Maximize your IRA contributions and secure up to a 3% match, even if you’re self-employed (2024)

There’s no better time to be aggressive about focusing on your retirement funds than when retirement is decades away. A 2024 survey by the National Institute on Retirement Security found that more than half of Americans are worried about their financial future in retirement.

But you don’t have to be a part of that statistic. You can flip the script by finding ways to ramp up your retirement funds. One of the most effective ways? Take full advantage of your employer’s matching contributions to your workplace retirement plan. Unfortunately, self-employed savers have often missed out on employer matches — until now.

Robinhood Gold is aiming to close this gap. The platform offers a suite of services designed to boost your retirement by matching your contributions and helping amp up your earnings, even if you’re self-employed.

What’s Robinhood Gold?

Launched in 2016, Robinhood Gold Robinhood Gold is a premium set of powerful investment tools from Robinhood, a U.S. financial services company with more than 22 million users. When paired with the IRA, Robinhood Gold offers several features designed to boost your retirement account. These benefits help level the playing field for self-employed workers like freelancers and entrepreneurs who wouldn’t ordinarily get an employer match on their contributions to a retirement account.

Two key components of Robinhood Gold are its IRA match and high-yield, non-retirement account. When you opt into this offering, you can receive up to a 3% match* on annual contributions to your IRA account — compared to 1% without Gold. Plus, you earn 5% interest on your uninvested brokerage cash in a separate, non-retirement account.

Table 1. Standard Robinhood vs. Robinhood Gold Benefits

With Robinhood Gold, you also gain access to:

• Bigger Instant Deposits,** the feature that gives you instant access to a portion of deposits into a Robinhood account.
• Professional research from Morningstar, via unlimited access to their premium reports.
• Level II market data from Nasdaq, showing multiple bid and ask prices on each security.
• No interest on your first $1,000 of margin.

IRA match

Your 3% IRA boost on annual contributions with Robinhood Gold gives you up to $210 on top of the 2024 maximum $7,000 annual contribution for retirement investors under age 50. You can earn a 3% IRA boost on all new IRA contributions with Robinhood Gold and a 1% match on IRA transfers and old 401(k) rollovers.

Also, there’s no cap on the match you can earn on transfers and rollovers. Whether you transfer $1,000 or $1 million, there’s no limit to how much you can earn.

High-yield cash sweeps

Robinhood Gold’s 5.00% APY, or annual percentage yield, is nearly 11 times the national average savings rate, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as of May 20, 2024, and is among the best rates available. This means your money works harder for you, growing over time and potentially providing greater financial security in retirement.

Gold members can access a high-yield feature through Robinhood’s brokerage cash sweep program, an added feature to the Robinhood Finance LLC brokerage account. This option lets you earn interest on uninvested cash swept from your brokerage account into a program bank. It’s these FDIC-insured banks that pay the interest on your deposits, minus any fees paid to Robinhood. IRA accounts aren’t included in the brokerage cash sweep program.

As of Oct. 1, 2023, the following banks are included in Robinhood’s network of program banks:

• Goldman Sachs Bank USA.
• HSBC Bank USA, N.A.
• Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
• Citibank, N.A.
• Bank of Baroda.
• U.S. Bank, N.A.
• Bank of India.
• Truist Bank.
• M&T Bank.
• First Horizon Bank.
• EagleBank.
• CIBC Bank USA.

Your brokerage cash sweep deposits are protected by FDIC insurance, offering coverage up to $2.25 million, with up to $250,000 per program bank, including any deposits at program banks you may already hold at the bank in the same ownership capacity.

How do I access Robinhood Gold?

Getting started is easy. You can sign up for Robinhood Gold, or if you already have a Robinhood account, you can log in and sign up for an upgrade to Robinhood Gold. Keep in mind that a subscription fee will apply.

To give it a trial run, you can try Robinhood Gold for free for the first 30 days. Once your free trial ends, you’ll be charged a monthly fee at the beginning of each billing cycle unless you cancel your subscription before the next billing date.

The free trial only covers the monthly fee; it doesn’t cover any interest accrued from margin investing, and you can’t earn the 3% match during the free trial period.

Your Gold membership provides the added benefit of the first $1,000 borrowed for margin trading, but you’ll be charged interest on any amount you borrow beyond that.

Why invest with Robinhood?

Whether you’re a seasoned investor looking to maximize your retirement funds or self-employed and looking to level the playing field, Robinhood Gold’s features are designed with you in mind.

Robinhood’s investment tools, including optional features like high-yield cash sweeps and IRA boosting available with Robinhood Gold, let you plan and tailor your funds and investing approach to fit your needs.

If you’re ready to earn more for your retirement by taking your investing to the next level, Robinhood Gold makes it easy.

Disclosures

This isn’t a recommendation to transfer or rollover.

A rollover is not your only option for an old 401(k). You have four options for what you can do with a 401(k) from a former employer. There are pros and cons to each that you should consider. This isn’t tax advice. Consult a tax professional to understand your unique situation. For more information, visit Robinhood’s Help Center or FINRA’s site.

Annual percentage yields (APYs), rates and account details are accurate as of May 1, 2024.

*To maintain the 3% match, you must be a Robinhood Gold member for at least 1 year. You also must keep your money in a Robinhood IRA for at least 5 years.

**The Instant Deposit feature gives you immediate access to $1,000 after you initiate a deposit. Joining Robinhood Gold raises the limit to $50,000. Bigger Instant Deposits are only available if your Instant Deposits status is in good standing.

All investments involve risk and loss of principal is possible. Not a recommendation of a security or investment strategy.

Robinhood Gold is a financial technology company and not a bank. Robinhood Gold is offered through Robinhood Financial LLC and is a subscription offering premium services for a fee. All investments involve risk and diversification does not ensure a profit or guarantee against a loss.

With the brokerage cash sweep program, the uninvested cash in your individual investing account (cash intended for investing but that you have not yet invested or spent) is swept to program banks, where it becomes eligible for FDIC insurance up to $2.25 million or $250,000 per program bank, inclusive of any other deposits you may already hold at the bank in the same ownership capacity. Keep in mind that until funds are swept to a program bank, they’re held in your individual investing account which is protected by SIPC. Once funds are swept to a program bank, they’re no longer held in your brokerage account and aren’t protected by SIPC. However, these funds are eligible for FDIC insurance through the Program Banks subject to FDIC insurance coverage limits. The IND Disclosures has more information.

Terms apply. As of November 15. 2023, the APY you will receive as a Gold member is 5% APY. The APY might change at any time at the program banks’ discretion. Additionally, any fees Robinhood receives may vary and is subject to change. Neither Robinhood Financial LLC nor any of its affiliates are banks. Interest does not apply to IRAs.

Margin investing involves the risk of greater investment losses. Before using margin, customers must determine whether this type of strategy is right for them given their investment objectives and risk tolerance.

Bigger instant deposits are only available if your instant deposit status is in good standing.

Robinhood Financial LLC (member SIPC), is a registered broker dealer. Robinhood Securities, LLC (member SIPC), is a registered broker dealer and provides brokerage clearing services. All are subsidiaries of Robinhood Markets, Inc. (‘Robinhood’).

The 3% matching on contributions requires a subscription with Robinhood Gold (fees apply), must be subscribed to Gold for one year after your contribution to keep the full 3% match.

You must have compensation (wage income) to contribute to an IRA. The funds that earned the match must be kept in the account for at least five years to avoid a potential Early IRA Match Removal Fee. For more information, see the IRA Match FAQ.

Funds being contributed to or distributed from retirement accounts may entail tax consequences. Contributions are limited and withdrawals before age 59 1/2 may be subject to a penalty tax. Robinhood does not provide tax advice; please consult a tax adviser if you have questions.

The Robinhood IRA is available to any U.S. customer with a Robinhood brokerage account in good standing.

All investments involve risk and loss of principal is possible.