Free fund trading Expert insights Wide range of accounts
We analysed all popular share dealing platforms in the UK using 35 data points and combined this with our expert insight from using the apps. The platforms we've selected as best for each category offer stand-out features or a unique combination of elements for a specific aspect of investing. If we show a "Promoted for" pick, it's been chosen from among our partners and is based on factors that include special features or offers, and the commission we receive. Keep in mind that our picks may not always be the best for you – it's important to compare for yourself. More details in our full methodology.
How to get free shares in a few simple steps
Most of the time, getting free stocks is really simple and requires virtually no effort. The process for each provider is slightly different, so check out our individual guides below for provider specific how-to lists.
Check out some of the offers available. We’ve listed some of the best ones below with some of the things you’ll need to consider.
Get a referral link (and click on it!) You might need to ask a friend to refer you. We have some referral links too.
Sign up. You’ll often need to be a new member for this process to work.
Deposit the minimum amount. A lot of providers have a minimum deposit. You’ll often have to put this much into your account before you get the shares.
Satisfy any additional conditions. There might be additional things you’ll need to do – like keep your money invested for a certain period or play a minigame.
Get your freebie. See! We told you it was easy.
Best platforms for free stocks and shares in the UK
Platform
Finder rating
Offer from provider
Link to get offer
★★★★★
Free share worth up to £100. T&Cs apply. Capital at risk.
ISA costs an additional £4.99 per month (if fee paid annually)
You need to be a new Freetrade customer to get this deal. If you’ve got an account already, you can refer friends to get free shares (see the last step in the “how to” guide), but you can’t get one for opening your account.
The free share you receive will be worth at least £10. You can refer up to 10 friends to get additional free shares.
How to get the free stock
Open an account. You’ll need a referral link – this could be one sent to you by a friend or you can use our link
Fund your account. You usually have to deposit at least £50 within 30 days of opening an account. Freetrade sometimes has “special offer” periods when the minimum funding is lower.
Fill out your W-8BEN form. This means you’re able to get a US share.
Get your shares. Between 7 and 10 days later, both you and the friend that referred you will get a free share added to your accounts.
The fun doesn’t stop there. You can get more free shares by referring your friends to Freetrade. They’ll need to follow the above steps in order for you both to get your free shares.
How easy is it to get the free share?
Pretty easy. You don’t have to deposit a significant amount into your account to get the free share, and there’s the chance to continue getting free shares until Freetrade pulls the offer (or you run out of friends).
Something to consider
Your free share won’t be put into your ISA, if you’ve got one. The stock is placed into your general investment account (GIA), so there might be tax implications when you sell. You’re more likely to get a lower value than a higher value share, as the probability is weighted.
InvestEngine: Refer a friend and you’ll both get between £10 and £50 when they invest
Benefits
Low fees
Both ready-made portfolios and DIY investing available
Disadvantages
The referral bonus and your original deposit must stay invested for at least 12 months
You can’t invest in individual shares with InvestEngine
Both you and the person you refer will receive a bonus of between £10 and £50, paid into your InvestEngine accounts. You can refer up to 25 friends to InvestEngine to keep receiving referral bonuses.
How to get the freebie
The person referred needs to open an account. If you’ve been referred, you’ll need to use the referral link your friend sends you from within their account.
Fund your account. You need to deposit at least £100, in line with InvestEngine’s T&Cs.
Choose your investments. This can be ready-made portfolios or you can create your own portfolio of exchange-traded funds.
Get your referral bonus. This usually happens fairly promptly, though you need to leave it invested for 12 months.
How easy is it?
It’s easy to get the welcome bonus but you do have to keep it invested with your original £100 for 12 months before you can withdraw it.
Something to consider
You need to fund your portfolio with £100 within 30 days, and it must stay invested with the welcome bonus for a year, or InvestEngine may take away your bonus.
Scottish Friendly: £75 My Rewards gift voucher when you take out a My MoneyBuilder Select (ISA)
Benefits
You can invest in an ISA
Ethical investment options
Disadvantages
Only ready made investments available
The welcome bonus isn’t a free share – it’s a shopping voucher
This isn’t really a free share, but it is a freebie.
You’re eligible for this reward when you add a My MoneyBuilder Select ISA to your account. The £75 My Rewards gift voucher can be redeemed at a range of outlets throughout the UK, including the Apple Store, John Lewis & Partners and Love2shop
How to get the freebie
Open an account. You can do this on the website. Existing Scottish Friendly customers can also get the voucher by adding the ISA to their account.
Select the My MoneyBuilder Select ISA. Make sure you haven’t already paid into an ISA in the current tax year.
You’ll receive your gift within 28 days of your first payment. Easy as that.
All that’s left to do is choose where to spend it.
How easy is it?
It’s easy, but you can’t do it if you already have an ISA open.
Something to consider
The only investment products that Scottish Friendly offers are ISAs, so this is worth bearing in mind if you want access to wider investment options.
Capital at risk
Wealthify: Refer a friend and both you and they will get £50 cashback
Benefits
See your portfolio on your web browser and in its mobile app
You can start investing with as little as £1
Disadvantages
There’s a 3-month wait for you and your friend to receive the referrral fee
No DIY portfolio option
Wealthify’s referral programme lets you refer friends after you’ve signed up.
If you’re a signed-up member with at least one invested plan, referring a friend gets both you and your friend £50 cashback. The referred friend needs to have deposited £250 and left it invested for 3 months for you to both get the referral fee.
How to get the referral bonus
The person referred must open an account. They’ll need to use the friend referral link.
Fund your account. If you’ve been referred, you need to deposit at least £250 (as a lump sum or over several deposits).
Leave at least £250 invested for at least 3 months. Then, you and your friend will both have £50 paid into your plans.
How easy is it?
Getting the referral bonus is easy, as long as you have friends to refer you to Wealthify. It takes a few months to reap the rewards and you have to deposit £250 to get the referral bonus if you are referred. There’s no limit on how many friends you can refer for them to get the bonus, but you’ll only get paid yourself for the first 30.
Something to consider
Unlike some platforms, with Wealthify you can get your bonus placed into your ISA.
interactive investor: £200 cashback when you refer a friend
Benefits
Great range of investments
Lots of account types available
Disadvantages
Fees can be high for small investments
interactive investor has a refer-a-friend offer that gets the referrer £200 in cashback when they refer a friend. The referred friend doesn’t get cashback, but does get their service plan free for the first year, worth £120. The referred friend needs to fund their account by £10,000 in order for the referrer to get the cashback and the referee to get their service plan for free.
How to get the free service plan
Get your friend to recommend you through their ii account. They’ll drop you a link to follow.
Register for the offer. You’ll need to supply your full name and email address, as well as the email address of the person that referred you.
Sign up for interactive investor. You can choose which account type you want, such as an ISA, a trading account or a pension.
Fund your account with £10,000. You can do this by transferring from another account or with a top up.
Get your service plan free for 12 months. You’ll get confirmation after 10 days.
Refer friends. If you know anyone you’d like to refer to interactive investor, you can follow the steps below to receive £200 cashback..
How to get the £200 cashback
Log into your interactive investor account. You need to drop them a link to the page linked within your account.
Remind your friend that they need to register for the offer. They’ll need to supply their full name and email address, as well as your email address.
Wait for your friend to do their bit. They need to register for the offer, register and fund their account.
Get your £200 cashback.You’ll get confirmation of this after 10 days.
How easy is it to get the cashback or free service plan?
It’s quite easy, but you have to deposit a significant amount to get it, which is quite disappointing. While a free service plan for a year is a pretty good offer, it’s not particularly exciting for new investors, but you could then start referring friends of your own to get cashback, which is quite enticing.
Something to consider
You need to put at least £10,000 into your account to get your friend cashback and get a year for free.
As with all investing, there’s the risk that you could lose the money that you invest. You can help to protect yourself from investment risk by diversifying your portfolio (which is investment talk for not putting all your eggs in one basket).
It could be. Some trading platforms won’t put your free share into your ISA, so any profits you make will be subject to capital gains tax, which is payable if you earn more than £3,000 in a tax year.
If the provider allows you to redeem the free share in your ISA, then you won’t have to pay tax on the profits as long as it doesn’t take you over the £20,000 allowance in a year.
You can. Some providers ask that you don’t withdraw the money for a set period, while others let you sell and cash in right away. Make sure you know what your chosen provider lets you do.
In many cases it is possible to get more than one free share — typically if the provider has some sort of referral program. You often can’t get the free share for signing up more than once, but you can refer friends for more.
There are plenty of “free” trading apps. These are typically commission free, so there could be additional charges for things like foreign exchange or withdrawing your money.
Trading 212 and eToro are two popular commission-free trading apps.
You can! These shares are often listed on the London Stock Exchange, so look out for a provider that lets you buy these shares. We’ve listed some of the best trading apps to help you find one that suits you.
There are loads of great ones. The best one for you will depend on what suits you best. Remember, you’ll likely be using the platform for a while, so choosing the right provider probably matters more than the freebies. (We won’t like though, a nice freebie is never gonna hurt).
Freetrade and Stake both give out free shares to new members. Some other providers have freebies on offer to their new members in the form of vouchers or a top-up to your account, such as Scottish Friendly and InvestEngine.
In some cases, you can get free shares just by signing up, although you may need a referral link from a friend. Some providers are giving out free shares if you refer friends, too.
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.
Danny is a publisher at Finder specialising in insurance and investing. He previously worked at the global insurer Aon and has appeared in national media giving advice on insurance. Danny holds a BA in International Business from the University of Plymouth and has undying loyalty to his average-poor football team, Portsmouth FC. See full bio
Danny's expertise
Danny has written 366 Finder guides across topics including:
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finder.com is an independent comparison platform and information service that aims to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions. While we are independent, the offers that appear on this site are from companies from which finder.com receives compensation. We may receive compensation from our partners for placement of their products or services. We may also receive compensation if you click on certain links posted on our site. While compensation arrangements may affect the order, position or placement of product information, it doesn't influence our assessment of those products. Please don't interpret the order in which products appear on our Site as any endorsement or recommendation from us. finder.com compares a wide range of products, providers and services but we don't provide information on all available products, providers or services. Please appreciate that there may be other options available to you than the products, providers or services covered by our service.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
