Revolut vs Trading 212.
Revolut or Trading 212 for a monthly index buy? The same pattern priced through both price sheets, the protection behind each, who does your tax paperwork, and what leaving costs — side by side, verified, verdict-free.
Every figure verified against the brokers’ own price sheets: July 2026. Fee schedules reprice mid-year — if that date looks old, check the price sheet before acting.
The same buy, both bills
| Measure | Revolut | Trading 212 |
|---|---|---|
| The bill this year | €0 | €0 |
| Twenty years of it | ≈ €0 | ≈ €0 |
The example pattern — €300 a month, no pot, a euro-listed fund. Your pattern is different: run yours through The Broker Bill
Where they differ
| Dimension | Revolut | Trading 212 |
|---|---|---|
| Available in | All EU/EEA residents, on its own pages; the UK too, via its UK entity | 30 countries, on its published list; the UK too, via its UK entity |
| Conversion | 1% | 0.15% |
| Protection | Lithuanian investor insurance — a flat cap of €22,000 (no 90% tier; the scheme's own FAQ) | Cyprus ICF up to €20,000, or German EdW 90% up to €20,000 — depends on your country's entity |
| The cash | App balances are real deposits at Revolut Bank UAB — €100,000 Lithuanian deposit insurance. The investments sit at the separate brokerage entity under the €22,000 investor scheme. Two firms, two safety nets. | Client money held at major EU/UK banks; opting into interest sweeps cash into money market funds — “treated as an investment and not as money held with a bank”, its own words. |
| Does your taxes in | — | Germany |
| The exit | No outbound transfer route for European ETFs is published (US-listed only, $35 a position) — leaving means selling. | In-kind transfers out are free, whole shares only (fractions are sold) — but not from its German-entity accounts: there, leaving means selling. |
Where they match
- The monthly buy €0 · savings plan
- Recurring €0/yr
- Savings plan automatic · fractions
The honest notes
Revolut
The app half of Europe already carries, which is exactly its pitch: the investing lives where your card does. Two facts to keep separate: your cash sits at its bank, with a real deposit guarantee; your investments sit at its Lithuanian brokerage, under that country's separate, smaller investor scheme. The ETF shelf is a fraction of a full broker's, free trades are rationed by subscription tier, and the recurring "Investment Plans" are the genuinely commission-free route. As a first, small, automatic drip it works. If your plan outgrows the shelf, the switching section below is how you leave without a tax bill.
Revolut — the fine print
Revolut Securities Europe UAB — Bank of Lithuania (the brokerage); cash sits at Revolut Bank UAB
ETF Investment Plan — recurring buys, commission-free on every subscription tier (Revolut pre-funds the commission), from €1. One-off trades: your plan's monthly free allowance, then 0.25% (min €1). Currency exchange is free to €1,000 a month on the free plan — the 1% priced here is the over-allowance rate.
Investment Plans: recurring, commission-free, from €1, fractional.
App balances are real deposits at Revolut Bank UAB — €100,000 Lithuanian deposit insurance. The investments sit at the separate brokerage entity under the €22,000 investor scheme. Two firms, two safety nets.
No withholding on fund gains anywhere — you declare and pay yourself; its own help pages say so plainly.
No outbound transfer route for European ETFs is published (US-listed only, $35 a position) — leaving means selling.
Trading 212
The widest-available of the free apps — nearly all of the EEA — and the fullest automation: zero commission, a small conversion fee as its main visible charge, and “Pies” that auto-invest and rebalance with fractions. The fine print is where your attention should go. Which entity you contract with depends on your country, and with it the compensation scheme behind you; share lending can be on unless you turn it off (and isn't offered at all under its German entity); interest on cash comes via money-market funds, which are investments, not insured deposits. And the leveraged side of the house lives one tab away. Free, genuinely — checked settings and a closed tab are the price.
Trading 212 — the fine print
Trading 212 Markets Ltd (Cyprus, CySEC) or Trading 212 EU GmbH (Germany, BaFin) — your country decides
Any buy is commission-free — a Pie/AutoInvest or a manual order; the one account fee is the 0.15% currency conversion.
Pies & AutoInvest: scheduled buys on your rhythm that self-rebalance, fractional; each Pie's minimum derives from its smallest slice.
Client money held at major EU/UK banks; opting into interest sweeps cash into money market funds — “treated as an investment and not as money held with a bank”, its own words.
German residents (under its German entity) get capital-gains tax withheld automatically since January 2026; everyone else self-reports with its Capital Income Statement.
In-kind transfers out are free, whole shares only (fractions are sold) — but not from its German-entity accounts: there, leaving means selling.
No affiliate links — no broker pays me, and none of them knows it's on this page. The order is arithmetic, not sponsorship.
Education, not advice. Fee schedules change and brokers reprice — check the current price sheet before you open anything. Which broker suits you also depends on your country and your tax situation; I'm not a licensed adviser, happily.
Bring me a challenge.
The Exit Audit, then ninety minutes: a straight verdict, real alternatives with their pros and cons, and your first move. If you want someone to nod along, I’m the wrong person to pay.
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