Acorns vs Principal Financial Group
Side-by-side comparison of AI visibility scores, market position, and capabilities
Micro-investing app with 10M accounts rounding up spare change into diversified ETF portfolios; subscription model with banking and IRA products competing with Robinhood for first-time investors.
About
Acorns is a micro-investing and personal finance app that automatically invests spare change from everyday purchases by rounding up transactions to the nearest dollar and investing the difference into a diversified portfolio of ETFs — making investing accessible and habitual for younger consumers and first-time investors who may not have large sums to invest. Founded in 2012 by father-son team Walter and Jeff Cruttenden in Newport Beach, California, Acorns has raised over $500 million and has approximately 10 million investment accounts, generating approximately $180 million in annual revenue from subscription fees.\n\nAcorns' core product is its Invest account — linking a debit or credit card, rounding up purchases, and investing the accumulated spare change. Users can also make recurring contributions and make one-time investments. Acorns Gold ($3/month) and Acorns Silver ($2/month) add banking (Acorns checking account with debit card), retirement (Acorns Later IRA), kids' savings (Acorns Early UTMA accounts), and access to bonus investments from shopping at partner brands. The portfolio options (Conservative through Aggressive) are diversified mixes of Vanguard and BlackRock ETFs.\n\nIn 2025, Acorns competes with Robinhood, SoFi, Stash, and Betterment for mobile-first investing market share among millennials and Gen Z. The round-up investing model has proven an effective behavioral nudge for habitual saving — customers who wouldn't open a traditional brokerage account engage through micro-investing. Acorns' 2025 strategy focuses on converting its large user base to higher-tier subscriptions, growing the banking and checking account product to increase engagement frequency, and expanding its financial literacy content to deepen brand loyalty among younger investors who are early in wealth accumulation.
Des Moines retirement and asset management (NASDAQ: PFG) at $16.13B 2024 revenue (+18%), $753B AUM; new CEO Deanna Strable (Jan 2025), Ascensus ESOP acquisition (2024), $1.7T AUA competing with Empower for mid-market 401(k).
About
Principal Financial Group, Inc. is a Des Moines, Iowa-based financial services company — publicly traded on NASDAQ (NASDAQ: PFG) as an S&P 500 Financials component — providing retirement savings, asset management, and group insurance and benefits to 61 million customers worldwide through approximately 20,000 employees with $753 billion in assets under management (AUM) as of Q2 2025, $1.7 trillion in assets under administration, and $16.13 billion in 2024 annual revenue (up 18% year-over-year) with net income of $1.57 billion. Founded in 1879 as The Bankers Life Association by Edward Temple and Simon Casady to provide affordable life insurance to Iowans, Principal demutualized and completed its IPO in 2001. Deanna Strable became President and CEO in January 2025 (succeeding Dan Houston), with Joel Pitz named CFO. Principal operates through three segments: Retirement and Income Solutions (RIS — 401(k), 403(b), defined benefit plans, nonqualified executive benefits, pension risk transfer, and individual retirement products), Principal Asset Management (equity, fixed income, real estate, and alternative investments for institutional clients), and Benefits and Protection (group dental, vision, life, and disability insurance). Key acquisitions include AFP Cuprum (Chilean pension, $1.5B, 2012), Wells Fargo's institutional retirement and trust business ($1.2B, 2019, adding 401(k)/pension/ESOP plans), and the 2024 agreement to acquire Ascensus's ESOP business (800 plans, 165,000+ participants). Principal's market capitalization stands at approximately $18.3 billion.
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