Robo-advisors now manage $1.5 trillion in assets. We compared the three leading platforms on fees, features, tax optimization, and returns.
Comparison
- Betterment: 0.25% fee, $0 minimum, excellent tax-loss harvesting
- Wealthfront: 0.25% fee, $500 minimum, direct indexing at $100K+
- Schwab Intelligent: 0% fee, $5,000 minimum, holds more cash
Performance
Over the past 5 years, all three have performed within 0.3% of each other annually. The main differentiator is tax optimization: Wealthfront's direct indexing saves high earners an additional 1-2% annually in tax alpha at accounts over $100K.
