M1 Finance Alternatives
M1 Finance is a popular app for commission-free investing. But is there a better option for you? Find out in this detailed guide to M1 Finance alternatives.
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Deposit $100 and Get $10 from eToro USA LLC
- Sign up for an eToro account
- Deposit $100
J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing - Get Up to $700
- Get up to $700 when you open and fund a J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing account with qualifying new money.
- $700 when you fund with $250,000 or more
- $325 when you fund with $100,000-$249,999
- $150 when you fund with $25,000-$99,999
- $50 when you fund with $5,000-$24,999
- Get unlimited commission-free online stock, ETF, fixed income, and options trades when you open an account.
- $0 Online Commission trades
- Choose an account that's right for you: General Investing, Traditional IRA or Roth IRA.
- Access our secure, easy-to-use trading experience online or through the Chase Mobile® app.
- Our powerful tools and resources are built to help you take control of your investments.
INVESTMENT AND INSURANCE PRODUCTS ARE:
20 Free Fractional Shares
Open a new Webull individual brokerage account. Make a single initial deposit of $500 - $1,999.99 during the promotional period to get 20 fractional shares, each valued between $3 - $3,000. Maintain a balance of $500 - $1,999.99 in the account for 30 days or more. Terms and conditions apply.
Invest and Earn Up to $3,500
Enroll your new or existing TradeStation account in this offer by using promo code TSTVAGFD on your new account application, requesting to enroll via telephone or with a TradeStation Representative, or completing the enrollment form. Within 45 days of account enrollment, fund your account with at least $5,000. Maintain at least $5,000 in your account for 270 calendar days. New assets will be aggregated during the 45-calendar day period following the enrollment date to determine the amount of your cash offer.
| New Assets | Cash Bonus |
|---|---|
| $5,000 - $24,999 | $150 |
| $25,000 – $99,999 | $300 |
| $100,000 – $249,999 | $500 |
| $250,000 – $499,999 | $1,000 |
| $500,000 – $999,999 | $2,000 |
| $1,000,000 or more | $3,500 |
Get $30 Bonus with Wire Deposits
Receive a $30 cash coupon when you reach a net accumulated monthly wire deposits of $10,000 or more.
There's a lot to be said in favor of opening an account with M1 Finance. It's a beginner-friendly investing platform — offering a unique mix of control and guidance.
For investors who like to manage their portfolios, M1 allows for a high level of customization. You can invest in more than 6000 individual stocks and ETFs.
And for investors who prefer to take their hands off the wheel and let someone else drive, there are 60-plus prebuilt Model portfolios. You select your desired allocations. Then, set up recurring investments and your portfolio will nearly run itself.
But M1 Finance isn't perfect. Nor is it right for every investor.
Here are the best M1 Finance alternatives:
M1 allows for placing trades up to twice daily, making it a good choice for buy-and-hold investors and active traders.
However, it lacks extensive investing research tools and live, human advisors—features that some investors may prefer.
If you're considering an M1 Finance account, but haven't made up your mind, this article looks at the best M1 Finance alternatives. After reading, you'll have all the facts, so you can start confidently investing today.
Let's dive in.
What is M1 Finance?
M1 Finance
Pros:
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Our Review: 
M1 Finance is a stock and ETF investing platform targeted at long-term investors who want a mix of guidance and freedom when managing their portfolios. M1 is not a robo-advisor and only offers self-directed brokerage services.
M1 offers a range of features, including:
- Automated investing and curated portfolios
- A High-Yield Cash Account offering competitive APY
- A lending service that allows users to borrow against the value of their investments
You can start investing with as little as $100, or $500 for retirement accounts, invest in fractional shares of stocks, and take advantage of automatic rebalancing.
However, M1 is missing some helpful features as well.
- They don't have any human advisors.
- They don't offer tax-loss harvesting.
- They have limited investing research tools.
You can start investing by creating "Pies," which are selections of investments made up of over 6,000 available stocks and ETFs. This gives you more freedom than you would have with a typical robo-advisor, which would choose your investments automatically.
M1 accounts are largely fee-free for those with $10,000 in M1 assets and an active Personal loan, though they will charge for wire transfers and account statements. There is also an inactivity or minimum balance fee of $50 (for accounts with $50 or less and no trading or deposit activity for 90+ days).
But it's worth noting that some of the alternatives below offer these services for free.
M1 Finance Alternatives
Now that we have a solid grasp of what M1 Finance is and what services they offer, let's look at its top competitors.
These M1 Finance alternatives are other platforms offering similar services that you might be interested in if you're considering opening an account with M1 Finance.
Let's jump in and see how they compare.
Here are some of the best investment bonus offers:
- Robinhood:
Get a Free Stock (worth between $5 and $200) - Deposit $100 and Get $10 from eToro USA LLC
- J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing:
Get Up to $700 - Webull:
20 Free Fractional Shares - TradeStation:
Invest and Earn Up to $3,500 - Moomoo:
Get $30 Bonus with Wire Deposits
Vanguard: Best for Long-Term Investors
Vanguard is a well-known brokerage best suited to buy-and-hold traders, as its commission structure can prove costly to more active investors.
Vanguard offers stocks, mutual funds, and ETFs, with a fee structure that favors long-term investors as well as high net worth individuals.
To that end, they offer a range of tax-advantaged accounts including IRAs, 529 savings plans, annuities, and a range of small business retirement plans such as 401(k)s and SIMPLE IRAs.
Where Vanguard is lacking is in its research tools and features targeted toward frequent traders. But up next there is an option that active traders will love.
Main Features:
- Stock, mutual fund, options, and ETF trading
- Retirement and other tax-advantaged accounts
- Commission-free trading
- No account minimums
Fidelity: Best for Advanced Traders or Beginners
Fidelity
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Our Review:
Fidelity is a trading platform that offers excellent services for traders who are either very active, or very new, but doesn't perform so well for those in between.
They offer most investment products including stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, options, and bonds trading, as well as CDs. Users can open IRA and 529 savings accounts, and stock trading is commission-free. There are also advanced research tools.
While Fidelity offers many brokerage services to meet the needs of inexperienced investors, some services require a minimum number of trades per year which wouldn't work for many buy-and-hold investors.
Main Features:
- Stock, ETF, mutual fund, options, and bonds trading
- CDs
- Commission-free trading
- Tax-advantaged investment accounts
- Research tools
Robinhood: Best for Beginners
Robinhood
Pros:
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Our Review:
Robinhood is a popular commission-free stock and cryptocurrency investing app where you can trade ETFs and options as well.
It is known for being particularly beginner-friendly and has provided many new traders with an easy on-ramp into the world of investing. Users can trade fractional shares of stocks commission-free, with no minimums, and extended trading hours.
Robinhood's simplicity is both its strength and its weakness. It lacks research tools and alternative account types which are available at many of its competitors.
This helps prevent new users from being overwhelmed, but can also lead them to seek other platforms once they realize what they're missing elsewhere. For more long-term investments, we have some other great options for you.
Main Features:
- Stock, cryptocurrency, ETF, and option trading
- Commission-free trading
- Beginner-friendly app
Schwab: Best Customer Support
Charles Schwab
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Our Review:
Charles Schwab is one of the older names in trading, offering a wide range of investments including stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, options, and futures.
Like M1 Finance, stock trades are commission-free and there are no account minimums. But Charles Schwab is unique in that it offers separate platforms for beginner and advanced traders, with extensive research tools available.
Charles Schwab stands out from its competitors in terms of customer service and support, with 24/7 online or phone access in addition to email. There are also over 300 physical branches available to provide in-person assistance.
The drawbacks to using Schwab are the $5,000 minimum for its robo-advisor and its high commission on transaction-fee fund trades.[1]
Main Features:
- Stock, bond, ETF, mutual fund, option, and futures trading
- Commission-free stock trading
- 24/7 support
- No account minimums
- Beginner and Advanced platforms
- 300 physical branches
- Robo-advisor
Webull: Best for Active Traders
Webull
Pros:
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Our Review:
Webull is a major Robinhood competitor and offers a more advanced platform that will appeal to more experienced investors, with a full suite of research tools and analytics. Another area where M1 Finance lacks as well.
Unlike M1, which offers a mix of features for both new and experienced traders, Webull is primarily geared toward active traders, swing traders, short-sellers, and margin traders.
With commission-free trading and no account minimums, frequent traders have a lot to gain from opening an account with Webull.
However, its platform may prove overwhelming for traders still learning the ropes. They also don't offer the entire range of services that you'd find at more established companies.
But the next brokerage on the list has everything you'd need in one place.
Main Features:
- Stock, ETF, and option trading
- Commission-free trading
- Retirement accounts
- IPO trading
- Advanced research tools
- No account minimums
20 Free Fractional Shares
Open a new Webull individual brokerage account. Make a single initial deposit of $500 - $1,999.99 during the promotional period to get 20 fractional shares, each valued between $3 - $3,000. Maintain a balance of $500 - $1,999.99 in the account for 30 days or more. Terms and conditions apply.
E*TRADE: Best Full-Service Brokerage
E*TRADE
Pros:
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Our Review:
E*Trade is an investing platform that offers a lot in one easy-to-use place, which can be valuable for those investors feeling cluttered and confused with multiple financial accounts.
On E*Trade, users can trade stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs. You can open checking accounts, retirement investing accounts, and even apply for home loans.
They also provide an advanced selection of research tools for everyone, with even more sophisticated tools available to traders who accrue more than 30 trades per quarter.
Main Features:
- Stock, bond, mutual fund, and ETF trading
- Commission-free trading
- Home loans
- IRA accounts
- Checking accounts
TD Ameritrade: Best for Research
TD Ameritrade is a long-running online brokerage where users can trade stocks and ETFs, as well as options, which M1 Finance doesn't offer.
It's commission-free and known for its powerful thinkorswim platform, which has advanced research tools such as heat maps, backtesting, and more. TD Ameritrade's research capabilities make it a better choice for the investor who wants to research within their trading app since M1 doesn't offer much in the way of research.
TD Ameritrade also has no minimum deposit,[2] which means you can start investing with as much as you can afford.
The drawback to using TD Ameritrade is that some users may find it confusing to navigate. It has multiple distinct apps, and the tools that will be valuable to experienced investors make it harder to use for beginners.
Main Features:
- Stock, option, and ETF trading
- Commission-free trading
- thinkorswim platform
- Research tools
- Paper trading account
Bottom Line
If you're looking for a flexible mix of automation and customization, then M1 Finance may be the right platform for you.
You have the option to select pre-built portfolios, automate recurring trades, and it automatically rebalances your portfolio over time.
But if you want access to more advanced research tools, human advisors, or a wider range of assets or accounts, then consider instead one of the many excellent M1 Finance alternatives.
References
- ^ Charles Schwab. Investment Management Fees and Minimums, Retrieved 6/5/2022
- ^ TD Ameritrade. FAQs: What is the minimum amount required to open an account?, Retrieved 6/5/2022
$20 Investment Bonus
- Open an Acorns account (new users only)
- Set up the Recurring Investments feature
- Have your first investment be made successfully via the Recurring Investments feature
20 Free Fractional Shares
Open a new Webull individual brokerage account. Make a single initial deposit of $500 - $1,999.99 during the promotional period to get 20 fractional shares, each valued between $3 - $3,000. Maintain a balance of $500 - $1,999.99 in the account for 30 days or more. Terms and conditions apply.
Deposit $100 and Get $10 from eToro USA LLC
- Sign up for an eToro account
- Deposit $100
Invest in Real Estate with $10+
- Only $10 minimum investment
- Get a diversified portfolio of real estate projects across the US
- Open to all investors
Jeremy Harshman is a creative assistant at CreditDonkey, a personal finance comparison and reviews website. Write to Jeremy Harshman at jeremy.harshman@creditdonkey.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for our latest posts.
Note: This website is made possible through financial relationships with some of the products and services mentioned on this site. We may receive compensation if you shop through links in our content. You do not have to use our links, but you help support CreditDonkey if you do.
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