SoFi® is an industry-leading, low-cost online brokerage for beginners to reach their financial goals. Investors of all levels can benefit from SoFi’s income-producing ETFs, zero-commission trades, and goal-planning tools.
Business Insider’s personal finance team compared SoFi® to the best investment app for beginners and found it an industry leader for intuitive online trading and competitive fees. It’s also one of the best online brokerages.
Pros and Cons
SoFi Pros
- Low fees and account minimums
- Unlimited 1% match on all recurring deposits to a SoFi Invest account (must be a SoFi Plus member)
- Multiple account options, including a robo-advisor, IRAs, and margin
- Varying investment options (stocks, ETFs, fractional shares, IPOs, options, private credit, venture capital, commodities)
- Financial and estate planning features
SoFi Cons
- Doesn’t offer tax-loss harvesting
- Only invests in US assets
- $2,000 account minimum for margin accounts
Open an Account
SoFi Active Invest®
Account Minimum
$0 ($1 to start investing); $5 fractional shares; $2,000 for margin trading
Fees
0% for active trading and automated investing
Get up to $1,000 in stock when you fund a new account.
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No account minimum
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No account or trading fees, and low fees to own funds
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Access to Certified Financial Planners
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IPOs available
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SoFi 1% IRA match
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No tax-loss harvesting, an advanced investing technique where you sell a stock or mutual fund at a loss for a tax benefit -
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No option for stop-loss orders when actively investing. SoFi’s active investing account only uses market orders -
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Currently only available to US residents
Insider’s Take
SoFi Invest is a great platform for US investors who are looking for an intuitive online trading experience, an open active or automated investing account.
Product Details
- Promotion: Get up to $1,000 in stock when you fund a new account.
- App store rating: 4.8 iOS/3.8 Android
- Consider it if: You want an easy-to-use platform paired with rock-bottom pricing.
Compare SoFi
Overview
SoFi® is an all-inclusive investment app for passive and active investors to invest in diversified portfolios of ETFs, mutual funds, and other alternative investments like real-estate-backed funds and commodities.
Stocks, ETFs, and fractional shares are zero commission, making SoFi a good choice for beginners and fee-conscious investors.
Investing in SoFi is simple. Its easy-to-use platform provides investors with portfolio-balancing tools, vetted financial planners, and curated content from SoFi’s educational content hub.
As one of the best robo-advisors, SoFi’s cost-effective automated trading platform offers goal-based strategies, simple diversification, and auto-rebalancing.
Users can now sign up for a SoFi Plus membership for exclusive Plus Experiences and unlimited one-on-one financial planning from SoFi Wealth. SoFi Plus members also receive an unlimited 1% match on recurring deposits.
But if you’re simply looking to start investing, SoFi has all you need, with access to Certified Financial Planners (CFPs). Only US residents are eligible to open an account.
SoFi Invest has a rating of 4.8/5 on the Apple Store and 4.1/5 on Google Play.
Ways to Invest
SoFi offers a range of account options to suit different investors’ needs.
If you’re a SoFi Plus member, all recurring deposits into your SoFi Invest account earn an unlimited 1% match. For example, a $1,000 deposit earns $10 in rewards points.
SoFi Active Invest
SoFi Active Invest is an online brokerage account for hands-on investors seeking full control over their investment trades. You can trade:
- Stocks
- ETFs
- Fractional shares
- Options (long puts, cover calls, and buy writes)
SoFi options trades have no contract fees.
As the name implies, this account is best for active (hands-on) traders who want to build their portfolios from the ground up. Those with a SoFi Active account are automatically eligible to become a SoFi member, which grants them access to product discounts, exclusive events, and more.
As a member, you can also invest in initial public offerings (IPOs), which are shares sold by privately owned companies to the general public, for no minimum. A SoFi Plus membership gets you preferred IPO access.
In addition, members can access broader portfolio diversification and growth potential by investing in alternative investments like commodities, foreign currencies, real-estate, and pre-IPO unicorns. Access short-term money market funds, interval funds, and professionally managed mutual funds.
SoFi Robo-Advisor
SoFi’s robo-advisor provides instant portfolio diversification through pre-curated ETF and mutual fund portfolios balanced to match your risk tolerance, time horizon, and goals. The robo-advisor also includes features like automatic portfolio rebalancing and recurring deposits.
You can easily get a personalized portfolio recommendation using one of SoFi’s portfolio themes:
- Classic: SoFi Classic is a performance-driven portfolio of low-cost funds designed to passively grow wealth.
- Classic with Alternatives: SoFi Classic with Alternatives strategically mixes classic low-cost ETFs with alternative investments like real estate-backed funds, equity, and BlackRock funds to grow wealth and manage volatility.
- Sustainable: SoFi Sustainable is a socially responsible investment portfolio that invests in companies that use environmental, social, and governance procedures.
To use SoFi robo-investing, you must have a $50 minimum and a 0.25% annual advisory fee.
SoFi’s goal-planning strategies include saving for a home, retirement, marriage, travel, and college. For no extra cost, SoFi Plus Members automated accounts come with one-on-one guidance from financial advisors to help you reach your goals.
SoFi Automated Investing supports individual investment accounts, joint accounts, and IRAs.
SoFi Retirement Savings Accounts
SoFi IRAs earn an automatic 1% match on contributions. That means every dollar deposited into your account will receive a 1% match from SoFi. Match contributions won’t count toward your annual contribution limit.
SoFi IRAs are available as active or automated.
SoFi offers the following retirement plan options:
SoFi IRAs are available as active or automated. Investors get access to a handful of retirement planning tools and resources, including SoFi financial planners, goal-building tools, auto rebalancing (for automated accounts), and member benefits.
SoFi Margin Trading Accounts
If you’re eager to invest but don’t have the funds to make the purchase, you can open a margin trading account and take a loan from SoFi that finances up to 50% of your next investment purchase. SoFi can also loan you cash at an 11% annual interest rate. The payback feature assists you in paying back your loans on time.
Toward the bottom of the webpage on margin trading, SoFi warns against inexperienced investors opening a margin account due to the increased risk associated with margin trading. Investors are also required to have at least $2,000 in their accounts.
SoFi Alternative Investing
SoFi’s newest offering allows investors to further diversify their portfolios with alternative fund options like private credit, foreign currencies, venture capital, real estate, and commodities.
Alternative asset classes are available through professionally managed mutual funds, flexible interval funds, and short-term stable money market funds. Alternative assets can be added to a SoFi IRA.
You can even invest exclusively in SpaceX stock through SoFi’s new Cosmos Fund with a $25,000 minimum investment, but you must be an accredited investor.
Nonaccredited investors can still invest in SpaceX stock through the Ark Venture Fund, which also offers exposure to Epic Games and OpenAI.
Keep in mind that investing in alternative asset classes through SoFi may result in higher fees, such as front-end and back-end load fees, contingent deferred sales charges, and annual expense ratio fees. Minimums may also apply depending on the fund.
SoFi Core and Thematic ETFs
Most of SoFi’s investing portfolio diversification focuses on low-cost Core ETFs and Thematic ETFs, like:
- SoFi Select 500 ETF (SFY): Assets from 500 of the largest publicly traded US companies
- SoFi Next 500 ETF (SFYX): Assets from 500 mid-level US companies
- SoFi Weekly Income ETF (TGIF): Mix of investment grade and high-yield fixed-income securities
- SoFi Weekly Dividend ETFs (WKLY): Assets from global companies that consistently pay dividends
- SoFi Web 3 ETF (TWEB): Fast-growing technology companies building the next generation of the internet
- SoFi Smart Energy ETF (ENRG): Companies that focus on sustainability and building cleaner, reliable energy systems
- SoFi Be Your Own Boss ETF (BYOB): Companies developing new ways to improve access to goods, services, and work
- SoFi Social 50 ETF (SFYF): SoFi’s top 50 stock options
Fees
Low fees are one of SoFi’s biggest perks. Stocks, ETFs, and fractional shares are zero commission. The minimum to start investing is $1. SoFi’s robo-advisor has a $50 minimum.
A SoFi Plus membership costs $10 per month.
Fractional shares can be bought in quantities of $5. So even though it isn’t technically an account minimum, you won’t be able to purchase fractional shares of a stock or ETF unless you have at least $5 in your account. Similarly, you need at least $2,000 to open a margin trading account.
Margin trading charges an 11% annual interest rate on your margin loan, which is accrued daily and deducted from your account once per month. Your interest rate is calculated daily by automatically multiplying your outstanding margin debit balance by the 11% annual interest rate and then dividing by 360.
Trustworthiness
SoFi is a secure and trustworthy platform that offers industry-standard data encryption software and account protection features. Its customer service is highly regarded, and all financial advisors are held to a fiduciary standard.
Additional safeguards include third-party annual testing, two-factor authentication, 24/7 monitoring, and real-time alerts.
Moreover, the brokerage encourages users to enhance account security through an authenticator app. Examples of supported apps include Microsoft Authenticator, Okta, Google Authenticator, and LastPass.
SoFi has received an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. The BBB uses a grade range of A+ to F when evaluating company trustworthiness and considers several factors — including customer complaint history, licensing and government actions, and advertising issues — when reaching a final rating.
The BBB says its ratings don’t guarantee a company’s reliability or performance.
On December 6, 2023, FINRA sanctioned four firms (M1 Finance, Public Investing, SogoTrade, and SoFi) to pay $2.6 million on charges of failing to establish, maintain, and enforce a supervisory system. The brokerages agreed to pay the $2.6 million without admitting or denying the charges.
Google Play: 3.9/5
Apple Store: 4.8/5
Alternatives
Robinhood
Robinhood Investing
Account Minimum
$0 ($1 for fractional shares; $2,000 for margin trading)
Fees
0% ($5/month for Robinhood Gold)
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Free stock, option, ETF, and cryptocurrency trades; 0.01% APY on uninvested cash for non-Gold users and 4.00% for Gold members
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IPO investing available
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Cash management accounts available
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Website is easy to navigate; advanced charts for all users
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Lack of investing research and trading tools; can only take advantage of professional research if you’re a Robinhood Gold member -
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No joint accounts, education savings accounts, or mutual funds
Product Details
- App store rating: 4.2 iOS/4.0 Android
- Consider it if: You want to trade crypto and invest in a wide range of stocks and ETFs.
SoFi and Robinhood are both low-cost online brokerages with user-friendly interfaces, IRA matches, and transparent offerings. However, each platform offers different account types and investment choices.
Robinhood Investing and SoFi Active Invest are the only online brokerages that offer matching bonuses on IRA contributions. Currently, Robinhood provides a 1% match (3% for Gold members), while SoFi only offers a 1% match on all IRA contributions.
While both SoFi and Robinhood offer a wide investment selection for easy portfolio diversification, SoFi offers a wider range of account types (e.g., automated investing accounts and more IRA options). It doesn’t offer a robo-advising option or SEP IRAs.
If you’re interested in margin trading, Robinhood offers a lower interest rate for Robinhood Gold members (ranging from 8%) than SoFi. However, non-Gold members will have to pay up to a 12% interest rate, making SoFi the better option.
Wealthfront
Wealthfront Investing
Account Minimum
$1 ($500 for automated investing)
Fees
$0 for stock trades. 0.25% for automated investing (0.06% to 0.13% for fund fees)
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Low annual fee for investment accounts; crypto trust investments available
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Tax-loss harvesting, portfolio lines of credit, 529 college savings plans available
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Cash account
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Mobile app and investing and retirement tools
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You need at least $100,000 to utilize additional investment strategies -
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No human advisor access
Product Details
- Consider it if: You’re balancing several goals and want to streamline your finances.
- Promotion: Fund your first taxable investment account with at least $500 in the first 30 days of account opening and earn a $50 bonus.
SoFi and Wealthfront differ mainly in terms of investment types and features. Both offer self-directed and automated accounts. However, Wealthfront offers 529 plans, a high-yield bond portfolio, and crypto trusts.
With a Wealthfront brokerage account, you can invest in stocks, fractional shares, ETFs, index funds, and bond ETFs. Self-directed Wealthfront accounts have a $1 account minimum, but automated accounts have a much higher $500 account minimum. So, if you’re seeking out a robo-advisor specifically, SoFi could be a better option.
However, unlike SoFi, Wealthfront offers tax-loss harvesting and additional features like US direct indexing and smart beta tools.
Why You Should Trust Us
SoFi Active Invest was reviewed using Business Insider’s rating methodology for investing platforms. We compared SoFi’s fees, investment selection, security, ethics, and customer service to similar platforms. Each investment platform receives a rating between 1 and 5. We evaluated SoFi Active Invest, focusing on how it serves each category.
Business Insider’s Overall SoFi Rating
FAQs
SoFi Invest is a popular investment platform suitable for active and passive investors looking for low-cost trading options. Access zero commission stocks, ETFs, and fractional shares with an active SoFi Invest brokerage account. SoFi Automated, the platform’s robo-advisor, offers personalized portfolios diversified across a range of low-cost ETFs.
SoFi Invest is one of the best investment platforms for its beginner-friendly interface and low-cost trades. Whether you’re looking to hand-pick assets or get an automatic diversified portfolio recommendation, SoFi helps investors reach their goals through low-risk investing strategies.
There are no fees associated with SoFi Invest for stocks, ETFs, and fractional shares. There’s no minimum to open an active or automated account with SoFi, but you will need at least $1 to start investing. Options have no contract fees, but you may have to pay a commission. Fractional shares can only be bought in $5 quantities. There’s a $2,000 minimum requirement to unlock margin trading.
SoFi Invest is suitable for beginners and is one of Business Insider’s top picks for beginning investors due to the platform’s low fees, educational hub, easy-to-use interface, simplified trading strategies, and range of financial products. Whether you’re looking to hand-pick stocks, save toward retirement, or diversify your portfolio with commodities.
SoFi caters to more experienced investors with an integrated financial services ecosystem to access economic and estate planning features. Active investing accounts allow for hands-on portfolio management, with the ability to trade options contracts and IPOs. However, SoFi Invest does not offer as many advanced charting tools and features as other investment platforms.