Trading 212 and InvestEngine are two of the cheapest investing providers available to UK retail investors. So, it make sense to pit InvestEngine vs Trading 212 against each other in a head-to-head battle.
Both Trading 212 and InvestEngine offer a decent range of investments and a few account options, including a stocks and shares ISA. So, check out our breakdown of InvestEngine vs Trading 212 and hopefully this will help you pick who’s best, depending on what’s most important to you – whether that’s fees, investment choice, account types or anything else.
 |  | |
| Finder score | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Customer satisfaction survey | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Fees score | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Stocks and shares ISA available? | ||
| FSCS protected? | ||
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
InvestEngine and Trading 212 are pretty close when it comes to their Finder score, with InvestEngine scoring a solid 4.4 out of 5, and Trading 212 scoring an even more impressive 4.7 out of 5.
Both platforms offer stocks and shares ISA, and both come with full Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protection of up to £85,000.
Trading 212 and InvestEngine both received positive feedback in our most recent Finder Investing Customer Satisfaction Awards 2024 results. However, InvestEngine was actually tied for first place.
Both platforms offer excellent value to UK investors, InvestEngine only offers exchange-traded funds (ETFs), but it’s the cheapest platform for this popular type of investment and has a fee score of 5 out of 5. Trading 212 offers a wider range of assets and is one of the best all-round performers with a fee score of 5 out of 5.
| | |
| General investment account | ||
| Stocks and shares ISA | ||
| Lifetime ISA (LISA) | ||
| Pension (SIPP) | ||
| Junior ISA (JISA)/Junior SIPP (JSIPP) | ||
| Interest on cash balances | ||
| Keep in mind | Capital at risk | Capital at risk. 78% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
The key difference when it comes to account options available is that InvestEngine offers a very cheap self-invested personal pension (SIPP) with a fee of just 0.15%.
Unfortunately, neither platform offers a lifetime ISA (LISA) or a junior stocks and shares ISA (JISA). However, Trading 212 does pay high interest on cash, and it does also offer a cash ISA.
Winner: InvestEngine
| | |
| Investment choice score | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Available markets | 1 (global ETF funds) | 3+ |
| Number of investments | 700 | 13,000+ |
| Number of ETFs/funds | 700 | 2,000 |
| Fractional shares | ||
| Min. initial deposit | £100 | £1 |
| Min. investment | £1 | £1 |
| Keep in mind | Capital at risk | Capital at risk. 78% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
InvestEngine is fairly limiting as it only offers ETFs. Whereas Trading 212 offers stocks, ETFs, investment trusts and more. In fact Trading 212 has over 13,000 investment options.
You can buy fractional shares on InvestEngine and Trading 212 from just £1, however you need a £100 minimum initial investment for InvestEngine.
Winner: Trading 212
| | |
| Fees score | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Platform fees | 0% - 0.25% | £0 |
| US shares | N/A | £0 |
| UK shares | N/A | £0 |
| International shares | £0 | |
| Funds/ETFs | £0 (ongoing ETF fees apply) | £0 |
| Foreign exchange fee | 0% | 0.15% |
| Regular investing | Yes (Savings Plans) | Yes (AutoInvest feature) |
| Withdrawal fee | £0 | £0 |
| Deposit fee | £0 | £0 |
| Inactivity fee | £0 | £0 |
| Keep in mind | Capital at risk | Capital at risk. 78% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
It’s hard to separate the two when it comes to fees as they’re both cheap investing platforms that offer great benefits like the option to use a free stocks and shares ISA account.
However, the fact that Trading 212 offers low fees on a more diverse range of investments and still remains cheap across the board means that it’s the winner here. In fact, Trading 212 is our overall best trading app for low fees.
Winner: Trading 212
| | |
| Ease of use score | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Apple iOS rating | 4.8/5 | 4.6/5 |
| Google Play rating | 4.5/5 | 3.9/5 |
| Ways to contact customer service | Contact form and social media | Phone, email and in-app chat |
| UI/UX | Good | Good |
| Desktop or web access | ||
| Mobile app | ||
| Keep in mind | Capital at risk | Capital at risk. 78% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
Both platforms scored extremely well in our ease of use assessment. Trading 212 and InvestEngine offer excellent mobile and desktop apps that are simple to use and are highly review on the App Store and Google Play Store.
Winner: Tie
| | |
| Tools, resources and features | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Analysis features | ||
| Tools for investing/trading | ||
| Social features | ||
| Learning resources | ||
| Additional features | ||
| Keep in mind | Capital at risk | Capital at risk. 78% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
| Go to site More Info | Go to site More Info |
This is another area where it’s hard to separate InvestEngine and Trading 212.
InvestEngine has some excellent features like one-click portfolio rebalancing, automated investing with savings plans, and a portfolio look-through feature to see exactly what your ETFs are investing in.
Trading 212 also has some useful features like 24/5 trading, share lending, and the options to create and share mini-portfolios using its pies.
Winner: Tie
These are two of the best (and cheapest) investing platforms available to UK investors.
If you want to use a SIPP and only want to invest in ETFs, InvestEngine may suit you. However, if you want a more diverse investing experience, Trading 212 could be better.
Winner: Trading 212
All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.
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