Cara Daly

How Betterment’s tech helps you manage your money Sep 1, 2022 10:16:55 AM Our human experts harness the power of technology to help you reach your financial goals. Here’s how. When you’re trying to make the most of your money and plan for the future, there are some things humans simply can’t do as well as algorithms. The big idea: Here at Betterment, we’re all about automated investing—using technology with human experts at the helm—to manage your money smarter and help you meet your financial goals. How does it work? Robo-advisors use algorithms and automation to optimize your investments faster than a human can. They do the heavy lifting behind the scenes, managing all the data analysis and adapting investment expertise to fit your circumstances. All you need to do is fill in the gaps with details about your financial goals. The result: you spend less time managing your finances and more time enjoying your life, while Betterment focuses on your specific reasons for saving, adjusting your risk based on your timeline and target amount. Plus, robo-advisors cost less to operate. While the specific fees vary from one robo-advisor to the next, they all tend to be a fraction of what it costs to work with a traditional investment manager, which translates to savings for you. Learn more about how much it costs to save, spend and invest with Betterment. A winning combination of human expertise and technology: Automation is what Betterment is known for. But our team of financial experts is our secret sauce. They research, prototype, and implement all the advice and activity that you see in your account. Our algorithms and tools are built on the expertise of traders, quantitative researchers, tax experts, CFP® professionals, behavioral scientists, and more. Four big benefits (just for starters): No more idle cash: We automatically reinvest dividends, even purchasing fractions of shares on your behalf, so you don’t miss out on potential market returns. A focus on the future: Nobody knows the future. And that makes financial planning tough. Your situation can change at any time but our tools and advice can help you see how various changes could affect your goals. We show you a range of potential outcomes so you can make more informed decisions. Anticipating taxes: We may not be able to predict future tax rates, but we can be pretty sure that certain incomes and account types will be subject to some taxes. This becomes especially relevant in retirement planning, where taxes affect which account types are most valuable to you. Factoring in inflation: We don’t know how inflation will change, but we can reference known historical ranges, as well as targets set by fiscal policy. The most important thing is to factor in some inflation because we know it won’t be zero. We currently assume a 2% inflation rate in our retirement planning advice and in our safe withdrawal advice, which is what the Fed currently targets. Additional advice is always available: At Betterment, we automate what we can and complement our automated advice with access to our financial planning experts through our Premium plan, which offers unlimited calls and emails with our team of CFP® professionals. You can also schedule a call with an advisor to assist with a rollover or help with your initial account setup. Whether you need a one-time consultation or ongoing support, you can always discuss your unique financial situations with one of our licensed financial professionals Managing your money with Betterment: Our mission is to empower you to make the most of your money, so you can live better. Sometimes the best way to do that is with human creativity and critical thought. Sometimes it’s with machine automation and precision. Usually, it takes a healthy dose of both.