Betterment vs. Guideline
Compare 401(k) providers by investments, fees, employee experience, service and support.
Investments | Betterment | Guideline |
---|---|---|
Funds |
Betterment
Indexed Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) |
Guideline
Indexed Mutual Funds |
Portfolios |
Betterment
509 |
Guideline
6 |
Automatic allocation adjustments |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Flexibility |
Betterment
Participants may choose their own allocation |
Guideline
Participants may choose their own allocation |
Additional investment strategies |
Betterment
Socially Responsible (3), Goldman Sachs Smart Beta, BlackRock Income |
Guideline
None |
Number of individuals involved in investment advisory services¹ |
Betterment
16 |
Guideline
2 |
Employee Experience | Betterment | Guideline |
---|---|---|
Platform scope |
Betterment
Holistic advice across all saving and investing goals |
Guideline
401(k) only |
External account syncing |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Personalized retirement planning tools |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Tax coordination strategies to help maximize returns |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Access to human advisors² |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Service and support | Betterment | Guideline |
---|---|---|
3(38) Investment Fiduciary |
Betterment
Standard |
Guideline
Additional cost³ |
3(16) Administrative Fiduciary |
Betterment
Standard |
Guideline
Additional cost³ |
Online signup process |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Automated compliance support |
Betterment
|
Guideline
|
Fees | Betterment | Guideline |
---|---|---|
Ongoing Administrative (Employer pays) |
Betterment
$42/mo + $4/participant/month (Standard)⁴ |
Guideline
$39/month + $8/participant/month (Startup) |
Estimated fund fees (Employees pay) |
Betterment
0.06%⁵ |
Guideline
0.06% |
Investment management (Employees pay) |
Betterment
0.25% on assets annually ($2.50 for every $1,000) |
Guideline
None |
Ready for a better 401(k) plan?
Get started1 From Betterment and Guideline forms ADV
2 Additional fee may apply
3 Feature available only as part of Prime package
4 Additional fees may apply
5 Based on weighted average fund fees of most commonly used portfolio with 90% equity and 10% fixed income
Guideline information from guideline.com.