Best UK Investment Platforms 2026: Ten Brokers Scored on What They Cost You Over 20 Years
Verified against each provider's published tariff on 19 September 2026. Scores updated quarterly.
Two friends open pensions in the same month. Same £100,000 transferred in, same £500 a month added, same funds, same 6% a year growth. Twenty years later one has £541,613 and the other has £519,607.
Neither picked bad investments. Neither traded too much. The only difference is that one chose a platform charging a percentage of the pot and the other chose one charging a flat monthly fee. The gap, £22,000, is roughly the price of a new family car, and it came out of the first friend's retirement without a single line on a statement ever looking alarming.
That is why this comparison is built differently from most. We are not interested in who has the lowest headline fee this year. We are interested in what each platform does to your money over the time it takes to build a serious pot. Campaign for a Million exists to help a million people invest better, and the fastest win most people can make is not a better fund. It is a cheaper home for the funds they already own.
The short version
Rank | Platform | Score /100 | Best for |
1 | 82 | Experienced investors, large portfolios, global markets, US citizens in the UK | |
2 | 81 | Beginners and cost-focused ETF and share investors; best cash interest | |
3 | 77 | The complete package: every account type, funds and shares, strong service | |
4 | 72 | Fund investors with £100k+ who want flat fees and serious research | |
5 | 71 | Investors who value service, research and choice over price | |
6 | 70 | Active share and ETF investors who want pro tools and 3.75% on cash | |
7 | 69 | Simple, commission-free ISA and SIPP investing in an app | |
8 | 67 | Passive ETF investors who want zero platform fees | |
9 | 66 | Fund investors under £250k who want a household name and free fund dealing | |
10 | 50 | Investors who only want Vanguard funds and a very simple platform |
Scores combine seven weighted categories. Cost is modelled over 15–20 years, not one. Full method below.
Three things the table cannot show:
The ranking changes with your pot size. InvestEngine is the cheapest at every size but only holds ETFs. Hargreaves Lansdown is the most expensive for shares but its costs fall sharply above £250,000 in funds. Use the calculator below with your own numbers.
The two cheapest platforms will not take US citizens. If you have a US passport, skip to the eligibility section; it changes everything.
"Best overall" is not "best for you". Interactive Brokers scores highest on cost, range and research, but its interface is built for professionals. Most first-time investors will be happier at Trading 212 or AJ Bell.
How we scored them
Every score is out of 100 and made of seven categories. The weights are published so you can disagree with them.
Category | Weight | What we measured |
Total cost of ownership | 30% | Modelled fees over 15–20 years for three investor profiles (below), including platform fees, dealing, FX and fixed SIPP charges, and the growth those fees would have earned |
Account range | 15% | ISA, SIPP, general account, Junior ISA, Lifetime ISA, drawdown, joint accounts |
Investment range | 15% | UK and overseas shares, ETFs, investment trusts, OEIC funds, bonds and gilts, fractional shares, number of markets |
Research and tools | 10% | Screeners, fund research, portfolio analytics, data quality |
App and execution | 10% | Usability, order types, reliability, speed of onboarding |
Cash interest and extras | 10% | Interest on uninvested cash, free regular investing, dividend reinvestment, auto-invest |
Trust and service | 10% | FCA authorisation and FSCS cover, ownership and financial strength, track record, Trustpilot rating |
The three cost profiles:
Profile A, the starter: £20,000 ISA, adding £500 a month for 20 years, in ETFs and shares, 12 trades a year, 30% of new money into US shares.
Profile B, the builder: £100,000 SIPP, adding £1,000 a month for 20 years, same holdings.
Profile C, the consolidator: £500,000 SIPP, no new contributions, 15 years, same holdings.
We assume 6% annual growth before fees. Fees come off the pot each year, so what we report is not just fees paid but the final-pot difference including lost compounding. We call that the true cost. It is always higher than the fees on your statement.
We scored eligibility for US persons separately rather than folding it into the total, because for most readers it is irrelevant and for the rest it is decisive.
What each Investment Platform really costs
True cost over the period, including lost growth. Lower is better.
Platform | A: £20k ISA + £500/mo, 20 yrs | B: £100k SIPP + £1,000/mo, 20 yrs | C: £500k SIPP, 15 yrs |
InvestEngine | £0 | £0 | £0 |
Trading 212 | £127 | £335 | £509 |
IG | £591 | £9,287 | £7,262 |
Freetrade (Basic) | £835 | £2,210 | £3,357 |
Interactive Brokers UK | £1,791 | £1,833 | £940 |
AJ Bell | £4,385 | £8,295 | £6,733 |
Vanguard UK | £5,474 | £11,254 | £8,728 |
Interactive Investor | £5,938 | £8,109 | £6,730 |
Fidelity International | £7,856 | £8,958 | £6,733 |
Hargreaves Lansdown | £8,945 | £10,795 | £8,790 |
Three patterns worth noticing:
Zero-commission apps win on ETFs and shares by a mile. Trading 212's only charge is 0.15% on currency conversion. InvestEngine charges nothing at all. Over 20 years that is the difference between a rounding error and a five-figure sum.
IG's SIPP tells a different story from its ISA. IG is nearly free in an ISA but its pension is run by a third-party administrator charging £210 a year, which is why it jumps from £591 in profile A to £9,287 in profile B. Read the account-level detail, not the headline.
Funds change everything. The table above is for ETFs and shares. Hold OEIC funds instead and the percentage-fee platforms bite harder while the flat-fee platform pulls ahead:
Platform | £100k ISA + £500/mo, 20 yrs, 100% OEIC funds |
Freetrade (Basic) | £0 |
Interactive Brokers UK | £2,626 |
Interactive Investor | £6,435 |
Vanguard UK (Vanguard funds only) | £10,476 |
AJ Bell | £19,436 |
Fidelity International | £22,060 |
Hargreaves Lansdown | £28,441 |
Trading 212, IG, InvestEngine | Not available (no OEIC funds) |
This is the scene from the opening. Interactive Investor's £14.99 a month looks expensive next to AJ Bell's 0.25% when you have £30,000. At £100,000 and growing, it is the cheapest full-service option by a wide margin.
Run your own numbers
Open the interactive Road to £1 Million Broker Fee Calculator to see fees paid, true cost including lost growth, and your final pot at each platform for your own portfolio.
Run your own numbers. Change the pot size, contributions, years, account type and what you hold. The calculator uses the same published tariffs as this page and shows fees paid, true cost including lost growth, and your final pot at each platform.
Fee tariffs at a glance
Verified on each provider's own site, 19 September 2026. Fund OCFs are extra everywhere.
Platform | Platform fee (ISA) | Shares/ETF fee cap | Share dealing | Fund dealing | FX fee | Interest on cash |
Hargreaves Lansdown | 0.35% to £250k, 0.25% to £1m, 0.10% to £2m, then 0% | £12.50/month (ISA, SIPP and Fund & Share Account) | £6.95 (£3.95 with 20+ trades prior month) | £1.95 | 0.99% to £10k, 0.50% to £25k, 0.20% above | 1.3%–2.9% depending on account and balance |
AJ Bell | 0.25% to £250k, 0.10% to £500k, then 0% | £3.50/month ISA and Dealing; £10/month SIPP | £5 (£3.50 with 10+ trades) | £1.50 | 0.75% to £10k, 0.50% next £10k, 0.25% above | ISA 1.75%; SIPP 2.05%–2.40%; Dealing 0.75% on first £2k only |
Interactive Investor | £5.99/month Core (to £100k), £14.99/month Plus | n/a (flat fee) | £3.99 | £3.99 Core, £1.49 Plus | 0.75% (Plus: 0.25% above £50k) | 0.25%–2.32% by account and balance |
Vanguard UK | £4/month under £32k; 0.15% above, capped £375/yr | n/a | Free (bulk deal); £7.50 real-time ETF | Free | None (GBP Vanguard products only) | Not published |
Fidelity International | 0.35% to £250k, 0.20% to £1m, 0% above; £90/yr flat if under £25k without a regular savings plan | £90/yr in ISA and SIPP; £0 in Investment Account | £7.50 (£1.50 regular) | Free | 0.75% to £10k, 0.50% to £20k, 0.25% above | 2.30% ISA/GIA, 2.35% SIPP |
Freetrade | £0 Basic; £4.99/month Standard; £9.99/month Plus (annual billing) | n/a | Free | Free | 0.99% Basic, 0.59% Standard, 0.39% Plus | 1%/2.5%/3.5% on first £1k/£2k/£3k only |
Trading 212 | £0 | n/a | Free | No OEIC funds | 0.15% | Variable, tracks Bank Rate; Cash ISA 3.60% AER at time of writing |
IG | £0 | n/a | Free (auto FX); SIPP admin £210/yr | No OEIC funds | 0.7% | 3.75% AER to £100k (needs a trade in last 30 days) |
Interactive Brokers UK | £0 (ISA has £3/month minimum activity charge) | n/a | £3 fixed or 0.05% tiered (min £1) UK; from $1 US | Nil to £4.95 | 0.03% (min ~$2) | GBP 2.99% above £8,000 for accounts over $100k NAV; lower otherwise |
InvestEngine | £0 DIY; 0.25% managed | n/a | Free | ETFs only | None | None (InvestEngine keeps it) |
Best for each type of investor
Best for beginners: Trading 212. No platform fee, no commission, fractional shares from £1, a free SIPP launched in 2026, and interest on uninvested cash that most rivals cannot match. The trade-off is no OEIC funds and no phone support to speak of.
Best all-rounder: AJ Bell. Every account type including Lifetime ISA and Junior SIPP, funds and shares, 24 international markets, and the best trust score of the ten. Not the cheapest, but the ETF fee cap of £3.50 a month in an ISA makes it very reasonable for passive investors.
Best for fund investors with £100k+: Interactive Investor. Flat £14.99 a month regardless of size, with £1.49 fund dealing on Plus. At £500,000 in funds that is roughly £180 a year against £1,000 at AJ Bell and £1,375 at HL.
Best for large SIPPs in ETFs: Interactive Brokers or InvestEngine. IBKR's zero custody and 0.03% FX beats everyone with global exposure; InvestEngine is free outright if a portfolio of GBP-listed ETFs is enough.
Best for service and research: Hargreaves Lansdown. Still the reference point for UK research, phone support and account breadth. Its March 2026 fee cut (0.45% to 0.35%, dealing from £11.95 to £6.95) narrowed the gap but did not close it.
Best for active share traders: IG. Commission-free with automatic FX, ProRealTime charting, 3.75% on cash. Avoid its SIPP unless the £210 administrator fee is trivial against your pot.
Best for US citizens living in the UK: Interactive Brokers UK. See below.
If you are a US citizen or US person
Almost every UK comparison ignores this, and it is the single most common question we get from readers with dual nationality. US persons (citizens, green card holders, and anyone meeting the IRS substantial presence test) face two problems at UK brokers: FATCA reporting makes many platforms refuse them outright, and the PFIC rules mean most UK funds and UCITS ETFs are taxed punitively by the IRS when held outside a pension.
Platform | US persons accepted? | Notes |
Interactive Brokers UK | Yes, general account | Complete a W-9, receive a US 1099. Not available for its SIPP. Can hold US-listed ETFs, which avoid PFIC. |
Fidelity International | Shares and cash only | Accepts US-connected clients but blocks funds, ETFs and other collectives. |
AJ Bell | SIPP only | US citizens barred from the Dealing account and ISA. |
Hargreaves Lansdown | Limited | Generally not opening new accounts for US persons; existing US-person clients restricted. Confirm directly. |
IG | Conditional | Requires Form W-9; restrictions on some holdings. Confirm directly. |
Interactive Investor | No | Closed US-resident accounts from January 2026. |
Vanguard UK | No | "Not available to US persons." |
Freetrade | No | Not available to US or dual US citizens. |
Trading 212 | No | Does not accept US persons on any account, even UK residents. |
InvestEngine | No | Cannot onboard US citizens, including UK-resident dual nationals. |
Three rules for US persons in the UK, in order of importance:
Prioritise a SIPP. UK pensions are recognised by the US-UK treaty and PFIC rules do not apply inside them. An ISA is invisible to the IRS; it saves UK tax but not US tax.
In a general account, hold individual shares or US-listed ETFs, never UK funds. A UK OEIC or Irish-domiciled ETF in a taxable account triggers Form 8621 and punitive tax.
Choose eligibility over price. A 0.15% FX fee is worthless if the platform closes your account when it discovers your passport.
If you are resident in the US rather than a US citizen living here, the list is shorter still: UK brokers generally cannot serve you, and Interactive Brokers will route you to its US entity. Get cross-border tax advice before opening anything. This page is information, not advice.
The Ten Platforms in Brief
1. Interactive Brokers UK, 82/100. The professional's platform, now open to UK retail with an ISA and a SIPP. Zero custody fees, the lowest FX charge in the market at 0.03%, access to 150+ markets, and research tools nobody else on this list matches. Held back by a steep learning curve, a minimum £3 monthly activity charge in the ISA, and the weakest customer-satisfaction score of the ten. Full review.
2. Trading 212, 81/100. The cheapest mainstream way to hold ETFs and shares in an ISA or SIPP, with a single 0.15% FX fee and market-leading cash interest. No OEIC funds and no US persons. Over 100,000 Trustpilot reviews rate it Excellent. Full review.
3. AJ Bell, 77/100. Which? Recommended for eight years running and the most complete account line-up. Custody capped at £3.50 a month for shares in an ISA. Percentage fees on funds mean it gets pricier as fund holdings grow past £100,000. Full review.
4. Interactive Investor, 72/100. Flat-fee pioneer, repriced in February 2026 to Core (£5.99) and Plus (£14.99). The cheapest full-service home for a large fund portfolio and one of the best research libraries. Cash interest on the trading account is poor. Full review.
5. Hargreaves Lansdown, 71/100. The UK's largest platform, now privately owned after its 2025 take-private, made its biggest fee overhaul in over a decade in March 2026. Unmatched breadth and service; still the most expensive for share and ETF investors in our model. Full review.
6. IG, 70/100. Commission-free investing from a FTSE 250 trading house with excellent charting and 3.75% on cash. Its £210-a-year third-party SIPP fee is the reason it does not rank higher. Full review.
7. Freetrade, 69/100. Now owned by IG. The free Basic plan includes ISA, SIPP and general account, with funds and gilts added to the range. The 0.99% FX on Basic is the catch; paid plans fix it. No drawdown from the SIPP. Full review.
8. InvestEngine, 67/100. Zero fees, full stop, for a DIY portfolio of ETFs. Fractional investing, automated savings plans and rebalancing. ETFs only, no interest on cash, and no US citizens. If that fits, nothing is cheaper. Full review.
9. Fidelity International, 66/100. Free fund dealing and a household name, with the exchange-traded fee capped at £90 a year in an ISA or SIPP and waived entirely in the Investment Account. The 0.35% fund fee and £7.50 share dealing keep it mid-table. International shares are not available in its SIPP. Full review.
10. Vanguard UK, 50/100. A clean, simple platform for Vanguard's own funds and ETFs with fees capped at £375 a year. It scores poorly here because you cannot hold anything else, the tools are minimal, and it will not take US persons. For a pure Vanguard LifeStrategy investor with £32k–£250k it is perfectly sensible. Full review.
What This Comparison Leaves Out
We would rather you knew the limits than trusted the numbers blindly.
Fund charges (OCFs) are excluded. You pay them wherever you hold the fund, so they do not change the ranking, but they will dwarf platform fees on an expensive active fund.
Cash interest is scored but not modelled in the cost figures. A fully invested portfolio holds little cash; if you routinely hold 10% in cash, Trading 212's and IG's rates are worth several hundred pounds a year on a £100k pot.
Subscription tiers are modelled at the entry level. Freetrade Basic, Interactive Investor Core moving to Plus above £100k, Interactive Brokers fixed pricing.
Spreads, stamp duty and the PTM levy apply everywhere and are excluded.
Trustpilot ratings were read in September 2026 and move constantly.
Fees change. HL, AJ Bell, Interactive Investor and Fidelity all changed tariffs in the first half of 2026. We re-verify quarterly, but check the provider's own page before you act.
Frequently asked questions
Which UK investment platform is cheapest?
For ETFs and shares, InvestEngine (£0) and Trading 212 (0.15% FX only) are cheapest at every portfolio size we modelled. For OEIC funds, Interactive Investor's flat fee is cheapest above roughly £50,000, and Freetrade offers funds without a platform fee on its Basic plan.
Is Hargreaves Lansdown worth the extra cost? For a £100,000 SIPP in ETFs, HL's true cost over 20 years is about £10,800 against £335 at Trading 212. Whether the research, phone service and account breadth are worth £10,000 is a personal decision; many investors decide it is, which is why HL remains the largest platform in the UK.
What is the best SIPP provider in the UK?
For ETFs and shares, Trading 212 and InvestEngine are free and Interactive Brokers is close behind. For funds, Interactive Investor's flat fee wins above £100,000. For the widest choice with strong service, AJ Bell caps SIPP share custody at £10 a month. Avoid IG's SIPP unless your pot is large enough that £210 a year is immaterial.
Can a US citizen open a stocks and shares ISA in the UK? Legally yes, if UK resident, but most platforms refuse. AJ Bell, Vanguard, Freetrade, Trading 212, InvestEngine and Interactive Investor will not open one for a US person. Interactive Brokers UK and, with restrictions, Fidelity and HL are the realistic options. Remember the IRS does not recognise the ISA wrapper.
Is my money safe if a UK broker fails? All ten are FCA-authorised and your investments are held separately from the firm's own assets. FSCS protects investments up to £85,000 per person per firm if a firm fails and cannot return your assets. FSCS deposit cover for cash held in a bank rose to £120,000 in December 2025.
How often do you update this page? Quarterly, or sooner if a major provider changes its tariff. The verification date is at the top.
The Teachable Moment
Twenty years of investing taught me that the fees you notice are never the ones that hurt. A £6.95 dealing charge stings every time you click; a 0.35% annual fee on a growing pot never does, yet it takes fifty times more. The platform that is right for you is the one whose charges stop mattering as your pot grows, not the one that feels cheapest today.
If you have not checked what your current platform will cost you over the next twenty years, do it now with the calculator above. Then check what your pension funds are costing you with our free pension fee checker, and read Nobody Chose Your Pension Funds. Not Even You. for the other half of the story.
Alpesh Patel is a fund manager and the founder of Campaign for a Million. This page is information and opinion, not a personal recommendation or financial advice. Capital is at risk. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change. Campaign for a Million receives no payment from any platform listed. [Add affiliate disclosure here if that changes.
Sources
Fees and eligibility verified on the following pages, 19 September 2026:
Hargreaves Lansdown ISA charges: https://www.hl.co.uk/investment-services/isa/savings-interest-rates-and-charges
Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP charges: https://www.hl.co.uk/pensions/sipp/charges-and-interest-rates
Hargreaves Lansdown fee changes from 1 March 2026: https://www.hl.co.uk/help/income-and-fees/fees-explained/fee-changes
Hargreaves Lansdown interest rates: https://www.hl.co.uk/charges-and-interest-rates
AJ Bell ISA charges (PDF): https://www.ajbell.co.uk/sites/ajbell/files/ISA_charges.pdf
AJ Bell SIPP charges (PDF, effective 10 July 2026): https://www.ajbell.co.uk/sites/ajbell/files/SIPP_charges.pdf
AJ Bell interest rates (from 1 February 2026): https://www.ajbell.co.uk/charges/interest-rates
Interactive Investor charges: https://www.ii.co.uk/our-charges
Interactive Investor cash interest (from 6 January 2026): https://www.ii.co.uk/investing-with-ii/cash-interest-rates
Vanguard UK fees: https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/what-we-offer/fees-explained
Vanguard Personal Pension fees: https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/what-we-offer/personal-pension/personal-pension-account
Vanguard eligibility (not available to US persons): https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/need-help/answer/who-can-open-a-managed-account
Fidelity fees and charges: https://www.fidelity.co.uk/services/fees-charges/
Fidelity international shares and FX: https://www.fidelity.co.uk/international-shares/
Fidelity cash interest (from 1 September 2026): https://www.fidelity.co.uk/statutory-and-regulatory-disclosures/how-we-manage-your-cash/
Freetrade pricing: https://freetrade.io/pricing and https://freetrade.io/compare-plans
Freetrade SIPP: https://freetrade.io/sipp
Freetrade and US citizens: https://help.freetrade.io/en/articles/2750455-is-freetrade-available-to-us-citizens
Trading 212 fees (Invest, ISA, SIPP): https://helpcentre.trading212.com/hc/en-us/articles/11471996799517-What-are-the-fees-in-the-Invest-ISAs-and-SIPP
Trading 212 SIPP eligibility: https://helpcentre.trading212.com/hc/en-us/articles/30767684244637-What-is-a-SIPP-Account
IG costs and fees: https://www.ig.com/uk/investments/share-dealing/costs-fees
Interactive Brokers UK stock commissions: https://www.interactivebrokers.co.uk/en/pricing/commissions-stocks-europe.php
Interactive Brokers UK ISA: https://www.interactivebrokers.co.uk/en/accounts/isa-accounts.php
Interactive Brokers UK SIPP: https://www.interactivebrokers.co.uk/en/accounts/individuals/sippAccount.php
Interactive Brokers UK interest rates: https://www.interactivebrokers.co.uk/en/accounts/fees/pricing-interest-rates.php
InvestEngine costs: https://investengine.com/costs/
InvestEngine ISA: https://investengine.com/isa/
US-person eligibility across UK brokers: https://www.momofinance.co.uk/us-citizens-in-the-uk/investment-brokerage/
Trading 212 and US persons: https://cameronjamesusa.com/trading-212-us-citizens/
Fidelity PFIC restrictions: https://cameronjamesusa.com/fidelity-pfic-restrictions-what-us-connected-us-persons-need-to-know/
Interactive Investor US-resident closures: https://edale.co/interactive-investor-account-closure-for-us-residents-your-options-transfering/
Hargreaves Lansdown and US persons: https://www.atamatax.com/hargreaves-lansdown-pfic
HL take-private completed March 2025: https://www.cvc.com/media/news/2025/cvc-nordic-capital-and-adia-complete-acquisition-of-hargreaves-lansdown/
IG completes acquisition of Freetrade, 1 April 2025: https://www.iggroup.com/investor-relations/press-releases/2025/acquisition-of-freetrade-april-1
FSCS compensation limits: https://www.fscs.org.uk/what-we-cover/
Trustpilot pages: https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.hl.co.uk
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/ajbell.co.uk, https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/ii.co.uk
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/vanguardinvestor.co.uk, https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.fidelity.co.uk,
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/freetrade.io,
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/trading212.com,
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/ig.com,
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/interactivebrokers.com, https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.investengine.com
Changelog
19 September 2026: first publication. Tariffs reflect HL's 1 March 2026 fee cut, Interactive Investor's 1 February 2026 Core/Plus/Premium plans, AJ Bell's 10 July 2026 SIPP tariff, Fidelity's 1 September 2026 cash rates, Trading 212's 2026 SIPP launch. Alpesh Patel is a fund manager and the founder of Campaign for a Million. This page is information and opinion, not a personal recommendation or financial advice. Capital is at risk. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change. Campaign for a Million receives no payment from any platform listed.
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