Best Trading Platforms UK 2023

Trading platforms enable you to buy and sell investments, monitor their performance, and gain knowledge of the most important investing parameters. In the UK, there are numerous trading platforms, each with its own special features and capabilities.

Finding a perfect trading platform in the UK may prove tricky. To make it easy for you, this guide will explore the best trading platforms UK, including how do trading platforms work, how much money do you need to get started on a trading platform in UK, and much more.

The 10 Best Trading Platforms in the UK Reviewed

Here are the best trading platforms in the UK.

eToro – Best for Beginners

eToro is a top social copy trading platform boasting over 30 million customers. The collective wisdom of millions of retail investors with the ability to share their portfolios makes it a great platform. Investors can also automatically copy other traders’ moves, especially from top traders.

The CopyTrader feature allows beginners to build solid portfolios without necessarily becoming expert traders. The social aspect of the platform creates interactive engagement by sharing ideas and discussing strategies.

The platform is easy to use across its proprietary web and mobile app platforms. The design is simple and clean for traders of all categories. The company is licenced and regulated by the FCA and other regulatory authorities globally.

eToro secures its clients by adhering to all regulatory mandates. It also stores clients’ funds using top-tier banks while trading data is encrypted across its digital systems. In case of any bad eventuality, eToro has an insurance plan for its diamond and platinum customers.

Reviews about the mobile application continue to show that its apps are beginner friendly.

Customer ratings are impressive, with over ten million downloads on Android.

Freetrade – Best for Trading Fractional UK Shares

Freetrade enables customers to invest in over 6,000 tradeable assets from the UK, US, and European markets. UK residents can invest tax-efficiently up to £20,000 free from income and capital gain taxes.

It runs a freemium model with a basic account for general investments. The other two accounts are priced monthly where customers can access shares, stocks, and self-invested personal pensions.

Freetrade offers fractional trading in expensive US stocks. Customers can buy popular stocks for as low as £2. Another advantage Freetrade offers is the referral program allowing friends to get free shares worth up to $100.

Although founded in 2016, the company has developed a solid reputation and serves over a million people. All the funds are protected through adherence to FCA regulations and the financial services compensation scheme(FSCS) and are also segregated to guarantee protection.

Freetrade app is easy to use, with modern, intuitive designs that are beginner friendly.

Fineco Bank – Best for Experienced Traders

Fineco has been running since 1999 and is amongst the pioneers of online trading. It is regulated by the FCA and is publicly listed on the Italian Stock Exchange. The company commands £90 billion in financial assets.

Stock Exchange offers premium trading to over 1.4 million customers. These investors get access to 26 global markets with over 20,000 financial instruments.

Fineco offers a fast, intuitive, and secure proprietary platform where customers can access professional charting tools, customizable workspaces, and live news.

The availability of trading tools like a free stock screener, risk management features, and stock order book on five levels help investors seize market opportunities effectively for this stock exchange.

Beginner investors can start from as low as £100 and pay an annual platform fee of 0.25%.

The Fineco mobile app provides a simple and fast way for beginners and experienced investors to connect to the financial market. The app reviews show that clients trust the company.

IG – Best for CFDs Trading

IG enables its customers to access 18,000 global markets. In 2019, it executed over 86 million trades. IG also offers advanced platforms and charting tools like MetaTrader 4, ProRealTime, and L2 dealer.

Customers can execute trades efficiently with a fast and easy-to-use web platform and get a full suite of alerts and risk management tools.

Some of the trading features include:

• Deal tickets

• Alerts

• Signals

• Platform customisation

• News and analysis

• Charts

IG has a solid reputation and is regulated by the FCA. Clients’ funds are held in segregated bank accounts under trustee management.

The mobile app has received rave reviews on the app store. Customers can use the mobile platform on IOS and android smartphones.

Saxo – Best for Advanced Trading

Saxo has operated for over 30 years serving clients in 170 countries. It offers access to a wide range of investment options coupled with market insights on a simple platform. It has a banking licence and is regulated by the FCA.

Saxo processes about 270K transactions worth over £16 billion. The platform offers a transparent pricing structure with low commissions and tight spreads. Some prominent features include enhanced trade tickets, technical analysis tools, and an extensive charting package.

SaxoTraderGo is the mobile version of the Saxo trader web platform that offers clients over 40,000 tradeable financial instruments from across the world.

Trading 212 – Best for Long Term Investment

Trading 212 is a beginner-friendly platform that offers commission-free investing. The platform serves over 1.5 million clients and manages about £3.5 billion in clients’ assets.

The Pie and AutoInvest features allow customers to build a diversified trading portfolio. The fully automated feature has provisions for investing and re-investing dividends into your Pie.

Investors can purchase fractional shares on the platform for as low as £1. Traders have access to over 12,000 global trading instruments.

Trading 212 is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Clients’ funds are segregated and further protected by the FSCS up to £85,000. The mobile app version has over 10 million downloads with positive reviews.

Degiro – Best for Low Fees.

Degiro allows customers to open retail investor accounts and start trading in over 50 markets across 30 countries. It’s listed on SDAX and operates its banking license to ensure assets and fund security. It offers a smart and user-friendly platform that makes it simple to trade with zero commissions and low fees.

The broker serves over two million customers.

The Degiro mobile app has great reviews on the app store. However, the broker commits to improving the user experience on the app.

Hargreaves Lansdown – Best for DIY Investment

Hargreaves Lansdown(HL) is a pensions and investment platform based in the UK. Having been in operation for the last 40 years, it offers clients an extensive range of investment instruments. The platform has a solid reputation, serving over 1.6 million customers in the UK while managing over £100 billion in investments.

Customers can get cashback between £50 -£1000 when transferring accounts worth £4000 or more to the platform. These transfers must go to the HL Stocks and Shares ISA or HL Fund and Share Account.

HL is regulated by the FCA and safeguarded through the FSCS. Funds are segregated and held by an account trustee to protect users’ funds.

Interactive Investor – Best for Flat Fee Investment

Interactive Investor is a leading flat-fee investment platform offering a multitude of tradeable assets and subscription services. It features a suite of trading tools for risk management, news insights, trading, and market research. These are all aimed at helping both beginners and advanced traders in their investment journey.

The platform offers a choice of over 150 markets, with the possibility of opting for managed services. The flat fee model is designed to help customers save money and achieve their investment goals.

Customers can access 40,000 UK and global assets at low fees and margin rates and can get bonuses of £200 by recommending Interactive Investor to their friends.

Interactive Investor is FCA regulated with full FSCS protection.

The mobile app reviews show that customers are satisfied with the app. The customer service team is also hands-on in responding to customers’ queries.

Capital.com- Best for Mobile Trading

Capital.com is beginner friendly CFDs trading platform famed for its rich selection of educational material and mobile platform. All traders can access guides, news, and insights on this innovative web platform. The platform is intuitive and easy to use, offering simple ways to launch trades.

The platform boasts a variety of advanced trading tools, including.

• Hedging mode and risk management tools

• Cutting edge trading chatting with over 75 indicators

• Personalised watchlist

• Multi-chart toggling

• In-depth financial insights

The mobile app is armed with an EQ-patented intelligent system to make the user experience much better. It has rave reviews on the app store at almost five stars.

How Do Trading Platforms Work?

A trading platform is a software program that allows investors to trade securities. Financial intermediaries such as online brokers use these platforms to help traders access the financial market without third-party brokers and to open, close, track and control positions in the market.

Traders can invest in financial instruments such as Stocks, Forex, Commodities, and Indices, amongst others. They are bundled with tools and services such as market insights, charting, real-time quotes, and educational content.

Trading platforms demand that users sign up for retail investor accounts, which store user profiles for traders and give them access to the products and services the trading platform provides. You must choose an online trading partner before you can create an account and finish the online application procedure.

Many online trading platform have scrapped the need for a minimum balance to sign up. However, you’ll have to deposit cash into your account to participate in the financial markets.

How Much Money Do You Need to Get Started on a Trading Platform?

Your expertise in financial market trading greatly determines how much you can invest and trade. It’s common for absolute beginners to get started on a free demo account and intermediate traders can use micro and live trading accounts. These retail investor accounts typically required traders to invest between £5 – £5000.

It’s, therefore, possible to start your investment in the financial market with £100 using a micro trading account. Traders can also look out for bonuses given by online trading platform through referral programs or sign-up to boost their capital.

However, experienced and professional traders use premium retail investor accounts and often invest more than £20,000 into the trades.

Cheapest trading platforms

Many online brokers offer tight spreads for budget-conscious traders. You can also find commission-free platforms, especially for Forex and Stock trading.

Online trading platforms make money by charging fees and commissions such as withdrawal, inactivity, spreads, and account management fees. It’s, therefore, prudent to check the overall product pricing of your investment to get value for money.

Pros and Cons of Using Trading Platforms

Online trading platforms have made it possible for millions to participate in the financial markets, mere with the usage of sophisticated devices. This brings drastic change from the traditional brick and motor brokers.

Here are some of the benefits and risks of using trading platforms.

Are Trading Platforms Safe?

The best trading platforms are designed to ensure funds and asset security which further depends on adherence to regulations and the deployment of security safeguards. Here are some of the measures adopted by reputable platforms to guarantee security.

• End-to-end data encryption

• Funds segregation

• Firewall deployment

• Two-factor authentication (2FA)

• Funds insurance.

Platforms such as Saxo Markets and eToro are authorised and regulated by the FCA; thus, are considered secure. These platforms also subscribe to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which insures clients’ funds.

However, trading platforms are not risk-free as various technical failures, malicious hacks, and bankruptcy can challenge the platforms.

Can I Use Trading Platforms on All Devices?

Investors can access trading platforms on personal computers (PC) or smartphones either through a browser or by downloading the software package.

Best online trading platform offers the opportunity to use their services on a smartphone. Some platforms including Capital.com, eToro, and Hargreaves Lansdown mirror the web version, giving you complete authority over your trading activities. Depending on your device, you can download the Android or the IOS app.

What Trading Software Is Used on the Best Trading Platforms?

TradingView and MetaTrader 4 (MT4) are the trading and charting software used on the Best platform. However, there are many other trading software including cTrader, MetaTrader 5 (MT5), and Active Trader Pro which are also quite popular.

MT4 is highly used on many UK trading platforms due to its automation capabilities, and excellence in Forex trading. IG broker is an example of a major broker using MT4.

MT5 was designed to offer more than MT4. The former is faster and efficient, catering to brokers looking beyond Forex trading. It supports penny stocks, Futures, Indices, and other financial instruments.

IC markets and Pepperstone are some of the platforms that utilise MT5 software.

What Assets Can I Trade on a Trading Platform in the UK?

Best Uk trading platforms offer users to access various markets and financial instruments. Investors get an extensive selection of assets, including stocks, commodities, futures, cryptocurrencies, EFTs, and Indices.

Trade Stocks and Shares

There are a number of stockbrokers and online investment platforms operating in the UK, each offering a range of products and services to meet the needs of different types of traders and investors.

Some popular options for trading stocks and shares in the UK that offer zero commission and tight spreads, access to international stocks, and the ability to buy fractional shares, are as follows:

Trade Derivatives

Derivatives are financial contracts that provide ways to trade an underlying asset or group of assets including stocks and currencies.

Common derivatives include swaps, forwards, futures, and options. Here are the top platforms supporting derivative trading.

Trade Cryptocurrencies

Some online brokers now allow traders to invest in cryptocurrencies where they can buy, sell or speculate on crypto prices. The best platforms have low fees, an extensive selection of crypto assets, and liquidity.

Here are the best online trading providers that have low fees, an extensive selection of crypto assets, and liquidity.

Auto Trade

Automated trading platforms help investors execute their trades and manage their accounts. They can set and manipulate orders on the platform, predetermine market entry, and exit points, and automate risk management.

The best-automated trading platforms in the UK are:

Best Social and Copy Trading Platforms for Beginners

Social and copy trading platforms allow users to mimic the trading moves of other experienced investors in the platform.

These are best for novice traders who otherwise would contend with a stiff learning curve. By mirroring the moves and trades of their preferred traders, beginners eliminate the need to spend years practicing trades.

Here are some of the UK’s top social and copy trading platforms.

Trade Commodities

Trading commodities refers to the buying and selling of physical goods such as gold, wheat, and metal. They are best for traders who want to diversify their portfolios and hedge against inflation.

The best commodities trading platform offers competitive pricing, flexible trading, and an extensive array of commodities. Some of the UK’s leading commodities platforms are:

Trade Forex

Forex trading involves buying and selling foreign currencies to make a profit. The forex market is one of the most liquid markets, with many players globally. Traders use forex trading to diversify their portfolios, hedge against an international currency and speculate on geopolitical events.

A good forex trading partner will have regulatory compliance, tight spreads, leverage, margin, and low minimum deposits. Here are some of the trading platforms that meet these criteria.

Trade Penny Stocks

Penny stock trading allows investors to buy, sell and speculate on low-valued shares below £1. It is done across all levels of investors. However, it’s best for advanced traders who understand penny stocks’ volatility and can implement sound risk management.

Besides this, casual investors who believe in a company’s fundamentals and growth prospects can also find great opportunities.

Here are the best penny stock trading platforms in the UK.

Day Trade

Day(intraday) trading refers to a trading strategy that seeks to capitalise on short-term price fluctuations. It can be challenging for beginners and advanced investors who typically trade volatile assets like Forex.

Day trading can be challenging for beginners as it requires a complete understanding of market movements, trading insights, and tools. Fees on this platform will vary depending on the choice of the trading instrument. Here are the top three in the UK.

Can You Use Trading Platforms Everywhere in the World?

The availability of trading platforms in a specific jurisdiction depends on local regulations. There are many trading platforms available for non-UK citizens as well. Here are some of the best platforms in other countries.

How Do I Choose the Best Trading Platform?

Trading continues to be an attractive way to generate wealth and diversify portfolios. Investors looking to start with online trading need to check if the trading platform meets the following criteria.

• Authorised and regulated by the FCA

• Web and mobile platform access

• Access to a rich set of tools and features

• Payments methods available in the UK

• Reputable and secure

• Low fees and commissions

• A demo account with virtual money

• Connection to different markets globally

• Good customer care

FAQs