Stock Broker Fees

Ok, so we’ve got to the boring bit. But it’s also arguably the most important bit as you’ll need to know why your money seems to vanish as quickly as its made. Grab a latte, turn on a bright light or just open a window – we’ve summarised the most important points so you’ll really only need to stay awake for a few paragraphs. 

Your stockbroker provides information and data on companies, as well as an online account to buy or sell shares and monitor your investments. It’s a great service but it doesn’t come for free. There are, unfortunately, numerous charges to be aware of (oy vey!)

Dealing Fee… Ranging from £5 – £13 charged every time you buy or sell (aka 'trade') via your online account (and higher if you trade over the phone).

Spread Fee… The difference between the sell and buy price, like a ‘middle-man’ fee. For example, say you can buy Waitrose shares at 265p (or £2.65) but at the same time you could sell them at 264p the difference between the prices is 1p. This doesn’t sound like much but if you buy 1000 shares it’s a cost of £10.

Annual Account Fee…Ranging from a zero to £50 fixed-fee or a percentage of your total investments. 

Here’s the good news: If you’re planning on buying and holding shares for a few years the trading fees won’t add up to much. To make life easier, MOXI has compared the fees of the largest UK brokers and selected the best.