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Refreshed portfolios are right around the corner

By Betterment Investing Team

Published Jan. 05, 2026

Refreshed portfolios are right around the corner Jan 5, 2026 8:30:00 AM New actively-managed bonds, fine-tuned U.S. exposure, and lower crypto costs highlight this year’s portfolio updates. Key takeaways As part of our automated investing offering, we regularly update our portfolios to ensure they reflect the latest long-term market forecasts. This year’s updates will be rolling out soon and require no action on the part of Betterment customers. They include a new actively-managed bond fund, small tweaks to U.S. stock and bond allocations, and lower crypto ETF costs. Between tariffs, AI, and shutdowns, investors faced all sorts of uncertainty in 2025. But if you're invested in a Betterment-built portfolio, you don't have to worry whether your investing is keeping up with the times. That’s because we update our portfolios each year based on the latest long-term forecasts. These updates include adjusting the weights of various asset classes, as well as swapping in new funds that deliver lower costs and/or better exposure. They're just a few of the ways our automated investing delivers value, and they’ll be rolling out soon. So without further ado, let’s preview what's new for 2026: Expanded access to bond markets Fine-tuned U.S. exposure Lower crypto ETF costs Expanded access to bond markets Passive investing—tracking preset indexes or lists of investments—is still the bedrock of our portfolio strategy thanks to its low costs and strong track record, but it has limitations in the world of fixed income. That’s because many passively-managed bond funds reflect only a portion of the total market. And it’s these under-represented sectors—high-yield and securitized offerings, among others—that can help investors capitalize on changing market conditions like falling interest rates. So to take advantage of these opportunities, we’re making a new actively-managed bond fund a central piece of the following portfolios’ bond allocations: Core Innovative Tech Value Tilt Flexible portfolio US-only portfolio (exclusive to Betterment Premium and not available in Betterment 401(k)s) While the bond market is relatively ripe for active management, much of that edge hinges on the expertise of the team who manages the fund. That’s why when using these types of funds in our portfolios, we use a robust quantitative and qualitative method to size up fund managers. Fine-tuned U.S. exposure Similar to last year, we’re making minor adjustments to our allocation of U.S. stocks. This allocation breaks down along three subasset classes, with each defined by their underlying companies’ current market valuations: Small-cap (less than $2 billion) Mid-cap (between $2 billion and $10 billion) Large-cap (more than $10 billion) We’re dialing down exposure to mid-cap stocks—bringing their allocation in line with small-cap—and in turn increasing our allocation to large-cap stocks. These changes apply to the same portfolios above, and better align them with the relative size of each subasset class within the stock market. Beyond these tweaks, some risk levels of our portfolios (including all three of our Socially Responsible Investing portfolios) may see modest increases in exposure to short-term Treasuries. This helps smooth out the glide path for customers using our auto-adjust feature and de-risk their investing as target dates near. Lower crypto ETF costs In the Betterment Crypto ETF portfolio (not available in Betterment 401(k)s), we’re increasing our bitcoin allocation to align with its market capitalization weight. Further changes include swapping in lower-cost funds, which reduces the portfolio’s weighted average expense ratio by 0.10%. As part of our fund selection methodology, we continually look for opportunities to lower investing costs as new funds become available. For more information on the Crypto ETF portfolio, please see the portfolio disclosure. Sit back and enjoy the switch Similar to last year’s portfolio updates, we’ll gradually implement this year’s changes in the weeks to come, with our technology designed to seek the most tax-efficient path for taxable accounts. Tax-advantaged accounts such as Betterment IRAs and Betterment 401(k)s won’t see any tax impact as a result of these updates. To find the refreshed portfolio weights, check out the relevant portfolio pages on our website. Customers can also see their updated holdings in the Betterment app with only a few clicks. It’s yet another example of how we make it easy to be invested.

Key takeaways

As part of our automated investing offering, we regularly update our portfolios to ensure they reflect the latest long-term market forecasts.
This year’s updates will be rolling out soon and require no action on the part of Betterment customers.
They include a new actively-managed bond fund, small tweaks to U.S. stock and bond allocations, and lower crypto ETF costs.

Between tariffs, AI, and shutdowns, investors faced all sorts of uncertainty in 2025.

But if you're invested in a Betterment-built portfolio, you don't have to worry whether your investing is keeping up with the times. That’s because we update our portfolios each year based on the latest long-term forecasts.

These updates include adjusting the weights of various asset classes, as well as swapping in new funds that deliver lower costs and/or better exposure. They're just a few of the ways our automated investing delivers value, and they’ll be rolling out soon. So without further ado, let’s preview what's new for 2026:

Expanded access to bond markets
Fine-tuned U.S. exposure
Lower crypto ETF costs

Expanded access to bond markets

Passive investing—tracking preset indexes or lists of investments—is still the bedrock of our portfolio strategy thanks to its low costs and strong track record, but it has limitations in the world of fixed income.

That’s because many passively-managed bond funds reflect only a portion of the total market. And it’s these under-represented sectors—high-yield and securitized offerings, among others—that can help investors capitalize on changing market conditions like falling interest rates.

So to take advantage of these opportunities, we’re making a new actively-managed bond fund a central piece of the following portfolios’ bond allocations:

Core
Innovative Tech
Value Tilt
Flexible portfolio
US-only portfolio (exclusive to Betterment Premium and not available in Betterment 401(k)s)

While the bond market is relatively ripe for active management, much of that edge hinges on the expertise of the team who manages the fund. That’s why when using these types of funds in our portfolios, we use a robust quantitative and qualitative method to size up fund managers.

Fine-tuned U.S. exposure

Similar to last year, we’re making minor adjustments to our allocation of U.S. stocks. This allocation breaks down along three subasset classes, with each defined by their underlying companies’ current market valuations:

Small-cap (less than $2 billion)
Mid-cap (between $2 billion and $10 billion)
Large-cap (more than $10 billion)

We’re dialing down exposure to mid-cap stocks—bringing their allocation in line with small-cap—and in turn increasing our allocation to large-cap stocks. These changes apply to the same portfolios above, and better align them with the relative size of each subasset class within the stock market.

Beyond these tweaks, some risk levels of our portfolios (including all three of our Socially Responsible Investing portfolios) may see modest increases in exposure to short-term Treasuries. This helps smooth out the glide path for customers using our auto-adjust feature and de-risk their investing as target dates near.

Lower crypto ETF costs

In the Betterment Crypto ETF portfolio (not available in Betterment 401(k)s), we’re increasing our bitcoin allocation to align with its market capitalization weight. Further changes include swapping in lower-cost funds, which reduces the portfolio’s weighted average expense ratio by 0.10%. As part of our fund selection methodology, we continually look for opportunities to lower investing costs as new funds become available. For more information on the Crypto ETF portfolio, please see the portfolio disclosure.

Sit back and enjoy the switch

Similar to last year’s portfolio updates, we’ll gradually implement this year’s changes in the weeks to come, with our technology designed to seek the most tax-efficient path for taxable accounts. Tax-advantaged accounts such as Betterment IRAs and Betterment 401(k)s won’t see any tax impact as a result of these updates.

To find the refreshed portfolio weights, check out the relevant portfolio pages on our website. Customers can also see their updated holdings in the Betterment app with only a few clicks. It’s yet another example of how we make it easy to be invested.

Sign up and keep your investing up-to-date.