M1 Finance Review
Automated investing with fully customizable "Pies". Independent M1 Finance review: 4.2/5 for robo-advisor. Best for Hands-off investors who want control.
By Michael Hewitt, Founder & Editor-in-Chief. Rates last checked September 7, 2026.
Our verdict
Hands-off investors who still want to choose their holdings build custom Pies at M1 that rebalance on every deposit, with $0 commissions and no management fee. Balances under $10,000 pay a $3 monthly platform fee. Trades execute only in one or two daily windows, and there's no tax-loss harvesting, which is why it isn't rated higher.
Skip it if you need to trade at a specific time of day, or want tax-loss harvesting.
About M1 Finance
Automated investing with fully customizable "Pies". M1 Finance is offered by M1 Finance LLC. Our editorial rating is 4.2 out of 5.
Best for: Hands-off investors who want control.
Editorial grade: A- (composite score 84/100).
Highlights
- Build custom portfolios (Pies) with auto-rebalancing on every deposit
- $0 trade commissions and no management fee; $3/mo platform fee under $10K
- $3/mo platform fee is waived with $10,000+ in M1 assets or an active M1 Personal Loan
What we like
- Unique hybrid of robo-advisor + self-directed investing
- Fractional shares across 6,000+ stocks and ETFs
- Taxable, Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, and Trust accounts
- Low-rate margin borrowing via M1 Borrow (M1 Plus only)
Where it falls short
- Trades only execute in 1–2 daily trading windows
- No tax-loss harvesting or direct financial advisor access
Fees, minimums, and rates
Monthly fee: $0 trades; $3/mo platform fee under $10K. Minimum to open: $100 ($500 for IRAs). Rates and fees last checked on September 7, 2026.
How we reviewed it
This is a desk review: we have not opened an account with M1 Finance LLC. It is built from M1 Finance LLC's published rates, fee schedule and terms and from the public complaint record, and compared with the other products in the Robo-Advisor shortlist. Our brokerage and robo-advisor reviews weight costs and fees (25%), platform and tools (20%), asset selection (15%), account types (10%), education and research (10%), customer support (10%), and trust and safety (10%). The rubric is the same for every brand.
Similar products to compare
Read our full editorial methodology for how we review products.