Written by StockBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Brokers vs Vanguard UK Investor, 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, Vanguard UK Investor offers better pricing than Interactive Brokers 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 Vanguard UK Investor would cost N/A per year.
12 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £36 per year, while Vanguard UK Investor would cost N/A per year.
36 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £108 per year, while Vanguard UK Investor would cost N/A per year.
120 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £360 per year, while Vanguard UK Investor would cost N/A per year.
3 fund trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £0 per year, while Vanguard UK Investor would cost £500 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 Interactive Brokers and Vanguard UK Investor in terms of investment choices, Interactive Brokers offers a more diverse array of trading options. Investors can engage in share trading, trading of ETFs, CFD trading, funds trading, and even explore corporate and government bonds along with investment trusts through Interactive Brokers. In contrast, Vanguard UK Investor provides a narrower focus, mainly allowing ETF and funds trading, while options like share trading, CFDs, and bonds are not available.
This broader selection from Interactive Brokers is reflected in its impressive 5-star rating and #2 ranking out of 18 brokers for investment choices by UK.StockBrokers.com. Vanguard UK Investor, meanwhile, holds a 3.5-star rating and ranks #16. Both platforms do not support crypto trading, spread betting, or advisory services, highlighting a shared area of limitation amidst their other differences.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Vanguard UK Investor
|
|---|---|---|
| Share Trading | Yes | No |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | No |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | No |
| Spread Betting | No | No |
| Crypto Trading | No | No |
| Advisor Services | No | No |
| Investment Choices |
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Professional’s Gateway to the World’s Markets.
Low-cost US and UK shares.
When it comes to trading tools, Interactive Brokers outshines Vanguard UK Investor significantly. Interactive Brokers provides a robust platform with features like the ability to display corporate events such as earnings, splits, and dividends directly on charts, which Vanguard UK Investor does not offer. For those who value charting tools, Interactive Brokers supplies traders with a comprehensive suite of 80 drawing tools and 96 technical indicators, vastly outnumbering Vanguard UK Investor, which lacks both features. Moreover, users with Interactive Brokers can enhance their chart analysis by adding notes, index overlays, and stock overlays, while these options remain unavailable with Vanguard UK Investor.
In terms of platform accessibility, both services offer browser-based trading platforms, providing some level of convenience for users. However, when it comes to market engagement, Interactive Brokers allows users to create stock price alerts, a feature missing from Vanguard UK Investor. Though neither broker offers real-time market data, the sheer breadth of analytical and customization tools from Interactive Brokers provides users with a comprehensive environment to manage and evaluate their investments, making it a preferred choice for those seeking advanced trading capabilities.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Vanguard UK Investor
|
|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 0 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 0 |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
Interactive Brokers and Vanguard UK Investor both provide attractive options for retirement savings accounts in the UK, catering to different investment needs with their respective offerings. Both platforms offer ISA (Individual Savings Account) options, enabling tax-efficient investing for their clients. Additionally, they each provide SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension) accounts, which are a popular choice for individuals seeking to independently manage their retirement savings with more control and flexibility. These options from both Interactive Brokers and Vanguard UK Investor can support savvy savers in maximizing their investment potential while planning for the future.
Dive deeper: Best SIPP Providers, Best Stocks and Shares ISA Providers.
Both Interactive Brokers and Vanguard UK Investor offer mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android devices, making it easy for investors to manage their portfolios on the go. Interactive Brokers stands out with a top-tier mobile app experience, receiving a 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com and ranking 2nd out of 18 brokers for mobile app performance. In contrast, Vanguard UK Investor's app receives a modest 3.5-star rating, ranking 17th out of 18. This indicates a significant difference in user satisfaction and functionality between the two brokerage apps, with Interactive Brokers leading the way in mobile trading innovation.
Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps UK.
When comparing the beginner investor educational resources of Interactive Brokers and Vanguard UK Investor, Interactive Brokers takes the lead. Interactive Brokers provides live and archived educational webinars, covering topics like share trading, funds, and retirement, while Vanguard UK Investor only offers archived webinars and lacks educational content on share trading. Both brokers offer resources for learning about funds and retirement. In terms of ratings by UK.StockBrokers.com, Interactive Brokers scores 4.5 stars, significantly higher than Vanguard's 3.5 stars. Furthermore, Interactive Brokers is ranked 12th out of 18 brokers for beginner education, whereas Vanguard sits at 14th. Overall, Interactive Brokers offers a more comprehensive and well-rounded educational experience for beginners.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Vanguard UK Investor
|
|---|---|---|
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | No |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes |
| Education |
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Dive deeper: Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners.
When comparing Interactive Brokers to Vanguard UK Investor in terms of market research offerings, both platforms provide robust tools but differ in key areas. Interactive Brokers excels by offering comprehensive research reports across multiple investment types, including shares, ETFs, funds, CFDs, and bonds. This makes it a versatile choice for investors seeking a diverse range of insights. Vanguard UK Investor matches Interactive Brokers with research reports for funds and ETFs, and it also lets investors view portfolio allocation by asset class, ensuring transparency and ease in managing investments. However, Vanguard UK Investor does not offer research on shares, CFDs, or bonds, which could limit your analysis if you seek depth across various securities.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
Vanguard UK Investor
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | No |
| 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 Vanguard UK Investor? 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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Vanguard UK Investor
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Neither Interactive Brokers nor Vanguard UK Investor offer crypto trading options for investors.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | Vanguard UK Investor Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
| Investments | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISA | Yes | Yes | |
| SIPP | Yes | Yes | |
| Share Trading | Yes | No | |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No | |
| Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Bonds - Corporate | Yes | No | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | No | |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | No | |
| Spread Betting | No | No | |
| Crypto Trading | Yes | No | |
| Advisor Services | No | No |
| Trading Fees | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | £0 | £500 | |
| Share Trading: 0-9 Deals/ Month | £3 | N/A | |
| Share Trading: 10-19 Deals/ Month | £3 | N/A | |
| Share Trading: 20+ Deals/ Month | £3 | N/A | |
| 5 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £15 | N/A | |
| 12 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £36 | N/A | |
| 36 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £108 | N/A | |
| 120 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £360 | N/A | |
| 3 fund trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £0 / £14.85 | £108 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £0 - £250,000 | £0 | Under £32,000: £48 / Over £32,000: 0.15% | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £250K-£500K | £0 | £375 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £500,000 - £1m | £0 | £375 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £1m and over | £0 | £375 | |
| Bonds - Corporate - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | N/A | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | N/A | |
| ETFs - Fee | £3 | 0.02% to 0.14% | |
| Investment Trusts - Fee | N/A | N/A | |
| Telephone Dealing Fee | £25 | N/A |
| Broker Screenshots | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Platforms & Tools | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 0 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 0 | |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
| Research | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | No | |
| 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 | Vanguard UK Investor | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | No | |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes | |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Overall Summary | Interactive Brokers | Vanguard UK Investor | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | Vanguard UK Investor Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
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