Hargreaves Landsdown (HL) Stocks and Shares ISA Review

Overall I find that you can't go far wrong with Hargreaves Landsdown. Their charges are not unreasonable, their service cannot be faulted and their research is second to none. I suspect that experienced investors can find better deals but at the cost of the support and extra services HL provides clients with.  At HL you get what you pay for and for that you get quite a lot.

HL Homepage

As you can see I have a generally positive opinion of HL. The only reason that I no longer have an account with them is that I work almost entirely with hard numbers and spreadsheets. HL is not the cheapest provider but it's still very good value.

The Good

• The charges for ETF's, shares and bonds are capped. So if you have a big portfolio the charges are small in relation to your portfolio. 
• The level of service is exceptional
• The company is well run and has a good culture. For example the company does not borrow money so it's future is pretty safe. 
• The company is well established with a lot of investment experience. It is also a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. 
• They offer various other services such as a cash ISA, SIPP and currency service. 
• They have occasionally offered £1 per trade promotions to new customers. 

The Not so Good

• The "platform fees" for index funds and money market funds make investing in them pointless. I think this is intentional.
• You can find providers without an annual management charge which makes HL less attractive

Research

With regards to research no-one comes close to them. HL excels at helping clients to make informed investment decisions. However, most of this great information is freely available so although I am no longer a client I have been using their research extensively.

The two main research products produced by HL are their in-house magazine, The Investment Times and their internet TV program Investor Insight (or HLTV). If you choose HL be sure to have The Investment Times delivered to your door.

  

Index funds and Platform Fees

For those looking to invest entirely in index funds I would not recommend HL. They charge a monthly "platform fee" which makes indexing far more expensive. At present investing in a Vanguard fund will cost you £24 per year before vanguard's charges.