Robinhood
Commission-free stock and ETF trading with fractional shares, options, crypto and multiple account types. Operated through several separate legal entities with different investor protection, which is the part most comparisons leave out.
Verified 2026-10-04
The referral offer
Robinhood's published terms say you get free stock worth $5 to $200.
Robinhood states that approximately 99% of customers receive $5. The $200 is the top of the range, not the typical outcome.
You get free stock in one of 26 companies, and you pick which one.
You must be a US resident, link a bank account or debit card, and fund the account. You have 60 days to claim the stock once it is ready. You can sell after 3 trading days; to withdraw the cash it must stay in the account for 30 days.
We may earn a commission if you sign up through this link. It costs you nothing and your offer is the same either way.
Referral terms last checked 2026-10-04
We earn Robinhood stock if you sign up — our exact referral schedule is on the data policy page.
If you refer people yourself
Robinhood's referrer side pays in milestones, not per person. This is the published schedule as of 2026-10-04.
| Successful invites | Milestone reward |
|---|---|
| 1 friend | $50 of stock |
| 3 friends | $150 of stock |
| 10 friends | $800 of stock |
| 50 friends | $4,000 of stock |
| 200 friends | $10,000 of stock |
The part that catches people out
- Rewards are milestone-based, not per-referral. Referrals 2, and 4 through 9, earn you nothing.
- Total reward stock is capped at $15,000 per person per year, combined with your own sign-up bonus.
- Rewards must be claimed within 60 days and used to buy from the same 26 stocks.
- Referrals must have started signing up on or after September 1, 2026.
Robinhood's own pages have carried two different annual caps ($1,500 and $15,000) at different times, and third-party blogs still describe the older per-person model. We cite the two pages above and date this section rather than picking whichever number is more convenient.
Fees
| Commission on listed stocks and ETFs | $0 |
|---|---|
| Account minimum to open | not verified |
| Fractional shares from | not verified |
| Monthly account fee | not verified |
| Cash sweep / brokerage cash APY | not verified |
| Margin APR | not verified |
Blanks are genuine gaps, not zeros. Robinhood publishes these in a PDF fee schedule we have not yet transcribed field by field.
What SIPC actually covers
Robinhood is not one company legally. Crypto, futures, the spending account and the Gold Card sit in separate entities with different regulators and different levels of protection. Assuming your whole account is covered is the single most common and most expensive misunderstanding here.
| Held in | Entity | SIPC | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks & ETFs | Robinhood Financial LLC / Robinhood Securities LLC | covered | Brokerage assets. |
| Crypto | Robinhood Crypto LLC (RHC) | not covered | Not SIPC protected, not FDIC insured. |
| Futures | Robinhood Derivatives LLC (RHD) | not covered | FCM registered with CFTC; NFA member. |
| Spending account | Robinhood Money LLC (RHY) | not covered | Not a FINRA member. May carry FDIC pass-through. |
| Cash Card balance | Sutton Bank | n/a | FDIC insured up to $250,000 at Sutton Bank. Pays no interest. |
| Gold Card | Coastal Community Bank / Robinhood Credit | n/a | Robinhood Credit is a fintech, not a bank. |
What SIPC does and does not do
- SIPC limits: $500,000 for unallocated securities, and $250,000 for cash — separate buckets, not one combined $500,000.
- SIPC protects against a broker failing to return your assets. It does not protect against market losses or a bad investment decision.
- Cryptocurrency is not SIPC protected.
Sources
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood— Brokerage fees, account types, coverage and margin terms.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood — referral milestone schedule— Milestone rewards of $50/$150/$800/$4,000/$10,000 and the $15,000 annual cap.retrieved 2026-10-04
- Robinhood — gift stock value and claiming rules— $5 to $200 value range, the ~99% receive $5 statement, 60-day claim window, 3-day and 30-day holding rules.retrieved 2026-10-04
- SIPC— Protection limits and scope of coverage.retrieved 2026-10-04