Your usual bank also offers investing. It's a name you trust, one of the biggest names in UK finance, and you're already registered for an account. For many people, it makes sense to keep investments tied up with banking.
But which banks get top marks and which are my ‘must avoids' for 2024?
4.0out of 5
Very low platform fees and guarantees on fund fees that mean you gain certainty over what you'll be paying. However, with just five ready-made portfolios to invest in, this won't be the right solution for everyone.
4.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
4.0out of 5
One of the better high street banks for investing with comparatively low platform fees, no dealing fees on funds, and a wide choice of assets.
4.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
3.5out of 5
Possibly the widest choice of funds, shares, and other investable assets on the high street and low fixed platform fees. But watch out for the high UK dealing charges and FX fees if you're a DIY investor.
3.5out of 5
Capital at risk.
3.0out of 5
Flat account fees of just £36 per year could make this a bargain for high-value portfolio-holders. However, for it to remain a bargain, you'd need to avoid the extraordinarily high FX and dealing fees.
3.0out of 5
Capital at risk
3.0out of 5
HSBC can be a cheap way to invest but only if you invest in funds as there are some astronomical dealing charges on shares and gilts.
3.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
2.0out of 5
Santander provides customers with access to a range of investment funds via a stocks and shares ISA, general investment account or self-invested personal pension.
2.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
4.0out of 5
Very low platform fees and guarantees on fund fees that mean you gain certainty over what you'll be paying. However, with just five ready-made portfolios to invest in, this won't be the right solution for everyone.
Insiders score
More info4.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
On price, NatWest Invest has by far the lowest platform fee of all the high street banks I've reviewed – just 0.15% (0.10% if you're investing £1m+, or just 0.05% if you're investing £5m+). And with ongoing fund fees guaranteed never to top 0.40%, that means you're assured a maximum total fee of just 0.55%.
The reassurances here are only possible, however, because there are so few funds on offer: just five ready-made portfolios. Each has a different risk rating so there's an option for every profile from ‘defensive' investor to ‘adventurous. And, of course, with a ready-made solution, virtually all of the hard work is done for you as there's no researching different investment strategies or individual investable assets. It's an out-of-the-box solution that can have you investing in super quick time. And if you need help working out which portfolio is best for you, NatWest provides a robo-advice service that you can access for just £10, which will assess your risk profile for you.
But, of course, this won't suit everyone. If you want more control over your investments and the full range of stocks, shares, funds, investment trusts and ETFs to choose from, you'll need to look outside of your NatWest app.
I should also say, it is possible to get lower ongoing fund fees at other providers, but NatWest offers funds managed by Coutts which have so far (although we only have one full year's worth of data) out-performed the industry average.
Use this if
You are a NatWest customer looking for a very low cost, easy entry into investing and you want a prestigious name managing your funds.
Fees
The platform fee varies depending on how much you invest:
Up to £1m = 0.15%
£1m – £5m = 0.10%
£5m+ = 0.05%
Fund fees vary according to which ready-made portfolio you choose but are never more than 0.40% of the amount you have invested.
There are no additional dealing fees or FX fees with ready-made portfolios.
Account types
Assets
Five ready-made portfolios spanning the following risk profiles:
Defensive
Cautious
Balanced
Ambitious
Adventurous
4.5
5.0
4.0
3.5
2.0
2.5
Read Clare's full review of NatWest Invest
Read full review4.0out of 5
One of the better high street banks for investing with comparatively low platform fees, no dealing fees on funds, and a wide choice of assets.
Insiders score
More info4.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
Barclays has a few things going for it which might make it a good option if you're an existing Barclays customer: reasonable annual fees, no dealing fees on funds or ready-made portfolios, a wide range of assets to choose from, and above-average historic returns on its ready-made portfolios.
However, if you're a customer who wants to trade in stocks, ETFs, investment trusts, or bonds/gilts, then you could find your costs ticking up thanks to dealing fees and FX fees that are far from the cheapest around.
Use this if
You're a Barclays customer, and you want to invest in a ready-made portfolio.
Fees
Platform fees:
Up to £200,000: 0.25% of your portfolio value
Over £200,000: 0.05% of your portfolio value
Dealing fees: £6 per trade (excluding funds which incur no dealing fees)
Fund fees: Paid to the fund provider directly, these fees vary according to the fund you choose.
FX fees: First £5,000: 1%
£5,000 – £10,000: 0.75%
£10,000 – £25,000: 0.5%
£25,000 – £250,000: 0.25%
Value over £250,000: 0.1%
SIPPs: Additional third-party admin costs of £150 apply for investments in SIPPs.
Account types
Assets
3.5
3.5
4.0
4.5
4.5
4.0
3.5out of 5
Possibly the widest choice of funds, shares, and other investable assets on the high street and low fixed platform fees. But watch out for the high UK dealing charges and FX fees if you're a DIY investor.
Insiders score
More info3.5out of 5
Capital at risk.
If you're a Lloyds customer, it is possible to invest relatively cheaply with a flat platform fee of just £20 per six months and low fund dealing fees. The best deals, therefore, are to be had by those with large portfolios who will benefit most from a flat fee, and only invest in funds.
If you're aged 18-25, or you're a Lloyds Premier or Private banking customer then the twice-yearly £20 admin charge is waived, which is a nice bonus.
If you're planning on buying and selling shares, however, watch out for the above-average stock dealing fees and FX fees. With a 1% FX fee added on to all international trades, and £11.00 charged every time you trade a UK asset, costs will soon mount for regular traders. That said, Lloyds does offer reductions on costs for those willing to set up a monthly investment plan.
Use this if
You're an existing Lloyds customer with a large portfolio, wanting to buy and hold funds, and not planning to buy/sell often.
Fees
Account types
Assets
3.5
3.5
3.0
4.5
4.0
4.0
Read Clare's full review of Lloyds Bank Share Dealing
Read full review3.0out of 5
Flat account fees of just £36 per year could make this a bargain for high-value portfolio-holders. However, for it to remain a bargain, you'd need to avoid the extraordinarily high FX and dealing fees.
Insiders score
More info3.0out of 5
Capital at risk
£36 per year flat platform fees could be a potential steal if you're a high-value portfolio-holder. And Halifax offers a decent range of stocks, funds, ETFs and ready-made portfolios.
However,
Dealing fees on UK trades are also very high – £9.50 per trade. There is a way to avoid these fees, however, by signing up to a regular investing plan whereby you agree to pay money into your investment account every month. But this may not suit your investing style or strategy.
On the plus side, Halifax waives service fees for 18-25 year olds, so this could still be a very cheap option for existing customer if you're young and not planning to buy and sell often.
Use this if
You already have a Halifax bank account and you're happy to invest via the regular investment service – and only in UK stocks.
Fees
One flat fee of just £36 p.a.
£9.50 per trade for all UK assets (including funds!). Dealing fees can be avoided by setting up a regular investing plan, however.
£0 per trade for non-UK assets. However, a 1.25% FX fee will be applied to all these trades.
Paid to the fund provider directly, these fees vary according to the fund you choose.
Fees for a ready-made solution are £3 per month plus ongoing fund fees and transactions costs that range from 0.32% for a Cautious portfolio, to 0.37% for a Progressive portfolio. That's considerably more than NatWest Invest charges for a wider range of ready-made solutions as this chart shows.
Account types
Assets
3.0
3.5
3.0
4.5
4.0
3.0
Read Clare's full review of Halifax Share Dealing
Read full review3.0out of 5
HSBC can be a cheap way to invest but only if you invest in funds as there are some astronomical dealing charges on shares and gilts.
Insiders score
More info3.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
It's possible to keep costs low with HSBC if you adopt a buy-and-hold approach and only invest in funds or ready-made portfolios.
Ready-made portfolios are well-priced, costing between 0.45%-0.50% including fund fees, and for that, you're getting some strong, high, historical returns (although past performance is no guarantee of future performance, of course).
However, there are some ridiculously high fixed-priced charges to watch out for if you're investing in stocks or gilts: £29.95 – £39.95 per trade. Even the absence of any FX fees can't make amends for those charges, especially if you're a relatively small-scale investor.
There's a headache-inducing separation of funds and stocks too with HSBC. You can't hold both in the same account so you basically have to pick one asset class and stick with it, or life becomes very complicated.
Use this if
You're an existing HSBC customer wanting a cheap ready-made investment portfolio with good historical performance.
Fees
Account types
Assets
3.0
3.5
3.0
5.0
5.0
4.5
2.0out of 5
Santander provides customers with access to a range of investment funds via a stocks and shares ISA, general investment account or self-invested personal pension.
Insiders score
More info2.0out of 5
Capital at risk.
Sadly, there's little that I can find to recommend about Santander's Investment Hub. It's a decent range of funds, but you can find better selections elsewhere. Pricing is around average, meaning it's possible to find cheaper elsewhere. And although you don't need to be a banking customer to open an investment account, the process I had to go through to get an investment account open was overly lengthy and frustrating.
There's nothing terrible about Santander, but nothing that makes me want to recommend it, either.
Use this is
You're an existing Santander customer and you want a quick way to invest in funds.
Fees
Annual fees:
0.35% for the first £50,000 invested
0.20% on anything between £50,000 and £500,000
And, 0.10% on amounts over £500k
There are no dealing fees with Santander, which keeps things simple and means there are no ‘hidden' costs. You will still incur ongoing fund charges with Santander funds and ready-made portfolios, however. These are paid directly to the fund provider from your investment.
Ongoing fund charges for the ready-made portfolios range from 0.34% – 0.49%.
Account types
Assets
2.5
3.5
1.5
2.5
2.5
3.5
Discover whether Santander is the investing platform to meet your goals with Clare's full review.
Read full reviewWhen choosing an invesment provider, you should factor in the following considerations:
You'll find details on each of those factors in the mini reviews we feature on this page, but you'll find them discussed in greater detail in the full reviews for each provider. Before making a final decision, I strongly advise reading the full review.
The following cost examples assume £20,000 is invested over one year, in the case of the stocks and funds, in 20 deposits of £1,000. This allows you to see the different trading fees can make to overall costs. I have broken down costs into their constituent parts; platform fees, dealing fees (where they are applied), and FX fees (where they are applied. In doing so, you can make adjustments for how many times you envisage trading and what impact that would have on your personal costings.
I have not included ongoing fund charges, which are levied by fund providers and taken directly from investments as they vary depending on the specific fund chosen. The exception to this is in my ready-made portfolio cost comparison chart where it has been possible to include them.
Investing in stocks
Investing in funds
This is an important question to consider if you're thinking about investing in a ready-made portfolio.
If you don’t have the confidence or the time to pick your own investments, then these pre-packaged solutions could work well for you.
But how do you know whether the fund managers choosing your investments will achieve good returns on your investments? The answer is, sadly, you don’t! All investments come with a degree of risk and there are no guarantees. However, providers of ready-made portfolios should provide you with information on past performance. Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance, and all investments should be viewed through a long-term lens, but you may find it valuable to see how your investments would have performed in a particular portfolio and over a particular time-frame.
The data
We've analysed the performance of more than 220 different ready-made portfolios from 24 different providers over 1Y, 3Y, 5Y and 10Y (where portfolios have been established for that long) and these are the returns that have been achieved for investors, once fees are deducted:
You can read more about how we compiled these figures, here: Ready-made portfolio performance tables
* Wondering whether we get paid for writing good things about platforms? Good question! It's how many comparison sites get paid.
The answer is – no, we proudly do things a little differently at Investing Insiders. Our sole criteria is what's best for you – the consumer. So, although we do receive a commission if you choose to click through and open an account from any of our reviews, we will never bend our opinions to suit the requests of providers, or the needs of our bank balance. Bottom line – what you read on this page is what I'd recommend to my family, friends and colleagues, and indeed, what I choose for my own money.
They can be, but it really does depend on what kind of an investor you are. If you want access to the widest possible range of shares, funds and other inevitable assets then you're much better off with an investment specialist such as interactive investor, AJ Bell or Saxo. However, if you just want to get an ISA set up and invest in funds, then your regular bank could serve you pretty well – and cheaply. Scrutinise the pricing if you plan to trade stocks though and check the FX fees on international trades as this seems to be where banks make their money with some rogue, outrageous fees here among the big banks.