An individual share ties part of your money to one business. A fund can hold many investments, spreading that exposure. An index fund aims to track a specified index rather than selecting holdings to outperform it.

The label alone does not tell you the risk: a narrow sector index and a broad world index hold different exposures. Read what the fund tracks, how it invests and what it charges.

Invested money can fall in value. Check cash needs, debt, risk tolerance and time horizon before investing; the FCA’s questions before investing (opens in a new tab) provide a starting point.