There’s a good chance you’ve heard about the S&P 500. The index, established by Standard and Poor’s in 1957, measures the performance of roughly 500 large U.S. companies publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. The constituent companies are weighted by market capitalization, or the total dollar value of their issued shares.
Stocks on the S&P 500 account for about 80% of the U.S. stock market’s value and the index is widely viewed as a benchmark of how well the market is doing overall. Many industries are represented, but the information technology, health care and financial sectors account for more than half of the companies on the index.
Ally Invest®
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. No account minimum for Self-Directed Trading. $100 minimum for Robo Portfolios
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. Self-Directed Trading has zero commission fees for stock, ETF, options trades; $0.50 per options contract. Robo Portfolios have zero management fees
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Bonus
You may be eligible for up to $3,000 bonus cash when you open an Ally Invest Self-Directed account
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Investment vehicles
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, ETFs, options, mutual funds, margin account and forex trading
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Educational resources
Offers informational articles to help users improve their understanding of investment strategies and market trends
E*TRADE
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. No minimum to open an E*TRADE brokerage account; minimum $500 deposit to invest in robo-advisor platform Core Portfolios
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. Zero commission fees for stock, ETF and options trades; zero transaction fees for over 4,400 mutual funds; robo-advisor Core Portfolios charges 0.30% annual advisory fee
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Investment vehicles
Robo-advisor: E*TRADE Core Portfolios IRA: E*TRADE Traditional, Roth, Rollover, Beneficiary, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, IRA for Minors and E*TRADE Complete™ IRA Brokerage and trading: E*TRADE Trading Other: E*TRADE Coverdell ESA (Education Savings Account), Custodial Account for minors and small business retirement plans
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, CDs, ETFs, options and futures
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Educational resources
Educational library includes in-depth articles and videos for any type of investor
See our methodology, terms apply.
While S&P 500 stocks can cost thousands of dollars per share, fractional shares are an affordable way to have some skin in the game by purchasing a portion of a single share.
Through its Schwab Stock Slices™ program, Charles Schwab offers fractional shares of any stock on the S&P 500. You can choose a single slice (fractional share) to up to 30 slices, with rates as low as $5 a slice.
Similar to traditional stocks, fractional shares at Schwab are traded commission-free online.
Charles Schwab
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. No account minimum for active investing through Schwab One® Brokerage Account. Automated investing through Schwab Intelligent Portfolios® requires a $5,000 minimum deposit
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. Schwab One® Brokerage Account has no account fees, $0 commission fees for stock and ETF trades, $0 transaction fees for over 4,000 mutual funds and a $0.65 fee per options contract
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Bonus
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Investment vehicles
Robo-advisor: Schwab Intelligent Portfolios® and Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Premium™ IRA: Charles Schwab Traditional, Roth, Rollover, Inherited and Custodial IRAs; plus, a Personal Choice Retirement Account® (PCRA) Brokerage and trading: Schwab One® Brokerage Account, Brokerage Account + Specialized Platforms and Support for Trading, Schwab Global Account™ and Schwab Organization Account
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, CDs and ETFs
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Educational resources
Extensive retirement planning tools
SoFi Invest®
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. No account minimum for active or automated investing, or to participate in IPOs. $5 minimum to own a fractional share of a company. $10 minimum to trade crypto
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. Active investing has zero commission fees for trading stocks and ETFs (exchange and fund management fees may apply). Automated investing has zero management fees
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Bonus
Download the SoFi app and get up to $1,000 when you open an Active SoFi Invest® Brokerage Account. Make your first crypto trade of $10 or more and earn $10 in bitcoin. SoFi covers up to $75 of any transfer fees your brokerage may charge when you transfer an account to SoFi
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Investment vehicles
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, ETFs, crypto, fractional shares and IPO participation
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Educational resources
Investors can create a personal watchlist that follows their stocks to stay up to date and receive the latest investing news
Buying into S&P 500 index funds or ETFs
Another option is a low-cost S&P 500 mutual fund or ETF, both of which mirror the index and typically carry less risk than investing in individual stocks.
An S&P 500 fund or ETF tries to replicate the performance of the index by investing in listed companies and working to match the index’s performance. This gives investors broad exposure to the leading U.S. companies without having to buy into them individually.
Most major brokerages offer an S&P 500 fund or ETF, including Vanguard and Fidelity. You can also invest through apps like Robinhood or through robo-advisors like Betterment and Wealthfront, which use algorithms to tailor a portfolio based on your age, investment goals, time horizon, risk tolerance and other considerations.
Betterment
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. For example, Betterment doesn’t require clients to maintain a minimum investment account balance, but there is a ACH deposit minimum of $10. Premium Investing requires a $100,000 minimum balance.
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected, account balances, etc. Click here for details.
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Investment vehicles
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, ETFs and cash
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Educational resources
Betterment offers retirement and other education materials
Terms apply. Does not apply to crypto asset portfolios.
Wealthfront
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Minimum deposit and balance
Minimum deposit and balance requirements may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. $500 minimum deposit for investment accounts
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Fees
Fees may vary depending on the investment vehicle selected. Zero account, transfer, trading or commission fees (fund ratios may apply). Wealthfront annual management advisory fee is 0.25% of your account balance
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Bonus
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Investment vehicles
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Investment options
Stocks, bonds, ETFs and cash. Additional asset classes to your portfolio include real estate, natural resources and dividend stocks
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Educational resources
Offers free financial planning for college planning, retirement and homebuying
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The S&P 500 index encompasses hundreds of top U.S. companies. Investors can buy stocks or fractional shares of listed companies or invest in S&P 500 funds or ETFs through brokerages and robo-advisors.
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every investing article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of investing products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.
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