Best Mutual Fund Apps UK – Top App Revealed

More and more investors in the UK are turning to mutual funds. After all, they allow you to invest in a completely passive manner – with the provider in question deciding which assets to buy, sell, and trade – and when.

You can now complete the process via a dedicated trading app. This allows you to invest at the click of a button via an application which is usually compatible with iOS and Android phones.

In this guide, we review the best Mutual Fund Apps UK for 2022. We also walk you through the step-by-step process of investing in a mutual fund via a regulated app.

Best Mutual Fund Apps UK 2022 List

Don’t have time to read our full guide from start to finish? If so, below you will find the popular mutual funds apps UK for 2022!

1. eToro – Best Mutual Funds App UK Accoring to Total Fees
2. XTB– Mutal Fund App with Zero Commissions up to 100,00 EUR
3. AvaTrade– Great Mutual Trading App with Low Spreads
4. Trade Nation– Regulated Trading App with fixed spreads
5. Admiral Markets– Reliable Trading App Since 2001
6. Pepperstone – One of the Most Popular CFDs App Worldwide
7. Plus500 – A Really Good UK Trading App For Mutual Funds

Best Mutual Fund Apps UK Reviewed

When searching for the best mutual fund apps in the UK – there are a number of important metrics that you need to cross-check before proceeding.

For example, you must ensure that the mutual fund app is regulated by the FCA and that it is competitively-priced. And of course, you need to check whether or not the app gives you access to your chosen mutual fund investment.

While there are many providers in the UK that meet these key requirements, below we review the best mutual fund apps UK  to consider in 2022.

1. eToro – Best Mutual Funds App UK With Zero Commission

If you’re looking for a safe, beginner-friendly, and low-cost way of investing in funds, eToro is a popular option to consider. This regulated stock trading app allows you to buy and sell assets online or from the palm of your hand. In fact, you can invest in over 250+ funds at eToro, all of which are backed by leading ETF providers.

This includes heavy-weights like Vanguard, iShares, and SPDR. There are many benefits to choosing eToro as your go-to investment apps provider. Firstly, you can invest in funds without needing to pay a single penny in trading commission or share dealing fees. eToro itself doesn’t charge any ongoing fees, so it’s only the expense ratio of the respective fund manager that you need to take into account.

Additionally, eToro requires a small minimum investment of just $50 (about £40) when you purchase a fund. This is minute when you consider that the likes of Vanguard require a minimum capital injection of £500. And of course – when you invest in a fund on eToro, you will be entitled to quarterly dividend payments as and when they are distributed by the fund provider. Did you know that eToro is also one of the popular automated trading apps, allowing for passive investing via copy trading features.

eToro is popular if you want to invest in individual stocks – as the app is home to more than 2,400 shares from 17 UK and international exchanges.

• If your main priority is to invest and trade in a passive manner, eToro itself offers a couple of popular tools that might be of interest.
• For example, the Copy Trading feature allows you to actively day trade without lifting a finger.
• All of you need to do is select a verified eToro trader, choose the amount you wish to invest, and then all future buy and sell positions will be mirrored in your own portfolio.
• CopyPortfolios are also worth considering, which are professionally managed by the eToro team.

With more than 17 million investors now eToro – it makes sense that the app is heavily regulated. This includes a license with the FCA and your funds are also covered by the FSCS. To get started with this app – which is available on iOS and Android, you need to meet a minimum deposit of just $200. This can be done instantly by funding your account with a UK debit/credit card or an e-wallet like Paypal.

Read our comprehensive eToro app review to find out more about what this app offers.

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2. XTB– Mutal Fund App with Zero Commissions up to 100,00 EUR

Trading broker XTB has been around for almost two decades. Contracts for Difference (CFDs) and Forex are two services this broker offers. A wide range of CFDs are offered, including stocks, indices, ETFs, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.

With a client base of more than 500,000 traders worldwide, XTB has become one of the most respected brokers in the world.

Many of XTB’s trading community considers its trading tools innovative, one of XTB’s main strengths. Besides trading in the Forex market, you can trade CFDs on indices, commodities, cryptocurrencies, stocks, and spot ETFs.

In addition to comprehensive trade history statistics, a calculator will assist you in determining lots and profits and total transparency in your orders, including spreads, pip value, swap points, and other relevant information if you are a registered and verified trader.

Also available for Android and iOS devices are XTB’s platforms, xStation 5 and xStation Mobile. Live financial news analysis and live webinars are among its educational offerings and live financial news analysis section.

Most commissions at XTB are derived from spreads, which are the differences between buying and selling prices. You will be charged different spreads depending on what instrument or market you are trading and your broker’s account type.

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3. AvaTrade– Great Mutual Trading App with Low Spreads

Due to its commitment to providing customers with the type of online trading experience they desire, AvaTrade has emerged as a leading forex and CFD broker since 2006. More than 300,000 registered clients on AvaTrade from more than 150 countries worldwide, and over 1,250 financial instruments are available on the platform. On average, AvaTrade processes over two million trades per month. Because AvaTrade is strongly regulated and authorized, it can help traders trade with confidence.

Traders of all levels are encouraged to use the company’s products and services tailored to their specific needs. Customer support is available 24 hours a day in multiple languages, with dedicated account managers, an advanced interface design, and a high level of security for your funds.

Numerous awards have been presented to AvaTrade for its excellent customer service, execution of trades, price transparency, and advanced trading and analysis tools.

All levels of traders can use AvaTrade, regardless of their experience level. Newcomers to the industry will find a wealth of training tools and guides at this broker. AvaTrade will also appeal to experienced traders as a comprehensive and advanced trading platform.

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4. TradeNation – Regulated Trading App with fixed spreads

A well-designed, easy-to-use, and convenient mobile and web app makes Trade Nation’s Forex and CFD trading ideal for beginners. Some advanced features in the best trading platforms are unavailable in Trade Nation for seasoned traders.

Trade Nation offers 601 tradeable symbols. There are 33 spot forex pairs, 102 UK shares, and 423 US shares among the popular commodities, metals, bonds, and indices.

With Trade Nation, you can trade fixed and variable spreads on your MetaTrader platform. While most brokers update their spread distance as prices change, Trade Nation’s distance remains fixed. The pricing can, therefore, be considered an average price without any further calculations, except during rollover periods when prices widen.

Although it’s easy to use, it doesn’t have many of the advanced features one would typically find in a trading app.

In addition to offering an easy-to-use online and mobile trading platform suite, Trade Nation is licensed across various global markets.

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5. Admiral Markets– Reliable Trading App Since 2001

Almost 20 years have passed since Admirals was founded. In addition to MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 software tools, this broker also offers the MetaTrader Supreme Edition plugin. In terms of education and analysis, Admiral has a lot to offer. Many definitions, concepts, and trading strategies can be explained in detail through free tutorials, webinars, and videos.

Admiral offers low commissions and competitive spreads. Depending on the software you choose, it offers a wide range of accounts. Compared to other brokers, Admiral offers a wider range of account options. Admirals TM investments offer Forex trading and CFDs on various products, such as commodities, stocks, bonds, ETFs, indices, and metals. Admiral is a good choice if you’re searching for a reliable broker that offers a wide range of features. Consequently, Admiral’s users have positive opinions about it.

From beginner to veteran traders, Admiral’s educational tools will be useful to all levels of traders. New traders can learn how to trade Forex from the ground up with Admiral’s ‘Zero to Hero’ course.

Advanced software systems are offered for experienced traders. Professionals will be familiar with them. With Admiral, you can trade using MT4 and MT5, two applications that have become industry standards. Admiral has something to offer everyone, regardless of their level of experience.

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6. Pepperstone – One of the Most Popular CFDs Platform Worldwide

Pepperstone, an online broker, offers Forex and CFDs. Founded in 2010, this financial intermediary enjoys a good reputation in Australia.

In other words, it is a pure intermediary without a dealing desk that operates on  NDD/STP model. Brokers do not act as counterparties to trade orders placed by traders, avoiding conflicts of interest between brokers and their clients (like with Market Makers).

The FCA of the UK, CySEC of Cyprus, and ASIC of Australia, among others, regulate Pepperstone. Various financial instruments are available for trading, including Forex currency pairs, cryptocurrencies, stock indices, precious metals, and energy.

With this broker, you only need to deposit $200 or the equivalent in euros to open an account. There are no restrictions on trading strategies (scalping, hedging, E.A.s, etc.), and Pepperstone has relatively low spreads.

You may trade using Metatrader (Pepperstone offers Metatrader 4 and Metatrader 5) or Trading View if you have a Standard Account (the most basic account, as we will see later).

In addition to being widely known, this trading platform is one of the most popular among traders worldwide.

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7. Plus500 – A Really Good UK Trading App For Mutual Funds

Plus500 is one of the most popular CFD brokers, but it has some drawbacks, including the fact that you cannot invest in stocks or ETFs but only in derivatives. If you want to invest in real assets (rather than CFDs), Scalable Capital and Freedom24 are good alternatives. Companies cannot offer CFDs to Spanish residents since CFDs are an unregulated financial instrument in Spain.

Over a decade ago, six students founded this Israeli-based CFD broker. Plus500 has accumulated thousands of clients since then and is even listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Plus500 might appeal to experienced traders who are familiar with CFD trading. To trade with Plus500, you must be comfortable with leverage since it is impossible without it. If you are dealing with leverage, please exercise caution.

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How to Choose the Best Mutual Funds App UK for You

So now that we have reviewed the popular mutual fund apps UK , we now need to explain what you should look out for before opening an account.

There are many metrics that need to be considered – such as safety, supports funds, payments, commissions, expense ratios, and more.

To ensure you sign up with the mutual funds app UK which meets your needs, below we discuss these key requirements in a little more detail.

Regulation

In response to the recent surge of retail clients investing and trading online in the UK, regulation of this space is now water-tight. That is to say, in order for mutual funds apps to accept UK residents, it must have authorization from the FCA.

This offers you a full suite of investor protections, such as:

• Risk Warnings: Mutual fund apps UK that are FCA-regulated must clearly present the risks of investing. This ensures that you have clear and realistic expectations of both potential returns and the risk of loss.
• Account Segregation: FCA-regulated mutual fund apps in the UK must keep your money in separate bank accounts. In other words, it can’t use your investment capital to meet its day-to-day expenses.
• FSCS: Not all trading apps in the UK are covered by the FSCS. But those that are offer a level of protection that cannot be rivalled. For example, a popular mutual fund app UK – eToro, is regulated by the FCA and covered by the FSCS. This means that were eToro to become insolvent, your capital is covered up to the first £85,000.

Ultimately, when searching for mutual fund apps UK, it’s crucial that you check whether or not the provider is regulated. If it is, then you know that the app is required to follow a number of investor protection rules.

User Experience

When we reviewed popular mutual fund apps UK, we found that there is often a disparity in the end-to-end user experience. Crucially, the mobile app in question must be simple to use – considering that you will be investing and trading via a small screen. In the case of eToro, this app allows you to navigate through the platform with ease.

For example, you can browse the many funds supported by eToro by using the filter button. Or, you can enter the name of the fund you are interested in gaining access to. When we tested out the order process on the eToro app, this was also a seamless experience. All you need to do is enter the amount you wish to invest in the fund and confirm the order.

At the other end of the spectrum, we also came across mutual fund platforms that are clearly more suited for desktop devices. This is because the mobile app had not been fully optimized for smaller screens. This resulted in an all-round poor user experience and thus – it hindered our ability to trade in a risk-averse manner.

Supported Funds

In finding the mutual funds app UK suited for your needs, it’s important to assess what investment you will have available to you. In other words, what funds does the investment app support?

We found that popular mutual fund apps UK cover large-scale providers like Vanguard, iShares, and SPDR. Other popular fund providers to look out for include Invesco, Fidelity, and Aberdeen Standard.

In addition to the specific fund provider, you need to assess the underlying make-up of your investment. For example, think about whether you want to invest in an individual mutual fund, or if you want to benefit from a more diversified and hand-off approach.

The likes of IG, for example, offers a Smart Portfolio tool that creates a basket of funds based on your stated financial goals and tolerance of risk. Fineco offers a similar feature, which is a great way to find an investment strategy that meets your requirements.

Fees

All investments attract fees. In the case of the mutual fund apps UK, there are several fees in particular that you need to check before proceeding.

This includes:

Dealing Fee

In a similar nature to buying stocks, some providers will charge you a dealing fee every time you buy or sell a mutual fund. In many cases, this is a flat fee that remains constant irrespective of how much you invest.

For example, Degiro charges a mutual fund dealing fee of €7.50 + 0.10% per investment. This means that if you invest £1,000 into the mutual fund of your choosing, you will pay €7.50 + £1. You will again need to pay the aforementioned dealing fee when you exit your mutual fund investment.

In other cases, you might need to pay a variable dealing fee. This is expressed as a percentage and multiplied by the amount you invest or sell. For example, if the dealing fee on mutual funds amounts to 0.2% and you invest £5,000 – this would amount to £10.

One of the popular mutual fund apps UK – eToro, charges 0% in dealing fees.

Platform Fee

Even the most popular mutual fund apps UK charge a platform fee. Otherwise referred to an annual maintenance fee, this is charged against the amount you have invested on the platform.

For example, Fineco charges a platform fee of 0.25% per year. Therefore, if you had £10,000 invested, your annual platform fee would amount to £25. Degiro, on the other hand, charges a ‘service fee’ of 0.20% on most of its funds. This works in the same way a platform or maintenance fee, albeit, under a different name.

Once again, the mutual funds app UK that we have discussed today – eToro, charges nothing in platform fees. As such, you can keep your fund investment on the platform for as long as you wish without needing to hand over unnecessary charges.

Expense Ratio

While mutual fund apps UK like eToro allow you to avoid both dealing fees and platform fees, expense ratios cannot be avoided. Crucially, this fee is charged by the respective mutual fund. In turn, this fee is passed from your chosen app provider on to you.

The expense ration covers a variety of individual fees, such as:

• Portfolio Management: It is important to remember that mutual funds allow you to invest passively, insofar that they buy and sell assets on your behalf. As such, the fund provider will charge a portfolio management fee to cover the costs of actively managing your money.
• Administration: You also need to consider the costs of administration tasks – such as collecting deposits, brokerage fees, and providing customer support.
• Distribution: When you invest in a mutual fund, you usually receive a dividend payment every three months. Once again, this attracts certain fees.

The good news is that mutual fund apps UK will build all of the above costs into a single fee – the expense ratio. This is expressed as a percentage rate- much like the previously discussed platform fee.

The specific fee that you pay will vary from fund to fund and your chosen brokerage app has no control over this.

Trading Tools & Features

We found that mutual fund apps UK offer a number of features to assist in the investment decision-making process.

This includes:

Financial Goal Assessment

Make no mistake about it – there are thousands of funds to invest in from the comfort of your home. Each fund will have a different strategy in place – meaning the risks involved can vary quite considerably. This can make it challenging to know which mutual fund to invest in.

With this in mind, mutual fund apps UK assist you in finding a suitable investment that meets your needs. This isn’t financial advice, rather, the app will ask you a set of questions to assess what your financial goals are.

More specifically, the app will seek to understand how much risk you feel comfortable taking to reach your investment objectives. Then, you will be presented with a range of mutual fund options that are likely aligned with your stated goals.

Copy Trading

The main drawback of investing in a mutual fund is that you have no control over where your money goals. This will suit many investors that simply want to take a hands-off approach. But, there might come a time where you want to invest in a specific asset that your chosen fund has no interest in buying.

If you are someone that wants to invest passively but you still want to retain control over where your money goes, it might be worth considering the eToro Copy Trading feature. As we briefly covered earlier, this allows you to choose an experienced trader and then not only mirror their portfolio but copy all future trades.

You can still add assets to your eToro portfolio. For example, you might decide to buy a few shares in BP or Tesla or even invest in gold. Additionally, you can manually remove assets that your chosen trader has purchased – should they not align with your financial goals.

Fractional Investing

We would also consider using a mutual fund app that supports fractional ownership. In simple terms, this means that you can invest in a fund without needing to meet the minimum stipulated by the respective provider. For example, if you were to invest in a fund directly with Vanguard, you will need to meet a minimum deposit of £500.

Although this might be fine for many investors in the UK, it won’t be if you are on a trading budget. As such, by using a provider like eToro – which supports fractional ownership, you can invest in funds from just $50 – or about £40.

Payment Methods

If you are looking to access all account features on your chosen trading app – then you’ll want to be able to deposit funds at the click of a button.

We found that popular mutual fund apps UK allow you to make an instant deposit with a debit or credit card. eToro goes one step further by also supporting instant deposits via Paypal, Neteller, and Skrill. It’s also useful if your chosen mutual fund app supports mobile payments – such as Apple Pay and Google Pay.

We did, however, come across plenty of mutual fund apps that only support bank transfers – such as Fineco and Degiro. This means that you will need to manually transfer funds from your bank account. Not only is this cumbersome, but it can take several days for the mutual fund app to credit the deposit.

Customer Service

Finally, check to see what the customer support department is like on your chosen trading app. For example, explore whether the app offers support around the clock, or only during standard market hours. It’s also important that you are able to speak with a customer service representative directly from within the app.

In order to do this, the provider must support Live Chat. This is something offered by eToro 24 hours per day, Monday to Friday. Unfortunately, most mutual fund apps only offer assistance via email or support tickets. This means that you might need to wait a number of days before you receive a reply on your query.

How to Download a Mutual Funds App UK & Start Trading

Are you looking to get started with a mutual funds app UK right now, but need a little bit of guidance? If so, the walkthrough below will show you how to complete the process with a FCA-regulated broker in less than 10 minutes.

Step 1: Visit the Website and Open an Account

We discussed the importance of regulation earlier in this guide. As a means to safeguard all investors, FCA brokerage apps will ask you to go through a quick account opening process.

Firstly, visit the website and click on ‘Join Now’. You will then be prompted to enter some personal information – such as your name, UK address, date of birth, national insurance number, and email. You’ll also need to provide and confirm your UK mobile number.

Next, it’s time to quickly complete the KYC (Know Your Customer) process.

This will require you to upload a copy of your:

• Passport or driver’s license
• Utility bill or bank account statement issued within the last 3 months

You can upload the above documents later and still proceed with an investment, but you won’t be able to deposit more than $2,250 or make a withdrawal until you do.

Step 2: Download the App

Now that you’ve opened an account, you can proceed to download the app. To do this safely and ensure you are downloading he official application, obtain the link directly from the broker.

do is click on your operating system (iOS or Android) and the platform will redirect you to the official app store page for your respective device.

Step 3: Log In

Once you have downloaded the app, log in with the username and password that you created during the registration process.

Step 4: Deposit Funds

Before you can invest in a fund, you’ll need to make a deposit.

If you want your deposit processed instantly, choose from one fo the payment methods listed below:

• Debit Card
• Credit Card
• Paypal
• Neteller
• Skrill

If you want to deposit funds via a UK bank transfer – you can. However, this will delay the process by several days. Plus, you’ll need to manually complete the transfer through your online or mobile banking account.

Step 5: Invest in a Fund

As soon as your account has been funded, you can invest in a fund.

To do this, you can search for the specific fund – if you already know which provider you want to go with.

Alternatively, you can click on the ‘Trade Markets’ button and find a fund that meets your requirements.

Once you know which fund you want to invest in, click on the ‘Trade’ button. This will populate an order form.

All you need to do is specify how much you wish to invest in the fund. The minimum on most funds is just $50.

Finally, click on the ‘Open Trade’ button to complete your commission-free fund investment!

Conclusion

In conclusion, this guide has reviewed the UK mutual fund apps to consider in 2022. All of the providers that we have discussed are regulated, offer heaps of markets, and competitive fees. This ensures that irrespective of which mutual fund app you go with – you can invest in a safe and low-cost environment.

With that said, we found that eToro is the best mutual fund app UK in the market right now. This FCA and FSCS provider allows you to invest without paying any commission, dealing fees, or platform charges. Plus, you can invest from just $50 into your chosen fund and getting started takes just 10 minutes!

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