Robinhood vs WealthFront (2025)
Robinhood vs. Wealthfront: Highlights
• Robinhood has brokerage accounts, while Wealthfront offers investment-advisory accounts.
• Cryptocurrencies are available only at Robinhood.
• Both offer margin for trading and cash withdrawal.
Wealthfront vs. Robinhood Introduction
Wealthfront and Robinhood are both popular investing platforms, but they operate quite differently. Let’s dive into our analysis of both.
Investing
Robinhood offers self-directed trading in these investment types:
- Exchange-traded funds
- Stocks
- Options
- American Depository Receipts (ADRs)
- Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
- Cryptocurrencies
Robinhood doesn’t have managed accounts, but it does provide some investment advice for IRAs.
Wealthfront is different. It only offers managed accounts and focuses on automated trading using a limited selection of ETFs. It also offers a Stock Investing Account, which lets customers invest in individual stocks, though it’s not full self-directed trading.
Like Robinhood, Wealthfront has individual taxable and retirement accounts, but Wealthfront also offers joint accounts, trust accounts, and 529 plans.
Winner: Debatable
Promotions
Robinhood: Free stock up to $200 and 3% match when you open an account.
Wealthfront: none right now.
Margin Services
Both Robinhood and Wealthfront offer margin trading. Robinhood’s margin rates start at 5.75 for balances under $50K and drop to 5.25 for balances under $1 million. Robinhood requires at least $2,000 in equity to use margin.
Wealthfront offers a Portfolio Line of Credit starting at $25,000. Their margin rates start at 5.41 and drop to 3.21%. No monthly fees are charged for these low rates.
Winner: Robinhood
Websites
Robinhood’s website is easy to use and displays a trade ticket for each asset’s profile. The crypto order form is simpler than the equity one, which offers six trade types. The crypto order form only has three trade types, plus an option to send and receive digital currencies.
Robinhood also added options trading to its platform, with a Builder tool that suggests strategies based on market sentiment (bullish, bearish, volatile, etc.). You can also create custom multi-leg trades.
Wealthfront, on the other hand, doesn’t offer options or self-directed trading. The website is simple and geared toward hands-off investing.
Wealthfront offers basic equity profiles for its Stock Investing Accounts. These profiles are basic, with simple charts and no full-screen mode. Robinhood’s profiles offer more information and better charting, including technical studies.
Winner: Robinhood
Mobile Apps
On mobile, both Robinhood and Wealthfront provide easy-to-use platforms. Robinhood’s app has the same trade ticket as the website, but the smaller screen means you have to tap a “Trade” button at the bottom of the screen. Crypto trading has stop orders, unlike on the website.
Wealthfront’s app has the same basic tools found on the website.
Winner: Robinhood
Additional Services
IPO Access: Robinhood offers IPO access, while Wealthfront does not.
Dividend Reinvestment Plans: Both Wealthfront and Robinhood offer dividend reinvestment plans (DRIP) for robo and self-directed accounts.
Fractional Shares: Available at both brokers.
IRA Services: Both brokers offer Roth and Traditional IRAs, but Wealthfront also offers SEP accounts.
Fully-Paid Stock Lending: Only Robinhood offers this.
Winner: Robinhood
Promotions
Robinhood: Free stock up to $200 and 3% match when you open an account.
Wealthfront: none right now.
Our Recommendations
Small Accounts: Robinhood has no minimum balance requirement, while Wealthfront requires $500 for an automated account.
Stock and ETF Trading: Robinhood is the clear winner here.
Retirement Planning & Long-Term Investing: Wealthfront is better for this, as it offers SEP accounts and 529 plans.
Beginning Investors: Wealthfront is a good choice for those starting out, especially with its robo-advising service.
Robinhood vs Wealthfront Verdict
Wealthfront is great for beginners, but advanced traders will prefer Robinhood.