Best Junior ISA provider

Clare says

There's no doubt which provider gets top billing in this product category since Hargreaves Lansdown took the decision to scrap all fees on their 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 ISA last year.

That means you're getting a free account with a premium, FTSE-listed company. With over 1 million clients, Hargreaves is the largest investment platform in the UK for private investors, so you're getting peace of mind that your money is in experienced hands.

Hargreaves Lansdown doesn't even charge currency conversion fees if you buy non-UK stocks and funds – something that is really unusual and where you normally find ‘hidden' costs adding up. But not so, here.

One exception on the ‘free' claim – you will still need to pay fund fees if you choose to invest with a fund. These are levied by the fund provider and vary in cost depending on the type of fund. They range from 0.05% for simple tracker funds to over 1% for more niche funds. This will be the case whichever provider you choose. Fund fees are deducted straight from your fund holdings so there is no need to set up payments from your bank account.

Hargreaves Lansdown accepts transfers from other JISAs, and also from Child Trust Funds (CTFs). Not every provider does accept CTF transfers so it's always worth checking if this is where your funds are coming from. Fidelity, for example, does not.

Hargreaves Lansdown provides a high standard of customer service, with a phone number that connects you to a UK-based Helpdesk. One thing to be aware of with many newer, low-cost providers, is that you might not have access to phone support and customer service can be less consistent and reliable. You'll also benefit from in-house expertise from the large investment team at Hargreaves Lansdown. There's great educational resources, free insights and investment tips, suggested funds if you're stuck for ideas on how to get the best returns for your investment, and if you're willing to pay, a personal financial advice service too.

With Hargreaves, you can also link up your JISA with other accounts, although the general investment account, standard 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 ISA, A self-invested personal pension (SIPP) is a type of private pension that allows you to control the specific investments that make up your pension fundself-invested personal pension (SIPP) and Lifetime ISAs (Individual Savings Accounts) (LISAs) are designed to help you save for your first home or retirement and come with an automatic 25% government bonus on all contributions up to the value of £4,000. There are stocks and shares LISAs – where you invest your savings – and cash LISAs – where you earn interest on your savings. You must be between 18 and 40 to open a LISA and all income, capital gains and interest earned within LISAs is tax-free, although these funds can only be used to purchase your first home or for retirement. Ensure you are familiar with the rules surrounding this account before utilising itLifetime ISA products aren't ones we recommend as highly, due to comparatively high costs.

If you're choosing a ready-made portfolio, it can be useful to look at past performance. (Although remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.) Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of historical data for Hargreaves' ready-made portfolios due to them only having been around for a couple of years in many cases. The one we can measure over the past 5 years is the Cautious Managed Portfolio. It shows 12.3% returns – a very decent result considering the industry average for ready-made portfolios is 9.9%.

Fees

• Annual account charges: £0
• Share dealing charges: £0
• Fund dealing charges: £0

For any cash you hold within your JISA, you can expect to receive 3.04% – 3.76% interest (depending on the value of your portfolio).

Use this if

You want to transfer a Child Trust Fund and get a fee-free Junior ISA from a premium investment brand.

Investments

• UK stocks
• US stocks
• Fractional shares are portions of shares (or ETFs) that are smaller than one whole share. They are designed to make ownership of large, expensive shares more accessible. Fractional shares
• Bonds and gilts
• Funds
• ETFs
• Trusts
• A commodity is any basic raw material that can be bought and sold, for example, copper, silver, oil or coffee.Commodities
• IPOs
• Ready-made portfolios

Clare says

Fidelity offers a 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 behalfJISA but, much like Vanguard which also offers a JISA, it does not accept transfers from Child Trust Funds. So this won't be the provider for you if that's what you're looking to do.

However, if you're starting a JISA from scratch, rather than transferring a CTF, then Fidelity provides a Junior ISA without any service fees. You'll get the peace of mind and perks that come with a well-regarded brand and the option of personalised wealth management and financial advice to go alongside it if you're willing to pay the fair rate that Fidelity charges for it.

As Fidelity doesn't charge service fees on junior accounts and doesn't charge dealing fees on funds, the only fees you'll be asked to pay are dealing fees on stocks and shares if you choose to invest that way, and currency conversion fees if you're trading foreign securities. It's possible to keep dealing fees low if you set up a regular savings plan – just £1.50 per trade.

But if you don't plan to get into picking individual stocks and shares, and just want to invest in funds, then this is effectively a free Junior ISA.

One exception on the ‘free' claim – you will still need to pay fund fees. These are levied by the fund provider and vary in cost depending on the type of fund. They range from 0.05% for simple tracker funds to over 1% for more niche funds. This will be the case whichever provider you choose. Fund fees are deducted straight from your fund holdings so there is no need to set up payments from your bank account.

Fidelity won’t be right for you if you’re looking for a vast choice of stocks from across the world to invest in, however, as although there's a great choice of funds from across the market, stocks are more limited.

Fees

• Junior accounts do not incur service fees
• Dealing fees for funds: £0
• Dealing fees for stocks: £7.50 (reduced to £1.50 on regular savings plans)
• FX fees: 1% for transactions under $50k (reduced for amounts over)

Use this if

You want to invest your child's Junior ISA in funds, and access a free account with a well-respected brand.

Fidelity won't be right for you if you are wanting to transfer a Child Trust Fund, however.

Investments

• UK stocks
• US stocks
• European stocks
• Funds
• ETFs
• A ready-made portfolio is a pre-made collection of investments that have been put together by investment experts. They are designed to be a simple option for those who don’t want to choose individual stocks or funds for themselves.Ready-made portfolios

Clare says

If you take Hargreaves Lansdown's fee-free 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 ISA out of the equation, then Interactive Brokers (IBKR) becomes the cheapest provider in our top-rated list.

With remarkably low trading commissions, and currency conversion fees of 0.03%, you normally wouldn't be able to buy and sell international stocks cheaper anywhere else. But as Hargreaves Lansdown scraps FX fees for trades made within its JISAs, they are the cheapest option even with FX fees thrown into the equation.

Unlike Hargreaves, which is a platform for investors, IBKR is a platform for seasoned traders. It's not geared towards investors simply looking for somewhere to buy and hold investments, and there are no ready-made portfolios to default to if you don't want the responsibility for building an investment strategy.

For those who can use the tools, navigate the platforms, and are confident in their trading strategy, IBKR is the full package.

Fees

• Low cost
• Choice of fixed and tiered pricing plans
• No platform fees and low rates of commission
• No account minimum for cash account
• No inactivity fees until 24 months of inactivity
• Lowest FX fees on the market
• After one free withdrawal per month, £7 withdrawal fee is applied

Use this if

You are an experienced trader and want to choose your own investments rather than rely on a ready-made portfolio.

Investments

• CFDs
• Forex
• UK stocks
• US stocks
• European stocks
• Rest of the world stocks
• Fractional shares
• Bonds and gilts
• Funds
• ETFs
• A commodity is any basic raw material that can be bought and sold, for example, copper, silver, oil or coffee.Commodities
• Indices
• Futures
• IPOs

Clare says

Alongside its standard 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 ISA, personal pension, Lifetime ISAs (Individual Savings Accounts) (LISAs) are designed to help you save for your first home or retirement and come with an automatic 25% government bonus on all contributions up to the value of £4,000. There are stocks and shares LISAs – where you invest your savings – and cash LISAs – where you earn interest on your savings. You must be between 18 and 40 to open a LISA and all income, capital gains and interest earned within LISAs is tax-free, although these funds can only be used to purchase your first home or for retirement. Ensure you are familiar with the rules surrounding this account before utilising itLifetime ISA and General investment account (GIA) is an account designed to provide access to investments. You may be liable for tax on any income or capital gains earned within a general investment account but this can be a useful vehicle for anyone who has maxed out their ISA allowancegeneral investment account, Moneybox also offers 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 ISAs.

Although it is not the cheapest provider on this list, Moneybox can boast the best performing ready-made portfolios of all the providers we included in our analysis of investment returns. If you'd had you money invested in Moneybox's ‘Adventurous' portfolio over the past five years, you'd currently be enjoying returns of 65.9%. The average Moneybox ready-made portfolio return is 54.2% – way above the industry average of 27.9%.

You won't find a staggering array of assets to fill your portfolio if you don't want a ready-made option: Moneybox only offers US stocks, and 36 funds to choose from. This might suit investors who are starting small (minimum deposit is £1) and not wanting to be overwhelmed by too many decisions. However, beware that £1 subscription fee that kicks in after the first three months – that will take a big bite out of small portfolios.

Fees

• £1 subscription fee after the first 3 months
• 0.45% platform fee
• Annual fund provider costs 0.09% – 0.88%
• 0.45% FX fee for US stocks

Use this if

You want to invest in a ready-made portfolio with strong historical performance. Bear in mind, however, that past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.

You cannot open an account with Moneybox if your child already has a Child Trust Fund.

Investments

• US stocks
• Fractional investing
• Funds
• ETFs
• Ready-made portfolios

Clare says

I like Beanstalk because it has purposefully created a product and account opening process that is designed for one specific audience: parents who don't have all the time in the world to research different investing strategies, funds and stocks.

If you're a parent who just wants to get some money building up for your child's future without the fuss, then Beanstalk could be the platform for you.

This is a very pared-back option. There are just two funds to choose from; one cash and bonds fund, and one stocks and shares fund. In other words, one fund with a lower risk rating (cash) and one with a higher risk rating (stocks and shares). Beanstalk allows you to decide what weighting you want to give to both in your portfolio, although while you can choose 100% stocks, you can't choose 100% cash. If it's cash you feel safer with, then you're better off choosing a designated cash Junior ISA.

Beanstalk also provides an ‘invite family and friends' feature which makes it easy for loved ones to gift money straight into your child's ISA. They just need to download the app.

Fees

Beanstalk has a simple but relatively high single account fee of 0.50% per annum (paid monthly). However, the only other costs you'll need to factor in are the fund fees of 0.12% for the stocks fund and 0.15% for the cash fund which makes it reasonably priced in terms of total fees for a quick, ready-made solution.

Use this if

You don't have time to investigate different investment options and want most of the hard work done for you.

Beanstalk is also an option if you want to transfer a Child Trust Fund.

Investments

• A shares tracker fund (Fidelity Global Index fund)
• A cash fund (Legal & General Cash Trust fund)

Clare says

AJ Bell is one of the UK’s largest and most well-regarded investment platforms, trusted by over half a million customers and listed on the FTSE 250.

While AJ Bell can't compete on fees with Hargreaves Lansdown's free 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 ISA, if you are looking to open a JISA alongside other accounts, AJ Bell could work out cheaper than Hargreaves Lansdown overall. That's because, Hargreaves tends to work out more costly on standard 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 ISAs, A self-invested personal pension (SIPP) is a type of private pension that allows you to control the specific investments that make up your pension fundSIPPs and for General investment account (GIA) is an account designed to provide access to investments. You may be liable for tax on any income or capital gains earned within a general investment account but this can be a useful vehicle for anyone who has maxed out their ISA allowancegeneral investment accounts.

AJ Bell is a reliable platform with an reputation for excellent customer service, with a wide range of investment and account options, including its own range of ready-made funds which performed comparatively well over the past five years, coming in with average returns slightly above the industry average.

Note: Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.

Fees

Shares custody charge: 0.25% (maximum £3.50 per month)
Funds custody charge:

First £0–£250,000 – 0.25%
£250,000-£500,000 – 0.10%
Value over £500,000 – No charge

Dealing fees (shares): £5.00 – £3.50 (if you deal shares 10+ times in the previous month)

Dealing fees (funds): £1.50

Dealing fees (AJ Bell funds): No charge

Use this if

You want all of your investments with one well-respected brand, and want a provider that offers lower costs on other products than Hargreaves Lansdown.

AJ Bell is also an option if you want to transfer out of a Child Trust Fund.

Investments

• UK Shares
• US stocks
• European stocks
• Rest of the world stocks
• Bonds and gilts
• A commodity is any basic raw material that can be bought and sold, for example, copper, silver, oil or coffee.Commodities
• Funds
• Exchange-traded funds
• Ready-made portfolios
• Investment trusts

Clare says

With interactive investor, you get access to one of the widest ranges of global investments in the UK investment market: more than 40,000 stocks, shares, funds, ETFs and trusts from 17 global stock exchanges.

ii charges via a flat fee structure. That means, proportionally, it can be a pricey place to hold your investments if you have a small portfolio. There are some ranges where ii works out good value for money so if you plan to contribute the annual maximum (or thereabouts) into your child's 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 ISA, the good choice of assets, good customer service, and flat fee structure could work to your advantage. However, those subscription fees and high FX and dealing charges can make this an expensive platform for those with smaller ambitions. You may still feel like this popular and well-regarded platform is a provider you're prepared to pay for though.

Fees

• Subscription fees to access a JISA range from £11.99 – £19.99 per month.
• Dealing fees: £9.99 – £3.99
• FX fees: 1.5% (up to £25k transaction value), with reductions in fees for amounts over £25k.

Use this if

You have, or expect to build, a high-value Junior ISA.

ii is also an option if you want to transfer a Child Trust Fund.

Investments

• UK stocks
• US stocks
• European stocks
• Rest of the world stocks
• Bonds and gilts
• Funds
• ETFs
• Indices
• IPOs
• A ready-made portfolio is a pre-made collection of investments that have been put together by investment experts. They are designed to be a simple option for those who don’t want to choose individual stocks or funds for themselves.Ready-made portfolios
• Investment Trusts

Clare says

Bestinvest was founded in 1986 and is part of Evelyn Partners (previously Tilney Smith & Williamson) so it's a firm with heritage.

It tends to sit in the mid-range when comparing pricing with other providers, but it does have one advantage over other providers that might work for you if you're new to investing and after some advice on your 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 ISA. Unlike other providers, Bestinvest offers a free financial advice service. Advisors can't provider tailored advice so it's not quite a replacement for paid advice, but they can help with understanding the products, investment options and general financial planning tips.

Bestinvest's range of ready-made portfolios are particularly good value and have performed well over the past five years. Please remember, however, that past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.

The platform is slightly old-fashioned-looking but there's a good range of investment options on offer and a reliable, helpful customer service team to help with any issues.

Unlike Hargreaves Lansdown, BestInvest will also facilitate Child Trust Fund transfers digitally – no printing off and sending forms in the post.

Fees

• For ready-made portfolios / US shares: 0.2% – 0.1% (0.0% on values over £1m)
• For UK shares / other funds: 0.4% on £0 – £250k, fees reduce on a tiered basis to zero on values over £1m
• No dealing fees on US stocks
• FX fees: 0.95%
• Dealing fees: £4.95 per trade
• Minimum deposit £50

Use this if

You want to trade US stocks, or you want to invest in one of Bestinvest's low-cost ready-made Smart Portfolios.

Or, you can make use of the free financial advice offered at Bestinvest.

Investments

• UK stocks
• US stocks
• ETFs
• A commodity is any basic raw material that can be bought and sold, for example, copper, silver, oil or coffee.Commodities
• Indices
• IPOs
• A ready-made portfolio is a pre-made collection of investments that have been put together by investment experts. They are designed to be a simple option for those who don’t want to choose individual stocks or funds for themselves.Ready-made portfolios