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SoFi IRA
- Traditional, Roth, and SEP IRAs
- $0 commission fee, no minimum deposit or annual fees
- Get up to $1,000 when you fund a new account within 30 days
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Best IRA Accounts for March 2023
Compare the pros & cons of the best IRA accounts and start saving for your retirement today.
Finder Award
Robinhood Retirement
- Traditional and Roth IRAs
- Get a 1% match on contributions to your IRA
- Earn 4% interest on uninvested cash with Robinhood Gold
tastytrade IRA
- $0 commissions on stocks and ETFs
- $0 closing commissions on stock and ETF options
- Get $100 - $2,000 when you open and fund an account with $5,000 to $100,000+
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Compare IRA Accounts
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8 Best IRA accounts for March 2023
An IRA or individual retirement account (IRA) helps you invest in your retirement as you enjoy tax breaks. Even if you already have a 401(k) through your employer, you can open an IRA that may offer stronger benefits.
SoFi Invest
Finder Rating: 4.3 / 5 ★★★★★
SoFi offers an automated Traditional IRA, Roth IRA or SEP IRA with no annual management fees. After you complete a questionnaire about your financial goals, SoFi builds, monitors and auto-rebalances a diversified portfolio for you. Your portfolio is built with ETFs comprised of a mix of stocks and bonds determined by your risk tolerance.
Hands-on investors can build and manage their own IRA portfolios by investing in stocks and ETFs. And if you don't have enough cash to purchase shares of your favorite blue chip stocks, you can invest in fractional shares of stocks – or portions of shares of stocks – with whatever cash you have available. You can't invest in options or cryptocurrency in your IRA account on SoFi, though.
If you have any questions while using SoFi, reach out to the platform's support staff to get free financial counseling over the phone.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
Robinhood Retirement
Finder Rating: 4 / 5 ★★★★★
Robinhood offers commission-free trades and zero management fees for its Traditional IRA and Roth IRA products.
And not only does Robinhood not charge fees, but it actually gives you money when you invest in your Roth IRA on the platform. Robinhood matches 1% on every dollar you contribute to your IRA, which can add up as your investment compounds over time.
It's worth noting, though, that you can only invest in stocks and ETFs via Robinhood's IRA offerings. And your investments on the platform are protected up to $500k, as Robinhood is a member of SIPC (Securities Investor Protection Corporation).
Also, keep in mind that the platform's customer support is lacking as compared to bigger platforms like Fidelity or Charles Schwab. So, if you're looking for some one-to-one help as you build your nest egg, Robinhood might not be the best choice for you.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
tastytrade
Finder Rating: 4.1 / 5 ★★★★★
Tastytrade is best known as an options broker for highly experienced investors, and the platform provides you with an assortment of tools to help you to execute your trades with precision.
There are no fees associated with opening and maintaining an IRA with Tastytrade – aside from the normal trading fees the brokerage charges. If you close your IRA account with Tastytrade, though, you'll have to pay a $60 fee.
Tastytrade provides an array of educational resources and its customer support staff is easy to contact via phone.
However, Tastytrade isn't necessarily the best platform for newbies or those who want to employ a set-it-and-forget-it investment strategy. Instead, it's great for seasoned traders who are looking for exposure to options and futures contracts as well as stocks and ETFs in their Roth IRA.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
Vanguard IRA
Finder Rating: 3.8 / 5 ★★★★★
When you enroll with Vanguard PAS, you get access to a robo-advisor that helps you to continually rebalance your portfolio based on your needs and goals as well as unlimited access to a human financial advisor. The advisors at Vanguard PAS are not paid a commission, so you can be sure that you are receiving unbiased advice from a fiduciary when investing in your IRA account.
Vanguard charges a 0.3% fee to use its PAS platform, and you must have a minimum of $50,000 in assets to invest if you want to use the platform. Competitors like Personal Capital or Betterment Premium require a minimum of $100,000 to use their personal advisor services platforms.
Once enrolled in Vanguard PAS, you can invest in Vanguard's selection of over 160 in-house mutual funds and ETFs in your Roth IRA. Plus, you can get exposure to fixed income products as well as socially responsible/ESG product options. And there are no fees for any of the purchases, sales or trades that you make within your portfolio.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
Acorns Later
Finder Rating: 3.4 / 5 ★★★★★
Acorns Later is the division of Acorns that allows you to invest for your retirement. Acorns Later offers three different types of IRAs: a Traditional IRA, a Roth IRA and a SEP IRA. Each of these products allows you to save for your retirement with automatic round-ups on purchases – or with your ''spare change,'' as Acorns likes to put it.
Through Acorns Later, you can get exposure to stocks, ETFs, bonds, REITs and even a Bitcoin-linked ETF.
Keep in mind, though, that the platform charges a $5 monthly maintenance fee for this account. With that said, Acorns doesn't charge any fees for trades.
And you might find the $5 fee worth it, as Acorns Later will automatically adjust your IRA portfolio weighting depending on your age, investment goals and risk tolerance.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
TD Ameritrade
Finder Rating: 4.4 / 5 ★★★★★
TD Ameritrade can help investors build IRA portfolios with powerful research tools. The platform offers a variety of resources like stock screeners, charting features and third-party research. Its educational library is tailored to investors of all levels, and it provides articles, videos, webinars and more to those who prefer to actively manage their IRA portfolio.
Advanced investors and traders can use TD Ameritrade's Thinkorswim, a separate platform with robust research tools like stock analysis and real-time market news. It's available via desktop app, mobile app and web browser.
Also, TD Ameritrade enables you to roll your 401(k) over into an IRA and provides you with video resources that illustrate what factors to consider if you're thinking of doing so as well as how to proceed with the roll over.
TD Ameritrade also stands out for costs. The broker offers commission-free stocks and ETFs, as well as no-load mutual funds. And you can open a TD Ameritrade IRA with no minimum investment.
Though TD Ameritrade is a preferred platform for proactive investors, hands-off investors can still benefit from using the platform, as well, as they can opt for an account managed by a robo-advisor – the Essential Portfolios option.
| Stock trade fee | $0 or $25 broker-assisted |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
M1 Finance
Finder Rating: 3.7 / 5 ★★★★★
M1 Finance offers highly customizable Traditional IRA, Roth IRA and SEP IRA accounts.
Build your IRA portfolio with your picks of stock and fund shares or choose from more than 80 professionally-managed portfolios. And divvy up your money across more than one of these pre-built portfolios.
But this level of customization demands a certain investment acumen. You should be knowledgeable about different asset types and the performance of specific ETFs and stocks if you plan to proactively invest via an M1 Finance IRA.
M1 Finance charges no management fees on IRA accounts and no commissions on stock and ETF trades. Please keep in mind, though, that you'll need at least $500 to start investing in an M1 IRA portfolio.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $500 |
E*TRADE
Finder Rating: 4 / 5 ★★★★★
With E*Trade, you can build an IRA portfolio with a variety of asset types including the following:
- Stocks
- Bonds
- ETFs
- Mutual funds
- Options
- Futures
E*Trade's online Education Library offers articles, videos and guides to help you choose the right securities for your retirement plan.
Like many brokers, E*Trade offers commission-free stocks and ETFs. But fees for options contract run as low as $0.50. E*Trade also offers thousands of no-load mutual funds – or mutual funds for which you aren't charged a fee when you buy and sell them.
Hands-off investors have access to E*Trade's automated portfolios called Core Portfolios. But these require a $500 minimum investment, which is higher than it is for some of its competitors. The fee to use Core Portfolios is $1.50 or 0.3% annually.
| Stock trade fee | $0 |
|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
How we picked these platforms
We researched the leading brokerage firms and analyzed their traditional IRA offerings. We compared key points like fees, investment minimums and research tools. Take a look at our full methodology for our star rating system for best brokers.
Information on this page is for educational purposes only. Finder is not an advisor or brokerage service, and we don't recommend investors to trade specific stocks or other investments.
Finder is not a client of any featured partner. We may be paid a fee for referring prospective clients to a partner, though it is not a recommendation to invest in any one partner.
How to choose an IRA brokerage
As you compare IRA accounts, make sure you pay attention to certain key points.
Fees. Regardless of how well your investments perform, high fees can take a large bite out of your retirement savings. Here are some you should be aware of:
- Commissions. If you’re building your own IRA portfolio, you may owe the brokerage a commission when you buy or sell securities like stocks or ETFs. While many brokerages have done away with commissions, you may still face commission charges on certain securities.
- Annual management fees. These are common among IRA managed accounts and robo-advisors. The brokerage usually collects these as a percentage of the balance in your account.
- Transfer fees. You may need to pay a fee to move assets from one broker to another. You should be aware of these if you’re rolling over an old 401(k) or IRA into a new IRA.
- Account closing fees. You may need to pay your broker a fee to close your account and move assets to an account with a different brokerage.
Minimum investments. Some brokerages require you to make a minimum investment to open an IRA account.
Online tools and research. If you like picking your own stocks, you may want to pay attention to the different research tools at your disposal. Some brokerages offer sophisticated technology that can help you find the right investments and predict price movements, while others offer close to none.
Promotions. At times, brokerages may offer bonuses like free stocks or waived fees when you open an account. Check with the financial institutions you already work with to see if they can give you a perk to open an IRA with them.
Traditional IRAs vs. Roth IRAs: What’s the difference?
Before you choose, you may want to give some thought to what the differences between traditional and Roth IRAs are. The main difference is how they’re taxed: Contributions to traditional IRAs are tax-deductible, but distributions are taxed. Roth IRAs allow tax-free distributions, but you’ll pay taxes on your contributions and not distributions. If you’re saving and building up gains in the account for a long time, a Roth may give you more in the end. (Not sure which you need? Check our guide to the best Roth IRA accounts.)
Bottom line
Opening an IRA can be one of the best decisions you’ll make in your financial life. But not all IRAs are created equal. So shop around and compare IRA providers to find one that meets your needs.
Information on this page is for educational purposes only. Finder is not an advisor or brokerage service, and we don't recommend investors to trade specific stocks or other investments.
Finder is not a client of any featured partner. We may be paid a fee for referring prospective clients to a partner, though it is not a recommendation to invest in any one partner.
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