Halifax Logo

Halifax Review 2024

Written by
Nicole C.
Fact checked by
Gyula L.
Updated
1w ago
Key data
Fees
Safety
Deposit and withdrawal
Account opening
Mobile app
Web trading platform
Product selection
Regulated and trusted. Tested via live trading.
944 people chose this broker
Not available in United States; see best alternatives

Why choose Halifax

Halifax is a UK stockbroker, part of Halifax (Bank of Scotland), which is owned by the Lloyds Banking Group.

It has low fees, free deposits and withdrawals from your account, and a straightforward account opening process with the option to set up a UK tax-exempt ISA. It is a good choice for beginner investors.

However, Halifax's product selection is weak. Customer support is very poor, taking very long to solve problems. There are no mobile or desktop trading platforms available.

BrokerChooser gave Halifax a 4.1/5 rating based on analyzing 600+ criteria and testing via opening a live account.

  • Low fees
  • Good options for deposit/withdrawal
  • Quick and easy account opening
Overall score
4.1/5
Minimum deposit
$0
Stock fee
Low
Fund fee
Low
Inactivity fee
no
Account opening
1 day
Not sure if this is the right broker for you? See the best ones.

Fees

Score: 3.8/5
Halifax has low fees for stocks/ETFs, including commission-free international trades. On the negative side, there is an annual account fee.
  • Low stock and ETF fees / Free stock trading
  • No withdrawal fee
  • No inactivity fee

We compared Halifax's fees with two similar brokers we selected, Fidelity International and AJ Bell Youinvest. These competitors were selected based on objective factors like products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed comparison of Halifax alternatives.

Commission-free stock and ETFs

Halifax UK stock fees are much higher than the industry average. UK stock fees are calculated as follows: £9.50 per trade

Broker
UK stock
Halifax
$11.9
Fidelity International
$12.5
AJ Bell Youinvest
$12.4
Halifax stock and ETF commission

Low mutual fund commission

Halifax Mutual fund fees are slightly higher than the industry average. Mutual fund fees are calculated as follows: £9.50 per trade

Broker
Mutual fund
Halifax
$11.9
Fidelity International
$0.0
AJ Bell Youinvest
$1.9
Halifax mutual fund commission

Although low in a wider context, Halifax's fund trading fees are less favorable compared to its immediate competitors. For each transaction, Halifax charges the same £9.50 flat fee as for stocks and ETFs. On top of this, you will also have to pay other costs charged by the fund managers rather than Halifax, such as a transaction fee and ongoing charges.

No inactivity fee, no withdrawal fee

There is no inactivity fee for the basic Share Dealing Account; this is great for beginners because this way they don't have to commit to investing or trading frequently in order to avoid inactivity charges. Halifax also charges no withdrawal fees or deposit fees.
On the downside, there's a £36 administration fee per year for the basic Share Dealing Account as well as for the tax-advantaged Stocks/Shares ISA account (you can hold both accounts at the same time for a single £36 charge). Halifax's tax-advantaged SIPP account also involves quarterly administration charges.

Broker
Inactivity fee
Withdrawal fee
Halifax
$0
Fidelity International
$0
AJ Bell Youinvest
$0
Halifax inactivity, withdrawal and other fees

Safety

Halifax is regulated by the top-tier FCA and is part of the publicly-traded Lloyds Banking Group. This background provides a good level of safety for Halifax customers.
  • High level of investor protection
  • Banking background
  • All clients belong to a top-tier financial authority
Read more

Deposit and withdrawal

Score: 3.3/5
Deposits and withdrawals at Halifax are free, but the latter can be slow. Also, Halifax only allows GBP funding, meaning you'll face a currency exchange fee when trading international products.
  • Credit/Debit card available
  • Free withdrawal
  • No deposit fee
Read more

Account opening

Score: 3.8/5
Opening an account at Halifax Share Dealing is very fast and takes place fully online. Still, we found the process less intuitive and less easy to navigate than at other brokers.
  • Fast
  • Fully digital
  • No minimum deposit
Read more

Mobile app

Halifax doesn't offer a mobile trading platform. We think that the lack of a mobile trading platform is a big miss as users can't trade or track their positions on the go.
Read more

Web trading platform

Score: 2.8/5
Halifax offers a basic web trading platform that is easy to navigate, but it doesn't offer much extra functionality, relying on the public website for most research tools or information.
  • User-friendly
  • Clear fee report
  • Two-step (safer) login
Read more

Product selection

Score: 2.5/5
Halifax offers stocks and ETFs from multiple international exchanges, along with a good selection of funds, but other popular product categories such as forex, CFDs or cryptos are not available.
Read more
“I recommend Halifax for beginners and long-term investors.”

FAQ

Read more
Got questions?
Engage with our growing community of traders and investors like you to find your answers.
Join now

Author of this review

Nicole Conrad
Nicole Conrad

Nicole is a former intern content contributor for BrokerChooser. She came with experience and certification in Accounting, and pursued graduate studies in Economic Policy. Nicole wrote broker reviews to provide transparency for customers: highlighting brokers’ exceptional services and holding them accountable for questionable practices.

Everything you find on BrokerChooser is based on reliable data and unbiased information. We combine our 10+ years finance experience with readers feedback. Read more about our methodology.

Follow us

Regional settings

×
I'd like to trade with...