Moving away from Moneyfarm (robo investor) and looking for advice.

NedJ

I've been using Moneyfarm for a couple of years, I most recently filled it up in line with the tax year ending. I am now trying to decide whether continuing to top it up is a good idea given the fee is high in comparison to other platforms (averages out at about 0.94% per anum). Performance-wise, it's not looking great at the moment as I put a big portion of the tax year money in toward the end of the tax year so it hasn't appreciated much, about 2% up currently overall.

I am open to DIY investing but not to the extent of always picking specific stocks as this is money I intend to leave where it is for at least 5 years and I don't want the risk.

I was wondering what people thought about other platforms. Vanguard seems like a good low-cost option but I'm put off by only being able to pick Vanguard funds. Being able to pick a stock here and there and also access Vanguard funds would be great. What are the best alternatives that people would recommend?

Some wider context, I was initially really bought into robo-investors, I like that it's semi-managed so I don't have to do anything if the markets change. It's costing me almost £25 per month in fee which with this type of performance, it sizeable over the course of the year.

Thanks in advance!

Albermarle

If you want to invest in funds and buy some individual shares as well , then you really need a 'whole of market ' platform .
Here you will find thousands of funds , investment trusts, ETF's and the ability to buy shares . They also have their own ready made funds + the full range of low cost multi asset funds from Vanguard and their alternatives from HSBC , Blackrock etc 
The best known are - Hargreaves Landsdown, A J Bell, Fidelity and Interactive Investor but there are others as well. 
In all cases there is a platform fee and a seperate fee for the funds , or for shares a dealing charge.

colsten

https://monevator.com/compare-uk-cheapest-online-brokers/

havingaball74

I was very interested in iweb as I have a largish amount and don't want to trade much, but the cheapness seems to be offset by poor customer service. Do you have any advice or alternatives? Thank you.

cattie

Nothing wrong with iweb, I have a sizeable isa with them. I've no complaints about their customer service either. Remember that very few companies & institutions currently have top class customer service due to the pandemic & the lockdowns.

Iweb give me what I want, a platform that offers a good range of funds at a price that saves me an awful lot of money compared to what I was paying previously. It means my investments are maximized.