- Hargreaves Lansdown is highly rated in both expert and user reviews, boasting an average of 3.8/5 from 1,774 user reviews. Users appreciate the platform’s extensive range of investment options and the quality of customer service, while experts commend its comprehensive research tools and user-friendly interface.
- Experts highlight Hargreaves Lansdown as a top-tier investment platform, noting its wide array of investment types and accounts, excellent customer service, and high ratings across various criteria, including a total rating of 4.9. However, they caution that it may not be the most cost-effective option for fund investing.
- Users frequently praise the platform’s intuitive app and responsive customer service, with many noting the ease of use and the variety of investment options available. However, some users express concerns about high fees and the need for improvements in the app’s navigation and overall user experience.
3/5
4/5
3/5
Cons:
Be more transparent with funds recommendation
5/5
Cons:
Become more competitive on charges
4/5
Cons:
Reduce fees
4/5
Cons:
More competitive fees and charges
3/5
Erik Pattison @ 05/06/2020 01:00
Good phone service but has not improved for years. They give far too much time boosting funds (the worst being the Neil Woodford fan posts) because that is where they make money.
The online platform completely fails to deal with index-linked gilts and sometimes quotes prices which are days old or fails to give a value at all. I have been with them for years but I am losing faith,
L Lagham @ 09/09/2019 12:51
Nearly four weeks now after my request to transfer my now-cash-only stocks and shares ISA to another firm, and still no progress from HL… still no responses to my several e-mails and secure messages on the topic when chasing them. I decided to move to another platform because: (a) HL fees are completely unjustifiably high compared with the whole market (b) research articles are generally quite shallow and somewhat trite (c) iPhone App is weak compared with closest competition (d) website is rather dated, somewhat 90’s-ish and clunky to use (e) customer service appears to be getting worse and worse [no replies to messages generally – or if so, only days or weeks later].
Add the Woodford saga which will probably sadly continue for quite some time, and it does seem that unfortunately there is no longer much going for this firm – which used to have such a fantastic reputation and which is seems to be going into a sharp decline.
William Rutherford @ 04/28/2019 11:33
If you can bear the fee structure it has an excellent online platform for research
Online Platform 5/5
Customer Service 5/5
Fees & Pricing 3/5
Jason Farrington @ 04/28/2019 02:14
I have had a stocks and shares ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown since April 2016 and it’s been a roller-coaster ride but through the highs and lows (for me, more often the lows) Hargreaves Lansdown have provided an excellent service. If I ever have to call them, the phone is answered straight away and my question dealt with professionally and promptly. There are many funds and shares to invest in and the website and mobile app are easy to use and informative. However, I feel their charges for trading are pricey at ┬ú11.95.
Online Platform 4/5
Customer Service 5/5
Fees & Pricing 3/5
Neil
Trading Platform 5/5
Customer Service 5/5
Mobile Apps 5/5
Spreads & Pricing 5/5
Market Range 5/5
Trade Execution Speed 5/5
Added Value 5/5
Excellent service but the service change is high for regular traders.
(Trading stocks, indices, commodities and fixed income with Hargreaves Lansdown  for 2-5 years on a weekly basis)
Fai Hann
Trading Platform 5/5
Customer Service 5/5
Mobile Apps 5/5
Spreads & Pricing 3/5:┬áI have found much more lower fees – just look at Vanguard at 0.07% platform fees
Market Range 5/5
Trade Execution Speed 5/5
Added Value 4/5: Would like call up to discuss trade specials with me
A great broker very responsive when having issues with trade platform.
Super website – clear concise and very easy to navigate. Love the mobile app simply cannot live without it. SIMPLY NUMBER 1
Customer service very professional and knowledgeable.
Great in depth level of investments to trade and are very happy to add ETFs from other international stock markets add no extra cost which is AWESOME!
Fees are the 1 BIG let down. I simply cannot afford trading on a daily basis with charges as high as £11.95.
The pension platform fees are capped T ┬ú200 WHICH BETTER THAN VANGUARD’S!!!!
Hargreaves Lansdown: no nonsense, low risk trading for the beginner.
HL is a great place to start if you’re new to trading. You can see your low risk longterm investments like ISAs alongside your fund account. So you have it all in one place. But it’s expensive: if you’re doing regular trades you’ll ramp up your fees in no time. But it’s great for your standard ISA funds and the customer service on the phone or email is superb.
Great for granddads, not so great for whippersnappers.
Trading Platform 3/5: It’s a basic, easy to use platform. But the charges are steep: ┬ú15 or thereabouts for each trade.
Customer Service 5/5
Mobile Apps 4/5: It’s a good app but not quite modern enough. It does what you need it to.
Spreads & Pricing 3/5: This isn’t really my neck of the woods.
Market Range 4/5: One big glaring omission: cryptocurrencies!
Trade Execution Speed 5/5
Added Value 5/5
(Trading stocks and commodities with Hargreaves Lansdown for over 5 years on a monthly basis)
Hargreaves Lansdown Review: The Waitrose of the investing world
Provider: Hargreaves Lansdown
Verdict: Founded in 1981 Hargreaves Lansdown is one of the largest investment platforms in the UK. They offer investing, savings, ISAs and SIPP account to over 1.8 million clients with 142bn in assets under management.
Is Hargreaves Lansdown a good broker?
Yes, Hargreaves Lansdown is one of our best-rated stock brokers and investment platforms. HL offers access to a huge range of investment types, through a wide range of general and tax-efficient accounts and is suitable for almost all types of investors.
I always think of Hargreaves Lansdown as the Waitrose of the investing world. Yes, it may be a bit pricier sometimes, but I think it’s just a nicer, safer place to shop for stocks.
Pros
- Wide range of investments and accounts
- Top-notch customer service
- Excellent research and analysis
Cons
- There are cheaper options for fund investing
- Limited portfolio hedging tools
- Pricing (4.5)
- Market Access (5)
- Online Platform (5)
- Customer Service (5)
- Research & Analysis (5)
Overall
4.9Tell us what you think of this provider.
Hargreaves Lansdown FAQs
Yes, we rate Hargreaves Lansdown as one of the safest share dealing accounts in the UK because they are well established, listed on the London Stock Exchange, and regulated by the FCA. Hargreaves Lansdown is also a profitable company with millions of private and corporate customers.
As an FCA-regulated stock broker, if Hargreaves Lansdown were to go bust, client cash on account would be protected by the FSCS scheme. Client investments are held in nominee accounts on CREST and can be transferred to another FCA-regulated investment platform.
Yes, Hargreaves Lansdown is considered one of the more expensive trading apps, as they charge a commission per share deal as opposed to commission-free investing apps like Freetrade, CMC Invest or Dodl, where it is free. Hargreaves Lansdown is also very expensive for holding funds on account as there is no cap on their fund account charge. Whereas, AJ Bell fund fees are capped and Interactive Investor charges a flat monthly subscription.
Hargreaves Lansdown is a public company listed on the London Stock Exchange meaning anyone can buy shares. But only around 25% of HL shares are traded on the LSE as 75% of the company is still owned by the founders Peter Hargreaves, and Stephen Lansdown and employees. You can see the breakdown of Hargreaves Lansdown shareholders in our HL share price performance section.
Yes, Hargreaves Lansdown offers access to a huge range of UK-listed Government and corporate bonds that you can invest in to build an income-generating portfolio. We actually used Hargreaves Lansdown to demonstrate buying Retail Charity bonds when we reviewed them.
No, you cannot buy commodities directly on Hargreaves Lansdown directly, to do that you need a commodities broker. But, you can invest in commodities on HL through a commodity ETF which is listed on the stock exchange like the Legal & General Longer Dated All commodities UCITS ETF (CMFP).
No, you cannot buy fractional shares on Hargreaves Lansdown, you can only buy whole shares, ETFs and units of funds. If you want to invest in small slices of company shares or want to invest in monetary amounts rather than shares you can compare the best brokers for fractional shares investing here.
No, you cannot trade options on Hargreaves Lansdown. I view this as quite a significant disadvantage because options are a great way to hedge your long-term investment portfolio against potential short-term stock market falls. If you want to trade or invest with options you can compare the best options brokers here.
No, you cannot buy or invest in gold directly on Hargreaves Lansdown, to do that you need a gold trading platform. But, you can get exposure to gold and invest in a gold ETF that tracks the price of the gold and can be bought and sold on the Hargreaves Lansdown platform just like shares for example, SPDR Gold Trust, iShares Gold Trust or Aberdeen Standard Physical Gold Shares ETF.
No, you cannot short stocks or go short on the Hargreaves Lansdown platform. But if you think that the Hargreaves Lansdown share price will go down it is possible to short Hargreaves Lansdown shares with a short-selling broker using CFDs, options or financial spread betting. However, if you want to go short the overall stock market to hedge your portfolio held at Hargreaves Lansdown you can buy an inverse ETF (which goes up when the market goes down) like
Absolutely not! Hargreaves Lansdown is a traditional stock brokerage and is most suitable for those investing in the long term. Cryptocurrency is a very high-risk product and not apprapriate to hold alongside ISA or SIPP accounts. Having said that, the SEC has recently approved a Bitcoin ETF, which can be bought and sold on the stock market, so some UK investors may be able to buy cryptocurrency on HL if they pass the sophisticated investor threshold.
Capital at risk
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as The Sunday Times, BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.