Trading 212 Broker Review

Trading 212’s Overall Rating

Trading 212 distinguishes itself with a massive selection of over 1800 financial instruments, including 180 Forex pairs, though it only has a single live commission-free account with a minimum deposit of 10 USD. The broker’s spreads average at 2.40 pips on the EUR/USD, which is uncompetitive, and the maximum leverage available is 30:1.

Trading 212 is unique for its proprietary platform that, while user-friendly, lacks the speed and algorithmic trading capabilities of third-party platforms like MT4 and MT5. Despite offering negative balance protection, its educational and market analysis materials are limited, and customer support is slow, relying on a ticketing system. FxScouts gives Trading 212 a low rating of 3.57 out of 5.

Is Trading 212 Safe?

Yes, Trading212 is a safe broker for South African traders to trade with. It has good regulatory oversight, segregates client funds, and provides traders with negative balance protection

Founded in 2004, Trading212 is regulated by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) Bulgaria, and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CYSEC). Clients from South Africa will be trading through the UK-based subsidiary which has excellent regulatory oversight. FCA regulation ensures that Trading212 segregates its client funds from company funds and provides all traders with negative balance protection. It is also insured by the Investor Compensation Fund up to a maximum of 20,000 EUR per trader should the company be liquidated. On this basis, we consider Trading212 a safe broker for South African clients to trade with. Click here for more details on Trading212’s regulatory oversight.

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Trading Fees

​Trading212’s trading fees are higher than other similar brokers.

Unlike other brokers that offer a range of accounts with higher minimum deposits linked to tighter spreads, Trading 212 only offers a single live commission-free account and a demo account. Trading is only offered on Trading212’s proprietary platform.

Trading 212 has a simple account structure with higher than average trading costs. It states that its revenue is derived from the spread, but it is not transparent about how the spreads are derived.    

Trading212’s accounts were assessed to compare the costs to those of other forex brokers. The costs were evaluated based on the trading fees on one lot (100 000 USD) on the EUR/USD, including the spreads and commission.  

When making this calculation, we used one lot of EUR/USD as a benchmark as it is the most commonly traded currency pair and it usually has the tightest spread.

Trading Cost Formula: Spread x Trade Size + Commission = Cost in Secondary Currency (USD):

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As you can see from the table, the trading costs are built into the spread, which is variable and gets wider or tighter depending on trade volume and market volatility. 

The average cost of trading one lot of EUR/USD is 24 USD, which is much higher than other similar market maker brokers. Most other brokers have an average trading cost of 9 USD on their entry-level accounts. However, its minimum deposit requirement is low, putting it within the reach of most traders. Additionally, Trading212’s primary focus is on stock trading, not CFD trading, which may explain why the spreads are so wide. 

Swap Fees

The other main trading cost to consider is the overnight swap fee. It is determined by the overnight interest rate differential between the two currencies involved in the pair and whether the position is a buy ‘long’ or sell ‘short’. Unfortunately, Trading212’s swap rates are not published on its website, but the following formula can be used to calculate swap rates:

Quantity x Swap Rate (instrument/position) * Number of Nights

Overall, Trading212’s pricing environment is expensive compared to other similar brokers, but its minimum deposit requirements are low. 

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Broker

Trading Conditions

Base Currencies

EURUSD (Standard)

Trading Cost (Standard)

EURUSD (Best)

GBPUSD (Best)

USDJPY (Best)

Commission

Trading 212

3/ 5

GBP, EUR, USD

2.40 pips

USD 24

2.40 pips

4.00 pips

2.80 pips

USD 0

Pepperstone

4.5/ 5

EUR, GBP, USD, AUD, NZD, JPY, CHF, SGD, HKD, CAD

1.00 pips

USD 10

0.10 pips

0.40 pips

0.30 pips

USD 0

AvaTrade

4.5/ 5

USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, ZAR, CHF

0.90 pips

USD 9

0.90 pips

1.60 pips

1.10 pips

USD 0

Trading212’s Non-trading Fees

Trading212’s non-trading fees are higher than other similar brokers.  

Some of the most overlooked trading costs are the non-trading fees that are charged by brokers.  These fees can significantly affect your profitability and so should be carefully scrutinised.

Trading212’s non-trading fees are higher than other similar brokers. For example, traders that fund their accounts via Credit/Debit Cards, Google Plat, Apple Pay, Skrill, iDeal, DotPay, GiroPay, and Sofort, will be charged a fee of 0.7% will after they have deposited more than 2,000 EUR into their accounts.  It also charges currency conversion fees of 0.5%, which is considered high.

Overall, Trading212’s trading fees are significantly higher than other similar brokers.

Opening an Account at Trading212

The account-opening process at Trading212 is easy, hassle-free, and fully digital.

Unfortunately, traders from South Africa will be placed on a waiting list. However, in order to open an account, a minimum deposit of 10 USD will be required.

Creating an account is straightforward, the process is fully digital, and accounts are usually ready within one day.

How to open an account at Trading212:

1. First, click on “Open Account,” where traders will be directed to choose their country of residence. Traders that reside outside of the EEA will be placed on a waiting list while Trading212 increases its capacity. 

2. Trading212’s intake form requires clients to fill in their personal details (including name, country of residence, and birth date). 

3. Clients are then required to fill in their tax number, followed by their residential address.

4. Clients can then choose their preferred base currency, although EUR is the only option at the moment.

5. Once clients have completed their personal details, they will have to outline their financial details.

6. Trading212 requires individuals to submit a copy of their National ID, Passport, or driver’s licence with the signature page, as well as a copy of a recent utility bill or bank statement.  

7. Documents can be scanned or sent through as a high-quality digital camera picture.

8. We advise you to read Trading212’s risk disclosure, customer agreement, and terms of business before you start trading. 

Once all the documents have been received, the account will be ready for trading immediately.  

Overall, Trading212’s account opening process is fast, hassle-free, and fully digital compared to other similar brokers.

Trading212’s Account

Trading212 offers one live account, which is limited compared to other brokers, and its account is suitable for beginner traders.  

Primarily a low-cost stock broker, Trading212 offers an invest account and a CFD trading account that offers trading on Forex, indices, commodities, ETFs, and stocks.  Note that this review will only outline the CFD trading account.

With a single registration, Trading212 clients can open both a real and a demo account, and trading is only offered on Trading212’s proprietary platform. Its Standard Account has a minimum deposit of 10 USD, making it accessible to beginner traders.

We define beginner traders as inexperienced traders who have never traded before or have been trading for less than a year. Beginners often do not want to risk trading large sums of money, and will generally not be able to trade full-time during the workweek. 

In general, experienced traders tend to prefer accounts with higher minimum deposits and tighter spreads, which is not available at Trading212.

Trading212 prohibits scalping and does not support copy trading on its proprietary platform. It does, however, allow hedging.

Under FCA regulation, default leverage is set to a standard “retail” rate of up to 30:1. In order to use more leverage  (up to 1:500), traders will have to upgrade to a Trading212 Professional Account (there are only available for traders who are onboarded through Trading 212 UK Ltd)

To upgrade your account to a Pro you will have to meet at least 2 out of the 3 criteria: 

• You have traded with an average of 10 times in each of the last 4 quarters on CFD or Forex in significant size with Trading 212 and/or other providers.
• You hold an investment portfolio (including cash savings and financial instruments) exceeding 500 000 EUR/GBP.
• You have worked for at least 1 year in the financial sector, in a position that has given you knowledge of CFD trading.

While some brokers may provide the option for an Islamic (swap-free) trading account, at the moment, Trading 212 isn’t offering such service.

See below for account details:

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Standard CFD Account

The minimum deposit requirement to open an account is 10 USD.  Fees are included in the spreads, which average at 2.40 pips on the EUR/USD, which is significantly wider than other similar market maker brokers, but no commissions are charged.

Demo Account

The demo account allows traders to practice trading and get used to the Trading212 platform before depositing real money. The Trading212 platform is different from that of other CFD providers, so it is advisable that new clients take the time to get comfortable with the platform before committing to a deposit. The Trading212 Demo Account has unlimited free access to its wide range portfolio of instruments and the possibility to practice trading аnd investing with a maximum of $50,000 virtual funds. However, more funds can be added to the account.

Deposits and Withdrawals

Trading212 offers a wide range of deposit and withdrawal methods and its processing times are average.

As a regulated broker, Trading 212 makes sure that all Anti-Money Laundering rules and regulations are followed. For a client, this means that deposits can only be made using a bank account or card registered in their name, and no third-party deposits are allowed. Withdrawals must be made to the same account or method where the funds originated.

Trading212 offers a number of payment methods, including bank transfers, credit or debit cards, and various e-wallets. Trading212 does not charge deposit fees or for fees for withdrawals, but if one is funding an account via Credit/Debit Cards, Google Pay, Apple Pay, Skrill, iDeal, DotPay GiroPay, and Sofort, with more than 2,000 EUR, a fee of 0,7% will be charged.  Trading 212’s processing times are average compared to other similar brokers.  See below for more details:

Overall, Trading212 offers a wide range of funding methods, that are free, except if traders deposit over 2000 EUR. Additionally, its processing times are reasonable.

Base Currencies (Trading Account Currencies)

Trading212 only offers trading in EUR, which is very limited compared to other similar brokers. 

Trading212 only allows clients to open trading accounts denominated in EUR. For accounts denominated in other currencies, Trading212 charges a currency conversion fee of 0.5%. 

Having accounts denominated only in EUR is a disadvantage for South African residents who will likely have bank accounts denominated in ZAR. While this may not affect occasional traders, high volume traders (who trade more than 10 lots a month) should consider opening an account denominated in USD, because a conversion fee will be charged for every trade made on a USD quoted currency pair.  This can be done by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank.

Overall, having trading accounts denominated only in EUR is a big disadvantage for traders especially considering the high currency conversion fees charged at Trading212. 

Trading Platforms

Trading212’s platform support is limited compared to other similar brokers.

Unlike most CFD brokers, Trading212 only offers its proprietary trading platform. This could be a concern as most similar providers also offer MetaTrader 4 or 5 in conjunction with any first-party software.

Unfortunately, there is very little information about the platform on its website. It is obvious, however, that Trading212’s main focus is its mobile trading platform. Optimised for the mobile user’s experience, the platform is straightforward to navigate yet provides a powerful range of features, charts, and analysis without feeling clunky or overburdened. It is also user-friendly. Traders have the option of switching effortlessly between two trading modes, Aggregating and Hedging.  The netting option is only available in the Hedging mode.   

However, unlike platforms such as MT4 and MT5, the Trading212 platform is not customisable, and traders who are used to setting up their own charts over a bespoke workspace will be disappointed.  In addition, the platform does not offer the execution speeds of the Metatrader platforms, nor does it offer algorithmic trading.  

Another disadvantage of using the Trading212 platform versus third-party platforms is that none of the trading tools available on the Metatrader can be integrated directly into the Trading212 platform.  Additionally, traders who use third-party platforms such as the Metatrader suite can take their own customised version of the platform with them should they choose to migrate to another broker.

Overall, Trading212’s platform is a good choice for beginner traders because of its simple and intuitive interface, but compared to third-party platforms such as MT4 and MT5, it lacks the execution speeds and doesn’t allow for automated trading via expert advisors or other trading algorithms.

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Broker

Platform Choice

Copy Trading

Platforms

Trading 212

4/ 5

No

trading212

Pepperstone

5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

cTrader

TradingView

AvaTrade

4.5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

Avatrade Social

AvaOptions

Mobile Trading Apps

Trading212 only offers support for its proprietary mobile app, which is limited compared to other brokers, but it boasts the same functionality as the desktop version.

Trading 212 has a purpose-built app for mobile users (available on iOS and Android). It offers full functionality, allowing trades to be conducted directly from visualisations, a feature unavailable on many other mobile apps. The user experience is excellent, with straightforward navigation and well-thought-out data visualisations.

Trading Tools

Trading212 offers virtually no trading tools, which is extremely limited compared to most other brokers.

Trading 212 Trading Instruments

Trading212 offers a wider range of assets compared to other similar CFD brokers and offers trading on over 180 currency pairs. 

Trading212 offers a wide range of financial instruments for CFD trading, including Forex, indices, stocks, commodities, and ETFs:

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• Forex: Trading212 has over 180 currency pairs available for Forex trading which is a much broader range than is offered at other CFD providers, including majors (EUR/USD, GBP/USD, and USD/JPY) and minors (NZD/CAD, EUR/JPY, and USD/ZAR), and exotics. 

• Stock CFDs: Trading212 offers over 1600 share CFDs, which is a wider range than most other CFD providers. The selection available includes some of the major US companies, such as Facebook, Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet, among others.

• ETFs: Trading212 offers trading on 95 ETFs, which is a broader range than is available at other CFD providers.     

• Indices: Average compared to other brokers, there are 35 indices available for trading at Trading212. The most popular indices are those that combine the shares of some of the largest and globally acknowledged companies.  

• Commodities: Trading212 offers trading on 28 commodities, including metals such as gold and silver, energies such as natural gas and oil, and softs such as cotton and wheat.  Most brokers only offer trading on between 5 – 10 commodities, so this is an impressive offering.  

Overall, the range and depth of assets available to trade are impressive and much more than is normally seen at other similar brokers and Trading 212 excels in its Forex offering.  Unfortunately, under FCA regulation, trading is not offered on cryptocurrencies. 

Trading 212 for Beginners

Trading 212 has a limited range of educational materials and market analysis materials for beginner traders, forcing traders to self-educate with other third-party materials. Additionally, customer service is only available via a ticketing system and its responses are slow.

Educational Materials

Trading 212 offers little in the way of educational material for beginner traders.  It provides a glossary of terms and a small selection of video tutorials, available on Youtube, to learn about the platform, different features, and trading/investing in general.

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Broker

Beginner Course

Advanced Course

Well Structured Education

Education Quality

Webinars

Trading 212

No

No

No

Medium

No

Pepperstone

Yes

Yes

Yes

Medium

Yes

AvaTrade

Yes

Yes

Yes

High

Yes

Market Analysis Material

Trading 212’s market analysis material is also minimal.  It includes an up-to-date Economic Calendar, economic indicators, financial analysis, and trading analysis.   

Customer Support

Trading212’s customer support is poor compared to other brokers.

Trading 212 only offers support in English via a ‘submit a request’ form.  Be aware that there is no phone or chat support available, and the response times are known to be painfully long, often exceeding 48 hours.

Safety and Regulation

Trading 212 is fully compliant with the latest EU regulations and is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) in Bulgaria.  See the following list of Trading 212 Group registered companies:

• Trading 212 UK Ltd. is registered in England and Wales (Register number 8590005), with a registered address 107 Cheapside, London EC2V 6DN. Trading 212 UK Ltd. is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Register number 609146).
• Trading 212 Ltd. is registered in Bulgaria (Register number 201659500). Trading 212 Ltd. is authorised and regulated by the Financial Supervision Commission (Register number RG-03-0237).
• Trading212 Markets Ltd is registered in Cyprus, authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, CySEC (licence number 398/21).

South African traders will be trading under Trading212’s subsidiary authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA is widely held to be one of the strictest and most careful regulators in the world and Trading 212 in the UK can only offer maximum leverage on Forex pairs of 30:1 and is banned from offering trading on crypto CFDs. Trading212 is also required to be a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), covering customer losses up to 85,000 EUR in the event of broker bankruptcy. 

All South African client funds are held in segregated accounts with top-tier banks and Trading 212 is subject to frequent audits of its finances and client operations. In addition, all South African clients have negative balance protection, meaning they can never lose more money than is held in their trading account.

Overall, because of its long history of responsible behaviour and strong international regulation, we consider Trading 212 a safe broker to trade with.

Evaluation Method

We value transparency and openness in the way we review the partners. To bring transparency to the forefront, we have published our review process that includes a detailed breakdown of how we review Trading 212’s product offering. Central to that process is the evaluation of the broker’s reliability, the platform offering of the broker, and the trading conditions offered to clients, which are summarised in this review. Each one of these is graded, and an overall score is calculated and assigned to the broker.

Trading212 Disclaimer

Trading Forex is risky, and each broker is required to detail how risky the trading of Forex CFDs is to clients. Trading 212 would like you to know that: Investments can fall and rise. You may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change.  CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Overview

Trading 212 is an online broker aiming to make the world of trading securities and forex more accessible.  With a huge range of over 1800 tradable assets, including 180 FX pairs, Trading 212 outdoes its competitors.  Its trading platform, the Trading 212 App is a strong element of this brokerage service, with its powerful range of features, charts, and analysis functions, but it does not have algorithmic trading capabilities.

One major drawback is that Trading 212 offers one live account with wider-than-average spreads.  Its limited educational and market analysis materials also make it a poor choice for beginner traders.   Overall, while Trading 212 offers a solid service, there are enough shortcomings to make other brokers a better choice for most traders.

Editorial Team

 

Chris Cammack
Head of Content

Chris joined the company in 2019 after ten years experience in research, editorial and design for political and financial publications. His background has given him a deep knowledge of international financial markets and the geopolitics that affects them. Chris has a keen eye for editing and a voracious appetite for financial and political current affairs. He ensures that our content across all sites meets the standards of quality and transparency that our readers expect.

 

Alison Heyerdahl
Senior Financial Writer

Alison joined the team as a writer in 2021. She is the Senior Editor for FXScouts.  She has a medical degree with a focus on physiotherapy and a bachelor’s in psychology. However, her interest in forex trading and her love for writing led her to switch careers. She has a passion for Forex trading and over a decade of editorial experience researching Forex and the financial services industry, producing high-quality content. She hosts a weekly podcast, “Let’s Talk Forex,” alongside her colleague, Chris, and has produced over 100 Forex educational videos for the FXScouts YouTube channel. She also writes weekly technical analyses and has tested and reviewed over 100 Forex brokers.

 

Ida Hermansen
Financial Writer

Ida joined our team as a financial writer in 2023. She has a degree in Digital Marketing and a background in content writing and SEO. In addition to her marketing and writing skills, Ida also has an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. Her interest in crypto trading led to a wider fascination with Forex technical analysis and price movement. She continues to develop her skills and knowledge in Forex trading and keeps a close eye on which Forex brokers offer the best trading environments for new traders.