Robo advice is helping Australians rethink the way they invest, while also opening the door for more of us to grow a diversified portfolio for a fraction of the cost of face to face advice.
With a variety of robo advisors to select from, the hard part can be deciding which robo advisor is right for you.
We look at the 7 best robo advisors in Australia (in no particular order) to help you make an informed choice.
InvestSMART
- Minimum investment: $10,000 ($4,000 for Fundlater)
- Fees: 0.55% for balances up to $100,000, and capped at $550 p.a. for balances over $100,000
- Choice of portfolios: 10 portfolios made up of 5 diversified portfolios and 5 single asset class portfolios including ethical options.
InvestSMART has built a ‘direct to investor’ wealth platform used by over 700,000 Australians, with a focus on digital investment advice backed by low fee funds, and a content and tools ecosystem that includes Intelligent Investor and the Eureka Report.
InvestSMART also offers Fundlater, an innovative opportunity that allows investors to own a $10,000 portfolio with only $4,000 upfront.
OpenInvest
- Minimum investment: $20,000
- Fees: OpenInvest charges an administration fee of 0.35% p.a. though there is an additional investment manager fee that varies by model portfolio and fund manager
- Choice of portfolios: 4 portfolios ranging from defensive income to maximum growth.
OpenInvest is designed for investors who want to directly select their own ‘model’ portfolio. Investors not only select their preferred portfolio, they also choose the fund manager behind that portfolio. Among the professional fund managers to pick from are Blackrock, JP Morgan and Schroders. OpenInvest handles all the administration involved in investing on your behalf including transacting, performance reporting, preparation of tax reports, and record keeping.
Six Park
- Minimum investment: $2,000
- Fees: $6.25 per month on portfolios between $2,000 and $4,999, or $9.95 per month on portfolios of $5,000-$19,999. Portfolios over $20,000 attract a fee of 0.6-0.3% depending on the sum invested
- Choice of portfolios: 10 portfolios (five standard and five sustainable portfolios) comprised of up to eight asset classes.
First launched in 2016, Six Park’s investment philosophy focuses on diversification, thoughtful asset allocation and passive investing through the use of exchange traded funds. Investors who don’t yet have $2,000 to invest can set up a Six Park account and start making deposits. Once the account balance reaches $2,000, the funds will be invested. No fees are charged until the money is invested.
Raiz Invest
- Minimum investment: Minimum of$5 for funds to be invested
- Fees: Vary in line with choice of portfolio and sum invested. Fees start at $3.50 per month for accounts under $15,000
- Choice of portfolios: 7 including one socially responsible portfolio, and a ‘Sapphire’ portfolio with 5% exposure to Bitcoin. Or you can choose a Custom Portfolio option.
You’ll need to install the Raiz app to get started. Investors can set recurring deposits to their preferred portfolio as well as using ‘round-ups’ that direct small change on purchases to an investor’s portfolio. Raiz investors can also take advantage of Raiz rewards – a program of cash back rewards that are reinvested back into your Raiz account when you shop at participating retailers.
Spaceship Voyager
- Minimum investment: No minimum
- Fees: $2.50 per month when you have a portfolio with a balance of $100 or more
- Choice of portfolios: Three portfolios – Universe (world-changing companies), Earth (companies that have a positive impact) and Origin (a rules-based portfolio of 200 of the largest global and Australian companies).
Spaceship Voyager offers several ways for investors to grow their portfolio including round-ups from everyday spending, and the option to add a little to the portfolio from each pay packet. A feature called Budget Boost lets investors pick a budget category, and whenever money is spent on this category, funds are automatically transferred to the Spaceship investment account.
Stockspot
- Minimum investment: $2,000
- Fees: From $5.50 per month for account balances up to $10,000, through to 0.396% p.a. on balances of $2 million-plus
- Choice of portfolios: 5 portfolios ranging from conservative to high growth.
Stockspot has an investment philosophy that centres around tried and trusted approaches including time in the market beats market timing, rebalancing reduces risk and the value of sticking to a plan. Along with the core portfolios, Stockspot investors have the opportunity to take a themed approach with theme options that include Japanese shares, Chinese shares, Asian large companies, and European shares.
QuietGrowth
- Minimum investment: $3,000 for an investor’s first QuietGrowth portfolio, and $2,000 for a second or subsequent portfolio.
- Fees: Fees range from 0.6% for portfolios up to $10,000, through to 0.36% on portfolios over $2 million.
- Choice of portfolios: 5 portfolios comprised of stocks (via exchange traded funds), bonds and gold, each with varying levels of risk.
While the minimum investment is $3,000, QuietGrowth notes that if you have below $10,000 in your account, you won’t have the benefit of full diversification. As your deposits head towards $10,000, QuietGrowth will progressively buy more ETFs. However, you only have a fully diversified QuietGrowth portfolio when total deposits reach $10,000.
Best Australian Robo Advisors – the bottom line
With a strong selection of robo advisors available, investors have the benefit of choice, which helps to keep fees low.
The question of ‘which is the best robo advisor in Australia’ will depend entirely on what you are looking for in a robo advisor, how much you plan to invest, and what your ideal investment portfolio looks like.
What matters is that you take a close look at each of the robo advisors. Understand what they offer and how much they cost – and be sure to read the fine print so you know exactly what to expect from each service.
