Written by StockBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Brokers vs Charles Stanley Direct, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, investment options, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
Alongside the cost per trade, most UK online brokers also charge a monthly, quarterly, or annual management fee, which varies based on the account type and balance. Based on our thorough review, Interactive Brokers offers better pricing than Charles Stanley Direct for share dealing.
Assuming a £30,000 portfolio size, here are the total annual costs for share dealing with both brokers, given different monthly activity scenarios.
5 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £15 per year, while Charles Stanley Direct would cost £57.50 per year.
12 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £36 per year, while Charles Stanley Direct would cost £138 per year.
36 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £108 per year, while Charles Stanley Direct would cost £414 per year.
120 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £360 per year, while Charles Stanley Direct would cost £1,380 per year.
3 fund trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £0 per year, while Charles Stanley Direct would cost £0 per year.
What type of trader are you?
New to the world of investing? See our picks for the Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners. More experienced traders should read our guide to the Best UK Trading Platforms for Active Traders.
Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct both offer a variety of investment choices to their users. Each platform provides share trading and the opportunity to trade exchange-traded funds (ETFs), funds, corporate bonds, government bonds (gilts), and investment trusts. However, Interactive Brokers stands out by offering contract for difference (CFD) trading, which is not available with Charles Stanley Direct. While both brokers do not support crypto trading, spread betting, or advisor services, Charles Stanley Direct does offer advisory services, allowing for a more guided investment experience.
When it comes to ratings, both Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct have earned a commendable five-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com for their investment choices. Despite not featuring in the rankings, Charles Stanley Direct holds its ground with strong offerings. Interactive Brokers, on the other hand, is prominently ranked second out of 18 brokers, highlighting its robust and diverse range of investment options. These rankings reflect their capacity to cater to different investor needs, making both platforms respected choices for online investing.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | Yes |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | Yes |
| Spread Betting | No | No |
| Crypto Trading | No | No |
| Advisor Services | No | Yes |
| Investment Choices |
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Professional’s Gateway to the World’s Markets.
Low-cost US and UK shares.
When comparing the trading tools of Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct, Interactive Brokers offers a comprehensive edge for chart enthusiasts. It allows users to display critical corporate events, such as earnings and splits directly on charts, a feature not available with Charles Stanley Direct. Interactive Brokers excels in chart customization with 80 drawing tools and 96 technical indicators, far surpassing Charles Stanley Direct’s single drawing tool and 14 indicators. Users of Interactive Brokers also benefit from the ability to add personal notes to charts, enhancing analytical capabilities, a feature not found at Charles Stanley Direct. Both platforms, however, provide capabilities for index and stock overlays on charts and offer browser-based trading platforms for convenient access.
For investors seeking robust alert systems and data, both Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct deliver the ability to set alerts for stock price updates. However, Interactive Brokers falls short in offering real-time market data, a crucial feature that Charles Stanley Direct provides seamlessly. Despite this, the breadth and diversity of Interactive Brokers' trading tools make it an appealing choice for those who require detailed and customizable charting features for a deep dive into market analysis.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 14 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 1 |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | Yes |
When comparing online brokers Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct for retirement account options, both platforms accommodate UK investors by offering Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs). This means you can enjoy tax-efficient investing with either provider, whether you're building savings with an ISA or preparing for retirement with a SIPP. Choosing between Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct ultimately depends on evaluating other factors like fees, investment options, and user experience, as both platforms equally cover these key retirement account types.
Dive deeper: Best SIPP Providers, Best Stocks and Shares ISA Providers.
When comparing the mobile apps of Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct, both platforms provide applications for iPhone and Android users. Interactive Brokers stands out with an impressive 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com and is ranked as the second-best mobile app among 18 brokers. In contrast, Charles Stanley Direct offers a more modest experience with a 3.5-star rating for its mobile app and does not feature in the top rankings by UK.StockBrokers.com. This distinction highlights Interactive Brokers as a leading choice for those prioritizing robust mobile trading capabilities.
Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps UK.
When comparing beginner investor educational resources between Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct, both platforms offer robust educational content covering topics like share trading, funds, and retirement. Interactive Brokers stands out by offering live educational webinars, which are also archived for on-demand viewing, a feature Charles Stanley Direct lacks in real-time but compensates by providing archived content. Rated equally with 4.5 stars by UK.StockBrokers.com, Interactive Brokers holds a ranking position of 12th out of 18 brokers for their beginner education resources, while Charles Stanley Direct does not feature in the same ranking list. This analysis reveals that while both brokers provide valuable educational materials, Interactive Brokers offers a slight edge with its live webinars and ranking recognition.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes |
| Education |
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Dive deeper: Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners.
When it comes to market research features, both Interactive Brokers and Charles Stanley Direct provide comprehensive resources, allowing investors to access research reports for funds, shares, and ETFs. They both enable users to view portfolio allocation by asset class, helping investors maintain a well-balanced portfolio. Interactive Brokers goes a step further by offering research on CFDs and bonds, areas in which Charles Stanley Direct does not provide coverage. This additional research access might appeal to traders looking to explore opportunities in more diverse market instruments.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes |
| Research - CFDs | Yes | No |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | No |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | Yes |
Which broker is better overall, Interactive Brokers or Charles Stanley Direct? After collecting more than 900 data points over a 10-week period, we found Interactive Brokers to be a better trading platform overall.
Interactive Brokers is a sophisticated trading platform aimed at confident and institutional-grade investors. For newer investors, Interactive Brokers is more intimidating, though it's worth exploring the platform to see if you could save money or access more investments compared to other brokers.
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Charles Stanley Direct
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Neither Interactive Brokers nor Charles Stanley Direct offer crypto trading options, highlighting a limitation in cryptocurrency investments for users of these online brokers.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | Charles Stanley Direct Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
| Investments | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISA | Yes | Yes | |
| SIPP | Yes | Yes | |
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No | |
| Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Bonds - Corporate | Yes | Yes | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | Yes | |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | Yes | |
| Spread Betting | No | No | |
| Crypto Trading | Yes | No | |
| Advisor Services | No | Yes |
| Trading Fees | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | £0 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 0-9 Deals/ Month | £3 | £0 - £10 | |
| Share Trading: 10-19 Deals/ Month | £3 | £10 | |
| Share Trading: 20+ Deals/ Month | £3 | £10 | |
| 5 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £15 | £57.50 | |
| 12 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £36 | £138 | |
| 36 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £108 | £414 | |
| 120 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £360 | £1,380 | |
| 3 fund trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £0 / £14.85 | £90 - £102 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £0 - £250,000 | £0 | £60 - £600 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £250K-£500K | £0 | £600 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £500,000 - £1m | £0 | £600 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £1m and over | £0 | £600 | |
| Bonds - Corporate - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | £25 | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | £25 | |
| ETFs - Fee | £3 | £10 | |
| Investment Trusts - Fee | N/A | £10 | |
| Telephone Dealing Fee | £25 | £25 minimum |
| Broker Screenshots | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
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| Website Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Mobile Trading Apps Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Education Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Platforms & Tools | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 14 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 1 | |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - CFDs | Yes | No | |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | No | |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | Yes | |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes | |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Overall Summary | Interactive Brokers | Charles Stanley Direct | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | Charles Stanley Direct Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
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