AJ Bell vs Lightyear - BrokerCue
BrokerCue

Select your country to see eligible brokers

Account eligibility and broker availability depend on your country of residence. Setting this now allows us to hide brokers that do not accept clients from your country.

Broker Comparison

AJ Bell vs Lightyear

Compare AJ Bell and Lightyear side by side: fees, regulation, platforms.

AJ Bell

AJ Bell

UK long-term investors and pension savers

AJ Bell is a UK investment platform founded in 1995, offering stocks, ETFs, funds, bonds, ISAs and SIPPs acro…

VS
Lightyear

Lightyear

Cost-conscious long-term investors

Low-cost investing platform with free ETFs, multi-currency accounts, fractional investing, savings products, …

Head-to-head comparison

AJ Bell vs Lightyear
Feature AJ Bell Lightyear
Minimum deposit - -
Stock trading fee £5 per trade; £3.50 per trade for frequent dealers (10+ deals in previous month); £25 by telephone US shares: 0.10% (0.10 USD min - 1 USD max); UK shares: 1 GBP; EUR-denominated stocks, bonds, ETNs and ETCs: 1 EUR; other European stocks: 0.10%
Regulators FCA FCA, EFSA, FINRA, SIPC
Best for UK long-term investors and pension savers Cost-conscious long-term investors
Markets & account
Stocks
ETFs
Crypto
-
Bonds
Funds
Ready Made Portfolios
Investment Plans
Isa
-
Sipp
-
Savings Vaults
Fractional Shares
-
Money Market Funds
-
Multi Currency
-
Business Account
-

Pros & cons

AJ Bell

AJ Bell

Pros

  • FCA-regulated with FSCS protection up to £85,000
  • Share and ETF custody capped at £3.50/month in ISA and dealing accounts
  • SIPP platform fee capped at £10/month
  • Wide investment range: 4,000+ funds, 3,500+ ETFs, 16,000+ shares across 24 markets
  • No withdrawal or inactivity fees
  • Regular investing with no dealing charge from £25/month
  • Which? Recommended Provider for eight consecutive years (2019-2026)
  • ISA, SIPP, Lifetime ISA, Junior ISA and dealing accounts all on one platform

Cons

  • No demo or practice account
  • No fractional shares
  • No cryptocurrency trading
  • Fund platform fee is not capped, making it expensive for large fund portfolios
  • FX conversion fee up to 0.75% on international trades
  • Basic charting tools compared to dedicated trading platforms
  • No multi-currency account - all holdings converted to GBP
Lightyear

Lightyear

Pros

  • No account fee
  • Free ETF execution and custody
  • 0.35% FX conversion fee
  • Multi-currency account
  • Fractional investing
  • Web, iOS and Android access
  • Savings Vaults with money market funds
  • SIPC protection for US securities

Cons

  • Stock fees vary by instrument
  • Card deposits cost 0.6%
  • Crypto assets lack investor compensation cover
  • Product availability may vary
  • Money market fund fees apply
  • Some withdrawals may require currency conversion
AJ Bell

AJ Bell

AJ Bell is a UK investment platform founded in 1995, offering stocks, ETFs, funds, bonds, ISAs and SIPPs across 24 international markets.

Visit AJ Bell Read review

Your capital is at risk. Other fees apply.

Lightyear

Lightyear

Low-cost investing platform with free ETFs, multi-currency accounts, fractional investing, savings products, and a 0.35% FX fee.

Visit Lightyear Read review

Your capital is at risk. Other fees apply.

Not the right match?

Line up any two brokers side by side, or browse the full list to find your next platform.

Compare another broker Browse all brokers