Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Brokers vs ActivTrades, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 51% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Interactive Brokers, founded in 1977, and ActivTrades, established in 2001, present distinct profiles in the online brokerage landscape. Interactive Brokers stands out as a publicly traded company, while ActivTrades remains privately held. Neither company operates as a bank. In terms of regulation, Interactive Brokers holds an impressive nine Tier-1 licenses, indicating a high level of trust, compared to ActivTrades' two Tier-1 licenses. Both firms maintain additional Tier-2 licenses, signaling their commitment to maintaining trusted operations.
When considering trustworthiness as determined by ForexBrokers.com, Interactive Brokers achieves a near-perfect Trust Score rating of 99, placing it at the top of the list for reliability. On the other hand, ActivTrades earns a respectable Trust Score of 81, categorizing it as trusted. These scores emphasize Interactive Brokers' strong regulatory framework and its established reputation in the financial sector.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1977 | 2001 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 9 | 2 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 2 |
When comparing the commissions and fees between Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades, Interactive Brokers stands out with a five-star rating, securing the #2 spot among 63 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com. Their forex trading structure is particularly competitive, with commissions per side starting at 0.00002 (0.2 basis points) of the U.S. dollar trade value and an effective spread of 0.59 pips for the EUR/USD during Q3 2024. While there’s a minimum charge of $2 per side, discounts are available for active traders who meet specific trading volume thresholds. Interactive Brokers aggregates prices from 17 major interbank forex dealers and charges a commission per trade ranging from $16 to $40 per million round turn, ensuring competitive pricing without marking up spreads.
ActivTrades, on the other hand, receives a respectable four-star rating for commissions and fees, holding the #28 position out of 63 brokers. While their average EUR/USD spread for May 2024 was 0.98 pips, slightly better than the industry average, it doesn't quite meet the standards of the lowest-cost forex brokers. ActivTrades provides an Individual Account, along with Professional and Islamic Account options, but lacks a specialized account for high-volume traders and doesn't offer active trader discounts. Despite listing target spreads for each asset, traders may experience variability during trading sessions.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.59 | 0.98 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.59 | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | Yes | No |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | No | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades both provide options for forex trading through CFDs or spot contracts. However, when it comes to the sheer volume of tradeable symbols, Interactive Brokers stands out with a remarkable offering of 8,500, compared to ActivTrades’ 1,267. In forex pairs alone, Interactive Brokers offers 90, almost doubling the 49 pairs available through ActivTrades. Moreover, Interactive Brokers allows clients to directly purchase U.S. exchange-traded securities, like Apple shares, unlike ActivTrades, which does not offer direct access to the U.S. stock market but does provide international options such as Vodafone on the London Stock Exchange. Another key differentiator is cryptocurrency accessibility; Interactive Brokers enables users to buy actual cryptocurrencies, while ActivTrades confines its offerings to cryptocurrency derivatives.
When it comes to specialized trading services, Interactive Brokers does not provide options for copy trading, a feature which ActivTrades includes in its service lineup. Despite this, Interactive Brokers earns a top rating of 5 stars for its range of investments, while ActivTrades scores a commendable 4 stars. Reflecting these ratings, Interactive Brokers ranks as the number one broker out of 63 in the Range of Investments category, whereas ActivTrades holds the 31st position. This ranking underlines the broader investment options available through Interactive Brokers, appealing more to those who seek a wider scope of investment opportunities.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 8500 | 1267 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 90 | 49 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | Yes | No |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | Yes | Yes |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
Dive deeper: Best Copy Trading Platforms.
Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades both offer an impressive range of trading platforms and tools tailored to suit various trader needs. Both brokers provide access to simulated trading through free virtual demo accounts, which is ideal for beginners looking to practice their strategies without financial risk. Each broker boasts a proprietary platform, alongside offering a Windows-based desktop download and a web-based trading platform. However, for traders interested in MetaTrader platforms, ActivTrades has the advantage, supporting both MT4 and MT5, while Interactive Brokers does not offer these options. ActivTrades also enables copy trading, which is absent from Interactive Brokers' offerings.
When it comes to additional trading features, Interactive Brokers shines with a remarkable 85 drawing tools available for charting and the capability to trade directly from a stock chart. ActivTrades, while offering similar chart trading functionality, provides a broader introduction to copy trading via MT4 and MT5 platforms. Moreover, Interactive Brokers surpasses ActivTrades in custom watch list options with 659 available fields compared to ActivTrades' 11. Such comprehensive tools contribute to Interactive Brokers earning a superior 5-star rating for trading platforms and tools, ranking 3rd out of 63 brokers on ForexBrokers.com. In comparison, ActivTrades holds a respectable 4-star rating, positioned at 30th place.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | Yes |
| DupliTrade | No | No |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 155 | 30 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 85 | 15 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 659 | 11 |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades both offer mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android devices, allowing users to trade on the go. Both platforms provide stock and forex price alerts and allow users to draw trendlines and view multiple timeframes on their charts. These features are essential for traders looking to manage their portfolios and monitor market trends efficiently. However, a key difference lies in the synchronization of watchlist symbols: Interactive Brokers syncs watchlists across devices, while ActivTrades does not. Both brokers allow the creation of watchlists with real-time quotes, but ActivTrades' app stands out for automatically saving chart drawings, a feature that Interactive Brokers lacks.
When it comes to technical charting capabilities, Interactive Brokers offers a wider range of options with 97 technical studies compared to ActivTrades' 30. In terms of user satisfaction and expert reviews, Interactive Brokers has an impressive rating of 5 stars and ranks 4th among 63 brokers in the Mobile Trading Apps category by ForexBrokers.com. In contrast, ActivTrades receives a 4-star rating and is positioned at 19th. These ratings reflect the overall user experience, app features, and the level of service provided, making Interactive Brokers a preferred choice for those seeking comprehensive mobile trading functionalities.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 97 | 30 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | No | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades both provide daily market commentary and access to forex news from renowned sources such as Bloomberg and Reuters. However, Interactive Brokers stands out by offering advanced research tools and capabilities that ActivTrades lacks. Notably, Interactive Brokers provides tools from Trading Central and market research from TipRanks, as well as Acuity Trading's Signal Centre, giving traders comprehensive insights and analysis. Both brokers share the feature of a sentiment-based trading tool and an economic calendar, offering traders valuable market insights, yet the breadth of tools available with Interactive Brokers goes a step further in assisting traders with their strategies.
When it comes to research ratings, Interactive Brokers shines with a 5-star rating and an impressive 3rd place ranking among 63 brokers, according to ForexBrokers.com. In comparison, ActivTrades holds a respectable 4-star rating but is positioned at 30th. This indicates that while both brokers provide essential market research tools, Interactive Brokers offers a more extensive suite of resources, making it a top choice for traders seeking deeper market insight and analytical support.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | No | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | No |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | Yes | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | Yes | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
When comparing the educational resources for beginners at Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades, both platforms provide substantial offerings. They each supply more than 10 educational materials, including articles, videos, and webinars focused on forex and CFDs. Additionally, both brokers host monthly online educational webinars and maintain an accessible archive of past webinars, making them a great choice for ongoing learning. They each offer over 10 beginner-focused videos, ensuring newcomers have plenty of material to start their trading journey. While both brokers excel in these areas, Interactive Brokers sets itself apart with an extensive investor dictionary containing over 50 financial term definitions, a feature not offered by ActivTrades.
In terms of advanced resources, both Interactive Brokers and ActivTrades meet the needs of more experienced traders with over 10 advanced educational videos. However, Interactive Brokers holds a distinct edge with a 5-star education rating compared to ActivTrades' 4 stars. This higher rating is further reflected in its ranking: Interactive Brokers is placed 3rd out of 63 brokers in the Education category by ForexBrokers.com, while ActivTrades ranks 38th. Overall, Interactive Brokers offers a slightly more comprehensive and highly rated educational experience for beginners looking to deepen their trading knowledge.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars | Yes | Yes |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | No |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Interactive Brokers is better than ActivTrades. Interactive Brokers finished with an overall rank of #2, while ActivTrades finished with an overall rank of #33.
Interactive Brokers is a highly trusted multi-asset broker with an extensive offering of tradeable global markets. It delivers competitive fees and high-quality research and education, as well as a modern, institutional-grade trading platform suite.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
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ActivTrades
|
|---|---|---|
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 |
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Interactive Brokers allows customers to purchase actual delivered cryptocurrency and offers cryptocurrency derivatives, while ActivTrades only provides the option to trade cryptocurrency derivatives and does not support buying actual delivered cryptocurrency.
Interactive Brokers supports ACH, SEPA transfers, and bank wires for account transactions, whereas ActivTrades offers Skrill, Visa or Mastercard, and bank wires, but does not support ACH or SEPA transfers, and neither broker provides PayPal as a transaction option.
Please note:
We review each broker’s overall global offering – a “Yes” checkmark in our Compare Tool does not guarantee the availability of any specific features in your country of residence. To verify the availability of any features within your country of residence, please contact the broker directly.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | ActivTrades Review |
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| Regulation | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
| Year Founded | 1977 | 2001 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | Yes | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 9 | 2 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 1 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 2 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | Yes | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | No | |
| UAE (DFSA/Central Bank Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No | No |
| Investments | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 8500 | 1267 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 90 | 49 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes | |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | Yes | No | |
| Cryptocurrency (Derivative) | Yes | Yes | |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
| Cost | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 0.59 | 0.98 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.59 | N/A | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | No | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | Yes | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | No | |
| Execution: Market Maker | No | Yes |
| Funding | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $0 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes | |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | No | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | Yes | No |
| Trading Platforms | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | No | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | Yes | |
| cTrader | No | No | |
| DupliTrade | No | No | |
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 659 | 11 | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 155 | 30 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 85 | 15 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 97 | 30 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | No | Yes | |
| Mobile Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | No | No | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes | No | |
| TipRanks | Yes | No | |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | Yes | Yes | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Forex or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Investor Dictionary (Glossary) | Yes | No |
| Major Forex Pairs | Interactive Brokers | ActivTrades | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/JPY | Yes | Yes | |
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CHF | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CAD | Yes | Yes | |
| NZD/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| AUD/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | ActivTrades Review |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 81 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | ActivTrades Review |
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