How to start investing with $100
The three boring steps that beat 90% of professional investors over 30 years.
Theo Russell
February 19, 2026
Step 1: Open a Roth IRA
Roth IRA = retirement account. You contribute after-tax money; growth and withdrawals in retirement are tax-free.
Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard — all free, all reputable. 15 minutes to open.
Step 2: Buy an index fund
Pick one of: VTI (total US market), VOO (S&P 500), or VT (total world). Buy as much as your $100 lets you ($100 = ~0.4 shares of VOO at recent prices, or whole shares of VTI).
Don't pick individual stocks. The index funds are diversified, low-fee (0.03% annually), and outperform stock-pickers over time.
Step 3: Automate it
Set up auto-transfer from checking to the Roth IRA — even $25/month. The combination of consistency and compounding does the heavy lifting.
$25/month at age 25 = ~$120,000 at age 65 (assuming 7% real return). $100/month = ~$480,000.
People also ask
What if the market crashes after I buy?+
It will, eventually. Then it recovers and goes higher. Don't sell on the way down. Time in the market beats timing the market.
Should I use Robinhood or Acorns?+
They work, but Fidelity/Schwab/Vanguard have better fund selection and no gimmicks. Stick with the boring three.
Is $100 even worth it?+
Absolutely. The hardest part is starting. Once the account exists, adding more is trivial.