The Best Investment Apps in Europe (2026)

Europe does not have one universal investment market. An app can be excellent in Germany and unavailable in Greece, inexpensive for euro-denominated ETFs but costly for US stocks, or protected under a different compensation scheme depending on the legal entity that opens your account.

That is why this is not a ranking based on the prettiest interface or the lowest advertised commission. We compared eight apps on the things that affect European investors in practice: total cost, regulation, product access, recurring-investment tools, fractional investing, country availability and how easy the platform is to use without accidentally entering a leveraged product.

If you want to compare the wider broker market, use our European broker comparison. If you are still unsure what type of platform fits you, the broker quiz narrows the options based on how you actually plan to invest.

How we make money: InvestBeacon currently has affiliate relationships with XTB, eToro and Freedom24 and may receive compensation if you open an account through those links. Commercial relationships do not determine our category assessments, ratings or the trade-offs included below. Read our full disclosure.

How we selected the apps

We applied the same published framework used across InvestBeacon: fees and total cost account for 30% of our assessment, regulation and safety for 20%, product range for 20%, user experience for 15% and customer support for 15%. For this app-focused guide, we also examined how fractional investing, recurring plans, currency conversion and country eligibility affect those five categories.

A category winner is not a universal verdict. The app that works well for a €150 monthly ETF plan may be completely wrong for someone buying bonds, converting several currencies or using professional order types.

We included platforms that offer real stocks or ETFs to residents of multiple European countries. CFD-only platforms were excluded. Where a broker also offers CFDs, we assess its investing account separately and flag the distinction.

The best investment apps in Europe at a glance

Fees and features can differ by residence, account type, currency, exchange and contracted legal entity. Always check the final cost preview and local tariff before placing an order.

1. Trading 212 — best for beginner-friendly automation

Trading 212 earns its place because it combines fractional shares, Pies and AutoInvest with one of the cleanest beginner experiences in Europe. Investors can build a portfolio with percentage allocations, automate contributions and rebalance new deposits without manually buying every holding.

The Invest account charges no dealing commission on stocks and ETFs. Its multi-currency account supports 12 currencies, and currency conversion currently costs 0.15%. Holding the asset’s trading currency can avoid repeated conversions on manual orders, although Pies operate through the account’s primary currency and may still create FX costs.

The main limitation is depth. Trading 212 is excellent for stocks, ETFs and automated portfolios, but it is not designed for investors who need a large bond marketplace, listed options or professional trading infrastructure. The relevant regulator and compensation arrangement also depend on the legal entity serving your country. Read our full Trading 212 review.

2. XTB — best for research and Investment Plans in one app

XTB offers a stronger combination of investing tools, market analysis and education than most app-first brokers. Its Investment Plans allow users to build ETF portfolios around percentage allocations, while xStation provides substantially more research and charting than the typical beginner app.

Real stocks and ETFs currently carry 0% commission up to €100,000 in monthly turnover. Above that threshold, the published charge is 0.2% with a €10 minimum. A 0.5% currency-conversion cost can apply when the instrument currency differs from the account currency. Amount-based investing is available through fractional rights in eligible markets.

The main trade-off is that XTB also has a major CFD business. Real investing and leveraged CFD trading are different products with different risk profiles, and beginners should verify that they are using the stock and ETF investing area. XTB’s legal entity, cash-interest terms and available products can also vary by country. Read our full XTB review.

3. Freedom24 — best for research, bonds and broader securities access

Freedom24 is more research-oriented than the average mobile-first investment app. It combines stocks and ETFs with access to a wider selection of securities, including bonds, and provides in-platform investment research. Its European service is operated by Freedom Finance Europe Ltd, regulated by CySEC, while its parent company, Freedom Holding Corp., is listed on Nasdaq.

Freedom24 also offers recurring investment instructions for eligible instruments. Under the current terms, card funding and the purchase made inside the eligible recurring-investment workflow can carry 0% commission. This does not mean that every card deposit or every manual trade is free: transactions outside that workflow follow the applicable tariff.

There are two important limitations. Fractional securities are not currently available inside the recurring plan, so the order will not execute if the contribution cannot purchase a whole unit. Recurring-plan transactions are also executed over the counter using the previous trading day’s closing price under the published terms. Read our full Freedom24 review.

4. eToro — best for social and copy investing

eToro remains different from almost every other platform in this comparison. Its core strength is not simply access to stocks and ETFs; it is the ability to inspect public portfolios, follow other investors and use CopyTrader or Smart Portfolios. For someone who values a social layer around investing, there is no close equivalent among the other apps covered here.

The fee structure requires more attention than a simple commission headline suggests. ETF trades currently have no commission, while a $1 or $2 stock commission may apply depending on residence and exchange. Eligible EU residents can use a EUR account, which makes the old description of eToro as purely USD-based inaccurate. Conversion and withdrawal costs still depend on the funding route, account currency, country and Club tier.

Copying another investor does not replace due diligence. Performance can change, copied portfolios may hold concentrated positions, and leveraged or short positions are generally CFDs rather than ownership of the underlying security. Every CFD position is labelled in the execution screen. Read our full eToro review.

5. Trade Republic — best for automated ETF saving with banking features

Trade Republic is built around repeatable investing. Stock and ETF savings plans can be started from €1 without a Trade Republic execution fee, while one-off securities trades generally include a €1 settlement fee plus possible spreads and third-party costs. The app is intentionally simple, but Trade Republic now also provides a browser-based Web Terminal, so it should not be described as mobile-only.

Trade Republic holds a German banking licence and combines investing with cash interest, a debit card and other banking features in supported countries. However, the protection of uninvested cash needs to be described carefully. Eligible bank deposits may be covered by the relevant partner bank’s deposit-guarantee scheme, while amounts allocated to liquidity funds are investments rather than bank deposits.

The result is a strong platform for automated long-term saving, but not the most flexible option for investors who want professional research, multi-currency balances, broad exchange choice or advanced order routing. Read our full Trade Republic review.

6. Lightyear — best for low-cost multi-currency investing

Lightyear is one of the clearest options for investors who regularly move between currencies. The current EU pricing lists a 0.35% FX charge, commission-free ETF orders, a maximum $1 charge for US stock orders and a £1 charge for UK stock orders. Its multi-currency balances can make the cost easier to control than on platforms that automatically convert every transaction.

The app now supports both repeat orders and Plans, including percentage-based allocations and automatic investment into eligible fractional instruments. Describing its savings-plan functionality as limited is no longer accurate.

Lightyear’s disadvantages are its shorter operating history and smaller product range compared with full-service brokers. It is regulated in the EU by the Estonian Financial Supervision Authority and is currently available in a defined list of European countries rather than across the entire continent. Read our full Lightyear review.

7. Scalable Capital — best for savings plans in its six supported markets

Scalable Capital is designed around recurring investing. Savings-plan executions are free across its current broker models, while the FREE plan generally charges €0.99 for standard orders. PRIME+ costs €4.99 per month and removes the order fee for eligible trades of at least €250 on the European Investor Exchange and gettex. Xetra orders retain separate charges.

Scalable Capital Bank GmbH now has its own full banking licence and is supervised by BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank. Older descriptions that present Scalable solely as a broker working through Baader Bank are no longer sufficient.

Its largest limitation in a Europe-wide comparison is availability. The broker currently targets residents of Germany, Austria, metropolitan France, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. That is a useful regional footprint, but it is not most of the EU. Read our full Scalable Capital review.

8. DEGIRO — best for broad exchange access without app-first automation

DEGIRO remains useful for investors who prioritise access to many European and international exchanges over automation. Its ETF Core Selection includes products traded on Tradegate for a €1 handling charge per transaction under the current conditions, while products outside the selection follow the standard local tariff.

The trade-off is that DEGIRO has not followed the same product direction as Trading 212, Trade Republic or Lightyear. It does not offer fractional shares or a comparable automated savings-plan system, which makes it less convenient for someone investing a small fixed amount every month.

DEGIRO therefore works better as a traditional low-cost brokerage account than as the most modern investment app in this list. Currency, exchange-connectivity and product costs still need to be checked before each trade. Read our full DEGIRO review.

How to choose between the eight apps

Start with the way you expect to invest during the next two or three years:

Do not choose from the brand name alone. Confirm the accepted country, contracted legal entity, account type, available products, base currency, full tariff and protection framework shown during registration.

Regulation does not make every app equally safe

A regulated broker can still be a poor fit, and regulation does not protect you from market losses. Three separate concepts matter:

The EU Investor Compensation Schemes Directive establishes a minimum compensation level of €20,000, while EU deposit-guarantee schemes generally protect eligible bank deposits up to €100,000 per depositor per bank. The exact protection attached to your account still depends on the legal entity and the way cash and assets are held. Our guide to European broker safety explains these distinctions in detail.

The bottom line

For most beginners, Trading 212 is the strongest pure app experience for building an automated stock and ETF portfolio. XTB becomes more attractive when education, research and ETF Investment Plans matter. Freedom24 is more relevant for investors who want research, bonds and broader securities access, while eToro remains the specialist choice for social and copy investing.

Those platforms are not interchangeable. Compare the exact costs and account structure for your country before opening an account, and avoid choosing solely because an app advertises zero commission.

Use the InvestBeacon comparison tool to compare the wider platform market or take the broker quiz to narrow the shortlist around your investing style.

Official sources checked

The product, fee and regulatory claims in this guide were checked against official sources on 2 October 2026:

Provider terms can change. Recheck the local tariff, legal entity and final cost screen before acting.

Affiliate disclosure: InvestBeacon may receive compensation when you open an account through certain links, including links to XTB, eToro and Freedom24. This does not change our ratings, category assessments or the limitations described in this guide.

This content is educational and is not personal investment advice. Investments can fall in value, and you may get back less than you invest.