Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Saxo vs City Index, 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.
Saxo and City Index are two well-established online brokers with strong regulatory standings. Saxo was founded in 1992 and operates as a bank, while City Index, founded in 1983, is publicly traded but not a bank. Both brokers hold a total of seven Tier-1 licenses, which are considered highly trusted by ForexBrokers.com, and one Tier-2 license, marking them as reliable platforms for investors.
In terms of trustworthiness, both Saxo and City Index boast a perfect Trust Score of 99 out of 99, demonstrating their high levels of customer confidence. Whether you're looking for a bank-backed broker like Saxo or a publicly traded option like City Index, both offer secure and regulated environments for trading with top-tier regulatory compliance.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1992 | 1983 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | Yes |
| Bank | Yes | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 7 | 7 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 1 |
Saxo and City Index both offer fair, transparent pricing, but they cater to different needs. Saxo earns 5 out of 5 stars for commissions and fees and ranks #9 out of 63 brokers, while City Index earns 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #15 out of 63. Saxo tends to shine for high-volume and large-balance traders who can qualify for its top tiers, whereas City Index sits near the industry average with added savings available through rebates for professionals.
For forex, Saxo is commission-free and makes money on the spread; a $3 per side ticket fee applies only if you trade under 50,000 units per month. As of November 2023, average EUR/USD spreads were 1.1 pips (Classic), 1.0 pips (Platinum), and 0.9 pips (VIP), with minimums about 0.2 pips lower (e.g., Classic min 0.9 pips). Platinum and VIP pricing aligns more closely with industry averages, while Classic is slightly higher. The Classic account now has a $0 minimum deposit, Platinum requires $200,000 (AUD 300,000 for Australia-based forex traders), and VIP typically needs $1,000,000 or qualification via Saxo’s loyalty program (roughly $167 million in annual forex volume). Saxo also waives custody fees for share trading if you opt into securities lending.
City Index pricing for CFDs, forex, and spread bets is in line with the market, with an average EUR/USD spread of 0.74 pips as of July 2023. You’ll usually get the best pricing on City Index’s own platforms or MetaTrader. Active traders depositing over £10,000 may qualify for the Premium Trader account, which includes exclusive pricing and service. Professional traders can also earn volume-based rebates: in the U.K., £4 per million starting above £25 million per month and up to £7.5 per million above £300 million; in Australia, AUD $4.5 to $14.5 per million across tiers.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | £100.00 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.1 | 1.4 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.9 | 0.74 |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | Yes |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No | Yes |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
When comparing Saxo and City Index in terms of their available investment options, Saxo clearly stands out with an impressive array of choices. Saxo offers 70,000 tradeable symbols, significantly overshadowing City Index's 13,500. Forex enthusiasts will find Saxo particularly appealing, as it provides access to 190 forex pairs compared to City Index's 66. Additionally, Saxo allows investors to directly purchase exchange-traded securities from both U.S. and international markets, a feature not available with City Index, where such transactions are confined to CFDs. Both platforms, however, offer forex trading through CFDs or spot contracts and support cryptocurrency derivatives.
Despite these differences, both Saxo and City Index maintain solid reputations for their range of investments, each earning a 5-star rating in this category. However, Saxo's diversified offerings place it at number three in the investment range ranking by ForexBrokers.com, whereas City Index is positioned at number eight out of 63 brokers. Both platforms accommodate modern trading practices such as copy trading, yet neither provides the option to purchase actual cryptocurrencies. Nevertheless, for those prioritizing variety and access in their trading arsenal, Saxo presents a broader spectrum of opportunities.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 70000 | 13500 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 190 | 66 |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No | 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.
Saxo and City Index both deliver strong trading platforms and tools. Each offers a free demo account for paper trading, in-house platforms, Windows desktop and web platforms, copy trading, and the ability to place trades directly from charts. Neither broker supports MetaTrader 5 or ZuluTrade, but City Index does support MetaTrader 4, while Saxo does not—an important difference if you rely on MT4.
When it comes to platform depth, Saxo provides 60 watch list columns versus 11 at City Index, which can matter if you track many data points. Independent ratings echo the gap: Saxo earns 5 stars and ranks #1 out of 63 brokers for Trading Platforms and Tools at ForexBrokers.com, while City Index scores 4.5 stars and ranks #11. If you need MT4, City Index is the better fit; if you want a feature-rich in-house suite and more detailed watch lists, Saxo stands out.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | No |
| DupliTrade [DELETED] | ||
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 64 | 88 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) [DELETED] | ||
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 60 | 11 |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
When comparing the mobile trading apps of Saxo and City Index, both offer comprehensive and user-friendly platforms available for iPhone and Android users. Each app provides essential features like stock and forex price alerts and the ability to sync watchlists with online accounts, ensuring seamless trading experiences across devices. Additionally, users have the capability to draw trendlines and save drawings automatically, and they can also view stock and forex charts in multiple time frames—daily, weekly, or intraday—for more precise trading strategies.
In terms of advanced charting tools, Saxo app users can access 64 technical studies, while City Index offers an even greater variety with 88. Both platforms support the creation of watchlists with real-time quotes. Saxo stands out with its 5-star rating, ranking as the number two mobile trading app among 63 brokers according to ForexBrokers.com. In contrast, City Index boasts a 4.5-star rating, securing the ninth spot in the same category. Overall, both apps provide robust options for traders, with Saxo holding a slight edge in reviews and rank.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 64 | 88 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
When it comes to daily market commentaries and updates, both Saxo and City Index ensure their traders are well-informed with timely insights. Each offers forex news from respected sources like Bloomberg and Reuters. However, they differ in their collaboration with specialized analysis and research tool providers. Saxo utilizes tools from Autochartist for technical and fundamental research while City Index partners with Trading Central for technical analytics. Both platforms feature sentiment-based trading tools as well as economic calendars highlighting global economic events.
Saxo enjoys a slight edge in research rankings, earning a 5-star rating and securing the number one spot out of 63 brokers on ForexBrokers.com, while City Index follows closely with a 4.5-star rating and a tenth-place ranking. Though both brokers offer comprehensive market research, their distinct partnerships and features cater to different trading preferences, allowing traders to choose based on which tools best complement their trading strategies.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes |
| Autochartist | Yes | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Signal Centre (Acuity Trading) | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
Both Saxo and City Index offer strong educational resources for beginners looking to delve into forex and CFDs trading. Each platform provides a comprehensive suite of more than ten educational pieces, including articles, videos, and archived webinars focusing on these financial instruments. They both host online educational client webinars monthly and maintain a searchable archive of these sessions for later viewing. For those at the beginning of their trading journey, both brokers present a wide array of at least ten beginner videos covering essential trading topics.
Advanced traders will also find valuable content, as Saxo and City Index cater with at least ten advanced educational videos aimed at enhancing expertise. Additionally, investors can benefit from an extensive dictionary defining over 50 investing terms on both platforms. Despite these similarities, Saxo holds a slight edge with a perfect five-star rating for education, while City Index follows closely with a 4.5-star rating. However, City Index is ranked higher in the education category, placing 9th among 63 brokers, compared to Saxo's 13th position.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Saxo is better than City Index. Saxo finished with an overall rank of #3, while City Index finished with an overall rank of #8.
Saxo is an exclusive multi-asset broker with brilliant research and a superb trading platform experience – as well as a stunning selection of over 40,000 securities.
| Feature |
Saxo
|
City Index
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 99 |
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Both Saxo and City Index do not offer the ability to buy actual (delivered) cryptocurrency, but they both provide options to purchase cryptocurrency derivatives.
When comparing online brokers Saxo and City Index, City Index offers more flexible deposit and withdrawal options including ACH or SEPA transfers and PayPal, while both platforms accept Visa, Mastercard, and bank wires, but neither supports payments via Skrill.
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 | Saxo | City Index | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 99 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Saxo Review | City Index Review |
| Broker Screenshots | Saxo | City Index | |
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| Regulation | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 99 | 99 | |
| Year Founded | 1992 | 1983 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | Yes | |
| Bank | Yes | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 7 | 7 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 1 | 1 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 0 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | No | Yes | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | Yes | ||
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | No | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | Yes |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | |||
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | No | |
| UAE (DFSA, FSRA, or SCA Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) |
| Investments | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 70000 | 13500 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 190 | 66 | |
| U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | |
| Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) | Yes | No | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| Cryptocurrency (Physical) | No | 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 | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | 1.1 | 1.4 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.9 | 0.74 | |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes | Yes | |
| Inactivity Fee | Yes | Yes | |
| Execution: Agency Broker | Yes | No | |
| Execution: Market Maker | Yes | Yes |
| Funding | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | £100.00 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | Yes | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | No | |
| Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) | Yes | Yes | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | Yes | |
| ACH or SEPA Transfers | No | Yes |
| Trading Platforms | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Social Trading / Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | No | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No | No | |
| cTrader | No | No | |
| DupliTrade [DELETED] | |||
| ZuluTrade | No | No |
| Trading Tools | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 60 | 11 | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 64 | 88 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) [DELETED] | |||
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist | Yes | Yes | |
| Watchlist Syncing | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 64 | 88 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Drawings Autosave | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Research | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | Yes | |
| Autochartist | Yes | No | |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | No | Yes | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | Yes | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Yes |
| Major Forex Pairs | Saxo | City Index | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Saxo Review | City Index Review |
| Overall | Saxo | City Index | |
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| Trust Score | 99 | 99 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Saxo Review | City Index Review |
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