Interactive Investor Review: Fixed fee investing on a wide range of investments

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Interactive Investor has come a long way in the 20 years or so I have been following them, especially recently as they are now part of ABRDN. The fixed fee pricing has always set them apart from competitors and can make having a large portfolio with them very cheap.
Richard Berry
Richard Berry
Good Money Guide Founder

Interactive Investor Customer Reviews

4.3

1,107 Good Money Guide reviewers have given this provider an average rating of 4.3 out of 5 based on their genuine experience.

Excellent51%
Very good33%
Average11%
Poor3%
Terrible2%

Leave a review and tell us what you think to help others make more informed financial decisions.

4/5

15th January 2022
GMG Awards Voter: [13261803203]

5/5

14th January 2022

Pros:

Ease of investing

GMG Awards Voter: [13260713106]

3/5

14th January 2022
GMG Awards Voter: [13260248559]

5/5

14th January 2022

Pros:

Online access

Cons:

Cheaper transaction fees

GMG Awards Voter: [13260046318]

5/5

28th August 2020

Pros:

Low fees for larger portfolios; wide set of investments available

Cons:

Make web UI easier to use; make Android app more functional

GMG Awards Voter: [11942592135]

3/5

28th August 2020

Cons:

Better customer service and more transparent fees

GMG Awards Voter: [11940663392]

5/5

28th August 2020

Cons:

Nothing

GMG Awards Voter: [11940404938]

1/5

28th August 2020

Cons:

criminal FX rates, archaic online system with arbitrary settlement times.. will soon leave them

GMG Awards Voter: [11939637544]

2/5

27th August 2020

Pros:

Research materials

Cons:

Online web interface is clunky and old fashioned. Not particularly easy to use or intuitive. T212 far superior

GMG Awards Voter: [11937627729]

4/5

27th August 2020

Pros:

multicurrency accounts

Cons:

reduce fx fees. 1.5% is too much

GMG Awards Voter: [11937588401]

4/5

27th August 2020

Pros:

Ease of use

GMG Awards Voter: [11937439980]

4/5

26th August 2020

Pros:

Wide range of investment choices.

Cons:

Less ‘Jargon’ in help section

GMG Awards Voter: [11934384182]

4/5

26th August 2020

Pros:

Low charges

Cons:

easier research, HL is easier to use (for me)

GMG Awards Voter: [11933920587]

2/5

26th August 2020

Pros:

Nothing

Cons:

Lower prices, better UX

GMG Awards Voter: [11933861279]

5/5

26th August 2020

Pros:

Low cost

Cons:

Madge the interface more user friendly

GMG Awards Voter: [11933850595]

3/5

26th August 2020
GMG Awards Voter: [11933618276]

4/5

26th August 2020

Pros:

Price and coverage

GMG Awards Voter: [11932966765]

4/5

25th August 2020
GMG Awards Voter: [11932718790]

2/5

25th August 2020

Pros:

Nothing

Cons:

Reduce fees for dormant share accounts

GMG Awards Voter: [11932462621]

4/5

25th August 2020
GMG Awards Voter: [11932451961]

Interactive Investor Expert Review

Interactive Investor is a low-cost provider competing directly with the likes of Hargreaves Lansdown and AJ Bell offering general investment accounts, ISAs and pensions. In our Interactive Investor review, we explore the pros and cons of the platform and who it is suitable for.

Interactive Investor Review
Good Money Guide Recommended 2024

Name: Interactive Investor

Description: Interactive Investor or II as its known is one of the UK’s largest self-determined investor platforms. II can trace its roots back to 1995 and the startup floated on the London stock exchange back in the year 2000 before being bought by the Australian business Ample in 2002. Today,  Interactive Investor is a owned by abrdn with assets under administration of more than £50 billion and 400,000 customers to whom II offers share trading and investment services including, ISAs SIPPs and share dealing, alongside research and analysis. Including model portfolios, selected funds and thematic investments.

Why we like them

Interactive Investor differs from other investment platforms as it charges a fixed account fee, rather than a percentage of the funds you have on account. Which, over time, could save you thousands in costs.

Pros

  • Fixed account fees
  • Easy to use
  • Good research

Cons

  • No Lifetime ISA
  • Expensive for very small accounts
  • No derivatives for hedging
  • Pricing
    (4)
  • Market Access
    (4)
  • Online Platform
    (4)
  • Customer Service
    (4)
  • Research & Analysis
    (4)
Overall
4

Ratings Explained

  • Pricing: Brilliant for medium and large investors, expensive for small accounts.
  • Market Access: You’ll be hard-pressed to find something you can’t invest in.
  • Platform & Apps: Very good, excellent data and usability.
  • Customer Service: They are massive and mostly online, but you can call them directly, generally good.
  • Research & Analysis: Loads, daily and weekly updates across all the asset classes they cover, with lots of analysts and opinions. No advice service though.

Interactive Investor Awards

Interactive Investor won “best investing platform” in our 2023, 2022 and 2021 awards.

 

Interactive Investor Facts & Figures

⬜ Public Company
👉 Number Active Clients400,000
💰 Minimum Deposit£1
💸 Client Funds£55 billion
📅 Founded1995
Account Costs
➡️ Investment Account
£9.99 a month
➡️ SIPP
£10 a month
➡️ Stocks & Shares ISA
£9.99 a month
➡️ Junior ISA
£0
➡️ Lifetime ISA
n/a
Dealing Costs
➡️ UK Shares
£7.99
➡️ US Stocks
£7.99
➡️ ETFs
£7.99
➡️ Bonds
£7.99
➡️ Funds£7.99

ii Community App

Interactive Investor launches a social trading network

Interactive Investor (ii) has launched its own social media app, ii Community, and has also added two new investment tools to its main platform. The new ii Community app allows users to discuss investment tips, stock picks and compare portfolios free of charge, The Daily Mail and other publications have reported . The app enables

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Interest paying savings accounts

Does Interactive Investor pay interest on uninvested cash?

If you have an account with Interactive Investor, or you’re thinking of opening one, you may be wondering whether the company pays interest on uninvested cash. With interest rates having risen in recent years, you don’t want to be sitting on a pile of cash and earning no interest. The good news is that Interactive

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Who owns interactive investor and why is it important?

Interactive Investor or ii as it’s often referred to, is currently owned by the fund management group Abrdn. However, ii can trace its roots back to 1994, it wasn’t until 1995 that the business started to move into equity investing for retail traders, with the appointment of long-term CEO Tomas Carruthers. Today, Interactive Investor has

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Ethical Investment Accounts

Does Interactive Investor Offer Ethical Investing?

Interactive Investor offers some pre-selected and pre-packaged investment ideas and styles to their customers. One of which is Ethical Investing the firm have selected 140 funds that allow clients to invest in both the UK and abroad from an ethical perspective. Alongside equity-centric vehicles, there are bond, money market and property funds to ch… To

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US Large Caps

Can you invest internationally with Interactive Investor?

You can trade in international stocks and shares with Interactive Investors and you can check if stock is available by typing the name into the search for an investment box on the II website and it will return any matches from the list of securities that Interactive Investors offers. Account-holders get one free trade per

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Interactive Investor App

Is Interactive Investor’s app any good and is it safe?

Interactive Investor’s app is one of the best ways to invest on mobile based on our matrix as it has loads of research, screeners and market data. It’s also safe and secure as it’s regulated by the FCA. Plus as Interactive Investor is regulated by the FCA and owned by ABRDN, an LSE-listed company currently

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Interactive Investor

Is Interactive Investor GIA better than their ISA?

Interactive Investor’s GIA is better than an ISA if you have lots of money to invest as you only tax-free allowance of £20k per year for individual savings accounts, so anything above that you should invest in a general investment account. However, if you only have a small amount of money to invest (less than

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ISA Offers

Is the Interactive Investor ISA any good?

Yes, we rate the Interactive Investor ISA as very good, especially for high-value accounts as the account costs do not rise with your portfolio value. Plus, there are DIY and managed ISA options. However, for smaller accounts the fixed monthly fee is expensive. Interactive Investor won the 2022 Good Money Guide award for best stocks

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Hargreaves Lansdown Review

Hargreaves Lansdown Versus Interactive Investor

Is it time to move your money away from Hargreaves Lansdown? Hargreaves Lansdown has been making headlines recently. This is due to the fact that the firm – which operates the largest investment platform in the UK with nearly two million customers – has received multiple bids from a private equity consortium (good news for long-term

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ISA Offers

Interactive Investor launches a managed ISA

Interactive Investor, the online brokerage and D2C platform, now owned by ABDN, is launching a new Managed ISA. The ii Managed ISA is a new offering from Interactive Investor, that allows customers to hold their investments within a tax-free ISA account managed by Interactive Investors’ experts. The new product is designed to combine the tax

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Interactive Investor

Can you buy index funds through Interactive Investor?

Yes, you can invest in a huge range of index funds (including Vanguard funds) when you have a GIA, ISA or SIPP account with Interactive Investor. Interactive Investor Index Fund Investing Review Name: Interactive Investor Index Fund Investing ReviewDescription: Interactive Investor offer a wide range of index tracker … To read this article, please register

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Interactive Investor

Does Interactive Investor have a good range of Investment Trusts?

Yes, Interactive Investor has a wide range of investment trusts, and they regularly update the most popular trusts with their customers which can help picking which ones to invest in. Investment trust fund dealing commissions are a free trade every month, then charged £7.99 or upgrade to a £19.99 “Super Investor” account 2 free monthly

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Interactive Investor

Is buying ETFs on Interactive Investor good for begginers?

I would say if you are a complete beginner, then there are better brokers for buying ETFs than Interactive Investor as they have a fixed fee plan, which can diminish returns if you have less than £1,000 to invest. If you are new to ETF investing you see our ETF platform comparison here. Interactive Investor

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Interactive Investor

How safe is dealing shares on Interactive Investor?

Share dealing on Interactive Investor is very safe as they are regulated by the FCA so if they go bust your free cash is protected by the FSCS and your shares are held in safe custody with CREST and can be transferred to another investment platform. Interactive Investor is a low-cost share dealing platform that

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Interactive Investor

How many funds are available on Interactive Investor?

You can invest in over 3,000 funds with Interactive Investor, but if that sounds daunting, ii publishe their most popular funds and have “Quick start”, “Super 60” and “ACE 40 ethical” best buy lists to help you pick the best funds for your portfolio. Interactive Investor Fund Investing Review Name: Interactive Investo… To read this

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Interactive Investor

Is the Interactive Investor junior ISA (JISA) any good?

Yes, Interactive Investor’s JISA is a great way to invest for your children if you have an investing account with ii as it’s free and you can invest in a huge range of shares, bonds and funds. Interactive Investor Junior ISA Review Name: Interactive Investor Junior ISADescription: If you have an investing account with… To

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Interactive Investor

Interactive Investor adds shareholder voting to it app

Interactive Investor, the popular investment and savings platform, now owned by fund managers Abrdn, has launched shareholder voting in the latest version of its investing app. In-app shareholder voting Interactive Investor has added shareholder voting to its investing app. The new feature means eligible shareholders will now be able to vote, via the app, at

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Interactive Investor In-App Currency Convertor

Interactive Investor gives customers more control over FX fees

Interactive Investor, the low-cost investing platform now owned by fund manager Abrdn, has introduced a new currency conversion service to its app. II clients can now convert GBP into foreign currencies or vice versa and receive their sales proceeds, dividends or coupon payments from overseas holdings in those currencies. This is good news because it

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Private Pensions

What is the Interactive Investor Pension Builder?

In 2022 Pension Builder replaced the Funds Fan product which is being retired for new customers and going forward II will have just three membership plans and price points. The £9.99 per month Investor account, Pension Builder at £12.99 per month and the Super Investor membership for £19.99 per month. Super Investors will now be

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Interactive Investor

Interactive Investor outsources its independence to Morningstar

Interactive Investor, one of the UK’s largest online investing platforms has partnered with fund specialists Morningstar in a departure from its usual in-house style. What has Interactive Investor done with Morning Star? The popular investment and trading platform, which is characterised by the monthly subscription that its members pay, has decided to outsource the collation,

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Richard Wilson Interactive Investor CEO

Interactive Investor to be acquired by abrdn for £1.49bn

Interactive Investor the subscription-based investment and share trading platform is being acquired by abrdn, as VC backer JC Flowers decides to make a trade sale rather than IPO, the London based company. Who is buying Interactive Investor? Interactive Investor is being acquired by ABDN the recently rebranded Aberdeen Standard Life one of the UK’s largest

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Interactive Investor

Interactive Investor makes it easier for investors to vote at AGMs

Customers of the second-largest online investing platform will be automatically opted into voting at AGMs. Customers of Interactive Investor, until now have had an option to opt into an online capability which allows you to vote in AGMs. Now, though, they are providing a free service which automatically opts investors into voting in the AGMs

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Interactive Investor

Interactive Investor IPO – what you need to know…

Interactive Investor is considering an IPO in the near future according to sources quoted by Sky News, The Evening Standard and the Daily Mail. Interactive Investor is backed by US Private Equity firm JC Flowers and has grown organically and through acquisition, in recent years though it has also sold divisions that it felt no

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Is it worth claiming £100 to switch your ISA to Interactive Investor?

Interactive Investor offering £100 cash back if you switch to it’s ISA account. Investment platform Interactive Investor is well known for its flat fee no-nonsense approach to trading and investing, which has earned it a loyal and sizeable customer base. However, the firm is currently offering a special promotion designed to entice existing ISA inv…

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Interactive Investors acquires EQi

Online dealing and investing platform, Interactive Investor has been on the acquisition trail splashing out £48.50 million on the purchase of a book of retail customers from Equiniti. The acquisition will lift Interactive Investor’s assets under administration by £5.0 billion to £50.0 billion and will increase the businesses customer base from 350,000 to 400,000. Meaning

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Interactive Investor

Interactive Investor Simplifies Pricing For Investors

The UK’s number two direct consumer investment platform is looking to offer better value to consumers and a clearer pricing plan. Interactive Investor – one of the largest direct consumer investment platforms in the UK – is moving to simplify its pricing structure. The changes, which will come into effect from October 1st will, they

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What is Interactive Investor’s Super 60 and should you invest in it?

In light of recent events in the fund investing world, it appears that picking funds, is as hard as picking stocks. So can Interactive Investor’s Super 60 pick winners? Investment platforms tend to feature specific funds, so here we take a look at Interactive Investor’s Super 60 Investment platform, Interactive Investor launched its Super 60

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Interactive Investor Buys Alliance Trust Savings

Interactive Investor has bought Alliance Trust Savings in a deal worth around £40 million. The deal represents the latest step in II’s drive to expand and follows its acquisition of Trustnet Direct last year and TD Direct Investing in 2016. It comes after months of speculation about the destination of Alliance’s struggling savings platform which

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