Fidelity Personal Investing
Best for fund investors, pension savers and parents — a strong all-rounder that's cheaper than HL with nearly as much choice
Fees & Charges
| Platform fee | 0.35% per year (under £250k); 0.20% per year (£250k–£1m); 0.20% on first £1m then free (£1m+); £7.50/month flat fee if under £25k without regular savings plan. Capped at £7.50/month (£90/year) for shares/ETFs in ISA or SIPP. |
| Dealing fee | Funds: free to buy, sell and switch. Shares online: £7.50. Shares via regular savings plan: £1.50. Shares by phone: £30. |
| Fund fee | No dealing charges on funds. Ongoing fund charges set by fund managers start from 0.05%. Fidelity negotiates discounted charges on hundreds of funds. |
| Min investment | ISA: £1,000 lump sum or £25/month. SIPP: £800 lump sum or £20/month. Junior ISA: £100 lump sum or £25/month. |
Pros
Cons
Account Types
Comparing JISA providers? See our Junior ISA hub for the full tax-free child savings guide and side-by-side platform comparison.
Key Features
Fidelity Personal Investing Review 2026: Free Fund Dealing in a World That Just Started Charging for It
Published 13 February 2026
Hargreaves Lansdown started charging £1.95 to buy a fund. AJ Bell charges £5.00. Interactive investor charges £3.99. Fidelity charges nothing. In the six weeks since HL ended free fund dealing, Fidelity has become the last major platform where you can buy, sell, and switch funds at zero cost — and the timing couldn't be better for the 1.7 million customers who already trust it with over £40 billion.
The platform fee is 0.35% up to £250,000, dropping to 0.20% above that. That's the same headline rate as HL now — but HL tacks on dealing charges. Junior ISAs and Junior SIPPs incur no service fees at all. The SIPP — named Which? Recommended Provider six years running — includes pension drawdown with no extra charges. And Fidelity negotiates discounted ongoing fund charges on hundreds of funds, a quiet cost advantage that compounds for decades.
This review walks through exactly what Fidelity costs in pounds — not percentages — for every portfolio size, identifies who wins from the platform and who gets burned by the £7.50/month flat-fee trap, and explains why free fund dealing matters more than ever now that the competition has abandoned it.
The Fee Structure, In Pounds Not Percentages
Fidelity's service fee is percentage-based with two critical exceptions:
| Portfolio value | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Under £25,000 (with regular savings plan) | 0.35% | Must set up £25+/month direct debit |
| Under £25,000 (without regular savings plan) | £90 (£7.50/month) | Effective rate on £5,000 = 1.8% — avoid |
| £25,000–£249,999 | 0.35% | Standard rate |
| £250,000–£999,999 | 0.20% | Plus Wealth Management Service benefits |
| £1,000,000+ | 0.20% on first £1m, then free | Maximum £2,000/year across all accounts |
For shares, ETFs, and investment trusts held in an ISA or SIPP, the service fee is capped at £90/year (£7.50/month). No service fee at all on shares in a General Investment Account. No service fee on Junior ISAs or Junior SIPPs — full stop.
Dealing fees:
- Funds: free — buy, sell, switch. This is Fidelity's strongest card.
- Shares online: £7.50
- Shares via regular savings plan: £1.50
- Shares by phone: £30
At first glance, Fidelity and HL now look identical on platform fees — both charge 0.35% dropping to 0.20% at £250,000. AJ Bell undercuts both at 0.25%. ii's Core plan at £5.99/month pulls ahead above about £25,000 for fund-only investors.
But platform fees are only half the story. The dealing charges change everything — and that's where Fidelity's free fund dealing becomes decisive.
Free Fund Dealing: The Gap That Just Got Wider
In mid-2026, HL introduced a £1.95 charge for fund purchases and sales. AJ Bell charges £5.00 per fund deal (though regular monthly investing is free). ii Core charges £3.99. Fidelity charges nothing for fund dealing — buy, sell, or switch.
For an investor making 12 monthly fund purchases a year, here's what dealing adds to the platform cost at each provider:
- Fidelity: £0 in dealing charges — fund investing costs exactly the platform fee
- HL: £23.40/year in dealing charges (£1.95 × 12) on top of the 0.35% platform fee
- AJ Bell: £0/year if using free regular investing; £60/year if making ad-hoc fund purchases
- ii Core: £47.88/year in dealing charges (£3.99 × 12) on top of the £71.88 annual fee
On a £50,000 portfolio of funds with regular monthly investing:
- Fidelity: £175 platform + £0 dealing = £175 all-in
- HL: £175 platform + £23.40 dealing = £198.40
- AJ Bell (regular investing): £125 platform + £0 dealing = £125
- ii Core: £71.88 platform + £47.88 dealing = £119.76
AJ Bell and ii still win on pure cost for fund investors who use regular investing. But Fidelity's gap to HL — previously nonexistent on platform fees — is now £23.40/year wider, entirely from dealing charges. Over 20 years, that's £468 in saved dealing costs alone, before compounding.
For fund investors who trade more actively — rebalancing quarterly, switching between funds, making ad-hoc lump sum investments — Fidelity's free dealing pulls further ahead. Ten fund trades a year at HL costs £19.50. At AJ Bell, £50. At Fidelity, zero. Every time.
The £90 Trap — and the Simple Fix
If you hold less than £25,000 with Fidelity and haven't set up a regular savings plan, you pay £7.50/month — £90/year. On a £5,000 ISA, that's an effective 1.8%. On £10,000, it's 0.90%. Either way, you're paying more than you would at AJ Bell, Vanguard, or Dodl.
The fix takes two minutes: set up a direct debit for £25/month into any investment. That qualifies you for the 0.35% rate, reducing your cost on that £5,000 ISA from £90 to £17.50. You can change or cancel the direct debit later if you want, though keeping it running is the easiest way to stay on the percentage rate.
Fidelity doesn't hide this — it's documented on the charges page — but plenty of investors miss it. The platform collects fees monthly from a separate Cash Management Account (CMA), a holding account that exists purely to pay your service fee without touching your tax-wrapped ISA or SIPP investments. If the CMA runs dry, Fidelity sells down holdings to cover the fee — largest fund first. Keep a few pounds in the CMA to avoid this.
Over 3,000 Funds — and the Select 50 That Cut Through the Noise
Fidelity's investment range is broad: 3,000+ funds, 2,000+ UK and international shares, ETFs, and investment trusts. Unlike Vanguard, which restricts you to 85 own-brand funds, Fidelity opens up the full market — Fundsmith, Lindsell Train, Vanguard LifeStrategy, Legal & General trackers, and fund houses you've never heard of are all on the shelf.
The Select 50 is Fidelity's curated shortlist — 50 funds across all major asset classes and investment styles, picked by their research team. It includes familiar heavyweights alongside Fidelity's own funds. For investors overwhelmed by 3,000 options, the Select 50 is a credible starting point.
Navigator generates diversified fund ideas based on your goals and risk appetite. Ready-made ISA puts you into a single diversified Fidelity fund after a few questions. Retirement Builder does the same for pensions. And Freya, the AI-powered assistant, answers investing questions and helps navigate the platform — useful for newer investors who want quick answers without scrolling through fund factsheets.
A quiet advantage: Fidelity negotiates discounted ongoing charges on hundreds of funds. Some discounts are baked into the fund's standard charge (you pay less automatically). Others are rebated quarterly. A fund charging 0.75% OCF elsewhere might cost 0.65% on Fidelity. Over 20 years on a £100,000 portfolio, that 0.10% difference compounds to roughly £3,700.
FX charges on international shares are tiered (0.75% first £10k, 0.50% £10-20k, 0.25% above £20k). On a £15,000 US share purchase, the FX cost is £100 (£75 + £25) plus the £7.50 dealing fee — £107.50 total. That's competitive but not class-leading. For heavy US equity traders, Interactive Brokers or Trading 212 offer cheaper FX.
Junior Accounts: The Feature No Other Major Platform Matches
Zero service fees on Junior ISAs and Junior SIPPs. No monthly charges. No percentage fees. No dealing charges on funds. Nothing.
No other major platform matches this. Vanguard charges £4/month or 0.15%. ii requires a Plus plan (£14.99/month) just to open a Junior ISA. AJ Bell charges 0.25% (capped at £42/year for shares). Hargreaves Lansdown has no platform charge on Junior ISAs — but charges £1.95 per fund deal, which chips away at the free-status claim. Fidelity: £0 platform, £0 dealing, period.
The Junior ISA allowance is £9,000 per year. Invest the full allowance annually for 18 years at a 6% return and the pot reaches roughly £317,000. The fee saving versus Vanguard (£48/year) totals £864 over those 18 years — plus compound growth on the saved fees, which adds another £700 or so. Versus ii Plus (£179.88/year), the saving exceeds £3,200 before compounding.
The Junior SIPP is equally fee-free — unusual for a children's pension product. If you're starting a pension for a child (up to £2,880/year, topped up to £3,600 with tax relief), Fidelity is the lowest-cost option by a wide margin.
For parents and grandparents investing for children, this single feature makes Fidelity the default choice. Pair the free account with the Select 50 and Navigator tools, and you have a zero-cost, guided investing setup for the next generation.
The SIPP: Six Years of Awards and a Clean Fee Structure
Fidelity's SIPP has been named Which? Recommended Provider six years running — the longest current streak among major UK platforms. The clean fee structure explains why:
- 0.35% service fee up to £250,000, 0.20% above
- Share fee capped at £90/year
- Free fund dealing
- Pension drawdown included at no extra charge
- No exit fees
- No charges for arranging death benefits
- No triviality payment fees
- No pension-splitting-on-divorce fees
Compare that to providers who charge £100-£300/year for drawdown administration alone. The FCA's investment pathway rules ensure providers offer clear retirement options — Fidelity implements them without layering extra fees on top.
The SIPP cost picture is nuanced. AJ Bell's 0.25% is cheapest for portfolios below £250,000. ii Core at £5.99/month beats Fidelity above about £25,000 — until £100,000 when ii forces an upgrade to Plus at £14.99/month, at which point Fidelity pulls ahead again. At £250,000+, Fidelity's 0.20% rate and free fund dealing make it the best-value SIPP for fund investors who value a platform that won't force an upgrade on them.
For more on choosing the right SIPP, see our pensions hub.
Where Fidelity Falls Short
No Lifetime ISA. Like Vanguard and ii, Fidelity doesn't offer a LISA. The 25% government bonus is only available through other providers — Dodl, AJ Bell, and Moneybox are among the cheaper options. HL also offers a LISA, which gives it an edge for first-time buyers under 40.
Share dealing at £7.50 is uncompetitive. If you trade individual shares more than occasionally, ii's £3.99 (Core plan), Freetrade's £0, or Trading 212's £0 are better. HL has actually become cheaper for share dealing at £6.95 — Fidelity is now more expensive than HL for occasional share trades. Fidelity is built for fund investors — share trading is an add-on, not the main event.
The website and app are functional, not impressive. They work — you can find funds, execute trades, and manage accounts. But the interface hasn't kept pace with newer platforms. The fund research tools are solid, but the overall experience feels a generation behind Freetrade or InvestEngine.
Cash interest on uninvested balances trails the market. Fidelity retains some interest from partner banks to fund platform services and keep fees low. The rate paid to investors is published but typically well below what you'd get in a dedicated savings account. This is a conscious trade-off — lower cash rates fund lower investment fees.
The Wealth Management Service at £250,000+ is a genuine benefit (dedicated adviser, tailored portfolio reviews), but it also marks the point where Fidelity starts competing with full-service wealth managers rather than DIY platforms. At that level, you should be comparing costs against discretionary management, not against ii and AJ Bell.
Fidelity vs the Competition: A Head-to-Head Summary
| Feature | Fidelity | HL | AJ Bell | Vanguard | ii Core |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform fee | 0.35% (>£25k) | 0.35% (max) | 0.25% | £4/mo or 0.15% | £5.99/mo |
| Fund dealing | Free | £1.95 | £5.00* | Free | £3.99 |
| Share dealing | £7.50 | £6.95 | £5.00 | £7.50 (ETF) | £3.99 |
| Junior ISA fee | Free | Free** | 0.25% | £4/mo or 0.15% | Plus plan |
| LISA | No | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| SIPP drawdown fee | Free | Free | £120/yr | Free | Free |
| Min lump sum | ISA £1,000 | £100 | £500 | £500 | £0 |
| Fund range | 3,000+ | 3,000+ | 4,000+ | 85 own-brand | 40,000+ |
*AJ Bell offers free regular monthly investing — dealing charge only applies to ad-hoc fund purchases. **HL has no platform charge on Junior ISAs but charges £1.95 per fund deal.
Fidelity's edge in mid-2026 is narrower than it was a year ago — HL closed the platform fee gap — but the combination of free fund dealing and genuinely free junior accounts still distinguishes it. No other platform offers both. AJ Bell is cheaper on platform fees but charges for fund dealing. HL matches on platform fees but charges for fund dealing. ii Core is cheaper above £25,000 but charges for fund dealing and doesn't include junior accounts.
If you buy and hold funds, use regular investing, and want a platform you won't outgrow, Fidelity remains the best-value mainstream option.
Important Information
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. You should seek independent financial advice before making any investment decisions. The value of investments can go down as well as up, and you may get back less than you invest. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change. ISA and pension rules can change. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Fidelity Personal Investing is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (firm reference 122169). Investments are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £85,000 per eligible person. Cash deposits held with Fidelity's banking partners are covered up to £120,000 per person per authorised institution.
Conclusion
Fidelity won't win design awards. The app isn't flashy. The website looks like it was built by people who care more about fund factsheets than CSS. But the investment case for Fidelity has, paradoxically, strengthened — not because Fidelity changed anything, but because the competition did.
HL started charging for fund dealing. AJ Bell always did. ii's flat fee model is cheaper at scale but more expensive for smaller portfolios and charges dealing fees on every fund trade. In a market where fund dealing costs are creeping upward, Fidelity's refusal to charge for it has gone from a nice-to-have to the defining feature of the platform.
The ideal Fidelity customer has a portfolio between £25,000 and £250,000, invests primarily in funds, and values the Select 50 guidance and free junior accounts. Below £25,000, set up a £25/month direct debit to avoid the £90 flat fee — two minutes of admin that saves up to £72.50 a year. Above £250,000, the 0.20% rate and Wealth Management Service benefits kick in, and you should benchmark against full-service alternatives.
For pure index fund simplicity at smaller pots, [Vanguard](/platforms/vanguard) remains slightly cheaper. For active share traders, Fidelity's £7.50 per trade is uncompetitive — and even HL is now cheaper for share dealing at £6.95. For the cheapest all-in cost on a fund portfolio, AJ Bell's 0.25% platform fee with free regular investing is hard to beat — provided you're disciplined enough to stick to the monthly schedule. But for the fund investor who wants range, guidance, a platform they can grow with for decades, and zero dealing charges on every single fund trade — Fidelity is the standout choice.
Sources
Frequently Asked Questions
This review is based on publicly available information from the platform's website. Fees and features may change — always verify on the platform's website before making investment decisions. GiltEdge is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This is not regulated financial advice. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.