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CommSec Pocket vs Raiz Invest
Which platform comes out on top in the battle of the Aussie micro-investing giants?
Both CommSec Pocket and Raiz are micro investing apps that offer you a cheap and easy way to start investing.
The two apps claim to fame is they allow users to invest small amounts into pre-set funds containing hundreds of listed companies.
But which is the better choice?
Overview: CommSec Pocket vs Raiz
CommSec Pocket is the beginner-friendly app from the Commonwealth Bank's investing arm, CommSec. It offers low brokerage fees of $2 (on trades up to $1,000) and low minimum investment requirement of just $50.
Raiz Invest (previously Acorns) launched in 2016 in Australia and quickly became popular for its round-up feature which invests spare change from daily purchases into an investment portfolio of your choosing. Today more than 3 million customer sign ups and over $1 billion in total funds under management across its Australian, Indonesian and Malaysian customer base.
Where the 2 apps differ to other trading platforms is that each only lets you invest in exchange traded funds (ETFs) built around existing themes.
When you invest in an ETF, you're buying units in a listed fund that holds multiple stocks (and sometimes other securities). So instead of investing in one company as you might when you buy stocks, you can invest in many companies through a single trade.
Key stats: CommSec Pocket vs Raiz
| CommSec Pocket | Raiz Invest | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum investment amount | CommSec Pocket has a minimum investment requirement of $50. | There's no minimum balance requirement, and you only need $5 or more to start investing. |
| Portfolio options | You get a choice of 10 ETFs:
| Raiz offers eight investment portfolios, ranging from low risk to high risk, plus a customisable option. These are:
|
| Investment strategy | You select which ETF you'd like to invest in. When you invest in one, you're buying individual units in that fund. | Your funds go into a portfolio of ETFs that vary in risk level. Raiz selects these ETFs based on the level of risk and aggressiveness each portfolio is targeting. You choose which portfolio to invest in. |
| Fees | CommSec Pocket has no monthly fees, but it does charge $2 brokerage for each trade of up to $1,000 and 0.2% on amounts over $1,000. So, if you invest $50 twice a month for a year, you’d be charged $48 per year on a total investment of $1,200. If you invested one lump sum of $1,200 annually, you’d be charged $2.40 (0.2% of $1,200) in annual fees. | Raiz charges no brokerage fee but it does have a monthly fee. If your account holds $20,000 or less you'll be charged $4.50 a month in fees while balances above $20,000 are charged 0.275% a year (excluding Sapphire, Property and Plus portfolios). So if your balance was $1,200, you'd be charged $54 a year, regardless of how many investments you make. If you had $25,000 invested for the year, you'd be charged $68.75 in fees. If you select the Sapphire or Property account, you pay $4.50 per month and 0.275% p.a.. |
| Risk level | Each of the ETFs offered vary in terms of risk. However, there is no risk categorisation. You’re encouraged to do your own research about the risks involved with each ETF. | Each of the portfolios offers a different risk level, starting from "low risk" to aggressive. This means you can select the appropriate portfolio based on how much risk you're comfortable taking on. |
| International investing | Of the 10 ETFs offered, 6 of them offer globally listed companies. | The investment portfolios include a mix of Australian companies listed on the ASX and global companies listed on international exchanges. |
| Ethical investing | The Sustainability Leaders ETF (ETHI) and Aussie Sustainability provide exposure to 100 global and local sustainable and ethical companies. | The Emerald portfolio invests your money into socially responsible companies in Australia and international markets. |
| Payment options | You can make one-off lump sum investments into your ETF of choice or you can set up recurring fortnightly or monthly investments. | Raiz rounds up your daily transactions to the nearest $1. The spare change is then added to your investment portfolio of choice once it reaches $5. You can also set up recurring daily, weekly or monthly investments and additional one-off investments. There's also a percentage of shopping purchases at select retailers that will be added to your Raiz account. |
| Do you earn dividends? | Not all companies pay dividends. However, if any companies within your selected ETF do, the funds are automatically paid back into your settlement account. | Any dividends will be automatically reinvested into your portfolio, rather than sent to your bank account. There's a section in the app that allows you to see any past dividend payments. |
| Withdrawal options | You can sell your units and withdraw your funds at any time. However, your brokerage fees for selling are the same as buying. Each time you sell units in an ETF, you're charged $2 or 0.2% on transactions over $1,000. | You can withdraw money from your investment account at any time without any additional fees. |
| How to download | CommSec Pocket is free to download from the App Store and Google Play store. | The Raiz Invest app is free to download from the App Store and Google Play store. |
Fund comparison
It's important to note that while CommSec Pocket lets you purchase units in seven individual ETFs, Raiz puts your money into a portfolio made up of several ETFs. The ETFs used by Raiz can be found on its website but the more important consideration is how these funds have been allocated into the portfolios.
The below tables show how Raiz's funds have performed in the most recent financial year for which we have data compared to the ETFs selected by CommSec Pocket. It's important to remember that past performance isn’t always an indicator of how a fund will perform moving forward.
Raiz Invest portfolio performance
This is how Raiz's portfolio options performed in the 2023/24 financial year3:
| Raiz portfolio | Performance |
|---|---|
| Conservative | 6.99% |
| Moderately Conservative | 8.59% |
| Moderate | 10.49% |
| Moderately Aggressive | 12.14% |
| Aggressive | 13.42% |
| Emerald | 14.80% |
| Sapphire | 18.26% |
CommSec Pocket portfolio performance
This is how CommSec Pocket's ETF portfolios have performed over the last 12 months (last updated 11 October 2024)4:
| CommSec Pocket's select ETFs | 1-year performance |
|---|---|
| Aussie Top 200 (iShares IOZ ETF) | 21.69% |
| Global 100 (iShares IOO ETF) | 26.99% |
| Aussie Dividends (SPDR SYI ETF) | 9.31% |
| Tech Savvy (BetaShares NDQ ETF) | 24.90% |
| Sustainability Leaders (BetaShares ETHI ETF) | 21.27% |
| Health Wise (iShares IXJ ETF) | 10.60% |
The verdict: CommSec Pocket vs Raiz Invest
Investing options: Raiz
Raiz wins because of the higher level of customisation and variety in the portfolios it offers. Not only does it offer more options in terms of risk profile, it also lets you invest in additional asset classes like Bitcoin and property.
Fees: Draw
The two platforms have quite different approaches to fees, which means the one that will better suit you will really depend on how regularly you invest. If you're someone that prefers to invest small amounts very regularly, Raiz's fee structure may be more cost-effective. On the other hand, if you intend to make fewer transactions or even one big investment over the year into an ETF of choice, CommSec Pocket could be the smarter choice.
Auto-investing features: Raiz
Raiz offers both smaller minimum investment amounts and the ability to automatically roundup your daily transactions and invest them. CommSec Pocket lets you set up fairly standard recurring fortnightly or monthly investments.
Payment and withdrawal options: Raiz
Raiz lets you withdraw your money at any time without charging a fee, whereas CommSec Pocket will charge you the same $2 brokerage when you sell your investment. Raiz's roundups feature also makes investing a more hands-off process.
The winner: Raiz (with a big caveat)
We consider Raiz Invest is the better overall auto-investing platform because of the customisation and flexibility it offers in both its investing products and auto-investing features.
However, which platform is likely to be better for you will really come down to two things: how often (and how much) you plan on investing, and what you want to invest in.
If you want to make multiple small investments every month, Raiz's monthly fee model might be a better choice, while if you plan on making fewer lump sum investments over time, CommSec Pocket's flat brokerage fee model might save you money over the long term.
The other key difference is how you want to invest. Do you prefer to invest in a portfolio based on risk profile and asset class (Raiz), or more traditional ETFs that track a certain sector or stock market (CommSec Pocket)? There's no right answer here, it really just comes down to personal preference.
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