Stock Trading App Fee Statistics: 2026 Report
Our analysts reviewed the published price lists of six stock trading apps we rate, as of Q4 2026: Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, Lightyear, Gotrade, Sharesies, and Stake. We recorded each app's commission on US shares and its currency conversion fee, then priced the same US share purchase at $1,000 and $10,000 for an investor funding the trade in a home currency other than US dollars.
Every app here serves investors outside the US, so most trades start with a currency conversion, and that fee is part of the price of the trade.
Key Findings
- Currency conversion fees at the six apps range from 0.002% at Interactive Brokers to 0.55% at Stake, and Gotrade charges 0.3% to 1% depending on the country.
- Buying $1,000 of US shares costs $1.50 at Trading 212 and $10.00 at Sharesies, so the most expensive app in this set charges more than six times the cheapest.
- At $10,000, Interactive Brokers is cheapest at $3.00, while Stake costs $58.00, or 0.58% of the trade.
- Currency conversion makes up two-thirds or more of the $10,000 cost at every app, from 67% at Interactive Brokers and Gotrade to 100% at Trading 212.
Currency Conversion Fees Run From 0.002% to 1%
We took each app's standard fee for converting a home currency into US dollars from its own pricing page. Trading 212 charges no commission and three other apps cap theirs at $5 or less, so the conversion fee is often the larger and less visible part of the price.
| App | Main markets | US share commission | FX fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers (IBKR Pro Fixed) | Global | USD 0.005 a share, USD 1 minimum, 1% maximum | 0.002% (USD 2 minimum) |
| Trading 212 | UK and Europe | No commission | 0.15% |
| Gotrade | Asia Pacific and other markets | 0.15% to 0.3%, USD 0.10 minimum | 0.3% to 1% |
| Lightyear | UK and Europe | 0.1%, USD 1 maximum, USD 0.10 minimum | 0.35% |
| Sharesies | New Zealand and Australia | 1.9%, capped at USD 5 | 0.5% |
| Stake | Australia | USD 3 a trade, or 0.01% on trades over USD 30,000 | 0.55% |
Key Findings
- Interactive Brokers charges 0.20 basis point on currency conversions, the lowest rate in the set, but a USD 2 minimum means its effective rate stays high on small conversions.
- Trading 212 charges no commission and no custody fee, so its 0.15% conversion fee is the only charge on a US share trade.
- Stake and Sharesies charge 0.55% and 0.5%, more than three times Trading 212's rate, and both add a per-trade fee on top.
A $1,000 Purchase Costs From $1.50 to $10.00
We priced one purchase of $1,000 of a $50 US share at each app, adding the commission to the fee for converting $1,000 of home currency. Small trades show how minimums and flat fees weigh on the price.
| App | Commission | FX fee | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trading 212 | $0.00 | $1.50 | $1.50 |
| Interactive Brokers (IBKR Pro Fixed) | $1.00 | $2.00 | $3.00 |
| Lightyear | $1.00 | $3.50 | $4.50 |
| Gotrade (lowest published rates) | $1.50 | $3.00 | $4.50 |
| Stake | $3.00 | $5.50 | $8.50 |
| Sharesies | $5.00 | $5.00 | $10.00 |
Key Findings
- Trading 212 is cheapest at $1.50, or 0.15% of the trade, because it charges only the conversion fee.
- Interactive Brokers costs $3.00 at this size because both of its minimums apply: USD 1 on the commission and USD 2 on the conversion.
- Sharesies costs $10.00, or 1% of the trade, because its 1.9% fee reaches the USD 5 cap and its 0.5% conversion fee adds another $5.00.
A $10,000 Purchase Costs From $3.00 to $58.00
We repeated the calculation for a $10,000 purchase. At this size, fixed minimums stop mattering and percentage fees decide the order.
| App | Commission | FX fee | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers (IBKR Pro Fixed) | $1.00 | $2.00 | $3.00 |
| Trading 212 | $0.00 | $15.00 | $15.00 |
| Lightyear | $1.00 | $35.00 | $36.00 |
| Gotrade (lowest published rates) | $15.00 | $30.00 | $45.00 |
| Sharesies | $5.00 | $50.00 | $55.00 |
| Stake | $3.00 | $55.00 | $58.00 |
Key Findings
- Interactive Brokers moves from second place to first, at $3.00 or 0.03% of the trade, because its fees barely rise with trade size.
- Capped and flat commissions at Lightyear, Sharesies, and Stake stay at $1 to $5, so currency conversion makes up 91% to 97% of their cost.
- At Gotrade's highest published rates, 0.3% commission and 1% conversion, the same purchase would cost $130.00.
Currency Conversion Now Sets the Price of a Trade
Commissions on US shares have fallen to zero or a few dollars at the apps we rate, so the price of a trade for an investor outside the US now depends mostly on the conversion fee. A difference of 0.4 percentage points in that fee adds $40 to every $10,000 invested, and a second conversion applies when the investor sells and brings money home.
Looking ahead, more apps are likely to offer multi-currency accounts that let investors hold US dollars between trades, which avoids paying a conversion fee on every purchase and sale. Competition on conversion fees should also grow as apps such as Trading 212 and Lightyear expand across Europe.
So if you buy US shares from outside the US, compare apps on the total cost of your usual trade size, conversion included, not on the advertised commission.
Data Collection and Methodology
We reviewed sources available in Q4 2026. Each fee comes from the app's own pricing or help page. Interactive Brokers figures use the IBKR Pro Fixed plan for US shares and its Tier I spot currency rate; IBKR Lite charges no commission on US shares but is open to US residents only. Gotrade's fees vary by country, so the worked examples use its lowest published rates of 0.15% commission and 0.3% conversion, and the text gives the cost at its highest rates.
Each worked example assumes one purchase of a $50 US share, funded by converting the full purchase amount from home currency at the app's standard conversion fee. Exchange fees, regulatory fees, taxes, deposit fees, and card funding fees are excluded, as are currency spreads not stated as a fee. Interactive Brokers' commission for 20 shares is $0.10 and for 200 shares is $1.00, so its USD 1 minimum applies in both examples; its conversion fee is 0.20 basis point of $1,000 or $10,000, so its USD 2 minimum applies in both. Shares of cost from conversion are the conversion fee divided by the total cost, such as $35 divided by $36 for Lightyear, or 97%.
All fees are stated by the apps in US dollars or as percentages, so no currency conversion and no Federal Reserve H.10 exchange rate was needed.
Sources
- The Fintech Index analysis of rated companies, Q4 2026
- Interactive Brokers, Stock commissions
- Interactive Brokers, Spot currency commissions
- Trading 212, What are the fees in the Invest, ISAs, and SIPP
- Gotrade, Fees
- Lightyear, Pricing
- Sharesies, Pricing
- Stake, Pricing and fees
- Table 1: Source: The Fintech Index analysis of published pricing pages at Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, Gotrade, Lightyear, Sharesies, and Stake. Data: trading_app_fx_fees.csv
- Chart 1: Source: The Fintech Index analysis of published pricing pages at Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, Gotrade, Lightyear, Sharesies, and Stake.
- Table 2: Source: The Fintech Index calculation from each app's published pricing. Data: trading_app_cost_1000.csv
- Chart 2: Source: The Fintech Index calculation from each app's published pricing.
- Table 3: Source: The Fintech Index calculation from each app's published pricing. Data: trading_app_cost_10000.csv
- Chart 3: Source: The Fintech Index calculation from each app's published pricing.