The Largest Robo-Advisors: AUM, Users, and Returns

Investors have poured billions into robo-advisors -- automated services that build and manage diversified portfolios at a fraction of what a traditional financial advisor charges. Vanguard Digital Advisor®, which houses its two robo-advisor services, has $300 billion in assets under management, making it the largest robo-advisor by far.

What draws investors to robo-advisors? They are a "low-cost way to have your portfolio professionally managed according to your particular timeframe, risk tolerance, and tax situation," according to Robert Brokamp, Certified Financial Planner™ and Senior Advisor at The Motley Fool.

Ready to find a robo-advisor that's right for you? See our top robo-advisors for 2026.

It's important to note, however, that headline numbers for the largest robo-advisors can be nuanced. Some advisors lump robo-advisors with hybrid services that pair automation with access to human financial planners. For example, Vanguard's $300 billion figure includes its Personal Advisor service, which requires a $50,000 minimum and gives clients access to human CFPs. That could be considered distinct from a pure robo-advisor.

Below are the largest robo-advisors ranked by total regulatory assets under management, as reported in their SEC filings, along with a breakdown of what changes when purely automated services are separated from hybrids.

It's no surprise that some of the largest robo-advisors by assets under management also make Motley Fool Money's list of the best robo-advisors.

The largest robo-advisors by AUM, users, and performance

1. Vanguard Digital Advisor® + Personal Advisor

• AUM: $300 billion
• Discretionary: $107.7 billion
• Clients: 817,307
• Accounts: 698,843
• 1-year trailing return (Digital Advisor): 10.11%
• 3-year annualized trailing return (Digital Advisor): 14.26%

Vanguard's two advisory services sit under one registered entity, Vanguard Advisers. Its $300 billion total regulatory AUM makes it the largest advisory platform in the robo-advisor industry, with $107.7 billion managed on a discretionary basis and the remaining $192.7 billion non-discretionary.

Those are meaningfully different products. Vanguard Digital Advisor® is a pure robo-advisor. It is fully automated, with a $100 minimum and a 0.15% annual fee. It managed about $19 billion as of mid-2024. Personal Advisor is a hybrid that requires $50,000, charges 0.30%, and provides access to certified human financial planners. The bulk of Vanguard Adviser's AUM sits in the hybrid service, and its relevant SEC filing does not distinguish between them.

Read our Vanguard review

2. Schwab Intelligent Portfolios

• Est. AUM: $89.5
• 1-year trailing return: 9.99%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 13.73%

Schwab Intelligent Portfolios is the only major robo-advisor that charges no advisory fee on its standard plan. The trade-off is that its portfolios allocate more cash than competitors'. That shows up in its 3-year trailing return, which is below many of the other largest robo-advisors.

3. Betterment

• Discretionary AUM: $56.4 billion
• Clients: 923,777
• Accounts: 1,200,673
• 1-year trailing return: 11.02%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 14.96%

Betterment is one of the original robo-advisors, launched in 2008, and at $56.4 billion is one of the largest independent robo-advisors by discretionary AUM. In other words, every dollar is in an automated portfolio, with no hybrid human-advisory service adding to its numbers.

Betterment charges 0.25% annual, or $5 per month for accounts under $24,000. Its Premium tier comes with a higher fee, $100,000 balance, and access to Certified Financial Planners.

In February 2025, Betterment acquired Ellevest's automated investing business. It also acquired Goldman Sachs' Marcus Invest accounts in 2024 and Wealthsimple's U.S. accounts in 2021.

4. Wealthfront

• AUM: $42.9 billion
• Discretionary: $41.7 billion
• Clients: 491,179
• Accounts: 642,888
• 1-year trailing return: 10.96%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 15.58%

Of Wealthfront's $42.9 billion AUM, $41.7 billion is discretionary. Those funds capture only what clients have invested in portfolios and don't include cash management accounts.

Wealthfront filed for an IPO in 2025, which revealed that it serves 491,179 advisory clients. Wealthfront charges 0.25% annually with a $500 minimum deposit.

5. U.S. Bancorp Automated Investor

• AUM: $19.3 billion
• Discretionary: $6.8 billion
• Non-discretionary: $12.5 billion
• Clients: 52,436
• 1-year trailing return: 11.01%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 14.61%

U.S. Bancorp Investments manages $19.3 billion in total regulatory AUM, but this figure bundles Automated Investor (the robo-advisor) with its human-advised Personal Portfolios and financial planning services under one entity. Only $6.8 billion is discretionary. The $12.5 billion in non-discretionary assets likely reflects the human-advised side of the business.

Automated Investor charges 0.24% annually with a $1,000 minimum. Its standout feature is glide-path rebalancing, which gradually shifts portfolios toward less risky assets as their goal date approaches.

6. Acorns

• AUM: $10.4 billion
• Discretionary: $10.3 billion
• Clients: 7.767 million
• Funded accounts: 4.81 million
• 1-year trailing return: 9.08%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 13.24%

Acorns' 4.81 million funded accounts is more than any other robo-advisor on this list. The average funded account holds about $2,150, which reflects the platform's original appeal as an investment app for those just starting out. Fees range from $3 to $12 per month, which, as a percentage of very small balances, can be high.

7. Stash

• AUM: $4.2 billion
• Discretionary: $178 million
• Non-discretionary: $3.99 billion
• Clients: 1,290,843
• 1-year trailing return: 11.32%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 15.61%

Of Stash's $4.2 billion total AUM, just $178 million, about 4% is discretionary, meaning its managed by Stash. The remaining $3.99 billion is non-discretionary: users picking their own investments on the platform. That means Stash's robo-managed assets are a fraction of the other platforms on this list.

Fees run $3 to $9 per month. Stash doesn't offer robo-managed IRAs, tax-loss harvesting, or a premium tier with human advisor access.

8. SigFig/Tandems

• Discretionary AUM: $3 billion
• Clients: 87,480
• 1-year trailing return: 12.04%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 15.33%

SigFig, recently rebranded as Tandems, manages $3 billion, all discretionary, with a $2,000 account minimum. Accounts under $10,000 pay no management fee, making it a competitive option for new investors. Above that, it charges 0.25% annually.

SigFig also integrates with existing Charles Schwab and Fidelity investments accounts, which allows its robo-advisor to manage your money without moving it. It has pivoted recently toward AI-powered advisory tools under a new brand, Tandems.

9. SoFi Robo Investing

• Discretionary AUM: $1.5 billion
• Clients: 265,019
• 1-year trailing return: 14.08%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 16.63%

SoFi® is the smallest platform by AUM on this list but the best-performing by a clear margin. Its 1-year trailing return of 14.08% and 3-year trailing return of 16.63% both lead all robo-advisors tracked by Condor Capital.

SoFi® overhauled its robo-advisor in late 2024, introducing a 0.25% fee (see disclosures) and three portfolio options built with BlackRock: classic, classic with alternatives, and sustainable. It keeps a $50 minimum and gives all clients access to Certified Financial Planners at no additional cost. (See disclosures.)

10. Axos Invest

• Discretionary AUM: $147 million
• Clients: 8,764
• 1-year trailing return: 10.89%
• 3-year annualized trailing return: 15.61%

Axos Invest is the smallest platform by both AUM and client count. With $147 million in discretionary assets and 8,764 clients, it's a niche player. Axos charges a model fee based on a percentage of AUM and requires a $1,000 minimum.

Custody and execution are handled by its affiliated broker-dealer, Axos Clearing LLC.

What investors need to know about robo-advisors

Understanding how robo-advisors work is an important part of deciding if one is right for you.

"While much of the actual management is done automatically and technologically (that's the 'robo' part), the overall strategies are devised by teams of experienced investment experts," Robert Brokamp, Certified Financial Planner™ and Senior Advisor at The Motley Fool, explains.

That results in lower, more competitive fees than those charged by a financial advisor. Brokamp says, "because the nuts and bolts of the account management, including regular rebalancing, are not done by actual humans, the fees charged by robo-advisors are usually much less than the fees charged by the typical financial advisor."

There are a few drawbacks to robo-advisors, including limited customization and choice in portfolio construction, and a lack of access to a Certified Financial Planner™, though some services do offer the latter, according to Brokamp.

Are robo-advisors worth it? That depends on what type of investing experience you're looking for.

"The bottom line," says Brokamp, "a robo-advisor could be appropriate for someone looking for an online, hands-off solution to professional wealth management, even for a small portion of their overall portfolio, since robo-advisors tend to have low account minimums."