IG review: How do its features and fees compare?

In this independent review, we take a look at online investment platform IG*. We'll explore its key features, fees, and pros and cons. We'll also explain how it compares to alternatives such as Freetrade* and Trading 212 .

What is IG?

Established in 1974, IG is an online investment platform best known for its leveraged trading services, including CFD trading and spread betting. It also offers a Stocks and Shares ISA and SIPP where investors can create their own portfolios as well as invest in a number of diversified 'smart' portfolios. Following its acquisition of Freetrade in 2025, IG now boasts around 820,000 active clients worldwide and manages around £12bn in customer assets and cash.

With IG, you can access around 15,000 markets and the platform may be a good option for beginner investors with a longer-term outlook as well as traders looking to take higher risks.

IG Offers

Get a FREE SHARE bundle worth £40-£300 when you invest with IG

Until 31st December, new IG* investment clients who trade a minimum of £300 via an IG GIA, ISA or SIPP account will receive a randomly allocated bundle of UK-listed shares worth between £40 and £300*. Use code WELCOME300 when creating an account. The exact value is determined by the probabilities set out in the full terms and conditions. To qualify, £300 must remain invested for 3 full calendar months after the month of the first trade. Cannot be used in conjunction with other offers. Terms & fees apply. Capital at risk.

Get up to £5,000 cashback when you transfer to IG

From 24th April to 30th June, new IG investment clients can get up to £5,000 cashback* when they transfer at least £10,000 to an IG GIA or ISA account. Use code TRANSFER5000 when creating an account. To qualify, you'll need to submit your transfer by 30th June and complete the transfer by 31st August. You must maintain a minimum investment of £10,000 until 31st May 2027. Cashback paid by 30th June 2027. Cannot be used in conjunction with other offers. Terms & fees apply. Capital at risk.

What are the key features of the IG investment platform?

No minimum deposit is required to open an account
Invest and trade either via desktop or mobile app
Invest in a Stocks and Shares ISA with 3.75% AER on uninvested cash.
Invest in a Junior ISA
Choose from five ready-made portfolios based on your risk profile
Open a free demo account to learn the basics of trading and practice with £10,000 in "virtual funds"
Learn the ins and outs of trading and investments with free courses and webinars hosted on IG Academy
CFD trading and spread betting (these are high-risk investments; around 68% of retail investors lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with IG)
Benefit from negative balance protection when trading CFDs and spread betting
Pay no commission fees on US shares (conditions apply for UK shares)

What products and services does IG offer?

IG offers a range of products and services, including tools to help customers analyse investments, learn about trading and trade efficiently. Below, we explore key products and services like the free IG Academy and demo account, the extended hours feature, the Stocks & Shares ISA, the SIPP, Junior ISA and the share dealing account on offer by IG.

IG Academy

IG Academy is designed to help new investors as well as more advanced traders with a range of free courses and live sessions. The online courses cover a range of topics including the basics covering how financial markets work as well as more niche topics such as the advanced course on using stop and limit alerts to manage risk. There are also interactive exercises and quizzes to help check your knowledge along the way.

IG Academy hosts regular live sessions and webinars where IG's experts share their knowledge and conduct Q&A's.

IG demo account

IG's demo account is a good way to practice what you've learned via the free IG Academy courses. You can create a demo account on the simulated platform in seconds by filling out a simple form via the website.

You'll then be given £10,000 in "virtual funds" to help you learn how to use the platform and place trades in a simulated environment. You can practice CFD trading and spread betting, as well as stock trading and forex trading.

Extended trading hours

IG provides out-of-hours trading for selected markets like indices, shares, and forex. The extended hours on offer depend on the type of market you wish to invest in. For example, if you're looking to make investments on the US stock exchange, then this is normally available from Monday to Friday between 2.30 to 9pm UK time. However, with IG, you can buy and sell shares between 9am to 1am Monday to Thursday and then 9am to 10pm on Friday.

IG Stocks & Shares ISA

IG offers a flexible Stocks & Shares ISA that allows customers to withdraw funds without withdrawals counting towards their £20,000 annual allowance. You can also choose to transfer an existing ISA to the IG Stocks & Shares ISA.

When you set up your ISA with IG, you'll need to choose between the following two investment options:

Share Dealing ISA - This option allows you to choose your own investment from more than 12,000 stocks and ETFs.
IG Smart Portfolio ISA - This option allows you to select an expertly built, ready-made portfolio to invest in. IG Smart Portfolios cost from 0.50% per year and are capped at £250 per account type.

You can also choose to invest some of your allowance in shares of your own choice and the remainder of your allowance in an IG Smart Portfolio. Setting up an IG ISA is free and commissions are in line with IG's general fee structure which is outlined in the fees section below.

IG Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)

IG offers a Self Invested Personal Pension in partnership with Options UK. Once you create your IG account, you'll be able to add a SIPP account through the IG dashboard.

You'll then receive instructions from Options UK to help set up your new SIPP account. You'll need to pay a flat, third-party annual administration fee of £210 to Options UK as part of your subscription.

Much like the IG ISA, you'll be able to build your own portfolio by choosing from more than 12,000 individual shares, funds and investment trusts via an IG Share Dealing SIPP. Alternatively, you'll be able to choose one of IG's ready-made portfolios to get access to a variety of bonds and shares.

IG Junior ISA

In March 2026, IG launched its Junior Stocks and Shares ISA (JISA). The account is free from any platform or management fees and offers zero-commission trading on over 12,000 global shares, ETFs, and funds.

Below, we cover the key considerations when choosing an IG Junior ISA:

Eligibility - The account is available to children aged 14 and under.
Account Management - A parent or guardian must already hold an IG investment account to open and manage a JISA for their child.
Tax Efficiency - Like all Junior ISAs, investments grow free from UK income and capital gains tax. The annual allowance for 2026/27 is £9,000.
Fees - There are no platform fees, management charges or dealing fees. A standard 0.70% FX fee applies to international share purchases, and fund manager charges may apply if you invest in ETFs or funds.

With a Junior ISA, the money is legally owned by the child and remains locked away until they turn 18, at which point the account automatically converts into a standard adult Stocks and Shares ISA.

IG Share dealing account

If you've exhausted your ISA allowance for the tax year, you may choose to open an online share dealing account with IG. This gives you the same exposure to a wide range of stocks and ETFs, with the same commission structure. However, while the gains you make within an ISA are tax-free, with a share dealing account you'll need to pay taxes on your profit.

What can you invest in with IG?

You can invest in a range of assets and derivatives with IG. Some key markets on offer include:

Shares
Forex
Indices
Commodities
ETFs
Options
Futures
Bonds

Below, we'll take a look at the Smart Portfolios and ETFs on offer through IG.

IG Smart Portfolios

IG offers five "smart" ready-made portfolios based on your risk profile. The portfolios are designed by BlackRock but managed by IG. They are designed exclusively using BlackRock's iShares ETFs which have been selected for their long-term growth potential and low fund charges.

The portfolios are also diversified and designed to expose your funds to global markets such as fixed income and equity, for example. They are constantly rebalanced and actively managed by the IG team, however they broadly fall into five risk categories:

Conservative
Moderate
Balanced
Growth
Aggressive

The "Conservative" portfolio represents the lowest risk, while the "Aggressive" portfolio represents the highest risk. The table below sums up IG Smart Portfolios' performance over the last five years.

IG Smart Portfolio performance

Fund name	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020
Conservative	+3.6%	+4.3%	-5.6%	-0.4%	+2%
Moderate	+5.0%	+6.0%	-9.4%	+3.4%	+7.4%
Balanced	+8.7%	+8.9%	-11.4%	+8.8%	+9.2%
Growth	+11.3%	+10.8%	-11.9%	+13.5%	+11.4%
Aggressive	+14.0%	+12.5%	-12.2%	+18.2%	+10.9%

The IG Smart Portfolio fee starts at 0.5% but is capped at £250 per year per account.

Trading with IG

Traders can trade CFDs and partake in spread betting with IG. Both spread bets and CFDs are highly volatile and complex instruments that come with high potential rewards, but more often significant losses. IG states that 68% of retail investors lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with their platform.

It might be worth opening a demo account to try out CFDs and spread betting in a simulated environment first. Even if you have experience with these instruments, the simulated demo account can help you get used to the platform.

CFD trading

CFD trading allows you to speculate on whether an asset's price will go up or down. You don't need to own the asset, CFD trading is the process of exchanging the difference in price from the point at which the contract is opened to when it is closed. With IG, you can trade CFDs on more than 15,000 different markets, some of which include shares, indices, and forex. IG also offers negative balance protection for trading-related debt, but this is only available to retail investors.

Spread Betting

Spread betting is a speculative type of trading that allows you to bet on whether an asset's price will rise or fall. In the UK, profits derived from spread betting are tax-free. Another key difference to CFD trading is that all spread bets have a fixed expiry date.

With IG, you get other benefits like access to more than 15,000 markets as well as negative balance protection for retail investors. With this type of investment, your balance could theoretically fall below zero, however, IG ensures that this does not happen. Therefore, you'll never lose more than what you've put in.

How much does IG cost?

The tables below provide a breakdown of IG's costs.

IG Trading Fees

	Investing fees	Deals by phone
UK shares	£0	£40
US shares	£0	£50
European shares	£0	£50
Australian shares	£0	A$50

IG Other Fees

The table below sums up some of the additional fees you can expect to pay if you choose IG to trade and invest.

Description	Fee
Foreign exchange fee	0.70%
Custody fees	£0 - Custody fees were scrapped in January 2026
Standard bank transfer	Free
Same day bank transfer	Free for transfers over £100, or £15 for transfers under £100
IG Smart Portfolio management fee	From 0.50% capped at £250 per year per account
Options UK SIPP administration fee (third-party)	£210

IG will convert currencies at the time of execution based on the best available exchange rates.

For a more comprehensive look at IG's fees and how they're likely to affect you, check out the fees page on the IG website.

Does IG pay interest on cash held in its accounts?

IG pays 3.75% AER variable on uninvested cash balances up to £100,000. If you're looking for other providers that pay interest on cash balances, you may want to check out alternatives like Trading 212 where you can earn 3.80% interest on your GBP cash balance.

How to open an IG account

Opening an IG trading account is a fairly straightforward process that should only take a few minutes to complete. From the IG home page, click "create live account" to launch the application form.

You'll then need to fill out the questions with your personal and contact details. You'll also need to create a username and password. You'll then need to select which live accounts you'd like to apply for. There are three to choose from and they include:

Spread betting - This option could work well for leveraged traders who are happy to take high risks. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets with IG. You can trade more than 15,000 markets with a spread betting account.
Contracts for Difference (CFDs) - This option could work well for advanced traders who are happy to take high risks. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with IG. You can trade more than 15,000 markets with a CFD account.
Share dealing - This option works best for long-term investors who aren't interested in day-to-day trading. With this option, you can invest in more than 10,000 international stocks and ETFs, and you could do so within a SIPP or ISA if you want to benefit from a tax-wrapper account.

The screenshot below shows what the application form looks like. You can apply for all three accounts or if you prefer, you can add other accounts at a later stage.

After you've selected which accounts you'd like to apply for, you'll need to answer a few questions about your tax residency, nationality, and current address. You'll then need to fill out information about your current employment and financial situation, including your gross annual income and any savings and investments you have. You'll also need to explain how you plan on funding your investments.

Then comes the "Experience" section, where you'll need to select how many times you've traded and invested various assets and derivatives in the last three years. You'll also be asked whether you've received advice when you've traded these products previously and whether you have any experience or qualifications you've garnered through work, training, or education to help you trade.

Once this step is complete, you'll be asked to agree to the terms and conditions, and then you can go ahead and submit your application. Your accounts will be created right away, but then you may need to complete further steps to activate your CFD and Spread bet accounts if you've selected these options.

The screenshot below shows what your dashboard will look like once you've applied for your live accounts. As you can see, the Spread bet and CFD accounts are "pending", while the Share dealing account is active.

We also activated demo accounts where we can play around with virtual funds to learn more about CFDs and Spread bets. This can also be seen in the screenshot below.

In order to activate the Spread bet and CFD accounts, you'll need to demonstrate your knowledge. This involves completing free courses via IG and then completing a quiz. If you believe you already have the required knowledge, you can skip straight to the test. You may also need to send through documentation to prove your identity as part of activating your account.

Once you've completed these final steps, you'll be able to access the dashboard by pressing the "open platform" button. You'll then be taken to the main dashboard.

Via the dashboard, you'll be able to keep up to date with the latest news through IG live as well as the X feed. You'll also be able to toggle between your different accounts (Spread bet, CFD, and share dealing).

Alternatives to IG

While IG offers a range of trading options and resources for traders and investors alike, there are plenty of alternatives that you may want to consider before making your decision. Below, we compare IG to competitors Trading 212, eToro and explain its relationship with its new subsidiary, Freetrade.

IG vs Freetrade

Previously a competitor, Freetrade is now part of the IG Group following its acquisition in 2025. However, the two platforms currently operate separately with distinct fee structures.

IG (the main platform) is better suited for advanced traders, those wanting access to spread betting/CFDs, and investors who want desktop access and extensive research tools. Freetrade remains a mobile-first app focused on simplicity and low costs. It offers commission-free trading and does not charge a platform fee for its basic account.

If you are a buy-and-hold investor looking for the lowest possible costs, the Freetrade app (under the IG umbrella) might be the better choice. If you need advanced charting, telephone support, or leveraged trading, the main IG platform may serve you better.

Check out our independent Freetrade review if you want to find out more about this platform.

IG vs Trading 212

Like IG, Trading 212 lets you trade a range of assets and derivatives, including CFDs. In addition, with Trading 212, you can earn 3.80% interest on your uninvested cash. Trading 212 also offers a Stocks and Shares ISA for those who want to hold their investments in a tax wrapper.

Check out our independent Trading 212 review if you want to find out more about this platform.

IG vs eToro

Like IG, eToro allows customers to trade CFDs among 5,000 other assets and derivatives. Investing in some assets, like stocks and ETFs, is commission-free. For others, like crypto, there's a 1% buy or sell fee. There is also an inactivity fee of $10 per month if your account is inactive for more than a year. However, unique features like CopyTrader that allow you to copy the trades of investors you trust in real time make it a popular choice for some.

Check out our independent eToro review if you want to find out more about this platform.

IG customer reviews

In 2026, IG is rated "Great" on Trustpilot with a 3.8 out of 5.0 score based on around 8,500 reviews. Approximately 56% of customers gave IG a 5-star rating, while 18% gave it a 1-star rating. Among those giving IG a 5-star rating, reviewers praised the platform's efficiency and reliability. Others praised the customer service quality at IG. Those giving it a 1-star rating complained about issues with account creation and getting locked out of the platform as a result of technical difficulties. Some complained about the poor level of customer service they experienced.

IG Pros and Cons

Below, we sum up the pros and cons of opening an IG account.

IG Pros

Pays interest on uninvested cash
Five IG Smart Portfolios for novice or passive investors who prefer a ready-made option
Negative balance protection for spread betting and CFDs
Has recently removed its £24 custody fee

IG Cons

0.7% FX charge (higher than some competitors)
Trustpilot reviews are lower than some alternatives

Summary

IG* offers investors the best of both worlds, with passive or inexperienced investors able to opt for ready-made portfolios and more experienced or active investors able to pick their own investments, including derivatives like CFDs. If you're a beginner, the IG Academy and demo account are excellent, free resources to help you develop your skills further.

That being said, IG might not be as competitive as other platforms that offer lower FX fees or higher interest rates on uninvested cash and so it may be worth checking out Trading 212 or eToro first.

When investing, your capital is at risk and you may get back less than invested. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.