The short version
- You buy an ETF through an account with a platform or broker, often a stocks and shares ISA so you pay no tax on the gains.
- Expect ID checks, and for an ISA you'll need your National Insurance number. Then add money to the account.
- Search for the ETF by its ISIN, a 12-character code that pins down exactly one fund, and read its key information first.
- A limit order caps the price you pay. London Stock Exchange trading opens at 08:00, and the closing auction starts at 16:30.
This is the starting guide in Getting started. Every guide in the series is listed at the end of this page.
- 08:00when the London Stock Exchange opens for trading each working day
- 12characters in an ISIN, the code that identifies one fund
- 1 daylatest your platform can confirm a trade: the next business day
1. Choose a type of platform
An ETF trades on a stock exchange, and you buy it through a firm that deals for you. For most first-time investors that’s an investment platform. The FCA describes direct-to-consumer platforms as ones people use without a financial adviser.
There are a few kinds: DIY platforms and apps where you pick the investments, traditional stockbrokers, and robo-advisers that choose a portfolio for you. Do I need a broker? compares them. The questions to ask any of them:
- Does it offer the account you want, such as a stocks and shares ISA?
- Can you buy the ETF you’re interested in?
- How does it charge, and what would that cost on your amount?
- Is it on the FCA register?
2. Open an account
First, pick the account. A stocks and shares ISA shelters income and gains from tax. A general investment account has no tax shelter. A SIPP is a pension, covered in ETFs in a SIPP.
To open a stocks and shares ISA you must be 18 or over and UK resident. You’ll give your name, address, date of birth and bank details.
Then come the ID checks. Under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, firms must identify you and verify who you are using documents or information from a reliable source. That’s why you may be asked for a passport or driving licence.
For an ISA you’ll also need your National Insurance number. Since 6 April 2025, ISA managers must get it from new applicants, or confirm they aren’t eligible for one.
3. Add money
Once the account is open, you pay money in, usually by bank transfer or debit card. It sits as cash in the account until you buy something.
Check the platform’s minimum first, because it varies. How much do I need to start investing? gives real examples.
4. Find the ETF
You can search by name, ticker or ISIN.
- Name: ETF names are long but informative. They usually tell you the provider, the index, whether it’s a UCITS fund, and whether it’s accumulating (Acc) or distributing (Dist). Accumulating vs distributing explains the last part.
- Ticker: a short code an exchange uses for one listing. It’s quick to type, but similar tickers are easy to mix up.
- ISIN: the International Securities Identification Number. It’s 12 characters long: a two-letter country code for where the issuer is registered, a nine-character local code, and a check digit. An ISIN starting IE, for example, is a fund registered in Ireland.
The ISIN is the safest search. Copy it from the fund provider’s factsheet and paste it into the platform’s search box, and you know you have the right fund.
5. Read the key information
Before you buy, you should be shown a short key information document, usually called a KID or KIID. From 6 April 2026, providers can choose to publish a new FCA “product summary” instead, with the new rules fully in force from 8 June 2027. Both set out costs, risk and past performance on common standards.
Four things to check: what the ETF tracks, its ongoing charge, whether it’s accumulating or distributing, and what it holds. How to read an ETF factsheet goes line by line.
6. Place the order
Enter how much you want to invest, either in pounds or as a number of units. Then choose how the order is placed. On the London Stock Exchange’s own order book, the two basic types work like this:
- Market order: it carries no price. It trades straight away at the best prices on offer, and it takes priority over priced orders. You won’t know the exact price until it’s done.
- Limit order: you set a price, and it can only trade at that price or better. When buying, that’s the most you’ll pay. If the price never gets there, nothing happens.
Some platforms work differently. Vanguard Investor, for example, pools ETF orders and deals them at 10:15 and 14:10 at no dealing charge. For a live price, it shows you a quote you have about 15 seconds to accept, for £7.50 a trade.
When you can trade
A London Stock Exchange trading day generally has three parts: an opening auction, regular trading, and a closing auction. Trading opens at 08:00 every working day. The closing auction starts at 16:30, and closing prices are revealed at 16:35. All times are UK time.
In an auction, orders are collected and then matched at a single price. If your platform deals at set times, its own cut-offs apply too.
The spread: the cost you don't see
An ETF has two prices at any moment: a higher one you buy at and a lower one you sell at. The gap is the spread. You pay it on top of your platform’s charges, but it never appears as a line on your bill.
It’s often a fraction of a percent. As one example, Vanguard’s fee page lists the one-off bid-offer spread on its ETFs as 0.01% to 0.26%. A limit order stops you paying more than you meant to if the spread is wide when you trade.
Investing regularly
Many platforms let you set up a monthly payment that buys the same ETF on a set day. Some charge no dealing fee for it. AJ Bell and Hargreaves Lansdown, for example, both list no dealing charge for monthly regular investing.
The trade-off is that you buy at that day’s price, whatever it is. Whether a lump sum or monthly payments make more sense is a separate question, covered in Lump sum or monthly?
Worried about timing? Is now a bad time to invest? looks at what happened after past record highs.
After you buy
Your platform must send you a confirmation, often called a contract note, no later than the first business day after the trade. For regular monthly purchases of funds, it can instead report them together at least every six months.
The ETF then appears in your holdings, valued at the latest price. Keep your contract notes. If you ever hold ETFs outside an ISA, you’ll need the purchase prices to work out any gain.
Then, mostly, leave it alone. Checking the price every day won’t change it, and it makes it harder to sit tight when markets fall. What happens to my ETFs in a crash? shows why that matters.
Common questions
- Can I buy an ETF without a platform or broker?
- You need an account with a firm that can deal for you, such as a platform or stockbroker. Do I need a broker? compares the options.
- Can I buy part of an ETF unit?
- Some platforms offer fractions. Since 5 November 2024, fractions can be held in a stocks and shares ISA if your provider offers them.
- What’s the difference between a ticker and an ISIN?
- A ticker is a short code for one listing on one exchange. An ISIN identifies the fund itself, wherever it trades.
- What if I buy the wrong ETF?
- You can sell it. You’ll pay the spread and any dealing charge, but inside an ISA there’s no tax on the sale.
- Should I use a market order or a limit order?
- That’s your call. A market order trades quickly at an unknown price. A limit order controls the price but might not trade.
Every guide in Getting started
This page explains how buying an ETF works. It isn't advice about what you should buy, or where. Investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you put in. For free, impartial guidance, try MoneyHelper. Read the full disclaimer.
Sources
- MIT201: Guide to the trading system, issue 15.6, London Stock Exchange, effective 29 April 2024
- Market Open ceremony, London Stock Exchange
- Market Close ceremony, London Stock Exchange
- Identifiers: ISIN, Association of National Numbering Agencies
- PS25/20: Final rules for Consumer Composite Investments, FCA
- COBS 16A.3: Occasional reporting, FCA Handbook
- Investment Platforms Market Study: Final Report (MS17/1.3), FCA, March 2019
- The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, regulation 28, legislation.gov.uk
- Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs), GOV.UK
- Individual Savings Account and Child Trust Funds (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2024, HMRC, GOV.UK
- What price will I get when I buy or sell a fund? and Our fees and charges, Vanguard Investor (example only)
- Stocks and shares ISA charges, AJ Bell (example only)
- Stocks and shares ISA charges, Hargreaves Lansdown (example only)
Facts checked 13 October 2026.