Summary: Acorns charges $1 per month for the most basic accounts up to $5 per month for its top account package.
Acorns offers three account tiers ranging from $1 per month to $5 per month. Here’s how they work. We’ll go over what’s included in each Acorns account in the next section.
There are no additional trading fees, or fees for very much else at all. For most users, you’ll never pay more than the monthly fee for the account tier you choose.
Summary: Acorns accounts include taxable brokerage, retirement, checking, and brokerage accounts for kids.
Acorns doesn’t offer every type of account under the sun, but it does cover the needs of most investors who want a hands-off investment experience. These are the four types of accounts available at Acorns:
- Invest is a standard taxable brokerage account. It includes spare change round-ups, bonus investments when you make purchases with partners, and regularly scheduled deposits. When cash comes into your account, it is automatically invested based on your investment goals.
- Later is a retirement account. Choose between traditional, Roth, and SEP IRA accounts, which are funded with recurring or one-time contributions.
- Spend is a checking account. Spend is a fully featured online checking account with a metal Visa debit card. It includes investment bonuses when you use the debit card for shopping, 55,000 fee-free ATMs, mobile check deposit, and other common online banking features.
- Early is an investment account for kids. You can have multiple at no added cost. These are UTMA/UGMA accounts held for minors under their parent’s custodianship. With Acorns Early, you can set a recurring deposit that invests for your child’s future.
Summary: Acorns portfolios are made up exclusively of low-fee ETFs.
Acorns accounts don’t support buying single stocks or bonds. Instead, you own stocks and bonds through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). When signing up, you fill out a short survey explaining your financial situation and investment goals. Based on those answers, Acorns picks a portfolio of investments for you.
Acorns uses ETFs that include large cap stocks, small cap stocks, corporate bonds, government bonds, real estate, and emerging markets investments. Those investments make up five portfolios of varying risk levels.
Acorns invests your funds in ETFs from popular fund managers including Banguard and BlackRock.
Summary: Opening an Acorns account is quick and easy. It takes less than five minutes to sign up and start investing.
Opening a new investment account at Acorns is painless and straightforward. You can open an account using the Acorns mobile app or online at the Acorns website.
Because Acorns is a robo-advisor that invests for you, you’ll need to fill out a survey explaining your investment goals in addition to typical contact info. Be prepared to enter your contact information, Social Security number, and details about your finances during the signup process.
To fund your account, you’ll need to link to an external bank account or make a deposit using another supported method.
Summary: There is no active trading at Acorns. Just fund your account and Acorns takes care of the rest. You can view your account details online.
Acorns supports mobile and web-based account management. Because you don’t pick stocks or other investments, the interface is simple and easy to navigate. These screenshots show what it looks like when you’re logged in:
Web
Summary: Acorns handles all of your orders for you when you add or withdraw funds from your account.
Market orders, limit orders, and stop orders are not necessary at Acorns. It’s a fully automated investment platform. When you add funds to your account or make a withdrawal, Acorns will adjust your portfolio automatically to stay in line with your target portfolio.
Summary: The $3 per month plan includes a checking account called Spend.
Acorns Spend is a great choice for online checking if you are interested in keeping all of your finances under one roof. If you sign up for the individual plan, you can manage your checking, retirement, and taxable investment accounts with one login and one app.
Here are some of the most important features of Spend:
- Fully online banking experience
- Mobile check deposit
- Pay bills or send checks
- Access over 55,000 ATMS with no fees
- Custom tungsten metal debit card
- Earn a bonus when you use the debit card with partners
- Automatically split deposits between checking and investments
Summary: Acorns offers support to customers via email. You’ll usually hear back in 24 hours or less, but it could take longer.
Acorns accounts are fairly easy and straightforward. If you need help and your questions are not answered on the website’s help section, you’ll have to be patient. There is no phone or chat support. You can send an email through a contact form and have to wait to hear back.
The website says most messages are answered in 24 hours or less, but they are “experiencing a higher than normal volume” and may take longer. But that’s pretty much every company since COVID-19 started, right?
Summary: Acorns includes a rewards program that contributes to your investment portfolio when you complete purchases with partners.
If you click on a deal from your Acorns account or shop with a linked credit or debit card, and complete the signup requirements, you could be rewarded with cash back that’s automatically invested for you. Deals come from popular stores and online sellers you might already use.
The list of deals comes from more than 350 brands including Airbnb, Apple, Expedia, Groupon, Macy’s, Nike, Sephora, Walgreens, Walmart, and more.
I tried this feature out myself and earned an easy $20 from a deal with Sam’s Club. If you already shop at a store on the list, Earn could be an easy way to add to your investment account balance.
Summary: Acorns is a reputable financial firm and accounts are insured by the U.S. government.
Acorns utilizes high levels of security and has a good reputation among the investment community. It is a member of FINRA and accounts are insured by the SIPC and FDIC.
Brokerage accounts get typical SIPC coverage worth up to $500,000 while checking accounts are insured up to $250,000 by the FDIC.
According to the Acorns website, it uses 256-bit encryption and supports two-factor authentication, among other security features, to keep your money and investments safe.
Summary: Acorns handles the investing for you and offers minimal research and education material outside of the Acorns blog.
Because you don’t need to research individual stocks or ETFs, you don’t need a robust research section. Acorns offers fairly limited resources in this area.
For education, the money basics section gives you introductory-level content on what you may want to know about your investment accounts. The Acorns blog, called Grow, is a great resource to learn about money management including expert tips and personal stories.
Trading experience
Summary: Acorns is ideal for investors of any background and is particularly beginner friendly.
According to the numbers, passive index funds typically outperform actively managed investment funds. If professional investors can’t consistently beat the market, the most logical plan may be to just invest in the market.
That’s exactly what Acorns does for you. It’s very easy and intuitive for beginners, but experts may also find an experience that follows the markets. As the saying goes, “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”
FAQ
Yes, by the SEC, FINRA, FDIC, and SIPC.
Irvine, California
2012
- How does Acorns make money?
Monthly account fees
- How do I deposit in an Acorns account?
One-time, recurring, and other electronic funds transfers
- How do I withdraw money from Acorns?
Electronic funds transfer
- How do I open an account with Acorns?
Online or mobile app
- Does Acorns offer margin accounts?
No
- Are funds at Acorns secured or insured?
Yes – SIPC and FDIC
Summary: Acorns is a good choice for investors who want a completely hands off experience. However, some may want to look elsewhere due to a required monthly fee.
If you want to just hand over your cash and have everything invested for you automatically, with creative opportunities to fund your account, Acorns is a solid choice. Its portfolios of low-fee ETFs follow a Nobel Prize-winning investment strategy that could work well for investors with varying investment goals.
The big downside of Acorns is a required monthly fee. This fee has an outsized impact on smaller accounts. But for some investors, the fee is completely worthwhile. For your investments, it’s up to you to decide.
