Alternative
Fidelity Direct Indexing Alternatives: Test the Index Before You Fund It
Fidelity Managed FidFolios is the most accessible of the big-brokerage direct-indexing products. The minimum is $5,000 rather than the $100,000 that Schwab and Wealthfront ask for their flagship direct-indexing tiers, and the 0.40% advisory fee on index-tracking strategies buys you real ownership of the underlying stocks plus tax-loss harvesting. If your priority is to own the index in a taxable account and let Fidelity handle the tax work, it is a good fit. What you do not get is authorship. You pick from Fidelity strategies, the universe is US equities, and there is no crypto and no backtest of an index you invented. Indexes is deliberately the opposite. It is informational and educational, track-and-analyze not trade: you design the index, weight stocks and crypto together, backtest it against real market history, and track it over time versus benchmarks. No account to fund, no minimum, no trade ever placed.
Last updated July 2026
In short
Fidelity Managed FidFolios is Fidelity direct indexing: a managed account that buys the individual stocks of an index for you, starting at a $5,000 minimum with a 0.40% annual advisory fee for index-tracking strategies. Indexes does not manage money. It is the step before: design a weighted index from stocks and crypto, backtest it against real market history, and track it against the S&P 500 or BTC, with no account and no minimum.
Side by side
Indexes vs Fidelity
| Capability | Indexes | Fidelity |
|---|---|---|
| Design a custom weighted index yourself | Fidelity strategies | |
| Stocks and crypto in one index | US equities only | |
| Backtest against real market history | ||
| Track versus benchmarks over time | Partial | |
| Owns the shares for you | ||
| Automated tax-loss harvesting | ||
| Account minimum | None | $5K |
| Annual fee model | Flat software fee | 0.40% AUM (index strategies) |
| Analyze-only, never places trades |
Comparison reflects general product positioning and is provided in good faith. Verify current capabilities with each vendor.
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Build, backtest, and track, self-serve
Educational only · Never places a trade
Questions
Fidelity direct indexing, answered
What is Fidelity direct indexing?
Fidelity direct indexing is delivered through Fidelity Managed FidFolios, a managed account that buys the individual stocks making up an index rather than a single fund. Owning the shares lets Fidelity harvest tax losses on individual positions and apply personal preferences such as excluding a sector.
What is the minimum for Fidelity Managed FidFolios?
Managed FidFolios starts at a $5,000 minimum, which is the lowest entry point among the major brokerage direct-indexing programs. Fidelity separately managed accounts run far higher, generally from $100,000 to $350,000, so check which product you are being quoted.
How much does Fidelity direct indexing cost?
Index-tracking strategies inside Managed FidFolios carry a 0.40% annual advisory fee, which works out to about $20 a year for every $5,000 invested. Actively managed strategies cost more, around 0.70%. These are the published rates as of July 2026, so confirm them with Fidelity.
Is Fidelity direct indexing better than an ETF?
It is better only if the harvested tax losses are worth more than the extra fee. An S&P 500 ETF can cost 0.03% a year, while Managed FidFolios costs 0.40%, so you are paying roughly 0.37% more for the chance to harvest losses. That trade works in a large taxable account with gains to offset and does almost nothing in a retirement account.
Can I build my own index at Fidelity?
Not in the sense of authoring your own weighting rules and backtesting them. FidFolios lets you choose from Fidelity strategies and apply preferences. To design a weighted index from scratch, backtest it on real history and track it, you need a dedicated index builder, which is what Indexes provides on the analysis side.
New to the strategy? Start with our guide to direct indexing, what it costs and who it suits, or see how much direct indexing costs across providers.
Build your index and see how it backtests
Bundle stocks or crypto into your own weighted index, backtest it against real market history, and track it against the S&P 500 or BTC. Prosumer pricing, no brokerage account. Indexes is educational and informational only, and it never places a trade. Decide for yourself.