Trading 212 review

Best Overall

Commission-free investing with a stocks & shares ISA. Over 10,000 stocks and ETFs available. Fractional shares from £1.

Overview

Trading 212 has become one of the most popular investment platforms in the UK, particularly among younger and first-time investors. The headline feature is simple: zero commission on stocks and ETFs. No platform fee, no dealing charges, no ISA fee.

Who Is Trading 212 Best For?

• Complete beginners — the app is intuitive and well-designed
• Small portfolio investors — zero fees mean every penny goes into your investments
• Fractional share buyers — invest from as little as £1 in any stock
• Passive investors — free ISA with automated pie investing

Fee Breakdown

Fee Type	Cost
Platform fee	£0
Share dealing	£0
ISA wrapper	£0
FX conversion	0.15%
Withdrawal	£0

Trading 212 makes money from the 0.15% FX fee on non-GBP trades and from interest on uninvested cash. For UK stocks and GBP-denominated ETFs, it is genuinely free. For US stocks, the 0.15% FX fee is still far cheaper than the £10+ dealing charges on traditional platforms.

What Can You Invest In?

Over 10,000 stocks and ETFs from the UK, US, and European markets. The range covers most of what a typical investor needs:

• UK shares (FTSE 100, FTSE 250, AIM)
• US shares (S&P 500, NASDAQ, NYSE)
• European shares (Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam)
• ETFs from all major providers (Vanguard, iShares, SPDR)

The Pies Feature

One of Trading 212's standout features is Pies — automated portfolio building. You set a target allocation (e.g., 60% global ETF, 20% US tech, 20% UK dividend stocks), fund it, and the platform automatically rebalances. This effectively gives you a free robo-advisor.

Set up a recurring deposit into a Pie and Trading 212 automatically buys the right proportions each time. It is pound-cost averaging on autopilot — completely free.

Interest on Cash

Trading 212 pays interest on uninvested cash in both the Invest and ISA accounts. The rate tracks the Bank of England base rate, currently competitive with many easy-access savings accounts.

What Trading 212 Lacks

• No SIPP — you cannot use it for pension investing
• Limited research tools — no analyst reports, earnings calendars, or advanced screeners
• No bonds or investment trusts — stocks and ETFs only
• Customer support — primarily chat-based, no phone support

If you need a SIPP for retirement savings, you will need a second platform like Vanguard, AJ Bell, or Interactive Investor alongside Trading 212.

How It Compares

For a beginner putting £200/month into a global ETF inside an ISA, Trading 212 is hard to beat on cost. A comparable setup on Hargreaves Lansdown would cost £1.50/month in platform fees plus dealing charges. On Interactive Investor, the minimum £4.99/month subscription exceeds the benefit for small portfolios.

The Bottom Line

Trading 212 is the best choice for cost-conscious investors with smaller portfolios who want a simple, modern app for buying stocks and ETFs in an ISA. It is not the platform for active traders who need research tools, or for retirement planning (no SIPP). But for what it does, it does it exceptionally well — and for free.

Pros

• Commission-free trading
• Free stocks & shares ISA
• Fractional shares from £1
• Interest on uninvested cash
• User-friendly mobile app

Cons

• Limited research tools
• No SIPP option
• Spread costs on CFDs