Scalable Capital vs Trade Republic
Scalable Capital and Trade Republic are European brokers that mainly focus on passive investors who want an easy-to-use platform and invest a lot in ETFs. For that reason, Investment Platforms.EU recommends both platforms. However, there are some important differences, and Scalable usually comes out best in their tests.
Please note: investing involves risks. You can lose part or all of your money on an investment platform.
Contents:
Scalable Capital vs. Trade Republic
With Scalable and Trade Republic, you can invest through apps on your phone. These platforms focus on people who want to invest passively, without needing much knowledge or effort. You can invest in ETFs, which allow you to spread your investment across an index or market. Both apps make this kind of investing simple and clear for beginners.
These European stock brokers are very similar. The apps from Scalable Capital and Trade Republic offer automatic investment plans, so you can invest without having to manage everything yourself. The fees are low, and both platforms are available in almost all European countries. They are a good choice for new investors who want low costs and easy-to-use tools.
Other platforms that investors often compare them with are eToro, DEGIRO and Saxo.
Differences in the offering
Both brokers offer a wide range of stocks and ETFs. For most investors, there is little difference in this area. Both platforms give two point five percent interest on uninvested cash.
Scalable Capital has a slightly larger selection of investment funds. Trade Republic offers direct access to bonds, with a selection of five hundred government and corporate bonds. Scalable Capital does not offer direct bond trading, but it does give access to bond ETFs and investment funds that invest in bonds.
Plans and fractional investing
Both brokers offer many features for automatic investing. This includes fractional investing, which means you can invest a fixed amount without needing to buy full shares. With Trade Republic, you can also invest fractionally when you invest manually. With Scalable, this is only possible through investment plans.
Investment information
Both brokers provide only basic information, such as a short description, dividend, and price trends. You can see how the price of a stock or ETF has changed, but not the reasons behind those changes. Sometimes, they offer summaries from analysts or show information about the sector. For passive investors who do not want to follow daily market changes, this may be enough.
Trade Republic also gives basic information, but it is less detailed than what Scalable offers. There is little in-depth analysis or explanation. Scalable has a separate knowledge centre with articles and explanations about investment themes, strategies, and the market. Trade Republic has very little educational content on the platform.
If you are looking for investment news and extra information, or if you want to actively trade based on certain developments, platforms like Saxo or DEGIRO might be better options.
Active investing
Both platforms mainly focus on investors who use investment plans and ETFs. However, Scalable does offer more features for active investors. It has its own exchange, which can offer very low transaction costs and spreads. The PRIME+ subscription is also attractive for those who invest more actively.
Ease of use
Both brokers are made for people who want to manage their own investments. They are easy to use, even for beginners. You can find everything you need to invest through a platform. The mobile apps work well on both platforms. If your goal is long-term wealth building, either one is a good option.
There are some differences. Trade Republic is mainly focused on investment plans, while Scalable Capital also gives more freedom to invest manually. Scalable also offers useful tools like stop-loss and take-profit orders right after your purchase. At Trade Republic, you need to set up new orders for this.
Setting stop-loss and take-profit orders right away
When you make a purchase with Scalable, you can directly choose the price at which you want to sell your investment. This allows you to set how much loss you are willing to accept, or at what profit you want to sell. Trade Republic also offers these options, but you have to create the orders manually every time.
Setting a stop order can be useful if you want to reduce your risk. If the value drops below a certain level, Scalable will automatically sell the investment at that price. Trade Republic also allows this, but you need to place a new order yourself.
Customer service is best at Scalable
In our experience, Scalable offers better customer service than Trade Republic. Both platforms can be reached by phone, email, and chat, but the phone number for Trade Republic (+49 322 13232813) is only for emergencies, such as blocking cards or devices in case of loss or theft. The email address [email protected] is only for complaints. For other questions, support is offered in the app, starting with a chatbot.
Scalable Capital provides support by phone, email, and chat for all types of questions. Phone support was only available in English or German, but we received help in Dutch via email and live chat. We found the in-app live chat especially helpful. It is available Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 19:00. Some users online say it can take a while, but we always received quick and helpful support.
Fees: Scalable Capital vs Trade Republic
Both platforms have clear and competitive fees. They charge one euro per transaction for manual trades, and transactions from investment plans are free. Manual transfers to the IBAN are free, while other payment methods may have extra costs.
Both use third-party systems for trading. Scalable Capital works with Gettex, Xetra, or its own exchange (EIX). Trade Republic uses Lang & Schwarz. These providers sometimes pay to receive trades, which can result in wider spreads compared to platforms that do not use this business model, such as DEGIRO or Saxo. Both Scalable and Trade Republic use this model, so they are quite similar in this regard.
No transaction fees with PRIME+
Scalable Capital offers a subscription for 4,99 cents per month. This lets you trade stocks, ETFs, and funds for free with orders of 250 euro or more. Orders below this amount still cost 1 euro per trade. The PRIME+ plan also includes extra features, but it is mainly useful for investors who make more than five trades per month.
Pay directly from your balance with Trade Republic
Thanks to its own banking license, Trade Republic allows you to make payments directly from your balance. You can create a virtual payment card and link it to your phone. We did not test this feature, but it may be a useful benefit of using Trade Republic.
Reliability: both offer a safe platform
Both platforms are supervised by BaFin, the German financial authority. Since 2023, Trade Republic also has a banking license. The platform is fully responsible for your account and your investments. Scalable Capital works with Baader Bank, which holds your securities and money. Scalable itself is an asset manager, not a bank.
| Feature | Scalable Capital | Trade Republic |
|---|---|---|
| Offering | Wide range, including own exchange (EIX) | Wide range, also offers direct bonds |
| Fractional investing | Only through investment plans | Also with manual purchases |
| Order types | Direct option for stop-loss and take-profit orders | Stop-loss and limit orders available as extra option |
| Investment information | Basic, but includes a knowledge centre | Very limited |
| Ease of use | Flexible: manual and automatic investing | Focused on automatic investment plans |
| Payment card | Not available | Virtual and physical Visa card available |
| Fees | 1 euro per order or free with PRIME+ | 1 euro per order |
| Subscription | PRIME+ for 4,99 per month (unlimited trading from 250 euro) | No subscription |
| Customer service | Good, also in Dutch via chat | Limited, only chatbot and email |
| Reliability | Supervised by BaFin, works with Baader Bank | Own banking license, supervised by BaFin |
Conclusion: we recommend both Scalable and Trade Republic
At Investment Platforms.EU, we recommend both Trade Republic and Scalable Capital. The differences are small, so you can choose based on your own preferences. We have a slight preference for Scalable. The wider choice of exchanges, the ease of manual investing, and the extra investment information made the difference for us.
However, the information that Scalable provides is still limited if you want to base your decisions on it. Both platforms expect you to do your own research, or to invest automatically in ETFs like many users do.
We also see Scalable’s own exchange, which allows them to keep fees low in the future, as a positive development. The option to set stop-loss orders is a helpful way to manage risk, and the PRIME+ subscription is a clear advantage of Scalable.
Technically, both platforms are simple to use once you get to know them. Customer service is better at Scalable, but we only asked questions for our review. Normally we would not have needed to.
