Richiest may earn compensation from some broker links on this page. Fidelity and
Schwab are included editorially without affiliate links. This is general education,
not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice.
The short answer
For set-and-forget ETF investors, M1 Finance is the cleanest
answer because it turns your portfolio into a pie and keeps new money flowing
into the slices you choose. That maps well to the
Five Fund Frame: decide your Park, Earn, Build,
Roam, and Dare percentages, then automate the deposits.
For almost everything else, Fidelity or Schwab
are excellent default choices. They are large, mature brokerages with deep ETF
shelves, strong support, retirement-account depth, research tools, and no need
for a recommendation link. If you already have one of them, you probably do not
need to move.
Plain English: choose M1 if you want automation. Choose Fidelity or Schwab if
you want maximum control. Choose SoFi if your finances already live there. Choose
Webull if charts, alerts, and active-trader tools matter to you.
Broker profiles
M1 Finance: best for automated ETF portfolios
M1 Finance is the most natural fit for investors who want to build an ETF
portfolio once, fund it regularly, and avoid tinkering. The core feature is
the pie: you assign percentages to funds, add cash, and M1 directs new money
toward underweight slices. That is why it fits the Five Fund Frame so well.
A simple portfolio might hold VOO in Build,
SCHD in Earn, a cash or Treasury position in
Park, and smaller sleeves for Roam and Dare. Instead of deciding what to buy
every payday, the system turns your target allocation into the default action.
The practical benefits are straightforward: $0 account minimum, $0 stock and
ETF commissions, fractional shares, automated recurring deposits, and portfolio
rebalancing that feels designed for long-term ETF investors rather than day
traders. The tradeoff is control. M1 is not built for deep individual stock
research, rapid order routing, or intraday trading flexibility. Liquidity and
execution timing can feel less precise than at a traditional brokerage because
the experience is intentionally structured. If you want to research single
stocks, trade during the day, or control exact limit orders, Fidelity or Schwab
will feel better. If you want a system that makes doing the right boring thing
easier, M1 is the page's primary pick.
SoFi: best when you want investing next to banking
SoFi is the beginner-friendly all-in-one choice. The strongest reason to use
it is convenience: investing, banking, loans, credit monitoring, budgeting, and
other financial tools can sit under one login. That matters for a new ETF
investor who does not want a full brokerage workstation. If your obstacle is
getting started, SoFi reduces friction. You can open an account with a $0
minimum, buy ETFs with $0 commissions, use fractional shares, and keep the
experience simple enough that the first deposit is not intimidating.
SoFi works best for someone who is still organizing the basics: emergency cash,
student loans, direct deposit, automated savings, and a first ETF portfolio.
It is not the deepest ETF research platform, and it is not the most complete
tool for advanced portfolio construction. The biggest downside for ETF-focused
investors is selection and depth. SoFi's investing menu can feel smaller than
Fidelity, Schwab, or even Webull if you want obscure funds, advanced screening,
or a research-heavy workflow. That is not fatal for the average Five Fund Frame
investor. Most people only need a few liquid ETFs, not the entire market. But
if you expect your ETF research to get more specialized over time, SoFi may be
a clean place to start rather than the final home for every account.
Webull: best for chart-driven and active ETF investors
Webull appeals to investors who want more market interface than a simple ETF
automation app provides. The platform emphasizes charts, watchlists, alerts,
technical tools, options access, extended-hours trading, and a faster trading
feel. If you are comparing ETFs through price action, volume, moving averages,
and daily market behavior, Webull will feel more engaging than M1 or SoFi. It
also has the expected modern basics: $0 account minimum, $0 stock and ETF
commissions, and fractional shares.
The key word is "active." Webull can be useful for ETF investors who are not
day traders but still want to watch markets closely. Maybe you are building a
core around VOO, then using smaller Roam or Dare positions for sector ETFs,
crypto-adjacent funds, or tactical ideas. Webull gives you the dashboard for
that style. The downside is the same reason some people like it: the interface
can overwhelm beginners. More charts and more buttons can create more reasons
to trade. For long-term ETF investors, that can be a behavioral cost even when
the commission is zero. Use Webull if you genuinely want control, charts, and
active tools. If the goal is to buy broad ETFs and mostly ignore them, M1 or a
traditional brokerage is probably calmer.
Fidelity: best for most people overall
Fidelity is the honest editorial answer for many investors, even though there
is no affiliate link here. If someone asks for one brokerage to use for the
next decade, Fidelity is hard to argue against. It has $0 stock and ETF
commissions, no broad account minimum, fractional shares, strong retirement
account support, deep research, good cash-management options, and a long track
record as a serious brokerage. It is also comfortable for taxable brokerage
accounts, IRAs, rollovers, custodial accounts, and more complicated household
setups.
The reason Fidelity does not win the top slot on this conversion page is not
quality. It is fit. Fidelity gives you tools; M1 gives you a behavior system.
For someone who already knows they want a five-fund ETF portfolio and will be
better served by automation, M1 may create better follow-through. For someone
who wants broad control, Fidelity is probably the default. You can buy VOO,
SCHD, bond ETFs, international ETFs, sector funds, and almost anything else
without feeling boxed in. If you already use Fidelity, do not switch just to
chase a recommendation. Use the account you trust, automate deposits, and focus
on the portfolio decision rather than the logo on the app.
Schwab: excellent for SCHD holders and traditional brokerage users
Schwab is another excellent editorial choice with no affiliate link on this
page. It is especially easy to understand for investors who already like
SCHD, because Schwab manages the ETF. That does
not mean you must hold SCHD at Schwab, and it does not make Schwab the only
sensible broker for dividend investors. It simply means the platform and the
fund family are naturally connected. If your Earn slot is built around SCHD,
Schwab will feel familiar and institutionally serious.
Schwab's strengths are scale, account breadth, research, customer support, and
a traditional brokerage experience that can handle a full financial life. Like
Fidelity, it is a strong home for taxable accounts, retirement accounts,
rollover money, and long-term ETF portfolios. It is not as automation-first as
M1 and not as chart-forward as Webull. That is fine. Schwab is best for people
who want a durable brokerage with deep tools and a well-known brand behind it.
If you are buying SCHD, VOO, broad bond ETFs, or a simple three-to-five fund
mix, Schwab can handle it easily. The main reason not to choose it is if you
know your biggest weakness is consistency. In that case, an automated pie-style
system may do more for your actual results.
Comparison table
| Feature |
M1 Finance |
SoFi |
Webull |
| Account Minimum | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Commission | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Fractional Shares | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Best For | Automated ETF portfolios | All-in-one banking | Active traders |
| Affiliate Link | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The table focuses on the three affiliate-supported options because those are the
brokers with direct calls to action on this page. Fidelity and Schwab remain strong
editorial recommendations, especially when you want a full-service brokerage instead
of a specialized app.
The one question to ask yourself
Do I want automation or control? That question matters more than small differences
in interface, bonus offers, or brand preference. Most investors do not fail because
they chose the wrong zero-commission broker. They fail because they delay the first
deposit, change strategies too often, or treat long-term ETFs like short-term
predictions.
If you want automation, choose M1 Finance. It is built for target allocations,
recurring deposits, and low-maintenance ETF portfolios. That makes it a natural
companion to the Richiest starting framework.
Decide how much belongs in safe assets, income assets, broad growth like
VOO, international or alternative exposure, and
higher-conviction ideas, then let the account keep pushing money into the plan.
If you want control, choose Fidelity or Schwab. You will get broader research,
more account types, deeper service infrastructure, and fewer platform constraints.
That is the better fit if you expect to manage rollovers, compare many ETFs, hold
cash-management products, or research funds beyond the starter set. For many people,
the right answer is simply the brokerage they will actually use without hesitation.
The broker is the container. The portfolio is the engine. A reasonable account
opened this week beats the perfect account researched for another month.
Broker CTA #2: compare all three
If you are ready to open an account, start with the style of investor you actually
are. M1 is the primary pick for set-and-forget ETF automation. SoFi is useful if
you want investing beside banking and loans. Webull fits investors who want a more
active market dashboard. None of them make Fidelity or Schwab bad choices; they
simply serve different behaviors.
Primary pick
M1 Finance
Best when you want automated ETF pies, recurring deposits, and a portfolio that follows your target weights.
Beginner ecosystem
SoFi
Best when one app for banking, loans, and beginner-friendly investing will help you stay organized.
Active tools
Webull
Best when you want charts, watchlists, extended hours, and more control over the trading experience.
Open the account that fits your behavior
Compare the three affiliate-supported options: automation, all-in-one simplicity, or active-trader tools.
