Much like any self-led project you choose to tackle, DIY investing is investing you do yourself rather than with a financial or robo advisor. While managing your own investments may take more time and research, the beauty of controlling your own portfolio is you can take on however much or however little you’re comfortable with.
An Ally Invest Self-Directed Trading account gives you direct control of how you’re investing toward your goals without the advisory fees that come with most advisor accounts — or you can always choose to take DIY investing on as an extra, on top of other investing accounts you have.
Read more: Take our quiz to find out which investment accounts are right for you
How DIY investing works at Ally Invest
The Ally Invest Self-Directed Trading account was designed with DIYers in mind. With tools to help you craft a portfolio that you can tailor to your financial goals, plus call and chat support from our team, you’ll have a strong foundation, if you’re ready to start investing. Key features of Ally Invest’s Self-Directed Trading platform include:
No minimum to start: Open your account with whatever amount you’d like (the sooner you fund, the sooner you can start trading).
Trade commission-free: We offer a wide range of U.S.-listed stocks, mutual funds and ETFs that are commission-free. Options are commission-free with a 50¢ fee per contract.
Interconnectivity: If you're an Ally Invest and Ally Bank customer, we give you access to your money in one view, making transfers simple.
Plus, with the Ally Invest platform, you can:
View streaming charts with drawing tools to analyze the performance of stocks, ETFs and indices
Assess stocks with TipRanks Smart Score, which rates stocks from 1 to 10 and can help you make an informed decision
Use our Stock Screener to research stocks and craft your portfolio
Analyze and compare performance and price data for thousands of ETFs with our ETF Screener
Create custom watchlists to stay on top of market data
Get access to market stats, news and metrics on the companies you care about
With tools to help you craft a portfolio that you can tailor to your financial goals, plus call and chat support from our team, you’ll have a strong foundation if you’re ready to start investing.
To help make a hands-on approach to investing as accessible and hassle-free as possible, Ally Invest’s Self-Directed Trading platform also lets you:
Trade at your fingertips
Not at home? Not a problem. Our web and mobile apps allow you to remain securely connected to the stock market from any device, so you’re fully in control of your trades. Plus, you can easily access both Ally Invest and Ally Bank with one login, making it super simple to see all your accounts in one place.
Create a customized approach
Some of our offerings include:
With lots to choose from, you can craft a portfolio you’re comfortable with.
Save on transfer fees
Perhaps all this sounds great, but you’re currently trading on a different platform. We believe it shouldn’t cost you an arm and a leg to make a move, so we’ll reimburse you $75 in transfer fees for a first-time ACAT transfer of $2,500 or more from another brokerage.
Get help when you need it
We aim to make the investing experience simple and transparent. But you never know when you’ll have a question, so we have specialists available by chat or phone, just in case you need us.
Getting started
Beginning your DIY investment journey with Ally Invest’s Self-Directed Trading platform can be done in three easy steps:
Conduct research directly within your Ally Invest account with tools such as TipRanks Smart Score and the ETF Screener
Fund your account
Make a trade
Once your account is ready up and running, you might decide set aside a specific amount each month to invest consistently.
Direct your financial future
Welcome to the world of creating your own portfolio. It can be a little intimidating, but with time, patience and the right tools and resources to help you out, you can feel more confident. If you’re ready to take investing into your own hands, we’re here to help you.
