Independent · fee-focused
Best Low-Fee Investing Apps in 2026
Fees are the one cost you can control, and over years they make a real difference to your returns. We ranked these platforms purely on the costs that hit everyday investors: trading commissions, currency-conversion fees, withdrawal charges, and inactivity fees. Here is the cheapest overall, followed by the full ranking.
XTB: 74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with XTB Limited (UK); 77% with XTB Limited (CY).
XTB Limited (UK) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 522157). XTB Limited (CY) is authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (169/12).
Best overall: Lightyear
Lightyear is our top pick for this category: best low-fx investing app for the uk and eu.
Get started with LightyearCapital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
The ranked list
1. Lightyear
5/5Lightyear is a UK- and EU-available investing app offering commission-free stocks and ETFs, and a very low currency-conversion fee. Cash does not earn interest on its own: to get a yield you move it into a Vault, which is an investment in a BlackRock money market fund rather than a deposit. UK personal accounts (GIA and Stocks & Shares ISA) pay just 0.10% FX; EU accounts pay 0.35%. There are no account, withdrawal or inactivity fees, and no minimum deposit — making it one of the cheapest ways to hold a global portfolio.
Read the full Lightyear review →Visit LightyearLightyear
Best low-FX investing app for the UK and EU
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
2. Trading 212
4.9/5Trading 212 offers genuinely commission-free investing with no withdrawal fee and an Invest/ISA account for UK users. A strong low-cost pick, though product depth is narrower than full-service brokers.
Read the full Trading 212 review →Visit Trading 212Trading 212
Best for low fees and UK investors
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
3. Robinhood
4.9/5Robinhood pioneered commission-free trading in the US and now offers UK investors commission-free US shares with a very low 0.10% FX fee and a free Stocks & Shares ISA. It trades US-listed stocks, ETFs and options — no UK-listed shares, and no crypto in the UK. A clean app that is light on research; note the $100 account-transfer-out fee.
Read the full Robinhood review →Visit RobinhoodRobinhood
Best for commission-free US-stock investing in the US and UK
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
4. XTB
4.7/5XTB offers commission-free real stocks and ETFs up to €100,000 monthly turnover, a polished platform, and strong regulation. UK investors can hold it in a flexible Stocks & Shares ISA. A low-cost choice for EU and UK investors, with a 0.5% FX fee being the main cost to watch.
Read the full XTB review →Visit XTBXTB
Best for low-cost stock and ETF investing in the EU/UK
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with XTB Limited (UK); 77% with XTB Limited (CY), which serves clients outside the UK. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
5. Webull
4.7/5Webull pairs commission-free US stocks, ETFs and options with surprisingly advanced charting and analysis tools. Strong for active US traders; available in the UK with a 0.50% FX fee (0.35% on its paid Meridian plan) and a flexible Stocks and Shares ISA with no account fee. Only regulatory fees apply on sells. UK-listed shares are the one market Webull does not trade commission-free: new accounts get 90 days free, after which a commission with a 50p minimum applies.
Read the full Webull review →Visit WebullWebull
Best for active traders who want advanced tools free
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
6. InvestEngine
4.7/5InvestEngine is a UK ETF-only investment platform with no platform fee, no dealing commission and no FX fee on its DIY portfolios, across ISA, SIPP and General accounts. All ETFs are GBP-denominated, so you pay only the underlying ETF's ongoing charge. ETFs only — no individual stocks.
Read the full InvestEngine review →Visit InvestEngineInvestEngine
Best for zero-fee DIY ETF investing with a free ISA and SIPP
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
7. Trade Republic
4.6/5Trade Republic is a German neobroker and licensed bank offering stocks, ETFs, bonds and crypto at a flat €1 external-settlement fee per trade, with completely free ETF savings-plan executions. It also pays interest on uninvested cash (linked to ECB rates) and runs a Saveback card scheme. Available across most of the eurozone; a mobile-first, no-frills platform.
Read the full Trade Republic review →Visit Trade RepublicTrade Republic
Best €1-flat neobroker for low-cost investing in the eurozone
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
8. Scalable Capital
4.6/5Scalable Capital is a German neobroker offering real stocks and ETFs on two plans. The FREE Broker charges €0.99 per trade (free for €250+ purchases of PRIME ETFs) with no account fee, while PRIME+ Broker (€4.99/month) gives a trading flat rate with €0 per-trade commission. ETF savings-plan executions are free on both plans. Those prices apply only on Scalable's own European Investor Exchange, which is now the sole cheap route: gettex and Xetra both cost a flat €1.99 per order on either plan.
Read the full Scalable Capital review →Visit Scalable CapitalScalable Capital
Best broker with a free savings-plan tier and an optional flat-rate plan
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
9. Interactive Brokers
4.5/5Interactive Brokers is the professional-grade choice: no percentage platform fee, dealing from £3, access to more than 150 markets, and a 0.03% currency conversion charge that is an order of magnitude below every UK platform. The trade-off is complexity — the platform and its statements assume you know what you are doing.
Read the full Interactive Brokers review →Interactive Brokers
The cheapest FX and the widest market access, for confident investors
Visit the Interactive Brokers website →We earn no commission from Interactive Brokers. It is listed here because a fee comparison that leaves out the market leaders is not a fee comparison.
10. Freetrade
4.4/5Freetrade is a UK mobile-first investing app offering commission-free trading on stocks, ETFs and investment trusts, with a genuinely free Stocks & Shares ISA and SIPP on its Basic plan. The main cost for most users is the FX fee on non-GBP trades: 0.99% on the free plan, dropping to 0.59% (Standard, £5.99/mo) and 0.39% (Plus, £11.99/mo). Both paid plans can be bought a year up front instead — £59.88 for Standard and £119.88 for Plus, about 17% off the monthly price.
Read the full Freetrade review →Visit FreetradeFreetrade
Best free ISA and SIPP for commission-free UK investing
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
11. DEGIRO
4.3/5DEGIRO (part of flatexDEGIRO Bank, BaFin-regulated) is one of Europe's cheapest brokers for real stocks and ETFs. A €1 handling fee applies to most trades, and its Core Selection ETFs — the ones listed on Tradegate — carry €0 commission, so the €1 handling fee is the whole cost. The costs to watch are the 0.25% AutoFX currency-conversion mark-up and a €2.50 per-exchange, per-year connectivity fee.
Read the full DEGIRO review →Visit DEGIRODEGIRO
Best low-cost broker for buy-and-hold ETF investors in the EU
Capital at risk. This is not financial advice. Investing involves risk of loss.
12. Vanguard UK
3.8/5Vanguard's UK platform charges 0.15% a year capped at £375, with no dealing charges on its funds. It is one of the cheapest ways to hold a simple index portfolio, with two significant caveats: you can only buy Vanguard's own funds and ETFs, and accounts below £32,000 now pay a £4 monthly minimum fee, which is expensive on a small pot.
Read the full Vanguard UK review →Vanguard UK
Cheap index investing, but only in Vanguard's own funds
Visit the Vanguard UK website →We earn no commission from Vanguard UK. It is listed here because a fee comparison that leaves out the market leaders is not a fee comparison.
Compare side by side
| Feature | Lightyear | Trading 212 | Robinhood | XTB | Webull | InvestEngine | Trade Republic | Scalable Capital | Interactive Brokers | Freetrade | DEGIRO | Vanguard UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 5 / 5 | 4.9 / 5 | 4.9 / 5 | 4.7 / 5 | 4.7 / 5 | 4.7 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 | 3.8 / 5 |
| Stock commission | UK personal accounts (GIA and ISA): no execution fee on UK, US and European stocks or ETFs. EU accounts: GBP 1 per order on UK stocks, EUR 1 per order on EUR-denominated stocks, 0.1% on other European stocks, and 0.10% (min $0.10, max $1) on US stocks. ETFs are execution-fee-free on both. | 0% | $0 / £0 commission on US stocks and ETFs; options are $0 commission in the US and $0.50 per contract (buys and sells) in the UK; crypto in the US only | 0% up to €100k monthly turnover, then 0.2% (min €10) | $0 on stocks, ETFs and options (regulatory fees on sells). UK: $0 commission on US and Hong Kong / China-A shares and ETFs, on both the free Go tier and Meridian. UK shares are the exception and are not commission-free - Webull markets them as "50p minimum commission", and new accounts get 90 days of commission-free UK trading before the standard rate applies. Webull does not publish the percentage above that 50p floor on its pricing page | £0 dealing commission on all ETFs (DIY portfolios); no platform fee | €1 flat per trade (Best Price execution); €2 per order for Direct Price routing to a chosen exchange (Xetra, NYSE, etc., since July 2026) | Price depends on the venue. European Investor Exchange (EIX) — FREE Broker: €0.99 per trade, or €0 on purchases of €250 or more in PRIME ETFs (Amundi, iShares, Vanguard, Xtrackers); PRIME+ Broker (€4.99/mo): €0 per trade from €250, else €0.99. Xetra and gettex: €1.99 flat per order on both plans, PRIME ETFs included, with no free-trade threshold and trading-venue fees waived. EIX is the only venue where the €0.99 and free-above-€250 pricing still applies | UK shares 0.05% of trade value, minimum £3; European shares 0.05%, minimum €3; US shares from $0.005 per share, minimum $1 (Fixed pricing) | £0 commission on all UK & US stocks, ETFs and investment trusts (all plans); mutual funds also dealt free with no holding fee since 22 January 2026 (all plans) | Commission plus a EUR 1 handling fee per trade: EUR 2 total on US and Canadian exchanges, EUR 4.90 on London and on any European exchange outside your own country, EUR 6 on Australia, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo. ETFs EUR 3, or EUR 1 handling only for the Core Selection (the ETFs listed on Tradegate). Your domestic market is priced separately and the discount is not the same everywhere: Euronext Milan, Bolsa de Madrid and Euronext Paris all cost EUR 2 on their national schedules, Euronext Amsterdam and Brussels EUR 3 on the Dutch one and Euronext Dublin EUR 3 on the Irish one, Nasdaq Stockholm SEK 20 all-in on the Swedish one, while the German schedule gives XETRA no discount at all and charges the full EUR 4.90 | No dealing charge on Vanguard funds and ETFs at the scheduled daily trade; £7.50 for optional live 'quote and deal' ETF trades |
| Withdrawal fee | Free by local bank transfer. USD wire payments are charged (up to $8.50 UK, $6.11 EU). | Free | Free (bank/ACH); instant withdrawal 1.75% (US); account transfer out $100 | Free, with no minimum withdrawal amount - XTB charges no withdrawal commission, including on foreign-currency withdrawals | Free (ACH); wires $25 to send; account transfer out $75 | Free — no withdrawal fee | Free to a linked bank account | Free to a linked bank account | Two free withdrawal requests per calendar month; after that GBP 7.00 by bank transfer or GBP 1.00 by BACS/GIRO (EUR 8.00 / EUR 1.00; USD 10.00 / USD 1.00) | Free standard withdrawals; £5 for same-day withdrawal, which is included free on the Plus plan | Free to a linked bank account | Free to a linked UK bank account |
| Inactivity fee | None | None | None | EUR 10/month, only after 365 days with no trade AND no deposit in the previous 90 days. Not charged on ISA accounts, where open positions are held, or on a zero balance. | None | None | None | None | None on the standard account (the inactivity fee was removed in 2021) | None | None (DEGIRO publishes EUR 0 inactivity, custody, deposit and withdrawal fees) | None |
| Min deposit | None | £1 | None | None | None | £100 | None | None | None | None | None | £500 |
| Fractional shares | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Demo account | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Regulators | FCA, EFSA | FCA, CySEC | SEC, FINRA, SIPC, FCA | FCA, CySEC, KNF | SEC, FINRA, SIPC, FCA | FCA | BaFin, Bundesbank | BaFin, Bundesbank | FCA, SEC | FCA | BaFin, AFM, DNB | FCA |
How to choose
Do not be fooled by 'commission-free' alone — the real cost often hides in currency conversion and withdrawal fees. Match the fee structure to your habits: frequent traders should weigh commissions and FX, while occasional investors should watch inactivity and withdrawal charges. Our fee calculator turns your trading pattern into an estimated annual cost.
How we rank
Rankings are based on published fees, regulatory standing, available features, and the real cost of common actions (trading, withdrawing, currency conversion). We do not accept payment for placement; affiliate relationships do not influence the order. The fee data behind this ranking comes from the same verified dataset as our UK Broker Fee Index — a quarterly data study where FX fees alone vary almost tenfold between platforms.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which of the low-fee investing apps should you choose?
Lightyear is our top pick — best low-fx investing app for the uk and eu. The best choice still depends on your priorities around fees and features.
Do these rankings change?
Yes. Fees and features change, so we update this page regularly — the fee data behind this ranking was last verified on 21 September 2026.