When you invest money, your capital is at risk. Investments can go down as well as up in value, so you could get back less than you put in. A rule of thumb is to hang on to your investments for at least five years to give them the best chance of providing the returns you are hoping for.

Moneybox vs Plum

Updated On: Jan 15, 2025
A blue exclamation mark
Advertiser Disclosure
A blue x (close button)
Most of the companies featured here are our partners, who pay us to include them in our articles. These payments influence which companies we write about and where and how they appear on a page. However, they do not influence our opinions. Our product reviews remain honest, independent, and unbiased.
Halimah Omogiafo
Author: Halimah Omogiafo
Bio
LinkedIn
X (Twitter)
Moneybox vs Plum - Which is better

Below, we review two of the best money management apps in the UK - Plum and Moneybox.

‍

Plum automates your deposits and investments, analyses your spending and automatically switches your utilities whereas Moneybox rounds up your everyday purchases to the nearest pound, then automatically saves or invests the difference.


Use the tabs below to learn more about Plum and Moneybox.

MoneyboxPlum Logo

Moneybox - Save and invest your spare change; Round up your purchases to the nearest pound

GO TO SITE
Read Review

Automatic Deposits

  • Moneybox's Round Up feature allows you to save spare change by rounding up your card transactions to the nearest pound and saving the difference. (e.g. if you spend £2.30 on a coffee, Moneybox automatically saves 70p  for you).
  • You can choose to save your money in either a 32-Day Notice Account or a 95-Day Notice Account.
  • Your money will be available 32 or 95 days after you make a withdrawal request depending on the Notice Accounts you choose.
  • If you want to take a break from saving or feel the app is putting away too much, you can always turn off Round Ups.


Click here to learn more about Moneybox's automatic deposits.

Automatic Investments

  • Please note: As with all investments, your capital is at risk.
  • When you pay for a Moneybox subscription, you can choose to invest your money in a variety of tracker funds.
  • Moneybox helps you invest your spare change by rounding up your card transactions to the nearest pound and investing the difference (e.g. if you spend £1.60 on a snack, MoneyBox automatically invests 40p for you).
  • The app allows you to make weekly or one-off deposits into one of three investment options based on your risk appetite - cautious, balanced or adventurous.
  • Money is invested in funds managed by established brands such as Legal & General, BlackRock and Fidelity.
  • Moneybox offers Stocks and Shares ISA, Lifetime ISA, Junior ISA, General Investment Account and socially responsible investments.


Minimum ISA Deposit: £1
‍
Charges
Subscription Fee: £1 per month (first 3 months free)
‍Platform Fee: £0.45% per month‍
Annual Investment Cost: 0.12% - 0.30%
Currency Conversion Fee: 0.45%‍
Trading Fee: £0‍
Exit Fee: £0

Other fees apply. Click here to learn more about Moneybox's automatic investments. Capital at risk.

Personal Pension

  • Please note: As with all investments, your capital is at risk. You usually can't access the money in your pension pot until you are 55 years old (increases to 57 in 2028), when you can take 25% as a tax-free lump sum.
  • Moneybox allows you to track down your old workplace pension pots and combine them into one simple Moneybox Personal Pension.
  • You can set up a weekly deposit, switch on a monthly payday boost or make one-off deposits whenever you like. You can even round up your daily purchases to the nearest pound and save for retirement on the go.


Charges
Subscription Fee: £0 (you do not pay a subscription fee for this service)
‍Annual Platform Fee (Charged monthly):
‍Balances up to £100,000: 0.45%
Balances over £100,000: 0.15%
Fund Management Fee: 0.13% - 0.25%

Click here to learn more about the Moneybox Pension. Capital at risk.

Other Features

Moneybox also offers:
‍

  • Cash Lifetime ISA
  • Stocks and Shares Lifetime ISA
  • House Deposit Calculator
  • Mortgage Advice


Click here to learn more about Moneybox's other features.

How much does Moneybox cost?

It’s free to download the app and the savings products are completely free.
‍
The investment and pension products come at cost as detailed above.

Is Moneybox regulated by the FCA?

Yes, to carry out payment services activities.

Does Moneybox connect to my bank account?

Yes, but only if you want to.

Is Moneybox safe?

Your money is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to a maximum of £85,000. This means you can get your money back if Moneybox were to go bust. Note that the FSCS does not cover losses arising from the performance of any of your investments.

Can you withdraw money from Moneybox?

You can withdraw at any time, but it takes around 2-3 weeks to sell your investments on your behalf and transfer the money back to your Moneybox account.

Does Moneybox have a Referral Scheme?

No

How do I get the app?

Visit Moneybox's website here.

Plum - Automate your deposits and investments; Analyse your spending; Switch utilities

GO TO SITE
Read Review

Automatic Deposits

  • Plum calculates how much you can afford to set aside and automatically stashes it away for you.
  • The app shows you an overview of your finances and analyses your spending to help you keep track of your money.
  • Plum has some fun deposit features - Round Ups, Pay Days, 52-Week Saving Challenge, and Rainy Day Savings Rule. With the Rainy Days Savings Rule, Plum will set aside extra cash automatically, based on how many days it was forecast to rain in the area where you live over the course of the previous week.
  • If you feel the app is putting away too much or too little, you can always adjust the amount.


Click here to learn more about Plum's automatic deposits.

Automatic Investments

  • Please note: As with all investments, your capital is at risk.
  • When you subscribe to Plum Pro or Plum Premium (from £2.99 a month), you can choose to invest your money in a variety of funds.
  • Plum calculates how much you can afford to set aside and invests that amount automatically.
  • You choose your investments based on what matters to you. For example, you could choose to invest in emerging markets as well as technology, ethical, American, British or European companies.
  • The risk level of each portfolio is shown with the 'chilli emoji' - and it goes up to 8 chillies.
  • Money is invested in funds provided by established fund managers such as Vanguard and Legal & General.
  • You can invest either through a Stocks and Shares ISA or a General Investment Account.


Minimum ISA Deposit: £1

Charges
Subscription Fee: £2.99 per month (first month free)‍
Product Provider Fee: 0.45% per year
Currency Conversion Fee: 0.45%
‍Trading Fee: £0‍
Exit Fee: £0

Other fees apply. Click here to learn more about Plum's automatic investments. Capital at risk.

Personal Pension

  • Please note: As with all investments, your capital is at risk. You usually can't access the money in your pension pot until you are 55 years old (increases to 57 in 2028), when you can take 25% as a tax-free lump sum.
  • The Self-invested Personal Pension (SIPP) allows you to consolidate existing pensions in one place and invest in a choice of risk-managed or diversified global funds.
  • Plum calculates how much you can afford to set aside and stashes that amount in your pension automatically.
  • You can invest your pension savings based on your current age and target retirement date.


Charges
Subscription Fee: £0 (you do not need to subscribe to Plum Pro or Plum Premium to use the pension product)
‍Product Provider Fee: 0.45% per year
Currency Conversion Fee: 0.45%
‍
Other fees apply. Click here to learn more about the Plum Pension. Capital at risk.

Other Features

Automatic Utility Switch

  • Plum identifies if you're overpaying on bills and can switch you to a better supplier automatically.  ️
  • By referencing your outgoings against, e.g. utility tariffs in your area, the app ensures that you're not overpaying for things like gas or electricity.
    ‍

Click here to learn more about Plum's automatic utility switch.
‍

Money Maximiser

  • Money maximiser is a new feature from Plum that allows you to save money into an easy access interest account for as long as possible.
  • Money maximiser will also regularly calculate any upcoming bills and expenses to transfer what’s needed back to your linked bank account each week.
    ‍

Click here to learn more about Money Maximiser.

How much does Plum cost?

It’s free to download the app, set money aside using automatic deposits and Round Ups, withdraw as often as you like, and switch your bills with Plum.
‍
If you're interested in automatic investments or want to earn interest on your savings, Plum Pro or Plum Premium might be for you.
‍
Basic: Free
‍Pro: £2.99/month (first month free)
Premium: £9.99/month (first month free)

Other fees apply.

Is Plum regulated by the FCA?

Yes, to carry out payment services activities.

Does Plum connect to my bank account?

Yes, to personalise the amount Plum puts aside for you. Plum also uses the information on your incomings and outgoings to identify when you are being overcharged on utility bills. The app requires read-only access to your bank account through open banking.

Is Plum safe?

Your money is protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to a maximum of £85,000. This means you can get your money back if Plum were to go bust. Note that the FSCS does not cover losses arising from the performance of any of your investments.

Can you withdraw money from Plum?

You can withdraw at any time, but it takes around 7 working days to sell your investments on your behalf and transfer the money back to your Plum account.

Does Plum have a Referral Scheme?

No.

How do I get the app?

Visit Plum's website here.

You might also like 🤓

  1. Chip vs Plum
  2. Plum vs Nutmeg
  3. Moneyfarm vs Plum
  4. Best Money Saving Apps
  5. Best Budgeting Apps
  6. Best Investment Apps
  7. Best Stocks and Shares ISAs
  8. Best Robo Advisors

‍‍

Koody Man with Laptop

Subscribe to The Plug

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Error: This email cannot be added because it may already be on our list. Please enter a different email address.

Every month, we’ll send you The Plug - a curation of the best personal finance content in the UK. We share real-life stories, how-to guides, top personal finance news, popular community questions, and tips to help you stay on top of your money.