With the rise of so many mobile phone-based investing apps, it’s hard to know what to look for when choosing one for yourself. And with them rising so fast, it’s hard to know if they are financially viable, secure, and viable.
“Trading 212 reported an operating loss last year following the introduction of commission-free share trading.”
Investors Chronicle
In this article, we will break down what an investment platform is, what it can do, and will then highlight the three best investing platforms in the UK.
What is an investment platform?
An investment platform is an online service that allows people to purchase, sell, and hold stocks, shares, mutual funds, bonds, ETFs, and so on. There are numerous reasons to use an investment platform, such as having greater control over your holdings, being able to analyse a stock in detail, and monitoring the stock market in real-time.
Using an investing platform can be done in a couple of ways including:
- Doing it yourself on a non-advised basis through a direct-to-customer platform, also known as the D2C platform. Or,
- The other option is to hire an experienced financial adviser who will guide you and invest on your behalf.
They offer you a wide range of online tools that you can use to streamline the buying and selling of your holdings. Not only do investment platforms enable you to track your performance, but you can also use various tools to improve your investment portfolio.
What Is The Best Investment Platform For Beginners?
There are dozens of investment platforms available online, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. However, there are some that perform much better than the rest. When choosing a platform, you should check certain factors. This includes fees charged, the type of investments you can buy (e.g. can you buy ESG funds), services, usability, and advice.
Here are three of the best investing platforms in the UK that we have analysed and have used in the past:
1. Nutmeg
Nutmeg is one of the most popular investment platforms for beginners in the UK, offering a wide range of features and tools to build and streamline your investment portfolio. You can open a bank account, a pension account, stocks account, general investment portfolio account, and shares-ISA account on its website or app.
Likewise, if you want to pay more for your personal finances, we recommend going for fully managed portfolios, an essential service offered by Nutmeg. The purpose is to communicate or hire online brokerages to optimize various processes, including portfolio monitoring, buying and selling online stocks, and adjusting your investment portfolio to achieve your goals.
2. Vanguard
Are you looking for the cheapest way to invest? If yes, Vanguard is an excellent platform for investing. It is a popular investment platform for people who want to invest affordably and generate higher returns. If you wish to invest in stocks or shares ISA, using Vanguard enables you to get the job done accurately.
Vanguard offers Life Strategy portfolios, and you can invest in these portfolios for 0.41% per year. In addition, the platform also provides support tools to investors. However, we recommend studying the platform before making investments.
3. HSBC
HSBC is an excellent investment platform for people who want to invest their monies with a high street bank. The platform offers investment portfolios with five risk levels. The total annual costs start from 0.43%.
You can spend as little as £100 to buy and sell an investment with a lump sum. On the other hand, if you want to make payments from your bank account every month, you can start from £50. Bear in mind that it is the lowest cost offer from HSBC.
Who has the lowest overall fees?
Although there are many online investment platforms with affordable costs, research shows that DEGIRO has the lowest overall fees. It is a stock trading platform that charges £1.75 + 0.014% per trade. The maximum charge or fee on this platform is £5.
We hope this guide has been of use and has helped you decide on the right platform for you. Hopefully, you can choose one then start investing today!
James Banerjee is an Account Director who graduated from the University of Kent in 2014. He works in SEO on clients such as HSBC UK and Nestle and he has a keen interest in personal finances and money-saving advice.
