Apps like Acorns

• Better for families saving for their children's education than Acorns.

Similar to Acorns, Wealthfront is a popular robo-advisor. Its 0.25% annual management fee may be lower than Acorns' fees if you carry a small balance. But its $500 minimum investment may be a bit steep for some.
However, Wealthfront stands out for its automated 529 plan. A 529 plan is a tax-advantaged account meant to help you invest in your child's college education. Unlike a traditional brokerage account, money in a 529 plan grows tax free. You can also withdraw money from a 529 plan tax free if you use it on qualified educational expenses.
But Wealthfront offers plenty of tools to help you make the most out of your 529 plan. Using the Wealthfront app, you select the school you want your child to go to. Using data from the Department of Education, Wealthfront estimates how much it would cost by the time your kid reaches college age. These estimates account for tuition, expenses, projected inflation and how much financial aid you can expect. Wealthfront then recommends a monthly savings amount to meet these expenses.
The Wealthfront 529 plan portfolio invests in a mix of municipal securities and ETFs based on your risk level and other factors. It's automatically managed and functions similarly to a target-date fund (TDF). This means its investment mix is rebalanced to become more conservative as your child gets closer to college age.
The Wealthfront 529 plan incurs an all-in fee of no more than 0.49%. But you may find other 529 plans with smaller fees. Almost every state administers 529 plans. You can invest in any plan, regardless of the state you live in. Still, you can link external 529 plan accounts to the Wealthfront app and take advantage of its tools.

• More investment options than Acorns.

While Acorns invests your money in a mix of ETFs designed to mirror the returns of the market indices they track, Titan Invest puts your money in actively managed portfolios designed to outperform the market.
Titan, also called Titanvest, lets you choose from either its Flagship or Opportunities portfolios. Each invests in 20 stocks and inverse ETFs meant to hedge against market downturns. Inverse ETFs are designed to go up when the market goes down.
Titan uses this strategy to seek large returns while protecting you from market downturns.
These portfolios are professionally managed by Titan's investment team. So you can take a hands-off approach like you do with Acorns.
But it's not for everyone. A stock-heavy portfolio and inverse ETFs require high-risk tolerance. Plus, there's a $100 minimum investment to open a Titan account. Its annual management fee is 1% on accounts of $10,000 or less. For smaller accounts, Titan charges a $5 monthly fee taken from the bank account linked to your Titan account.
Consider Titan if you believe Acorns is not earning you strong enough returns and you can stomach the risks that come with seeking bigger gains.

• Lower fees than Acorns.

Like Acorns, SoFi Invest® offers a computer-managed portfolio built with exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The robo-advisor manages this portfolio for you and rebalances it when market changes deem it necessary.

And if you want to set aside some money to build your own portfolio, you can use its active investing account. This lets you trade stocks and ETFs without worrying about paying commissions.

You can access both accounts online or through the SoFi® app.

• Better than Acorns for smaller portfolios.

Acorns alternative Betterment is also a robo-advisor. Its automated investment platform recommends a portfolio based on your goals and risk level. It also manages it for you. But Betterment's fees can be lower than Acorns' if you have a small balance.
Betterment charges a 0.25% annual fee based on a percentage of assets held in your account. Acorns charges monthly fees that range from $1 to $5 depending on the scope of services you want.
But on small balances, Betterment ends up being more affordable. Let's say you invest $5,000. With Betterment's 0.25% fee, that's $12.50 a year. Acorns charges monthly fees that range from $3 to $12 depending on the scope of services you want.
Plus, Betterment's basic plan comes with automatic tax-loss harvesting. This strategy can reduce the tax burden on your investments. And you'll have access to certified financial planners (CFPs) if your balance is at least $100,000. They can advise you on personal matters like debt management and retirement planning. These CFPs can also provide advice on investments outside Betterment.

• More research tools than Acorns.

Like Acorns, Fidelity Investments offers an automated investment platform. But it also lets you open an active investing account with an arsenal of sophisticated research tools and a vast menu of investment choices. You can invest in bonds, mutual funds, index funds and other securities not available through Acorns.
Day traders can use research tools like a stock screener with more than 140 criteria. They can also filter stocks by industry sectors and flip through third-party research from Thomson Reuters and other industry leaders.
Hands-off investors may be interested in Fidelity GO, which combines a robo-advisor and the expertise of an investment team. Fidelity GO waives management fees on balances less than $10,000. This automated platform builds investment portfolios with Fidelity mutual funds. An investment team monitors the markets and makes adjustments to your portfolio if needed.