IG’s Investing App is Best for a Mix Of Short & Long-Term Investing

Is Lightyear Good for Investing?

Lightyear was voted best investing app in the 2026 Good Money Guide Awards and is a simple and approachable way to invest in stocks and ETFs without unnecessarily large fees. A very well-designed low-cost investing app with discounted FX charges, limit and recurring orders for investing in local and international markets.

Special Offer: Sign up with the code GOODMONEYGUIDE to get up to £100 in fractional share to your GIA. Capital at risk.

– – Terms apply: https://lightyear.com/en-gb/signup-promotion-terms. You must be a new user and deposit at least £100 within the first 15 days after signing up. The reward can be withdrawn 6 months after it’s credited.

Fees: Lightyear is cheap for investing. The GIA has no account fee and charges only £1 commission for UK trades and up to $1 for US stocks but free for trading ETFs. If you are investing in a stocks and shares ISA, there is no commission on buying and selling stocks and shares. Much like the founders’ alma mater, Lightyear makes its money from FX fees which it adds to the interbank rate, so conversion costs are transparent.

When I interviewed Martin Sokk, he told me Lightyear planned to expand internationally fast so that its users could invest in both their local and the US markets, since many people want to invest in US stocks.

And rightly so: US shares are all household names, and one of the key drivers for investing is to buy companies you love and use. Lightyear will make money charging 0.1% per trade  (or $1, whichever is bigger) and converting GBP, HUF & Euros, etc. into USD when people buy US stocks.

Lightyear charges 0.1% for converting money into USD and EUR, which is higher than Interactive Brokers’ 0.03% but much lower than the 0.5% charged by AJ Bell, Saxo Markets and IG, or the 1% from Hargreaves Lansdown and Interactive Investor.

FX must be a key part of Lightyear’s monetisation strategy: if you charge very low commission and account fees, you have to make money somehow. So Lightyear aims to make its money in the background, initially from foreign exchange fees. FX is a good way to make money because a) no-one really understands how the pricing works and b) you don’t see the charge, it’s built into the buy/sell spread.

You can see in the example below what the fees were when I bought some Tesla shares while testing the app for this Lightyear review.

Quite a nice touch is that you get the option of making purchases repeat orders, a great way to build good investing habits. Just by investing small amounts each month, the genius of compounding returns will help you build a larger portfolio over time. Check it out with our investing returns calculator.

Market Access: Lightyear constantly adds new instruments, bringing the total up to almost 6,500. These include well-known UK names such as Rolls-Royce, easyJet and IAG; to defence ETFs, US stocks. This is great because one of my concerns about new investing apps is that they normally just cater to the most heavily traded stocks, which means they are not great for more adventurous investors. It’s great to see Lightyear providing wider market access.

Plus, it’s proactive. Lightyear says it has put live 98% of non-complex US instruments asked for by customers in just 3 months.

One of the other really cool things about Lightyear is that you can listen to earnings calls directly on the app.

As well as being able to buy fractional US shares, ETFs though limit orders and regular investing, you can also quickly see which shares pay the highest dividends or make the most money relative to their share price to help you pick stocks.

Multicurrency account & order types

Another point to make here is that you also get a multi-currency account, where you can hold foreign currency. The advantage of this is that you don’t need to do as many FX conversions which can help keep costs down.

Related guide: Compare FX rates for buying US stocks from the UK.

Progression to servicing local customers and local markets

When Lightyear first started, you could only invest in a handful of UK stocks, and they were ADRs listed in the US denominated in USD, rather than the local listings on the LSE. So, you were paying an FX fee when you really shouldn’t have to. Admittedly, there is no stamp duty so technically paying 0.1% on FX rather than 0.5% to HMRC is cheaper.

Lightyear has a cash (money market fund) and investment ISA, but no SIPP account, but I suspect that is next on the “product roadmap”.

Are your investment safe with Lightyear?

Yes, it’s safe to invest with Lightyear. Lightyear U.K Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 987226). Lightyear is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). FSCS protection applies to client money only where held with banks, not where held in QMMFs.

In the unlikely event of anything happening to Lightyear, there’s no way for creditors to get hold of the investments or cash that customers hold with us.

Keep in mind, though, that your investments are not safe from losing money with Lightyear. Overall, the market generally goes up, but there are peaks and troughs along the way.

Like Transferwise, like Lightyear

To draw on one final Transferwise comparison, it is very easy to use app-as-a-tool to help you start investing as cheaply as possible. The thing is though is that, transferring money is like car insurance. No-one really has any loyalty to their insurer, they just do it and move on. Investing is different. Investing is not like insurance, when you open an investing account, you could be using it for the next 30 years.

I think there will always be a place for traditional investment platforms because they provide excellent customer service and brand loyalty, they are mature platforms for mature investors and fees will eventually come down, as they have done in the past. Same as with Simpsons Tavern, it may not be as good for you as veganism, but if it survives, people will continue to go because they like it.

But, if low-cost investing apps are a gateway to getting more people to invest for their future, then they are the future too and will hopefully mature along with their customers, and Lightyear, in particular, is a great place to get started.

Is ii's App Any Good and is it Safe?

The app is one of the best ways to invest on mobile, based on our analysis, as it has loads of research, screeners and market data. And as ii is regulated by the FCA and owned by ABRDN, an LSE-listed company currently worth more than £2.8bn, the ii app is one of the safest around.

Fees

It costs from £4.99 a month for a GIA with ii. With the basic plan, trading on UK and US stocks is £3.99. There are two plans above that which include free trades. If you upgrade to a Super Investor account (£19.99 a month) you get 2 free monthly trades. Regular investing is free.

If you want UK Level 2 share pricing, you can also add Quotestream for £20 + VAT per month.

Special Offers

Free investing for your friends and family. You can give up to five people a free investment account subscription with ii’s Friends and Family plan. You pay a single extra fee of £5 a month, and their monthly cost is zero. Each member can invest up to £30,000 in an ISA or a general investing account with free regular investing and no account fees. However, they’ll still pay normal dealing commissions when they buy and sell investments.

Get £200 when you refer a friend to ii. Recommend a friend or family member and get a £200 reward. Your friend will get their first year’s service plan for free – saving £120. To qualify, your friend must transfer or fund their account with at least £10,000 in combined cash/investments.

What is the App Like to Use?

Is Wealthify a Good Investing App?

Yes, Wealthify is an excellent app but it’s not as good as the web version, because it’s easier to explore the risk and performance tables and choose a portfolio on a bigger screen.

The Wealthify app used to be brilliant for beginner investors but since the upped the minimum deposit required to start investing, it’s not not as acceisble as it once was.

Fees: Wealthify’s app is free to download and once you start investing is fiarly cheap for a managed robbo-advisor. It costs 0.6% to start investing with Wealthify, which is one of the cheapest robo-advisor account fees. There are also investment costs of, on average, 0.15% for original plans and 0.58% for ethical plans.

Market Access: You can only invest in two portfolios, but you can choose how much risk you want to take.

App & Platform: Very easy to use, and gives you lots of information if you want to dig deeper into your portfolios.

Customer Service: Excellent – good team and friendly support.

Research & Analysis: A bit here and there, but if you are a passive investor I doubt you’ll read any of it.

Is your Money Safe in the Moneyfarm App?

Yes, the Moneyfarm app connects to all your Moneyfarm accounts and lets you view your portfolio balance and performance while on the move. As Moneyfarm is a fairly passive investment account and not that complicated, you can also use the app for making deposits and choosing investment portfolios.

Fees

Moneyfarm investing account fees start at 0.75% for accounts between £500 and £50,000, then above £100,000 it costs 0.45% to 0.35%. Average investment fund fees are 0.2% and the average market spread when buying and selling is 0.10%.

What is the App Like to Use?

Is AJ Bell's App as Good as the Platform?

AJ Bell’s app is a good way of checking on your investments when out and about. But it’s a bit clunky compared to full-service brokers like Interactive Brokers or newer apps like CMC Invest. It’s not as good as the main website, as you don’t get the full screeners or research, plus I found it an absolute pain to log into – for some reason it seems to always wipe my login info.

Fees

AJ Bell charges 0.25% of the value of your investments for a GIA but share account fees are capped at £3.50 a month. Dealing costs are £1.50 for funds and £5 for shares but drop to £3.50 if you had 10 or more online share deals in the previous month.

Special Offers

Recommend a friend, and you’ll both get £100 gift vouchers. If you recommend a friend to AJ Bell and they invest more than £10,000 in a SIPP, ISA or LISA, you’ll each get an Amazon gift card worth £100.

Switch your share dealing account and receive up to £500 to cover exit fees. If you transfer your share dealing GIA valued at more than £20,000 to AJ Bell, it will help cover any exit fees charged by your current provider. AJ Bell will cover £35 per investment moved and up to £100 for general exit fees, up to an overall maximum of £500 per person.

Free subscription to Shares Magazine worth £220 a year. Get a free subscription to Shares by maintaining a balance of £4,000 or more across your AJ Bell investing accounts.

What is the App Like to Use?

Is your Money Safe in the HL app?

Yes, HL’s investing app is one of the best and most secure apps for investing, as the company is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Hargreaves Lansdown is one of the most popular investing apps in the UK. For instance, did you know that at its peak, the app and website were used every 9.6 seconds to top up an HL Stocks & Shares ISA.

Fees: There is no account charge for shares in a general account with HL. Funds are charged at 0.45% for the first £250,000. There is no charge for buying funds, but shares are charged at a relatively high £11.95 per deal or £5.95 if you do over 20 deals per month.

Hargreaves Lansdown has recently improved it’s app and now allows users to open several products directly. The HL app now allows clients to open its ISA, LISA and Fund & Share accounts through the app, with more products to become accessible shortly.

In a LinkedIn post revealing the update, Hargreaves Lansdown product leader Michael Loberman said it came as part of the company’s “wider efforts to transform our app and web experience”.

He added: “Keep an eye out for further changes in the coming months. Exciting times ahead!”

In its latest quarterly trading update in November, Hargreaves Lansdown reported client numbers grew by 18,000 in the second financial quarter, up from 8,000 in Q1. 

The growth was attributed to new clients setting up SIPP, ISA and Active Savings accounts.

The firm also revealed its clients had been switching their investments to cash in that update. Client cash balances rose to £12.7 billion during the three months to the end of September, up from £12.4 billion.

The £300 million shift towards cash was driven by net selling of investments by clients in September on fears the government’s annual Budget could include a tax raid, which largely failed to materialise.

Earlier in November, Hargreaves Lansdown launched its Global Income fund on the platform, bringing another easy-to-use portfolio building tool to do-it-yourself investors.

The new Global Equity Income fund invests in a portfolio of dividend-paying companies around the world favoured by selected expert managers. 

In February the firm teamed up with rival platform Interactive Investor to open up the UK Gilt-edged or government bond auctions to retail traders through a partnership with market marker Winterflood Securities.

The group’s revenue rose to £196.5 million in the second quarter of this financial year from £183.8 million in the previous three months, driven by increased dealing volumes and higher assets under administration levels.

What is the App Like to Use?

Are Saxo's Investing Apps Good for Longer-term Investors?

SaxoTraderGO is a good choice if you are a sophisticated investor and want to manage every aspect of your portfolio actively and need an established platform. The SaxoInvestor app won Best Investing App in our 2024 awards as it helps connect new and beginner investors through a simple interface to one of the most advanced platforms in the industry.

Saxo‘s competitive pricing and range of order execution types mean you can work large orders on the move as well as from the standard desktop platform.

Even though Saxo is traditionally a trading platform for short-term speculation on the markets going up or down, it’s also an excellent choice for longer-term investors. That’s because Saxo is a well-capitalised company, heavily regulated in the UK and all the regions it operates in, and has excellent customer service for small and large customers.

Fees

Saxo charges €10 a month or 0.12% a year (whichever is higher) based on the value of your portfolio. If you have a VIP account this fee drops to 0.08%. Dealing charges are commission based as a percentage of transaction size. They are competitive, though, and UK shares trading commission starts at 0.1% (£100 if you buy £100,000 worth of stock) and drops to 0.05% for more active traders.

Special Offers

If you have £200,000 or more on account, you can apply for 30% lower transaction and account costs.

For accounts with portfolios over £1m, you get even better pricing, direct connection to experts, 1:1 SaxoStrats access and event invitations.

What Are the Apps Like to Use?

The images below are from the SaxoTraderGO app. You can see the Saxo Investor platform in our dedicated hands-on review.

Is Dodl a good investing app?

AJ Bell Dodl is a great way for the next generation of investors to invest with a “low-cost, little effort” app which focuses on making investing easy. Which it does well, Dodl is very user-friendly, has great educational content and is one of the cheapest ways to start investing.

Summary

• Investments: Shares & ETFs
• Minimum deposit: £0
• Account types: GIA, ISA
• Account charge: £0 – £10 per month
• Dealing fee: £0

Fees: General investment accounts are commission and fee free. ISA accounts cost £10 a month and are included in the Plus plan. For US shares there is a 0.5% conversion fee.

App: CMC Invest’s app gives you access to major stocks, and has a screener to help search for potential investments.

How may apps does Interactive Brokers (IBKR) have?

IBKR also has two other apps, which are both good – IBKR Mobile for experienced traders and IMPACT for ethical investors.

Special Offer

$200 when you refer a friend to Interactive Brokers. IBKR clients can earn $200 for each qualified referral while giving their friend the opportunity to earn up to $1,000 of IBKR stock.

What is the App Like to Use?

Is Freetrade a good investing app?

Yes, Freetrade is a great investing app for those with a small amount of money who want a very low-cost way to start investing in UK and US shares and ETFs. As your portfolio grows you can upgrade for better execution and data. It’s most suited to medium and long-term investing.

Freetrade is one of the original and biggest commission-free investing apps in the UK. It now offers, GIAs, ISAs and SIPPs to over 1.5 million UK & European investors. It is possible to have a free account with end-of-day orders and limited stock data. Or you can upgrade to either a “standard” or “Plus” account for tax-efficient accounts, web access, reduced FX charges and most stock data.

Freetrade also won “Best Investing App” in the 2025 Good Money Guide Awards.

Freetrade offers a ‘freemium’ share dealing service and it’s mission is to get everyone investing by making it simpler and more affordable.

Founded in 2016, Freetrade launched its iOS app in the UK in October 2018, and since then it has grown at an impressive pace.

Freetrade’s popularity stems from two key features: commission-free trading for shares and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and the ability to buy fractional US shares. These features have made investing more accessible and cost-effective, especially for beginners.

It’s worth noting that Freetrade won the 2021 Good Money Guide award for ‘Best Commission-Free Stockbroker’. It also won the 2019 Good Money Guide ‘People’s Choice’ award.

Pricing: 

With Freetrade you can buy stocks with zero commissions.

However, if you’re buying US or European stocks, you’ll need to pay foreign exchange (FX) fees. These fees vary depending on the ongoing plan you choose.

There are three options when it comes to plans. These are:

Freetrade Basic – Free

Freetrade Standard – £4.99 per month billed annually or £5.99 per month billed monthly

Freetrade Plus – £9.99 per month billed annually or £11.99 per month billed monthly

As for how Freetrade’s fees compare to other platforms, they are pretty competitive. But there are lots of variables to consider here including the type of plan you have, the type of stocks you invest in (i.e. UK vs US stocks), and how many trades you make per month.

If you just wanted to buy a few blue-chip UK shares within a General Investment Account, you could potentially pay no fees at all (you would have to pay Stamp Duty on trades).

However, if you wanted to buy and hold UK shares in a stocks and shares ISA, you would be looking at annual charges of at least £59.88.

That’s not particularly high but it can be beaten. AJ Bell, for example, offers an annual charge of 0.25% for ISAs and this is capped at just £42 per year (this doesn’t include any trades).

Market Access: In terms of accounts, Freetrade offers three options, a General Investment Account, a Stocks and Shares ISA and a  SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension). But, to open a stocks and shares ISA or SIPP you need to sign up for a premium plan.