Account setup

A quick overview of getting your portfolio started at Betterment based on your financial goals. Is your portfolio set up correctly? Let’s talk about how you can feel sure your investments are set up for success at Betterment. If you’re like most investors, your investments may have previously been managed in one big bucket. That’s the way traditional brokers work, but it may not work for you as an investor. Instead, you should have multiple personalized portfolios built around your specific ...

Since we can rebalance tax-advantaged accounts (as compared to your taxable accounts) without causing you taxes, you may want to consider rolling over tax-advantaged accounts (like IRAs) first and then funding your taxable account. Funding your taxable account first won’t cause any harm, but because we’re protecting your account from any unnecessary taxes, it may take longer for your portfolio to reach its optimal location. Learn more about important considerations before rolling over assets to ...

There are a number of differences between ETFs and mutual funds, including performance, trading constraints, fund fees, and taxes. Here, we'll break down the details so that you can understand your portfolio. Performance An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a security that generally tracks a broad-market stock or bond index, or a basket of assets—just like a mutual fund—but trades like a stock on a listed exchange. By design, index ETFs closely track their benchmarks, such as the S&P 500 or the ...

Expense ratios are fees that exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, closed-end funds, and money market funds charge their shareholders. This fee is called a “ratio” because it is quoted as a percentage of assets per year, e.g. 0.85%. The expense ratio includes the administrative, operating, and legal costs involved in managing the fund, and sometimes even marketing costs (called 12b-1 fees) to distribute the fund. The expense ratio is important to consider when you invest in a fund. Even ...

An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a security that usually tracks an index, a commodity, or a basket of assets—much like an index fund—but trades like a stock on an exchange. Most ETFs track fairly closely to the indexes that they follow, such as the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial Average. ETFs are bought and sold like stocks throughout the day, and therefore experience continually changing prices. Betterment uses ETFs in both our stock and bond portfolios because of the liquidity, ...

To update your personal information: Web Browser: Log in to your account. Select “Settings” on the left-hand menu. Edit your personal profile. Mobile App: Log in to the app. Tap the three bars in the top left corner. Choose “Settings” and then tap “Personal Profile”. Tap “Edit” next to the information you want to update. Please note that, if you’re changing your legal name, you’ll need to upload supporting documentation for us to assist with that update.

You can update your display name as well as begin the process to update your legal name from the Settings page of your account on a web browser. Click “Edit” beside the name you wish to change to begin the process. In order for us to process your legal name change, you will need to upload clear color copies of two forms of proof of the change (an updated ID and legal documentation) via the secure link we provide you. We currently accept any of the following valid IDs: US state-issued driver's ...

Available Account Types: Roth IRA Traditional IRA SEP IRA (single participant only) Inherited IRA (contact us to set up) Individual taxable accounts Joint taxable accounts with rights of survivorship 529 accounts (only available through select employers who use Betterment at Work) Student Loan Management accounts (only available through select employers who use Betterment at Work) Trust accounts (log in from a web browser to open) Cash Reserve (a cash account; funds for specific goals can be ...

Please note the following before updating your display name: These instructions are for changing the name that Betterment uses to address you. Due to regulations, your legal name will continue to appear on documents such as tax forms. Betterment reserves the right to revoke access to this feature if it is used inappropriately. To update your display name: Web browser: Log in to Betterment using a web browser. Navigate to your “Settings” page. Next to your display name, click “Edit”. After ...

Your updated name will be visible to anyone with whom you co-own a joint account and anyone you refer to Betterment (but only if you opt for us to send the invitation for you). We also may share your name with third-parties for non-regulatory purposes, like marketing emails. See our privacy notice for more information.

Your newly updated name will display wherever we greet you in your Betterment account’s mobile and web experiences. Any updates about your account or marketing emails will address you using your newly updated name. This name will also be visible to our Customer Experience team so they can address you correctly when they speak with you via email or phone. This list will expand as we continue working hard to make sure your newly updated name appears everywhere it can.

Yes. We’ll need your legal name for things like tax documents, account snapshots, your Checking debit card (if applicable), and any documents used to verify your identity with a government agency or another financial institution.