Plum review
Updated September 28, 2026 · SumCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
Plum suits beginners in the UK who want to start small and pay nothing to deal, with a minimum deposit of £2. The trade-off is a short market list, confined to stocks, etfs and funds, and an overall score of 6.5 that leaves the case resting on price rather than choice.
Key facts
- Best for
- Beginners starting small who want no dealing commission and no account charge.
- Minimum deposit
- £2↗
- Stock trade fee
- £0↗
- Account fee
- £0↗
- Markets
- Stocks, ETFs, Funds↗
- Regulators
- Financial Conduct Authority↗
- Investor protection
- FSCS up to GBP 85,000↗
- Platforms
- Mobile app↗
- Account types
- ISA, SIPP, Lisa↗
- Legal entity
- Plum Fintech Limited↗
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom↗
- Founded
- 2016↗
- Support channels
- Email, Help-centre↗
- Features
- Fractional shares, Mobile app
- Pricing model
- Commission-free
- Audience
- Beginners
- Official website
- withplum.com
Savings
Robo-advisors
Facts checked September 26, 2026, 9 sources
Apps and profiles
- Get the app
- App Store
Pros and cons
Pros
- Fractional shares are offered, so £2 is enough to hold a slice of a company rather than whole shares.
- Eligible money is covered by the protection scheme, with the ceiling given as FSCS up to GBP 85,000.
- The account types cover isa, sipp and lisa, so investing, retirement saving and a home deposit pot sit with the same provider.
- Access runs through Mobile app, which keeps dealing straightforward for small, regular buys.
Cons
- Markets stop at stocks, etfs and funds, so there is no dealing in listed bonds, overseas currency or crypto through the account.
- Help runs on email and help centre only, so a stuck withdrawal or transfer has no phone route.
- Managed portfolios charge 0.15% to 0.6%, which takes a slice from every pot you hand over.
Who it suits
- Beginners in the UK who want to begin with £2 and see share dealing in plain terms.
- Investors building an ISA or pension habit on a phone, since access runs through Mobile app.
- Anyone happy with a market list of stocks, etfs and funds for a starter portfolio.
Who should look elsewhere
- eToro is the place to check if the market list here, stocks, etfs and funds, is too tight for what you want to trade.
- bunq if you are starting from a €10 minimum rather than buying shares.
- cfi if you want no minimum deposit, since its floor is $0 against £2 here.
Markets and platforms
Plum's dealing list reads stocks, etfs and funds, which is the mainstream retail range: company shares, pooled funds and trackers. Wrappers cover isa, sipp and lisa, so the same range can sit inside an ISA, a pension or a lifetime account, and the account you pick shapes what you can hold. Access runs through Mobile app, which suits a beginner who does not want a separate dealing terminal. It does not suit anyone after fixed income, overseas currency or a wider market spread offered elsewhere, and there are no individual investment trusts or bonds listed among the markets.
Rates and card terms
The cash side pays 3.05% to 3.65%, and the listing marks the rate type as variable. In plain terms, the number moves with the base rate rather than being locked, so the figure at signup is not a floor you can plan a whole term around. Cash is the holding that earns here rather than a product that locks money away for a length of time, which points the account at short horizons and regular access. Anyone chasing a fixed rate for a known period finds nothing in these terms to match it, because nothing listed fixes the rate for a set length.
How it compares on our data
On account fee, Plum sits at 1 of 142 brands ranked, and on stock trade fee at 1 of 166. Those two places come from fee-free pricing rather than from anything unusual in the model. On minimum deposit the ranking reads 91 of 218, so the entry point is low without being the lowest in the set. The overall score is 6.5 and the cost part is 6.5, which puts price in step with the rest of the rating: strong, with a little room left above it.
The company behind it
The provider is Plum Fintech Limited, registered in the United Kingdom and founded in 2016, which is young by the standards of the UK financial sector. Support runs on email and help centre, so questions go by email or through the help centre. That suits people who would rather write down the detail of a money problem than describe it aloud, and it suits anyone who is comfortable with an app-led process. It does not suit a customer who wants to pick up a phone during a market open, because no phone line appears among the channels listed.
How Plum compares
8.9 vs 9.4
8.9 vs 8.7
8.9 vs 8.3
8.9 vs 8.5
8.9 vs 9.4
8.9 vs 9.3
8.9 vs 8.7
Plum vs eToro8.9 vs 9.2Its stock trade fee is $0 as well, so commission-free dealing is not unique, and Plum adds isa, sipp and lisa alongside it.
8.9 vs 8.7
8.9 vs 8.6
8.9 vs 9.2
8.9 vs 9.2
8.9 vs 9.0
8.9 vs 9.2
8.9 vs 9.2
8.9 vs 9.2
8.9 vs 9.1
8.9 vs 9.0
8.9 vs 9.0
8.9 vs 9.0
8.9 vs 9.0
8.9 vs 8.8
Where Plum is available
- Available
- United Kingdom
Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
What does it cost to trade and hold with Plum?+
Dealing is commission-free and the stock trade fee is listed as £0. The account fee is £0 and the monthly subscription is £0, so holding an account costs nothing. Managed portfolios are the exception, charging 0.15% to 0.6% on the money you put into them. That covers the charging picture on the investment side.
Is my money protected if something goes wrong?+
Eligible investments sit under the protection scheme, and the stated ceiling is given as FSCS up to GBP 85,000. Cash held in the app is listed the same way under FSCS up to GBP 85,000. The figure is a limit rather than a promise of returns, and it applies to eligible money rather than to every balance on the account. Read the terms for the eligibility conditions before you rely on it.
How much money do I need to start?+
The minimum deposit is £2, and the minimum investment is £1. Both are small, and fractional shares mean you can hold a slice of a company rather than needing to buy whole shares. That makes a modest monthly amount workable, which suits a beginner paying in a small amount each month rather than a lump sum.
Can I get my money out quickly?+
The account is listed as easy access, and withdrawals run on same day access with no lock-in and no notice period. Nothing commits you for a fixed term, so cash moves when you decide it should. There is no penalty for changing your mind about the amount you keep in cash, and the easy access label says as much. Selling an investment still takes the time a sale takes.
Which account types can I open?+
The account types are isa, sipp and lisa, so you can run an ISA, a pension or a lifetime account against the same dealing list. The instrument range does not change between them, which makes the wrapper a question of tax and purpose rather than of what you can buy. Entry is the same either way, with £2 to put in and fractional shares available.
Can I use it on a laptop, or is it app only?+
Access is through Mobile app, and the listed features pair a mobile app with fractional shares. The practical effect is that dealing happens on a phone, which is convenient for small, regular buys but thin if you want research screens or advanced order types. Support matches the same pattern, running on email and help centre rather than a phone line.
Who is Plum built for?+
Plum is aimed at beginners, and the shape of the product backs that up. The minimum deposit is £2, dealing is commission-free, and the account runs on a phone. Someone with a large portfolio and a need for research tools would find the platform narrow, since markets stop at stocks, etfs and funds and help is limited to email and help centre.
Sources
- find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/compan... checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Founded, Headquarters
“Incorporated on 14 January 2016”
- help.withplum.com/en checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Portfolio types
“ETFs 10 articles ... Plum Interest 6 articles”
- withplum.com checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Minimum investment, Support channels
“Get investing with your first spare GBP 1 - that's all you need to open a Plum Stocks and Shares ISA”
- withplum.com checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Platforms
“Sign up for free in just a few taps - app; Rated 4.7 stars on the App Store”
- withplum.com/investments checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Features, Markets, Minimum deposit
“Invest in the world's funds and businesses, starting from just £2 - Stocks and Funds”
- withplum.com/legal/fees checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Deposit protection, Investor protection, Management fee, Regulators
“Management Fee 0.60% (Basic Tier) ... 0.15% (Max Tier), Collected monthly”
- withplum.com/plum-easy-access checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Access terms, Account kind, Headline rate, Rate type
“No lock-ins, no notice periods. When you need your money, you get it the same day.”
- withplum.com/subscriptions checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Account fee, Account types, Legal entity, Monthly fee
“Basic: Free - Plum subscriptions page”
- finextra.com/pressarticle/92506/plum-launches-commission-... checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Audience, Pricing model, Stock trade fee
“Plum created for people who want to better manage finances; strong adoption from first-time investors”
Compiled from 9 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Inactivity fee, Retail accounts that lose money.
Plum
Beginners starting small who want no dealing commission and no account charge.