Scalable Capital Fees Explained:
what you actually pay
Scalable Capital’s cost model is unique among European brokers: a free tier that charges €0.99 per trade and a paid plan (PRIME+ at €4.99/month) that makes trades of €250 or more on gettex and EIX commission-free. Savings plans are free on every tier. But the full cost picture has more layers — a Xetra surcharge that applies regardless of plan, a break-even point that determines whether a subscription is worth it, an unpublished FX markup, and a crypto spread surcharge that doesn’t appear on the headline fee. This guide covers every cost so you know exactly what you’re paying.
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Scalable Capital fee summary
All figures sourced from Scalable Capital’s official pricing page. Always verify current rates before trading.
| Fee type | Amount | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Trade — FREE Broker (gettex/EIX) | €0.99 flat | Per order; no threshold |
| Trade — PRIME+, gettex/EIX, order ≥€250 | €0.00 | Commission-free above the threshold — no percentage component |
| Trade — PRIME+, gettex/EIX, order below €250 | €0.99 | Flat fee still applies even on paid plans below the threshold |
| Xetra trade — all plans | €3.99 + 0.01% venue fee (min €1.50) | Every Xetra order, every plan — min total ~€5.49 |
| PRIME ETFs — FREE Broker buy only, ≥€250 | €0.00 | Amundi, iShares, Vanguard, Xtrackers; sell leg costs €0.99 |
| Savings plan executions — all plans | €0.00 | All tiers, all supported assets; minimum €1 per execution |
| Crypto ETP spread surcharge — FREE | 0.99% | Per crypto ETP trade on FREE tier |
| Crypto ETP spread surcharge — PRIME+ | 0.69% | Reduced spread rate on paid plans |
| Platform fee — FREE Broker | €0.00/month | No subscription |
| Platform fee — PRIME+ Broker | €4.99/month | Billed monthly; flexible cancellation |
| Cash interest — Scalable Overnight Account | 2.50% p.a. (variable) | All plans; accrues daily, paid monthly; no balance cap stated |
| Custody fee | €0.00 | Not charged |
| Inactivity fee | €0.00 | Not charged |
| Portfolio transfer out | €0.00 | Plus third-party costs; fractional positions must be sold first |
Two tiers, one question: how many trades do you actually make?
Scalable Capital’s cost model is subscription-based. The right plan depends almost entirely on trade frequency — whether a flat monthly fee saves you more than the €0.99 per-trade rate on the free tier.
| Plan | Monthly cost | Annual cost | Free trade condition | Billing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FREE Broker | €0.00 | €0.00 | PRIME ETFs only (buy, ≥€250) | N/A |
| PRIME+ Broker | €4.99 | €59.88 | All stocks, ETFs, bonds ≥€250 on gettex/EIX | Monthly (flexible) |
At €0.99 per trade, PRIME+ pays for itself once you exceed 5 trades per month (5 x €0.99 = €4.95). From your 6th trade onward each month, PRIME+ is cheaper than FREE.
Annual break-even: 61 trades. At 60 trades per year, FREE costs €59.40 — just under PRIME+’s €59.88. At 61 trades, PRIME+ is cheaper overall.
Savings plans: free on every tier, from €1, no threshold
For DCA investors who automate monthly contributions, savings plan executions cost nothing across all plans — with flexible scheduling and broad asset support.
- Free execution on FREE, and PRIME+.
- Minimum per execution: €1.
- No €250 threshold — full amount invested regardless of size.
- Supported assets: ETFs, individual stocks, crypto ETPs.
- Scheduling: weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, annually.
- Execution via gettex; timed to morning liquid hours (approximately 09:00–12:00 CET).
If your entire strategy is automated monthly ETF contributions, the FREE tier may be all you need. Savings plans cost €0 on FREE — the same as on paid plans. There is no execution quality difference between tiers for savings plans.
The paid plan only makes sense if you also make manual trades frequently enough to cross the break-even. One or two manual top-ups per month at €0.99 each never justifies the €4.99/month subscription cost.
gettex vs Xetra: the hidden fee most investors miss
Scalable Capital’s commission-free model only covers gettex (Munich) and EIX (Hanover). Xetra trades cost €3.99 plus a venue fee on every plan — including PRIME+. This is the single most important thing to understand about Scalable Capital’s fee structure.
- Default execution venue for all trades and savings plans.
- Extended hours: 08:00–22:00 CET.
- During core hours (09:00–17:30 CET), market makers are legally bound to mirror Xetra reference spreads for liquid instruments.
- Outside core hours, spreads widen — use limit orders before 09:00 or after 17:30.
- Most major UCITS ETFs available in EUR: VWCE, IWDA, SXR8, EUNL.
- No per-trade fee on PRIME+ for orders ≥€250.
- Germany’s primary exchange — tightest spreads for the most liquid instruments during core hours.
- €3.99 per trade + 0.01% venue fee (min €1.50) — on all plans.
- Minimum total Xetra cost: approximately €5.49 per order.
- Zero plan discount — PRIME+ pays the same as FREE.
- For most UCITS ETF investors, gettex during core hours provides equivalent quality at far lower cost.
| Order size | gettex (PRIME+, ≥€250) | Xetra (all plans) | Cost difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| €250 | €0.00 | ~€5.49 min | €5.49 |
| €1,000 | €0.00 | ~€5.49 | €5.49 |
| €5,000 | €0.00 | ~€4.49 (€3.99 + €0.50) | €4.49 |
| €15,000 | €0.00 | ~€5.49 (€3.99 + €1.50) | €5.49 |
| €50,000 | €0.00 | ~€8.99 (€3.99 + €5.00) | €8.99 |
No published FX rate: what that means in practice
Scalable Capital does not disclose an explicit FX markup percentage. All accounts are EUR-denominated with no multi-currency option. Currency conversion is handled internally by Scalable Capital Bank and embedded in the execution rate.
- FX is embedded in the exchange rate at execution — it does not appear as a separate line item on your order confirmation.
- Conversion is handled internally by Scalable Capital in batched daily intervals, not in real time per trade.
- No multi-currency cash account — all proceeds settle in EUR.
- No official FX markup % published in accessible pricing documentation. [Unverified — no primary source confirmation available.]
Buy EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs on gettex. Major trackers — VWCE, IWDA, EUNL, SXR8 — all trade in EUR on gettex.
Buying the EUR-listed version of VWCE instead of the USD-listed VT gives identical underlying exposure with zero broker-level FX cost on every trade and every savings plan execution.
What doesn’t appear on Scalable Capital’s fee schedule
These costs are real but invisible — they never show up as a labelled charge on any statement.
Every gettex trade has an implicit cost not in Scalable Capital’s schedule: the spread between bid and ask. During core hours (09:00–17:30 CET), gettex market makers are legally required to mirror Xetra reference spreads for liquid instruments — meaning spread quality on major ETFs is comparable to Xetra during these hours. Outside core hours (08:00–09:00 and 17:30–22:00 CET), market makers are not bound to the same standard and spreads can widen materially. Savings plan executions are timed by the platform to approximately 09:00–12:00 CET, which reduces spread risk for automated investors. For manual orders outside core hours, always use a limit order.
Every crypto ETP trade carries a spread surcharge on top of the standard commission structure:
- FREE Broker: 0.99% spread surcharge per crypto ETP trade.
- PRIME+: 0.69% spread surcharge.
For a €1,000 crypto ETP trade on PRIME+, the surcharge is €6.90 — in addition to the standard commission (€0 for orders ≥€250 on gettex). The surcharge applies even when the underlying order commission is zero, and it applies to crypto ETP savings plan executions as well.
Deposits made via Instant SEPA transfer carry a surcharge separate from the crypto spread surcharge above:
- FREE Broker: 0.99% on Instant deposits up to €5,000.
- PRIME+: 0.69% on Instant deposits up to €5,000.
Deposits above €5,000 via Instant SEPA are free on both plans, as are standard (non-Instant) SEPA transfers regardless of amount — these typically settle within one business day instead of in real time. For a €2,000 Instant deposit on PRIME+, the fee is €13.80; routing the same deposit as a standard SEPA transfer avoids the charge entirely.
Bond trades on gettex and EIX carry an additional spread surcharge of up to 5% on top of the standard per-trade fee. This applies across all plans. For bond-focused investors, this cost can be material — verify the exact current surcharge against Scalable Capital’s official pricing page before placing bond trades. [Flagged: sourced from research documentation; confirm against primary source before relying on this figure.]
Scalable Capital routes orders to EIX, where it acts as Single Market Maker itself, and to gettex, where Baader Bank acts as market maker under a multi-year cooperation. On gettex, inducements from execution venues and certain ETF providers are reported to range between €0 and €5 per executed trade, shared with Baader Bank. On EIX, Scalable Capital earns within its own closed market-making environment rather than via external inducements. [Flagged: partial confirmation — Scalable Capital states inducements may apply on gettex but does not publish exact rates.]
The EU banned PFOF under MiFIR Article 39a with effect from 30 June 2026 for Germany and previously-exempted member states. Scalable Capital restructured ahead of the deadline by co-founding the European Investor Exchange (EIX) alongside the Hannover Stock Exchange, now acting as Single Market Maker on that venue. This allows Scalable to maintain zero explicit commissions on PRIME+ by internalising order flow through EIX rather than receiving external kickbacks. The fee schedule has not changed, but execution now runs through a closed SMM environment rather than a competitive market-maker model. For standard EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs, spread impact is likely small in practice — but it is a structural shift worth understanding.
Scalable Capital states that it does not engage in retail client securities lending. Your ETF and stock holdings are held as segregated assets (Sondervermögen) at Scalable Capital Bank GmbH under the German Safe Custody Act — legally distinct from the bank’s own balance sheet, since custody moved in-house in November 2025. [Stated in Scalable Capital documentation; securities lending policies can change — verify current terms before investing.]
The Total Expense Ratio of the ETF itself is not a Scalable Capital fee — it is deducted directly from the fund’s NAV. iShares Core MSCI World (IWDA) carries a TER of 0.20%; Vanguard FTSE All-World (VWCE) 0.22%. For savings plan investors who pay €0 per execution, the TER becomes the dominant ongoing cost in the total cost picture. Small differences compound significantly over decades. See the UCITS vs US ETF total drag study for a full breakdown.
Scalable Overnight Account: 2.50% p.a., with a protection structure that varies by plan
The Scalable Overnight Account pays 2.50% p.a. (variable, tracking the Eurozone rate environment) on uninvested cash. Interest accrues daily and is paid monthly. There is no stated balance cap — the rate applies to unlimited cash balances. Always verify the current rate on Scalable Capital’s website before relying on this figure.
| Plan | Rate | Max deposit protection | Structure above cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| FREE Broker | 2.50% p.a. | €100,000 (1 bank) | Excess held in UCITS money market fund |
| PRIME+ Broker | 2.50% p.a. | €500,000 (up to 5 banks) | Cash spread across partner banks at €100,000 per institution |
Free to transfer out — with one exception
Scalable Capital does not charge a fee to transfer your securities to another broker. Portfolio transfers out are stated as €0 plus any third-party costs charged by the receiving institution. Under German Federal Court rulings, domestic financial institutions are prohibited from charging processing fees for outgoing in-kind portfolio transfers.
- Outgoing in-kind transfer: €0 from Scalable Capital; receiving broker may charge an incoming transfer fee.
- SEPA cash withdrawals: €0.
- Early PRIME+ cancellation: check current terms — cancelling before the billing period ends may trigger compensation equal to FREE Broker per-trade fees for orders already executed under the plan. [Flagged: sourced from terms documentation; verify current cancellation policy.]
How Scalable Capital’s fees compare to alternatives
| Broker | ETF transaction fee | Savings plan | FX conversion | Custody fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scalable Capital (PRIME+) | €0 (≥€250, gettex) / €0.99 below | €0 (all plans) | Not published | €0 |
| Trade Republic | €1 flat (savings plan: €0) | €0 | ~0.10–0.25% est. (embedded) | €0 |
| DEGIRO | €3.00 (Core Selection on Tradegate: €1.00) | No savings plan | 0.25% (explicit) | €0 |
| Trading 212 | €0.00 | €0 | 0.15% | €0 |
| Interactive Brokers | ~€1.25 flat minimum | No native savings plans | ~0.002% (IdealPro) | €0 |
For EUR-account investors on PRIME+ making 6+ trades/month ≥€250 on gettex: effective cost is €0/trade + €4.99/month — cheaper than Trade Republic’s €1 flat after the 5th trade. Where Scalable Capital lags: FX conversion rate is unpublished, no multi-currency account, and no savings plan for bond investors needing primary exchange routing.
When Scalable Capital’s fee structure works — and when it doesn’t
| Investor type | Scalable Capital fee fit |
|---|---|
| EUR investor automating savings plans into UCITS ETFs — no manual trades | Strong fit — FREE tier, €0 savings plan, no FX on EUR-listed ETFs |
| Active trader making 6+ manual trades per month ≥€250 on gettex | Strong fit — PRIME+ breaks even at 6 trades/month and saves from there |
| Mixed investor: monthly savings plan plus occasional manual top-ups | Good fit — savings plan free on FREE tier; 1–3 manual trades at €0.99 rarely justify a subscription |
| Investor with cash balance above €100,000 wanting extended protection | PRIME+ recommended — extends EdB protection to €500,000 across 5 banks |
| Investor making frequent manual orders below €250 | Weak fit on paid plans — the €250 threshold means no saving on sub-threshold orders |
| Investor buying USD-priced stocks regularly or needing multi-currency | Weak fit — no published FX rate, no multi-currency account; IBKR offers better economics |
| Investor needing primary Xetra routing for execution quality | Wrong fit — Xetra costs €3.99+ on every plan; DEGIRO offers better primary-exchange access |
Ready to open a Scalable Capital account?
For European investors focused on UCITS ETFs, Scalable Capital is a strong choice — free savings plans on every tier, zero-commission trading on PRIME+ for orders of €250 or more, and interest-bearing cash. Always verify current fee terms on Scalable Capital’s official site before opening.
Go deeper
Frequently asked questions
What are Scalable Capital’s trading fees in 2026?
On the FREE Broker plan, Scalable Capital charges €0.99 per trade on EIX and gettex. On the PRIME+ plan, trades of €250 or more on gettex and EIX cost €0.00; trades below €250 cost €0.99. Xetra trades cost €3.99 plus a 0.01% venue fee (minimum €1.50) on all plans, regardless of subscription tier. Savings plans are free on all tiers from €1.
Is trading really free on Scalable Capital PRIME+?
For orders of €250 or more on gettex or EIX, yes — no per-trade commission on PRIME+. But two conditions must be met: the order must be at least €250, and you must use gettex or EIX as the execution venue. Orders below €250 still cost €0.99 even on PRIME+. Xetra always costs €3.99 plus a venue fee on every plan. The monthly subscription fee of €4.99 for PRIME+ is the trade-off for this zero-commission model.
What is the €250 minimum order threshold on Scalable Capital?
The €250 threshold is the minimum order size required to unlock commission-free trading on the PRIME+ plan on gettex and EIX. Orders below €250 pay €0.99 per trade even on the paid plan. On the FREE plan, the same €250 threshold applies to PRIME ETF buy orders (Amundi, iShares, Vanguard, Xtrackers) — below €250 you pay €0.99 on the free tier too. For savings plans, there is no threshold at all: the minimum is €1 and executions are free on all plans regardless of amount.
Are savings plans free on Scalable Capital?
Yes. Savings plan executions cost €0 on all Scalable Capital plans — FREE and PRIME+. The minimum per execution is €1, and there is no order size threshold. Stocks, ETFs, and crypto ETPs are all supported. Savings plans execute via gettex during morning liquid market hours (approximately 09:00 to 12:00 CET). For investors whose strategy is automated monthly ETF contributions, the FREE tier provides full savings plan functionality at zero cost — no subscription required.
Does Scalable Capital charge a separate fee for Xetra trades?
Yes — €3.99 per trade plus a 0.01% venue fee (minimum €1.50) on every Xetra order, regardless of plan. The minimum total Xetra cost is approximately €5.49 per order. This applies even on PRIME+. The zero-commission model only covers gettex and EIX. For most UCITS ETF investors, gettex during core trading hours provides adequate execution quality and the Xetra surcharge is not worth paying.
What is Scalable Capital’s FX conversion fee?
Scalable Capital does not publish an explicit FX markup percentage. Currency conversion is handled internally by Scalable Capital Bank and embedded in the exchange rate at execution — it does not appear as a separate line item. All accounts are EUR-denominated with no multi-currency option. The most cost-effective approach for EUR investors is to buy EUR-denominated UCITS ETFs on gettex (VWCE, IWDA, SXR8), which avoids broker-level FX conversion entirely. For investors with significant non-EUR exposure, IBKR’s near-interbank conversion rate is substantially more transparent and cheaper.
Does Scalable Capital pay interest on uninvested cash?
Yes, via the Scalable Overnight Account — a separate product you must open and fund independently of the standard broker clearing account (which pays 0% p.a.). The Overnight Account pays 2.50% p.a. (variable) with no stated balance cap. Interest accrues daily and is paid monthly. On the FREE plan, statutory EdB deposit protection covers up to €100,000 per bank; cash above this threshold is held in a UCITS money market fund rather than a bank deposit. On PRIME+, cash is distributed across up to 5 partner banks, extending deposit protection to up to €500,000. Always verify the current rate on Scalable Capital’s website before relying on this figure.
What does it cost to transfer a portfolio out of Scalable Capital?
Portfolio transfers out of Scalable Capital cost €0.00, plus any fees charged by the receiving broker. Cash withdrawals via SEPA are also free. The important exception is fractional share positions: these cannot be transferred in-kind and must be sold on-platform first — triggering the standard €0.99 fee if the liquidation value falls below €250. For investors who have used savings plans over many months and accumulated fractional positions across multiple holdings, it is worth checking your fractional balances before initiating a transfer.
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QuantRoutine provides educational content only. Nothing on this page is an offer, solicitation, or recommendation to buy or sell any security or to open an account with any specific broker. Investments can lose value, and past performance does not guarantee future results. You are responsible for your own investment, tax, and legal decisions. Always review each broker’s current terms, fees, and eligibility on their official website before opening or funding an account.