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Beanstalk: Not an investing giant, but a great place to get growing

Insiders score

infoMore info
This is the score our team have awarded the platform based on our own personal experiences and other important factors, such as fees and ease of use.

4.0out of 5

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The Beanstalk app is all about simplicity and easy investing. It offers an adult stocks and shares ISA as well as a Junior ISA. Although Beanstalk is a relative new kid on the block, it's owned by KidStart, which has been focused on helping families save money for their children for over 15 years.

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By Clare West

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4.0out of 5

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Clare's view:

The Verdict

Average Success Rate

31.7%

infoBeanstalk 5-Year Avg
The following dataset includes the performances of ready-made portfolios/funds offered by investment platforms and may include both actively and passively managed ready-made portfolios/funds. Performance indicated is also net of all fees to 31st January 2024, unless stated otherwise; any tiered fee structure will be disclosed. Ready-made portfolios/funds that include cryptocurrencies or any other securities outside cash and equities are not included in the dataset. The dataset only includes ready-made portfolios/funds which are explicitly advertised by their respective platforms as being for ‘beginners’, and which are exclusively offered by the platform itself. Funds which are managed by other providers and may be identically offered across multiple platforms were not included in this dataset. For example, the Vanguard UK All Share Acc. ETF was offered by Plum, but as it is not directly managed by Plum and customers could reasonably access it on multiple platforms, it was not included for the purposes of this research. Other discretely advertised securities or investments are not included.

26.4%

infoIndustry avg.
The industry average is the median average of all fund/ready-made portfolio performance figures we collated from 23 investment providers. To see the full dataset, visit X page.
If you're a parent who is short of time (is there any other kind?) and have a pang of guilt when you're reminded you haven't yet arranged a savings or investment fund for your child, then Beanstalk might just be for you. Beanstalk's Junior ISAs and adult ISAs are designed to get you up-and-running as quickly and easily as possible.

Beanstalk have designed a process that makes it about as simple to get set-up and investing as you'll find anywhere. However, there's always got to be a trade-off somewhere, and the trade-off here is that you won't get much choice over how your money is invested. In fact, with just two funds to choose from, you'll find less choice with Beanstalk than any other investment provider I think I've reviewed.

For many people, that will be far too restrictive. But for others - it will be a bonus. No difficult decisions to make, and no need for any prior knowledge about investing. The only thing Beanstalk ask you to decide is how much of your investment you want kept in a cash fund, and how much you want to invest into a stocks and shares Tracker funds are ‘passive’ investments as they simply aim to mirror the performance of a benchmark, such as the FTSE 100. They are run by computer algorithms rather than fund managers, so they're cheaper than actively managed funds, but still ensure you get a diversified portfolio. A tracker can never outperform the market or index it is linked to – it will only ever follow it. An Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is an example of a tracker fund.tracker fundinfo.

On fees, Beanstalk is reasonably priced if you consider how much of the work is being done for you and how quick and easy it is to get going. There is one annual fee (charged monthly) of 0.5% of your investment amount plus a fund fee of either 0.12% or 0.15%. There are cheaper ISAs and Junior ISAs (JISAs) out there, but there are also plenty that are far more expensive, so that's really not too bad, especially considering you're paying for such convenience and all of the research done for you. Plus there are a couple of really nice account benefits such as the ability to invite friends and family to donate to your child's JISA, spending round-ups, and cashback on purchases that goes directly into your child's JISA account.

Beanstalk will be far too simple for many investors. But if your aim is simply to get some money growing for yourself or your child's future, and you know that if it's too complicated you'll probably not get around to it, then Beanstalk is certainly an option to consider. It's an app that understands the needs of busy, overwhelmed parents and serves its audience well.
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quote

Pros

  • Quick and easy way to get an ISA/JISA up and running
  • Easy to invite family and friends to contribute
  • Ability to adjust how much you want invested in equities, and how much in lower risk cash fund
  • Very easy-to-use app
  • Simple sign-up
  • Cashback on spending at some retailers
  • Flexible ISA and Junior ISA accepts transfers from Child Trust Funds
quote

Cons

  • Just two funds to choose from
  • Not the cheapest way to invest in an ISA/JISA
  • No investment advice available
  • No immediate-response customer support
  • Verdict4.0
  • Fees4.0
  • Trading Platform4.5
  • Research2.5
  • Safety5.0
  • Education3.0
  • Customer Service2.0
  • Portfolio View

Clare's view:

Who do I recommend it for?

Average Success Rate

31.7%

infoBeanstalk 5-Year Avg
The following dataset includes the performances of ready-made portfolios/funds offered by investment platforms and may include both actively and passively managed ready-made portfolios/funds. Performance indicated is also net of all fees to 31st January 2024, unless stated otherwise; any tiered fee structure will be disclosed. Ready-made portfolios/funds that include cryptocurrencies or any other securities outside cash and equities are not included in the dataset. The dataset only includes ready-made portfolios/funds which are explicitly advertised by their respective platforms as being for ‘beginners’, and which are exclusively offered by the platform itself. Funds which are managed by other providers and may be identically offered across multiple platforms were not included in this dataset. For example, the Vanguard UK All Share Acc. ETF was offered by Plum, but as it is not directly managed by Plum and customers could reasonably access it on multiple platforms, it was not included for the purposes of this research. Other discretely advertised securities or investments are not included.

26.4%

info Industry avg.
The industry average is the median average of all fund/ready-made portfolio performance figures we collated from 23 investment providers. To see the full dataset, visit X page.
arrow-down-orangeRead More
quote

Pros

  • Quick and easy way to get an ISA/JISA up and running
  • Easy to invite family and friends to contribute
  • Ability to adjust how much you want invested in equities, and how much in lower risk cash fund
  • Very easy-to-use app
  • Simple sign-up
  • Cashback on spending at some retailers
  • Flexible ISA and Junior ISA accepts transfers from Child Trust Funds
quote

Cons

  • Just two funds to choose from
  • Not the cheapest way to invest in an ISA/JISA
  • No investment advice available
  • No immediate-response customer support
  • arrowVerdict
    4.0
  • arrow Fees:
    4.0
  • arrowTrading Platform:
    4.5
  • arrowResearch:
    2.5
  • arrowSafety:
    5.0
  • arrowEducation:
    3.0
  • arrowCustomer Service:
    2.0
  • arrowPortfolio View

update-icon

Updates

Who do I recommend Beanstalk for?


  • Absolute investing beginners or those looking for a very simple way to get into investing for themselves or for children

Beanstalk does not provide any investment advice service so although it's intended for beginners, it is only suitable for those who are comfortable making a decision about their money without seeking professional financial advice.

Account types and assets


Accounts

With Beanstalk, you can open a:

  • Sometimes called an investment ISA, a stocks and shares ISA is an individual savings account that allows you to invest in shares, unit trusts, investment funds, and bonds. You will not need to pay tax on any income or capital gains earned on investments within an ISAStocks and shares ISAinfo
  • Junior ISAs (Individual Savings Accounts) (JISAs) are tax-free savings accounts for children under the age of 18. Only a parent can open a JISA but anyone can contribute. You can choose to save for your children through either a cash Junior ISA where you will earn interest on any cash in the account, or a stocks and shares Junior ISA where you will invest your child’s savings on their behalfJunior ISAinfo (JISA)

Beanstalk is therefore only for people wanting to invest through an ISA. There is no general investment account.

With an investment ISA, you can put up to £20,000 (for an adult ISA) or £9,000 (for a Junior ISA) per year into investment markets without needing to pay tax on any gains or income you make.

The Beanstalk adult ISA is a flexible ISA. That's really handy if you feel you might need to access the cash in your ISA in an emergency. It can be withdrawn, and then paid back within the same tax year, without it counting as two separate contributions. That helps protect your annual allowance.

In other good news, Beanstalk's Junior ISA accepts transfers from Child Trust Funds. Not every provider offering Junior ISAs does this. It also facilitates a regular investment service allowing you to set up automatic deposits into your Beanstalk account every month. Slightly annoyingly though, they don't let you choose the date you want the transfers to happen – it'll happen automatically on the 18th of each month.

If you want to compare Beanstalk with other providers, we've got a handy list of our top-rated stocks and shares ISAs and top-rated junior ISAs.

And if you're a beginner and you're not sure what ISAs are all about, try our Guide to ISAs for starters.

Account benefits

There are a few nice features with a Beanstalk account which make it stand out from other Junior ISA providers.

The company behind Beanstalk – KidStart – has linked up with 2,500 retailers to provide cashback at stores such as John Lewis, Amazon, Sky and TUI, meaning you can turn your family spending into added investment income. Any cashback you earn goes directly into your child's JISA.

In addition, as a Beanstalk user, you can invite family and friends to gift money into your child's JISA account. They'll receive an email invitation, which they can accept or decline through their own app. If they accept, then they can make a contribution through their app – handy for grandparents or other friends or family members who want to give donations for birthdays, Christmas or a christening, for example.

For both JISA and ISA users, there's a round up tool which uses the Government-backed Open Banking initiative to allow you to opt into seeing your bank data through the app and, where you want to, round-up any of your purchases, with the spare change going into your investment account.

“HSBC

Assets

Beanstalk offers a choice of two funds from well-known providers. You can allocate how much you want to save into each. The two funds are:

  • A shares fund (Fidelity Global Index fund) which is a Tracker funds are ‘passive’ investments as they simply aim to mirror the performance of a benchmark, such as the FTSE 100. They are run by computer algorithms rather than fund managers, so they're cheaper than actively managed funds, but still ensure you get a diversified portfolio. A tracker can never outperform the market or index it is linked to – it will only ever follow it. An Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is an example of a tracker fund.tracker fundinfo and therefore aims to track the performance of global stock markets. It includes large companies such as Amazon, Facebook, Google and Johnson & Johnson. This fund has a risk rating of 5 out of 7 which is much higher than the Legal and General Cash Trust Fund but which is what you'd expect with a fund aimed at higher rates of return.
  • A cash fund (Legal & General Cash Trust fund) which aims to provide returns in line with money market rates by investing in short-term deposits and UK government bonds that are generally seen as less risky than stocks and shares.

Just two funds means very limited choice when compared to other providers. However, that may suit your needs perfectly if your goal is get investing and you're likely to be put off even getting started by anything that requires complex and time-consuming investment decisions. With Beanstalk, a well-diversified equities fund and a popular cash fund have been selected for you.

That said, you do still have some element of choice as you'll need to decide how much of your money is allocated to each fund. You can choose to have 100% of your money in the stocks and shares fund, or, for example, 60% in stocks and shares, and 40% in the cash fund. However, it isn't possible to hold more than 80% of your money in the cash fund. If the relative safety and security of a cash fund is what you want, you may be better off looking at a A cash ISA is a type of individual savings account where you can earn tax-free interest on your saved cashCash ISAinfo.

“HSBC

Fees


Fees for using Beanstalk are very straightforward. You'll just be asked to pay:

  • Annual fees: 0.5% of the value of your account, deducted on a monthly basis
  • Fund fees: 0.12% for the shares fund / 0.15% for the cash fund

And that's it. There are no fees for using the app, doing round-ups or making contributions. It's a welcome change from some of the more complex fee structures employed by other providers. However, much of this simplicity is owing to the fact that Beanstalk only offers two funds, so variations on cost are limited.

How do these fees compare with Beanstalk's competitors?

Beanstalk's annual fees are far from the cheapest, however, there are no dealing fees to consider on top and the two fund costs are low so total costs for using Beanstalk could end up being lower than many of Beanstalk's competitors.

Awards


FAQs

Beanstalk is regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and so has to adhere to strict rules on keeping client money and investments separate from their own. It is also covered by the Financial Service Compensation Scheme meaning that your investments up to the value of £85,000 are protected in the event of Beanstalk ceasing business.

Beanstalk is a good option to consider if you're just starting out, or looking for something very quick and simple to get you going with an investment fund.

Beanstalk offers two investment products: an individual savings account (ISA) for adults, and an ISA for children, known as a Junior ISA. It also allows friends and family members to easily contribute to your children's Junior ISAs.

The only way to contact Beanstalk customer services is via email on: support@beanstalkapp.co.uk.

Ask the Insiders


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