Trading 212 vs DEGIRO: which is better for you?

Trading 212 vs DEGIRO at a glance

Trading 212 vs DEGIRO is one of the most common questions for new investors in Europe, because both let you buy shares and ETFs (exchange-traded funds: baskets of many shares you buy in one go) cheaply from an app. They make money in different ways, so the cheaper one depends on how you invest.

Checked November 2026: fees change, so check the provider's site before you sign up. DEGIRO figures below come from its Irish fee page, which was last updated on 1 October 2025; exchanges and some fees differ by country.

Who runs each, and how your money is protected

Trading 212 is a group of companies. According to its help centre, Trading 212 EU GmbH is regulated by BaFin (Germany's financial regulator), Trading 212 Markets Ltd by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, and Trading 212 UK Ltd by the FCA. Which one you sign up with depends on where you live, and that decides your protection:

• Trading 212 EU GmbH: investments covered by the German investor compensation scheme (EdW) for 90% of eligible funds, up to €20,000. Uninvested cash sits with German partner banks and is protected up to €100,000 per person, per partner bank.
• Trading 212 Markets Ltd: the Cyprus Investors Compensation Fund, up to €20,000.
• Trading 212 UK Ltd: FSCS investment protection up to £85,000 per person, and uninvested cash covered by the deposit scheme up to £120,000 per banking licence.

Trading 212 says your shares are held in a pooled (omnibus) account at Interactive Brokers, and that you are the beneficial owner.

DEGIRO is the Dutch branch of flatexDEGIRO Bank SE, a German bank supervised mainly by BaFin. DEGIRO says it holds your investments through a separate legal entity, so they stay apart from the bank's own money. If assets are not returned, the German investor compensation scheme covers 90% up to €20,000. Your uninvested cash sits in a personal account at flatexDEGIRO Bank, covered by the German deposit guarantee up to €100,000.

Compensation schemes protect you if the firm fails and your assets go missing. They never protect you from your investments going down.

Fees: what you actually pay

Trading 212 charges no commission on its Invest account. It says its main income there comes from a 0.15% currency fee and from lending out shares. You pay the 0.15% when you buy or sell something in a currency different from your account, for example a US share from a euro account.

DEGIRO charges per trade. On its Irish site, US shares cost €1 commission plus a €1 handling fee, and most ETFs cost €2 plus €1. Its ETF Core Selection, a list of popular ETFs, has no commission, so you pay only the €1 handling fee. Currency conversion costs 0.25%, and there is a yearly connectivity fee for each foreign exchange you trade on: 0.25% of your account value, capped at €2.50. Custody and inactivity fees are €0.

The gap shrinks for larger, less frequent buys. On DEGIRO a €1 handling fee is 1% of a €100 order but only 0.5% of a €200 order, so investing bigger amounts less often makes DEGIRO's costs smaller as a share of what you invest. Buying a euro-priced ETF from a euro account avoids currency fees on both.

Fractional shares and automatic investing

A fractional share is a slice of one share, so you can invest €20 in a company whose shares cost €200. Trading 212 says most instruments on its Invest accounts and ISAs can be traded this way. Its Pies let you build a portfolio with target weights, and AutoInvest puts a scheduled payment into it. If a payment is smaller than the Pie's minimum, the money waits as cash until there is enough.

DEGIRO's product and fee pages don't mention fractional shares or an automatic savings plan, so expect to buy whole shares and place each order yourself. That suits people who invest a lump every month or quarter by hand. Regular, automatic investing is the core of dollar-cost averaging.

Interest on cash

Trading 212 pays interest on uninvested cash if you switch it on in the app, with no minimum balance. It doesn't publish one fixed rate in its help centre; new clients see the rate in its terms and fees, existing clients in the app. For Trading 212 EU GmbH clients, EUR cash above €100,000 per account earns 0% from 3 December 2026.

DEGIRO says plainly: "We do not currently pay interest on uninvested cash held in your Cash Account." If you keep a large cash buffer at your broker, that difference matters. Many people keep their emergency fund in a savings account instead.

Product range and ease of use

Trading 212's Invest account focuses on shares and ETFs, with fractional trading, Pies and interest in one app. It also runs a separate CFD account.

DEGIRO is broader. It lists access to more than 45 markets across 30 countries, plus bonds, investment funds, options, futures, warrants, structured products and crypto. It works through a web platform and mobile apps. New accounts use the Basic profile; DEGIRO says its Active, Trader and Day Trader profiles are for older accounts only, and you can no longer switch to a profile with margin trading. DEGIRO's UK site says onboarding for new UK clients is temporarily unavailable.

Which is better for you?

There is no single winner. It depends on how you invest.

Trading 212 may suit you if you invest small amounts often, want fractional shares or automatic investing, keep some cash at your broker and want interest on it, or buy US shares from a euro account and want a low currency fee.

Trading 212 may not suit you if you want bonds, options or exchanges beyond its range, or if you want an app with no leveraged products at all.

DEGIRO may suit you if you want access to many exchanges and product types, you invest larger lumps less often, or the ETFs you want are in its Core Selection, where each trade costs €1.

DEGIRO may not suit you if you invest €50 or €100 at a time (a €1 to €2 fee is a big slice), you want automatic investing or fractional shares, or you want interest on your cash.

Common mistakes

• Ignoring currency fees. Buying US shares from a euro account means a conversion fee on every buy and sell. A euro-listed ETF that tracks the same index can avoid it.
• Comparing headline commission only. Add handling fees, currency fees and connectivity fees.
• Leaving lots of cash uninvested. At DEGIRO it earns nothing.
• Clicking into CFDs by accident. Check which account you are in before you place an order.
• Forgetting tax. Neither broker is your tax adviser. Check how your country taxes investments and what reports each broker provides.

For a wider list, including Scalable Capital, Trade Republic and eToro, see our guide to the best investing apps in Europe. Official sites: trading212.com and degiro.com.