Is CMC Invest good for investing?

CMC Invest offers a Stocks & Shares ISA, where you can invest up to £20,000 every year, with any money your investment makes being completely tax-free. The ISA is only available with a Plus subscription plan, which ordinarily costs £10 per month*.

Most investment platforms charge a % fee based on the value of the investments within an ISA. Instead, CMC Invest charges this £10 monthly fixed fee which gives users access to the ISA account. This is very cheap for larger portfolios (>£50k), but works out to be more expensive for smaller pots of money compared to alternative providers on the market.

However, CMC Invest charges no dealing fees. This is a unique factor which can add a lot of value to frequent traders. For context, most investment platforms charge between £3.95 and £11.95 per share trade.

The Plus subscription gives you access to the full range of investments, including thousands of UK, German and US shares, mutual funds, ETFs, Investment Trusts and REITs. Plus, you can earn 2% interest on any uninvested, settled cash in your account.

There are several in-app features available to ISA customers with a Plus subscription which may interest keen investors and help with research, such as Bull vs Bear Insights (outlook on a particular stock from positive and pessimistic financial analysts, powered by research giants Morningstar) and company fundamental analysis (in-depth info, including market cap, cash flow and more).

Plus customers can also browse the Learn Hub for additional learning resources with articles and guides on topics such as investing in property, dealing with debt and how to avoid financial scams.

As CMC’s ISA is ‘flexible’, you can also withdraw cash whenever you need it and then put it back again in the same tax year without impacting your annual allowance.

There are a few key differences to note between CMC Invest’s ISA and GIA.

1. CMC Invest’s GIA is free with a Core subscription plan

2. GIAs in general do not offer the same tax-free benefits as an ISA

3. You can only access the full range of investments in a CMC GIA with a Plus subscription

If you want to ‘try before you buy’, getting a GIA with the free Core subscription could be a good route to go down. You can open an account, top it up and trade, all without paying a penny in dealing fees. Similarly, if you are holding funds on a different platform and want to dabble in some more colourful ETFs or specific shares without paying high dealing fees, this could be the perfect option for you.

For users with larger accounts who haven’t yet used their ISA allowance, have a think about which account type works better for you. You may find that the tax savings from an ISA outweigh the extra £10 per month fee, especially if you anticipate your portfolio to continue growing (hopefully).

There are fewer investments available with a Core subscription, however, so you would need to upgrade to a Plus subscription in order to unlock the full range. The multi-currency wallet feature is also only available with a GIA as part of a Plus subscription.

As for the app, there are fewer features with a Core subscription, and for this reason, it feels more simplistic and pared-back if you opt for this plan. However, users still get access to helpful research tools, including sustainability ratings and customisable ESG preference alerts which will appeal to the sustainably-inclined investor, as well as Analyst Ratings which show the professional view of financial analysts on whether to buy, hold or sell a particular stock.

Both Core and Plus customers with a GIA also have access CMC Invest's Learn Hub for educational articles and guides on investing and personal finance.