Is Fidelity a good SIPP provider? Reviews and verdict

Whether the Fidelity SIPP is good depends on your pot: its fee falls from 0.35% to 0.20% at £250,000, and a first drawdown needs £50,000.

What follows is Fidelity’s own account, from its key features document (August 2026) and its SIPP, charges, drawdown and transfer pages, of how money comes out, moves in and is protected. Pension Wise gives free guidance on the options for taking a pension; for how Fidelity’s terms sit with your other pensions and income, an FCA-authorised adviser phones without charge once Fidelity questions reach them via the form on this page. Investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you put in.

Taking money out: the rules Fidelity sets

Fidelity says you cannot normally reach SIPP money before 55, rising to 57 on 6 April 2028. For anyone who has not taken benefits before, its drawdown eligibility adds: “Your pension account value must be at least £50,000.” If you move in a pension already in drawdown elsewhere, the total transfer value must be at least £100. Fidelity offers flexi-access drawdown, says capped drawdown is open only to those who set it up before 6 April 2015, and also allows one-off “uncrystallised” withdrawals taken without setting up a drawdown account.

Weighing a drawdown plan against an annuity, State Pension and other pots is where one conversation helps most. Give the short form here your number and an adviser will phone you, free, to go through how drawdown would sit beside your other income.

Anyone taking benefits through Fidelity must book an appointment with its retirement service, which Fidelity says is free; if you then decline advice, you may carry on without it. Fidelity does not sell annuities itself, so one would be bought elsewhere. It says it makes no administration charge on SIPP withdrawals. For the choices themselves, see how pension drawdown works and how an annuity works.

Bringing an old pension across

Fidelity says it can take over existing funds without selling them (re-registration) where it offers the same fund; otherwise they move as cash and you are out of the market until you reinvest. A fund may be moved for a few days into a share class with higher charges to make the switch, so the number of units can change. Fidelity quotes an average transfer time of 12 weeks, and the SIPP is the only account for which it accepts a partial transfer in.

On the risks, Fidelity’s key features say you “must check to see if you will be giving up any valuable guaranteed or associated benefits” and may meet exit charges at your old provider. Wider background: how to transfer a pension and when advice is required.

Opening one, paying in, and the service fee

Fidelity says anyone aged 18 or over who is resident in the UK and is not a US Person can open an account, and adds: “To contribute to the Fidelity SIPP, you also need to be under the age of 75 and resident for tax in the UK.” Employers and family members can pay in too; Fidelity counts third-party payments towards the account holder’s annual allowance, not the payer’s.

The smallest payments are set out gross of tax relief. A single contribution of £1,000 means £800 from you and £200 from HMRC, and a monthly one of £25 means £20 from you and £5 from HMRC. Fidelity adds basic rate relief automatically; anyone paying a higher rate has to reclaim the rest personally. How pension tax relief works explains the mechanics.

Two things the plan is not: Fidelity states that it is “not a Stakeholder pension” and that it is “also not a qualifying scheme for auto enrolment purposes.” A job-based pension is a different arrangement, covered in what auto-enrolment requires. The general idea of the wrapper is in what a SIPP is and how it works.

Fidelity’s charges page sets a service fee of 0.35% from £25,000, 0.20% from £250,000 up to £1 million, and below £25,000 either 0.35% with a regular savings plan or a £7.50 monthly flat fee without one, with fund charges on top. The caps and extras are in Fidelity SIPP fees. On 26 October 2026 its SIPP page advertised a cashback offer on lump sums and transfers in, closing 9 November 2026; such offers change, and pension transfer bonuses covers how to read their conditions.

What the FSCS covers in a Fidelity SIPP

Fidelity’s key features say it is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Cash in your account is deposited with UK banks, each covered by the scheme, and if one fails you are protected “up to a maximum of £120,000”, a figure Fidelity notes may change. A UK-domiciled fund is normally covered up to £85,000 if its manager cannot meet its obligations, while exchange-traded instruments and offshore funds are not covered.

Smaller points on the Fidelity SIPP

How often can Fidelity pay a drawdown income?

Fidelity’s key features say regular income can be paid monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly, on the 10th or the 25th of the month, and is always paid as taxable income. A one-off withdrawal may instead include a tax-free element.

Which costs less for a pot under £25,000?

Below that figure the choice is between the percentage fee, which needs a regular savings plan, and the flat monthly fee. Which comes out cheaper for your balance is worked through in Fidelity SIPP fees.

How does Fidelity compare with Interactive Investor?

Both publish their own charges and key features, and the like-for-like test is the same pot, the same investments and the same trading habits put through each document. Start with the Interactive Investor review and its fees page, or how to choose between SIPPs.

Is there a Fidelity SIPP return figure to look up?

No single figure exists, since the account earns whatever the funds, shares and cash you pick inside it earn. Fidelity’s key features say returns are not guaranteed and values can go down as well as up. The range on offer is in Fidelity SIPP investment options.

Does Fidelity give advice on its SIPP?

Its key features say the information is not a personal recommendation and that it does not assess the suitability of what you choose. It offers guidance without charge, and its drawdown page says any advice is personalised and “a service you pay for.”

The thresholds that decide it for you

Three points in Fidelity’s terms turn on your own position: whether your pot sits above or below £25,000 for the fee, whether it reaches £50,000 for a first drawdown, and whether an old plan you might move carries guarantees. All three are worth settling before opening or moving anything. Set against your own figures, those thresholds are what an adviser can weigh with you, free, once the form on this page carries your number to them.

Sources, read 26 October 2026: Fidelity, SIPP page, fees and charges page, pension drawdown page and transfer a pension page; Fidelity, Doing business with Fidelity key features (August 2026).