Alternative investing, comparedPlatforms and funds that give US individuals access to private credit and other alternative assets: lending marketplaces, non-traded BDCs, real estate debt, farmland, art, and equity crowdfunding. Minimums, accreditation rules, fees, and realized losses vary enormously, and this category is tracked with its failures on the record.
Independent research. Every number is checked against the provider's own page and dated. Some links may earn us a commission, which never changes a ranking. How we make money
33 alternative investing platforms compared; 16 of 33 in the main list were re-read in the last 14 days (newest read Oct 30, 2026). Ranking rule: Platforms are sorted by our editorial review, which weighs value after fees, transparency about risk, track record and who can actually invest. Platforms without a finished editorial score are listed after scored ones, lowest minimum first. Platform-reported returns are shown but they are not what we sort by, and they are never guaranteed. How we rate
Each pick wins a specific rule, written on its label, and is chosen from the numbers on its own page. They are listed in the order of our ranking, and who pays us has no say in it.
$10 to start, non-accredited real estate and credit funds, about 1.00% fees, quarterly repurchase offers
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors.
6 others we list also qualify; this one ranks first in our order.
Accredited investors only. No secondary market; hold to maturity over 6-36 month terms.
1 other we list also qualify; this one ranks first in our order.
$15,000+ accredited farmland deals, Proterra-owned, typical 5 to 10 year holds
Accredited investors only. Expected holds typically 5 to 10 years.
1 other we list also qualify; this one ranks first in our order.
Retail private credit is scaling fast (as of our July 2026 research, interval and tender-offer funds held roughly $247B, growing 25-30% a year) and the platform layer has been through a brutal shakeout: PeerStreet went bankrupt, Mainvest shut down, Heron Finance is winding down, and Yieldstreet rebranded to Willow Wealth after more than $200M in documented investor losses. Most comparison sites quietly drop the dead platforms. We list them, because knowing how platforms fail is the most decision-relevant information in this category. All return figures below are platform-reported.
| Alternative investing | Min. investment | Accreditation | Reported return | Liquidity | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $10 | Some offerings | 8.16% | Income and Flagship are interval funds: quarterly… | Oct 14, 2026older than 14 days | |
 | $500 | Required | 14.6% | No secondary market; hold to maturity over 6-36… | Oct 30, 2026 |
| $15,000 | Required | Not published | Expected holds typically 5 to 10 years (possibly… | Oct 27, 2026 |
 | $2,500 | Not required | 9.1% | Quarterly repurchases of up to 5% of NAV of shares… | Oct 14, 2026older than 14 days |
 | $100 | Not required | 8.3% | Homes: 5-7 year holds with very limited early… | Oct 10, 2026older than 14 days |
 | $2,500 | Not required | 8.6% | Quarterly repurchases capped at 5% of shares… | Oct 23, 2026 |
 | $100 | Some offerings | 5.0% | Fixed terms: Notes run 1 to 24 months and… | Oct 14, 2026older than 14 days |
| $2,500 | Not required | 9.03% | Quarterly repurchase program with caps | Oct 14, 2026older than 14 days | |
 | $15,000 | Required | 6-13% | 5-12 year holds; no liquidity | Oct 26, 2026 |
 | $5,000 | Required | 7.35-9.00% | Alpine Notes mature in 3-9 months… | Oct 26, 2026 |
Each date is when we last checked the provider's own page. A date older than 14 days is flagged. Rates and terms can change, so confirm with the provider before you apply.
In ranking order. Each one lists the numbers that decide the choice, its main strengths and its main catches.
$10 to start, non-accredited real estate and credit funds, about 1.00% fees, quarterly repurchase offers
Fundrise (founded 2012) is a direct-to-consumer investing platform built to give non-accredited investors access to private real estate, private credit and venture for as little as $10 to start an account.
Watch out
Percent is an accredited-only marketplace for private credit, the loans that non-bank lenders make to small businesses, consumers, and fintechs. It is not a fund and not a savings product.
Watch out
AcreTrader is a farmland investing platform for accredited investors, launched in 2018 and now wholly owned by Proterra Investment Partners, a Minneapolis alternative asset manager that acquired the platform from Acres.com in August 2025.
Watch out
$2,500 via advisor; 9.1% annualized distribution rate (Class I, Aug 2026); repurchases capped at 5% a quarter.
Blackstone Private Credit Fund (BCRED) is a non-traded business development company that reports aggregate NAV of about $43.2 billion at August 31, 2026 and more than 640 borrowers.
Watch out
$100 fractional rentals plus the Real Estate Income Fund, no accreditation
Arrived (founded 2019, backed by Jeff Bezos) lets anyone in the US invest from $100 with no accreditation, across two very different products that you should judge separately.
Watch out
$2,500 via advisor: Blue Owl's senior-lending BDC, ~8.6% distributions, gated exits
Blue Owl Credit Income Corp (OCIC) is a large non-traded business development company (BDC) that makes senior secured, mostly floating-rate loans to private-equity-backed U.S. middle-market companies.
Watch out
Notes from $100 (up to 8.0% fixed for non-accredited investors), Loans from $10, auditor going-concern warning
Groundfloor is a crowdfunding platform founded in 2013 and based in Atlanta that offers real estate loans, fixed-rate Notes and alternative investments.
Watch out
Watch out
$15,000 accredited permanent-crop farmland deals with deal-by-deal fee structures
Watch out
$5,000 accredited CRE platform; fee-free short-term Alpine Notes are the flagship
Watch out
23 more alternative investing platforms we cover ranked below the top 10. We show the facts that matter most for each, and say plainly when one fits a narrower need.
No return figure published
Open to non-accredited investors. Daily on-exchange liquidity.
Limited to accredited investors; $100,000 minimum; no return figure published
Accredited investors only. Depends on the underlying fund.
No return figure published
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors. Depends on the underlying fund.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Open to non-accredited investors. Target hold of 3 to 10 years, which Masterworks says may be longer.
No return figure published
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors. Total illiquidity; venture timelines.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Open to non-accredited investors. Redeemable anytime; withdrawals over $50,000 can take up to 30 days.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors. Limited, discountable share repurchase programs.
No return figure published
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors. Illiquid unless a secondary sale is available.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Open to non-accredited investors. Selling can take weeks to months; no guaranteed exit.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Open to non-accredited investors. None; hold to maturity, mostly 60-month terms.
Limited to accredited investors; no return figure published
Accredited investors only. Varies by investment: some are completely illiquid, others semi-liquid.
Ranked below the top 10 on our editorial review.
Some offerings open to non-accredited investors. Mostly illiquid, 1-5+ year terms.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first
Open to non-accredited investors. 60-day hold on new deposits.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first
Open to non-accredited investors.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first
Open to non-accredited investors. 24/7 seller-set-ask marketplace settled in USDC.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first
Open to non-accredited investors. Quarterly redemption windows.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first
Open to non-accredited investors. Interest-only monthly payments, principal at maturity.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first; no return figure published
Open to non-accredited investors.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first; limited to accredited investors; $25,000 minimum
Accredited investors only. Note principal locked for the full 1 to 3 year term.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first; limited to accredited investors; $50,000 minimum
Accredited investors only. None.
Listed after the platforms with a finished editorial score, lowest minimum first; limited to accredited investors; $100,000 minimum
Accredited investors only. Credit funds: redemptions with 90-day notice.
In this category the platform itself is a risk, not just the underlying loans. Screen in this order.
Read the operator's financials, not the marketing. Groundfloor has real going-concern language in its audited financials two years running; PeerStreet's investors are still waiting on pro-rata recoveries three years after its Chapter 11. A 10% target return means nothing if the platform holding your notes fails. Platform-level obligations (Worthy bonds, EquityMultiple's Alpine Notes) are only as good as the company issuing them.
Willow Wealth (ex-Yieldstreet) carries an SEC settlement, and a CNBC investigation in December 2025 documented more than $200M of investor losses across 30 real estate deals, about 30% of them in default. CrowdStreet is where the $63M Nightingale fraud happened. These platforms still operate and may deserve consideration in their rebuilt form, but only with that history priced in. Our product pages list every settlement, loss tally, and wind-down verbatim.
Almost nothing here is liquid. Marketplace deals hold to maturity (6 to 36 months at Percent), single-property and farmland deals commonly lock money for 5 to 12 years, and the big non-traded BDCs (BCRED, OCIC, ADS) cap quarterly repurchases at 5% of shares and can suspend them. Only money you will not need for years belongs in this category.
Fee stacks decide net returns. Non-traded BDCs charge 1.25% management plus 12.5% incentive plus servicing and placement fees. Masterworks stacks 1.5% annual, 20% of profit, and a ~10% expense allocation. Compare against the boring benchmark: a Treasury ladder pays a published yield with zero platform risk, so every point of promised premium has to survive the fees.
Non-accredited investors have real options (Fundrise at $10, Groundfloor at $100, Arrived's credit fund at $100), and the marketing of accredited-only platforms sometimes blurs this. If a platform asks you to self-certify accreditation you do not have, walk away; the investor protections you would be waiving exist for exactly this category.
Products that do one thing unusually well, with the catch we would want to know before applying.
As of our July 2026 research, Alpine Notes paid roughly 7.35% to 9.00% over 3 to 9 months with no investor-side fee, and the platform claims a perfect repayment record to date. They are unsecured obligations of the platform itself, not FDIC insured.
Read the reviewIts credit fund lent short-term to homebuilders at a $100 minimum with quarterly redemption windows, and no defaults were reported as of our July 2026 research. The track record is short and spans no housing downturn. Check the fund's current name and terms on its page.
Read the reviewThe SPDR SSGA Apollo ETF (PRIV) trades daily on an exchange, with a 0.70% expense ratio. Its private-credit content is diluted by design and the yield is far below direct platforms; it is exposure, not the real thing.
Read the reviewPlatforms are sorted by our editorial review, which weighs value after fees, transparency about risk, track record and who can actually invest. Platforms without a finished editorial score are listed after scored ones, lowest minimum first. Platform-reported returns are shown but they are not what we sort by, and they are never guaranteed.
No position in this list is paid for. If a paid placement ever appears in a list, it is labeled Sponsored and never carries a “best for” label.
What the platform charges against the return profile it describes, after fees.
Whether the platform explains how it can lose money. Written risk flags are on each platform page.
Years operating, regulatory actions and failures. Closed platforms go to our public failures record, not into the void.
The minimum investment and whether you need to be an accredited investor.
Date of the newest platform-page stamp
Not always. 16 of the 33 platforms we list are open to non-accredited investors, including Blackstone Private Credit Fund (BCRED), Arrived and Blue Owl Credit Income Corp (OCIC). Others require accredited status, usually a high income or net worth, and some offer a mix. The rule is on each platform page.
Concreit has the lowest stated minimum on this list at $1. Minimums go as high as $100,000, so check the minimum before you compare returns.
No. The returns shown are targets or historical figures reported by each platform, they are not audited by us, and fees, defaults and illiquidity can reduce what you actually earn. Treat them as claims to test, not promises.
It varies a lot. Many platforms lock money for years, while interval funds typically offer scheduled repurchases that can be capped, and a few offer daily or on-demand access. Each platform page lists its liquidity terms in the platform's own words.
It can mean a long wind-down and losses for investors. We keep a public record of closed and failed platforms so you can see how this market has behaved before you commit capital.
Platforms are sorted by our editorial review, which weighs value after fees, transparency about risk, track record and who can actually invest. Platforms without a finished editorial score are listed after scored ones, lowest minimum first. Platform-reported returns are shown but they are not what we sort by, and they are never guaranteed.
Best Private Credit Platforms was last updated in October 2026 and uses rates and fees we verified against each provider's own page. Spot something out of date? Tell us.
