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Interactive Brokers Review 2020: Can IB Compete Against The Competition?
In-depth Interactive Brokers Review: IB Have Stiff Competition on Commissions, Platforms, Tools & Execution. Is it Time for You to Change Broker?
Table of Contents
Interactive Brokers Review
Overall
- Trades & Commissions
Interactive Brokers Summary
Interactive Brokers: Good for Active Investors and Day Traders, seeking the low trading costs, direct market access for fast execution and best in class margin costs. Interactive Brokers (IB) is the grandfather of online discount brokers.
Not only are they a long-established company, it is also big. It has a very complete set of services, enabling you to trade practically anything on any market. Stocks, Options, ETF’s, Mutual Funds, Bonds, Foreign Exchange and even futures and commodities. Usually, when a company is well established and large, it loses its competitive edge and as you will see, this is the case for IB.
Pros
- Low Commissions
- Good Platforms MT4 + VPS
- All Markets & Vehicles
- Direct Market Access (DMA)
- Large Established Broker
- Trustpilot Stars ★★★★
Cons
- Less than perfect Customer Satisfaction
- Min Balance for Forex is $500K
The selection of tools available on the IB platform is mind-blowing, offering everything from Algo-Trading to Portfolio Management if you want it all, Interactive Brokers is the choice for you.
Interactive Brokers (IB) is the grandfather of online discount brokers. Not only are they a long-established company, but they are also big in terms of market capitalization and financial stability.
IB has a very complete set of services, enabling you to trade practically anything on any market.
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This includes Stocks, Options, ETF’s, Mutual Funds, Bonds, Foreign Exchange, and even futures and commodities, they also claim any market anytime.
Usually, when a company is well established and large, it loses its competitive edge. Not so with Interactive Brokers.
One of the industries lowest commissions on Stock Trades at $1,- and great commissions on Options demonstrate competitiveness. They also have the lowest margin interest rate in the review, in fact probably in the industry.
When it comes to the trading platform there are no additional costs which are a breath of fresh air as Web Trader, TWS and many more are all free.
Interactive Brokers caters to the more professional investor, or at least those with a minimum account balance of $10,000. Also, you will need to have a balance of $100,000 to be able to trade Forex.
Another huge bonus is that IB manages to throw into the package Zacks and Morning Star research for free, including real-time news.
IB manages to span the divide between Day Traders and Long-Term investors and that is not easy. If you plan to span those worlds also IB is a natural choice.
Round 1 — Stock Brokers Commissions Comparison
Commissions are not the be-all and end-all, but low commissions do help to reduce slippage especially if you are an active investor or trader.
Some Brokers offer a flat fee regardless of how many shares are traded. Some offer an optional “per share” commission structure, which can be beneficial for smaller traders.
Trading & Commissions
When it comes to the low trading costs then Interactive Brokers does well but not perfect. With a stock trading fee of $1 and even a per-share trading fee of $0.005 you have flexibility and low slippage especially if you are an active trader.
IB Trading Commissions Comparison
Interactive Brokers cannot compare to the industry leaders in terms of fees and commissions
| Commissions & Fees | Firstrade | TD Ameritrade | E*Trade | Interactive Brokers |
| Online Stock Orders | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0.005 per share |
| Online Option Orders | $0 | $0 + $0.65/Contract | $0 + $0.65/Contract | $1 + $0.25/Contract |
| Online Mutual Fund Trades | $0 | $49.99 | $49.99 | $0 |
| Broker-assisted Stock | $19.95 | $25 | $25 | $25 |
| & Options Trades | (+$0.50/contract) | (+$0.65/contract) | (+$0.65/contract) | (+$0.65/contract) |
| Minimum Initial Deposit | $0 | $0 | $500 | $10,000 |
Table 1: IB Commissions vs Competitors
Interactive Brokers does offer commission-free ETF’s but only 28 of them. However, the commissions are all other ETF’s are so low it may not matter, as they charge only $1,- per trade.
IB Margin Commissions vs Competition
The margin account interest rates are also the very best at only 2.2% to 3%. This clearly makes IB the leader for financing and margin commissions.
Online Options orders have zero commission while the major competitors still charge $0.65 per contract. Firstrade also has the largest selection of free to trade ETFs and Mutual Funds.
| Margin Balance | Firstrade | TD Ameritrade | Fidelity | E*Trade | Interactive Brokers |
| $1,000,000 + | 5.00% | 7.75% | 5.00% | 7.00% | 4.35% |
| $500,000
$999,999 |
5.60% | 8.25% | 5.25% | 8.00% | 4.35% |
| $250,000
$499,999 |
7.50% | 8.25% | 7.58% | 8.50% | 4.35% |
| $100,000
$249,999 |
7.75% | 8.50% | 7.83% | 9.00% | 4.35% |
| $50,000
$99,999 |
8.25% | 8.75% | 7.88% | 9.50% | 4.35% |
| $25,000
$49,999 |
8.75% | 9.75% | 8.83% | 10.00% | 4.35% |
| $10,000
$24,999 |
9.00% | 10.00% | 9.33% | 10.25% | 4.35% |
| $0
$9,999 |
9.25% | 10.25% | 9.33% | 10.50% | 4.35% |
The icing on the cake is that with IB you will also get paid on your account cash balance up to 1.4%. Most other Brokers offer 0% and maximum 0.25%. So if you maintain a large cash holding Interactive Brokers makes a lot of sense.
IB Options Fees Comparison
Interactive Brokers vs. Firstrade vs. Fidelity vs TDA vs E-Trade vs Schwab
| Commissions | Firstrade | Interactive Brokers | Fidelity | TD Ameritrade | E*Trade | Charles Schwab |
| Online Stock Orders | $0 | $0 | $4.95 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Online Option Orders | $0 | $1 + $0.25/Contract | $0 + $0.65/Contract | $0 + $0.65/Contract | $0 + $0.65/Contract | $0 + $0.65/Contract |
Table 2: Stock Trades & Options Trade Fees
As you can see, when it comes to commissions and fees, Firstrade is clearly an industry leader.
IB Trading Platform Comparison
How do you find the stocks that are in-play, have high volatility and are in a strong trend? This is the job of the trading platform.
You need your trading platform to be fast, intuitive and powerful. In this section, we rate the brokers on their choice of trading platform.
Interactive Brokers has a truly outstanding trading platform based on Trader Workstation (TWS). It is free to download and use as a client
Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation TWS
and it is the single place to be able to trade any and every one of the vehicles on offer from IB. It caters to everything Stocks, Options, Futures, Forex, Bonds, Mutual Funds & ETF’s.
Not only that there are a huge number of add-on advanced tools that plug into TWS such as:
- ChartTrader — for trading directly from charts
- Continuous Futures — for commodity futures scanning and analysis
- DepthTrader — for deep analysis of market liquidity
- OptionTrader — deeper Options Analysis with specific Options strategies
- ProbabilityLab — to test the Probability Distribution of a particular trade
In total there are 27 different advanced trading tools to suit every possible approach to the market.
Video of IB Trader Workstation
Customer Support & Research Comparison
In this round we compare:
- Customer Support — we want to see all 3 options of Email, Messaging, and Phone
- Customer Satisfaction Score — how many complaints or bad reviews within the last year on Twitter or TrustPilot (jump to methodology)
- Research & Ideas — what services are provided free of charge to help you research a particular stock or sector. Stand-alone research services can be costly, so free with an account is a big bonus.
- News — Is a real-time news service available for free or an additionally paid upgrade
The table is results are sorted in order of:
- Customer Satisfaction Rating: ★★★★★ People actively praising the broker & Zero Negative Reviews. ★★★★ 4 is Zero Negative Reviews
- Research & Trade Ideas: Quality of the integrated and Zero Cost Research Sources
Customer Support & Research Winner
Interactive Brokers offers by far the best free services in the area of research. Here is a snapshot of some of the services you will get for free.
- IB Market Signals
- IB Traders Insight
- Morningstar equity ownership
- Thomson Reuters (in 10 languages), stock reports, news, fundamentals
- Zacks Investment Research
- Real-time News Streaming
In terms of customer service, they offer the full package of telephone, chat & email contact so no issues there.
We could not find any evidence of negative tweets or reviews so IB has a very good customer satisfaction score, particularly since they have by far the largest twitter following of 233,000 people.
The only reason they are lower on the list of winners is that they do not have a history of people raving about there services. Perhaps the more professional investors trading with IB are not focussing on praising them on twitter but trader making profits in the markets.
In any case, IB is a very high-quality company with the very best research included for free in your account.
Brokerage Regulation & Account Minimum
Is the company well established, well funded and well regulated? This is the main object of this round of comparisons.
Any U.S. based Broker should be a member of the following institutions.
Financial Industry Regulation Authority (FINRA) Membership.
FINRA is a nonprofit organization established to protect investors and ensure that the members are complying with the law and the Securities and Exchange Commission rules. They audit all members regularly.
Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) Membership.
The SIPC is there to protect and hopefully recover any money lost if a Brokerage firm fails. Although Broker failure is rare, it can happen and SIPC membership ensures that your account is protected up to $500,000.
Interactive Brokers has all the protection required in the U.S.A, they are fully registered in the FINRA Database and have SIPC insurance.
Account minimums with Interactive Brokers are higher than with its competitors, as they are squarely going after clients with larger investment portfolios, higher net worth individuals or professional money managers. The account minimum of $10,000 for normal trading and $100,000 for Foreign Exchange Trading will be a barrier to new investors.
IB Review Summary
Interactive Brokers: Good for Active Investors and Day Traders, seeking the low trading costs, direct market access for fast execution and best in class margin costs. Interactive Brokers (IB) is the grandfather of online discount brokers.
Not only are they a long-established company, it is also big. It has a very complete set of services, enabling you to trade practically anything on any market. Stocks, Options, ETF’s, Mutual Funds, Bonds, Foreign Exchange and even futures and commodities. Usually, when a company is well established and large, it loses its competitive edge and as you have seen, this is the case for IB.
Interactive Brokers Stock Broker Master Table (Searchable)
Here you can find the table containing all the data in one place. Use the search box to filter on a particular item you are looking to compare. For example type “forex” or “margin” and you will get only the relevant rows to compare.
| Brokerage | |
|---|---|
| Result | Review Winner |
| Great for: | Active Investors & Day Traders seeking lowest commissions |
| Likes | ★ Industry Leading Low Commissions ★ Great Trading Platform ★ Direct Market Access ★ All Markets & Vehicles ★ Lowest Margin Rates |
| Dislike | ✘ Less than perfect Customer Satisfaction |
| Trades & Commissions | |
| Direct Market Access DMA | ✔ |
| Stock Trading | ✔ |
| Stock Trading Fees | $1.00 |
| Per Share Trading Fees | $0.005 |
| Stock Trading Fees (Max) | 1% of Trade |
| Options | ✔ |
| Options Trading Fees | $1.00 |
| Leverage Available | ✔ |
| ETF Trades | ✔ |
| Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) | $1.00 |
| Number of Commission Free ETF’s | 28 |
| Futures | $0.85 |
| Mutual Funds | $1.00 |
| Bond Purchase | ✔ |
| Bonds | $1 + Net Yield |
| Forex Trading | ✔ |
| Foreign Exchange (fx) Commission $ per 1,000 | $2.00 |
| Margin Account Interest Charges | 2.2% to 3% |
| Margin Costs Rating | ★★★★★ |
| Trades & Commissions Score | ★★★★★ |
| Trading Platform | |
| Software Provider | Interactive Brokers |
| Trading Platform Cost | Free |
| Web Software | WebTrader Free |
| Desktop Software | Desktop TWS – Free |
| Mobile Software | Free |
| LII Quotes | ✔ |
| Indicators / Studies | ✔ |
| Streaming Charts | ✔ |
| Watchlists | ✔ |
| Profit / Loss Graphs | ✔ |
| Probability Calculators | ✔ |
| Options Chains | ✔ |
| Trading Platform Score | ★★★★★ |
| Customer Support & Research | |
| Customer Support (Phone & Live Chat) | ✔ |
| Customer Satisfaction Score* | ★★★★ |
| Research & Trade Ideas | ✔Zacks + MorningStar Free |
| News | Real-Time |
| Customer Support & Research Score | ★★★★ |
| Account & Company Details | |
| Available for U.S. Citizens | ✔ |
| Account Minimum | $10,000 |
| FINRA Member | ✔ |
| SIPC Insurance – Assets | ✔ |
| Regulated By | SEC |
Do you want more Stock Broker Reviews?
Read our Review of the Best US Online Stock Brokers Comparison, or our Best Penny Stock Brokers or Best Brokers In-Depth Review
Notes on the Review
Customer Satisfaction Score (Star Ratings)
The customer satisfaction score was compiled using the following methodology.
The Twitter Accounts of the Brokers were scanned back for the 1 year for any negative feedback from customers. Also, TrustPilot UK and USA were reviewed and any negative comments counted against the broker. These two sources of information were combined to provide the star rating you see below.
★★★★★ — No Complaints & Positive Recommendations (1 year)
★★★★ — No Complaints (1 year)
★★★ — 20 Complaints (1 year)
Partnerships & Special Bonus
Liberated Stock Trader has partnerships with most of the service providers in this review. This means if you find the review useful and purchase any of the services mentioned we will receive a small payment which goes towards funding the research and work we do.
As a thank you for using our reviews and purchasing any of the services mentioned we would like to offer you a special bonus of the highly rated Liberated Stock Trader “How to Avoid the Next Stock Market Crash” eBook and Video Course worth $29.-. Simply contact us specifying which service you signed up for and we will send you your gift.
Review Methodology
Over 200 data points were collected during this review. Brokers change services, terms, and commissions on a regular basis. If you represent a Brokerage House or are a client and you spot an inaccuracy, please leave a comment or contact us here and we will endeavor to correct it.
Interactive Brokers Review 2020
Summary
Recommended for traders looking for low fees and a professional trading environment
Interactive Brokers was founded in 1978 and is one of the biggest US-based discount brokers. The broker is regulated by several financial authorities globally, including top-tier ones like the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
As it has licenses from multiple top-tier regulators, the broker is considered safe. Also, having a long track record and publicly disclosed financials while being listed on a stock exchange are also great signs for its safety.
We selected Interactive Brokers as Best online broker, Best broker for day trading and Best broker for futures for 2020, based on an in-depth analysis of 57 online brokers that included testing their live accounts. Check out the complete list of winners.
Interactive Brokers pros and cons
Interactive Brokers has the widest selection of markets and products among online brokers, with a lot of great research tools, and it is regulated by a lot of financial authorities.
On the other hand, most users can only make deposits and withdrawals via bank transfer. We recommend this broker for advanced traders, as the account opening process is complicated and the desktop trading platform is not user-friendly.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Wide range of products | • Extremely complex desktop trading platform |
| • Many great research tools | • Complicated account opening process |
| • Regulated by several authorities | • High inactivity fee |
| ��️ Country of regulation | UK, USA, India, Australia, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong |
| �� Trading fees class | Low |
| �� Inactivity fee charged | Yes |
| �� Withdrawal fee amount | $0 |
| �� Minimum deposit | $0 |
| �� Time to open an account | 1-3 days |
| �� Deposit with credit card | Not available |
| �� Depositing with electronic wallet | Not available |
| �� Number of base currencies supported | 19 |
| �� Demo account provided | Yes |
| ��️ Products offered | Stock, ETF, Forex, Fund, Bond, Options, Futures, CFD, Crypto, Warrants, Structured Products, Indices, Metals |
Gergely Korpos
Author of this review
Everything you find on BrokerChooser is based on reliable data and unbiased information. We combine our 10+ years finance experience with readers feedback. Read more about our methodology
Interactive Brokers review
Fees
Interactive Brokers has low trading fees and for US clients, stock and ETF trading is free. On the negative side, there is a high inactivity fee for non-US clients.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Low trading fees | • Inactivity fee |
| • Low stock and ETF fees | |
| • Low financing rate | |
| • Free stock and ETF trading for US clients |
| Assets | Fee level | Fee terms |
|---|---|---|
| US stock | Low | $0.005 per share, min. $1, max. 1% of trade value. Free for US clients choosing IBKR Lite plan. |
| EURUSD | Average | Trade value less than $1,000 million: 0.2 bps * trade value with $2 min. |
| Mutual fund | Average | $14.95 per transaction or 3% of trade value, whichever is lower |
| Inactivity fee | High | $20 per month if you have less than $2,000 account balance and if you don’t generate minimum $20 in commissions. $10 for accounts having at least $2,000 account balance, while no inactivity fee for US clients choosing IBKR Lite plan. |
We ranked Interactive Brokers’ fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.
To get things rolling, let’s go over some lingo related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.
- Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates or conversion fees.
- Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.
In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Interactive Brokers for each asset class. For example, in the case of stock investing commissions are the most important fees.
We also compared Interactive Brokers’s fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, Saxo Bank and Degiro. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Interactive Brokers alternatives.
To have a clear overview of Interactive Brokers, let’s start with the trading fees.
Interactive Brokers trading fees
Interactive Brokers’s trading fees are low. Because of this, it is also recommended if you a lot of trades frequently.
You can choose between Interactive Brokers’s fixed rate and tiered price plans:
- The fixed rate price plan typically charges a fixed rate per contract or share. This charge covers all commissions and exchange fees.
- The tiered price plan charges fees based on your monthly trading volume. The more you trade, the lower the commissions are. However, exchange, regulatory and clearing fees may be charged additionally.
Since the end of 2020, clients from the US can choose a new service plan, called IBKR LITE. With this service plan, you can trade US-listed stocks and ETFs commission-free without any inactivity fees.
In this review, we tested the fixed rate plan.
Stock fees and ETF fees
Interactive Brokers has generally low stock and ETF commissions.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $1.0 | $10.0 | $0.6 |
| UK stock | $7.2 | $9.6 | $2.4 |
| German stock | $4.4 | $11.0 | $5.4 |
The Interactive Brokers stock trading fee is volume-based: either per share or a percentage of the trade value, with a minimum and maximum. ETF fees are the same as stock fees.
| Market | Commission | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America | |||
| $0.005 / share | $1 | 1% of the trade value | |
| CAD 0.01 / share | CAD 1 | 0.5% of the trade value | |
| 0.1 % of the trade value | MXN 60 | No | |
| Europe | |||
| UK up to £50,000 trade volume | £6.00 | £6 | £6 |
| UK more than £50,000 trade volume | £6.00 + 0.05% of trade value | £6 | £29 |
| 0.1% of the trade value | €4 | €29 | |
| Switzerland | 0.1% of the trade value | CHF 10 | No |
| Spain | 0.1% of the trade value | €4 | No |
| Austria | 0.1% of the trade value | €4 | €120 |
| Poland | 0.1% of the trade value | PLN 15 | No |
| 0.05% of the trade value | NOK/SEK 49 | No | |
| 0.15% of the trade value | €6 | No | |
| Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania | 0.2% of the trade value | €10 | No |
| Hungary | 0.1% of the trade value | HUF 200 | No |
| Asia-Pacific | |||
| 0.08% of the trade value | AUD 6 | No | |
| 0.08% of the trade value | HKD 18 | No | |
| 0.08% of the trade value | JPY 80 | No | |
| 0.08% of the trade value | SGD 2.5 | No | |
| India | 0,01% of the trade value | INR 6 | INR 20 |
If you prefer stock trading on a margin or short sale, you should check Interactive Brokers’s financing rates.
What is the financing rate? Financing rates or margin rates are charged when you trade on margin or short a stock. This basically means that you borrow money or stocks from your broker to trade, for which you have to pay interest. This is the financing rate, and it can be a significant proportion of your trading costs.
Interactive Brokers financing rates are low. The financing rates vary based on your account base currency and the amount you borrow.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| USD margin rate | 2.6% | – | 3.1% |
| GBP margin rate | 2.0% | – | 1.9% |
| EUR margin rate | 1.5% | – | 0.8% |
As of March 2020, the rates for different debit balances in USD ranged between 2.15-3.35%.
| Debit balance | Rate% |
|---|---|
| $200,000,000.01 – | 1.39% |
| $3,000,000.01 – $200,000,000 | 1.39% |
| $1,000,000.01 – $3,000,000 | 1.59% |
| $100,000.01 – $1,000,000 | 2.09% |
| Under $100,000 | 2.59% |
Forex fees
Interactive Brokers’s forex fees are average, with higher fees for the most-traded EURUSD.
To have a clear picture of forex fees we calculated a forex benchmark fee for major currency pairs. This catch-all benchmark includes commissions, spreads and financing costs for all brokers.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $17.9 | $15.5 | – |
| GBPUSD benchmark fee | $13.6 | $12.8 | – |
| AUDUSD benchmark fee | $12.0 | $13.7 | – |
| EURCHF benchmark fee | $7.1 | $4.6 | – |
| EURGBP benchmark fee | $13.0 | $10.2 | – |
When you trade forex, IB charges a volume-based commission. The higher the volume of your trades, the lower commission you pay.
| Monthly traded amount | Commission | Min |
|---|---|---|
| USD ≤ 1,000,000,000 | 0.20 basis point of the trade value | $2.00 |
| USD 1,000,000,001 – 2,000,000,000 | 0.15 basis point of the trade value | $1.50 |
| USD 2,000,000,001 – 5,000,000,000 | 0.10 basis point of the trade value | $1.25 |
| USD > 5,000,000,000 | 0.08 basis point of the trade value | $1.00 |
Fund fees
Interactive Brokers’s mutual fund fees are average. We calculated the fees for US mutual funds.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | Degiro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mutual fund | $15.0 | $0.0 | $10.3 |
The mutual fund fees are different among ranges. The fee structure is percentage based and can have a minimum and a maximum.
| Country | Commission | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| US | 3% of the trade value or $14.95, whichever is lower | – | – |
| US funds with no transaction fees | 0% | $0 | $0.00 |
| Europe | 0.1% of the trade value | €4 | €29.00 |
| Global | 3% of the trade value or $14.95, whichever is lower | – | – |
Bond fees
Interactive Brokers has generally low bond fees.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Treasury bond | $5.0 | $88.0 | – |
| EU government bond | $10.0 | $88.0 | $10.5 |
Interactive Brokers charges a volume-based commission with a minimum amount.
| Bonds | Volume | Commission | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Corporate | Face value ≤ 10,000 | 0.10% * face value | $1 | $250 or 1% of trade value, whichever is lower |
| US Treasuries | Face value ≤ 1,000,000 | 0.02% * face value | $5 | No |
| Europe | Trade value ≤ 50,000 | 0.10% * trade value | €2 | No |
| Hong Kong Government | Trade value ≤ 15,000,000 | 0.08% * trade value | HKD 18 | No |
Options fees
The options fees at Interactive Brokers are generally low.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US stock index options | $7.0 | $40.0 | $5.0 |
| UK stock index options | $20.4 | $36.0 | – |
| German stock index options | $12.1 | $44.0 | $9.9 |
You pay options fees depending on the number of contracts you trade.
| Market | Commission | Min | |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America – all options | |||
US, monthly contracts Stock index futures commission of 10 contracts
| Interactive Brokers |
Saxo Bank |
DEGIRO |
|
| US stock index futures | $8.5 | $40.0 | $5.0 |
| UK stock index futures | $20.4 | $36.0 | $27.5 |
| German stock index futures | $22.0 | $44.0 | $8.3 |
Similarly to options, you pay a commission based on the number of contracts you trade.
| Futures | Commission |
|---|---|
| North America | |
| US | $0.85 / contract |
| Canada | CAD 2.4 / contract (min CAD 2.4) |
| Mexico | MXN 20 / contract (min MXN 20) |
| Europe | |
| Belgium | €4.5 / contract (min €4.5) |
| France, Germany | €2 / contract (min €2) |
| Italy, Netherlands, Spain | €3 / contract (min €3) |
| Switzerland | CHF 4 / contract (min €4) |
| UK | GBP 1.7 / contract (min GPB 1.7) |
| Asia-Pacific | |
| Australia | AUD 6.25 / contract (min AUD 6.25) |
| Hong Kong | HKD 30 / contract (min HKD 30) |
| Japan | JPY 500 / contract (min JPY 500) |
| Singapore | SGD 4 / contract (min SGD 4) |
CFD fees
Interactive Brokers charges low CFD trading fees.
To have a clear understanding of CFD fees we calculated a CFD benchmark fee for the selected products. This catch-all benchmark includes commissions, spreads and financing costs for all brokers.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 index CFD fee | $3.6 | $2.2 | – |
| Europe 50 index CFD fee | $2.9 | $2.1 | – |
| Apple CFD fee | $3.5 | $22.2 | – |
| Vodafone CFD fee | $8.2 | $21.3 | – |
We calculated with 20:1 leverage for stock index CFDs and 5:1 leverage for single stock CFDs.
In the case of stock index CFDs, all fees are incorporated into the spreads. When you trade stock CFDs, you pay a volume-tiered commission.
| CFDs | Monthly traded amount | Commission | Min |
|---|---|---|---|
| US share CFDs | ≤ $300,000 | $0.005 per share | $1.0 |
| European share CFDs | ≤ €10,000,000 | 0.05% | €3.0 |
| Australian share CFDs | ≤ AUD 10,000,000 | 0.05% | AUD 5.0 |
| Hong Kong Share CFDs | ≤ HKD 300,000,000 | 0.05% | HKD 12.0 |
| Japanese Share CFDs | ≤ 9,000,000,000 | 0.03% | JPY 100.0 |
| US 500 index CFD | – | 0.005% | $1.0 |
| UK 100 index CFD | – | 0.005% | GBP 1.0 |
| Japan 225 index CFD | – | 0.01% | JPY 40.0 |
| Forex CFD | ≤ 1,000,000,000 | 0.20 basis points * trade value | $2.0 |
Crypto fees
You can trade cryptocurrencies through futures and ETNs (exchange-traded notes).
- You can trade with Bitcoin futures on the CME Group and Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). The commission on one Bitcoin futures contract is $10 at the CME and $5 at the CBOE.
- Bitcoin and Ether ETNs are available on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. IB charges a 0.05% fee when you trade on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and the minimum amount is SEK 49.
If you want to learn more about crypto trading, check out our crypto blogpost.
Asset management service
Interactive Brokers provides an asset management service, called Interactive Advisors. It is a mix of mutual funds and a robo-advisor. It’s suitable for you if you don’t want to manage your investments on your own or just need a bit more confidence in investing.
Besides the usual brokerage commissions, there is an annual management fee ranging from 0.08% to 1.50%, depending on the amount you invest. The required minimum investment amount is $5,000.
There are two ways to invest with Interactive Advisor:
- Answer a couple of questions, based on which Interactive Advisor will compile a portfolio that is automatically rebalanced.
- Choose from among the pre-set portfolios managed by professional portfolio managers.
Non-trading fees
Interactive Brokers has average non-trading fees. There is no account or deposit fee. The first withdrawal each month is also free of charge, while subsequent withdrawals carry a fee.
On the negative side, the inactivity fee is high. The amount of inactivity fee depends on many factors.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | Yes | Yes | No |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
The inactivity fee depends on your account balance, your age, and there are waivers which might apply:
| Account balance less than $2,000 | Account balance above $2,000 | Account owner is younger than 25 years old | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Monthly inactivity fee | $20* | $10* | $3* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Potential waivers | Not applicable |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Fully digital | • Not user-friendly |
| • No minimum deposit for most accounts types | • Confusing messages throughout the process |
Can you open an account?
Interactive Brokers is present on every continent, so you can most likely open an account. Only countries with highly unstable political or economic backgrounds are excluded, such as North Korea.
What is the minimum deposit at Interactive Brokers?
The required Interactive Brokers minimum deposit is $0 . However, there is a $2,000 minimum if you would like to trade on margin or short sale. Trading on margin means that you are trading with borrowed money, also known as leverage.
Account types
Interactive Brokers offers many account types, which fall into two big groups:
- accounts for individual traders and investors
- accounts for institutions
As an individual trader or investor, you can open many account types. A few of them, like an IRA account, are available only for US clients.
| Account types | Short description |
|---|---|
| Individuals | Account is owned and used by a single individual |
| Joint | Account is owned and used by two individuals |
| Trust | Account is held by a Trustee (separate legal entity) for your benefit |
| IRA | Individual retirement account, which is only available for US clients |
| UGMA/UTMA | Account for clients who are minors, which is only available for US clients |
| Friends and Family | Account for a client group of up to 15 members |
| Family Office | Account for an individual who is a Family Office Manager |
| Small Business | Account for small corporations |
| Advisor | Account for an individual who manages both client administration and the client’s money |
| Money Manager | Account for an individual who is hired on behalf of another advisor. |
Besides the various account types, you can choose from the IBKR PRO and IBKR LITE service plans if you are a US resident. They differ in pricing and available trading platforms.
| Features | IBKR LITE | IBKR PRO |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | US exchange-listed stocks and ETFs are commission-free, while other products have fixed or tiered pricing | Fixed or tiered pricing for all products |
| Account fee | No account fee | Up to $10 account fee per month |
| Trading features | Client Portal, IBKR Mobile and IBot are available, but the desktop trading platform is not | All platforms are available, including the desktop trading platform |
Integrated Investment Management
Interactive Brokers has expanded the account features for US residents with the introduction of the Interactive Brokers debit card, and the Integrated Investment Management program. Such new features include:
- Direct debit card deposits
- Borrowing
- Paying bills without checks through Bill Pay
All US cash and margin accounts are eligible for application. To apply, go to your Client Portal – Transfer & Pay, then Debit Card menu.
How to open your account
The account opening process is fully digital but overly complicated. After your online registration, the account verification takes around 2 business days, which is a bit slower than the usual account verification time for most brokers.
At first, you have to go through a 5-step registration process, which takes roughly an hour. We experienced a few bugs and errors throughout the process, such as disappearing information and various error messages. It was complicated, with confusing and unclear messages.
During the account opening process, you have to provide some personal information and there are also questions about your trading experience.
In the end, you have to verify your identity and residency by uploading the required documents:
- Verification of identity: passport / national ID / driver’s license
- Verification of residency: bank statement / utility bill / driver’s license / credit card statement / other document
This is a standard process, which in financial lingo is called a KYC (know-your-customer) process. This is required to make sure you are truly identifiable.
Interactive Brokers review
Deposit and withdrawal
Interactive Brokers offers many account base currency options and one free withdrawal per month. The main drawbacks are that you can only use bank transfer and the process is not user-friendly.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • No deposit fee | • Credit/Debit card not available |
| • Several account base currencies | • Not user-friendly |
| • First withdrawal each month free |
Account base currencies
Interactive Brokers provides a lot of account base currencies, which is great if you trade with assets in various currencies.
| Australian Dollar | British Pound | Canadian Dollar | Chinese Yuan |
| Czech Koruna | Danish Krone | Euro | Hong Kong Dollar |
| Hungarian Forint | Israeli Shekel | Japanese Yen | Mexican Peso |
| New Zealand Dollar | Norwegian Krone | Russian Rouble | Singapore Dollar |
| Swedish Krona | Swiss Franc | US Dollar |
Compared to its competitors, you can see that IB’s selection is similar to that of Saxo Bank, while Degiro offers less base currencies.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of base currencies | 19 | 19 | 9 |
Why does this matter? For two reasons. If you fund your account in the same currency as your bank account or you trade assets in the same currency as your account base currency, you don’t have to pay a conversion fee.
A convenient way to save on the currency conversion fees is by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank. Revolut or Transferwise both offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account only takes a few minutes on your phone.
Deposit fees and options
Interactive Brokers deposits are free of charge. However, deposit options are limited, as neither credit/debit cards nor electronic wallets can be used.
If you reside in the US, however, you have multiple extra options, such as:
- ACH (Automated Clearing House)
- Check
- Online bill payment
- Direct Rollover (IRA accounts only)
- Trustee-to-Trustee (IRA accounts only)
Also, since early 2020 Interactive Brokers introduced direct debit card deposits as part of their Integrated Investment Management account. This is only available for US residents.
Australian clients can also use BPAY as a deposit method.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/Debit card | No | Yes | No |
| Electronic wallets | No | No | Yes |
A bank transfer can take 2-3 business days to arrive. You can only deposit money from sources that are in your name.
Interactive Brokers withdrawal fees and options
The first withdrawal each month is free of charge, while subsequent withdrawals have a fee.
Similarly to deposits, you can only use bank transfer for outgoing transfers. US residents can also withdraw via ACH or check.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank Transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/Debit card | No | No | No |
| Electronic wallets | No | No | No |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
The fee for subsequent withdrawals after the first free one depends on the currency and the method you use for withdrawal.
| Withdrawal’s currency | Wire | BACS/GIRO/ACH/EFT/SEPA |
|---|---|---|
| USD* | 10 | 1 |
| EUR | 8 | 1 |
| GBP | 7 | 1 |
| CAD | 12 | 2 |
| CNH | 60 | 7 |
| HKD | 95 | 8 |
| NZD, SGD | 15 | 1 |
| AUD | 15 | N/A |
| CHF | 11 | N/A |
| CZK | 300 | N/A |
| DKK | 30 | N/A |
| HUF | 6,000 | N/A |
| ILS | 30 | N/A |
| JPY | 1,600 | N/A |
| NOK, SEK | 50 | N/A |
| MXN | 100 | N/A |
| PLN | 40 | N/A |
| RUB | 330 | N/A |
| ZAR | 200 | N/A |
*Check payments are also available in USD and they carry a $4 fee.
How long does it take to withdraw money from Interactive Brokers? We tested it and it took 2 business days. While you wait, a new feature since early 2020 lets you track your withdrawal in real-time on the Client Portal.
How do you withdraw money from Interactive Brokers?
- First, log into the Client Portal then click on ‘Transfer & Pay’ and ‘Transfer funds.’
- Select the account you want to use for the transaction.
- At the top of the page, click on the ‘Withdraw Funds’ tab.
- Select the currency of your withdrawal, then the withdrawal method.
- Fill out the required information.
- Submit your withdrawal request.
- You can see the status of your request in ‘View Transaction History.’
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Interactive Brokers review
Web trading platform
Interactive Brokers’s web platform is simple and easy to use even for beginners. On the negative side, it is not customizable.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • User-friendly | • Limited customizability (for charts, workspace) |
| • Clear fee report | |
| • Two-step (safer) login |
| Trading platform | Score | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Web | 4.3 / 5 stars | Yes |
| Mobile | 3.5 / 5 stars | Yes |
| Desktop | 3.0 / 5 stars | Yes |
When you trade online at IB, you can choose between two web platforms: the Client Portal and Webtrader. In this review, we tested the Client Portal since it is more user-friendly and easier to use than Webtrader. For IBKR Lite users, only the Client Portal is available.
The Client Portal is available in multiple languages: Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Slovakian, Spanish, Traditional Chinese.
Look and feel
The Client Portal platform is particularly user-friendly and intuitive. You will easily find every feature even if you have just started trading. On the negative side, it is not customizable at all.
Login and security
Interactive Brokers provides several options for safe logins:
- You can use two-step authentication through SMS messaging.
- IB Key is a two-step authentication feature available through IBKR Mobile.
- A bit old-fashioned way is the Secure Login System, where you get a plastic code card.
Search functions
The search function is easy-to-use and works better than on the desktop platform.
All you have to do is type in the preferred asset’s name, and you can see a list of exchanges and products. The search bar can be found in the upper right corner.
Placing orders
Client Portal offers many order types. If you prefer more sophisticated orders, you should use the desktop trading platform. Available order types are:
- Limit
- Market
- Stop
- Stop Limit
- Limit-on-Close
- Market-on-Close
- Trailing Stop
- Trailing Stop Limit
If you are not familiar with the basic order types, read this overview.
You can also use a lot of order time limits:
- Day
- Good-til-Canceled (GTC)
- Immediate or Cancel
- Market-on-Open
- Limit-on-Open
Alerts and notifications
You can set alerts and notifications, but only through the built-in chat. We think that it would be better if users could set alarms when they set up their order.
Portfolio and fee reports
Portfolio and fee reports are transparent. The portfolio tab gives a clear overview of your performance, including historical profit/loss balance and the fees you paid.
Interactive Brokers review
Mobile trading platform
The Interactive Brokers mobile trading platform has a lot of functions and a useful chatbot, but its user interface could be better.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Two-step (safer) login | • User interface is a bit complex |
| • Good search function | |
| • Good variety of order types |
IBKR Mobile, Interactive Brokers’s mobile trading platform, is available both for iOS and Android. In this review, we tested it on Android.
The number of available languages is almost the same as at the web trading platform, only Slovakian is not supported.
Look and feel
The mobile trading app is handier compared to the web platform. On the other hand, its overall look and user-friendliness lags behind the competitors’ mobile platforms.
Login and security
You can use a two-step login, which is safer than a simple login. Furthermore, if your device has a fingerprint sensor, you can also use biometric authentication for convenience.
Search functions
The search function works well, just like at the web trading platform. You can access the search button easily from any menu.
When you type in the asset you are looking for, the app lists all asset types. For example, if you search for Apple, you can choose between Apple stock, futures, options, warrants, as well as CFDs.
After you have chosen the product are you interested in, you will be greeted by an information and trading window, which shows:
- Asset market information
- An interactive chart with technical indicators
- Related news
- Some fundamental data
- Summary of the latest analyst report
- The buy and sell buttons that transfer you to the order panel.
Placing orders
IBKR Mobile has the same order types as the web trading platform.
Alerts
You can set alerts only via the chatbot, which is not the most intuitive method.
Special feature – Chatbot
The most innovative and exciting function within the app is the chatbot, call IBot. You can use the chatbot to execute or close an order, or to get basic info quickly.
The chatbot understands basic commands, such as “apple price” or “buy 1 apple share.” On top of this, you can also search for company fundamentals, like dividend yields or PE ratios. Some of the functions, like displaying a chart, are also available via the chatbot.
Interactive Brokers review
Desktop trading platform
Interactive Brokers provides a desktop platform for IBKR PRO accounts with many customizable options and advanced execution functions. However, the platform is not user-friendly and is more suited for advanced traders.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Clear fee report | • Not user-friendly |
| • Good customizability (for charts, workspace) | • Poor search function |
| • Good variety of order types | • Too complex for beginners |
Interactive Brokers’s desktop platform Trader Workstation (TWS) is so advanced that even a separate review would not be able to cover all of its features. Nevertheless, we tried to provide you with a comprehensive summary of TWS.
In the desktop trading platform, you have literally every feature you could desire. Whether you were dreaming of replicating your favorite ETF or trading with chatbots – with Interactive Brokers, you can do them both.
The desktop trading platform is available in multiple languages, but fewer than the web trading platform. For example, Dutch and Slovakian are missing.
Look and feel
To be honest, this is by far the most complex platform that we at Brokerchooser have ever reviewed. This platform is ideal for you if you consider yourself a professional user. If you are a beginner or someone who seeks long-term investments, you may have difficulty navigating all of TWS’s features.
Despite its complexity the platform is highly customizable, for example, you can set up your own templates.
Login and security
It has the same security features as the web trading platform. You can turn on two-step authentication, which makes the platform safer to use.
Search functions
The search function is the platform’s weakest feature. Search results are not structured and it is quite difficult to filter out the product you are looking for.
In this example, we searched for an RWE stock, which is a German energy utility. However, when we typed in “rwe,” all the structured and derivative products were listed in the results as well, which made it harder to find the real stock.
Using the chatbot is great substitute solution. When you search for RWE directly through this feature, it will direct you to the stock listed on the main stock exchange.
Placing orders
Trading through TWS, IKBR PRO offers many different order types.
| Limit | Mid Price | Market | Market-to-Limit |
| Stop | Stop-Limit | Trail | Trail-Limit |
| Relative | Retail Price Improvement | Snap Market | Snap To Midpoint |
| Snap to Primary | Market-on-Close | Limit-on-Close | IBALGO |
| Hedge (with Forex, or Pair Stock) |
On its desktop platform, Interactive Brokers provides Smart Routing, a great feature that detects the best possible route (e.g. exchange) for your trades automatically. TD Ameritrade also has a similar service.
If you are not familiar with the basic order types, read this overview.
The order term options also include some special types beyond the usual ones:
- Good ’till Canceled (GTC)
- Good-Til-Date (GTD)
- Market-on-open (MOO)
- Limit-on-open (LOO)
- Immediate-or-cancel (IOC)
- Fill-or-Kill (FOK)
- Day ‘Til canceled (DTC)
Alerts and notifications
Alerts and notifications can be set in the ‘Configuration panel.’ You can select email, SMS, or mobile pop-up notifications.
You can also set additional alerts, for example for price changes, daily profits or losses, executed trades, etc.
Reports on the Interactive Brokers desktop platform are really transparent, just like on the web platform.
Interactive Brokers review
Markets and products
Through Interactive Brokers you can access an extremely wide range of markets, with every product type available.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETF | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | Yes | No |
| Fund | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bond | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| CFD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Crypto | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Interactive Brokers has a great selection of products, with an exceptional range of ETFs and bonds. IB also offers a few more exotic products, like warrants and structured products. It only lags behind its competitors in terms of its FX pair and CFD selection.
Regarding accessible stock exchanges, the Israeli Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has been added for ETF and stock trading. Since we last checked, IB provides access to almost 140 exchanges worldwide, with alternative services as well, such as Interactive Advisors. This is an asset management service, a mix of robo advisory and social trading.
Stocks and ETFs
Interactive Brokers lets you access more stock markets than its competitors. This includes major stock markets like the NASDAQ, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the London Stock Exchange (LSE), but also minor ones such as the Warsaw Stock Exchange in Poland or the Mexican markets. Other than regular stocks, penny stocks are also available.
Besides stocks, you can also trade with more than 13,000 ETFs at IB. This is much less than it was in early 2020, but it is still the most extensive selection among competitors.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock markets (#) | 78 | 36 | 30 |
| ETFs (#) | 13,000 | 3,100 | 5,400 |
Since December 2020, fractional shares are available at Interactive Brokers for individual accounts on all trading platforms. This means you can trade with only a portion of a share which is a great feature if you want to cut share costs.
Forex
Interactive Brokers provides a vast selection of more than 100 currency pairs; only Saxo Bank has more.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Currency pairs (#) | 105 | 182 | – |
Funds
Through IB, you have access to more than 250 fund providers including big market names like Blackrock and Vanguard. Only Swissquote offers more fund providers than Interactive Brokers.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fund providers (#) | 257 | 17 | 68 |
Bonds
Interactive Brokers gives you access to a massive number of bonds. Out of all government and corporate bonds available at IB, 1.4 million are so-called municipal bonds: these are fixed income investments issued by local US governments, cities, states or counties, but they are tradable only for US residents. The table below does not include municipal bonds in the overall number of bonds product, but even so the number of bonds available is still higher than at competitor brokers.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bonds (#) | 72,900 | 38,000 | 870 |
Options
As with other product types, Interactive Brokers has an extremely wide range of options markets. You can access the biggest options markets, like the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) or the CME Group, as well as smaller markets, such as the Korea Stock Exchange (KSE) or the Mexican Derivatives Exchange (MEXDER).
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Options markets (#) | 33 | 5 | 13 |
Futures
Interactive Brokers offers an extensive selection of futures products and markets. There are now 32 markets available, which is more than what competitors provide. Similarly to options, you will find both major and minor markets.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Futures markets (#) | 32 | 23 | 15 |
Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Only clients who are trading through Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited are eligible to trade with CFDs. Compared to other products and competitors, IB offers an average range of CFDs, mainly stock and stock index CFDs.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock index CFDs (#) | 13 | 29 | – |
| Stock CFDs (#) | 7,100 | 8,800 | 900 |
| ETF CFDs (#) | – | 675 | – |
| Commodity CFDs (#) | – | 19 | – |
| Bond CFDs (#) | – | 5 | – |
| Futures CFDs (#) | – | – | – |
Cryptos
At IB you can trade with Bitcoin and Ethereum ETNs and Bitcoin Futures:
- Bitcoin and Ether ETNs are traded on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and the US OTC (Pink) markets
- Bitcoin Index is available on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and on the CME Group and Chicago Board Options Exchange(CBOE)
- Bitcoin futures are available on the CME Group and Chicago Board Options Exchange(CBOE)
If you want to know more about crypto investing, we recommend our crypto blogpost.
| Interactive Brokers | Saxo Bank | DEGIRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cryptos (#) | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Asset management service
Interactive Advisors, IB’s own asset management service, allows you to copy professional portfolio managers, letting you automatically make trades as professionals do.
You can choose from many portfolio managers to find the one that fits you best, with real-time portfolio performance available.
The minimum investment depends on the portfolio you want to invest in: the lowest investment amount starts at $5,000.
Interactive Brokers review
Research
Interactive Brokers has almost limitless research possibilities, but the user interface is overly complicated, hard to follow and not well designed.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Good interactive chart | • Not user-friendly |
| • Trading ideas | |
| • Data on asset fundamentals |
The quality of the research available is good and you always have the freedom to choose between third-party providers.
Recommendations
At IBKR, you will have access to recommendations provided by third parties. These research tools are mostly free, but there are some you have to pay for.
Several famous news sources, like Thomson Reuters, Morningstar and Dow Jones, are available for free.
Since January 2020, Interactive Brokers incorporated two new recommendation tools called Validea and TheLeadingEdge. They provide real time analysis, in-depth reports and model portfolios for a monthly subscription. You can enable these features via your Client Portal: to do so, select Menu-Settings-User Settings and then Research Subscriptions.
Fundamental data
Interactive Brokers provides a broad selection of fundamental data on all of its platforms. These include income statements for the past six years, a dividend calendar and peer group companies, for example.
Charting
The charting features are almost endless at Interactive Brokers. There are 120 technical indicators; however, similar to the platforms, the charting tool is not user-friendly.
Other special technical tools include:
- Stock/ETF benchmarker: helps you to benchmark your stock or portfolio versus a selected benchmark
- Mutual fund and ETF replicator
- Volatility lab
- Option probability lab: a group of option analysis functions
- VaR, Sharpe: portfolio performance analyzers
News feed
You have access to:
- News
- Dailysummaries
- Multiple economiccalendars
Interactive Brokers has its own news domain called Traders’ Insight. It also provides integrated third-party news and recommendations to its desktop platform.
Upon entering the platform, you have the option to read daily summaries of the markets through the Daily Lineup. This feature helps you to be informed about the latest news and analyst recommendations. An Earnings and an Economic Calendar are also helpful quick shortcuts to start off your day.
The Economic Calendar informs you about upcoming events that will have an economic impact. The feature can be accessed separately at any time from the menu, though the design could be better. If you look for an all-around economic calendar that includes upcoming national holidays for the year 2020, find it here on IB’s page.
Interactive Brokers review
Customer service
Interactive Brokers customer service is good. They can be contacted via phone, email, live chat and an automated ‘iBot’ and provide fast and relevant answers. However, most options are not available 24/7.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Phone support | • No 24/7 support |
| • Live chat | |
| • Fast response time |
You can contact Interactive Brokers via:
Customer service is available in several regions and languages, namely in English, Russian, Chinese, Indian and Japanese.
| Location | Number | Hours of operation (Time Zone) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 1 (877) 442-2757 Toll free 1 (312) 542-6901 Direct dial |
14:00 (Mon – Fri) – 02:00 (Tue – Sat) (Europe/Berlin) 19:00 (Sun) – 01:00 (Mon) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Canada | 1 (877) 745-4222 Toll free 1 (514) 847-3499 Direct dial |
14:00 – 23:30 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Europe | 00800-42-276537 Toll free +41-41-726-9500 Direct dial +44 207-710-5695 Direct dial United Kingdom |
09:00 – 18:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Russia | 8-800-100-8556 Toll free +41-41-726-9506 (Russian) |
08:00 – 17:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Hong Kong | +852-2156-7907 Direct dial | 02:00 – 11:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Australia | +61 (2) 8093 7300 Direct dial | 00:30 – 10:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| India | +91 22 61289888 Direct dial +91 22 39696188 Direct dial |
02:30 – 14:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| China | +86 (21) 6086 8586 Direct dial | 03:00 – 12:00 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
| Japan | +81 (3) 4588 9700 Direct dial +81 (3) 4588 9710 Direct dial (English) |
01:30 – 10:30 (Mon – Fri) (Europe/Berlin) |
We had lots of problems with customer service when we tested it in 2020, with long wait times one of them. On one occasion, we sent an inquiry in English and received an answer email only after four days – in Russian.
In 2020 we tested the chat, email and phone support, three times. Since 2020, the Interactive Brokers customer service improved a lot, we did not encounter any major problems. Email responses arrived within a day. The wait time for a representative in a live chatroom was rather long (e.g. more than three minutes), but after they came online, the experience was smooth with relevant answers.
The waiting time for a phone call was around one minute.
Also, since we last checked, the Inquiry Response Center got a facelift: now known as Message Center, it has improved a lot in design. We liked the modern look of the interface.
Despite all of the above, the lack of 24/7 availability is still a problem.
Interactive Brokers review
Education
Interactive Brokers offers a wide range of quality educational materials and tools, including videos, courses, webinars, a glossary, and even a demo account.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Demo account | • Courses only available after registration |
| • Trading platform tutorial | |
| • Educational videos |
At Interactive Brokers you can learn in the following ways:
- Paper (demo) account
- Online courses
- Webinars
- Educational videos
- Platform tutorial videos
- Glossary
- News
Once you set up a trading account, you can also open a Paper Trading Account. This is a demo account: all paper accounts start with $1,000,000 in virtual money, which you can use to experiment with IB’s platforms and trading services. Similar to this is IBKR Mobile’s Read-only mode, which lets you check out the mobile interface, although you won’t be able to make any trades. In summary, we think these are great services, and the best way to learn how a trading platform works.
In addition to the above services, you can choose from multiple courses based on your trading skills. There is also a glossary that helps you to understand technical terms, unfamiliar expressions and acronyms.
Interactive Brokers review
Safety
Interactive Brokers is regulated by several financial authorities, including top-tier ones like the SEC in the US and the UK’s FCA. Its parent company is listed on the Nasdaq Exchange.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Listed on stock exchange | None |
| • Negative balance protection | |
| • Regulated by top-tier financial authorities |
Is Interactive Brokers regulated?
Yes, it is regulated by multiple top-tier financial authorities, like the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Is Interactive Brokers safe?
To be certain, we highly advise that you check two facts: how you are protected if something goes wrong and what the background of the broker is.
How you are protected
Not all investments are protected by SIPC. In general, SIPC covers notes, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other investment company shares, and other registered securities. It does not cover instruments such as unregistered investment contracts, unregistered limited partnerships, fixed annuity contracts, currency, and interests in gold, silver, or other commodity futures contracts or commodity options.
Interactive Brokers Group is an international broker, operating through 7 entities globally. This matters for you because Interactive Brokers provides negative balance protection, and the investor protection amount and the regulating authority differ from entity to entity.
Interactive Brokers provides negative balance protection for forex spot and CFD trading, but only for retail clients from the European Union. Professional and non-EU clients are not covered with any negative balance protection
| Country of clients | Protection amount | Regulator | Legal entity |
|---|---|---|---|
| European countries* | £85,000 | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) | Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited |
| USA | $500,000 ($250,000 cash limit) | Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) | Interactive Brokers LLC |
| Canada | $1,000,000 | Interactive Brokers Canada Inc. | |
| Australia | No protection | Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) | Interactive Brokers Australia PTY LTD |
| India | No protection | Securities and Exchange Board of India (BSE) | Interactive Brokers (India) PVT. LTD. |
| Japan | No protection | Financial Services Agency (FSA) | Interactive Brokers Securities Japan Inc. |
| Hong Kong | No protection | Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission | Interactive Brokers Hong Kong Limited |
*If you are from Europe, the picture is a bit more complicated. The regulator and the protection amount also depends on what you are trading with:
- If you trade with forex, CFDs, non-US stock index options or futures, you are protected by the FCA, up to £85,000.
- If you trade with stocks, bonds, funds or US stock index options, you are protected by the US investor protection, i.e. $500,000, with a cash limit of $250,000.
As you can see, the details are not very transparent. Our best advice is to ask customer service from time to time about the protection amount of your actual portfolio.
Background
Interactive Brokers is based in the USA and was founded in 1978. During the last more than 40 years, despite multiple economic crises, IB managed to stay on top on the brokerage market, which is a good sign for the broker’s safety.
Interactive Brokers Group (the holding company of the different entities) is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. The listing makes the broker more transparent, as it has to publish financial statements regularly.
Being listed on the Nasdaq and regulated by both the UK’s FCA and the US SEC are all great signs for Interactive Brokers’s safety.
Interactive Brokers review
Bottom line
Interactive Brokers is one of the biggest US-based discount brokers, regulated by several top-tier regulators globally. We recommend this broker for advanced traders.
On the plus side, IB has a vast range of markets and products available, with diverse research tools and low costs.
There are some drawbacks though: there is a high inactivity fee and the account opening process is complicated. The desktop platform is complex and hard-to-understand, especially for beginners.
If you have experience navigating complex platforms and you like transparent low-cost trading, Interactive Brokers could be a great fit for you.
Real reviews of OptionRally 2020
СОДЕРЖАНИЕ
Broker review OptionRally
This company is added to the Blaсklist of brokers
“OptionRally” company offers its clients such features as standard trading platform, instant orders execution, fast earnings withdrawal and consultations from the binary options trading experts.
The specialists of “OptionRally” company underline that all people can easily trade on the Forex market thanks to the trading conditions this broker offers.
Apart from the binary option trade terminal, our company has its own OptionRally Academy where we teach our clients and unlock to them secrets on market index trade. Every client is given a personal coach that provides advisory service and all important information to help a newcomer advance.
Each transaction is carried out only in the OptionRally system. The reviews on OptionRally indicate that the broker is entitled to withdraw from the transaction if you suspect inappropriate actions or fraud on the part of the client.
Our advantages:
- More strategies for trading;
- Complete risk control;
- Higher income, profit up to 81%;
- EU regulation (CySec);
- Individual approach and training.
Trading tools:
- Currency Converter;
- Fibonacci Calculator
- Forex Volatility
- Forex Correlation
- Pivot Point Calculator
- Profit Calculator
- Margin Calculator
- Currencies heat map;
- Hot market video reviews;
- Possibility to extend the deal
Among the trading instruments are available: classic options, above/below, 60 seconds, long term and pairs.
Also LiveTrader trading platform that can be used for mobile gadgets on iOS and Android.
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