Best Trading Platforms UK 2023 Reviewed

Over the past few years, the advancement in technology has meant that investing online is easier than ever. There are now hundreds of platforms that investors can use to place their capital across various asset classes. However, although this extensive platform selection is a good thing, it can be challenging to narrow it down to the most suitable option.

In this guide, we explore the most popular trading platforms in the United Kingdom, reviewing an assortment of top brokers and exchanges before highlighting several key factors to keep in mind before signing up with one of these platforms.

Best UK Trading Platforms Reviewed

Investors looking to buy cryptocurrency, make an investment in the UK, or trade a different asset class will need to create an account with a licensed and well-established platform to invest as safely as possible. The providers listed above represent our picks for the best trading platforms in the UK – ensuring there’s an option for every investor type.

So, without further ado, let’s dive in and discuss each of these platforms one by one:

1. eToro – Overall Best Trading Platform in the UK for 2023

Our pick for the best online trading platform in the UK is eToro. eToro is one of the world’s largest online brokers, serving over 27 million clients worldwide. Much of eToro’s popularity is derived from the platform’s safe reputation since it is directly regulated within the UK by the FCA. What’s more, eToro is covered under the FSCS, meaning that UK-based investors are protected up to £85,000 if eToro ever becomes insolvent.

eToro offers a huge asset selection, allowing investors to buy Bitcoin (and other cryptos), stocks, commodities, currencies, and more. With over 40 forex pairs to choose from eToro is also one of the best forex brokers in the UK. In terms of fees, eToro charges no commissions when trading all asset classes apart from crypto, which will accrue a flat 1% fee on each trade in addition to the bid-ask spread. Since eToro primarily focuses on CFD trading, costs tend to be built into the spread.

However, eToro also offers real stock and real crypto trading, providing a high level of flexibility for investors. This means that traders can research and invest in the best shares in the UK according to other investors. The minimum investment amount in eToro’s tradeable assets is only $10 (£7.95), with investors also able to employ leverage. Up to x5 leverage is available on stock CFD trades in the UK, providing scope to increase potential returns. With fractional investing some retail investors find eToro to be the most popular broker when looking for the best ways to invest £5k in the UK right now.

Another reason we consider eToro to be the best platform for trading is that users can fund their accounts from as little as $10 (£7.95). eToro accepts deposits via credit/debit card, bank transfer, and popular e-wallets such as PayPal, Skrill, and Neteller. Although eToro does operate in USD, UK-based traders can still deposit in GBP yet must pay a small 0.5% conversion fee.

Finally, eToro also offers a built-in copy trading platform called ‘CopyTrader’, allowing users to automatically copy the trades placed by other eToro users. This best investment platform UK combines well with eToro’s ‘SmartPortfolio’ feature, which offers ready-made portfolios that are professionally managed. eToro even provides a free demo account facility for new traders looking to test the platform before trading for real. For more details some readers may find our eToro UK review quite useful.

What We Like:

Your capital is at risk. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

2. XTB – Popular Platform Offering Over 2100 Global Markets

XTB enables traders to choose between the xStation 5 platform and xStation Mobile. Traders can access forex, commodities, stock and ETF CFDs, as well as cryptocurrencies. Access to more than 2,100 global markets is available on XTB.

More than 50 currency pairs with spreads from 0.1 pips and almost 2,000 stocks are available. XTB also offers 150 ETFs, more than 40 cryptos and over 20 commodities. No minimum deposit is required on this platform, and investors can transfer funds via bank wire, card, Skrill and Paypal. No deposit fee is charged for bank transfers and cards.

Before going live, traders can try out the platform on the demo account. Beginners can improve their trading skills by accessing the wealth of content in the knowledge base. Market insight is provided by professionals.

What We Like:

Your capital is at risk. 81% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

3. Vantage – CFD Trading Multi-Asset Platform

Vantage is an Australian-based CFD trading platform with more than 130,000 clients. Available to use in the UK, investors can access CFD trading in multiple instruments, including FX pairs, Commodities, Shares and Indices. While the platform offers CFD cryptocurrency trading, this feature is not available for UK-based clients.

Vantage offers two main accounts – a standard STP account and a Raw ECN account. The STP account has a minimum deposit of GBP 200 and offers commission-free Forex trading to investors. However, popular FX pairs like EUR/USD offer high spreads starting at 1.1 pips. On the other hand, the Raw ECN account offers low spreads starting at 0.2 pips for the EUR/USD pair. This account type also charges a commission per trade. The ECN account requires a minimum deposit of GBP 500.

Vantage can be accessed by clients with MetaTrader 4 & 5, which offers advanced trading and charting options. Alternatively, retail % professional traders can access the Vantage app on iOS and Android to begin trading. UK-based clients can also access up to 1:30 leverage on their trades and multiply their profits or losses. In the UK, Vantage is regulated by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) – the regulatory of over 5,000 financial services firms & financial markets in the country.

The trading platform is also regulated by the ASIC and VFSC. Over 1,000 CFD assets can be accessed by investors through multiple payment options, including credit/debit cards, e-wallets as well as bank transfers. The platform does not charge any deposit fees but does charge 20 GBP for international bank withdrawals.

What We Like:

4. AvaTrade – Top Online Trading Platform with MT4/MT5 Support

Many investors believe AvaTrade to be one of the best stock trading platforms in the UK since no commissions are charged on CFD positions. This applies to all stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities, and ETFs that AvaTrade offers – with leverage of up to 5:1 for stock CFDs and 30:1 for currencies. The account opening process at AvaTrade is also very speedy, with six base currencies supported (including GBP).

One of AvaTrade’s most prominent features is its full support for MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. This will be of particular note to forex traders, as these automated trading platforms allow for custom strategies to be built and deployed. Finally, although AvaTrade’s minimum deposit is £100, there are no deposit, withdrawal, or monthly account fees to contend with. AvaTrade is also one of the best options trading platforms in the UK with its fully fledged AvaOptions platform.

What We Like:

5. Skilling – User-Friendly Trading App with cTrader and MT4 Platforms

Skilling is a leading online broker that has more than 900 financial instruments to trade and offers advanced analysis tools.

The Skilling app, free to download and available on Android and iOS, is one of the best around and users can also make use of the professional cTrader platform as well as MetaTrader 4.

There is a minimum deposit of £100 to get started, higher than some others on this list, but Skilling offers excellent trading conditions including spreads from as low as 0.2 pips.

It also has low commission fees and quick execution speeds and although Skilling has its HQ in Cyprus but is also regulated by the UK FCA.

The app offers drawing tools and technical indicators that are fully optimized for a seamless mobile experience and positions can be entered in rapid speeds with an average of just 0.05 seconds.

All markets – bar forex and spot metals – can be traded at 0% commission and there are a wide range of instruments with forex, shares, indices, commodities and cryptocurrencies.

There is also copy trading features for novice traders and three levels of account, as well as a from account to trade risk-free.

What We Like:

6. Libertex – Leading Trading Platform Suitable for Beginners and Advanced Traders

Libertex is one of the best trading platforms around for beginners and more advanced traders with an excellent range of tools including MetaTrader 4.

Users can access CFDs, ETFs, indices, cryptos, stocks and commodities offers good execution speeds, low spreads from zero pips and competitive commissions including 0% on some pairs.

Commodities, for example, can be traded with just 0.0003% per slide, which means that for for every £10,000 traded a commission of only 3p will apply.

The Libertex platform is extremely user-friendly and has a wide range of built-in tools and indicators that will suit most traders, as well as an extensive series of lessons to help educate its users.

Libertex is not regulated by the FCA but by multinational and trusted brands based in St Vincent and the Grenadines and another in Mauritius, MAEX, which has more than 2 million clients worldwide.

The platform does offer a more limited range of trading instruments compared to some of its competitors, but most users will be happy with those that are on offer.

What We Like:

Your capital is at risk. 70.8% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

7. Axi – Award-Winning Platform Offering MT4 and Copy Trading

Axi offers the MT4 platform to more than 60,000 traders in 100 countries. Traders can choose between standard, pro and elite accounts, each offering unique benefits. Axi has received awards for the best forex broker and best CFD provider because it simplifies trading with several key features.

One of the main features is Copy Trading. Axi enables traders to copy the trades of professionals in forex, stocks, commodities and indices markets. Traders search for their ideal traders and analyze their statistics to determine if they’re a good fit. Axi provides access to some of the best traders who have provided 263% returns. The cherry on the cake is that this service is free. Only spreads apply to trades, as Axi charges $0 commission and provides up to 400:1 leverage.

Another two features helping traders to maximize profits are PsyQuation and AutoChartist. PsyQuation helps trades reduce mistakes by providing performance analytics. AutoChartist provides alerts about customized trade opportunities by scanning the market.

Besides the demo account, Axi offers a library of educational videos, guides and webinars about trading and the MT4 platform.

What We Like:

Your capital is at risk. 81.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

8. Crypto.com – Best Crypto Trading Platform in the UK

One of the best crypto trading platforms for UK-based traders is Crypto.com. As the name implies, Crypto.com is a cryptocurrency exchange that offers over 250 coins to trade. Users can fund their Crypto.com account with either crypto or FIAT currency, making it quick and easy to take advantage of price movements.

Crypto.com is considered one of the best crypto exchanges in the UK due to its appealing fee structure, with trades on the exchange costing just 0.4% each way/ However, this fee can be reduced by 10% if users opt to pay in CRO – Crypto.com’s native token. Aside from the exchange, Crypto.com also enables users to purchase crypto instantly through the mobile app, which costs 2.99% per trade.

Crypto.com also offers one of the best crypto wallets, which is free to download and supports over 100 crypto-assets. In addition, Crypto.com provides a crypto-interest account (called Crypto Earn), which offers returns of up to 14.5% per year on specific tokens and a dedicated NFT marketplace with low fees. Finally, Crypto.com even enables users to spend their crypto as if it was FIAT through the free Crypto.com crypto card – with cashback of up to 5% on some tiers.

What We Like:

Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product.

9. Pepperstone – Best Forex Trading Platform in the UK

Pepperstone is one of the best CFD trading platforms for FX trading, primarily due to its innovative ‘Razor’ account. This account provides access to raw spreads as low as 0.0 pips (plus commission) – ideal for scalpers and day traders.

For traders who opt for the standard account, there is a one pip markup on the raw spread, with no commissions charged.

Aside from currencies, Pepperstone has over 1,200 assets to trade, including stocks in the form of CFDs, ETFs, commodities, and more. This platform is regulated within the UK by the FCA and offers fast execution times, with a reported 99.95% fill rate, ensuring investments are almost guaranteed to always be filled. Finally, Pepperstone also offers integrations with leading platforms like TradingView, MT4, MT5, and cTrader, making it easy to conduct technical analysis.

What We Like:

74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider.

10. Binance – Popular Crypto Exchange with Low Trading Fees

Another of the best Bitcoin trading platforms in the UK is Binance. Binance allows users to invest in cryptocurrency in a streamlined manner, with low trading fees. These fees start at only 0.1% through the Binance exchange – which can even be lowered by 25% if they are paid in BNB, Binance’s native token.

Binance offers over 500 crypto-assets to invest in, including many crypto-to-crypto trading pairs. These assets can be traded through the exchange or purchased instantly using a credit/debit card, which will cost 2% per transaction. The trading process is ideal for both beginner and advanced investors, as Binance provides a platform that suits all experience levels.

Binance also offers an array of derivatives markets, such as futures and European-style options. There’s also a ‘Binance Earn’ feature, which provides flexible and lock-up options that enable investors to generate a return on their idle crypto holdings. Binance even provides a crypto loans service, allowing investors to borrow crypto whilst posting a different coin as collateral.

What We Like:

Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product.

 

11. Hargreaves Lansdown – Best Trading Platform in the UK for Experienced Investors

Hargreaves Lansdown is the best stock trading platform in the UK for experienced investors due mainly to the provider’s stellar reputation within the industry. This provider has over 1.6 million clients and handles more than £135 billion worth of investments, highlighting its immense credibility. Investors who use Hargreaves Lansdown can trade equities from 21 major exchanges with full support for penny stocks.

Fees are relatively high with Hargreaves Lansdown, as the first nine trades placed each month will accrue an £11.95 transaction fee. This decreases as trading volume increases, although there will always be a fee attached. However, Hargreaves Lansdown charges no non-trading fees and has no minimum deposit requirement. Hargreaves Lansdown even has similar features to many social trading platforms, including six ready-made investment portfolios.

What We Like:

12. IG – Established Trading Platform with Huge Asset Selection

IG is one of the best online trading platforms in the UK for investors who value a wide asset selection. This is because IG offers an array of asset classes, including over 10,000 stock CFDs, over 200 currency pairs, and more than 1,800 ETFs. As a CFD broker, IG does not charge any commissions since fees are built into the spread – which can be as low as 0.4 points for highly-traded assets.

IG also stands out when it comes to the trading experience, as the web trading platform is fully-customisable and features tailor-made watchlists and one-click trading. Users can also trade on IG’s mobile app, which offers biometric authentication and a variety of price alerts. Finally, IG also has a vast library of educational resources, including tutorial videos, webinars, and a free demo account.

What We Like:

13. Plus500 – Best CFD Trading Platform in the UK

Plus500 is next on our list of the best trading platforms in the UK. It is a CFD trading platform that offers tight spreads with no hefty commissions.

This provider is regulated by the FCA and is even listed on the FTSE 250 index, adding a great deal of credibility.

Opening an account with Plus500 is quick and easy, after which users will be able to trade nearly 2,000 stock CFDs, along with a range of ETFs, currencies, commodities, and more. In terms of analysis, Plus500 has in-depth charting tools, with over 100 technical indicators available to use and even a real-time newsfeed. No deposit fees are charged by Plus500, with users able to fund their accounts via credit/debit card, bank transfer, or PayPal. For a full detailed audit of this popular CFD broker read our Plus500 UK review.

What We Like:

14. AJ Bell – Leading and Trusted UK Wealth Management and Trading Platform

AJ Bell is one of the UK’s most trusted investment and wealth management platforms that has almost half a million customers.

It has been named as a recommended provider by leading consumer advice magazine Which? for four years running and also has a high score on TrustPilot, as well as being FCA regulated and FSCS protected.

It provides a variety of products from low-cost funds totally managed by experts, ready-made portfolios, ISAs and pension plans – including the self-invested personal pension (SIPP) – and in total has more than 2,000 funds and shares from 24 markets.

AJ Bell also has a commission-free trading app, Dodl, that is a low-cost alternative for investors buying shares, funds or managing ISAs.

The platform also features a wide range of research tools, although it does charge £1.50 each time a user buys or sells a fund.

At the time of writing AJ Bell does not offer any cryptocurrency investment options.

It is likely to be among the cheapest options for small to medium portfolios, although those with larger portfolios may be better served using a fixed-fee broker.

What We Like:

15. Freetrade – Commission-Free Trading Platform with Zero Fees

Freetrade is an app-based investment platform that offers shares, ETFs and investment trusts.

Launched in 2018, the UK-based platform has commission-free trading with zero platform fees for a general account.

The commission-free model is one of its major strengths and could save considerable funds compared to other DIY investment platforms.

Freetrade scores highly on independent peer review sites such as TrustPilot, however, it has fewer investment options than other platforms we’ve reviewed – with only US and UK stocks – and does not offer crypto.

It also has fewer user tools than other platforms.

Freetrade also has relatively fixed annual charges, which means it is suitable for larger portfolios but smaller ones may be better with DIY platforms.

The app is FCA regulated and FSCS protected.

What We Like:

16. Interactive Brokers – Top Platform for Ethical Investing

Interactive Brokers is a long-established brokerage that will appeal to advanced traders as it has strong trading platform and excellent pricing.

It also has a unique tool that tells allows investors to find out if their investments are ethical.

Set up in 1978, there is a huge investment selection to choose from no-transaction-fee mutual funds and zero fees on trades.

Interactive Brokers has long been popular for advanced-level traders, offering charting and key metrics.

The platform is not the best for beginners, especially compared to others on this list, as there are an overwhelming number of tools.

There are a wide range of instruments to trade, including UK and international stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds and funds.

The ethical investment feature that allows users to tell the platform which issues matter to them and will then tell the user if their investments reflect those values, giving an overall score. It also shows the ESG score of a company so investors can compare and pick those that are more ethical.

Interactive Brokers is regulated by the FCA and protected by the FSCS.

The platform offers extremely competitive prices but can be difficult to decipher – the site is not as user-friendly as others.

What We Like:

Top Trading Platforms UK Compared

The section above has presented an array of the best share trading platforms and crypto exchanges available to UK-based traders. By partnering with one of the providers above, investors will be able to buy Ethereum, trade the FX market, and invest in an abundance of asset classes.

To help streamline the decision-making process even further, the table below compares the ten listed providers when it comes to asset selection, fees, minimum deposit, and key features:

How We Select the Best UK Trading Platforms

When deciding which is the best trading platform in the UK, our team utilized an extensive list of criteria to narrow down the selection to our top 10. These criteria are presented below, along with an explanation of why they are so crucial:

Regulation

Regulation is arguably the most crucial element to keep in mind when choosing between the best trading platforms in the UK, as this is ultimately how a platform’s safety level is determined. UK-based traders will want to look out for platforms regulated by the FCA, along with coverage through the FSCS. These two factors provide the greatest deal of direct investor protection within the country.

Asset Selection

Platforms which offer a wide selection of tradeable assets tend to be the most popular since it’s easy for investors to create a diversified portfolio. Not only that, many share dealing platforms offer international shares, whilst some even provide bonds and funds to trade. For traders looking to invest in Bitcoin, it’s wise to partner with a platform that offers a selection of tradeable cryptocurrencies. 

Fees

Naturally, a platform’s fees are one of the most important things to consider – especially for active traders. Fees tend to be split up into one-time commissions or the market spread – although many platforms may also charge non-trading fees.

Finally, specific platforms may charge an ongoing account fee simply for using the platform. This is quite rare, although it is worth looking out for.

Tools & Analysis

Many platforms will have a selection of trading tools, such as real-time price charts, price alerts, technical indicators, educational materials, and more. eToro is regarded as one of the best copy trading platforms available to UK-based traders, mainly due to its innovative ‘CopyTrader’ feature, allowing users to automatically copy the trades placed by other users.

Minimum Deposit

Many of the best trading platforms in the UK will have a minimum deposit threshold which must be met before being allowed to trade. This threshold can vary from provider to provider, although it is typically not present in crypto trading platforms.

Demo Account

Beginners may wish to partner with a platform that offers a free demo account service. This service works in much the same way as a regular account, except instead of real money, the provider will supply ‘paper money’ to trade with – allowing for a risk-free experience.

Mobile App

Active traders will benefit from using a platform that has a dedicated mobile app, as this ensures that trades can be placed whilst out and about. Most mobile apps will have the same features as the web-based platform, except in a more concise manner.

Supported Payment Methods

Crypto trading platforms tend to allow users to fund their accounts in either FIAT or crypto – with the latter usually being free to do. On the other hand, providers that deal in ‘traditional’ asset classes will usually accept credit/debit cards, bank transfers, and e-wallets – such as PayPal, Skrill, and Neteller.

Customer Service

Finally, most top trading platforms will have a dedicated customer service team on hand to deal with any customer queries. The best platforms will offer a ‘Live Chat’ feature, although many also provide telephone and email support.

Types of Trading Platforms

Finding the best trading platform in the UK also involves researching which assets are supported by each provider – as this is crucial to creating a diversified portfolio. With that in mind, discussed below are some of the most popular platform types available to partner with:

Crypto Trading Platforms

As the name suggests, crypto trading platforms are dedicated to people interested in trading cryptocurrencies. These platforms allow investors to buy Lucky Block (and other top cryptos) and trade crypto-to-crypto pairs. The key distinction between crypto exchanges and regular trading platforms is that the former allows crypto deposits, making it easy to swap one coin for another.

Stock and ETF Trading Platforms

Looking for the best stock brokers in the UK? Stock and ETFs tend to be offered by most of the top trading platforms – usually with a 0% commission fee structure. An example of this is eToro, which offers 2,000 stock CFDs to trade and over 250 ETF CFDs, all costing just the market spread.

Forex Trading Platforms

Forex is one of the largest financial markets in the world, meaning that most platforms will offer a selection of currency pairs to trade. However, platforms that focus on FX trading will usually offer minor pairs and exotic pairs, greatly enhancing the options available to traders.

Options Trading Platforms

Options are financial instruments that tend to appeal to experienced traders, as they are considered risky yet can offer high returns if traded effectively. These instruments are only offered by a select few providers (e.g. AvaTrade), as they are more prevalent in the US.

Commodities Trading Platforms

Commodities are popular with investors of all experience levels, as many offer appealing correlations with other asset classes that make diversification much easier. Assets like gold, silver, wheat and natural gas are all easily tradeable using a platform like eToro, which offers CFDs on these commodities.

Day Trading Platforms

Finally, the term ‘day trading platform’ can apply to any provider that allows investors to take short-term positions in an asset. For example, eToro and Crypto.com enable investors to buy and sell assets within the same day – even offering low fees that make the process more cost-effective for active traders. 

Best Trading Platforms in the UK – Conclusion

In summary, this guide has taken an in-depth look at some of the best trading platforms in the UK, highlighting why they are so highly regarded and the features to keep in mind when choosing between them. With the growth of online trading showing no signs of stopping, partnering with one of these brokers can make all the difference when it comes to longevity.

Our pick for the best trading platform in the UK is eToro. This is because eToro offers commission-free trading on most of its asset classes whilst allowing positions from only $10 (£7.95). What’s more, eToro’s innovative CopyTrader feature is ideal for traders looking to automate their trading whilst still netting a solid return.

Your capital is at risk. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

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