Trading 212 Tips That Every Investor Needs to Know
Financial Interest was founded by Damien Talks Money (220,000 YouTube subscribers) to teach the personal finance lessons he wished he'd been taught at school.
Last updated 27th August 2024
Trading 212 is one of the most popular platforms for casual investors, but like any sophisticated tool, it’s packed with features that many users can overlook.
Whether you’re a novice just starting out or an experienced investor looking to make the most of your investing journey, these 22 tips will help you navigate Trading 212 more effectively.
Getting started
If you’ve signed up to Trading 212 within the last 10 days and haven’t received a free share, go to “Use promo code” in the menu, then enter the code “FIN”.
You’ll immediately be credited with a free share worth up to £100, as long as you’ve deposited at least £1* into one of Trading 212’s investment accounts.
*Capital at risk, terms apply.
2. Customise your homepage
You can tailor your homepage to your individual needs and preferences by clicking the pencil icon in the top right corner.
Choose between ‘full’ or ‘compact’ mode to change your view.
And reorganise, enable or hide sections you don’t wish to appear.
3. Create custom watch lists
Use the plus icon at the top of your homepage to create watch lists for stocks or funds you’re interested in.
This makes it easy to monitor the ongoing performance of potential investments.
4. Utilise the learn feature
To expand your knowledge of the stock market and investing as a whole, find the “Learn” feature in the menu section.
This directs you to a wealth of educational content.
Maximising your investments
5. Earn interest on uninvested cash
Activate the “Earn interest on cash” feature in the menu to make your uninvested money work for you — generating interest passively. This does come with a catch, though.
As of the time of writing, the interest rate stands at 5%.
6. Build custom investment pies
Use the “Pie” feature to invest in multiple funds or stocks at once, and maintain an ongoing portfolio.
Create a custom pie or choose a ready-made one with a portfolio built by fund managers.
7. Use auto-invest for regular investing
Set your pie to auto-invest your spare cash on a specific date each month, allowing for consistent, hands-off investing.
For this to work without being charged for your deposits, you’ll also need to set up a standing order from your bank that arrives prior to the date of your auto-investment.
8. Import and export investments in pies
Use the hidden ‘Import’ and ‘Export’ option to add or remove investments after creating a pie — allowing you to create new pies or adjust weights in your existing pie as needed.
9. Check your portfolio balance score
Monitor your portfolio’s balance score to ensure your investments align with your set parameters.
Let’s say you decided you wanted 80% of your money to go into a global index fund, 10% into an S&P 500 fund, and 10% into gold. If the American market surged in price, you would have a bigger than 10% allocation towards the S&P 500.
This won’t automatically rebalance because you might not want it to — you might be happy with your larger position.
You can choose to rebalance your portfolio at the click of a button — although there might be a better option. You can prevent any trades from occurring during rebalancing by choosing to invest more cash with the ‘Fund distribution’ set as self-balancing.
This article is not financial advice. We are not financial advisers. All investments have risk and can increase or decrease in value.
Understanding your investments
10. Explore investment details
Scroll down in the instrument details of a stock or fund to see a concise summary of your investment, including overall returns and price comparisons.
11. Break down your gains and losses
Under your returns figures, find a detailed breakdown of gains, losses, and FX fee impacts.
This is particularly useful for beginners, and for seeing how shifts in currency have affected the profit on your investment — if you’ve bought shares in a foreign currency.
12. Explore key ratios
When considering a company, check the “Key Ratios” section for valuable information like revenue, market cap, and PE ratio.
13. Check price volatility
Use the price volatility metric in the “About” section to gauge the potential price fluctuations of an asset.
Advanced features
14. Use different account types
Explore the various account types offered by Trading 212 by clicking your account balance in the top corner of your screen.
You can move funds between accounts by using the “Manage funds” option in the menu.
15. Take advantage of flexible ISAs
Understand the flexibility of Trading 212’s ISAs, allowing withdrawals and replacements within the same financial year without affecting your annual limit.
With many brokers, withdrawals or transfers will not replenish your annual limit — effectively reducing what you can contribute.
16. Set price alerts
Create alerts for price increases or drops on stocks and funds, using default options or custom values.
This can be useful if you like to “buy the dip”, or if you have a target price in mind before buying or selling.
17. Use advanced charting tools
Access TradingView charts by tapping the expand icon on a chart for detailed technical analysis.
It’s rare for detailed charts like this to be available within a broker’s mobile app.
Staying informed
Tailor the platform’s social media feature to your interests.
Join communities and follow specific individuals, companies or topics for relevant updates.
19. Use the news and economic calendar
Use the news tab at the top left of your homepage for major investing news.
Also, check the economic calendar in the menu to track market-impacting events.
20. Use advanced filters for asset discovery
When searching for investments, utilise the full range of filters available, including those at the bottom of the search page for more specific parameters.
Additional features
21. Access 24/7 live chat support
Find the live chat option at the bottom of the menu page for round-the-clock assistance with account-related issues.
22. Get a Trading 212 debit card
Explore the physical debit card (£4.95 one-time fee) or the free virtual debit card option — which can be added to Apple Pay or your Google Wallet.
The Trading 212 card offers up to £20 cashback every month, and allows you to earn interest on your uninvested cash.
You can apply for the card inside the Trading 212 “Invest” account.
Conclusion
We hope you’ve found multiple new features that you didn’t know about within these 22 tips.
As you try things out, you’ll likely uncover even more ways to maximise your investing experience.
Keep exploring — and let us know if you find any other useful tips!
Financial Interest was founded by Damien Talks Money (220,000 YouTube subscribers) to teach the personal finance lessons he wished he'd been taught at school.