Which Trading 212 model pie is best? We reviewed them all

If you've ever opened Trading 212 and stared at the ready-made pies wondering which one (if any) is actually worth your money, you're not definitely alone. 

They all sound good on paper and look reassuringly simple. Pick a theme, pick a risk level, AutoInvest. But dig a little deeper, and each pie behaves very differently.

So, we've done the taste-testing for you.

Let's take a detailed look at each model pie, what it actually does, and the drawbacks and considerations you need to be aware of before you invest.

Promo code worth up to £100 with Trading 212

Get free fractional shares worth up to £100 when you join Trading 212 and deposit at least £1 via our link, or use promo code FIN within your account. Terms apply. Affiliate link.

Get offer now _{Capital at risk when investing}

What are Trading 212 pies?

Pies are a nifty feature offered by Trading 212 that allow you to either create a customisable investment portfolio, or choose a ready-made one built by professional asset managers. 

Each "slice" of a pie has a target percentage, and whenever money is added, it's automatically allocated to keep those proportions on track. If you already know how you want your portfolio to be balanced, this removes a lot of the hassle (and the maths).

When you choose a model pie, professional managers update the allocations quarterly, and you get notifications to accept or reject the changes. 

The idea is that you get the benefits of having your money "managed" by experts, but without the fees that come with it. Instead, each pie has its own individual fund fee (TER), which currently range between 0.10%-0.45%.

At the moment, there are six different pie options to choose from. This of course doesn't necessarily guarantee you'll find one to fit your own needs and risk tolerance, and it's also important to note that you can't manually adjust the weightings as you could with your own pie – though you can adjust the "risk" level.

Pies & Autoinvest are execution-only services following your own investment decisions.

Adjusting risk inside Trading 212 model pies

Some model pies allow you to adjust the risk level, from conservative to aggressive. 

But what does that even mean?

Well, model pies consist of three components: equity ETFs, bond ETFs and commodities ETFs (sometimes called ETCs). Each of these plays a different role inside the pie, and has a different level of risk and potential return:

• Equity ETFs track a stock market index by investing in the companies inside it. Their value rises and falls based on how those companies perform and what investors think they're worth. Shares can swing around a lot, so equity ETFs tend to be higher risk but higher potential return over the long term
• Bond ETFs invest in bonds – loans to governments or companies that pay interest and return your money at the end of the term. Because there's a fixed schedule of payments and a promise to repay the loan, bond prices don’t move as wildly as shares. That makes bond ETFs lower risk but lower return on average
• Commodity ETFs track the price of assets like gold and silver. They're generally more volatile than shares or bonds, but they behave differently – their prices can be driven by geopolitics, supply constraints, production costs, and more. They often hold up better during periods of high inflation or economic crisis, which is why they're sometimes used as an inflation hedge or a defensive "safe haven". That said, they’re not low risk.

Some model pies contain only equity ETFs, some contain a mixture of equity and bond ETFs, and some have commodities thrown in for good measure.

When you’re dialling up between conservative and aggressive, you’re adjusting your exposure to each of these ingredients accordingly. 

Of course, that's not to say that if you’re conservative you won’t lose money or if you’re aggressive you'll gain. It's more of a guide than a promise.

Not sure whether to use a ready-made pie or build your own? This guide will tell you everything you need to know.

How dividends work in Trading 212's model pies

The model pies differ in how they handle dividends.

Some pies use accumulating funds, which automatically reinvest any income inside the fund itself. Others include dividend-paying funds, where the dividends are paid out as cash into your account. Normally, that cash just sits there until you choose to reinvest it or use it for something else.

However, pies have AutoReinvest switched on by default. This means any dividends you receive from dividend-paying holdings are automatically funnelled straight back into your pie.

If you'd prefer to receive the dividends as cash instead, you'll need to turn this off.

You can do that by opening your pie, going to the Dividends section, tapping the cogwheel in the top-right corner, and disabling AutoReinvest.

With those explanations out of the way, let's dig into our model pies. They're going cold.

Vanguard global pie

TER: 0.09%

Dividend treatment: accumulating

Currencies: GBP

What it does

The Vanguard Global pie is built from six Vanguard ETFs using data supplied directly by them.

The idea is straightforward: pair a sizeable bond allocation with a wide mix of equities to create a ready-made, "globally diversified" portfolio.

The moderate version – the one shown by default – sits at a 50/50 split between bonds and equities. The bond side is a giant basket of government and investment-grade bonds from the US, UK and Europe.

The equity side largely mimics a typical global index fund, just broken into regional slices instead of one all-in-one ETF.

You can move the risk slider to make it more cautious or more adventurous: the conservative version jumps to 80% bonds, while the aggressive version drops bonds down to 10%. 

Drawbacks and considerations

Vanguard's offering is the closest thing you'll find to a traditionally diversified portfolio within Trading 212's pie range and arguably the best pie for beginners – no bells, no whistles, just the steady, sensible approach the investment giant is famous for.

But it's also much more cautious than some investors might want. In fact, the "default" split is the same asset allocation of Vanguard's Target Retirement funds designed for people retiring now or within about five years – i.e., investors in their fifties looking to transition from growing their pot to protecting what they've built. 

And it's easy to see how some users might incorrectly interpret the moderate pie as the "recommended" choice, even though it might not suit people with a longer investing timeline looking for long-term growth. 

Performance data underscores the gap. Based on the AAR (weighted five-year annualised return of the underlying funds), the aggressive version has returned around 10%, and the moderate version closer to 6%, at the time of writing. 

Someone investing £200 a month over the past five years would have ended up roughly £1,500 better off with the aggressive option – though of course, past performance is no indicator of future results.

That said, the optimal asset allocation isn't necessarily the one with the best returns; it's simply the one you can stick to over the long term. For some people, that might be a pretty conservative mix. Just make sure it's the right choice for you.

Another quirk is the way that the pie achieves global diversification. The equity portion is effectively a global index fund reconstructed out of multiple regional ETFs. This might appeal to some who prefer to see exactly where their money's going without digging through a fund factsheet, but may feel needlessly fiddly to others.

That said, the fund fee of just 0.10% makes it a cheaper choice than many other global funds, including Vanguard's own FTSE All-World ETF. 

BlackRock core model pie

TER: 0.19%

Dividend treatment: accumulating and distributing

Currencies: GBP and USD

What it does

The BlackRock core model pie is also billed as a "globally diversified" portfolio, this time built using data from BlackRock and made up entirely of iShares ETFs – BlackRock's own ETF brand. The moderate pie setting has 28 different funds in total. 

At first glance, it looks a lot like Vanguard's pie: the default setting is roughly 50% equities and 50% bonds. Toggle to the aggressive version, and you can ramp equities up to 93%.

However, this pie has the added twist of a fixed 2% commodities allocation that never changes, no matter which setting you choose. This sits in iShares Physical Gold, a fund that tracks the gold price and holds actual bullion.

The bond side is relatively simple: a standard mix of government and corporate bonds, mostly from the US with some Europe mixed in.

The equities side is where things start to get a little more complex. 

Most of the weight goes to the US, just like a standard global tracker fund, but instead of using one S&P 500 ETF, the pie uses a few different versions. For example: 

• a GBP-hedged version to dampen currency swings
• an ESG-screened US fund which removes companies that score poorly on environmental, social or governance criteria
• an equal-weighted fund, which gives every company in the index the same weight instead of letting the biggest firms dominate.

Outside the US, the pie includes smaller allocations to Europe, the UK, the Pacific region and emerging markets, along with a surprise REIT tracker fund.

These increase as you move up the risk scale, eventually giving you a regional mix that broadly resembles a global index fund – just with smaller percentages overall to make room for the bonds and commodities.

Drawbacks and considerations

As with the Vanguard pie, the default version here leans conservative, with half your portfolio parked in bonds. And again, there’s no way to ditch them entirely – even on the highest risk setting you're still carrying 5%. Whether that feels sensible or suffocating will come down to your own risk appetite.

The pie also goes about diversification in a slightly convoluted way, using several overlapping US funds.

It's probably intended to smooth out some quirks of a plain old S&P 500 tracker – dial down the mega-cap dominance, add some balance, that sort of thing – but to anyone not fluent in ETF-speak, it may feel a bit… fiddly.

The polite 2% nod to gold is likely intended to add diversification and act as a protective asset, but at such a minimal amount, it's debatable how much impact it can really have. Many experts suggest you'd need closer to around 10% for commodities to make a meaningful, long-term difference.

Still, you might simply like knowing there's a sliver of gold humming quietly in the background, and that's fine too.

Cost-wise, the BlackRock core pie doesn't come in cheaper than a typical global tracker, though some may feel it's good value getting a more "engineered" portfolio without shelling out for full management.

One practical quirk to be aware of, too: one of the ETFs included in the pie at the time of writing is US-listed, which introduces a 0.15% FX charge for UK investors.

Simplify index funds and their confusing fees

Get our free cheat sheet to make everything easy

Send me the sheet

WisdomTree core pie

TER: 0.27%

Dividend treatment: accumulating and distributing

Currencies: GBP, USD and EUR

What it does

This pie takes a notably different approach from the two we’ve looked at so far. 

Instead of trying to recreate something similar to the global stock market, it spreads your money across a mix of asset classes, styles and themes – more "diversification by ingredients" than "diversification by geography."

The moderate version holds 18 ETFs, mostly from WisdomTree and iShares.

As with the other pies, the default allocation gives you around 50% equities, but what stands out here is the sizeable 20% commodities allocation, which stays fixed across all but the conservative version where it drops to 10%. 

This combines a broad commodities ETF (tracking areas like energy and industrial metals) with a physical gold fund that tracks the metal's spot price. 

Choose the aggressive setting and bonds disappear altogether, leaving you with an unusual 80/20 equities-commodities split.

On the bond side, you're mainly holding government and corporate bonds again, with the addition of a mortgage-backed securities ETF – a fund which invests in bundles of home loans packaged into bond-like instruments.

These behave slightly differently from traditional bonds because they're sensitive to interest rate changes and prepayment risks.

Moving on to equities, there's still a clear US tilt. But, just like the BlackRock core pie, the pie uses different styles to avoid hyper-concentration – including US small-cap and mid-cap funds. 

Beyond the US, there's an emerging markets fund and a global ex-US fund, adding a bit of geographical balance, plus a thematic ETF focused on companies involved in technological and environmental change.

Drawbacks and considerations

The big talking point with this pie is the chunky commodities slice – around 8% in gold, and 12% in a broader fund – more interesting (and less risky) than backing a single metal and hoping for the best.

There's also a decent argument for having them in the mix. Portfolios that include commodities have historically managed better long-term returns with less overall wobble than the classic 60/40 equity/bond split. No guarantee that repeats, obviously.

The trade-off is that commodities can swing around more in the short term, so you'd need to be willing to ride that out, and understand the rollercoaster you might be signing up for.

On the equities side, you still get the familiar US lean, but with a bit more balance thanks to the small- and mid-cap exposure. And in the moderate pie, the other regional ETFs together amount to roughly half of the US allocation, so there's still a fair degree of balance.

Ultimately, this pie is for people who like their diversification with a bit more character – a traditional equity foundation, but with commodities playing a proper role rather than just sitting quietly in the corner.

Once again though, the fiddly blend of three different currencies will quietly add FX fees. 

WisdomTree tech pie

TER: 0.43%

Dividend treatment: Accumulating

Currencies: GBP

What it does

The WisdomTree Tech pie is exactly what it sounds like: tech, tech and more tech.

Powered (again) by data from WisdomTree, it gives you 100% equity exposure across six themes and nine different ETFs – AI, biotech, cloud computing, cyber security, blockchain and semiconductors. There's only one version of the pie, and no way to dial the risk down. 

Each slice tracks a specialist index. The biggest one follows the WisdomTree Team8 Cybersecurity Index, which essentially bundles together companies building the digital fences that keep hackers out. 

Another large slice tracks the BVP Nasdaq Emerging Cloud Index, which focuses on fast-growing cloud software companies. The rest follow similarly niche tech sub-sectors.

Because these are more complex, specialist funds, the fee is higher at 0.45%.

Drawbacks and considerations

Thematic investing can feel exciting – like you’re positioning yourself to catch the next big wave – but it does come with risks. 

With WisdomTree's tech pie, you're holding a small handful of tech sub-sectors that tend to be more volatile, more sensitive to hype cycles and regulation, and quicker to fall out of favour when sentiment shifts. The same forces that knock one area can easily spill over into the others, leading to a domino effect of losses.

On the other hand, for the very same reasons, this more concentrated approach could amplify gains. That upside potential is precisely why thematic ETFs exist – they magnify both the risk and the reward.

Historically though, thematic ETFs have struggled to outperform the broader market over long periods. 

They're also newer, so there's less data to reassure yourself during downturns, and markets often price in a lot of future growth before it actually materialises.

You couldn't call this pie diversified – but that's not what it's aiming to be. We’d say it’s more of an interesting side bet for people who know what they're getting into and are willing to stomach the swings.

You'll find loads more detail on thematic investing in our guide: How thematic investing works (and when it doesn't)

WisdomTree multi-thematic pie

TER: 0.43%

Divident treatment: accumulating

Currencies: GBP and USD

What it does

The WisdomTree multi-thematic pie is another specialist, 100%-equities offering from WisdomTree – and again, the 0.44% fund fee reflects that. 

There’s only one version of the pie, so you’re committing to a basket of niche, forward-looking themes.

Unlike the pure tech pie, this one tries to cast a wider thematic net. It mixes trends across three grand-sounding categories – technological shifts, environmental pressures, and demographic and social changes – across 18 separate ETFs.

What does that mean in practice? Mostly that you get a collection of very specific thematic ETFs stitched together into one portfolio, but one that is more diversified than the other thematic WisdomTree pies in Trading 212's lineup.

There’s plenty of overlap with the tech pie – at the time of writing, the top four holdings are exactly the same – but there are also areas the tech pie doesn’t touch. 

Around 10% sits in an index tracking European defence and aerospace companies. There are also dedicated funds for renewable energy and for the strategic metals needed to build that technology. And then there's a scatter of smaller niche themes: companies innovating in genetics and biotech, and even businesses creating products for an ageing population.

On paper, the idea is to build something "specialised yet diversified": lots of very narrow themes, but spread across different parts of the economy rather than just tech.

Drawbacks and considerations

Even though this pie reaches into more sectors than the pure tech version, the underlying approach is, naturally, still highly thematic and highly concentrated. 

That means, yet again, that the pie can be sensitive to hype cycles, shifting narratives and regulatory changes in any of its chosen niches – bringing with it the same risk/reward tightrope.

And as with all thematic investments, there’s limited long-term data, growth expectations are often priced in early, and historical performance has generally trailed broad global indexes.

The complexity itself is also a consideration: you’re not just betting on one theme, but on a whole menu of them – each with its own risks and storylines to keep track of. That might be appealing to some who like to thoroughly research and understand what they’re investing in, but off-putting to others who would find it frankly overwhelming.

That said, it could be a tempting choice if you want a ready-made way to spread a part of your portfolio across multiple emerging trends without choosing the themes yourself. And could well be a bit of fun, too. 

Again – this pie has a sneaky USD-denominated fund, which introduces a 0.15% FX fee.

WisdomTree environmental pie

TER: 0.45%

Dividend treatment: accumulating

Currencies: GBP

What it does

The WisdomTree Environmental pie is another equity-only thematic option from WisdomTree with a fee to match, but this one takes a far tighter focus, zeroing in on four environmental pillars –renewable energy, recycling and decarbonisation, battery solutions and sustainable food.

It's noticeably simpler than some of the other thematic pies — at the time of writing, there are only five ETFs inside it, all of which also appear in WisdomTree's other thematic pies.

The biggest slice goes to a uranium and nuclear energy ETF, tracking companies involved in uranium mining and nuclear power generation. Next is a broad renewable energy ETF, covering everything from solar and wind to hydro, with "strict" ESG criteria baked in.

The remaining funds branch into similarly niche but connected areas: a strategic metals ETF (tracking the materials needed for batteries and clean-tech infrastructure), and another focused on companies trying to build a more sustainable and resilient global food system.

Drawbacks and considerations

Again, like all thematic pies, this is essentially a targeted bet – only here the bet is even tighter.

Because there are fewer slices than any of the other pies we've looked at, each one ends up carrying much more weight. That concentrates your exposure – great if these areas take off, but riskier if any one theme hits a rough patch.

And environmental themes can be proper boom-and-bust. Nuclear, rare metals, renewables — these areas move not just with profits, but with politics, weather, regulation, and supply chains. Prices (and enthusiasm) can swing hard.

Still, for some investors, it's a way to put money behind something you genuinely believe in, without trying to hand-pick the "green winners" yourself – and with the comfort of knowing someone else is keeping the portfolio updated rather than leaving you to track the price of uranium in your spare time.

Trading 212 model pies compared

Pie	What it does	Asset mix	Risk adjustability	TER	Key features
Vanguard global	Classic broad-market portfolio	Equities + bonds	✅	0.09%	Simple, low-cost, traditionally diversified; equity side mirrors a global index fund; conservative default allocation
BlackRock core	Global portfolio with extra engineering	Equities + bonds + small gold slice	✅	0.19%	Multiple US equity styles, fixed 2% gold; broad regional mix; some USD exposure
WisdomTree core	Multi-asset diversification with commodities tilt	Equities + bonds + significant commodities	✅	0.27%	20% diversified commodities; includes mortgage-backed bonds; blend of US, EM, small-/mid-caps; multi-currency ETFs
WisdomTree tech	Pure tech-theme portfolio	100% equities	❌	0.43%	Six tech subsectors; highly concentrated; higher thematic fees; no bond or commodity buffer
WisdomTree multi-thematic	Broad spread of thematic funds	100% equities	❌	0.43%	18 niche ETFs; mixes tech + defence + metals + biotech + renewables; more diversified than single-theme pies
WisdomTree environmental	Focused green-economy bet	100% equities	❌	0.45%	Only five ETFs; heavy tilt toward nuclear/renewables/strategic metals; most concentrated thematic pie

Bottom line

Each Trading 212 model pie serves a different purpose. Some are built for stability, some for balance, and some for speculative growth. The right choice depends entirely on your objectives, how long you plan to invest for, and how much volatility you’re prepared to live with.

The important thing is not which pie looks the most exciting – it's which one aligns with your long-term strategy. If none of them do, building a custom pie may be the better option.

Using an auto-enrolled work-based pension?

The fund you're contributing to might not be right for you

Send the info