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HSBC has two distinct platforms for DIY investors, each offering a stocks and shares Isa and a general investment account. Its Global Investment Centre brand offers fund investing, while a wide range of stocks, investment trusts, gilts and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are available on its InvestDirect platform.
You'll need to be an HSBC current account customer and registered for online banking to use these services.
There is no minimum investment for share dealing on InvestDirect, but Global Investment Centre funds has a £50 a month minimum (except for mobile investment goals, which start at £1).
Please note that this article is for information purposes only and doesn't constitute advice. Please refer to the particular terms and conditions of an investment platform before committing to any financial products.
Does HSBC offer the best stocks and shares Isa?
HSBC
HSBC's customers rated it above average (72%), but we were less impressed by its fees (48%) and asset choice (24%), which both got below-average scores.
This applies to each trade of investments denominated in another currency, for example US stocks, on top of fund and trading charges.
0%
HSBC pays no interest on uninvested cash.
HSBC charges £15 exit fees per line of stock from HSBC InvestDirect.
'A tale of two HSBCs'
Megan Thomas, Which? investments writer, says:
HSBC's platform is split into the Global Investment Centre, which offers funds, and InvestDirect, which offers shares, trusts and ETFs.
Each has a different charging structure, which suits a different portfolio size. The Global Investment Centre's percentage fee makes it one of the cheapest options for investors with less than £25,000 in their Isas, while the fixed fee on InvestDirect makes it one of the most expensive for the same group. Instead, InvestDirect is among the cheapest platforms for those with a portfolio of £250,000 or more.
Unusually, HSBC doesn't offer any interest on uninvested cash in your account, and it also charges exit fees – £15 per line of stock on HSBC InvestDirect.
None of this is relevant for you if you don't have an HSBC current account, though, as its offering is limited to banking customers.
What do customers say about HSBC?
HSBC customers gave it a score of 72%, placing it joint ninth in our survey.
Comments from HSBC customers who took part in our survey include:
'Website and app are user-friendly with lots of information available. Have had no reason to regret using this platform.'
'I'm able to do all that I need based on information supplied. Low administrative cost and easy to review the state of my investments.'
‘There are so many limitations in their system, eg you can't get a list of all ETFs available from the platform, thus you can't choose what you want. You can do your research somewhere else, but it doesn't mean they have it on their platform. So a total waste of time. Their website often includes outdated information. Customer service is not consistent, sometimes good, sometimes pretty bad.'
Visit HSBC to find out more about its accounts, services and investment options.
HSBC customer scores in more detail
Aspect of service
Star rating
Customer service
★★★★☆
Ease of use
★★★★☆
Information on investments
★★★☆☆
Value for money
★★★☆☆
These results are based on a January 2026 online survey of 3,053 adults – members of the Which? Connect panel and members of the public – who told us about 4,146 experiences with stocks and shares Isas. HSBC results based on sample size of 145.
Is HSBC safe?
HSBC is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
If HSBC went bust and its other arrangements to protect your money failed, the FSCS would cover up to £85,000 of investments per person, per platform. You can claim for free online at www.fscs.org.uk: there's no reason to use a claims management company.
Our overall score is based on a combination of customer score, fees score, and assets score.
We don't analyse the performance of investments listed by investment platforms, as different investors will opt for different investments.
Customer score and ratings
We surveyed 3,053 investors – members of the Which? Connect panel and of the public – who gave 4,146 reviews of stocks and shares Isas in January 2026.
Each platform must get at least 30 responses to receive a customer score, which is based on overall satisfaction and likelihood to recommend.
The customer score makes up 60% of the overall score.
We also ask investors to rate their current platform for customer service, ease of use, information on investments, and value for money.
Fees score
The fees score uses snapshots of account and transaction fees at £5,000, £10,000, £25,000, £50,000, £100,000, £250,000, and £500,000. The fees assume four purchases and four sales in a year, spaced out in across months.
Fees are weighted higher closer to £50,000 as this is close to the average portfolio size, according to HMRC data.
The scores are assigned relative to the cheapest platform which would receive a score of 100%.
The fees score makes up 30% of the overall score.
Assets score
The assets score adds together all of the assets available within a stocks and shares Isa and assigns a score relative to the maximum out of the providers which receives 100%.
The assets score makes up 10% of the overall score.
To be considered to be a Which? Recommended Provider (WRP), the platform needs to have an overall score of 70% or higher.
Companies that reach this score are excluded if they're among the top 25% of the most expensive platforms across our scenarios, based on our fees analysis. Platforms are not eligible for WRP status if they receive a two-star rating or lower in any of our categories.
We also apply statistical tests that place the platforms into ‘bands’. Only the platforms in the highest two bands – the ones that really stand out – can be a WRP.
We will not give Which? Recommended Provider status to platforms that offer CFD trading.
To be eligible for our Great Value recommendation, platforms must be in our top three customer score bands and among the 25% least expensive in the asset categories they offer (any combination of funds, shares, or ETFs).
