The GOOD Shopping Guide’s definitive guide to choosing an ethical ISA
What are Ethical and Sustainable ISAs?
What are the different types of ISA?
Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are tax-efficient savings accounts where your interest earnings are not taxed by the UK government. You can deposit up to £20,000 total per tax year into an ISA (or across multiple) however, as of April 2027, this will change to a £12,000 cap for a cash ISA, with the remaining £8,000 limit only applying to Stocks & Shares ISAs. It is worth noting that this change will not affect investors over the age of 65.
If you’re looking for Ethical providers of non-ISA savings accounts (some of which are also featured below) take a look at our Banks & Building Societies Ethical Comparison table.
What makes an ISA ethical or sustainable?
Depending on the type of ISA, your money will either earn interest (in a cash ISA) or be invested in assets such as funds or companies (in a stocks & shares ISA). How ethical or sustainable this process is depends on the ISA provider and where your money is invested. We have researched and compiled a list of the Top 10 Ethical ISA Providers and Their Products below alongside a breakdown of what makes them ethical.
What makes an ISA unethical or unsustainable?
For example, an unethical ISA provider could be a bank with a history of human rights criticisms. And an unsustainable ISA could involve investing your money into a fossil fuel construction project. Fortunately, these are not your only options.
Should I get a Cash or a Stocks & Shares ISA?
Which type of ISA is the most financially secure?
When comparing a Stocks & Shares and a Cash ISA, the latter provides more stable returns given it is less susceptible to market fluctuations. However, the returns of a Cash ISA are generally much more limited than the potential returns of a Stocks & Shares ISA. For example, a Cash ISA given the current rates environment pays circa 3.5% per annum whereas a Stocks & Shares ISA invested in a main equity index could yield circa 10% per annum, but this comes with greater risk.
All that is to say that a Cash ISA is more stable, but a Stocks & Shares ISA has greater interest earning potential.
Which type of ISA has the most ethical impact?
Typically, Stocks & Shares ISAs have a greater scope for ethical impact because your money can go directly into funds, projects or companies upholding ethical values. On the other hand, the ethics of a Cash ISA depend upon the ISA provider and where your provider holds your money (typically banks).
In this sense, the ethical impact of a Cash ISA is more limited and dependent on the provider. Whereas a Stocks & Shares ISA has greater scope for an ethical impact given it has access to a wider universe of investable assets (e.g. ESG-focused funds).
Which Matters More: ISA Provider or Product?
This is a complex question which must factor in both immediate and long-term impact. While it is possible to have a more ethical ISA fund through a not so ethical provider, the bottom line is it’s always better to have the best of both worlds.
How do I know if an ISA provider is ethical?
Many providers offer ISAs labelled with terms like “ESG” or “sustainable,” however this is not a guarantee of their overarching ethical business practices. This is why it’s important to consult our finance articles, such as this one, and our Ethical Investment article as well as our Ethical Banks and Building Societies Comparison table to make sure you’re getting the full picture.
While the fund is responsible for the majority of the impact, picking a provider that reflects your values is crucial in encouraging and rewarding more ethical business practices, as well as reinforcing demand for sustainable finance infrastructure.
How do I Know Which Funds are Sustainable?
What is an ISA Fund?
In the context of Stocks & Shares ISAs, a fund is a pool of invested money which is used to buy things like shares, bonds or other assets. Depending on the structure of your ISA, you may be able to choose individual funds yourself or invest in a pre-packaged portfolio made up of a several funds.
Are there certified sustainable funds?
There aren’t many third-party certifications for sustainable or ethical funds. However, the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) is a law that requires financial firms to disclose the sustainability risks in their investment process. SFDR categorises and compares products with labels “Article 8 light green” and “Article 9 dark green” to help combat greenwashing.
Several of our Top 10 Ethical ISA Providers and Their Products offer Article 8&9 funds, read on to find out which ones.
Top 10 Ethical ISA Providers and Their Products
In no particular order, here are The GOOD Shopping Guide’s Top 10 Ethical ISA Providers and their products.
Aviva
As one of our Ethically Accredited brands, Aviva already has a well-established reputation as a financial institution that prioritises the planet, people and animals in its business practices. Aviva has a long heritage of ESG products, having first launched them in the 1980’s. Choosing a pioneer like Aviva is a good way to ensure you’re investing in long-lasting values. You can find out more about Aviva’s ethical achievements here.
While Aviva offers both Cash and Stocks & Shares ISAs, its Stocks & Shares ISA has the benefit of specific ethical funds to invest in. These ethical funds include The Stewardship range which screens out companies that are harmful to people or the environment and favours those with positive environmental, social and governance practices. Aviva even offers Article 8 & 9 compliant funds.
Wealthify
Owned by Aviva, Wealthify is an online savings and investing service which offers both Cash and Stocks & Shares ISAs. Wealthify lets you opt for an “Ethical” ISA however these funds are selected for you, rather than letting you pick them manually. This means that Wealthify invests your money into funds which exclude harmful industries such as controversial weapons, tobacco and gambling. You can discover more about what Ethical ISAs mean with Wealthify on their Ethical Investing page here.
Triodos Bank
Triodos has a long-standing reputation as an ethical bank with a score of 98 on our Banks & Building Societies Ethical Comparison Table. Triodos Bank was the first to launch a ‘green fund’, which made eco-friendly projects and initiatives available to investors.
Triodos offers both Cash and Stocks & Shares ISAs. It also features several funds under SFDR Article 9, the highest sustainability classification, alongside a wide range of ethical funds including:
- Triodos Global Equities Impact Fund
- Triodos Pioneer Impact Fund
You can find detailed information about where these funds invest money as each one has an annual report on Triodos’ website.
Ecology Building Society
Ecology Building Society has a good score of 98 as researched according to our GOOD Shopping Guide methodology. As the name suggests, the company has a strong environmental focus which guides its financial practices. Ecology prioritises environmental building renovations and sustainable development.
Ecology offers a Cash ISA where savings are put towards sustainable projects such as energy-efficient homes, community-led housing and small-scale green building projects. Ecology actively excludes fossil fuels, deforestation, mining and arms trade and demonstrates transparency by publishing stories and maps showing real projects backed by savers’ funds.
SFDR classifications don’t apply to Ecology as it’s a Cash ISA not an investment fund.
The Big Exchange
Co-founded by The Big Issue, The Big Exchange is an investment platform with the aim to offer ethical investment options. The platform has been recognised by Boring Money and Ethical Consumer for their sustainable investing schemes. The Big Exchange has its own rating system for how sustainable its funds are, which are chosen by you in a Stocks & Shares ISA. You can filter funds by impact area, female-led and fossil-free, which is great for transparency and control.
Nationwide Building Society
Nationwide is a Building Society with a high score on our Ethical Banks & Building Societies Comparison Table. Nationwide has a clean record regarding recent criticisms pertaining to environmental destruction, irresponsible lending and political donations. As well as this, the building society has a robust responsible investment policy, meaning it does not invest money into harmful industries such as fossil fuels and controversial weapons.
Nationwide offers Cash ISAs with various terms. Its website covers the basics of an ISA and the protections offered, including FSCS.
Coventry Building Society
Coventry Building Society is another high-scoring building society featured on The GOOD Shopping Guide’s Ethical Banks & Building Societies Comparison Table. The company receives an ethical GSG score of 85 for its strong environmental reporting, carbon disclosure and reduction targets and mutual status.
Coventry Building Society offers Cash ISAs for a range of needs such as Easy Access, Junior or Fixed Rate.
The Co-operative Bank
Owned by Coventry Building Society, The Co-operative Bank offers personal banking products including Cash ISAs. These ISAs comply with the bank’s overarching responsible investment policy, ensuring the money isn’t invested into harmful industries such as tobacco and armaments. While your money isn’t specifically funding ethical projects as it would with more specialised ethical banks, the Co-Op has a reinforced reputation of being a people-first bank (it is owned by its members) and received a strong ethical GSG score on our Ethical Banks & Building Societies Comparison table.
Interactive Investor
Interactive Investor is an investment platform with access to Article 8&9 funds through its Stocks & Shares ISA and achieves an above benchmark ethical score in our Pensions Ethical Comparison table. You can build and manage your own portfolio of funds using Interactive Investor’s tools and filters to help you choose ethical investments. It offers a curated list of sustainable investment options including the ACE 40 list (a rated set of sustainable funds, trusts and ETFs). You can also filter funds according to your own criteria such as excluding fossil fuels, weapons and tobacco etc.
Healthy Investment
Healthy Investment is an Investment Platform founded in 1835 which offers an ethical Stocks & Shares ISA. Its portfolio is managed with ethical criteria that screens out industries considered to be harmful. It has a robust Responsible Investment Policy which specifies that it doesn’t invest in alcohol, arms, tobacco, gambling or porn. And absolutely no investment in coal, controversial weapons and regular offenders of the ten principles of the UNGC.
Healthy Investment also has a recent annual report with environmental information about their operations.
What’s the Next Step?
So you want to invest your money into an ethical ISA and you have found a couple that you like the look of. The next step is to go through their websites and check that what they are offering is right for you and your financial situation and expectations.
As of December 2025, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) deposit protection limit in the UK increased to £120,000 per person, per authorised institution, including Cash ISAs. This means your money is protected if the provider goes out of business and cannot return your money. To check your ISA provider is eligible for FSCS coverage, go to their website, app or branch and look for the FSCS badge.
Although this list is by no means exhaustive, we hope that this article has provided you with a useful insight into ethical ISA providers and their products.
Disclaimer: This is an introductory guide, not financial advice or recommendation. The GOOD Shopping Guide is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), its authors are not financial advisors and it is therefore not authorised to offer financial advice. TheGOODShoppingGuide.com will not be held responsible for any financial losses or customer service problems related to the choice of any product or provider mentioned on this website. If you are unsure about whether a product is right for you, please seek independent financial advice from a qualified professional. Capital is at risk.