Buy and trade 13,000+ shares online
Buy or trade shares with a leading provider – your way. Choose between long-term investing and day-to-day trading on our award-winning platforms.1
Call 0800 195 3100 or email newaccounts.uk@ig.com to talk about opening an account.
Contact us 0800 195 3100
Get info fast via our instant help and support portal. Available for account queries, ProRealTime, product info and more.
Visit help and support for more information.
Get info fast via our instant help and support portal. Available for account queries, ProRealTime, product info and more.
Visit help and support for more information.
Call 0800 409 6789 or email helpdesk.uk@ig.com if you have any questions about trading or investing. We’re available from 9am to 5pm (UK time), Monday to Friday.
Contact us 0800 409 6789
Call 0800 195 3100 or email newaccounts.uk@ig.com to talk about opening an account.
Contact us 0800 195 3100
Get info fast via our instant help and support portal. Available for account queries, ProRealTime, product info and more.
Visit help and support for more information.
Get info fast via our instant help and support portal. Available for account queries, ProRealTime, product info and more.
Visit help and support for more information.
Call 0800 409 6789 or email helpdesk.uk@ig.com if you have any questions about trading or investing. We’re available from 9am to 5pm (UK time), Monday to Friday.
Contact us 0800 409 6789
Invest in shares online and own a piece of the brands you love
Buy and own shares in companies with our share dealing account
Hold shares and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as part of your long-term investment strategy
Receive dividend payments and shareholder voting rights (if they’re granted)
Make the most of your annual tax-free allowance with our share dealing individual savings account (ISA)2
Investing in shares with us: what’s in it for you?
Zero commission
You’ll pay no commission on US shares and only £3.00 on UK shares,3 with an FX conversion fee of just 0.5%
13,000+ shares to invest in
Buy shares like Amazon, Apple, Tesla and Netflix, plus popular exchange-traded funds and trusts
Longer market hours
Our exclusive out-of-hours offering gives you access to 70+ US shares when the market is closed
Faster execution
Execution in less than half a second,4 giving your position every possible chance to play out as you intended
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£0 commission on US stocks
Pay zero commission on US, European and Australian shares
Start investing in your future today
£0 commission on US stocks
Pay zero commission on US, European and Australian shares
Start investing in your future today
Trade shares online without buying stock outright
Use our US options and futures account to take long, short and non-directional options positions5
Speculate on rising or falling prices on leverage using spread bets and contracts for difference (CFDs)6
Take a position on shares over the short or medium term without buying physical shares7
Get benefits related to stamp duty and capital gains tax (CGT)2
Trading shares with us: what’s in it for you?
Lower margins
Gain full exposure for just 20-25% of spread bet and CFD position sizes with our low margins8
Less tax
Pay no stamp duty; no CGT on spread bets; offset listed options and CFD losses for CGT liabilities2
17,000+ shares to trade
Get exposure to a wide range of popular UK, US and international stocks
Longer market hours
Take out-of-hours positions on over 70 US stocks, exclusively with us
Market news at a glance
Shares
-
FTSE 100 and Dow slightly under pressure
FTSE 100 and Dow slightly under pressure following Friday’s low volume holiday season sell-off.2024-12-30T08:58:42+0000 -
EUR/USD, GBP/USD range trade in low volatility and volume
2024-12-30T08:38:00+0000 -
What key factors will shape Wall Street's trajectory in 2025?
2024-12-30T04:14:44+0000
Live prices on popular shares
- US tech stocks
- EV and battery stocks
- AI and robotics stocks
- Popular UK stocks
Prices above are subject to our website terms and conditions, and are indicative only.
Prices above are subject to our website terms and conditions, and are indicative only.
Prices above are applicable to leveraged trading and are subject to our website terms and conditions. Prices are indicative only. All share prices are delayed by at least 15 minutes.
Open an account now
*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.
Open an account now
Fast execution on a huge range of markets
Enjoy flexible access to 17,000+ global markets, with reliable execution
Deal seamlessly, wherever you are
Trade on the move with our natively designed, award-winning trading app
Feel secure with a trusted provider
With 50 years of experience, we’re proud to offer a truly market-leading service
*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.
Open an account now
Open an account now
Fast execution on a huge range of markets
Enjoy flexible access to 17,000+ global markets, with reliable execution
Deal seamlessly, wherever you are
Trade on the move with our natively designed, award-winning trading app
Feel secure with a trusted provider
With 50 years of experience, we’re proud to offer a truly market-leading service
With us, you can open a demo account for spread betting and CFD trading.
We offer more ways to buy and trade shares
|
What you can do |
How you can do it |
Duration of exposure |
Charges |
Share dealing |
Buy and sell stocks, ETFs, and investment trusts |
Via a general investment account (share dealing account) or share dealing ISA |
Typically, medium to long term (popular among active investors) |
Best commission from £0*3 |
US-listed options and futures |
Buy and sell shares of stocks and ETFs;7 trade stocks, ETFs, indices, and more |
Through our listed options and futures account |
Usually traded over the medium term (except when taking ownership of shares, which is commonly medium to long term)7 |
Stocks and ETFs are commission free; $1.00 commission to open per options contract; $0 commission to close per options contract; commissions capped at $10.00 per leg (ie one part of a multi-component trade) for equity and ETF options9,10 |
Spread betting |
Trade shares, ETFs, indices and more |
Spread betting account: |
Generally traded over the short to medium term |
The spread, and overnight fees on spot trading |
CFD trading |
Trade shares, ETFs, indices and more |
CFD trading account: |
Commonly traded over the short to medium term |
Commission, and overnight fees on spot trading |
Investing vs trading stocks: the differences
While the terms are often used interchangeably, there’s a significant difference between ‘share dealing’ (investing) and ‘share trading’. When investing via a share dealing account or a US options and futures account, you can buy stock outright –7 this makes you a shareholder. You’ll only profit if you sell the shares at a higher price, but you could also receive dividend payments.
When trading shares using spread bets, CFDs and US options and futures, you speculate on price movement without ever owning the stock. You can make a profit if you correctly predict the direction of the market, but you’ll incur a loss if it moves against your position.
Beat the crowd: buy IPO shares before other retail investors
Initial public offering (IPO) stocks give you the opportunity to buy shares in companies that have just listed. We're the only UK provider that gives you the opportunity to take a position pre-IPO, participate in the IPO and trade the stock once it's fully listed.11
Beat the crowd: buy IPO shares before other retail investors
Initial public offering (IPO) stocks give you the opportunity to buy shares in companies that have just listed. We're the only UK provider that gives you the opportunity to take a position pre-IPO, participate in the IPO and trade the stock once it's fully listed.11
Stockbroking costs and details
- Investing (share dealing) costs
- Trading costs
Commission from £0 on US stocks and £3.00 on UK shares3
Currency conversion fee of 0.5% on international shares
You’ll be exempt from paying the quarterly custody fee if you:
-Hold only cash in your account;
-Deal three or more times in your share dealing account during the quarter; or
-Hold investments worth £15,000.00 or more across your IG Smart Portfolio accounts at the end of the quarter
US options and futures:7
-From $1.00 per contract to open and no commission charge to close options positions
-Equity and ETF options opening commission capped at $10.00 per leg
-From $0.85 commission per contract to open and close a futures position, each waySpread betting: commission-free; you’ll pay a spread, ie the difference between the bid and ask prices that varies based on on market conditions
CFD trading: opening and closing commission from £10.00 on UK shares and from $15.00 on US shares, each way
Trade shares online, wherever you are
Seize your opportunity on the world’s best web-based platform and mobile trading app.1
- Web-based platform
- Mobile trading app
- L2 Dealer
Seize your opportunity with clear price charts, in-platform news, analysis, and more across our account types.
Take a position wherever you are, receive trading alerts and analyse price action with charting tools across our account types.
Invest in shares or trade share CFDs directly through the order books of major exchanges with our direct market access (DMA) platform.
FAQs
What is share investing and share trading?
With us, ‘investing’ in shares means buying and taking ownership of a company or ETF’s shares. ’Share trading’, on the other hand, means speculating on share prices without owning the shares themselves. Learn more about what shares are and how they work.
How do you start buying shares?
With us, you can start buying shares via a share dealing account or a US options and futures account. In a US options and futures account, you’ll take physical delivery of shares if your listed options position expires in the money. As an options holder, you avoid this by closing your position before the expiration date or putting in a do not exercise (DNE) request with us. Short options positions can be assigned before the expiry date.7
If you want to trade shares, you can open a US options and futures, spread betting or CFD trading account. It’s important to take steps to manage your risk when investing and trading. One of the ways in which you can plan ahead is by doing research on the company or the ETF you’re interested in before opening a position.
What is DMA in shares trading?
DMA in shares trading is our direct market access offering that enables you to trade shares with no dealer intervention, full market depth and access to dark liquidity pools, using either share CFDs or our share dealing platform.
How many shares and ETFs can I invest in and trade with IG?
You can invest in and trade over 17,000 international shares and 5,400 ETFs with us. This includes some of the world’s most popular shares, such as Amazon, Apple, Tesla and Netflix.
Is there a minimum deposit to open a position?
There is no minimum deposit when opening a position on your share dealing, listed options and futures, CFD trading or spread betting account. To get started with Smart Portfolios, however, you’ll need to deposit £500.00.
There’s a minimum deposit amount for cards – £250.00 for deposits in pounds and $50.00 for deposits in US dollars. No minimum applies for bank deposits. When withdrawing funds, it could take up to five business days for the funds to reflect in your bank account.
When trading in a US options and futures account, you’ll be limited on what you can trade based on your account type and available buying power.
How can I withdraw funds?
You can withdraw funds for free from your accounts at any time. When trading in a US options and futures account, you’ll pay a currency conversion fee of 0.5% for deposits and withdrawals, respectively (if your bank account isn’t in USD or if you want to convert it to another currency that’s not USD).
Which platforms can I use to trade stocks?
You can trade stocks using our web platforms, mobile apps, or L2 Dealer (DMA) platform.
Can I invest in an ISA?
Yes, you can invest in an ISA with us. To do this, open a share dealing account or Smart Portfolio and add an ISA on the My IG the platform.
Can I go short on stocks?
Yes, you can go short on stocks in a US options and futures margin account, a CFD trading account or a spread betting account. This way, you can speculate on falling share prices. Remember that leveraged trading will amplify profits and losses, always take care to manage your risk.6
In a US option and futures margin account, you’re subject to the risk of assignment if you’re the seller (or 'writer') of an options position that’s in the money.7 There’s still a possibility of assignment on short options that are out of the money or at the money – if it’s in the money, the risk of assignment is higher.
Can I trade shares out of hours?
Yes, you can trade 70+ US shares out of hours with us.
Try these next
Get access to over 13,000 markets when investing and more than 17,000 markets when trading.
Discover the different platforms you can use to trade with us and how their capabilities can enhance your trading.
Explore the types of markets that you can trade with us and which products you can use to get exposure.
*£0 commission on all US stocks runs from 14 October and ends at midnight on 22 November 2024. Once the promotion ends, the usual fees will apply. IG reserves the right to amend the terms of the promotion at any time.
1 Best platform for the active trader, best multi-platform provider and best finance app as awarded at the ADVFN International Financial Awards 2024. Best share dealing platform as awarded at the Your Money Investment Finance Awards 2023. Tastytrade, who we’ve partnered with to bring you listed options and futures from My IG, was awarded the best options trading platform at the 2024 ADVFN International Finance Awards. It was ranked the best overall options trading platform of 2024 by Investopedia. The criteria, evaluation, and ranking were determined by Investopedia. tastytrade is the No.1 desktop options trading platform and the no.1 desktop futures trading platform as awarded at the 2024 StockBrokers.com annual awards.
2 Tax laws are subject to change and depend on individual circumstances. Tax law may differ in a jurisdiction other than the UK.
3 Trade in your share dealing account three or more times in the previous month to qualify for our best commission rates. Please note published rates are valid up to £25,000.00 notional value. See our list of share dealing charges and fees.
4 Based on IG Group's OTC data (July – August 2024), our execution speed (submission to execution) can be as fast as 0.03.
5 You can trade US listed options in a margin or cash account. When you trade in a margin account, you’ll have more strategies available to you – eg selling naked call options and defined-risk options spreads. Options positions aren’t fully cash-secured (eg you aren’t necessarily required to put up the buying power in full upfront) in a margin account. In a cash account, options trading is non-margin able (ie you can’t borrow cash to establish positions, so you’ll commit the full value of your trade upfront).
6 Leveraged products are complex financial instruments, with which an upfront deposit – called margin or buying power – is used to open a larger trade. Your margin will only be worth a certain percentage of your trade, but potential profits and losses will be calculated based on the total position size, not your margin. This makes leveraged trading inherently risky and should never be approached without a trading strategy and adequate risk management in place.
7 At expiration, most options contracts are automatically converted into the relevant underlying if they’re in the money (eg 100 long or short shares of a stock), ie physical settlement. The options holder can avoid physical settlement by closing the trade before expiry or putting in a DNE request with us. If the option is out of the money at expiration, it’ll expire worthless. If you’re the seller (or 'writer') of an options position that’s in the money, you may have to buy or sell the full amount of the underlying asset to fulfil the contract’s terms – this is called ‘assignment’. The risk of assignment doesn’t only apply to the expiration date only, like when trading European-style options – American-style options carry this risk even before expiry.
8 Deposits for leveraged trades are 20-25% on 99.11% of tier one UK shares.
9 The base currency for trading on our US options and futures platform is USD. We auto-convert deposits in a different currency to USD and we automatically convert any realised profit, loss, funding, dividend adjustments or commission to your base currency. We charge a currency conversion fee of 0.5% for deposits and withdrawals, respectively.
10 Applicable exchange, clearing, and regulatory fees still apply to all trades. Some additional applicable commissions are capped at $10 per leg on equity option trades. The following index and futures products are excluded from the capped commissions offer: SPX, RUT, VIX, OEX, XEO, DJX, and XSP. Learn more about our charges.
11 Based on our IPO offering that includes pre-IPO grey markets, primary market access, and trading and investing on the secondary market.
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