Ameriprise Review: Points to Know
• Full-service brokerage and investment-advice accounts are available from Ameriprise Financial.
• Ameriprise offers other services, including insurance plans and bank accounts.
• Custom financial planning is Ameriprise’s focus.
Overview of Ameriprise
Ameriprise Financial is a Fortune 500 company that offers many very helpful services through investment professionals at branch locations spread around the country.
Ameriprise Investing
For securities trading, Ameriprise provides full-service brokerage and investment-advice accounts. By “full-service,” we mean that every account, whether brokerage or managed, must be opened through an investment professional at a nearby Ameriprise office. It is not possible to open a securities account online.
Ameriprise provides the following assets for investing:
- Stocks (including OTC stocks)
- Options
- Warrants
- Structured products
- Unit Investment Trusts (UITs)
- Mutual funds
- Exchange-traded and closed-end funds
- Bonds and other fixed-income instruments
- Alternative assets, including
- Hedge funds
- Managed futures funds
- Business development companies
- Off-exchange products
- Real estate private placements
- 1031 exchanges
- Private equity
- Syndicate offerings
The above investments can be held in taxable accounts and a range of tax shelters. Ameriprise provides custodial accounts, 529 plans, Individual Retirement Accounts, 401(k) plans, Coverdell Education Savings Accounts, trusts, and more.
Banking
Because Ameriprise wants to be a one-stop financial-services firm, it does not stop when investing is done. It does provide a variety of cash-management products, and these, too, must be opened through a local financial advisor.
Examples of cash choices available at Ameriprise include:
- Savings accounts
- Certificates of Deposit (yields as high as 4.85%)
- Ameriprise ONE® Financial Account
- Visa debit and credit cards
- Home loans
- Securities-based lending
The Ameriprise ONE® Financial Account is a brokerage account with cash features. It includes convenient check writing, a debit card, and online bill pay. Because it is technically a securities account, it can still hold many of the securities mentioned in the first section.
Regular and cash-enhanced brokerage accounts at Ameriprise can invest in an assortment of money-market products that yield around 3.3% right now. The company also has an FDIC-sweep program that yields far less but delivers $2.5 million in FDIC protection.
Insurance
After investing and banking come insurance. Because Ameriprise is a traditional full-service firm, insurance is a major priority. There are a variety of insurance products available to Ameriprise customers. These contracts include:
- Disability income insurance
- Annuities (including fixed, variable, structured, fixed index, and immediate)
- Auto and home insurance
- Life insurance
- Long-term care insurance
Financial Planning
To round out the financial picture, Ameriprise offers financial planning through its licensed investment advisor representatives. Services that are available through this program include:
- Advice for the three lines mentioned above (investing, banking, and insurance)
- Tax strategies
- Personalized financial plan
- Trust management
- Estate planning
- Retirement income
- Retirement planning
- Cash-flow management
- Estate planning
- Business valuation
- Employee benefits
- Education funding
- Goal planning
- And more...
In addition to in-person financial planning, Ameriprise has a team of virtual advisors who work with clients through digital channels.
Ameriprise Fees and Minimums
With such a long list of financial services, you may be thinking there’s probably a cost for all of this—and there is. Managed accounts are charged a percentage of assets under management. The maximum this fee can be is 2%. Some programs may charge less, although some add-on services will be an additional charge, so it is possible to exceed 2% for an account overall. Minimums for advisory accounts vary from $25,000 to $500,000.
Brokerage accounts have no minimums and no management fees, although they will have a variety of commissions that will be disclosed during account opening.
Self-directed accounts have annual or quarterly fees that vary by account type. A 529 account has a $25 annual fee. The Ameriprise ONE® Financial Account costs $25 per quarter and has a $500 minimum to open. The annual fee on the Coverdell account is $10. In all cases, the recurring charge can be avoided or reduced through several methods, such as having household assets above $500,000.
Financial planning for investment-advisory customers can be included in the 2% fee, although it’s
possible to obtain a financial plan without an advisory relationship. In this case, the minimum fee is
$500 per year, and the chosen advisor could charge more.
Find a Financial Advisor
If you are looking for a professional money management service in your area, you can
find a Financial Advisor on the Wiser Advisor
(or read
Wiser Advisor review).
Visit Wiser Advisor
Margin
Brokerage clients at Ameriprise can buy securities with borrowed money. The firm’s margin schedule is as follows:
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Debit Balance
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Margin Interest Rates
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$500,000+
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10.25%
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$100,000 - $499,999.99
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10.75%
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$50,000 - $99,999.99
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11.25%
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$25,000 - $49,999.99
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12.5%
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$0 - $24,999.99
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13.25%
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Software
Ameriprise has a website, mobile app, and automated phone system. Brokerage trades can be placed on the website and through the phone system. There is no desktop software.
Extra Services
DRIP Service: Automatic dividend reinvesting is possible in some account types at Ameriprise.
Extended-hours Trading: Not available.
Stock-Lending Income Program: Not available, either.
IPO Access: Ameriprise offers access to primary offerings of closed-end funds and preferred securities (but not common stock).
IRA Service: Ameriprise offers Individual Retirement Accounts with a $75 annual fee.
Recommendations
Frequent Stock Trading: Ameriprise doesn’t offer the software needed for advanced equity trading.
We suggest Charles Schwab instead.
Long-Term Investors & Retirement Savers: Ameriprise would be a very good choice.
Small Accounts: Because of Ameriprise’s minimums and fee schedule, we cannot suggest it for small
investors. Charles Schwab, by comparison, has no minimums and mostly no commissions for its robo and self-directed accounts.
Beginning Investors: Ameriprise is a very good firm for beginners who can meet the account minimums.
Mutual Funds: Ameriprise has roughly 2,200 mutual funds.
Firstrade, by
comparison, has 11,000, all with no transaction fees. We would go with Firstrade.
Ameriprise Financial Review Verdict
For traditional full-service investing, Ameriprise is worth a shot. But for active stock, options, and crypto trading, we would look elsewhere.
Find a Financial Advisor
If you are looking for a professional money management service in your area, you can
find a Financial Advisor on the Wiser Advisor
(or read
Wiser Advisor review).
Visit Wiser Advisor
Updated on 10/6/2025.
Chad Morris is a financial writer with more than 20 years experience
as both an English teacher and an avid trader. When he isn’t writing
expert content for Brokerage-Review.com, Chad can usually be found
managing his portfolio or building a new home computer.
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