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Head to head
interactive investor or Scalable Capital? Fees, regulation, platform and product range compared side by side — with a verdict drawn from the data.
The UK's flat-fee platform: one monthly subscription, and your charges stop growing with your portfolio.
Germany's most complete savings-plan platform, now running on its own banking licence - and quietly repricing itself.
Advertising disclosure: where a partnership is active, we may earn a commission through broker links. The provider’s terms apply. Commissions do not influence our ratings; paid placements are separately labelled as sponsored.
Four decision axes, each derived from the recorded data.
Overall interactive investor takes it, 4.1 against 3.9 out of 5. Scalable Capital is the cheaper of the two: a reference EUR 5,000 stock order costs €1.99 there against €4.67. Scalable Capital scores 88 against 77 out of 100 on the group index. Your account's protection depends on its legal entity. Scalable Capital covers more ground with 8 of 14 asset classes against 6. On platform and app interactive investor is ahead, 4.1 against 3.9 out of 5. Which one is right depends on which of these axes matters for your trading profile.
interactive investorScalable Capitalinteractive investorScalable Capitalinteractive investorScalable Capitalinteractive investorScalable Capitalinteractive investorScalable CapitalUp to four brokers at once — every row a decision point.
Data as of: 30 Aug 2026
| Criterion | ||
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 4.1 — Better | 3.9 |
| Group index | 77 of 100 | 88 of 100 |
| Best for | Portfolios above GBP 40,000SIPP and drawdown savers with larger potsUS and international share investorsBuy-and-hold investors consolidating platformsInvestors who want costs that stop growing | ETF savings plansFund investors in GermanyHigh-frequency retail traders on a flat rateConsolidating cash and investments |
| Regulation | FCA | BaFinECBBundesbank |
| Top-tier licences | 1 | 3 — Better |
| Investor protection | £85,000 | €100,000 — Better |
| Listed group | No | No |
| Banking licence | No | Yes |
| Segregated client accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Negative balance protection | Yes | Yes |
| Audited financials | Yes | Yes |
| Disclosed regulatory actions | None | None |
| Founded | 1995 | 2014 |
| Headquarters | Leeds, GB | Munich, DE |
| Fees | 4.0 | 4.3 — Better |
| Safety & regulation | 4.3 | 4.3 |
| Trading platform | 4.1 — Better | 3.6 |
| Product range | 3.5 | 3.9 — Better |
| Mobile app | 4.1 | 4.2 — Better |
| Research | 4.2 — Better | 3.4 |
| Customer support | 4.2 — Better | 2.8 |
| Deposit & withdrawal | 4.2 — Better | 3.7 |
| Account opening | 4.3 | 4.4 — Better |
| Education | 3.9 — Better | 3.4 |
| Reference order EUR 5,000 | €4.67 | €1.99 — Better |
| Minimum deposit | None | None |
| Stocks (per order) | £3.99 | €1.99 — Better |
| US stocks | £3.99 | €1.99 — Better |
| ETFs | £3.99 | €1.99 — Better |
| Options | Not offered | Not offered |
| Futures | Not offered | Not offered |
| Crypto | Not offered | in the spread |
| Bonds (order) | £3.99 | €1.99 — Better |
| Funds (order) | £3.99 | €1.99 — Better |
| EUR/USD spread | n/a | n/a |
| Index CFD spread | n/a | n/a |
| FX conversion | 0.75 % | n/a |
| Inactivity fee | None | None |
| Custody fee | £71.88 p.a. | None — Better |
| Withdrawal fee | free | free |
| Deposit fee | free | SEPA transfers are free. An instant deposit - buying power for securities purchases credited against a SEPA direct debit that has not yet been value-dated - costs 0.99% of the amount on the FREE Broker and 0.69% on PRIME and PRIME+, charged on the first EUR 5,000 only: every euro above EUR 5,000 is free, so the charge is at most EUR 49.50 (FREE) or EUR 34.50 (PRIME, PRIME+). EUR 5,000 is a ceiling on the charged amount, not a minimum deposit. |
| Overnight financing | n/a | n/a |
| Other fees |
|
|
| Asset classes (of 14) | 6 | 8 — Better |
| Exchanges | 17 — Better | 3 |
| Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Options | No | No |
| Futures | No | No |
| Forex | No | No |
| CFDs | No | No |
| Crypto | No | Yes |
| Bonds | Yes | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Commodities | Yes | Yes |
| Indices | Yes | Yes |
| Warrants | No | Yes |
| Spread betting | No | No |
| Social trading | No | No |
| Platforms | ii websiteii mobile appQuotestreamii360 | Scalable Capital web platformScalable Capital app |
| Demo account | No | No |
| Fractional shares | No | Yes |
| Maximum leverage | n/a | No CFDs, no margin trading and no short selling. A securities-backed credit line (Scalable Kredit) is offered at a variable 4.75% p.a. |
| Account opening | Fully online, typically 10–15 minutes with a National Insurance number and UK bank details; the first month of the subscription is often waived on promotion | Roughly 10-15 minutes online with video or eID identification; the securities account is normally usable within one business day. No minimum deposit - a EUR 1 reference transfer verifies the bank link. |
| Account types | CorePlusPremiumStocks and Shares ISASelf-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)Junior ISA | FREE BrokerPRIME+ Broker |
| Payment methods | Bank transferDebit card | SEPABank transferSEPA Instant |
| Account currencies | GBPEURUSD | EUR |
| Deposit time | Debit card effectively instant; bank transfer and Direct Debit typically same day to 2 business days | 1-2 business days by SEPA; an instant deposit raises the balance available for securities purchases before the SEPA direct debit is value-dated, for 0.99% (FREE) or 0.69% (PRIME, PRIME+) of the first EUR 5,000 |
| Withdrawal time | Usually 1–3 business days to a nominated UK bank account | 1-2 business days to the reference account; internal transfers between the clearing and Overnight accounts are real-time |
| Free withdrawals | n/a | n/a |
| Languages | English | GermanEnglishItalianSpanishFrenchDutch |
| Channels | PhoneEmailTicket system | EmailLive chatTicket system |
| Availability | Monday to Friday 07:45–17:30 UK time, with the international dealing desk open 17:30–21:00 | Monday to Friday, business hours. No telephone line for broker clients. |
Editorial assessment based on the recorded data.
interactive investor
The UK's flat-fee platform: one monthly subscription, and your charges stop growing with your portfolio.
Pros
Cons
Best for
Scalable Capital
Germany's most complete savings-plan platform, now running on its own banking licence - and quietly repricing itself.
Pros
Cons
Best for
Open an account with either
A demo account costs nothing and answers the platform question in ten minutes.
Advertising disclosure: where a partnership is active, we may earn a commission through broker links. The provider’s terms apply. Commissions do not influence our ratings; paid placements are separately labelled as sponsored.
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