The current jobs market in the UK is incredibly dynamic and an exciting place to be for investment analysts, stockbrokers and compliance staff at UK-based stockbrokers.
We’re seeing an unprecedented tightening of the labour market as a result of employees permanently leaving the workforce, changes in employee expectations, and a boom in retail trading.
In short; business is booming, there are fewer candidates for each financial services position, and this is placing the power of choice into the hands of aspiring or existing UK stockbrokers looking to change career or employer.
In this article, we look at some of the largest and most successful stockbroking firms and shortlist the top stockbrokers to work for.
How we ranked the best stockbrokers to work for
We use a proprietary ranking that incorporates the following metrics:
- Number of UK employees
- Business growth
- Average pay for investment analyst/manager
- Average employee review score on Glassdoor, a credible UK job review website
We weigh the ranking equally between these factors because we believe they all help to form an attractive employment opportunity in brokerages. Larger and growing firms will have more internal opportunities for progression and wage increases. Firms that pay well will naturally support a better quality of life, and the employee scores can speak volumes about the internal culture and management style of an organisation.
We consider all of the stockbroker firms featured in this article to be good or outstanding places to work in the industry. We suggest you perform further research and explore open job postings at each of them at your leisure.
The top stockbroker employers
| UK Employer | FE Employer Score | Broker Career Page |
| Brewin Dolphin | 9.4 | https://www.brewin.co.uk/group/careers |
| Hargreaves Lansdown | 9.3 | http://www.hargreaveslansdownjobs.co.uk/ |
| Interactive Investor | 9.2 | https://careers.ii.co.uk/careers |
| AJ Bell | 8.7 | http://www.ajbell.co.uk/careers/vacancies |
| Trading 212 | 8.7 | https://www.trading212.com/about-us |
| eToro | 8.5 | https://www.etoro.com/about/careers/ |
| Charles Stanley | 8.5 | https://www.charles-stanley.co.uk/about-us/careers |
| Tilney Smith & Williamson | 8.4 | https://www.tsandw.com/careers |
| IG Group | 8.4 | https://www.iggroup.com/careers |
What makes employees of the best stockbrokers proud?
Here’s a selection of bright spots that help these brokers stand out from the rest of the wealth management industry:
99% of Brewin Dolphin current and ex-employees surveyed by Glassdoor.co.uk approve of CEO Robin Beer.
Hargreaves Lansdown (review) is currently the largest stockbroker in the UK by number of clients and by assets under management.
Interactive Investor (review) has recently been acquired by asset manager Abrdn, but will remain operationally independent from the Scottish fund manager giant.
AJ Bell (review) was recently named as one of the top 100 large UK companies to work for (any sector) and is launching a new app called Dodl, designed to attract younger investors to become clients of the firm.
Trading 212 was the most popular investing app for UK investors for several years until 2020 when the platform had to freeze new applications due to the sheer volume of business, and a desire to not ‘over-stretch’ like other platforms like Robinhood did during the pandemic.
eToro is a fast-growing organisation that competes with Robinhood.
Charles Stanley is credited as being the original discount broker in the UK.
Tilney Smith & Williamson was formed from a merger of Tilney (known for it’s Best Invest brokerage platform) and the Smith & Williamson accountancy practice in 2020.
Shares of IG Group are on the London Stock Exchange and the company features in the prestigious FTSE 250 index.
Best stock brokers to trade with
If you’re curious about which UK stockbroker offers the best product in the current marketplace, our ranking below gives our rating of the best of the best:
Overall best broker
Trade shares with zero commission. Open an account with just $100. High performance and useful friendly trading app. Other fees apply. For more information, visit etoro.com/trading/fees.
Best for £100k+
Large UK trading platform with a flat account fee and a free trade every month. Cheapest for investors with big pots.
Best for funds
The UK’s no. 1 investment platform for private investors. Boasting over £135bn in assets under administration and over 1.5m active clients. Best for funds.
Youinvest stocks & shares ISA offers lower prices the more you trade! Which? 'Recommended Provider' for last 3 years.
Choose a pre-made portfolio in minutes with Nutmeg. Choose your level of risk and let Nutmeg efficiently handle the rest.
Buy and sell funds at nil cost with Fidelity International, plus simple £10 trading fees for stocks & shares and ETFs.
Capital is at risk
Trade stocks & options on the advanced yet low-cost Freedom24 platform that arms retail investors with the tools to trade like professionals.
Capital is at risk
Our full eToro review explains why we’ve awarded eToro the top spots for two years in succession.
Employer data
| Employer | Primary Location | # UK Employees | ||
| Brewin Dolphin | London | 2000 | ||
| Hargreaves Lansdown | Bristol | 1700 | ||
| Interactive Investor | Leeds | 500 | ||
| AJ Bell | Manchester | 1,100 | ||
| Trading 212 | London | Not available | ||
| eToro | London | Not available | ||
| Charles Stanley | London | 762 | ||
| Tilney Smith & Williamson | London | 1479 | ||
| IG Group | London | 2100 |
We hope you’ve found this employment ranking of the top UK stockbrokers helpful in choosing your next exciting career adventure within the financial services industry.