InvestNow Review NZ 2026: Fees, Fund Range & Who It Suits
InvestNow review for 2026: zero platform fees and zero transaction fees on 150+ managed funds, $50 minimum. The catch: a dated interface and no fractional US shares. Who it suits — and who should pick Kernel or Sharesies.
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Quick verdict: InvestNow is the cheapest way to hold managed funds in NZ — no platform fee, no transaction fees, 150+ funds (including Foundation Series index funds from 0.03% + a small buy/sell spread), $50 minimum. The trade-offs: a dated interface, no fractional US shares, and nothing gamified. Best for: set-and-forget index investors who care about cost over polish. Full breakdown below.
Kia ora. InvestNow is the least flashy of NZ's big three DIY platforms — and for a certain kind of investor, that's exactly the point. Here's the honest 2026 review.
What InvestNow actually costs
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Platform fee | $0 |
| Transaction fees (managed funds) | $0 |
| Foundation Series index funds | from 0.03% mgmt + ~0.1% spread |
| Other managed funds | the fund's own fee (0.2–1.3%) |
| Minimum investment | $50 one-off / $50 auto-invest |
That combination — zero platform fee + access to institutional-grade cheap index funds — is why cost-focused investors keep ending up here. A $10,000 Foundation Series portfolio can cost under $20/year all-in.
What's good
- The price. Nothing in NZ beats zero-plus-fund-fees for straightforward index investing.
- The range. 150+ funds across Vanguard-linked, Smartshares, Milford, Fisher and more — you can hold your entire strategy in one login.
- Auto-invest works cleanly for fortnightly/monthly contributions.
What's not
- The interface is functional, not friendly. No app-store presence to speak of, charts are basic, and it feels like online banking from 2015.
- No fractional US/AU shares. Direct shares are limited; if you want to buy $20 of a US stock, Sharesies does that, InvestNow doesn't.
- No KiwiSaver on the platform itself — unlike Kernel, which pairs its funds with a KiwiSaver scheme in one place.
Who should use InvestNow
Pick InvestNow if you want the lowest-cost diversified portfolio and don't need hand-holding: set up a fortnightly auto-invest into two or three Foundation Series funds and stop looking at it. Pick Sharesies if you value the app experience and small-scale share buying; pick Kernel if you want index funds + KiwiSaver together. The three-way comparison has the full head-to-head.
Steady tip: Whichever platform you pick, Steady shows it next to your bank, KiwiSaver and other investments — one net-worth view, updated automatically. Join the waitlist.
The bottom line
InvestNow wins on price and range, loses on polish. If your investing style is "automatic, boring, cheap" — the style that historically wins — it's arguably NZ's best value platform in 2026.
Written by Sam Wilson
Founder, Steady
Sam is a New Zealand founder building Steady — a personal finance app designed for Kiwis, integrated with every major NZ bank via Akahu. He writes about money, bank integrations, and what actually works for everyday New Zealanders.More about Sam
Steady connects your bank and tracks it all automatically — no spreadsheets. Join the waitlist for early access.
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