Is CMC Markets better than Interactive Brokers? In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 50 brokers, CMC Markets is considered low-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 99 out of 99. Interactive Brokers is considered low-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 99 out of 99. Learn more about Trust Score.
CMC Markets vs Interactive Brokers 2021
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Overall Rating
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Overall | ||
Commissions & Fees | ||
Offering of Investments | ||
Platforms & Tools | ||
Mobile Trading Apps | ||
Research | ||
Education | ||
Trust Score | 99 | 99 |
CMC Markets Review | Interactive Brokers Review | |
69% of retail CFD accounts lose money | 66% of retail CFD accounts lose money | |
Winner | check_circle |
Regulation
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Trust Score | 99 | 99 |
Year Founded |
1989 | 1977 |
Publicly Traded (Listed) |
Yes | Yes |
Bank |
No | No |
Tier-1 Licenses |
5 | 8 |
Tier-2 Licenses |
1 | 1 |
Tier-3 Licenses |
0 | 0 |
Authorised in the European Union |
Yes | Yes |
Tier-1 Licenses (High Trust)
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
ASIC Authorised (Australia) |
Yes | Yes |
IIROC Authorised (Canada) |
Yes | Yes |
SFC Authorised (Hong Kong) |
No | Yes |
CBI Authorised (Ireland) |
No | Yes |
FSA Authorised (Japan) |
No | Yes |
MAS Authorised (Singapore) |
Yes | Yes |
FINMA Authorised (Switzerland) |
No | Yes |
FCA Authorised (UK) |
Yes | Yes |
CFTC Registered (USA) |
No | Yes |
FMA Authorised (New Zealand) |
Yes | No |
Tier-2 Licenses (Average Trust)
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
CBRC Authorised (China) |
No | No |
CySEC Authorised (Cyprus) |
No | No |
SEBI Authorised (India) |
No | Yes |
ISA Authorised (Israel) |
No | No |
CBR Authorised (Russia) |
No | No |
FSCA Authorised (South Africa) |
No | No |
SEC Authorised (Thailand) |
No | No |
DFSA / Central Bank Authorised (UAE) |
Yes | No |
Tier-3 Licenses (Low Trust)
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
SCB Authorised (Bahamas) | No | No |
IFSC Authorised (Belize) | No | No |
Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) |
No | No |
BMA Authorised (Bermuda) | No | No |
FSC Authorised (British Virgin Islands) |
No | No |
FSC Authorised (Mauritius) |
No | No |
VFSC Authorised (Vanuatu) |
No | No |
Investments
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Forex Trading |
Yes | Yes |
CFD Trading |
Yes | Yes |
Tradeable Symbols (Total) |
11927 | 7400 |
Forex Pairs (Total) |
158 | 91 |
US Stock Trading (Non CFD) |
No | Yes |
Int'l Stock Trading (Non CFD) |
Yes | Yes |
Social Trading / Copy-Trading |
Yes | No |
Cryptocurrency (Physical) |
No | Yes |
Cryptocurrency (CFD) |
Yes | No |
Crypto Disclaimer (UK) | 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
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard |
0.73 (August 2021) | 0.6 (From 09/25/21 - 10/02/21) |
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active |
N/A | 0.6 (From 09/25/21 - 10/02/21) |
Active Trader or VIP Discounts |
Yes | Yes |
Execution: Agency Broker |
No | Yes |
Execution: Market Maker |
Yes | No |
Funding
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Minimum Deposit |
$0.00 | $0 |
Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) |
Yes | Yes |
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit) |
Yes | No |
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) |
Yes | No |
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) |
No | No |
Trading Platforms
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Proprietary Platform |
Yes | Yes |
Desktop Platform (Windows) |
Yes | Yes |
Web Platform |
Yes | Yes |
Social Trading / Copy-Trading |
Yes | No |
MetaTrader 4 (MT4) |
Yes | No |
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) |
No | No |
cTrader |
No | No |
DupliTrade |
No | No |
ZuluTrade |
No | No |
Trading Tools
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Virtual Trading (Demo) |
Yes | Yes |
Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | Yes |
Watchlists - Total Fields |
9 | 651 |
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) |
86 | 127 |
Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) |
40 | 9 |
Charting - Trade From Chart |
Yes | Yes |
Charting - Drawings Autosave |
Yes | Yes |
Mobile Trading
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Android App |
Yes | Yes |
Apple iOS App |
Yes | Yes |
Alerts - Basic Fields |
Yes | Yes |
Watch List |
Yes | Yes |
Watch List Syncing |
Yes | Yes |
Charting - Indicators / Studies |
29 | 98 |
Charting - Draw Trendlines |
Yes | No |
Charting - Trendlines Moveable |
Yes | No |
Charting - Multiple Time Frames |
Yes | Yes |
Charting - Drawings Autosave |
Yes | No |
Forex Calendar |
Yes | Yes |
Research
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Daily Market Commentary |
Yes | Yes |
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) |
Yes | Yes |
Autochartist |
Yes | No |
Trading Central (Recognia) |
Yes | Yes |
Delkos Research |
No | No |
Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs |
Yes | Yes |
Economic Calendar |
Yes | Yes |
Education
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Has 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
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
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 |
Overall
Feature | CMC Markets | Interactive Brokers |
Overall | ||
Commissions & Fees | ||
Offering of Investments | ||
Platforms & Tools | ||
Mobile Trading Apps | ||
Research | ||
Education | ||
Trust Score | 99 | 99 |
CMC Markets Review | Interactive Brokers Review |
Comparing forex brokers side by side is no easy task. For our 2022 annual forex broker review, we spent hundreds of hours assessing 39 forex and CFD brokerages to find the best forex broker. Let's compare CMC Markets vs Interactive Brokers.
Does CMC Markets or Interactive Brokers offer lower pricing?
Comparing the trading costs of forex and CFDs is not easy. Not every broker publishes average spreads data, and pricing structures vary. Based on our thorough annual assessment, CMC Markets offers better pricing overall for traders.
Is CMC Markets or Interactive Brokers safer for forex and CFDs trading?
At ForexBrokers.com, we track where each forex and CFD broker is regulated across over 23 international regulator databases. Here's our findings. Interactive Brokers holds 8 global Tier-1 licenses, while CMC Markets holds 5. Both CMC Markets and Interactive Brokers hold 1 global Tier-2 licenses. In our analysis of 23 international regulators across 50 brokers, CMC Markets and Interactive Brokers earned the same Trust Score.
Which trading platform is better: CMC Markets or Interactive Brokers?
To compare the trading platforms of both CMC Markets and Interactive Brokers, we tested each broker's trading tools, research capabilities, and mobile apps. For trading tools, CMC Markets offers a better experience. With research, Interactive Brokers offers superior market research. Finally, we found CMC Markets to provide better mobile trading apps.
What about MetaTrader and copy trading?
For forex and CFDs traders, copy trading and MetaTrader are both popular platform options. While CMC Markets offers copy trading, Interactive Brokers does not. CMC Markets offers MetaTrader 4 (MT4), while Interactive Brokers does not.
How many forex pairs and CFDs are available to trade?
CMC Markets provides traders 158 currency pairs (e.g., EUR/USD) compared to Interactive Brokers's 91 available pairs. Forex pairs aside, CMC Markets offers traders access to 11927 CFDs while Interactive Brokers has 7400 available CFDs, a difference of 4,527.
Can I trust CMC Markets?
CMC Markets is publicly traded, does not operate a bank, and is authorised by five tier-1 regulators (high trust), one tier-2 regulator (average trust), and zero tier-3 regulators (low trust). CMC Markets is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC), Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Financial Markets Authority (FMA), and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Can I trust Interactive Brokers?
Interactive Brokers is publicly traded, does not operate a bank, and is authorised by eight tier-1 regulators (high trust), one tier-2 regulators (average trust), and zero tier-3 regulators (low trust). Interactive Brokers is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), Central Bank of Ireland (CBI), Securities Futures Commission (SFC), Japanese Financial Services Authority (JFSA), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Is CMC Markets good?
CMC Markets is well-trusted across the globe, and delivers a terrific trading experience thanks to its excellent pricing and selection of over 12,000 tradeable instruments.
Is Interactive Brokers good?
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.
Overall winner: CMC Markets
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Trading CFDs, FX, and cryptocurrencies involves a high degree of risk. All providers have a percentage of retail investor accounts that lose money when trading CFDs with their company. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money and whether you understand how CFDs, FX, and cryptocurrencies work. All data was obtained from a published website as of 01/10/2022 and is believed to be accurate, but is not guaranteed. The ForexBrokers.com staff is constantly working with its online broker representatives to obtain the latest data. If you believe any data listed above is inaccurate, please contact us using the "Contact" link at the bottom of this page.
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