Is Trading 212 really free?
Trading 212 is in fact a zero-commission broker when it comes to buying and selling US stocks. Zero commission is especially useful if you trade relatively low volumes, like buying stocks for less than $500 per trade, because you won't be hit with any minimum fees the broker might charge.
We should note that the payment-for-order-flow model, which is used by some zero-commission brokers to generate income (rather than relying on commissions), could potentially create a conflict of interest between you and your broker. This could result in trade execution (like routing your orders to specific market makers) that might be unfavorable for you under certain market conditions, especially when using market orders (as opposed to limit orders, which seem to be less affected).
Keep in mind that at some brokers, you could incur non-trading charges like withdrawal or inactivity fees. If you want to trade options, bonds or futures, then a transaction fee may also apply. Also, if you trade on margin, the margin rate charged by brokers can differ wildly. In the next chapter, we'll find out what these charges are at Trading 212 and how they compare with fees charged by its closest competitors.
Trading 212 fees
Overview of Trading 212 fees and charges
When it comes to brokerage fees, Trading 212 is a mixed bag. To see how they may affect you, first you need to figure out your approach to trading - i.e. whether you are more of a buy-and-hold investor or if you want to trade frequently; or what type of assets and in what volumes you'll want to trade. Alternatively, use our questionnaire to help you tell whether Trading 212 fees are beneficial for you. Continue reading about Trading 212 fees and charges to see if this is the right broker for you, or if a similar broker like XTB or eToro might suit you better.
Here's a high-level overview of Trading 212's fees
| Assets | Fee level | Fee terms |
|---|---|---|
| US stock fee | Low | Commission-free |
| EURUSD fee | High | The fees are built into the spread, 1.4 pips is the average spread cost during peak trading hours. |
| US mutual fund fees | - | Not available |
| Inactivity fee | Low | No inactivity fee |
Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 fees explained
Online brokerages in general charge much lower brokerage fees than traditional brokerages do - this is largely because online brokerages' businesses can be much better scaled: from a purely technical standpoint, it doesn't make that much of a difference for them if they have 100 or 5,000 clients.
This is not to say, however, that they don't charge any fees at all. They make money by charging you various rates for various actions or events. Usually you need to keep an eye on the following three types of fees:
- Trading fees - these are brokerage fees that you pay when you actually carry out a trade, like buying an Apple share or an ETF. What you pay is either a commission, a spread or a financing rate. Some brokers apply all of these.
- A commission is either fixed or based on the traded volume.
- A spread is the difference between the buy price and the sell price.
- A financing rate or overnight rate is charged when you hold your leveraged positions for more than one day.
- Non-trading fees. These are usually related to some operations you carry out in your account, such as depositing money, withdrawing money, or not trading for an extended period.
We compare Trading 212 fees with its closest competitors, XTB and eToro.
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Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 trading fees
Trading 212's trading fees are mixed, which means that some asset classes come with high trading fees - be sure to check these carefully.
Let's break down trading fees according to the different asset classes available at Trading 212.
Trading fees
Trading 212's trading fees are average.
Stock fees and ETF fees
Trading 212 has low stock trading fees.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $0.0 | $10.0 | $0.0 |
| UK stock | $0.0 | $12.0 | $0.0 |
| German stock | $0.0 | $12.0 | $0.0 |
Forex fees
Trading 212's forex fees are high.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $26.4 | $8.5 | $8.7 |
| EURGBP benchmark fee | $25.0 | $8.3 | $12.9 |
CFD fees
Trading 212 has high CFD trading fees.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple CFD | $1.5 | $8.2 | $2.1 |
| Vodafone CFD | $2.0 | $9.9 | - |
| Germany | - | $9.1 | $1.8 |
Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 non-trading fees
When it comes to non-trading fees, Trading 212 is a rather cheap broker.
Non-trading fees include various brokerage fees and charges at Trading 212 that are not related to buying or selling assets. This can be a withdrawal fee, deposit fee, inactivity fee or account fee.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $5 |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No | Yes | Yes |
| Account fee | No | No | No |
Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 deposit fee
Usually, brokers don't charge anything for deposits, and Trading 212 is no different.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 withdrawal fee
Trading 212 generally doesn't charge a withdrawal fee.
| Trading 212 | XTB | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee for bank transfer | $0 | $0 | $5 |
Trading 212 fees
Trading 212 inactivity fee
Trading 212 does not apply an inactivity fee, which is great because your account won't be charged even if you do not trade for an extended period (like several months or years).
