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Compare Green ISAs

Select the best green stocks and shares ISA to invest this year's tax free allowance.

Investment ISAs put your capital at risk & you may get back less than you originally invested

Socially Responsible Portfolio

from Nutmeg

Allows ISA Transfers
  • Fund Choice: Nutmeg allow you to align your investments with your values. With continuous oversight from the Nutmeg in-house investment team, their SRI portfolios place an emphasis on environmental, social and governance factors. Capital at risk. Approved by Nutmeg 24/02/2023
  • Invest From: Min. £500 single
See Deal

ii ACE 40 investments

from Interactive Investor

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: 140+ Ethical Investments. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 a month or any lump sum
  • Investment Options: A selection of 140+ funds, investment trusts and ETFs that they believe offer high-quality ethical investment choices, across a range of markets.
See Deal Open an ISA before 31 December and get £100 cashback. New customers only, invest £5k or more. Terms & fees apply. Capital at risk.

Sustainable Stocks & Shares ISA

from Shepherds

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Invest in a brighter future for you and the world, with Shepherd's sustainable ISA. The fund aims to invest in innovative, sustainable companies that offer both the potential for long-term growth and a positive benefit to society. Capital at risk. Please note: As with all investing, your capital is at risk you may get back less than you have put in. The value of the ISA will depend on the performance of the investments and any bonuses cannot be guaranteed. Additionally, if investment conditions are poor, we may apply a Market Value Reduction (MVR)
  • Invest From: £30 pm
See Deal

Positive Change

from Baillie Gifford

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Actively managed fund that invests in global company shares where products or services make a positive impact on society or the environment. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 pm
See Deal

Sustainable Leaders

from Royal London

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Invests in companies that are likely to benefit from measures taken to improve the environment, human welfare and quality of life. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 pm
See Deal

Future World ESG UK Tracker

from Legal & General

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: The Fund aims to track the performance of the Solactive L&G Enhanced ESG UK Index. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25
See Deal

Responsible Global Equity

from BMO

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Invests in companies whose operations are considered to be making a positive contribution to society and seeks to avoid companies which, on balance, are felt to be harming the world, its people or its wildlife. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 pm
See Deal

Environmental Markets

from Impax

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Investment trust that invests predominantly in companies that provide, utilize, implement or advise upon technology-based systems, products or services in environmental markets, particularly those of alternative energy and energy efficiency, water treatment and pollution control, waste technology & resource management. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 pm
See Deal

Better World

from Montanaro

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Actively managed Fund that seeks to invest in high quality companies whose products, services or behaviour are deemed to make a positive impact on society and which emphasize sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 pm
See Deal

Global Clean Energy ETF Tracker

from iShares

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: Tracks companies in the clean energy sector. Capital at risk.
  • Invest From: £25 a month or any lump sum
See Deal

My Ethical Choice ISA

from Scottish Friendly

Allows ISA Transfers
Regular Savings
  • Fund Choice: International Ethical Fund which has been designed to invest in shares of global companies that have been assessed to meet ethical criteria.
  • Invest From: £10pm
See Deal

What is a Green ISA?

A Green ISA is typically a Stocks and Shares ISA that invests in funds and shares with an environmental consideration in mind.

This means that any companies that your Green ISA invests in, either directly as shares in the stock market or through a fund or managed portfolio, support or provide environmentally friendly products and practices.

Green ISAs also exclude certain industries and specific companies that are deemed to have a negative impact on the environment. For example, certain energy or mining companies may be excluded from Green ISA portfolios if their practices are deemed to be environmentally unsustainable.

Green ISAs also fall under the umbrella term of Ethical ISAs, which are ISA accounts that invest with environmental, moral and social responsibilities in mind.

Ethical ISAs usually refrain from investing in any of the following industries:

  • Gambling
  • Armaments
  • Fur trade
  • Alcohol
  • Tobacco
  • Pornography

You could also invest in a Green Cash ISA if the bank or provider you open it with has a completely green investment and lending policy.

What do Green ISAs invest in?

Green ISAs invest in everything that standard Stocks and Shares ISAs do, but with the elimination of certain holdings that breach their eco-friendly criteria.

Here are some of the most popular investment products held within Green Stocks and Shares ISAs:

  • Shares – shares of individual companies
  • Managed Funds – a collective investment managed by professionals
  • Tracker Funds – a collective investment that tracks a sector or market but is not actively managed
  • Ready-Made Portfolios – A combination of all of the above and potentially more, but with the oversight of a management team that align the portfolio to a specific risk profile

In a Green ISA, all of the above investments would need to be tailored to eco-friendly and sustainable companies.

Do Green ISAs perform well?

Green ISAs have the potential to perform just as well as, or even better than, standard Stocks and Shares ISAs.

There are even some arguments for green investing that make Green ISAs more attractive from a returns perspective than normal:

1. Green companies could be ahead of the curve in terms of public support

With climate change becoming more and more of a global concern, consumers and investors are becoming more aware and critical of the companies they use and invest in – two factors that could significantly affect the success of a company in the long term.

2. Green companies could be ahead of regulations and operational restrictions from governmental policy.

If governments crack down on unsustainable business practices, green companies with an existing positive impact on the environment will already have green policies and operations in place, and they could thrive in their respective industries ahead of their competitors.

What are the disadvantages of a Green ISA?

The main disadvantage of green investing is limiting the number of investments that are available to you.

Although there are more and more green investment options coming to market every day, there will always be some investments that you can’t get exposure to with a green investment strategy, simply because of their environmental impact.

This means that, although you can still make the same or potentially greater returns in a green portfolio, there are fewer companies, funds and other investments to choose from to get you there.

How do you open a Green ISA account?

To open a green ISA account, you’ll first need to decide if you want to use a ready-made green ISA portfolio or pick and choose your own green-friendly funds and shares.

To pick your own, you’ll need a self-select Stocks and Shares ISA platform and you’ll need to research the green investments you want to buy.

To invest in a ready-made green ISA portfolio, you’ll need to find an ISA manager that offers a green portfolio service.

When you’re ready to open a Green ISA, you will usually be able to do so online or over the telephone with your chosen Green ISA provider.

You’ll need to top up with a debit card to start investing, or with a regular direct debit contribution to save money monthly.

Oliver Roylance-Smith
Edited by Oliver Roylance-Smith - ISA.co.uk

Frequently Asked Questions

No. You can switch providers with an ISA transfer if you wish. You can also contribute to other ISA providers in separate tax years.

ISA accounts are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This means that all ISA providers are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) for up to £85,000 if they go out of business.

Please note that this may not apply to the underlying holdings within a Stocks and Shares ISA, and will not cover standard investment losses. 

Yes, you can. The value of your underlying ethical investments will go up and down, so you could lose money, particularly over the short term.

If you have a Stocks and Shares ISA already then you will just need to sell your investments and purchase ethical investments instead.

If you need to transfer to another provider for access to a wider range of ethical funds, you can do so by completing a form with your new ISA provider.

You can also easily transfer a Cash ISA into an ethical ISA using this same method.

Yes, you can withdraw money at any time from your ethical ISA investment.

You can open most ethical ISAs online, over the phone or by post. You will need to make a debit card contribution or set up a Direct Debit to start your account.

You have an annual allowance of £20,000 for Stocks and Shares ISAs in the 2023/24 tax year.

Important Risk Information:

Capital at risk. Tax treatments depend on your individual circumstances and may change. The value of investments can go down in value as well as up, so you could get back less than you invest. It is therefore important that you understand the risks and commitments. This website aims to provide information to help you make your own informed decisions. It does not provide personal advice based on your circumstances. If you are unsure of how suitable an investment is for you, please seek personal advice.

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