Based on a video by Danny Sully.
A Roth IRA is the simplest retirement account most people will ever open: contribute after-tax money now, withdraw it tax-free in retirement. The IRS lets you put in up to the annual limit each year, and the longer you leave it invested, the more compound growth works in your favor.
This walkthrough follows Danny Sully step-by-step on Fidelity (no minimum balance, no account fees). By the end you'll have an open Roth IRA, money transferred in, an index fund purchased, and an automatic monthly contribution running so you never have to remember again.
From the Fidelity homepage, hover over Products in the top nav and click 'Retirement and IRAs.' Scroll down to the Roth IRA section and click 'Open an Account.' Fidelity has no account minimum and zero opening fees.
You'll fill out a personal info form (name, address, SSN, employment) and create a username and password. Approval is usually instant for US citizens with a US bank account.
From the home page, click Transfer in the top left, then 'Move money.' If your bank isn't already linked, choose 'Link a bank account to Fidelity' and enter your routing and account numbers (or sign in to your bank if it supports instant verification).
Linking is one-time. After this, transfers between your bank and Fidelity take 1-3 business days to clear.
On the transfer screen, pick your bank as the source and the Roth IRA as the destination. Type the dollar amount - Fidelity shows that year's contribution limit and how much you have left so you can't accidentally over-contribute.
Click Continue, review, and submit. You'll see a 'You've submitted your transfer request!' confirmation with the amount, transfer type (EFT), and date. The funds will land in 1-3 business days.
Cash sitting in a Roth IRA doesn't grow - you have to actually invest it. A simple starter pick is the Fidelity 500 Index Fund, which spreads your money across 500 of the largest US companies in one purchase.
Google 'Fidelity 500 Index Fund' to confirm the ticker symbol: FXAIX. The expense ratio is 0.015% - effectively free. This is the same fund Fidelity itself uses inside many of its target-date retirement portfolios.
Back on Fidelity, paste FXAIX into the search bar in the top right and click the result. You'll land on the Fidelity 500 Index Fund detail page with the Morningstar snapshot, expense ratio, performance over multiple periods, and the top 10 holdings (Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, etc).
Skim the basics so you understand what you're buying, then look for the Buy button in the top right.
Click Buy. On the order screen: confirm the symbol (FXAIX), the account (your Roth IRA), the action (Buy), and the dollar amount. Fidelity lets you buy mutual funds in dollar amounts instead of share counts, so you can put exactly your contribution to work.
Click Preview Order, then Place Order. Mutual funds settle at the end of the trading day, not in real time, so don't worry if your shares don't show up immediately.
To max out the annual limit without thinking about it, automate the deposits. From Accounts and Trade > Transfers > Manage Automatic Investments, click Schedule a New Transfer. Pick the dollar amount (annual limit divided by 12 = monthly target), the source bank, and the frequency.
Cash will pull from your bank automatically each month. You won't have to log in to remember.
Tip
If you can't max the annual limit, even $50 or $100 a month makes a meaningful difference over 30 years. Start with what fits your budget and bump it up later.
Recurring transfers move cash in. Automatic investments turn that cash into shares. From the same Manage Automatic Investments page, set up a recurring purchase: pick FXAIX (or whatever fund), enter the dollar amount, and pick your monthly date.
Now contributions land AND get invested without you logging in. This is dollar-cost averaging on autopilot - one of the cleanest setups for long-term wealth building.
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