Empower (Personal Capital)
FreemiumWealth management platform combining free tools with premium advisory services
🤝Hybrid AdvisoryAbout Empower (Personal Capital)
Empower, formerly Personal Capital, offers a hybrid approach combining free financial planning tools and dashboards with premium wealth management services for accounts over $100,000. The free tools include a retirement planner, investment checkup, and net worth tracker that millions use without the paid advisory service.
What's Great
- ✓Free financial tools including retirement planner, net worth tracker, and investment checkup
- ✓Premium advisory combines automated investing with dedicated human advisors
- ✓Comprehensive financial dashboard aggregates all accounts in one view
- ✓Tax optimization strategies including tax-loss harvesting at the premium tier
Watch Out For
- !Premium advisory requires $100,000 minimum and charges 0.49-0.89% annually
- !Advisory fees are higher than pure robo-advisors for similar automated features
- !Free tools are the main draw — the paid service is expensive for what it offers
- !Cash drag from uninvested cash balances can reduce returns
Common Use Cases
Investor using the free tools to track net worth and check retirement readiness
High-net-worth individual wanting human advisor access alongside automated investing
Person consolidating a view of all financial accounts in one comprehensive dashboard
Pricing Model
Freemium
Free plan available. Paid plans unlock advanced features and higher limits.
Category
Hybrid Advisory
Combining automated investing with access to human financial advisors.
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