Broker Currency Conversion (FX) Fees Compared
The currency conversion fee is the single biggest hidden cost for UK and EU investors buying US shares, and it varies enormously: Trading 212 charges just 0.15%, XTB 0.5%, eToro around 0.75%, and Freetrade 0.99% on its free plan. InvestEngine charges no FX fee at all because its ETFs are GBP-denominated. On a £1,000 US-share purchase, that spread means paying anywhere from £1.50 to £9.90 in conversion — every single trade, and again when you sell. Every figure below comes straight from each broker's published fee schedule, verified June 2026.
Reviewed by Yaniv Barshaf · Fees verified June 2026 · Our methodology
Disclosure: FeesWizard may earn a commission if you open an account through links on this page. This never affects our fee data or rankings — how we make money.
| Broker | FX / conversion fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| InvestEngine | No FX fee — all ETFs are GBP-denominated | No FX fee — all its ETFs are priced in GBP. |
| Trading 212 | 0.15% FX fee on non-base-currency trades | The lowest headline FX fee among mainstream investing apps. |
| Webull | No FX in US (USD only); 0.35% FX fee for UK investors | No FX in the US (USD-only); 0.35% applies for UK investors. |
| XTB | 0.5% FX markup when account and instrument currency differ | Applied when your account and the instrument currency differ. |
| Revolut | Free FX up to a monthly allowance, then 0.5% (unlimited on paid plans) | Free up to a monthly allowance, then 0.5% — paid plans lift the allowance. |
| eToro | ~0.75% FX fee on local-currency (GBP/EUR) accounts; none on USD account trading USD assets | Around 0.75% on local-currency (GBP/EUR) accounts; none on a USD account trading USD assets. |
| Freetrade | FX fee on non-GBP trades: 0.99% (Basic), 0.59% (Standard £5.99/mo), 0.39% (Plus £11.99/mo) | 0.99% on the free plan, falling to 0.59% (Standard) and 0.39% (Plus) on paid tiers. |
| Robinhood | No FX fee (USD-only account, US-listed assets) | No FX fee — USD-only account trading US-listed assets. |
Fee data verified June 2026 from each broker’s published schedule. Figures are estimates of published costs, not quotes — confirm current fees on the broker’s own site before opening an account.
What a currency conversion fee actually is
A currency conversion fee, often shortened to FX fee, is a percentage a broker adds when it converts your money into another currency to buy an asset priced in that currency. If you hold a pound account and buy a US-listed share priced in dollars, the broker converts pounds to dollars and charges a markup on the exchange rate — that markup is the FX fee. It applies again when you sell and convert back. Because it is expressed as a percentage of the trade, it scales with how much you invest: the more you buy, the more you pay in absolute terms. For UK and EU investors who favour US shares and ETFs, this is frequently the largest recurring trading cost, yet it is easy to overlook because it is bundled into the exchange rate rather than shown as a separate line.
The cheapest and most expensive FX fees
Among mainstream investing platforms the range is wide. InvestEngine charges no FX fee whatsoever, because every ETF on its platform is denominated in pounds, so no conversion happens. Trading 212 has the lowest headline conversion fee at 0.15%. XTB sits at 0.5%, applied when your account currency and the instrument currency differ. eToro is around 0.75% on GBP or EUR accounts. Freetrade charges 0.99% on its free Basic plan, dropping to 0.59% on Standard and 0.39% on Plus for a monthly subscription. US-only brokers sidestep the issue entirely for US residents: Robinhood charges no FX fee because it is USD-only trading US-listed assets, and Webull is the same in the US, though it applies a 0.35% fee for UK investors. Revolut is a special case, offering free conversion up to a monthly allowance and then 0.5%.
A worked example: £1,000 of US shares
The percentages sound small until you attach pounds to them. Buy £1,000 of a US-listed share and the conversion fee is charged on the way in, then again when you sell and convert back. On Trading 212 at 0.15%, that is about £1.50 each way, roughly £3 for the round trip. On XTB at 0.5% it is about £5 each way. On eToro at roughly 0.75% it is about £7.50 each way, or £15 round trip. On Freetrade's free plan at 0.99% it is about £9.90 each way, nearly £20 round trip. InvestEngine charges nothing because there is no conversion. Now scale that up: an investor putting £10,000 into US shares pays around £15 in conversion on Trading 212 but close to £99 on Freetrade's free plan for the same single purchase. The percentage gap looks trivial; the pound gap does not.
How to reduce currency conversion costs
There are several practical ways to cut FX costs. The simplest is to invest in assets already priced in your own currency: a GBP-denominated ETF, such as those on InvestEngine or a London-listed fund tracking US markets, incurs no conversion at all. If you do buy foreign-currency assets, favour a broker with a low FX fee — Trading 212's 0.15% is the benchmark to beat. On platforms with tiered pricing like Freetrade, a paid plan can more than pay for itself if you trade foreign shares frequently: dropping from 0.99% to 0.39% saves £6 per £1,000 traded. Where a broker offers a free FX allowance, as Revolut does, keep conversions within it. And because the fee is charged on both the buy and the sell, holding for the long term rather than trading in and out reduces how often you pay it. Capital at risk.
Why commission-free brokers still profit from FX
Many of the platforms above advertise commission-free trading, and for domestic shares that is genuinely true. But zero commission does not mean zero cost, and the currency conversion fee is one of the main ways a commission-free broker still earns from your trades. When the headline is 0% commission, the FX markup on foreign shares becomes the cost that quietly does the work. This is why comparing brokers on commission alone is misleading for anyone who buys US or overseas assets — the effective cost of the same trade can differ by a factor of six or more purely on conversion. Always look past the commission headline to the FX fee if foreign shares are part of your plan, and treat the conversion percentage as a core comparison metric rather than fine print. For a full picture, model your own trade size and frequency rather than relying on the headline rate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a broker currency conversion fee?
It is a percentage markup a broker adds to the exchange rate when it converts your money to buy an asset priced in another currency, such as a UK investor buying a US share. It applies on the buy and again on the sell, and scales with the size of your trade.
Which broker has the lowest FX fee?
Among mainstream investing apps, InvestEngine charges no FX fee because its ETFs are GBP-denominated, and Trading 212 has the lowest headline conversion fee at 0.15%. XTB (0.5%), eToro (~0.75%) and Freetrade (0.99% on its free plan) are progressively more expensive.
How much does an FX fee cost on £1,000 of US shares?
Roughly £1.50 each way on Trading 212 (0.15%), about £5 on XTB (0.5%), about £7.50 on eToro (~0.75%) and about £9.90 on Freetrade's free plan (0.99%). Because it is charged on both the buy and the sell, double those figures for a full round trip.
How can I avoid currency conversion fees?
Buy assets priced in your own currency, such as GBP-denominated ETFs where no conversion happens, or choose a broker with a very low FX fee. On tiered platforms a paid plan can lower the rate, and holding long term rather than trading in and out reduces how often you pay it.