Automatic investing is a powerful way to build wealth over time, helping investors stick to their goals, avoid emotional decisions, and benefit from dollar-cost averaging, here’s how the top platforms stack up in 2025.
Ready to put your investments on autopilot? The best time to start is now. In 2025, many brokerages offer robust automatic investing features with web and mobile app options to make it easier than ever to set it and forget it.
What is Automatic Investing?
Below we reveal the best brokerages for automatic investing, let’s learn why automation is a must-have for investors who want to grow their money with less stress: why automatic investing is, why it matters, and which brokerages stand out for their automation tools.
Why setting-up an automatic investment schedule matters?
At the core of every automatic investment strategy is dollar-cost averaging and compounding interest, based on that dollar-cost averaging. Automatic investing lets you schedule recurring deposits into your investment account—weekly, monthly, or on your own custom timeline.
This approach helps you:
- Be consistent: Stick to a budget and investing plan to build wealth consistently, even during volatile markets
- Remove emotion: Reduce the temptation to time the market
- Increase accessibility: Regular contributions – even small but regularly occurring ones – compound into serious wealth over time.
The result? You stay consistent, sidestep emotional decisions, and keep your portfolio growing, even when markets get choppy.
Why investors love automatic, reoccurring investments?
- Consistency: Keeps your investing on track, rain or shine.
- Discipline: Removes emotion and market-timing mistakes.
- Accessibility: Even small, regular contributions compound into serious wealth over time.
How to Choose the Right Broker for Automatic Investing
Fractional shares democratize investing by lowering the barrier to entry. They allow investors to: Diversify Portfolios: Instead of putting all your money into one or two stocks, you can spread your investment across multiple companies. Invest in High-Priced Stocks: Stocks like Tesla or Amazon become accessible even with limited funds. Start Small: New investors can dip their toes into the market without committing large sums of money.
Which brokerage features are right for you?
The ease and flexibility of recurring investments of how you personally plan to build up your portfolio, especially for dollar-cost averaging and long-term planning, are critical questions to making auto-investing an on-going investment strategy.
- Which equities are you trying to automate the buying? Stick to a budget and investing plan to build wealth consistently, even during volatile markets
- Have you hand-picked the stocks/ETFs to buy, or do you want a robo-advisor to do the work? Reduce the temptation to time the market
- Are there minimum investment size or fees? Make sure you’re not penalized for making regular investment contributions.
- Is there a desktop and mobile experiences? If you stay up-to-date on your investments from a mobile app, it’s important to consider if your brokerage offers this capability.
Top Brokerages for Automatic Investing in 2025
Here’s a comparison of the major U.S. brokerages offering automatic investing, highlighting their strengths and any notable limitations:
| Brokerages | Fractional Shares | Stocks & ETFs |
Mutual Funds |
Robo-Advisor Settings |
Mobile App Settings |
Mins. & Fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fidelity | Yes | 7,000 stocks & ETFs | Yes | Fidelity Go | tbd | $0 fees , $0 min. |
| Charles Schwab | S&P 500 only | S&P 500 only | Yes | Schwab Intelligent Portfolios |
tbd | $0 fees , $5k to start robo |
| Vanguard | No | Vanguard ETFs only |
Yes | Vanguard Digital Advisor |
tbd | $0 fees , $3k to start robo |
| Robinhood | No | Good selection | No | No | tbd | $0 fees , $0 min. |
| SoFi Invest | Yes | Good selection | Yes | No | tbd | $0 fees , $0 min. |
| Interactive Brokers | No | Vanguard ETFs only | Yes | No | tbd | $0 fees , $0 min. |
Notable Features & Differentiators
- Fidelity Investments: Only major broker with the ability to set-up recurring buys of stock, ETF and mutual funds.
- Charles Schwab: Strong research, low fees, robust robo-advisor.
- Vanguard: Low-cost index funds, retirement focus.
- Robinhood: User-friendly app, limited automation for stocks.
- SoFi Invest: Automated portfolios, CFP access.
- Betterment: Leading robo-advisor, goal-based investing.
- Interactive Brokers: Advanced automation for pros, less beginner-friendly.
The Clear Automatic Investing Winner: Fidelity
Fidelity is the only major brokerage in 2025 that lets you set up recurring, automatic investments directly into both stocks and ETFs—making it a top pick for hands-on investors who want true automation without giving up control. The platform is packed with tools for goal tracking, budgeting, and research, and there are no account minimums or trading commissions for U.S. stocks and ETFs.
Other Notable Brokerage Considerations
- Charles Schwab & Vanguard: Both allow automatic investing in their mutual funds and offer strong robo-advisors for those who want a hands-off approach. However, they don’t support recurring buys for individual stocks or ETFs.
- E*TRADE: Enables recurring investments in eligible ETFs and mutual funds with a low $25 minimum.
- Robo-Advisors (Betterment, SoFi, Schwab Intelligent Portfolios): Automate everything—from portfolio management to rebalancing and contributions. Perfect for investors who want to set it and forget it.
- Robinhood & Interactive Brokers: Currently lack robust automation for stocks/ETFs, though Robinhood supports recurring crypto buys and IBKR offers advanced automation tools for pros.
Key Takeaways
Fidelity is the standout for recurring stock and ETF buys, while Schwab, Vanguard, and E*TRADE are excellent for mutual funds and automation-minded investors.
- Fidelity leads for recurring stock and ETF purchases, making it the best choice for DIY automation.
- Schwab, Vanguard, and E*TRADE excel for mutual funds and robo-advisor options.
- Betterment, SoFi, and Schwab Intelligent Portfolios make fully-automated investing accessible for everyone, even beginners.
- Robinhood and Interactive Brokers are less automation-friendly for stocks and ETFs, but may suit niche needs.
Bottom Line
Automatic investing is a tremendous game-changer for growing your personal wealth in 2025. Whether you’re a hands-on investor or want a robo-advisor to handle everything, there’s a platform that fits your style. The most important step? Start automating—your future self will thank you.