StashAway, Syfe, and Endowus are all MAS-licensed robo-advisors that build and manage a diversified portfolio for you. For a beginner the differences come down to three things: how fees are charged, how much you need to start, and what they invest your money in. This guide compares all three on those points.
This is education, not financial advice and not a recommendation. The right choice depends on your own money, goals, and risk tolerance. If you are still deciding between a robo-advisor and a do-it-yourself ETF, start with our guide on whether to use a robo-advisor or an ETF in Singapore first, then come back here once you have decided a robo makes sense for you.
Are these three robo-advisors actually regulated?
Yes. All three hold a capital markets services licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), which is the regulator for investment products here. You can check any financial firm yourself on the MAS Financial Institutions Directory by searching the company name. The directory shows the licence type and whether the entity is in good standing.
Being MAS-licensed does not mean your investments are guaranteed or that you cannot lose money. It means the firm is supervised, has to meet conduct and capital rules, and your assets are held separately from the company's own money under custody arrangements. For the bigger picture on how MAS oversees these firms, see the MAS website. Licensing protects the structure around your money. It does not protect you from market falls.
How the fees are structured
This is where the three differ most, and fees matter a lot when you are starting small because they are charged on the whole balance every year regardless of whether the market went up or down. All figures below are as of June 2026 and come from each provider's official pricing page. Always check the live page before you commit, because rates change.
StashAway charges a tiered management fee on its General Investing portfolios. As of June 2026, its pricing page shows 0.8% per year on the first S$25,000, stepping down through bands to 0.2% per year on amounts above S$1,000,000. On top of the management fee you pay the expense ratio of the underlying exchange-traded funds, which StashAway states is roughly 0.2% per year. There are no sales charges or transfer fees.
Syfe uses a flat tier system based on your total assets with them. As of June 2026, its pricing page shows managed portfolios at 0.65% per year for the entry Blue tier (no minimum), falling to 0.35% at the S$1,000,000 tier and 0.25% at the S$5,000,000 tier. As with StashAway, the underlying ETFs carry their own expense ratios charged inside the funds. The fee you pay depends on your total balance, not on which portfolio you hold.
Endowus charges a single Access Fee covering advice, platform, and access. As of June 2026, its pricing page shows this fee ranging from 0.15% to 0.60% per year depending on the account type and balance: cash long-term portfolios run from 0.60% down to 0.25%, CPF and SRS portfolios sit at a flat 0.30% to 0.40%, and Cash Smart short-term portfolios are 0.15%. The funds it uses charge their own management fees, but Endowus rebates 100% of any trailer fees (the kickbacks fund houses normally pay distributors) back to you.
Fee, minimum, and approach at a glance
| Feature | StashAway | Syfe | Endowus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform fee (as of June 2026) | 0.8% to 0.2% p.a., tiered by amount | 0.65% to 0.25% p.a., tiered by total assets | 0.15% to 0.60% p.a. Access Fee, by account type |
| Underlying product cost | ETF expense ratios (about 0.2% p.a.) | ETF expense ratios charged inside the funds | Fund-level fees, with 100% trailer fee cashback |
| Minimum to start | No minimum | No minimum | S$1,000 first investment |
| Mainly invests in | Exchange-traded funds | Exchange-traded funds | Unit trusts and funds |
| CPF and SRS investing | SRS supported, no CPF | SRS supported, no CPF | Cash, SRS, and CPF (OA and SA) |
| MAS-licensed | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Read the table as a starting point, not a verdict. A lower headline percentage is not automatically cheaper once you add the underlying fund costs, and the cheapest option on paper may not invest in what you want.
How much you need to start
For a beginner with a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, the minimum can decide the question on its own. As of June 2026, StashAway and Syfe both let you open a General Investing or managed portfolio with no minimum, so you can begin with a small amount and add to it monthly. Endowus requires a S$1,000 minimum for your first investment, which is still modest but means you need that lump sum ready before you start.
If you are weighing investing against keeping cash for emergencies first, sort the safety buffer out before you put money into any portfolio. Our guide on building an emergency fund as a fresh graduate covers how much to set aside before you invest a cent.
The difference in approach
The three platforms invest your money differently, and that affects what you can do with it.
StashAway and Syfe are mostly ETF-based. They build portfolios from low-cost exchange-traded funds that track broad market indexes, and they rebalance for you. StashAway leans on a rules-based system it calls economic regime asset allocation, which shifts the mix as conditions change. Syfe offers a set of ready portfolios such as its equity and REIT options, where you pick the one matching your risk level.
Endowus mainly uses unit trusts and funds rather than ETFs, and gives you access to funds you normally cannot buy as a retail investor at institutional pricing. Its standout feature for Singaporeans is that it lets you invest CPF Ordinary Account, CPF Special Account, and SRS monies through one platform, which StashAway and Syfe do not both cover. If your goal is to put idle CPF savings to work, that narrows the field quickly. To understand the CPF side before you decide, the CPF Board website explains the schemes and rules.
None of these approaches is better in the abstract. ETF-based investing is simple and cheap. Fund-based investing opens up CPF and SRS and a wider menu. What matters is which one matches the money you are actually trying to invest.
How a beginner can choose without overthinking it
Match the platform to your situation rather than chasing the lowest number. If you have a small amount of spare cash and want to start a monthly habit, the no-minimum ETF options are the easiest on-ramp. If you specifically want to invest CPF or SRS, that points you toward the platform built for it. If you care most about the all-in cost, add the platform fee and the underlying fund cost together, on your expected balance, and compare like for like.
Whatever you pick, the bigger wins for a beginner are starting early, keeping costs low, and not panic-selling when markets drop. The platform is a smaller decision than the habit. If you want to understand the building blocks first, how to start investing as a student in Singapore walks through the basics before you open any account.
Frequently asked questions
Which of the three is cheapest for a beginner?
It depends on your balance and what you invest in, so there is no single cheapest. As of June 2026, Syfe's entry tier and StashAway's lower bands are competitive for small ETF portfolios, while Endowus charges its Access Fee plus fund costs. Add the platform fee and the underlying product cost together on your expected amount, using each provider's official pricing page, before comparing.
Are my investments with these robo-advisors safe?
All three are MAS-licensed and hold client assets under custody arrangements separate from the company, which you can verify on the MAS Financial Institutions Directory. That structure reduces the risk of the firm misusing your money, but it does not protect you from market losses. Your portfolio can still fall in value, and none of these platforms guarantees a return.
Can I invest my CPF money through these platforms?
As of June 2026, Endowus supports investing CPF Ordinary Account and Special Account savings as well as SRS through one platform. StashAway and Syfe support SRS and cash but do not both offer CPF investing. Check the CPF Investment Scheme rules on the CPF Board website to confirm what is eligible before you move any CPF funds.
Do I have to choose only one?
No. Many people use more than one platform, for example one for cash investing and another for CPF or SRS. Just remember that splitting small amounts across providers can mean you sit in higher fee tiers on each and lose the benefit of consolidating, so weigh the cost against the convenience.
Picking a robo-advisor is one small step in building money skills that last. FINternship is a free six-week mentor-led apprenticeship in Singapore where students, NSFs, and early-career professionals learn practical financial and career skills from people who have done it. If you want guidance as you start out, apply to join a FINternship cohort or read more about the mentors who run it.