Wealthify and Vanguard Investor are both popular options in the investment platform space, offering a good range of products and reasonable fees. If you are trying to decide which one to invest your money with, this article lays out each platform's key features and services, as well as their disadvantages and advantages.
Wealthify vs Vanguard - which is better?
| Wealthify | Vanguard | |
| Minimum investment | £1 (or £50 for pensions) | £500 or £100 monthly investment |
| Platform fees | 0.60% flat fee
Additional underlying fund charges |
0.15% (capped at £375 for accounts over £250,000)
0.45% annual account fee for its Managed ISA (capped at £1,125) Additional underlying fund charges |
| Services | Original Plans
Ethical Plans |
LifeStrategy funds
Target Retirement funds Build-your-own portfolios Personal financial advice for retirement planning |
| Products | ISA, GIA (General Investment Account), Junior ISA and SIPP, Instant access savings account (earn 4.91% AER variable paid monthly) | ISA, GIA (General Investment Account), Junior ISA, SIPP
Managed ISA |
| Customer reviews (Trustpilot) | 3.9/5.0 | 4.1/5.0 |
Wealthify vs Vanguard - services
Both Wealthify and Vanguard Investor have ranges of risk-rated, multi-asset portfolios designed to meet the needs of a variety of investors. Wealthify has a choice of 5 portfolios in both its original and ethical ranges:
- Cautious
- Tentative
- Confident
- Ambitious
- Adventurous.
Vanguard also has 5 options in its Lifestrategy portfolios, ranging from one with 20% equity exposure through to 100% equity exposure. They are as follows:
- LifeStrategy 20%
- LifeStrategy 40%
- LifeStrategy 60%
- LifeStrategy 80%
- LifeStrategy 100%
The Target Retirement portfolios, meanwhile, are structured based on when you want to retire. It also has the option for you to build your own portfolio, choosing from across its range of around 75 Vanguard funds.
Wealthify vs Vanguard - products
Both Wealthify and Vanguard offer the products you would expect from large-scale platforms: ISAs, General Investment Accounts, Junior ISAs and SIPPs. However, they don't have Lifetime ISAs or Junior SIPPs, which are offered by some of their competitors. If you are particularly interested in these products, read our articles "Compare the best and cheapest Lifetime ISA" and "Best and cheapest Junior SIPPs".
Wealthify vs Vanguard - minimum investment
If you are looking to try an investment platform without having to invest a significant amount upfront, Wealthify allows you to open an account with just £1. For Vanguard, meanwhile, the minimum investment requirement is £500 as a lump sum or a regular monthly investment of £100.
Wealthify vs Vanguard - fees
Vanguard Investor's platform fee of 0.15% (capped at £375 for accounts over £250,000) is extremely competitive and is significantly cheaper than the 0.60% charged by Wealthify. It's worth noting, however, that Vanguard only offers portfolios consisting of its own in-house funds, while Wealthify offers exposure to funds in a variety of different investment houses.
Wealthify vs Vanguard customer reviews
According to the independent customer review site Trustpilot, both Wealthify and Vanguard score highly with their customers. Wealthify has a score of 3.9 out of 5.0 while Vanguard has a score of 4.1 out of 5.0. Both have an official rating of "Great". Both platforms are praised for their customer service, while Vanguard's low fees are also singled out as a reason for its high rating.
Summary - Wealthify vs Vanguard
On the surface, Wealthify and Vanguard have very similar propositions, with the same products available and 5 risk-rated funds consisting of passive investments. The difference comes in the price, with Vanguard working out cheaper than its rival, as well as Vanguard's option to build your own portfolio. However, Vanguard only offers its own funds within its portfolios, while Wealthify has funds from different investment houses.
For more details on each platform, read our Wealthify review and Vanguard Investor review.
