Merrill Edge IRA vs Vanguard IRA

Merrill Lynch: best if you want

With more than $1.6 trillion in assets under management, Bank of America is one of the largest financial institutions in the United States—and if you already have a bank account with them, having a Merrill Edge self-directed IRA account can simplify your life while also offering top-of-the-line integrated research and charting tools. Bank of America has teamed up with Merrill Lynch Wealth Management to offer different investment options to its customers that are integrated across the BoA platform, and $0 account minimums, $0 commissions on stocks and ETFs, and $0 annual program fee, Merrill Edge is a solid choice for those looking for a place to manage their retirement accounts, whether you’re an existing Bank of America customer or not. However, the platform does not allow investment in some increasingly popular investment asset classes like futures, foreign exchange (forex), or cryptocurrency.

Vanguard: best if you want

Vanguard’s platform is built on trading low-cost mutual funds, index funds, and ETFs. As an investor, you’ll get access to Vanguard’s research, easy-to-read fund performance analyses, and helpful retirement planning tools. These perks, as well as Vanguard’s low-cost philosophy, make them a good choice for buy-and-hold investors planning for long-term goals like retirement. Vanguard’s low fees and earnest investment philosophy continue to attract new customers, the company’s assets under management (AUM) recently hit $6.2 trillion.

Merrill Lynch: other features

Since it’s integrated with the larger Bank of America Corporation, Merrill Edge truly shines when it comes to added features. Along with the investment options listed above, Merrill Edge customers can open CDs on the platform, explore fixed-income products like annuities, open checking, and savings accounts through Bank of America, and take out loans, including auto loans and mortgages.

Vanguard: other features

Vanguard offers a wide selection of investment account types, including standard brokerage accounts and goal-oriented investments like education savings plans. If you’re saving for several different goals in addition to retirement, Vanguard’s platform will allow you to manage it all from one online dashboard.

Vanguard offers customers the ability to work directly with a financial advisor, though you’ll need at least $50,000 to invest. Until then, you can take advantage of their free research and planning tools to help you invest wisely.

Conclusion

A Merrill Edge self-directed IRA gives investors the tools they need to make informed decisions on basic investment options, with a well-appointed and easy-to-use platform with plenty of integrated tools. However, for those who aren’t yet Bank of America customers, discounts for upper-tier financial advisory services may remain inaccessible, and for those looking for forward-facing investment choices like cryptocurrency and futures, Merrill Edge may not cut it.

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If you’re a buy-and-hold investor looking for low fees, Vanguard may be the place for you. However, if you’re looking for access to a wide variety of investment choices and a high-tech platform, you’ll likely get frustrated by Vanguard’s narrow investment selection and simplistic trading platform.