Written by StockBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Investor vs Halifax, 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 Investor offers better pricing than Halifax 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 Investor would cost £79.83 per year, while Halifax would cost £83.50 per year.
12 trades per year - Interactive Investor would cost £59.88 / £107.76 per year, while Halifax would cost £150 per year.
36 trades per year - Interactive Investor would cost £59.88 / £203.52 per year, while Halifax would cost £378 per year.
120 trades per year - Interactive Investor would cost £59.88 / £538.68 per year, while Halifax would cost £1,176 per year.
3 fund trades per year - Interactive Investor would cost £0 per year, while Halifax 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.
When comparing the investment choices offered by Interactive Investor and Halifax, both brokers excel with a 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com. Interactive Investor stands out by offering share trading, a feature not available with Halifax. Both Interactive Investor and Halifax provide options for trading ETFs, funds, corporate bonds, government bonds, and investment trusts, but neither platform offers crypto trading, spread betting, or CFD trading. This comprehensive investment range ensures that both brokers cater to a variety of investor needs, although Interactive Investor ranks slightly higher at #5 against Halifax's #7 among 18 evaluated brokers.
Another point of difference lies in the availability of advisory services. While Interactive Investor does not offer any advisory services, Halifax fills this gap, offering personalized advisory support for investors needing guidance. Whether you are navigating shares with Interactive Investor or seeking guidance from Halifax, both platforms promise solid investment choices, each with its own set of unique advantages to accommodate diverse investor profiles.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Halifax
|
|---|---|---|
| Share Trading | Yes | No |
| CFD Trading | No | 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 |
|
|
Professional’s Gateway to the World’s Markets.
Low-cost US and UK shares.
When comparing trading tools, Interactive Investor stands out with features designed to enhance your trading experience. It allows users to display corporate events like earnings, splits, and dividends on charts, and backs its service with a remarkable suite of tools: 18 drawing tools and 104 technical indicators for charting. Users can add notes to charts, and overlay indexes or stocks, all while accessing the platform through their browser. Interactive Investor also provides capabilities to set alerts for stock price updates and offers real-time market data, making it a comprehensive choice for traders.
In contrast, Halifax offers a more basic online trading experience. While it provides a convenient browser-based trading platform and the ability to set price update alerts, it falls short in charting features, with no facilities to display corporate events, drawing tools, or technical indicators. Additionally, Halifax does not support adding notes or overlays to charts and does not offer real-time market data. For traders looking for a rich set of charting tools and real-time insights, Interactive Investor may be the preferable option.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Halifax
|
|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 104 | 0 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 18 | 0 |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
When comparing Interactive Investor and Halifax for retirement accounts, both platforms offer Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs). This means that whether you're looking to manage your savings with tax efficiency through an ISA or plan for retirement with a SIPP, both Interactive Investor and Halifax provide these options. Choosing between them might come down to other factors like fees, tools, and customer service as both satisfy the basic requirements for offering these popular saving and investment accounts.
Dive deeper: Best SIPP Providers, Best Stocks and Shares ISA Providers.
Choosing the right mobile app for online trading can be crucial for a seamless investment experience. Both Interactive Investor and Halifax offer iPhone and Android apps, allowing you to manage your investments from your mobile device. When it comes to app ratings by UK.StockBrokers.com, Interactive Investor is given a higher score of 4.5 stars compared to Halifax's 3.5 stars, indicating a more favorable user experience. Additionally, Interactive Investor ranks 12th out of 18 brokers for mobile apps, while Halifax sits slightly lower at 14th. This suggests that Interactive Investor may offer a more robust mobile trading platform for users seeking greater convenience and functionality.
Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps UK.
Interactive Investor and Halifax offer different levels of support for beginner investors, with Interactive Investor leading in educational resources. Interactive Investor provides educational client webinars, available both live and on demand, covering essential topics like share trading, funds, and retirement planning. In contrast, Halifax does not offer webinars or provide educational content in these areas. According to UK.StockBrokers.com, Interactive Investor earns a stellar 5-star rating for beginner education, ranking #1 out of 18 brokers, while Halifax receives a 3.5-star rating, placing them at #16. For those new to investing and seeking comprehensive educational resources, Interactive Investor offers a more extensive range of tools and support than Halifax.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Halifax
|
|---|---|---|
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No |
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | No |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | No |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | No |
| Education |
|
|
Dive deeper: Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners.
When comparing the market research features of Interactive Investor and Halifax, Interactive Investor stands out with its more comprehensive offerings. Interactive Investor provides research reports for funds, a feature not available with Halifax. Additionally, Interactive Investor allows users to view portfolio allocation by asset class, a useful tool also missing from Halifax’s platform. Both brokers offer research on shares, ETFs, funds, and bonds, making them robust choices for these asset classes. However, neither Interactive Investor nor Halifax provides research on CFDs. Overall, Interactive Investor offers a broader range of market insights, particularly for fund research.
| Feature |
Interactive Investor
|
Halifax
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes |
| Research - CFDs | No | No |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | Yes |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | No |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | No |
Which broker is better overall, Interactive Investor or Halifax? 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
|
Halifax
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
|
|
| Charges & Fees |
|
|
| Investment Choices |
|
|
| Mobile App |
|
|
| Website |
|
|
| Ease of Use |
|
|
| Education |
|
|
Both Interactive Investor and Halifax do not offer crypto trading options for their users.
Select Brokers
↓×Compare
0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
|
| |
| Charges & Fees |
|
| |
| Investment Choices |
|
| |
| Mobile App |
|
| |
| Website |
|
| |
| Ease of Use |
|
| |
| Education |
|
| |
| Review | Interactive Investor Review | Halifax Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
| Investments | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISA | Yes | Yes | |
| SIPP | Yes | Yes | |
| Share Trading | Yes | No | |
| CFD Trading | No | 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 | No | No | |
| Advisor Services | No | Yes |
| Trading Fees | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | £0 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 0-9 Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £9.50 | |
| Share Trading: 10-19 Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £9.50 | |
| Share Trading: 20+ Deals/ Month | £3.99 | £9.50 | |
| 5 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £79.83 | £83.50 | |
| 12 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £59.88 / £107.76 | £150 | |
| 36 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £59.88 / £203.52 | £378 | |
| 120 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £59.88 / £538.68 | £1,176 | |
| 3 fund trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £71.85 | £64.50 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £0 - £250,000 | £59.88 - £143.88 | £36 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £250K-£500K | £143.88 | £36 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £500,000 - £1m | £143.88 | £36 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £1m and over | £143.88 | £36 | |
| Bonds - Corporate - Fee | £3.99 | £9.5 | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) - Fee | £3.99 | £9.5 | |
| ETFs - Fee | £3.99 | £9.5 | |
| Investment Trusts - Fee | £3.99 | £9.5 | |
| Telephone Dealing Fee | £49 | £25 |
| Broker Screenshots | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website Gallery (click to expand) |
|
| |
| Mobile Trading Apps Gallery (click to expand) |
|
| |
| Education Gallery (click to expand) |
|
|
| Platforms & Tools | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 104 | 0 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 18 | 0 | |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
| Research | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - CFDs | No | No | |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | No | |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | Yes | |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | No |
| Education | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | No | |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | No | |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No |
| Overall Summary | Interactive Investor | Halifax | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
|
| |
| Charges & Fees |
|
| |
| Investment Choices |
|
| |
| Mobile App |
|
| |
| Website |
|
| |
| Ease of Use |
|
| |
| Education |
|
| |
| Review | Interactive Investor Review | Halifax Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
IG Group Review
Saxo Review
eToro Review
Interactive Brokers Review
Trading 212 Review
XTB Review
CMC Invest Review
Vanguard Review
Hargreaves Lansdown Review
Halifax Review
Freetrade Review