Ellevest: Investing for women Reviews

I love this app and everything it stands for, and as a woman in my late-twenties who had yet to build a dedicated investment account outside of my 401K, I was really excited to branch into investing with this app! The articles and courses for learning are great. I think this app still has a lot of improvements they can make on sharing data, insights and learnings for your accounts. Finding the accounts that my money is invested in and learning more about them isn’t super user-friendly or intuitive and honestly doesn’t make much sense. It would be great if there were articles or an easy way to learn more about what they’ve invested my money in and why. There’s a chart that shows my overall projections based on what I invest each month, but I’d also love to see a chart with my overall account holdings over time and see how it’s risen and grown. I feel like their education offerings are very generic and would appreciate if they could build those features out to be more specific or at least link to education articles that could teach me more when I’m in my account looking at my portfolio. Overall, I really believe in this company and am glad to be supporting it, but I don’t feel like I’m learning as much as I could and don’t have as much visibility and education on my portfolio as I’d like. Hoping that’s in their improvement plans in the coming year!

I love this app as a brand and have followed their newsletters for months before downloading Ellevest and starting an investment account. I am shocked at how buggy Ellevest experience is - 1) logging in was a pain because Face ID and any saved passwords were not working at all; the login boxes remained blank. 2) I reset my password and after getting an in-app confirmation, something was running in the backend that forced Ellevest to run without dimming or locking, so by the time I got back to my phone it was raging hot. 3) The text input was wonky and every time I tried inputting my login info or reset password info the CTA under it would block the text somehow so it was hard to see what I was typing? 4) Basic things like changing linked bank accounts or upgrading/downgrading/canceling memberships are difficult, and I get it, you need to make money but it’s a treasure hunt which is an unpleasant user experience.

Things I do love: the brand, Sallie, and the aesthetic of Ellevest . The content available is also very interesting and I’ll give Ellevest some more of my time!

I signed up with this app when it first started a couple of years ago. I didn’t know anything about investing and it seemed like a safe way to get started. While it was handy with auto-withdrawals from my bank and managing investments for me, it didn’t really help me learn anything. I did a lot of my own research to understand what I wanted to do with my money.
I was okay with paying fees knowing that I’d get that extra assistance that I needed, but I still wasn’t earning enough to meet my goal and was constantly suggested to add large one-time deposits to “get back on track”. It started to feel more like a savings account in which I was the only one contributing and not making much profit (while also paying fees)
I started watching more videos and reading articles about investing, stocks, etc and decided to use Robin Hood instead. It’s also a beginner friendly app which helps you get started in stocks with no fees (unless you want the added services)
Overall, this app may be a good place to start where young women will feel empowered but ultimately you may want to take charge of your own money and move your accounts elsewhere

I reallyyyyy wanted to like Ellevest. I downloaded and entered a lot of my personal and contact information because I wanted to see how Ellevest works and how it makes investments with my money. However as part of the onboarding process it asks you to link your bank account info before you can proceed into Ellevest . I’m always very hesitant when it comes to providing that kind of information before I know what I’m getting myself into. So obviously I abandoned the process but now I keep getting spam emails from them that are impossible to unsubscribe from. I’ve tried logging in on Ellevest and on the web browser to edit my email notification settings or just delete my account however it will not let you continue past the onboarding process without providing your bank info !!!!! This is incredibly irritating and an extremely shady UX practice!!! I’ve read in other reviews that once you link your bank info they make it impossible to unsubscribe or get in touch with them and they’ll just keep taking your money. They need to fix these issues before I consider downloading Ellevest again.

Ellevest is so buggy and hard to use. I can find no app tutorials, no screen captures, no walk-throughs. It’s really terrible. I also can’t find any option to cancel, change my membership, etc. I’ve been waiting for my bank to be verified for a week and no communication or anything regarding it. I got a debit card in the mail and I activated it, and went to put money on it...there was some quick button to transfer money, I chose $50. It didn’t say where it was taking it from and no option to see the history(such as pending transactions, etc.)
I realized my bank isn’t even verified yet...so...how could it transfer $50? WTH is happening!? Lol!
I uploaded my bank statement so they can verify it and it never confirmed the upload. When you go to the upload bank statement option, it just lets you upload it again and again while never confirming. I really hate Ellevest, I do not want to involve any of my dollars with this company that can’t even get Ellevest straight. Going over to Robinhood, trying to cancel my membership here.

My initial review would have been 4 star abouta year ago, but after using often on my iPhone 6 it just suddenly stopped working. I can’t open it or access any accounts. Had I known they would stop working on my phone (the main way I access this bank) I wouldn’t have opened my accounts. Without an actual bank it’s like robbery when you cannot access your info.
I notified them about it not working months ago and even with updates it still won’t work.
I won’t be held hostage to buy a new phone just to use my account so I will not be opening anymore accounts with them (as I had planned to).
If you’re a tech company you have to be better than all other banks in tech. You have to maintain the relationships you have with your original users, and not bait and switch, and/or ignore older customers for newer clients (and newer phones).
I won’t be held hostage by Apple to update my (too expensive) phone because they want more money from me, and a bank that won’t let me access my money is also a poor choice.

I heard of this app about a year ago and the mission immediately appealed to me. However, I put opening an account with them on the back burner because I was apprehensive. Now looking at how easy, simple, and good returns; I really regret not starting sooner.

With their new changes, I’m predicting that more young women will join because it’s worth it.

Last, I don’t understand the complaints, Ellevest is simple and has an appealing UI that’s easy on the eyes! I think the issue is some women don’t understand, they are a roboadvisor.

It’s a good app all around. Well designed, educational, attractive. Not great though, and here’s why. There are very important features missing. If I am spending my money on an app for money management, I want it to be wholesome and complete with cash management tools/features.

Two features I DEEPLY miss from other banking apps:

1. The option to save for different goals without using an investment account to do so. This feature helps me organize my finances for things like groceries, yearly bills, or other upcoming expenses that I don’t necessarily want to invest money to save for (too short term). It’s more of an organization feature than anything. (Simple Banking app has this for free)

2. A complete budgeting feature!

Please add these two things, this app! If these features were added, this would be my absolute favorite banking app (and much more worth the monthly fee).

Another note- this app works great on new phones, but if you have an old phone it probably won’t work, unfortunately. :( I had to wait almost a year to use Ellevest after much frustration with trying to set up an account on an iPhone 6—now that I have the iPhone 12 it works like a dream, though.

I downloaded the this app app and created an account, and I was very excited to learn how to invest and to be a part of a company geared towards women. Getting my account set up was quite the pain. I had to submit loads of personal information including my SSN and a bank statement from my bank. Then, I got locked out of my account. I tried changing the password multiple times and logging in on the website and nothing worked. A customer service rep asked me to, again, submit pictures of my social security card, my Driver’s License, bank statement, and a utility bill. I submitted those documents. She emailed me back and told me my account was being restricted for “suspicious activity.” Now I can no longer use Ellevest or my account, even after all of the information I gave them and time I spent trying to get things set up. Way to go, this app. Way to go.

I joined this app in July at $9/month level and uploaded banking information and lots of private information. Could not access the essential parts of Ellevest like banking to set up spend and save accounts because Ellevest said it was still verifying my identity and bank info. No option within Ellevest to change membership levels or cancel membership. Emailed someone at Ellevest they said they’d extended my free membership for several months but my bank info was still being verified. August came and went no verification Early September still no verification and customer service was concerned I wanted to leave but would not look at my account and address the issue with bank verification. Was never able to use the essential features of Ellevest or invest or save any money. Cancelled membership.

I requested a withdrawal a week ago and they supposedly sent it to my bank on 8/15. They said it would take up two business days. I understand there’s a lot of money laundering laws that it take time before it’s sent to a bank 7 days or more depending on the amount. I went to the bank today 8/20 like they told me to and ask where’s it at. My bank told me there’s no pending withdrawal from Folio company. Well there’s a lot of money went down the drain and must I remind you that this could be a trace for a white collar crime or even federal charges if it’s reach to that level. I had to tell the bank to make it stop payment from this company, which was $30. Not happy.
It’s not worth going for this company to throw away money and this company should shut down before they face bigger issues.

i downloaded it after listening to an episode of bad w money by gabby dunn. i thought that initially it was very informative & super cool for women! however, about 3 weeks in i had a change in mhm employment and decided i needed to close my account. it has been such a debacle to get even close to getting my account closed, all the while money is still being pulled from my account. it takes almost a week (6 days) to transfer money back, the company takes days to weeks to respond and when you’ve finally done everything to cancel it (because there’s no way for you to do it without contacting support) they tell you they’re busy and you don’t get any further updates.

most notably, i was told to withdraw all money from my this app account and once that went through to notify them so they could close my account. i did this and was waiting for the money to transfer back and the next day got an email that “since i haven’t taken action, they’re closing my ticket” and when i emailed back begging them not to do that they said they’re busy. i had to restart the entire process and all the while Ellevest is still pulling money. this is so infuriating.

Not sure what happened to my first review. I came on to update it and it’s gone.

Here’s my experience.

I contacted customer service to stop automatic withdrawals and I never received assistance.

I wanted to close the account but all the money had to be withdrawn which can take 5 business days or more. Needless to say, I wasn’t happy or excited about Ellevest .

Fast forward, Ellevest itself doesn’t and I repeat DOES NOT have the same features as the website. You have more control using the website than Ellevest .

I was able to stop my own auto withdrawals.

I only use Ellevest to check my funds.

What I do love is my money started making me money right away. I was going to close the account but I’m keeping it open and investing small amounts as I have three other accounts with other companies.

If you’re not happy with Ellevest , use the website. So far, I haven’t figured out how to change my investments. Hopefully, we will have that option soon.

I give it 3 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Ellevest needs the same if not more features than the website.

This is an amazing app with a wonderful mission behind it. this app has a stunning user interface and is easy to use. I love that Ellevest focuses on building wealth through social consciousness. With that said, Ellevest is best for people starting on their investment journey or for those who really want to set it and forget it. If you are interested in picking stocks and making choices, there are other platforms better suited to your needs.

edit: the funniest part of their response is that i literally did not get my problem resolved. which makes it even more clear not a single person in customer service properly reads basic comments and concerns. no wonder my problem was never resolved.

good luck if you need to change your linked bank account. thank god i only put $10 in here to test the waters. customer service is horrendous (*cough cough* ercan- if you get him open a new ticket and get someone else). horrible experience. i’m sure it’s a great app and enjoyable investing experience if you don’t spend 4 weeks trying to link a bank account like i did (spoiler alert: ercan never was even able to help me w that dozens of emails later). i left 3 voicemails never got a call back. i wanted to support a women led and owned app, but wow. unprofessional, disorganized and a bit shady. the fact i stayed calm and sweet the whole time is the only pro because it shows my character development as a person. will continue using my current brokerages that have phone support and competent customer service. thanks for holding my $10 hostage hope you enjoy it 🙄

It’s got a very nice design, but other than that I’m a bit disappointed with it. It boasts empowerment of women and teaching about stocks and bonds. After a few months of use, I don’t feel educated. I feel patronized. My money is taken from the account, placed into random stocks and bonds- no questions about where I would like it to go. No education about whether it’s going to companies I’d like to own stock in, and not much else to help other than a pie chart and a vague graph. What if I want to diversify my portfolio in different ways? What if I’d rather not buy stock into one of your set chosen enterprises? At this point, I’d just like to liquidate my interests, and delete. Don’t get if you’d actually like to learn anything about or be in charge of your stock market investing.

I really wanted to love Ellevest. However, after downloading it and signing up I noticed that they don’t accept my bank account.

Luckily, I had a second account that I used for my small business that they did accept. So I tried using that. But because there wasn’t a minimum of $100 in my checking account for that account they wouldn’t approve my account.

I sent multiple PDFs to them, showing that there are transactions for that account on a regular basis. And even a PDF of the same account with money in my savings and they are still giving me a hard time about it.

Which I really don’t understand. If I’m not putting $100 into my this app account why do you need to see $100 in my checking account? And when you can see several hundred in the same account in the savings portion, why are you giving me a hard time?

I don’t know, it’s super disappointing that they’re being this difficult for no reason. I’m not impressed. Just know that even if you plan to invest only $1 they need to see $100 in your account or they won’t accept you.

I can’t believe the detail that this app goes to to make their calculations to help set your goals. I love all the data especially in the beginning for new investors. I also love the Impact investing. Amazing! Even customer service is helpful. And usually responds within a week. The only reason I gave Ellevest a 4 was because while it shows different languages available. There is no option to actually set Ellevest to any other language but English. I can only assume the languages shown are all those spoken by employees if you call.

I started switching accounts because I liked the goals and the user interface. However, I’ve been getting a lot of of “oops there’s been an error, please try again later”, which is not something you want from a financial app. And I’ve gotten it from various aspects of Ellevest from linking a bank account to setting up a retirement account. Tried uninstalling and installing app and whatnot. Anyway I like the idea but execution of Ellevest could be better. Can’t really comment on how they do money management wise as I haven’t really been able to do anything.

I love Ellevest, but one thing that I miss from my old bank is a “monthly spend” recorder. It shows how much I spend each month which helps with budgeting a lot!! I really have a problem with just using the amount I put in my spend account. I think it would help a lot of people with knowing how much they spend and how much less they need to spend a month. It’s hard to look back through all the transactions and calculating it myself.
Please read this this app!

I have an Acorns account and love it so I was very excited to see another micro investing app tailored at supporting female businesses and financial support. I think the concept of Ellevest is great however while setting up an account I ran into a lot of bugs and technical issues. Nearly every step of setup I received an “Oops Something went wrong” message with no explanation. I eventually couldn’t complete my account and was unable to set up a deposit. I have an email out to the support team hoping this is a one time experience, but unfortunately I have lost my faith in the capability of the technology and safety of the software. I think this is a great concept and a strong business model, but I’m going to hold off linking my accounts until a new update comes out.

I love the idea of Ellevest - if only I could actually deposit money to start investing! I’m stuck in an endless loop of trying to connect my bank account and make my first deposit. When I enter my bank login information and then select an account to link, it just sends me right back to the bank login screen even though the login should have been successful. The UI of Ellevest is a bit confusing and there’s no way to check whether my deposit was initiated or whether my bank account was actually connected. I’d steer clear of wasting your time setting up your account on Ellevest until they fix these major usability issues.

After being a member for two years - I am extremely disappointed. Either financial projections are WAY off, or this app is terrible at investment.

Here’s the story.

I make a $100 deposit into an FDIC Cash account each month (among other accounts). Over the course of three years, this app predicts I will have saved $637.

Let that sink in for a moment.
36 months * $100 each month = $637.

I’m not a trader by profession, but I have a suspicion that this is incorrect.

I have contacted this app about this twice. The first time, someone returned my call and left a voicemail letting me know that this app tends to make “conservative projections.” Yes, a $3000 loss in an FDIC Cash account seems pretty darn conservative, I’ll give them that.

The second time I called, I was told that the issue would be raised to the engineering team and I would hear back within 48 hours. This was two weeks ago.

I don’t trust these people with my money, and neither should you. Closing my accounts.

this app, you deserve every word of this review. Shame for your poor service.

I love Ellevest! I have been steadily auto depositing money over the past year, and this app invests all of it for me, making the process super easy!

I especially love the informational graphics about investing, and I have found them to be super clear about my funds.

This is my first time investing any money, and I was nervous in the beginning. But I knew that I wanted to build long term wealth and this is definitely helping me do that!

Sallie and her crew at this app are doing great things for the investment market. Yes, I started my account because she’s a talented and experienced woman in the investment world, but I even advise my male friends to invest too! The way this app communicates through educational pieces is a huge bonus. Follow them on social media, sign up for the newsletter...::you’ll learn while taking steps toward wealth.

I was so excited to see that there was an this app App at last! It was quick to install and looks great...right in line with your website. However it actually does very little.

My heart has yearned for companies like this app, but seriously if you want to promote yourself as better for women, then be better. Period. Everything you do needs to be superior. Please place more focus on the end users’ experiences...they do matter. Perhaps with more time?

I was afraid to invest first it’s why I did a tiny $5 deposit to secure my account then I referred two people withdrew my Referal bonus then I deposit $995 for a balance of $1,000 now all I do is withdraw everything over my capital plus I keep referring for more profits I can see myself getting rich soon with Elleinvest

Ellevest is beautiful and functions great. However, it doesn’t allow you to change or add goals or accounts. I still have to log onto the website to do a lot of things. It’s great to be able to quickly review, and I’ve been wanting to see Ellevest for a long time now, so I’m happy that it’s finally here!

Who has loyalty to an investment bank?? I do now — this app is transparent, mission-driven, and incredibly user friendly. I love that I can choose an “impact portfolio” to put my money toward causes I believe in. Good returns, low fees, and a bank I actually feel comfortable with! Thanks!

I just opened up an account and I wish I knew about this a long time ago. I've been saving my money in banks where my dividend was minimal and the banks were making money off of me. Today I get to build financial freedom for myself.

This so called investment app has no customer service only thing they have is a automated Patty and Bridget. I’ve tried contacting support since last summer and still haven’t heard back from them! They don’t pay for referrals even after the 90 days... it’s been half a year and still waiting! Then they disable the referrals so they won’t pay you what a horrible company! Don’t come telling me to contact support because I have and not once have they replied!

I’ve been trying to set money aside and Ellevest has helped greatly. You can set it aside for different things, including buying a house or things like that.

I didn’t grow up in a financially literate household, so this is helping me with financial literacy.

Not going to lie I use this app way less frequently
Than Acorn or Stash. Think investing in more interactive UX design will be essential for creating a more competitive app. It’s a bit stale right now.

In addition, the ability to terminate goals seems to be an important feature is that currently unavailable - should be communicated clearly at the beginning at the least.