interactive investor vs flatex — which broker is better?

Pros

• Flat monthly subscription instead of a percentage of assets — GBP 71.88 a year on Core covers a GBP 100,000 portfolio, against GBP 250–350 at percentage-based rivals
• GBP 3.99 per UK and US share trade on Core and Plus, GBP 2.99 on Premium, with one or two free trade credits included on the higher plans
• The Trading Account, Stocks and Shares ISA and SIPP are all covered by the same subscription, with the pension admin fee already inside the price and no charge for pension withdrawals
• Cash can be held in GBP, EUR and USD with interest paid on all three, so a US round trip does not have to cross the FX spread twice
• Free regular monthly investing from GBP 25 on every plan, and free transfers both in and out
• Over 40,000 investment options across 17 global markets, including a bond and gilt range that is among the better ones on a UK retail platform
• Strong editorial research: Morningstar-rated fund selections, ii's own research hub and market commentary from an experienced financial journalism team
• UK-based contact centre, with an international dealing desk open until 21:00 for US market hours

Cons

• The flat fee is punishing on small balances — GBP 71.88 a year is 1.44% on a GBP 5,000 portfolio, where a percentage platform would charge under GBP 20
• The Core plan is capped at a GBP 100,000 portfolio, so crossing that line forces a jump to Plus at GBP 179.88 a year — a 150% increase triggered by portfolio growth rather than by anything you choose
• Dividend reinvestment costs 99p per holding on Core and Plus, which quietly erodes the flat-fee advantage for income investors with many small positions
• A string of ancillary charges other UK platforms do not levy: GBP 5 a month for non-UK residents, GBP 2 plus VAT a month for paper documents, GBP 25 for a failed payment, GBP 30 a month for company and trust accounts
• Only 17 global markets against 24 at AJ Bell, non-UK and non-US international shares cost GBP 9.99 a trade on Core, and there are no options, futures, CFDs, direct crypto, fractional shares or demo account
• Support is weekdays only, 07:45–17:30, with no weekend cover — AJ Bell answers the phone on Saturdays and Sundays

Pros

• EUR 5.90 flat commission on German, US, Canadian and other foreign orders with no percentage component up to EUR 40,000 — a EUR 10,000 trade costs the same as a EUR 1,000 trade
• All ETF and fund savings plans execute at EUR 0.00 commission with over 5,000 plans available and no cap on the savings rate
• No custody fee, no account fee, no inactivity fee, and free incoming and outgoing depot transfers
• Genuine spot crypto in around 25 coins at 0.6%–0.7% all-in, held inside the regulated German bank rather than as an ETN wrapper
• Full German banking licence under BaFin and Bundesbank supervision, with an MDAX-listed parent (flatexDEGIRO SE, ticker FTK) publishing audited accounts and over EUR 100 billion in customer securities under custody
• Tax-simple in both markets it serves: automatic German Abgeltungsteuer withholding and automatic Austrian KESt settlement at 27.5% on flatex.at
• Free foreign-currency sub-accounts, so USD or CHF proceeds can be held rather than converted back at a spread every time
• Fast onboarding — flatex advertises a five-minute fully digital account opening, and no minimum deposit applies

Cons

• 0.00% p.a. credit interest on cash balances. Competitors pay 1%–1.75% on the settlement or call account, so an investor holding EUR 20,000 in cash gives up EUR 200–350 a year that never shows up in any fee table
• Currency conversion costs an absolute margin of USD 0.0040 per euro — roughly 0.35% — which is worse than Consorsbank's published USD 0.0030 and far worse than a multi-currency specialist
• No Eurex or US options and futures trading at all. Certificates, knock-outs and Société Générale CFDs are the only leveraged instruments on offer
• Real-time quotes are metered: 25 free per month plus 10 per executed order, then EUR 0.01 per query, and the professional flatex trader 2.0 platform costs EUR 15–39 a month on top
• The EUR 5.90 floor makes flatex expensive for small orders — a EUR 300 purchase pays about 2% in commission before venue costs, where a EUR 1 neobroker charges 0.3%
• Direct foreign market access is narrow: US, Canada, Euronext, Vienna, Zurich and Milan (sell only). There is no direct London, Tokyo, Hong Kong or Nordic access, and stock savings plans cost 1.00% of the rate