Written by StockBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Investor vs Charles Stanley Direct, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, investment options, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
Your capital is at risk.
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 Investor offers better pricing than Charles Stanley Direct for share dealing.
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 Investor and Charles Stanley Direct are two popular online brokerage platforms in the UK, both offering a wide array of investment choices. Both platforms provide share and ETF trading, allowing investors to build diverse portfolios with various investment trusts, corporate bonds, and gilts. However, neither platform offers crypto trading, CFD trading, or spread betting, making them a less suitable choice for those seeking more speculative trading instruments.
For those valuing advisory services, Charles Stanley Direct stands out by offering these services, compared to Interactive Investor, which does not. When it comes to user ratings for investment choices, both platforms have been awarded a strong 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com. However, Interactive Investor holds a slightly higher rank at #3 compared to Charles Stanley Direct's #6 out of 21 brokers, indicating a marginal edge in overall investment choice satisfaction among users.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes |
| CFD Trading | No | No |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Mutual 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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Low-cost US and UK shares.
Professional’s Gateway to the World’s Markets.
When comparing the trading tools offered by Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct, Interactive Investor provides a more comprehensive experience. It allows users to display corporate events such as earnings, splits, and dividends directly on charts, a feature unavailable with Charles Stanley Direct. Interactive Investor shines in charting capabilities by offering 18 different drawing tools and 104 technical indicators, significantly surpassing Charles Stanley Direct’s single drawing tool and 14 indicators. Furthermore, Interactive Investor enables users to add personal notes to charts, enhancing the analysis process, a feature that Charles Stanley Direct lacks.
Both Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct allow for customisation through index and stock overlays, browser-based trading platforms, and the ability to create alerts for stock price updates, ensuring real-time market data is easily accessible. However, for those looking for a platform with enhanced charting features and greater customisation options, Interactive Investor presents a more versatile solution for UK traders.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 104 | 14 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 18 | 1 |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | Yes |
Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct both provide Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) to UK investors, making them strong options for retirement planning. With each platform offering both ISAs and SIPPs, investors can enjoy tax-efficient savings and invest for retirement with ease. Each broker caters to those looking to manage their financial futures through diverse investment choices and user-friendly platforms, ensuring flexibility and accessibility in building a secure retirement nest egg.
Dive deeper: Best SIPP Providers, Best Stocks and Shares ISA Providers.
In the UK, both Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct offer mobile apps for iPhone and Android users, making it easy for investors to manage their portfolios on the go. Interactive Investor stands out with its highly-rated app, earning 4.5 stars from UK.StockBrokers.com, which places it 7th out of 21 brokers. Meanwhile, Charles Stanley Direct’s app, while convenient, holds a more modest 3.5-star rating and ranks 20th. These ratings indicate that Interactive Investor's app may offer a more user-friendly and efficient experience compared to Charles Stanley Direct.
Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps UK.
When it comes to educational resources for beginner investors, Interactive Investor stands out with client webinars available live and on-demand, covering topics from share trading and funds to retirement planning. Charles Stanley Direct, while also offering a solid selection of on-demand educational content in the same areas, does not provide live webinars. Consequently, Interactive Investor is awarded a five-star rating by UK.StockBrokers.com for its comprehensive educational offerings, securing the second spot out of 21 brokers. In comparison, Charles Stanley Direct earns 4.5 stars and ranks twelfth, making Interactive Investor the go-to choice for UK beginners eager to learn and grow their investment knowledge through engaging and accessible resources.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
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 comparing the market research features of Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct for UK investors, both platforms deliver comprehensive options. Interactive Investor excels by offering detailed research reports for funds, shares, ETFs, and bonds, alongside an easy-to-use portfolio allocation view by asset class. Similarly, Charles Stanley Direct matches these offerings with research reports on funds, shares, and ETFs, also providing portfolio allocation insights. However, it doesn't offer specific research on bonds, giving Interactive Investor a slight edge for those seeking comprehensive fixed-income insights. Overall, both platforms cater well to investors, with Interactive Investor providing a more complete research package.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Charles Stanley Direct
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | Yes |
Which broker is better overall, Interactive Investor or Charles Stanley Direct? After collecting more than 900 data points over a 10-week period, we found Interactive Investor to be a better trading platform overall.
The standout feature at Interactive Investor (ii) is its low flat-rate fees. Other investment platforms typically favour percentage fees for fund investing, although more brokers are now opting for flat fees. Our view is that Interactive Investor is a great platform for any investor, offering a wide range of investments for cheap prices on the whole.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
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Charles Stanley Direct
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Both Interactive Investor and Charles Stanley Direct do not offer crypto trading, positioning them as traditional online brokers focused on stocks and investment funds rather than digital currencies.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
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| Review | Interactive Investor Review | Charles Stanley Direct Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
| Investments | Interactive Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISA | Yes | Yes | |
| SIPP | Yes | Yes | |
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| CFD Trading | No | No | |
| Mutual 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 | |||
| Advisor Services | No | Yes |
| Trading Fees | Interactive Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | £0 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 0-9 Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £0 - £10 | |
| Share Trading: 10-19 Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £10 | |
| Share Trading: 20+ Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £10 | |
| 5 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | |||
| 12 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | |||
| 36 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | |||
| 120 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | |||
| 3 fund trades per year (£30k portfolio) | |||
| Annual Platform Fee (Funds): £0 - £250,000 | £59.88 - £143.88 | £60 - £600 | |
| Annual Platform Fee (Funds): £250K-£500K | £143.88 | £600 | |
| Annual Platform Fee (Funds): £500,000 - £1m | £143.88 | £600 | |
| Annual Platform Fee (Funds): £1m and over | £143.88 | £600 | |
| Bonds - Corporate - Fee | £3.99 | £25 | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) - Fee | £3.99 | £25 | |
| ETFs - Fee | £3.99 | £10 | |
| Investment Trusts - Fee | £3.99 | £10 | |
| Telephone Dealing Fee | £49 | £25 minimum |
| Broker Screenshots | Interactive Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 104 | 14 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 18 | 1 | |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Interactive Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - CFDs | |||
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | ||
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Interactive Investor | 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 Investor | Charles Stanley Direct | |
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| Review | Interactive Investor Review | Charles Stanley Direct Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
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