Top Rated For

• Best Overall
• Best for Goal Planning
• Best for Portfolio Construction
• Best for Portfolio Management
  

Our Take

Wealthfront maintains its stance as our top pick for best overall robo-advisor, as well as best for portfolio management, best for portfolio construction, and best for goal planning in 2024. Millennials, Gen Zers, or anyone comfortable with a digital-first investment portfolio will find a comprehensive investment, saving, and borrowing financial platform. Wealthfront’s risk-adjusted investment portfolios can be customized with more than 200 ETFs. The Automated Bond portfolio services those seeking a conservative income portfolio, and crypto investors will appreciate access to Grayscale’s Ethereum or Bitcoin funds.  If you’re comfortable with a completely online platform, then Wealthfront’s lineup offers something for most types of investors. The strength of Wealthfront's overall offering is a key reason why the robo-advisor now manages over $55 billion in 2024 and has a client base of more than 800,000 users. We’ll dig deeper into Wealthfront’s platform and features to help you decide whether it is the right fit for your portfolio.

Pros & Cons

Account Overview

Account Minimum	$500
Fees	0.25% for most accounts; no trading commission or fees for withdrawals, minimums, or transfers
Goal Planning	Goals encompass retirement, home-buying, saving for college, and travel
Available Assets	ETFs, mutual funds, cryptocurrency funds
Interest Paid on Cash Balances	5.00% (5.50% when you refer a friend)
Customizable Portfolio	Yes, add ETFs to existing portfolio or create a customized ETF portfolio for Wealthfront to manage
View Portfolio Before Funding	Yes, but you need to create an account and provide name, email, and phone number first
Customer Service	Help center, FAQ, online form
Financial Advisor Available	No
Cash Management	Yes—sweep into money market funds and option to open a high-yield cash account
Mobile App	Android, iOS

Account Setup

The Wealthfront account setup is intuitive and fast and begins by selecting a product. Choose from a cash account, automated bond portfolio, robo-advisory automated index portfolio, or self-directed stock investing.

The sign-up process continues with the following topics:

• Name
• Main investing goal: General investing, Retirement, Education (529 plan)
• Account type

You'll choose the account ownership structure with options ranging from individual and joint brokerage accounts; trusts; traditional individual retirement accounts (IRAs), Roth IRAs, simplified employee pensions (SEPs), and rollover IRAs all the way to a unique 529 account. The availability of a tax-advantaged 529 account is rare among robo-advisors.

Once you have a Wealthfront account and select a specific type of investment account, you’re asked the standard age, income, net worth, and risk tolerance questions. Before viewing your investment portfolio, you’ll choose from the Classic, Socially Responsible, or Direct Indexing (limited to accounts with more than $100,000) account styles.

After selecting your preferred investment style, you can view the recommended investment portfolio for your risk level. A handy slider tool enables you to view alternate asset allocations for various risk levels, and the Edit Portfolio link allows you to add or remove investments. You can choose to supplement the recommended portfolio from a list of hundreds of ETFs. Or you can craft your own ETF portfolio for Wealthfront to manage. Once you’ve selected your portfolio, link a bank account to fund the Wealthfront account. You’ll need $500 to begin investing at Wealthfront. 

Goal Planning

Wondering how to use Wealthfront? Start with Wealthfront’s Path feature to digitally plan your financial future.

Wealthfront’s goal-planning and financial decision-making tools are among the best robo-advisory financial planning resources. To properly use Wealthfront’s goal-planning features, collectively called Path, link all of your financial accounts to create an accurate picture of your current finances. The planning tool incorporates these important public data points:

• U.S. Census Bureau earnings growth data
• Bureau of Labor Statistics retirement spending data
• Real-time property prices from Redfin
• Freddie Mac mortgage data
• Projected college costs from the Department of Education

The inclusion of these public data points improves the accuracy of the goal-planning features. Path is programmed to answer up to 10,000 money, investing, and financial planning questions. Path is equipped to answer the following types of questions:

• How much home can I afford? 
• What size down payment do I need for my home purchase?
• Can I afford to take an extended vacation from work? 
• How much financial aid can my child expect to receive? 
• How much can I spend in retirement?
• How much money do I need to maintain my current lifestyle in retirement?

It’s easy to track progress towards goals. After logging in to Wealthfront, users can view their dashboard, which shows progress towards goals. Anyone who registers and links their banking and investment accounts can use the digital financial planning tools. Path draws upon academic research to project your likelihood of reaching stated goals while taking into account inflation, projected income changes, financial market performance, and so on. The modeling automatically updates when any of the inputs change. Path approximates the services you might receive from a human financial planner, including building a financial plan that sets out how much to save to reach your various goals. In addition to helping you track the progress being made toward reaching your goals, embedded charts and graphs show how much your goals will cost. You can use Path to run a variety of scenarios on your finances. Getting this level of free financial analysis is well worth it, whether you intend to invest with Wealthfront or not. 

Account Services

Wealthfront is responsive to customer needs and offers a wide range of services for investors seeking automated investment management, self-directed trading, high-yield cash management, automated bond investing, and borrowing.

Cash Management

Wealthfront has a cash sweep within the robo-advisory account that automatically puts any uninvested cash into money market funds that currently have a 7-day yield of 5.26%. Wealthfront's free, high-yield cash management account is similar to a free interest-bearing checking account. Anyone can open a high-yield Wealthfront cash account whether they sign up for the investment services or not. Users can save for specific goals, automate transfers to their investment account, pay bills, and directly deposit paychecks. Wealthfront Cash is fee-free and sign-up is separate from the Invest sign-up.  Additional features include:

• Interest-bearing account that pays 5.00% (5.50% when you refer a friend) as of February 2024 and fluctuates based upon movements in the federal funds rate
• In-network fee-free ATM transactions
• Up to $8 million FDIC insurance through partner banks (and up to $16 million FDIC insurance for joint accounts)
• Bill pay and app-based mobile check deposits
• Unlimited free transfers
• No minimum balance

Wealthfront Borrow

Through Wealthfront Borrow, users with a minimum of $25,000 invested in a taxable Wealthfront account are eligible for a portfolio line of credit that gives them the power to borrow up to 30% of their account value. There’s no credit check or approval required and interest rates range from 7.65% to 8.90%, depending on your account balance (as of February 2024).

There is no repayment schedule or constraints on how you use the money. But, if your account balance falls below $25,000, you may need to add money to your investment account or repay some of the loan. 

Portfolio Construction

Portfolio construction depends upon whether you’re investing on your own through the stock account or with the automated investment option. With the fee-free stock account, you pick and choose stocks and/or ETFs. The platform groups assets by theme and provides guidance for selecting investments, including built-in data. The stock vertical includes safety measures like personalized risk recommendations and introduces new stocks with 35-plus pre-made collections.

Automated investment portfolios are created by the company's investment management team, which includes Dr. Burton Malkiel, renowned author of “A Random Walk Down Wall Street.” The portfolios include low-cost index funds and abide by modern portfolio theory, which strives for the greatest returns at a specific risk level.

Asset classes include ETFs from the following categories:

• U.S. stocks
• Foreign developed market stocks
• Emerging market stocks
• Dividend growth stocks
• U.S. bonds
• U.S. corporate bonds
• Emerging market bonds
• Municipal bonds
• Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS) 
• Real estate
• Commodities

The percentage of assets allocated to each asset class is determined by the type of portfolio you selected and your risk score. Those with greater risk tolerance will own more stocks and less fixed income, and vice versa. Wealthfront’s portfolio options include:

• Classic portfolios with a diversified portfolio of low-fee index funds
• The Socially Responsible portfolio, focusing on sustainability, diversity, and equity; socially responsible ETFs replace those in the classic portfolio, in accordance with your risk profile
• Direct Indexing, which includes individual stocks ($100,000 minimum)
• The Automated bond portfolio, for conservative investors seeking cash flow

While there are only four broad portfolio options for most users, you can access Wealthfront's Smart Beta portfolio if you have more than $500,000 in your account. This is a feature designed to increase potential returns by focusing on specific factors known to outperform the investment markets.

All portfolios can also be customized, as highlighted here.

Available Assets

Individual Stocks	Yes
Mutual Funds	No
Fixed Income	Yes (only through ETFs)
REITs	Yes
Socially Responsible or ESG Options	Yes
ETFs	Yes
Non-Proprietary ETFs	Yes
Private Equity	No
Crypto	Crypto funds, not individual coins
Forex	No

Portfolio Customization

Wealthfront’s customization features are among the best of all of the automated investment platforms that we cover. You pick your portfolio from Classic, Socially Responsible, Automated Bond, or Direct Stock Indexing. Then you’re able to customize it by adding and subtracting ETFs. 

Key customization features include:

• Customers can select from hundreds of ETFs to add to their portfolio including crypto funds, clean energy, tech, value, growth, and more. 
• Wealthfront handles the trades and regularly rebalances your investments back to your preferred asset allocation.
• Customers can create their own portfolio from scratch or bring one over from their brokerage account, and Wealthfront will rebalance and manage it through the automated portfolio option.

This all comes with a low assets under management (AUM) fee of 0.25%.

Portfolio Management

Wealthfront’s algorithmic portfolio management is grounded in best practices and research-supported theory. Portfolio rebalancing is not automatic, but it is adopted when deposits or withdrawals are made or if the asset allocation significantly deviates from its target. Tax consequences are also programmed into asset allocation decisions. The original Wealthfront portfolios and those with added ETFs or client-customized options are all rebalanced according to this plan. 

Wealthfront claims that the daily tax-loss harvesting benefits offset the 0.25% management fee for taxable accounts. This service is included in the management fee and is available to all investors. The platform sells ETFs with losses and replaces them with an alternate ETF that tracks a different but correlated index to maintain the risk and return characteristics. This avoids falling prey to the IRS’s wash sale rule.

Clients with over $100,000 who participate in the U.S. Direct Indexing portfolio receive both stock-level and ETF-level tax-loss harvesting.

The available accounts, which will suit nearly all investors, include:

• Individual and joint taxable 
• Roth, traditional, SEP, and rollover IRAs
• Trust
• 529 educational
• High-yield cash

Key Portfolio Management Features
Automatic Rebalancing	When deposits or withdrawals occur and when percentage allocations deviate from their goal
Reporting Features	Tax and monthly statements are available on the website
Tax-Loss Harvesting	Yes—daily
External Account Syncing/Consolidation	Yes—anyone can link accounts and receive net worth, saving, spending, and “what if” planning information

Account Management Questions

Here are the answers to a range of frequently asked account management questions.

• Can you take money out of Wealthfront? Yes.
• Does Wealthfront have a monthly fee? The automated investment options charge 0.25% of assets managed, which is levied monthly. There are no fees or commissions for the Path financial planning tools or the stock and cash accounts. 
• Do I have to pay taxes on Wealthfront? You’ll typically pay taxes on income and capital gains if you have a taxable (not retirement) account. 
• How much do you need to invest in Wealthfront? The minimum is $500.
• Can I choose my own stocks on Wealthfront? Yes. You can do this in a self-directed trading account.
• Is Wealthfront good for beginners? Yes, but make certain to do your own research and review the platform before you invest. 

User Experience 

Desktop

The Wealthfront user experience is a good one, with a clean interface and easy access to menu items. The platform menu includes Cash, Bonds, Index Investing (which leads to the automated investment options), Stocks, and Learn. The home page continues with important information about each vertical. It’s simple to access more information and related frequently asked questions with the click of a button.  For users seeking more detail about the platform, the footer links to additional information such as:

• Explore all investments 
• Retirement
• College 
• Socially responsible
• Pricing
• Tax-loss harvesting
• Historical performance
• Whitepaper
• ATM locator
• Help center
• Blog 
• Home Planning and Financial Health guides 

Mobile 

The mobile apps are highly ranked on both the Android and iOS platforms. The user experience is good and the apps approximate the functionality of the desktop version. The opportunity for non-Wealthfront users to link their accounts, use the financial planning software, obtain financial planning insights, and have a true 360-degree view of their spending and net worth is an enormous benefit.

While the Wealthfront app reviews occasionally mention bugs, the company is extremely responsive to comments and updates the app weekly. 

Customer Service

Customer service is available through three avenues:

• Help center with access to FAQ and a search bar
• Online form
• Phone support on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT

The Help Center articles and frequently asked questions are comprehensive. Email is the second option if you can’t find what you need from the Help Center. 

There is a phone customer service number, but it is difficult to find. When you call, there are eight menu options for questions ranging from deposits to investing. When we reached a product specialist, he was poised to answer account-related questions. Although the product support specialists are not financial planners, they are registered with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and hold Series 7 licenses. Many also possess additional credentials such as CFA, CFP, or CPA.

The company makes it difficult to access a human on the phone and does not offer live financial planners. The expectation with Wealthfront is that you will help yourself using the FAQs and perhaps email, but other robo-advisors have found better ways to keep the human element for those needing it. We found customer service a rare weak spot for Wealthfront, as the firm lacks live chat and phone customer service reps are difficult to access.

Security

Wealthfront takes security seriously, with limited access by employees to your data and a team that actively monitors and reviews security protocols.  Key security features include:

• Two-factor authentication
• Wealthfront Cash accounts protected by $8 million of FDIC insurance through its member banks (and up to $16 million FDIC insurance for joint accounts)
• Wealthfront Investment accounts protected with up to $500,000 SIPC insurance covering up to $250,000 in cash (SIPC insurance protects against investment firm failure, not against the normal volatility of the financial markets)

Education 

Wealthfront’s education vertical is strong, with a comprehensive blog, educational articles, and videos.  The self-directed nature of Wealthfront is supported by an excellent Learn vertical, which is made up of the following:

• Blog
• Help center and FAQs
• Risk assessment tools
• Home Planning, Financial Health, and Equity and IPO Guides
• IRA contributions calculator
• with 287 videos

The educational content covers how to use the platform, taxes, financial planning, account types, general investing, and scores of other topics. For investors looking for deeper explanations of how the platform operates, Wealthfront has some excellent blog posts as well as white papers discussing major elements of the model and some of the research underpinning it.

Commissions and Fees

The Wealthfront cost structure applies to automated accounts only and is 0.25% of AUM (assets under management). The cash and stock accounts are fee-free. Wealthfront does not charge commissions. 

The fees for the 529 account are a bit higher and range from 0.42% to 0.46%, except for Nevada residents. 

All ETFs charge an expense ratio, which averages 0.08%.

Wealthfront has several referral programs that lower management fees and increase returns for the cash management program. 

Cash accounts are free of any fees, but there are several fees for the Wealthfront debit card, including: 

• Out-of-network ATM: $2.50 + ATM owner fee
• Bank teller: $2.50 + teller fee
• International transaction fee: 2.75%
• Cash deposits at select retailers: Up to $5.95

The Bottom Line

There’s a reason why Wealtfront is our pick for best overall robo-advisor, along with several other Investopedia awards. At its core, Wealthfront is an extremely well-thought-out and well-built robo-advisor that continues to add value in new ways. In recent years, Wealthfront has added the Automated Bond investment platform, ETFs for customization, and stock trading. Along with the high-yield cash management and lending offerings, investors can satisfy a wide range of financial needs at Wealthfront or just stick to the excellent robo-advisory to manage their portfolio needs. It is really Wealthfront's customization features that differentiate it from the competition. You can tweak Wealthfront's portfolios in ways that very few robo-advisors can match and then turn them over to the platform to manage. The only group of investors that might be disappointed with Wealthfront are those who crave additional in-person financial planning guidance. Simply put, Wealthfront is hard to beat if you are willing to overlook the human element (or willing to lean on the excellent Path financial planning service).

How Does Wealthfront Help You Save Money on Taxes?

In order to get the full tax-saving features of Wealthfront, you need to be invested through the Automated Investing account. Wealthfront prioritizes tax efficiency whenever there is a rebalancing event, but it also monitors portfolios daily for tax-loss harvesting opportunities. Wealthfront's tax-loss harvesting looks for ETFs that tend to move in tandem but track different indices. The program will swap out ETFs of this nature while maintaining overall allocations in order to realize losses that offset gains elsewhere in the portfolio.

How Does Wealthfront Work?

Sign-up is fast and easy. Answer a few questions and set up an account. Respond to the risk-related questions and account preferences and you can review a recommended portfolio. There is no need to divulge personal information like your Social Security number before looking into the platform. Users get well-managed investment portfolios aligned with their goals and risk tolerance, and ETFs for customization are available. Other features include stock trading, a high-yield cash account, and borrowing. 

Is Wealthfront FDIC Insured?

Yes, Wealthfront carries FDIC insurance for your cash deposits through partner banks. The FDIC insurance covers your cash deposits up to $8 million, as it is spread across Wealthfront’s banking affiliates. This insurance protects your deposits against financial institution malfeasance or bankruptcy.

Is Wealthfront Safe? 

Wealthfront carries the same safety protocols that you’ll find in most major financial institutions. Your cash is insured by the FDIC, while investments are insured by the SIPC. No insurance protects your investments from the price fluctuations of the stock and bond markets. 

Does Wealthfront Have a Monthly Fee?

Wealthfront doesn’t have a set monthly fee. The 0.25% charge for automated accounts is charged monthly and is based on the value of your automated investment assets. 

Who Owns Wealthfront?

Andy Rachleff and Dan Carroll founded Wealthfront. The company has received a total of $274.2 million in funding from 39 investors. Because Wealthfront is a privately owned company, the exact ownership percentages are not public. 

How We Review Robo-Advisors

Providing readers with unbiased, comprehensive reviews of digital wealth management companies, more commonly known as robo-advisors, is a top priority of Investopedia. We used our 2023 consumer survey to guide the research and weightings for our 2024 robo-advisor awards. To collect the data, we sent a digital survey with 64 questions to each of the 21 companies we included in our rubric. Additionally, our team of researchers verified the survey responses and collected any missing data points through online research and conversations with each company directly. The data collection process spanned from Jan. 8, to Feb. 9, 2024.

We then developed a quantitative model that scored each company to rate its performance across nine major categories and 59 criteria to find the best robo-advisors. The score for each company’s overall star rating is a weighted average of the criteria:

• Account Services: 10.00%
• Account Setup: 5.00%
• Customer Service: 5.00%
• Fees: 15.00%
• Goal Planning: 21.00%
• Portfolio Contents: 17.00%
• Portfolio Management: 17.00%
• Security & Education: 5.00%
• User Experience: 5.00%

Additionally, during our 2023 research, many of the companies we reviewed granted our team of expert writers and editors access to live accounts so they could perform hands-on testing. Through this all-encompassing data collection and review process, Investopedia has provided you with an unbiased and thorough review of the top robo-advisors.

Read more about how we research and review robo-advisors.

Separately, our research team conducted a survey of 205 U.S. adults aged 18 to 72 who are current clients of one of 18 robo-advisors. While the information collected did not influence the development of our ratings model, it was instrumental in gathering the valuable insights published in Investopedia's 2023 Robo-Advisor Consumer Survey.

Participants in our 2023 Robo-Advisor Survey opted in to an online, self-administered questionnaire from a market research vendor. Data collection took place between Aug. 30 and Sept. 15, 2023, with 11 video interviews conducted with volunteer respondents from Sept. 7 to Sept. 17, 2023. Multiple quality checks, including screeners, attention gauges, comprehension evaluations, and logic metrics, among others, were used to ensure only the highest quality responses were included.

Dotdash Meredith receives cash compensation from Wealthfront Advisers LLC (“Wealthfront Advisers”) for each new client that applies for a Wealthfront Automated Investing Account through our links. This creates an incentive that results in a material conflict of interest. Dotdash Meredith is not a Wealthfront Advisers client, and this is a paid endorsement. More information is available via our links to Wealthfront Advisers.