Trade Republic review
7.5
(our review)
On Trade Republic you can buy and sell stocks, ETFs and other financial products. In our latest review we rate it 7.5. The platform offers a user-friendly interface, fractional investing, and interest on uninvested funds. We also see downsides, such as the mix with high-risk products and limited investment information.
Content:
Investing comes with risks. By trading on Trade Republic, you can lose (some of) your investment.
What characterizes Trade Republic?
Trade Republic is a relatively young trading platform from Germany. It was founded in Berlin, in 2019. Since then, it has expanded into other European countries. It is currently active in 18 countries and has 10+ million customers.
The platform has a user-friendly interface. Most of its services are focused on long-term periodic and diversified investing. It offers investment products like ETFs, stocks, bonds and cryptocurrencies, in which you can also invest fractionally.
People compare Trade Republic mostly with Scalable Capital, eToro and DEGIRO.
Trade Republic mainly targets people who invest in ETFs.
Open an account directly with a large European broker such as eToro, known for its beginner-friendly platform, or DEGIRO, which is popular for its low trading fees. Investing involves risks. You can lose your investment.
Usability
In addition to browser-based trading, Trade Republic has a complete mobile app. You can search for ETFs or shares through the app. While doing that, the platform offers options for periodic investing. Compared to other brokers, the app is easy to use.
If you want to trade on the platform, you will need to transfer money from your bank account to Trade Republic. To do this, you can use a credit card or digital wallets like PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay. While the app is active in many European countries, it does not use local payment methods like iDeal in the Netherlands or Bancontact in Belgium.
Customers complain about the fact that Trade Republic’s help desk can only be reached by email. And often, a chatbot answers those emails. In some reviews, reactions from the platform did not really answer any questions from the customer.
Most users find the platform itself very easy to use. It is easy to navigate, even for novice investors.
Invest via Mintos, Europe’s P2P leader with 11.62% average return, or Freedom24 for top-rated bonds (B+) with 6% yield, starting at 1000 euro. Investing involves risks. You can lose your investment.
Product offer
Trade Republic offers low costs and a user-friendly interface. Especially on its mobile app. For stocks or ETFs, it does not have the largest product range, but for people who are primarily passive investors, it is sufficient. The basics are definitely there. Besides popular etfs and stocks, you can also invest fractionally in (government) bonds.
Trade Republic offers an interest rate of 2.00% on uninvested cash
Interest on uninvested cash
At the time of writing, it also offers an interest rate of 2.00 percent on uninvested cash (up to a maximum balance of 50,000 euros). Because Trade Republic is a full German bank, uninvested cash up to 100,000 euros falls under the European Deposit Guarantee Scheme.
Risk of products
With the products above, the platforms seems to be a good fit for new or inexperienced investors. However, Trade Republic also offers some products with higher risks, such as private markets, derivatives, and about 50 different cryptocurrencies. To deposit or withdraw crypto you must first convert it to euros.
Private Markets
Through Trade Republic you can invest in private markets via private equity funds such as EQT or Apollo. These funds invest in companies that are usually not yet publicly listed. Many are young businesses that can grow quickly in value if expectations are met. This can lead to strong returns, but the outcome is often highly uncertain.
If things go wrong, the company’s survival can be at risk. Such firms often rely heavily on debt, and for less experienced investors it is important to understand that the average risk is higher than with publicly listed companies.
Reliability
Trade Republic may be a relatively young broker, but it has grown rapidly and is now one of the larger platforms in Europe. It fully complies with all regulations and even holds its own banking license. By the end of 2025, it had over 10 million clients with 150 billion euros in assets under management.
Own banking license
Trade Republic has held its own banking license. This means it meets the strict requirements of the ECB and the German BaFin, the German financial markets authority. According to the company, this license allows it to provide all essential banking services, including deposit and lending activities.
Trade Republic’s fees
Most of Trade Republic’s fees are quite transparent and straightforward:
- Transaction fees: To buy and sell stocks, ETFs, bonds, derivatives and cryptocurrencies, you need to pay one euro per transaction.
- Deposit fees: The first deposit is free for new customers. For subsequent deposits, the platform charges 0.7 percent. You can deposit money through a SEPA transfer or credit card.
- Currency fees: The platform works in euros. If you are trading in a currency other than the euro, it charges currency fees. For example, if you are receiving dividends from shares in other currencies, the height of that dividend will depend on exchange rates.
- Custody or withdrawal fees: Trade Republic does not charge a custody or withdrawal fee.
- Spreads: Trade Republic forwards orders to the LS Exchange, where a spread (difference between buying and selling prices) may apply.
Costs Private Markets
For Private Markets investments you pay separate fees. These include a management fee for the fund, a carry share (a percentage of your profit), and a kickback fee (Trade Republic’s fee), making total costs highly dependent on performance.
Our review score: 7.5
In our review, Trade Republic scores a 7.5 out of 10. For passive investors it is a good platform. For active investors, it could be an interesting second platform. This is because of the option to invest fractionally in stocks and (government) bonds.
There are some downsides. The mobile app is very easy to use but logging in on desktop with phone number and code is less easy. Google and Apple Pay deposits are convenient but costly. The platform asks few questions when you deposit or buy, so you must spend more time to fully understand the risks yourself.
If you mainly want a simple broker, the higher-risk products like Private Markets and derivatives are not ideal and fit experienced investors better. Information on stocks and ETFs is limited, which is another reason it is not our editorial favorite.
