Hargreaves Lansdown Review 2024 (Is It Safe & Good?)

This Hargreaves Lansdown review delves into this established investment platform. However, being established doesn’t mean this broker is also safe and good.

I’ve been reviewing investment platforms since 2019. Now, it’s time to examine Hargreaves Lansdown so you know what you’re getting into with this online broker.

🪧 Should you sign up through my affiliate links, I may receive a commission at no cost to you.

What Is Hargreaves Lansdown?

Hargreaves Lansdown is an investment platform. The broker lets users buy stocks, funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and investment trusts. It is the largest investment platform in the UK, with over £120 billion in client funds from over 1.7 million clients.

Established in 1981, Hargreaves Lansdown is one of the oldest investment brokers. Founded by Peter Hargreaves and Stephen Lansdown in Bristol (UK), it initially advised on unit trusts and tax planning. Since then, the company has expanded and become an online broker.

Is Hargreaves Lansdown Legit?

Hargreaves Lansdown is legit and not a scam. It is a well-known company trading as Hargreaves Lansdown Asset Management Limited. Hargreaves Lansdown is a registered UK company with the number 01896481.

Hargreaves Lansdown Customer Reviews

On Trustpilot, Hargreaves Lansdown has an average score of 4.1 out of 5.0. Overall, 74% of users rated the company as great or excellent.

Is Hargreaves Lansdown Safe?

Hargreaves Lansdown is safe. As an investment broker, it is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This means that Hargreaves Lansdown must treat customers in compliance with the FCA criteria.

Hargreaves Lansdown is also covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). If Hargreaves Lansdown stops trading, you’ll get up to £85,000 of your money back.

While Hargreaves Lansdown is safe and has FSCS protection, you can still lose money from investing. You should only invest money you can afford to lose.

How Does Hargreaves Landsdown Work?

Hargreaves Lansdown is an investment broker. Brokers are essentially the middleman between you and the stock market. The platform lets you buy stocks, funds, ETFs, and trusts.

You can access Hargreaves Lansdown through the web platform or the mobile app. You can download the app on the Google Play Store for Android and the Apple App Store for iPhone.

1. Opening an Account

Opening a Hargreaves Lansdown account is easy, and you can do it online. The process involves clicking through the steps. It should not take more than ten minutes.

Because Hargreaves Lansdown is a legitimate investment platform, they will need your:

• National Insurance Number
• Proof of identity

2. Depositing Money

Once signed up, you can deposit money to invest. The minimum investment amount is £100 or a £25 monthly regular contribution. You can deposit money online with your debit card. If you don’t have online access, you can call Hargreaves Lansdown.

3. Buying Investments

To invest, search the website for shares or funds you want. You can also choose to invest in ready-made portfolios. Hargreaves Lansdown manages these portfolios for you. Once you bought one, you don’t need to do anything else.

If you need inspiration, look at Hargreaves Lansdown’s Wealth Shortlist. The list contains funds selected by the experts because they look promising. Note that they can still lose value.

If you are unsure, Hargreaves Lansdown also has financial advisors. The initial conversation is free, so it is worth doing even if you do not plan to use a financial advisor in the long term.

https://youtu.be/FOkTrbbSFMY

4. Withdrawing Money

You can withdraw your money at any time. However, you must sell your assets first. Hargreaves Lansdown will send the money through Faster Payments. Faster Payments are usually instant.

What Accounts Does Hargreaves Lansdown Offer?

Hargreaves Lansdown offers a range of accounts:

• Fund and Share Account (General Investment Account)
• Stocks and Shares Individual Savings Account (ISA)
• Lifetime ISA
• Junior ISA
• Self-invested Personal Pension (SIPP)
• Active Savings Account

1. Hargreaves Lansdown Fund and Share Account

The Fund and Share Account is Hargreaves Lansdown’s version of a General Investment Account. You must pay tax on your investment gains if you exceed your allowance. Read more about Capital Gains Tax.

2. Hargreaves Lansdown Stocks and Shares ISA

An ISA is a tax-advantaged account, meaning you won’t pay tax on your investment gains. You can put up to £20,000 per tax year into your ISA.

Hargreaves Lansdown also offers a Lifetime ISA (LISA). With this type of ISA, you can invest £4000 per tax year to save for a house deposit or retirement.

Lastly, you can also open a Hargreaves Lansdown Junior ISA. This is a tax-advantaged account you can open for your children. They get a yearly allowance of £9000 and can take control of the money when they turn 18.

3. Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP (Pension)

If you want to save for retirement, you can open a SIPP with Hargreaves Lansdown. The Hargreaves Lansdown Vantage SIPP is an award-winning SIPP that enables you to invest in funds, ETFs, and stocks. You’ll get tax relief for money put into your SIPP. On the downside, you cannot access this money until you turn 55.

Hargreaves Lansdown can also help you if you have already reached retirement age. The platform offers annuities or pension drawdowns.

An annuity will give you a fixed income for life in return for your invested money. With a pension drawdown, you can get a tax-free lump sum and use the remaining investments as you like.

4. Hargreaves Lansdown Active Savings Account

Hargreaves Lansdown has partnered with banks and building societies to offer savings accounts. You cannot invest your money with this account, but you’ll earn interest.

When you open an Active Savings Account, you can browse the options and choose one that fits your goals. With savings account, your money is typically locked in for a specific amount of time. The longer the period, the more interest you earn.

What Can You Invest in With Hargreaves Lansdown?

Hargreaves Lansdown offers a wide range of investment products. On the platform, you can choose from:

• Over 3000 funds
• Shares listed on the UK, Canadian, and European stock exchanges
• Corporate and government bonds
• ETFs
• Investment trusts

You can build your portfolio or use one of Hargreaves Lansdown’s ready-made portfolios. These are premade portfolios have different risk levels:

• HL Adventurous Managed
• HL Moderately Adventurous Managed
• HL Balanced Managed
• HL Cautious Managed

A higher-risk portfolio means you’re more likely to lose money. However, you can also make greater gains when the market is doing well. If you want to invest in premade portfolios, read my Nutmeg vs Hargreaves Lansdown comparison.

HL Adventurous Managed Review

HL Adventurous Managed is the highest-risk fund and the one I invested in. I don’t give financial advice, and just because I use this fund doesn’t mean you should, too. In the long term, the fund should grow, but you’ll likely lose money during economic downturns.

Experts manage this fund, meaning you don’t have to do much. As the riskiest fund, it is also the most volatile. This characteristic means it needs the most adjustment out of HL’s managed portfolios. Therefore, it is unsurprising that it has the highest fees.

The fund contains 86% international equities and 8% UK equities. Its international equities are weighted towards the US, accounting for 53%. (The US represents 43% of the global equity market.) The biggest percentage of the portfolio consists of computer, software, and technology. These are areas with good growth potential.

HL reports that the fund has grown by 4.55% in the past six months. In the same period, other popular funds had the following growth:

Fund	Growth
Vanguard LifeStrategy 100%	5.42%
Vanguard FTSE Global All Cap Index Fund GBP Acc	6.55%
Fidelity Index World Fund	6.89%

Investors typically hold these funds long term, so six months is just a tiny snapshot. Although other funds have grown more, I’ll leave my money in the HL Adventurous Managed fund for a bit longer.

Hargreaves Lansdown Fees

Hargreaves Lansdown has a complex fee structure. How much you pay depends on:

• The amount you invest
• Your account type
• Assets you hold

If you want a broker with a simpler fee structure, read my Freetrade vs Hargreaves Lansdown comparison.

1. Feeds for Funds

If you invest in funds, the account charges are as follows:

Investment Amount	S&S ISA/SIPP/GIA	LISA	JISA
On the first £250,000	0.45%	0.25%	Free
On the value between £250,000 – £1m	0.25%	0.25%	Free
On the value between £1m – £2m	0.10%	0.10%	Free
On a value of over £2m	No charge	No charge	Free

There is no dealing charge for buying and selling funds.

2. Fees for Ready-made Portfolios

The ready-made portfolios come with their own sets of charges. This is because the investment platform is managing the portfolio for you. On Hargreaves Lansdown, the charges for ready-made portfolios are as follows:

Portfolio	Account Fee	Ongoing Charg	Total Fee
HL Adventurous	0.45%	0.99%	1.44%
HL Moderately Adventurous	0.45%	0.98%	1.43%
HL Balanced	0.45%	0.92%	1.37%
HL Cautious	0.45%	0.88%	1.33%

3. Fees for Stocks, ETFs, and Trusts

Hargreaves Lansdown will charge you an account fee and a dealing fee if you invest in stocks, ETFs, or trusts. A dealing fee is a transaction fee that applies when you buy or sell investments.

The account fees for stocks, ETFs, and trusts are as follows:

• Stocks and Shares ISA: 0.45%, capped at £45 per year
• Lifetime ISA: 0.25%, capped at £45 per year
• Junior ISA: Free
• SIPP: 0.45%, capped at £200 per year
• GIA: Free

The dealing fees are the same for all account types (except for the Junior ISA, which is free) and are as follows:

Number of Trades in Previous Months	Dealing Fee
0-9	£11.95
10-19	£8.95
20+	£5.95

Is Hargreaves Lansdown Good for Beginners?

Hargreaves Lansdown is good for beginners because it offers managed portfolios. New investors can choose a fund based on their risk preference, and Hargreaves Lansdown will do the rest.

Pros and Cons of Hargreaves Lansdown

Pros

• Lots of investment options
• Well-established investment platform
• LISA and SIPP available
• Quick to set up
• Ready-made portfolios available

Cons

• Complex fees
• Not the cheapest platform
• No demo account

Alternatives to Hargreaves Lansdown

Nowadays, there are plenty of investment platforms to choose from. If you do not like Hargreaves Lansdown, you can use another broker.

• Trading 212. Trading 212 is a popular low-fee broker. Read more in my Trading 212 review.
• Nutmeg. Nutmeg is a robo-advisor that builds your portfolio for you. Read more in my Nutmeg review.

If you want to invest in ETFs, you may prefer one of the best ETF brokers.

Hargreaves Lansdown Platform Review Summary

Hargreaves Lansdown is a legit and well-established investment platform. It is one of the best investment apps in the UK. Hargreaves Lansdown offers a range of accounts and investment assets, including premade portfolios.

The downside of Hargreaves Lansdown is that it is not the cheapest platform. It is best for investors with large sums of money, but there are cheaper options even then.

You may also like my Vanguard vs Hargreaves Lansdown comparison.

If you like this post, please help My Money Yard grow by sharing it with your friends.