Examined Sep 18, 2026 No link we may carry 3-year holding period Betterment pays $100 to $2,000 for new investing money, and a fee takes the reward back if the money leaves within three years.
The $2,000 needs $200,000 of net new deposits. The bottom tier is $100 for $1,000 to $9,999. The reward arrives on or around the last day of the 45-day offer period, and Betterment treats it as interest for tax reporting. No referral link is needed for this offer.
What pays what
| $1,000 to $9,999 of net new deposits | $100 |
|---|---|
| $10,000 to $24,999 | $125 |
| $25,000 to $49,999 | $250 |
| $50,000 to $99,999 | $750 |
| $100,000 to $199,999 | $1,250 |
| $200,000 or more | $2,000 |
| Under $1,000, or money moved in from Betterment Cash Reserve or Checking | $0 |
| Instead: a friend's invitation, brand-new client, $100 into an individual automated investing account | $150, about 30 days after the deposit |
| Friend's invitation, $10 into an individual Cash Reserve account | 0.75% APY boost for 92 days, on up to $1,000,000 |
Amounts are not cumulative: $10,000 earns $125, not $100 plus $125. Divide each reward by the smallest deposit in its tier and the bottom tier is the richest: $100 on $1,000 is 10% of the deposit, $125 on $10,000 is 1.25%, and $2,000 on $200,000 is 1%. The cash boost is small: 0.75% a year on $10,000 is $75, and 92 of 365 days of that is about $19.
Do this, in this order
- Pick one offer. They do not combine. The public terms say: “This Betterment Investing Reward is not valid with other investing offers and is non-transferrable.” The referral terms say the same about other new customer offers. Under $25,000, the invitation's $150 beats the public $100 or $125, and it needs only $100. It is only for people with no existing Betterment account, and it has its own three-year rule: let the account fall below $250, the $100 deposit plus the $150 bonus, and a fee of up to $150 applies.
- Check you are an eligible client. The public offer covers new clients, existing clients whose managed investing accounts held $0 in total on May 1, 2026, and existing clients with only Cash Reserve, Checking, self-directed investing or a Betterment at Work 401(k). It excludes Betterment Advisor Solutions advised clients and new clients arriving through an acquisition and account transfer. Both offers are for U.S. residents only.
- Enroll first, then open the right account. You must click the offer link in your email, in the app or on the website signup by 11:59:59 PM ET on November 30, 2026. The account must be an individual managed investing account: taxable, or a traditional, Roth or SEP IRA. Deposits into joint, trust, self-directed, Cash Reserve or 401(k) accounts do not count.
- Deposit new money within 45 days of enrolling. The 45 days include settlement, typically 2 to 3 business days. Rollovers and transfers of cash or investments from outside accounts count. Transfers from your own Cash Reserve or Checking do not. Withdrawals before the reward date are subtracted from your total.
- Know where the reward lands, then leave it. With several funded accounts, the whole reward goes to one, in this order: Roth IRA, traditional IRA, SEP IRA, then your highest-balance individual taxable account. Betterment's own example: deposit $10,000, receive $125, withdraw $2,000 inside three years, and the withdrawal is charged $25, the gap between the $125 and $100 tiers. Withdrawals no larger than your later deposits or market gains are not charged.
A non-taxable fee will apply to the applicable Eligible Account as payment for services from Betterment if, for any reason, you transfer or distribute some or all of your net Qualified Deposits or Betterment Investing Reward to an account that is not an Eligible Account, including internal transfers to a Betterment joint or trust investing account or a Betterment Cash Reserve account, at any time prior to the end of three (3) years after the Reward Date (the “Holding Period” and such fee, the “Early Removal Fee”).
The ceiling is in the same document: “In no event will the aggregate amount of the Early Removal Fee exceed the amount of the Betterment Investing Reward received.” When the fee owed is as large as the withdrawal itself, a single withdrawal is charged 80% of its value and the rest carries over to the next one.
Where Betterment's pages disagree, and what they leave out
$2,000 or $1,500. Betterment's site menu, on every page we saved, reads “Start investing with Betterment today and earn up to $2,000!” and the terms, whose web address says Q2 2026 but whose text is headed “Updated July 21, 2026”, top out at $2,000. The body of the investing page, beside a Claim offer button, reads “Enroll and earn up to $1,500”. So that one page shows both figures, and we could not tell whether the $1,500 is the same offer or a separate one. Before you deposit, read the table in the terms linked from the button you enroll through.
The cost of the account is not on the offer pages. Betterment's referral landing page says it earns revenue mainly through management fees, either a share of assets or a flat monthly fee. None of the offer pages we read states the amount. Find it on Betterment's pricing page before you weigh a $100 reward against three years of fees.
Tax, and the right to end it. “Betterment processes and treats the Betterment Investing Reward as interest earned by the Eligible Account for tax reporting purposes.” The terms add that it may be taxable income if you convert a Traditional IRA contribution to a Roth IRA. Betterment can end the offer at any time for any reason, limit your reward, and refuse or recover one it decides was obtained wrongfully.
Is it worth your time?
If you were going to open a managed investing account or an IRA at Betterment anyway, enroll before you fund it. The worst outcome is mild: leave early and you hand back the reward, never more. Do not let the reward pick your manager for three years: the account's fee is not on these pages and runs the whole time.
Already a client? Each qualifying friend you invite earns you $150 if you hold an automated investing account, a 0.75% Cash Reserve boost for 92 days if you hold Cash Reserve, or both. The sender terms stop rewards after five referrals in a calendar year, require you to disclose that you are paid, and say: “Please send invites only to people you know personally who will be glad to get them.” That is why this site carries no Betterment invitation.
