DollarGeek Presents:
Best Roth IRA Accounts of May 2021
DollarGeek's goal is to help you make the best financial decisions. To help us do this, many or all of the products featured here are from our partners. However, this doesn’t influence our evaluations or ratings.
A Roth IRA (Individual Retirement Account) is one of the best places to save for retirement. Why? Because you put money in this account after paying income taxes on it and then your investments in this account grow entirely tax free. As long as you follow the rules, during retirement you won’t have to pay any tax on your withdrawals. The savings and benefits are great and it only takes minutes to open a Roth IRA account.
If you have a 401(k) at your workplace or another plan, it can make sense to save some extra cash in a Roth IRA account. As long as you take full advantage of your workplace retirement plan (company match, company stock discounts, etc.) Roth IRA’s will offer more flexible investment options in your account, not just a select amount of investments.
DollarGeek is here to help you solve all your personal finance needs. Check out some of the best Roth IRA providers below that offer little to no account fees, and get one step closer to your retirement goals in a tax friendly way.
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
300 free
stock and ETF trades for 90 days if you're a new customer + $100 to $600 cash bonus, depending on account size
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
500
commission-free trades + up to $600 with a qualifying deposit
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
$100
referral award for first-time clients
Minimum
$5,000
to open accountFee
$1
per share ($1 min)Promotion
None
no promotions at this time
Minimum
$500
to open accountFee
0.25%
management feePromotion
$5,000
amount of assets managed for free
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
None
no promotions at this time
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
300
commission-free trades with qualifying deposit
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
$0.00
per tradePromotion
60 days
of commission-free trades with a deposit of $10,000 +
Minimum
$0
to open accountFee
0.25%
management feePromotion
1 year
free management with minimum deposit- Previous
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Review: Best Roth IRA Accounts of May 2021
DollarGeek is here with you every step of the way when you’re selecting the best Roth IRA account. Find the best place to start growing your money and start retirement planning in a tax-friendly way.
Below you will find the providers that meet your investment style best. If you’re looking for some help with the investing side of your Roth IRA, make sure to look for a Roth IRA provider that is best for “hands off” investors. These providers will manage the investments for an annual fee. If you’re looking at managing your investments yourself, view the best for “hands-off” investors that usually charge low fees to no fees.
Best Roth IRAs for hands-off investors
Rating
Account Minimum
Management Fee
Best Roth IRAs for hands-on investors
Rating
Account Minimum
Cost Per Trade
Best for those who want assistance and a hands-off investing experience
OVERVIEW
Wealthfront is one of the frontrunners when it comes to robo-advisors or automated investing. Robo-advisors use Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT)- a form of asset allocation – to allocate funds within your retirement account. Wealthfront allows you to open an investment account with as low as $500.
Wealthfront provides several retirement accounts such as traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, SEP IRAs, and 401(k) rollovers along with a variety of taxable accounts. The robo-advisor requires you to fill a questionnaire to assess your risk tolerance and create an investment portfolio accordingly. Wealthfront invests in low-cost ETFs. Also, in accordance with specific portfolio milestones, Wealthfront rebalances your retirement portfolio.
The robo-advisor has a low portfolio management fee of 0.25%. It offers additional features, such as tax-loss harvesting and portfolio readjustment for its account holders.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Low initial account opening requirements, affordable portfolio management charges
- Tax-loss harvesting with all accounts
- Free financial planning
Best for investors seeking lower investment management options
OVERVIEW
Betterment is the poster boy of the automated investment advisory industry. The robo-advisor manages over $22 billion in assets-under-management. Betterment Roth IRA comes with special features, including goal-based portfolio recommendations, automatic contributions, portfolio rebalancing, and dividend reinvesting.
Betterment Roth IRA allows investors to link external savings and retirement accounts with their Roth IRA. There are no minimum account requirements for the Betterment Digital plan and a 0.25% management fees.
Investors having $100,000 or more can opt for Betterment Premium, which comes with features such as unlimited access to a financial advisor, flexible portfolios, and guidance to manage major financial goals, expenses in life. Betterment Premium has a higher management fee of 0.40%.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Goal-based portfolio recommendations, automatic contributions
- Portfolio rebalancing and dividend reinvesting features
- Access to certified financial planners
- Use of funds with low expense ratios
Best for investors seeing investments in mutual funds and ETFs
OVERVIEW
Vanguard, one of the largest index fund and mutual fund houses in the US by asset size, is a good choice for anyone seeking a wide variety of investment options. Vanguard provides Roth IRA accounts for retirement savings.
When it comes to investing with Vanguard, one of the primary benefits is access to over 3,100 mutual funds and ETFs run by the investment management firm. As an investor, you can minimize your net portfolio fees. At the same time, Vanguard’s huge investment pool ensures that you can always find the right mutual fund or exchange traded funds (ETF) for your portfolio.
Vanguard Roth IRA is ideal for passive investors seeking tax-free growth.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Access to over 3,100 Vanguard mutual funds and ETFs
- No trading charges for Vanguard mutual funds or ETFs
- But high fund minimums could be an issue for most investors
- Helpful customer support
Best for commission-free trading and no-cost index funds
OVERVIEW
Fidelity is a heavy-weight investment management firm when it comes to their net assets under management (over $3.3 trillion). However, that doesn’t mean that the broker doesn’t offer the right package for individual investors.
Our team compared Fidelity with other large investment managers and found some unparalleled features. First, Fidelity offers free trading, which means no portfolio funds are lost in trading fees. At the same time, investors can choose among 3,500 no-transaction-fee mutual funds or ETFs. Fidelity also provides access to zero-fee index funds.
On top of these features, Fidelity has a solid research recommendation module, providing investment suggestions from some of the leading market research firms.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Access to over 3,500 transaction-free mutual funds and zero-fees index funds
- Commission-free trading for stocks, ETFs, options
- Intuitive mobile app & trading platform
Best for active traders as well as beginner traders
OVERVIEW
E-Trade has built a reputation for its low-cost and, recently, commission-free trading platform. As an online broker, E-Trade offers an advanced trading platform for investors, especially those involved in active trading.
E-Trade allows investors to open a Roth IRA. It offers trading services for stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, options, bonds, and futures. Additionally, E-Trade provides access to over 4,400 no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
E-Trade offers extensive guides for both beginner and expert investors. The platform comes with research services from multiple firms available for free for all of its users. E-Trade provides both web and mobile-app based investment, trading services.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Over 4,400 zero transaction mutual funds
- Educational resources for new as well as experienced investors
- Robust mobile app and web trading platform
Best for customers seeking in-personal services
OVERVIEW
Merrill Edge packs the benefits of both online brokers and offline financial advisors in a single account. Customers can access a Merrill Edge advisor at over 2,500 Bank of America branches. If you’re an existing Bank of America customer, you can integrate and see all of your accounts within a single dashboard.
Merrill Edge Roth IRA offers commission-free trading for most financial instruments (stocks, mutual funds, options, futures, bonds ETFs), along with providing access to over 2,600 no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
Merrill Edge offers an extensive, free market research service to its customers. However, the account might be a bit limited for advanced traders, in terms of the available stocks.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Integration with Bank of America
- Access to offline branches and in-person advice
- Free, high-quality stock research services
Best for investors seeking premium research and high-end trading experience
OVERVIEW
Charles Schwab’s Roth IRA is one of the best Roth IRAs our team identified because of its strong research-driven recommendations. Charles Schwab offers free trading services, access to over 3,500 no-fee mutual funds, no-fee index funds, and trading experience to match some of the best technology-driven brokers.
The research recommendations from Charles Schwab caught our attention. The broker offers its individual ratings, along with ratings from Morningstar, Ned Davis, Credit Suisse, and more. Charles Schwab can easily connect with Google Assistant and Alexa for regular updates.
On top of these features, Charles Schwab allows its investors to purchase fractional shares, a feature sought by both beginners as well as experienced investors.
Schwab also provides robo-advisory solutions under Schwab Intelligent Portfolios.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Premium research recommendations
- Robust trading platform
- Access to a robo-advisory along with traditional brokerage services
Best for new investors seeking educational resources or assisted-trading services
OVERVIEW
TD Ameritrade is a Roth IRA provider that renders branch access, online trading and account management, and portfolio guidance services for its customers. The broker offers $0 trading for stocks, options, and over 4,000 mutual funds.
TD Ameritrade has a wide variety of investment options, including over 11,000 low-cost mutual funds. Also, TD Ameritrade has an extensive education module for new investors, which includes articles, videos, slideshows, quizzes, and much more. The platform also provides a virtual trading simulator for its users.
There are no account minimums with TD Ameritrade Roth IRA. You get access to high-quality research services with your account.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Extensive online education module for investors
- Access to offline as well as online services
- Financial advice and consultation for investors
Best for advanced stock traders seeking lower pricing and access to international markets
OVERVIEW
Interactive Brokers has been a popular name among active traders. The broker offers rock-bottom pricing for volume traders. Additionally, Interactive Brokers provides access to international securities.
Interactive Brokers Roth IRA is ideal for active traders or casual traders who intend to trade frequently. Their trading platform is one of the best in the market, coming with intuitive trading tools and solid research data.
Interactive Brokers is a suitable choice for margin traders, with rates as low as 1.5% plus benchmark rates. Interactive Brokers provide access to their Desktop Trader Workstation to both Lite as well as Pro users.
Interactive Brokers provides automated investor services in addition to a trading, retirement account. Investors can choose out of 70 plus portfolios, with fees ranging between 0.08% and 1.5%.
WHY WE LIKE IT
- Robust trading platform
- Volume pricing for advanced traders
- Margin facilities available for both membership levels
