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How to invest in the FTSE 100
Find out about the UK's most famous stock index and how you can invest in it
What's in this guide?
Can you invest in the FTSE 100?
The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 (FTSE 100) is a stock market index comprising the 100 largest companies on the London Stock Exchange (by market capitalisation), which includes companies like BP, HSBC, Barclays and Sainsbury’s.
While you can’t actually invest directly into the FTSE 100 (unless you bought shares in each of the companies in the index), you can get exposure to the index by investing in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) which tracks the performance of the stocks in the FTSE 100.
How to invest in the FTSE 100
- Buy FTSE 100 stocks directly. You can buy individual stocks from the FTSE 100 index using a brokerage or share-trading platform. You could buy one share of each company to create your own index, or buy shares in select companies.
- Invest in a FTSE 100 ETF. If you want exposure to all the companies in the FTSE 100 without having to buy individual shares (and avoiding trading fees), you could instead invest in an FTSE 100 ETF. These are index funds that track the performance of the stocks in the FTSE 100.
Get your first 100 trades free with Fineco Bank
Fees apply. Your capital is at risk.
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- No minimum deposit, no conversion fee, no monthly fee
- Your first 100 trades are free with Fineco, T&Cs apply.
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Capital at risk
The FTSE 100 and coronavirus
As with the rest of the UK stock market, the FTSE 100 dropped significantly in March 2020 in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. While every stock in the index experienced volatility, some fared better than others. The potential advantage of investing in an index is to help diversify your portfolio and mitigate exposure to risk. However, certain FTSE 100 stocks are likely to perform markedly better or worse than others over the coming months, and it may be worth curating a list of FTSE 100 companies you want to invest in.
How to start trading the FTSE 100
Whether you want to invest directly in FTSE 100 stocks, or invest in a FTSE 100 ETF, you’ll need to open an account with a trading platform or brokerage. Different platforms will offer different FTSE stocks and ETFs, and each has its own fee structure. You can compare the leading share-dealing platforms below.
Compare FTSE 100 trading platforms
Table: sorted by promoted deals first
All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.
FTSE 100 ticker
You can use the chart below to track the performance of the FTSE 100:
How do FTSE 100 ETFs work?
When you buy an FTSE 100 ETF, you are not investing directly in the companies in the index. Most FTSE 100 ETFs will hold shares in the companies in the index, but you won’t yourself by just buying the ETF.
However, the ETFs performance will track closely with the performance of the stocks in the index. For example, if the FTSE 100 increases in value by 2%, your ETF should also increase close to 2%.
To invest in an ETF, you’ll generally need to pay a fee of around 0.07% to 0.25% each year, as well as any trading commissions charged by the broker.
Types of ETF
Most FTSE 100 ETFs will fully track the performance of the FTSE 100, meaning the fund is weighted more towards the companies with higher market capitalisation. However, there are some ETFs such as the db X-Trackers FTSE 100 Equal Weight UCITS ETF (XFEW) which invests in the companies in the index equally. This means the performance of smaller companies will have a larger impact on the ETF, relative to their size.
Short ETFs. There are a number of short FTSE 100 ETFs, which effectively bet against the performance of the index. If the FTSE 100 goes down, the value of a short ETF should go up.
Leveraged ETFs. Leveraged ETFs multiply the gains and losses of the index, meaning you’ll get a higher or lower return relative to the size of your investment. You’re effectively borrowing extra capital to potentially increase your returns. For example, if you invest £1,000 in a FTSE 100 ETF with 10x leverage and it goes up 5%, you’d make £500 instead of £50. However, the same would apply to losses.
FTSE 100 ETFs
| Fund | Currency | Ticker | Fee (TER p.a.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP | GBP | HUKX | 0.07% |
| iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (Dist) | GBP | ISF | 0.07% |
| iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP (Acc) | GBP | CUKX | 0.07% |
| Invesco FTSE 100 UCITS ETF | GBP | S100 | 0.09% |
| Xtrackers FTSE 100 UCITS ETF 1C | GBP | XDUK | 0.09% |
| Xtrackers FTSE 100 UCITS ETF Income 1D | GBP | XUKX | 0.09% |
| Vanguard FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (GBP) Accumulating | GBP | VUKG | 0.09% |
| Vanguard FTSE 100 UCITS ETF Distributing | GBP | VUKE | 0.09% |
| Lyxor FTSE 100 UCITS ETF C-GBP | GBP | L100 | 0.14% |
| Lyxor FTSE 100 UCITS ETF D-GBP | GBP | 100D | 0.14% |
| UBS ETF (LU) FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (GBP) A-dis | GBP | UB03 | 0.20% |
| Amundi ETF FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP | GBP | FT1K | 0.25% |
Aerospace & Defence
- BAE Systems. BA.
- Meggitt. MGGT
- Rolls-Royce Holdings. RR.
Asset Managers
- M&G. MNG
Automobiles & Parts
- Melrose Industries. MRO
Banks
- Barclays. BARC
- HSBC. HSBA
- Lloyds Banking Group. LLOY
- Royal Bank of Scotland Group. RBS
- Standard Chartered. STAN
Beverages
- Coca-Cola HBC. CCH
- Diageo. DGE
Chemicals
- Croda International. CRDA
- Johnson Matthey. JMAT
Construction & Materials
- CRH plc. CRH
Electricity
- SSE plc. SSE
Electronic & Electrical Equipment
- Halma. HLMA
Equity Investment Instruments
- Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust. SMT
Financial Services
- 3i. III
- Hargreaves Lansdown. HL.
- London Stock Exchange Group. LSE
- Schroders. SDR
- Standard Life Aberdeen. SLA
Fixed Line Telecommunications
- BT Group. BT.A
Food & Drug Retailers
- Morrisons. MRW
- Ocado. OCDO
- Sainsbury’s. SBRY
- Tesco. TSCO
Food Producers
- Associated British Foods. ABF
General Industrials
- DS Smith. SMDS
- Smiths Group. SMIN
- Smurfit Kappa. SKG
General Retailers
- JD Sports. JD.
- Kingfisher plc. KGF
- Next plc. NXT
Health Care Equipment & Services
- NMC Health. NMC
- Smith & Nephew. SN.
Household Goods & Home Construction
- Barratt Developments. BDEV
- Berkeley Group Holdings. BKG
- Persimmon plc. PSN
- Reckitt Benckiser. RB.
- Taylor Wimpey. TW.
Industrial Engineering
- Spirax-Sarco Engineering. SPX
Industrial Metals & Mining
- Evraz. EVR
Life Insurance
- Aviva. AV.
- Legal & General. LGEN
- Phoenix Group. PHNX
- Prudential plc. PRU
- St. James’s Place plc. STJ
Media
- Auto Trader Group. AUTO
- Informa. INF
- ITV plc. ITV
- Pearson plc. PSON
- RELX. REL
- Rightmove. RMV
- WPP plc. WPP
Mining
- Anglo American plc. AAL
- Antofagasta. ANTO
- BHP. BHP
- Glencore. GLEN
- Rio Tinto Group. RIO
Mobile Telecommunications
- Vodafone Group. VOD
Nonlife Insurance
- Admiral Group. ADM
- RSA Insurance Group. RSA
Forestry & Paper
- Mondi. MNDI
Oil & Gas Producers
- BP. BP.
- Royal Dutch Shell. RDSA
Personal Goods
- Burberry. BRBY
- Unilever. ULVR
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology
- AstraZeneca. AZN
- GlaxoSmithKline. GSK
- Hikma Pharmaceuticals. HIK
Precious Metals and Mining
- Polymetal International. POLY
Real Estate Investment Trusts
- British Land. BLND
- Land Securities. LAND
- Segro. SGRO
Retail Hospitality
- Whitbread. WTB
Software & Computer Services
- Aveva. AVV
- Sage Group. SGE
- Just Eat Takeaway. JET
Support Services
- Ashtead Group. AHT
- Bunzl. BNZL
- Compass Group. CPG
- DCC plc. DCC
- Experian. EXPN
- Ferguson plc. FERG
- Intertek. ITRK
- Rentokil Initial. RTO
Tobacco
- British American Tobacco. BATS
- Imperial Brands. IMB
Travel & Leisure
- Carnival Corporation & plc. CCL
- EasyJet. EZJ
- Flutter Entertainment. FLTR
- InterContinental Hotels Group. IHG
- International Airlines Group. IAG
- TUI Group. TUI
Gas, Water & Multi-utilities
- Centrica. CNA
- National Grid plc. NG.
- Severn Trent. SVT
- United Utilities. UU.
Warning: The value of investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
*Disclaimer: The offers compared on this page are chosen from a range of products finder has access to track details from and is not representative of all the products available in the market. Unless indicated otherwise, products are displayed in no particular order or ranking. The use of terms “best”, “top”, “cheap” including variations, are not product ratings and are subject to our terms of use. You should consider seeking independent financial advice and consider your personal financial circumstances when comparing products.
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What's in this guide?
Can you invest in the FTSE 100?
The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 (FTSE 100) is a stock market index comprising the 100 largest companies on the London Stock Exchange (by market capitalisation), which includes companies like BP, HSBC, Barclays and Sainsbury’s.
While you can’t actually invest directly into the FTSE 100 (unless you bought shares in each of the companies in the index), you can get exposure to the index by investing in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) which tracks the performance of the stocks in the FTSE 100.
How to invest in the FTSE 100
- Buy FTSE 100 stocks directly. You can buy individual stocks from the FTSE 100 index using a brokerage or share-trading platform. You could buy one share of each company to create your own index, or buy shares in select companies.
- Invest in a FTSE 100 ETF. If you want exposure to all the companies in the FTSE 100 without having to buy individual shares (and avoiding trading fees), you could instead invest in an FTSE 100 ETF. These are index funds that track the performance of the stocks in the FTSE 100.
Get your first 100 trades free with Fineco Bank
Fees apply. Your capital is at risk.
- Market leading platform
- No minimum deposit, no conversion fee, no monthly fee
- Your first 100 trades are free with Fineco, T&Cs apply.
Go to site
Capital at risk
The FTSE 100 and coronavirus
As with the rest of the UK stock market, the FTSE 100 dropped significantly in March 2020 in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. While every stock in the index experienced volatility, some fared better than others. The potential advantage of investing in an index is to help diversify your portfolio and mitigate exposure to risk. However, certain FTSE 100 stocks are likely to perform markedly better or worse than others over the coming months, and it may be worth curating a list of FTSE 100 companies you want to invest in.
How to start trading the FTSE 100
Whether you want to invest directly in FTSE 100 stocks, or invest in a FTSE 100 ETF, you’ll need to open an account with a trading platform or brokerage. Different platforms will offer different FTSE stocks and ETFs, and each has its own fee structure. You can compare the leading share-dealing platforms below.
Compare FTSE 100 trading platforms
Table: sorted by promoted deals first
All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.
FTSE 100 ticker
You can use the chart below to track the performance of the FTSE 100:
How do FTSE 100 ETFs work?
When you buy an FTSE 100 ETF, you are not investing directly in the companies in the index. Most FTSE 100 ETFs will hold shares in the companies in the index, but you won’t yourself by just buying the ETF.
However, the ETFs performance will track closely with the performance of the stocks in the index. For example, if the FTSE 100 increases in value by 2%, your ETF should also increase close to 2%.
To invest in an ETF, you’ll generally need to pay a fee of around 0.07% to 0.25% each year, as well as any trading commissions charged by the broker.
Types of ETF
Most FTSE 100 ETFs will fully track the performance of the FTSE 100, meaning the fund is weighted more towards the companies with higher market capitalisation. However, there are some ETFs such as the db X-Trackers FTSE 100 Equal Weight UCITS ETF (XFEW) which invests in the companies in the index equally. This means the performance of smaller companies will have a larger impact on the ETF, relative to their size.
Short ETFs. There are a number of short FTSE 100 ETFs, which effectively bet against the performance of the index. If the FTSE 100 goes down, the value of a short ETF should go up.
Leveraged ETFs. Leveraged ETFs multiply the gains and losses of the index, meaning you’ll get a higher or lower return relative to the size of your investment. You’re effectively borrowing extra capital to potentially increase your returns. For example, if you invest £1,000 in a FTSE 100 ETF with 10x leverage and it goes up 5%, you’d make £500 instead of £50. However, the same would apply to losses.
FTSE 100 ETFs
| Fund | Currency | Ticker | Fee (TER p.a.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP | GBP | HUKX | 0.07% |
| iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (Dist) | GBP | ISF | 0.07% |
| iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP (Acc) | GBP | CUKX | 0.07% |
| Invesco FTSE 100 UCITS ETF | GBP | S100 | 0.09% |
| Xtrackers FTSE 100 UCITS ETF 1C | GBP | XDUK | 0.09% |
| Xtrackers FTSE 100 UCITS ETF Income 1D | GBP | XUKX | 0.09% |
| Vanguard FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (GBP) Accumulating | GBP | VUKG | 0.09% |
| Vanguard FTSE 100 UCITS ETF Distributing | GBP | VUKE | 0.09% |
| Lyxor FTSE 100 UCITS ETF C-GBP | GBP | L100 | 0.14% |
| Lyxor FTSE 100 UCITS ETF D-GBP | GBP | 100D | 0.14% |
| UBS ETF (LU) FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (GBP) A-dis | GBP | UB03 | 0.20% |
| Amundi ETF FTSE 100 UCITS ETF GBP | GBP | FT1K | 0.25% |
List of companies in the FTSE 100
Aerospace & Defence
- BAE Systems . BA.
- Meggitt . MGGT
- Rolls-Royce Holdings . RR.
Asset Managers
- M&G . MNG
Automobiles & Parts
- Melrose Industries . MRO
Banks
- Barclays . BARC
- HSBC . HSBA
- Lloyds Banking Group . LLOY
- Royal Bank of Scotland Group . RBS
- Standard Chartered . STAN
Beverages
- Coca-Cola HBC . CCH
- Diageo . DGE
Chemicals
- Croda International . CRDA
- Johnson Matthey . JMAT
Construction & Materials
- CRH plc . CRH
Electricity
- SSE plc . SSE
Electronic & Electrical Equipment
- Halma . HLMA
Equity Investment Instruments
- Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust . SMT
Financial Services
- 3i . III
- Hargreaves Lansdown . HL.
- London Stock Exchange Group . LSE
- Schroders . SDR
- Standard Life Aberdeen . SLA
Fixed Line Telecommunications
- BT Group . BT.A
Food & Drug Retailers
- Morrisons . MRW
- Ocado . OCDO
- Sainsbury’s . SBRY
- Tesco . TSCO
Food Producers
- Associated British Foods . ABF
General Industrials
- DS Smith . SMDS
- Smiths Group . SMIN
- Smurfit Kappa . SKG
General Retailers
- JD Sports . JD.
- Kingfisher plc . KGF
- Next plc . NXT
Health Care Equipment & Services
- NMC Health . NMC
- Smith & Nephew . SN.
Household Goods & Home Construction
- Barratt Developments . BDEV
- Berkeley Group Holdings . BKG
- Persimmon plc . PSN
- Reckitt Benckiser . RB.
- Taylor Wimpey . TW.
Industrial Engineering
- Spirax-Sarco Engineering . SPX
Industrial Metals & Mining
- Evraz . EVR
Life Insurance
- Aviva . AV.
- Legal & General . LGEN
- Phoenix Group . PHNX
- Prudential plc . PRU
- St. James’s Place plc . STJ
Media
- Auto Trader Group . AUTO
- Informa . INF
- ITV plc . ITV
- Pearson plc . PSON
- RELX . REL
- Rightmove . RMV
- WPP plc . WPP
Mining
- Anglo American plc . AAL
- Antofagasta . ANTO
- BHP . BHP
- Glencore . GLEN
- Rio Tinto Group . RIO
Mobile Telecommunications
- Vodafone Group . VOD
Nonlife Insurance
- Admiral Group . ADM
- RSA Insurance Group . RSA
Forestry & Paper
- Mondi . MNDI
Oil & Gas Producers
- BP . BP.
- Royal Dutch Shell . RDSA
Personal Goods
- Burberry . BRBY
- Unilever . ULVR
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology
- AstraZeneca . AZN
- GlaxoSmithKline . GSK
- Hikma Pharmaceuticals . HIK
Precious Metals and Mining
- Polymetal International . POLY
Real Estate Investment Trusts
- British Land . BLND
- Land Securities . LAND
- Segro . SGRO
Retail Hospitality
- Whitbread . WTB
Software & Computer Services
- Aveva . AVV
- Sage Group . SGE
- Just Eat Takeaway . JET
Support Services
- Ashtead Group . AHT
- Bunzl . BNZL
- Compass Group . CPG
- DCC plc . DCC
- Experian . EXPN
- Ferguson plc . FERG
- Intertek . ITRK
- Rentokil Initial . RTO
Tobacco
- British American Tobacco . BATS
- Imperial Brands . IMB
Travel & Leisure
- Carnival Corporation & plc . CCL
- EasyJet . EZJ
- Flutter Entertainment . FLTR
- InterContinental Hotels Group . IHG
- International Airlines Group . IAG
- TUI Group . TUI
Gas, Water & Multi-utilities
- Centrica . CNA
- National Grid plc . NG.
- Severn Trent . SVT
- United Utilities . UU.
Warning: The value of investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
*Disclaimer: The offers compared on this page are chosen from a range of products finder has access to track details from and is not representative of all the products available in the market. Unless indicated otherwise, products are displayed in no particular order or ranking. The use of terms “best”, “top”, “cheap” including variations, are not product ratings and are subject to our terms of use. You should consider seeking independent financial advice and consider your personal financial circumstances when comparing products.
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