 29, 2024. It was considered amongst 21 competitors based on 59 criteria, including account services, portfolio management, goal planning, fees, and more. Betterment responded to Investopedia's digital survey. No compensation was exchanged for this award; the author is a client of Betterment; views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store.For more information, visit https://www.investopedia.com/best-robo-advisors-4693125

Betterment LLC was recognized as the Best Robo-Advisor Investment App of 2024 by Forbes Advisor on February 1, 2024 for 2024. It was considered amongst 20 competitors based on criteria across five categories: usability, fees, investment profile, trading ability, and educational materials. No compensation was exchanged for this award. The author is not a client of Betterment. For more information, visit https://www.forbes.com/advisor/investing/best-investment-apps/

Betterment LLC was designated by Bankrate as one of the Best Robo Advisor for 2024 for Portfolio Management on December 13, 2023. It was considered amongst dozens of competitors, based on cost factors, account features, and customer experience and support. Cash compensation was exchanged to secure licensing rights from Bankrate; © 2024 Bankrate, LLC. The author is a non-paid client of Betterment. For more information, visit https://www.bankrate.com/awards/2024/best-in-investing/. Views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store.

Betterment LLC was recognized as the Best Overall Robo Advisor for 2024 by Business Insider on February 29th, 2024. It was considered amongst nearly two dozen competitors based on human advisor access, portfolio types, fees, and customer service. No compensation was exchanged for this award; the author is a client of Betterment; views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store. For more information, visit https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-robo-advisors

Betterment LLC was awarded the Best Robo-advisor for Tax Loss Harvesting for 2024 by Investopedia on March 29, 2024. It was considered amongst 21 competitors based on 59 criteria, including account services, portfolio management, goal planning, fees, and more. Betterment responded to Investopedia's digital survey. No compensation was exchanged for this award; the author is a client of Betterment; views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store.For more information, visit https://www.investopedia.com/best-robo-advisors-4693125

Betterment LLC was recognized as the Best Robo-Advisor for Cash Management for 2024 by Investopedia on March 29, 2024. It was considered amongst 21 competitors based on 59 criteria, including account services, portfolio management, goal planning, fees, and more. Betterment responded to Investopedia's digital survey. No compensation was exchanged for this award; the author is a client of Betterment; views may not be representative, see more reviews at the App Store and Google Play Store. See Betterment's program banks at https://www.betterment.com/cash-portfolio. For more information, visit https://www.investopedia.com/best-robo-advisors-4693125.

Betterment for Business was recognized as as one of the Best 401(k) Plans of 2024 by Bankrate on January 21, 2024 for 2024 thus far. It was considered amongst an unknown number of competitors, based on cost, types of available plans, customer support, investment funds, and education & advice. No compensation was exchanged for this award. The author is a client of Betterment. For more information, visit https://www.bankrate.com/retirement/best-401k-plans/.

Betterment LLC was recognized as the Best Robo Advisor for IRAs by The Ascent, a Motley Fool service, on January 16, 2024 as part of its Best Stock Brokers and Robo-Advisors awards for 2024. It was considered amongst an unknown number of competitors based on a variety of criteria, including fees, ease of use, assets and portfolio options available, account variety, features like tax loss harvesting, customer service, mobile app ratings, and more. No compensation was exchanged for this award. The author is not a client of Betterment. For more information, visit https://www.fool.com/the-ascent/awards/2024/stock-broker-robo-advisor/.

This experience and any marketing of the experience are provided by Betterment LLC. To the extent that there is marketing related to Betterment Checking, it is provided by Betterment Financial LLC.

The articles and client support materials available are educational only and not investment or tax advice.

We want you to know a few things:

Who Provides What Service?

Investment Advice: Advisory services for traditional investments (e.g., ETFs) and digital assets are provided by Betterment LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Betterment LLC also offers the Betterment Cash Reserve product. Betterment LLC does not require clients to maintain a minimum investment account balance. However, accounts below a certain balance may have certain restrictions. For more information, please see additional disclosure.

Traditional Investment Brokerage Services & Custody: Brokerage services are provided to clients of Betterment LLC by Betterment Securities, an SEC-registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA /SIPC, and Apex Clearing Corporation, a third-party SEC registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC.

Digital Asset Trading Services & Custody: Digital asset trading services and custody are provided by Gemini Trust Company, LLC. For further details regarding the custody of assets, including cash, held at Gemini Trust Company, please see your Geminiuser agreement.

Betterment Checking: Betterment Checking is made available through Betterment Financial LLC. Checking accounts and the Betterment Visa Debit Card provided by and issued by nbkc bank, Member FDIC. Neither Betterment LLC nor Betterment Financial LLC, nor any of their affiliates, is a bank.

Let’s Talk About Risk:

Investing involves risk and there is the potential of losing money when you invest in securities and digital assets. Past performance does not guarantee future results and the likelihood of investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature.

Investments in securities and digital assets are: Not FDIC Insured • Not Bank Guaranteed • May Lose Value.

Furthermore, investing in digital assets is highly speculative and volatile, and only suitable for investors who are able to bear the risk of potential loss and experience sharp drawdowns.Digital assets are not legal tender and are not backed by the U.S. government.Digital assets are not subject to SIPC protections.

Before investing, consider your investment objectives and Betterment LLC's fees and expenses. Betterment LLC's internet-based advisory services are designed to assist clients in achieving discrete financial goals. They are not intended to provide comprehensive tax advice or financial planning with respect to every aspect of a client's financial situation and do not incorporate specific investments that clients hold elsewhere. For more details, see Betterment’s Form CRS, Form ADV Part II and other disclosures.

Not an offer, solicitation of an offer, or advice to buy or sell securities in jurisdictions where Betterment LLC is not registered.

Who Provides the Market Data?

Market Data by Xignite. Fund data © 2022 Morningstar. All Rights Reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information.

FAQs

What is the Betterment controversy? ›

According to the order, at different times, Betterment failed to disclose a change in the software related to its scanning frequency, failed to disclose a programming constraint affecting certain clients, and had two computer coding errors that prevented TLH from harvesting losses for some clients.

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What are the downsides of Betterment? ›

One downside is that you'll need at least $100,000 for ongoing CFP guidance. Business Insider's personal finance team compared Betterment Investing to the best IRA accounts and the best robo-advisors. We found it to be an industry leader and named it to both lists.

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Can you actually make money with Betterment? ›

Here's how we do that at Betterment: SAVINGS High-yield cash accounts like Cash Reserve could be a smart hedge during volatile markets—especially for money you're saving to be used soon. New customers can earn 13x more than the average savings account** with Betterment's Cash Reserve account.

What is the average return on Betterment? ›

Portfolio	Avg. Annual Return	Best month
Betterment 50% stock	+5.5%	+7.7%
Avg. private client investor 80-100% equity risk	+5.1%	+8.8%
Betterment 40% stock	+5.0%	+6.5%
Avg. private client investor 60-80% equity risk	+4.4%	+6.7%

14 more rows

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What happens if Betterment goes out of business? ›

SIPC membership: Betterment provides Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) insurance, like any investment broker. This insurance covers your portfolio and uninvested cash in case Betterment goes bankrupt. Your portfolio is insured up to $500,000, with up to $250,000 maximum for uninvested cash.

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What is the Betterment rule? ›

A betterment clause states that an insurer will not pay for any repairs or replacement parts that improve the car's condition and increase its value. In car insurance, a betterment clause states that an insurer will not pay for any repairs or replacement parts that improve the car's condition and increase its value.

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How reputable is Betterment? ›

Betterment is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), so it has a federal duty to serve your best interests. Furthermore, most robo-advisor companies also maintain heavily encrypted websites, so you typically won't have to worry about your data and money's safety.

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How safe is my money in Betterment? ›

To add another layer of protection, your Betterment securities are insured by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). This insurance covers up to $500,000 per customer, including a $250,000 limit for cash claims.

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Is it bad to withdraw from Betterment? ›

You can withdraw your money from Betterment at any time, without additional fees. We do not charge any trading fees or assess penalties for requested withdrawals or account closures. It's your money and is always accessible to you.

Is acorn better than Betterment? ›

For larger accounts, Acorn's flat monthly fee could make it a significantly cheaper option, just to name one example. And if you're planning to open a joint investment account with your spouse, Betterment is the clear winner. The bottom line is that the best one for you depends on what features matter the most to you.

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Which is better Robinhood vs Betterment? ›

Is Robinhood or Betterment better? It depends on what you're looking for. Robinhood offers individual stock picking, options trading, and cheaper crypto trades. Betterment offers robo-advisory services that manage your investments.

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Is Betterment really FDIC insured? ›

You can feel conﬁdent that Betterment is always working to offer you competitive interest rates, no matter what the current rate environment may be. Our Cash Reserve account offers FDIC insurance up to $2 million ($4 million for joint accounts) with our program banks. That's 8X the standard FDIC insurance.

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Which portfolio is best on Betterment? ›

If your goal is short-term, we'll recommend a more conservative portfolio with lower expected returns with less volatility, and if your goal is longer term, we'll likely recommend a more aggressive portfolio with higher expected long-term returns with higher volatility.

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How much should I put in my Betterment account? ›

A minimum deposit of $10 is required, but there is no minimum balance required to be maintained. The APY available to a customer may be lower if that customer designates a bank or banks as ineligible to receive deposits.

How long does it take to get money out of Betterment? ›

Withdrawals generally take about 4-5 business days to process; funds will automatically be sold and sent to your linked bank account. When you request a withdrawal, shares in your account are sold and this may have tax consequences. Betterment will always sell your shares in a way that minimizes taxes for you.

What is the betterment theory? ›

The concept of betterment generally arises when in the course of making repairs to defective work an owner adopts a more expensive design or includes other enhancements that give the owner a “better” project than it would have otherwise received.

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What is the betterment doctrine? ›

“Betterment is where, following the repair or reinstatement works, the claimant has a newer or better property than they would have had but for the breach.” A claimant is generally entitled to the reasonable cost of making good.

What is the main ethical reason that Robinhood was fined by SEC? ›

The culprit, according to the notice, was a violation of its registration as a broker of securities by Robinhood as well as a transfer agent. If you don't know what this means, don't worry, this is the crux of the problem that Robinhood faces — are cryptocurrencies securities or not?

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Is Eric Bronnenkant head of tax at betterment? ›

Eric Bronnenkant, CPA/CFP, is Betterment's Head of Tax, where he oversees tax strategy for Betterment's portfolios/products and serves as a resource both internally and for Betterment's customers across business units.

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