Lightyear vs DEGIRO: A Broker Battle That Actually Matters
Lightyear vs DEGIRO — Expert-Backed Solutions for Complete Peace of Mind
Understanding Lightyear vs DEGIRO is essential for making informed decisions in today’s market.
If you’ve spent more than ten minutes researching where to buy stocks in Europe, you’ve probably landed on the same two names over and over.
“Lightyear vs DEGIRO is one of those comparisons that keeps popping up in forums, Reddit threads, and group chats.”
And honestly, it’s a fair fight. Both platforms have carved out real followings. Both have their quirks.
“And both will happily take your money, though they’ll charge you differently for the privilege.”
But here’s the thing most comparison articles won’t tell you: the “better” broker depends almost entirely on what you’re actually doing. A passive ETF investor buying once a month has completely different needs than someone trading US stocks weekly. So instead of giving you a generic verdict, let’s walk through what each platform actually offers, where each one falls short, and which type of investor should pick which.
Throughout this guide, we’ll explore Lightyear vs DEGIRO and how it directly impacts your financial future.
What Lightyear Actually Is – Lightyear vs DEGIRO
Download our exclusive step-by-step guide on Lightyear vs DEGIRO.
Lightyear launched in 2021, founded by Martin Sokk and Mihkel Ainsalu, both of whom had backgrounds at Wise and Pipedrive. The pitch was simple: a European broker with multi-currency accounts, low FX fees, and a clean interface. No legacy banking baggage. No confusing fee schedules. Just a straightforward app for buying stocks and ETFs.
The platform is regulated by the Estonian Financial Supervision Authority and, since Brexit complications, also holds authorization from the UK’s FCA for British customers. Client funds are held in segregated accounts, and investor protection under Estonian regulation covers up to €20,000 through the investor compensation scheme. That’s lower than what you’d get under some other European regimes, which is worth noting.
Lightyear’s core offering revolves around multi-currency accounts. You can hold EUR, GBP, and USD in separate wallets. When you buy a US stock, you fund the purchase from your USD balance. When you buy a European stock, you use EUR. This sounds basic, but it’s actually a big deal because it means you’re not forced into currency conversion every single time you Trade. You convert once, at a better rate, and then trade freely in that currency.
The fee structure is about as simple as it gets. Lightyear charges €1 per trade on European stocks and ETFs. For US stocks, it’s $1 per trade. There’s no inactivity fee, no account fee, no withdrawal fee. The FX fee is 0.3% on currency conversion, which is competitive but not the absolute cheapest you’ll find.
One thing that sets Lightyear apart is the interest they pay on uninvested cash. Depending on the currency and current rates, you can earn interest on idle EUR, GBP, and USD sitting in your account. It’s not going to make you rich, but it’s a nice touch that most brokers simply don’t offer.
What DEGIRO Actually Is
DEGIRO has been around longer. Founded in 2008 in Amsterdam, it originally served professional clients before opening to retail investors in 2013. It grew fast, partly because of its aggressive pricing. For years, DEGIRO was the go-to recommendation for European investors who wanted low fees without the clunky interfaces of traditional banks.
The platform is regulated by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) and BaFin in Germany. German investor protection covers up to €20,000 plus 90% of the remaining claim up to €100,000 through the Einlagensicherung. That’s a more robust safety net than what Lightyear offers under Estonian regulation, though in practice, both brokers hold client assets in segregated accounts.
DEGIRO was acquired by flatexDEGIRO AG in 2020, which brought some changes. The fee structure got a bit more complex. Customer service, which was already a sore point for some users, didn’t magically improve overnight. And the platform started adding features that felt like they were playing catch-up rather than leading the pack.
The basic fee for European stocks on DEGIRO is €1.75 plus €1 per execution, so roughly €2.75 per trade. For US stocks, it’s €0.50 plus €1 per execution. That sounds cheap, and it is, but the “per execution” part matters. If your order gets split across multiple venues, you pay that €1 multiple times. Most of the time it won’t be an issue, but it’s something to be aware of.
DEGIRO does offer a “core selection” of ETFs that trade with no transaction fee once per month. This is genuinely useful for passive investors. The list includes popular options from iShares, Vanguard, and SPDR. You’re limited to one free trade per ETF per calendar month, but if you’re doing a monthly buy-and-hold strategy, that’s essentially free investing on a solid range of funds.
Lightyear vs DEGIRO: The Fee Breakdown That Actually Matters
Let’s get specific, because fee comparison tables on most blogs are either misleading or so vague they’re useless.
Say you’re buying €500 worth of an S&P 500 ETF once a month. On Lightyear, that’s €1 per trade, so €12 per year in fees. On DEGIRO, if the ETF is on the core selection list, it’s free once per month, so €0 per year. That’s a clear win for DEGIRO for passive ETF investors.
Now say you’re buying $300 worth of individual US stocks every two weeks. On Lightyear, that’s $1 per trade, roughly $26 per year. On DEGIRO, that’s €0.50 plus €1 per execution per trade, so about €1.50 per trade, which comes to roughly €39 per year. Lightyear wins here.
What about currency conversion? If you’re funding your account in EUR and buying US stocks, Lightyear charges 0.3% on the FX conversion. DEGIRO charges 0.25%, which is slightly cheaper. But Lightyear lets you hold USD in your account, so you can convert a larger amount when the rate is favorable and then trade from that balance. DEGIRO converts at the time of each trade, which means you’re at the mercy of whatever rate you get on that specific day.
The real difference shows up when you look at what you’re actually doing. Lightyear is cheaper for frequent US stock traders. DEGIRO is cheaper for passive European ETF investors using the core selection. Neither is universally cheaper. That’s the honest answer, and it’s the one most comparison sites don’t want to give you because it doesn’t make for a clean headline.
Here’s a detailed comparison table that covers the essentials:
“The best broker isn’t the one with the lowest fees on paper. It’s the one whose fee structure matches how you actually invest.”
Account Types and Who Each Broker Serves
This is where the Lightyear vs DEGIRO comparison gets interesting, because the two platforms serve different audiences in ways that go beyond fees.
Lightyear currently offers individual accounts only. No joint accounts. No ISAs for UK customers, at least not yet. No margin accounts. If you’re a solo investor who wants a clean, simple platform for buying stocks and ETFs, that’s fine. But if you want to invest with your spouse, or you’re looking for tax-advantaged wrappers, Lightyear isn’t there yet.
DEGIRO, on the other hand, offers individual accounts, joint accounts, custody accounts for minors, and margin accounts for more advanced traders. UK customers get access to a Stocks and Shares ISA, which is a big deal if you’re trying to shield investments from tax. German customers have access to a Freistellungsauftrag for capital gains tax exemption up to €1,000 per year (or €2,000 for joint accounts).
The ISA point alone is enough to make DEGIRO the obvious choice for UK investors who want tax efficiency. Lightyear has hinted at launching an ISA, but as of now, it doesn’t exist. If you’re contributing to an ISA every year and you’re choosing between these two, DEGIRO wins by default.
For German investors, DEGIRO’s tax handling is also more mature. The platform automatically handles the Freistellungsauftrag and provides tax reports that are compatible with German tax software. Lightyear provides basic tax documentation, but it’s not as tailored to specific national tax systems.
The User Experience: Where Lightyear Pulls Ahead
Let’s talk about what it actually feels like to use these platforms, because that matters more than most people admit.
Lightyear’s interface is modern, fast, and intuitive. The app feels like it was designed in the last three years, because it was. Searching for stocks is quick. Placing orders is straightforward. The multi-currency wallet system is clearly displayed, so you always know how much you have in each currency. Fractional shares are supported, which means you can buy a piece of Amazon without needing $3,000 sitting around.
DEGIRO’s interface works, but it feels dated. The web platform is functional but not inspiring. The mobile app has improved over the years, but it still lags behind Lightyear in terms of design and responsiveness. Finding specific order types or navigating account settings can feel like you’re working with software from a different era.
That said, DEGIRO offers more order types. You can place limit orders, stop-loss orders, and trailing stops. Lightyear supports limit orders but has been slower to add more advanced order types. If you’re an active trader who relies on stop-losses to manage risk, DEGIRO gives you more tools.
Here’s my honest take: if you’re a casual investor who checks your portfolio once a week and places a few trades a month, Lightyear’s interface will make you happier. If you’re someone who needs granular control over orders and doesn’t mind a less polished experience, DEGIRO’s functionality matters more than its aesthetics.
Available Markets and Products
Both brokers give you access to a solid range of markets, but there are differences worth noting.
Lightyear offers stocks and ETFs from European exchanges (including Euronext, Xetra, and the London Stock Exchange) and US exchanges (NYSE, NASDAQ). You can also access some other international markets, but the selection is narrower than DEGIRO’s. Options trading is not available. Crypto is not available. If you want to buy stocks and ETFs and nothing else, the selection is more than enough.
DEGIRO covers a wider range of exchanges. You get access to markets in Europe, the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, and several Asian exchanges. The product range is also broader: stocks, ETFs, bonds, options, and futures. You can’t buy crypto directly, but you can get exposure through crypto ETPs that trade on European exchanges.
For most individual investors, the difference in market access won’t matter. If you’re buying S&P 500 ETFs and the occasional individual stock, both platforms have you covered. But if you want to trade Japanese government bonds or Australian mining stocks, DEGIRO gives you more doors to walk through.
Fractional shares are another differentiator. Lightyear supports fractional shares on US stocks, which is great for expensive names like Amazon, Alphabet, or Berkshire Hathaway. DEGIRO doesn’t offer fractional shares at all. If you have a smaller portfolio and want to diversify across high-priced US stocks, Lightyear makes that easier.
Customer Support: The Uncomfortable Truth
Neither broker is going to win awards for customer support, but DEGIRO has a particularly rough reputation in this area.
DEGIRO’s support is primarily email-based. Response times can stretch to several days, sometimes longer during peak periods. There’s no live chat. Phone support is limited. For a platform that manages billions in assets, the support infrastructure feels thin. There are countless forum posts from users who’ve waited weeks for responses to account issues or withdrawal problems.
Lightyear is better, but not dramatically so. They offer in-app chat support with generally faster response times. The team is smaller, which means you’re more likely to get a human who actually understands your issue. But it’s still not the kind of support experience you’d get from a full-service broker like Interactive Brokers or even a traditional bank.
If something goes wrong with your account, and it eventually will because that’s how financial services work, you’re going to have a better time getting it resolved with Lightyear. That’s not a ringing endorsement of Lightyear. It’s an acknowledgment that DEGIRO’s support is a genuine weak point.
Security and Trust: What Happens If Things Go Wrong
Both brokers are regulated and both hold client assets in segregated accounts, which means your money is technically separate from the company’s operating funds. If either broker goes bankrupt, your investments should be returned to you, not used to pay off the company’s creditors.
DEGIRO’s investor protection is stronger on paper. The German deposit guarantee scheme offers more coverage than Estonia’s investor compensation scheme. In practice, the difference might not matter much for most retail investors with portfolios under €20,000, but it’s there.
Lightyear has had a clean track record so far, but it’s a younger company. DEGIRO, despite its support issues, has been operating for over a decade and survived the flatex acquisition without major incidents. Longevity isn’t everything, but it counts for something when you’re trusting a company with your savings.
One thing that’s often overlooked: DEGIRO has faced regulatory scrutiny in the past. The Dutch AFM fined DEGIRO in 2021 for issues related to order execution and conflicts of interest. The company has since made changes, but it’s a reminder that low fees sometimes come with trade-offs in how the business operates.
“Low fees mean nothing if you can’t get a human to answer your email when your account has a problem. Support quality is a feature, not an afterthought.”
Who Should Pick Lightyear
Lightyear makes the most sense for a specific type of investor. You’re probably a good fit if you’re buying US stocks regularly and want to avoid getting hammered on FX fees every time. The multi-currency account is the killer feature here. Convert EUR to USD once, at a reasonable rate, and then trade freely without paying conversion fees on every single transaction.
You’re also a good fit if you value a clean, modern interface and don’t need advanced order types or a wide range of product categories. Lightyear is built for simplicity, and it delivers on that promise.
Fractional shares matter if you’re starting with a smaller amount. Being able to buy $50 worth of Google stock instead of needing thousands of dollars for a full share makes diversification realistic for newer investors.
The interest on uninvested cash is a small but meaningful perk. If you keep a cash buffer in your brokerage account, getting paid even a modest amount of interest is better than the zero you’d earn at most competitors.
Who Should Pick DEGIRO
DEGIRO is the better choice if you’re a passive ETF investor, especially if you’re sticking to the core selection list. Free monthly trades on popular ETFs are hard to beat, and over years of regular investing, that adds up to real savings.
UK investors who want a Stocks and Shares ISA should go with DEGIRO. Lightyear doesn’t offer one, and the tax benefits of an ISA are too significant to ignore if you’re a British taxpayer.
If you need access to a wider range of markets and products, including bonds, options, and futures, DEGIRO gives you more to work with. It’s not the most advanced platform for derivatives trading, but it’s more capable than Lightyear in this regard.
German investors who want proper tax integration should also lean toward DEGIRO. The Freistellungsauftrag handling and tax reporting tools are more developed, which saves you headaches when tax season rolls around.
The Verdict Nobody Wants to Hear
Here’s where I’ll say something that might annoy people on both sides: for most casual European investors, the difference between Lightyear and DEGIRO is smaller than the internet makes it seem.
If you’re investing €500 a month into a global ETF, you’re paying either €12 per year on Lightyear or €0 per year on DEGIRO with the core selection. That’s a €12 difference. Over ten years, assuming no fee changes, that’s €120. It’s not nothing, but it’s also not the kind of money that should keep you up at night.
The bigger factors are account types, tax wrappers, and how much you value a good user experience. If you need an ISA, DEGIRO wins. If you want a modern app and multi-currency accounts, Lightyear wins. If you’re trading US stocks frequently, Lightyear’s structure saves you money. If you’re a passive ETF buyer, DEGIRO’s free trades are hard to argue with.
And here’s the mildly controversial part: if you’re just starting out and you’re paralyzed by this decision, pick either one and start investing. The cost of waiting for the perfect broker is higher than the cost of picking the slightly less optimal one. You can always switch later. Your future self will thank you more for having started than for having chosen the marginally better platform.
FAQ
Is Lightyear safer than DEGIRO? – Lightyear vs DEGIRO
Both are regulated and hold client funds in segregated accounts. DEGIRO has stronger investor protection on paper through the German deposit guarantee scheme, covering up to €20,000 plus 90% of the remaining claim up to €100,000. Lightyear’s Estonian regulation covers up to €20,000. In practice, both are considered safe for retail investors, but DEGIRO has a longer track record.
Can I transfer my shares from DEGIRO to Lightyear? – Lightyear vs DEGIRO
Yes, you can transfer shares between brokers using an off-market transfer. Both platforms support ACAT-style transfers for US stocks and equivalent processes for European stocks. There may be a transfer fee, and the process can take several weeks. Check with both brokers for current transfer policies and costs before initiating anything.
Does Lightyear offer an ISA?
Not currently. Lightyear has indicated plans to launch a Stocks and Shares ISA for UK customers, but as of now, it’s not available. If an ISA is important to you, DEGIRO already offers one and is the better choice for UK tax-advantaged investing.
Which broker is better for buying US stocks?
Lightyear has a slight edge for frequent US stock traders because of its multi-currency USD account. You convert EUR to USD once and then trade without paying FX fees on each transaction. DEGIRO converts currency at the time of each trade at a 0.25% fee, which adds up if you’re trading often. For occasional US stock purchases, the difference is minimal.
Does DEGIRO charge inactivity fees?
DEGIRO does not charge a traditional inactivity fee, but it does charge a €2.50 per quarter “productivity fee” if you hold certain non-trading products like bonds. For standard stock and ETF investors, this typically doesn’t apply. Lightyear charges no inactivity or productivity fees at all.
Can I buy fractional shares on DEGIRO?
No. DEGIRO does not offer fractional shares. You need to buy whole shares, which can be a barrier for expensive stocks like Amazon or Alphabet if you’re working with a smaller portfolio. Lightyear does offer fractional shares on US stocks, making it easier to diversify with limited capital.
Which broker has better customer support?
Lightyear generally has faster and more responsive customer support through in-app chat. DEGIRO relies primarily on email support with response times that can stretch to several days or longer. Neither broker offers the kind of premium support you’d get from a full-service platform, but Lightyear is the better of the two in this regard.
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Conclusion
The Lightyear vs DEGIRO debate doesn’t have a single winner, and anyone telling you otherwise is probably trying to sell you something. Here’s how to decide in plain terms.
If you’re a passive ETF investor buying once a month, go with DEGIRO and use the core selection for free trades. If you’re trading US stocks regularly and want to manage currency costs, go with Lightyear and its multi-currency accounts. If you need a UK ISA, DEGIRO is your only option between the two. If you want fractional shares and a modern app experience, Lightyear is the better fit.
The actionable step is simple: figure out your investing style first, then match the broker to it. Don’t optimize for a fee difference of a few euros per year if it means giving up a feature that actually matters to you. And whatever you choose, start now. The best broker is the one you’re actually using.
