Products featured in this article are independently selected by This is Money’s specialist journalists. If you open an account using links which have an asterisk, This is Money will earn an affiliate commission. We do not allow this to affect our editorial independence.
Investors are being offered £100 back in share dealing charges by DIY investing giant Hargreaves Lansdown.
Hargreaves Lansdown* has launched the £100 online dealing fee refund for new and existing customers, buying or selling shares, investment trusts, ETFs, bonds or gilts from today until 21 June.
But while Hargreaves Lansdown offers free dund dealing, its £11.95 standard share dealing charge is higher than many rivals, so is this a good deal? We take a look.
Hargreaves Lansdown has launched a £100 dealing fee refund to help cut the cost of dealing fees eating into returns
Share dealing – what does it cost?
Share, investment trust, corporate bond and ETF dealing costs £11.95 per trade on Hargreaves Lansdown. If you trade more than 10 times per month, share dealing costs step down to £8.95, and again to £5.95 if you trade more than 20 times per month.
The dealing fee refund offer will help to claw back a healthy chunk of money, but it is worth noting that AJ Bell* has £5 dealing charges and Interactive Investor* charges £3.99, while some app-based platforms, such as Trading 212* charge nothing at all, although they may not offer investment funds.
Interactive Investor has an offer of £100 of free trades* but that is only if you open a new Isa by 19 May 2024.
The higher share dealing charges make Hargreaves Lansdown, one of the more expensive investment platforms to invest in stocks, investment trusts and ETFs if you are doing a number of trades per month.
The flipside is that rivals, including Interactive Investor and AJ Bell charge for investment fund dealing, at £3.99 and £1.50 per trade, respectively, which Hargreaves Lansdown offers for free.
HL’s charging structure can keep overall costs down for those who mainly buy and hold stock market-listed investments, as it caps its annual 0.45 per cent account charge fee at £45 for them.
Regular monthly share and some investment trust investing is £1.50 with Hargreaves Lansdown, while dividend reinvesting is 1 per cent, with a £1 minimum charge and £10 maximum.
Investors pay a 0.45 per cent account fee on their total fund investments up to £250,000, 0.25 per cent to £1million, 0.1 per cent to £2million and nothing above that.
See below for a more detailed breakdown and comparison of investment account charges.
Hargreaves Lansdown said the dealing fee refund offer* is aimed at early bird investors.
Early bird Isa investors can get higher returns. This is because they can gain up to a whole year of dividends and potential market growth ahead of those who leave it until the end of the tax year to invest.
Someone who invested their full Isa allowance in a global tracker on the first day of the tax year for the past decade would have seen their investments grow to £360,500, compared with £322,500 if they left it to the last day.
If you spread your investment evenly over the year using regular investments you would have £343,500, according to number crunching by Hargreaves Lansdown.
Ruchir Rodrigues, chief client and commercial officer at Hargreaves Lansdown said: ‘Our share offer encourages investors to use the benefits of being an early bird to their advantage and to help those who want to invest for a better future.
‘Early bird investing is incredibly sensible. The beginning of the tax year is by far the best time to take advantage of your new Isa and Sipp allowances, whether as a lump sum, or by setting up a regular investment, through a direct debit, so you take advantage of compounding growth.
‘Your savings and investments will be protected from tax straight away and up to a year longer than if you were to leave it until the end of the tax year.
‘Tax-free allowances on dividends and capital gains were slashed on 6 April to £500 and £3,000 respectively making it even more important to act early in the tax year. ‘
Compare the best DIY investing platforms and stocks & shares Isas
Investing online is simple, cheap and can be done from your computer, tablet or phone at a time and place that suits you.
When it comes to choosing a DIY investing platform, stocks & shares Isa or a general investing account, the range of options might seem overwhelming.
Every provider has a slightly different offering, charging more or less for trading or holding shares and giving access to a different range of stocks, funds and investment trusts.
When weighing up the right one for you, it’s important to to look at the service that it offers, along with administration charges and dealing fees, plus any other extra costs.
To help you compare the best investment accounts, we’ve crunched the facts and pulled together a comprehensive guide to choosing the best and cheapest investing account for you.
We highlight the main players in the table below but would advise doing your own research and considering the points in our full guide linked here.
>> This is Money’s full guide to the best investing platforms and Isas
Platforms featured below are independently selected by This is Money’s specialist journalists. If you open an account using links which have an asterisk, This is Money will earn an affiliate commission. We do not allow this to affect our editorial independence.
| Admin charge | Charges notes | Fund dealing | Standard share, trust, ETF dealing | Regular investing | Dividend reinvestment | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AJ Bell* | 0.25% | Max £3.50 per month for shares, trusts, ETFs. | £1.50 | £5 | £1.50 | £1.50 per deal | More details |
| Bestinvest* | 0.40% (0.2% for ready made portfolios) | Account fee cut to 0.2% for ready made investments | Free | £4.95 | Free for funds | Free for income funds | More details |
| Charles Stanley Direct* | 0.35% | No platform fee on shares if a trade in that month and annual max of £240 | Free | £11.50 | n/a | n/a | More details |
| Fidelity* | 0.35% on funds | £7.50 per month up to £25,000 or 0.35% with regular savings plan. | Free | £7.50 | Free funds £1.50 shares, trusts ETFs | £1.50 | More details |
| Hargreaves Lansdown* | 0.45% | Capped at £45 for shares, trusts, ETFs | Free | £11.95 | £1.50 | 1% (£1 min, £10 max) | More details |
| Interactive Investor* | £4.99 per month under £50k, £11.99 above, £10 extra for Sipp | Free trade worth £3.99 per month (does not apply to £4.99 plan) | £3.99 | £3.99 | Free | £0.99 | More details |
| iWeb | £100 one-off fee (waived until July 2024) | £5 | £5 | n/a | 2%, max £5 | More details | |
| Accounts that have some limits but attractive offers | |||||||
| Etoro* No investment funds or Sipp | Free | Investment account offers stocks and ETFs. Beware high risk CFDs. | Not available | Free | n/a | n/a | More details |
| Trading 212 | Free | Investment account offers stocks and ETFs. Beware high risk CFDs. | Not available | Free | n/a | Free | More details |
| Freetrade* No investment funds | Basic account free, Standard with Isa £4.99, Plus £9.99 | Freetrade Plus with more investments and Sipp is £9.99/month inc. Isa fee | No funds | Free | n/a | n/a | More details |
| Vanguard Only Vanguard’s own products | 0.15% | Only Vanguard funds | Free | Free only Vanguard ETFs | Free | n/a | More details |
| (Source: ThisisMoney.co.uk Mar 2024. Admin % charge may be levied monthly or quarterly | |||||||
