Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated September 19, 2026. Quick answer: Betterment Premium is less expensive at $500,000: $3,250 a year, versus $10,350 a year for MassMutual, computed from each firm’s own SEC-filed fee disclosure. See the full side-by-side table below for $250,000, $1 million and $2 million.
What each firm charges, side by side
| Account balance | Betterment Premium (annual fee) | MassMutual (annual fee) |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $1,625 | $5,175 |
| $500,000 | $3,250 | $10,350 |
| $1,000,000 | $6,500 | $20,700 |
| $2,000,000 | $5,000 | $41,400 |
Betterment Premium discloses a tiered schedule starting at 0.65% (Form ADV Part 2A – Betterment Client Brochure (Betterment LLC), 2026-07-31); MassMutual discloses a maximum, individually negotiated rate of 2.07% (MML Investors Services, LLC – MMLIS Wealth Management Services Portfolio Solutions Programs Wrap Fee Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1), July 10, 2026).
What the fee includes, in each firm’s own words
Betterment Premium (Form ADV Part 2A – Betterment Client Brochure (Betterment LLC), 2026-07-31): “Retail Clients who receive Betterment Premium Services pay a wrap fee of 0.65% of their account balance in annualized fees, which includes Betterment’s 0.25% annualized wrap fee plus 0.40% for access to Premium Services provided by Betterment’s team of financial consultants (subject to the Discount described in Item 5B. below). Betterment waives the 0.40% fee for Premium Services on account balances above $1 million. … A balance of at least $100,000 is required to be eligible to participate in the Betterment Premium plan.”
Whole-balance (breakpoint) fee, not marginal: the 0.65% combined rate (0.25% base wrap fee + 0.40% Premium access fee) applies to the full balance once the $100,000 Premium minimum is met, up to and including $1,000,000 ($250,000 x 0.0065 = $1,625; $500,000 x 0.0065 = $3,250; $1,000,000 x 0.0065 = $6,500, since the brochure waives the 0.40% Premium fee only on balances ‘above’ $1 million, not at exactly $1 million). Above $1,000,000 the 0.40% Premium fee is waived, leaving only the 0.25% base wrap fee on the entire balance ($2,000,000 x 0.0025 = $5,000). This produces a real fee cliff where a $1,000,000 account pays more in dollar terms than a $2,000,000 account – that is a direct, disclosed consequence of the waiver threshold, not an error.
MassMutual (MML Investors Services, LLC – MMLIS Wealth Management Services Portfolio Solutions Programs Wrap Fee Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1), July 10, 2026): “The Client Fee includes an Execution, Clearing and Custody Fee of 0.06%, a negotiable Advisory Fee up to a maximum of 1.54%, and any applicable fees to Strategists. … Strategist Fees range from 0.05% to 0.47%.”
MMLIS’s Client Fee for the Portfolio Solutions Programs is built from three disclosed components rather than one published schedule: a fixed 0.06% Execution/Clearing/Custody Fee, a negotiable Advisory Fee capped at 1.54% of AUM, and a Strategist Fee ranging 0.05%-0.47% depending on which asset-allocation model/strategist is selected (or 0% if none). Worst-case ceiling = 0.06% + 1.54% + 0.47% = 2.07%, applied uniformly to compute dollar_at as the maximum a client could be charged (250000*0.0207=5175; 500000*0.0207=10350; 1000000*0.0207=20700; 2000000*0.0207=41400). A client’s actual fee would typically be lower depending on the negotiated Advisory Fee and the Strategist Fee of the specific model chosen.
How this compares
Our benchmark of published adviser fee schedules puts the weighted median annual cost near $2,000 to $2,500 on $250,000 (the benchmark). At $500,000, Betterment Premium runs $3,250 a year and MassMutual runs $10,350 a year: a difference of $7,100 a year at that balance.
Want the full breakdown for either firm on its own? Read the Betterment Premium fee page or the MassMutual fee page for the complete tier table and source citations.
Thinking about leaving one of these firms instead of pricing what you would pay to stay? See what it costs to leave Betterment Premium, or read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors.
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- Form ADV Part 2A – Betterment Client Brochure (Betterment LLC) (2026-07-31): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1053566
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Betterment LLC (CRD #149117): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/149117
- MML Investors Services, LLC – MMLIS Wealth Management Services Portfolio Solutions Programs Wrap Fee Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1) (July 10, 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1051357
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, MML Investors Services, LLC (CRD #10409): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/10409
Methodology. This page was built September 19, 2026, re-pairing figures already archived and independently verified for Betterment Premium and MassMutual from each firm’s own SEC-filed disclosure; sources linked above. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
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