IG Group vs Interactive Brokers

IG vs Interactive Brokers Comparison Table 2024
IG	Interactive Brokers
Review 4.7 IG is #5 in our CFD broker rankings.	Review 4.3 Interactive Brokers is #1 in our CFD broker rankings.
Traders from US accepted	Traders from US accepted
Founded in 1974, IG is part of IG Group Holdings Plc, a publicly traded (LSE: IGG) brokerage. The brand-US offers spread betting, CFD and forex trading across an almost unrivalled selection of 17,000+ markets, with a range of user-friendly platforms and investing apps. For 50 years, IG has maintained its position as an industry leader, excelling in all key areas for traders.	Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a premier brokerage, providing access to 150 markets in 33 countries, along with a suite of comprehensive investment services. With over 40 years of experience, this Nasdaq-listed firm adheres to stringent regulations by the SEC, FCA, CIRO, and SFC, amongst others, and is one of the most trusted brokers for trading around the globe.
Forex trading involves risk. Losses can exceed deposits.
Customer Reviews
4 Based on 2 IG customer reviews	4 Based on 2 Interactive Brokers customer reviews
Comment by Reviewer
"IG continues to provide a comprehensive package with an intuitive web platform, best-in-class education for beginners, advanced charting tools bolstered by its recent TradingView integration, real-time data, and fast execution speeds for experienced day traders."	"Interactive Brokers is one of the best brokers for advanced day traders, providing powerful charting platforms, real-time data, and customizable layouts, notably through the new IBKR Desktop application. Its superb pricing and advanced order options also make it highly attractive for day traders, while its diverse range of equities is still among the best in the industry."
Pros
IG is amongst the best in terms of its range of instruments, which includes stocks, forex, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies, plus recently added US-listed futures and options, providing ample diversification opportunities. The proprietary web-based platform continues to caters to traders of all levels, with advanced charting tools and real-time market data useful for day trading, while IG has also added TradingView integration. The IG app offers a superb mobile trading experience with a clean design that helped it secure Runner Up at our 'Best Trading App' award. As a well-established broker, IG operates under strict regulatory guidelines in multiple jurisdictions, maintaining a high level of trust. IG offers an extensive collection of professional and engaging educational resources, including webinars, articles, and analysis. The ProRealTime advanced charting platform is free as long as certain modest monthly trading activity requirements are met.	IBKR is one of the most respected and trusted brokerages and is regulated by top-tier authorities, so you can have confidence in the integrity and security of your trading account. The TWS platform has clearly been built for intermediate and advanced traders and comes with over 100 order types and a reliable real-time market data feed that rarely goes offline. The new IBKR Desktop platform takes the best of TWS while adding bespoke tools like Option Lattice and Screeners with MultiSort to create a genuinely impressive trading experience for day traders at every level. There's a vast library of free or paid third-party research subscriptions catering to all types of traders, plus you can enjoy commission reimbursements from IBKR if you subscribe to Toggle AI. IBKR continues to deliver unmatched access to global stocks with tens of thousands of equities available from 100+ market centres in 24 countries, most recently the Saudi Stock Exchange. While primarily geared towards experienced traders, IBKR has made moves to broaden its appeal in recent years, reducing its minimum deposit from $10,000 to $0. With low commissions, tight spreads and a transparent fee structure, IBKR delivers a cost-effective environment for short-term traders.
Cons
Beginners might find IG’s fee structure complex, with various fees for different types of trades or services, potentially leading to confusion or unexpected charges. While there is negative balance protection in the UK and EU, there is no account protection or guaranteed stop losses for US clients. IG has discontinued its swap-free account, reducing its appeal to Islamic traders. Stock and CFD spreads still trail the cheapest brokers like CMC Markets based on tests. IG applies an inactivity fee of $12 per month after 2 years, deterring casual investors.	TWS’s learning curve is steep, and beginners may find it challenging to navigate the platform and understand all the features. Plus500's web platform is much better suited to new traders. IBKR provides a wide range of research tools, but their distribution across trading platforms and the web-based 'Account Management' page lacks consistency, leading to a confusing user experience. Support can be slow and frustrating based on tests, so you might find it challenging to reach customer service representatives promptly or encounter delays in resolving issues. You can only have one active session per account, so you can’t have your desktop program and mobile app running simultaneously, making for a sometimes frustrating trading experience.
Awards
Best Customer Service 2022 - Online Money Awards Best Spread Betting Provider 2022 - Online Money Awards Best Platform for the Active Trader 2022 - ADVFN International Financial Awards Best Multi Platform Provider 2022 - ADVFN International Financial Awards Best Finance App 2022 - ADVFN International Financial Awards
Instruments
CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, ETFs, Futures, Options, Crypto, Spread Betting	Stocks, Options, Futures, Forex, Funds, Bonds, ETFs, Mutual Funds, CFDs, Cryptocurrencies
Demo Account
Yes	Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0	$0
Trading Platforms
Web ProRealTime L2 Dealer MT4 TradingView AutoChartist TradingCentral	Trader Workstation (TWS) IBKR Desktop GlobalTrader Mobile Client Portal AlgoTrader OmniTrader eSignal TradingCentral
Payment Methods
Credit Card Debit Card Mastercard PayPal Visa Wire Transfer	ACH Transfer Automated Customer Account Transfer Service Cheque Debit Card TransferWise Wire Transfer
Minimum Trade
0.01 Lots	$100
Regulator
FCA, ASIC, NFA, CFTC, DFSA, BaFin, MAS, FSCA, FINMA, CONSOB, AFM	FCA, SEC, FINRA, CFTC, CBI, CIRO, SFC, MAS, MNB, FINMA, AFM
Margin Trading
Yes	Yes
Margin Rate
2.5%	1.55 - 2.59%
STP Account
No	Yes
ECN Account
No	No
DMA Account
Yes	Yes
MAM Account
No	Yes
PAMM Account
No	No
LAMM Account
No	No
Demat Account
No	No
AI / Machine Learning
No	Yes
Robo Advisor
Yes	Yes
Negative Balance Protection
Yes	Yes
Market Maker
Yes	No
P2P Trading
No	No
Spot Trading
Yes	Yes
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android	iOS & Android
App Review
IG offers a superb all-round trading app. One of the pioneers of mobile trading, the application has been developed and refined over many years, meaning it is now among the best trading apps. Quick response, user-friendly layout, access to full charting and a stable and reliable application. It also offers guaranteed stops – an important risk management tool not available on many apps we’ve tested.	The IBKR Mobile app, available on both iOS and Android devices, makes your phone a powerful gateway to your IBKR accounts, offering you the freedom to keep an eye on portfolios, initiate trades, and dive into real-time quotes and charts, all while managing your account activities on the fly. This app stands out for its intuitive design, making it especially welcoming for those just starting their trading journey, providing a smoother and more accessible experience than the more complex TWS platform.
Android App Rating
4	4.5
iOS App Rating
4.6	4.3
Auto Trading
Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader, build your own on ProRealTime	Capitalise.ai & TWS API
Copy Trading
No	No
Social Trading
No	No
Trade Signals
Yes
VPS Hosting
Yes	No
Tournaments
No	No
Demo Competitions
No	No
Ethical Investing
Yes	Yes
Custodial Account
No	No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
Yes	No
Inactivity Fee
$12	$0
Islamic Account
No	No
Account Currencies
USD EUR GBP CAD AUD JPY ZAR SEK DKK CHF HKD SGD	USD EUR GBP CAD AUD INR JPY SEK NOK DKK CHF AED HUF
Stock Exchanges
Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) Borsa Italiana Bombay Stock Exchange Deutsche Boerse Dow Jones Euronext Hong Kong Stock Exchange IBEX 35 Japan Exchange Group Korean Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange National Stock Exchange Of India Russell 2000 S&P 500 Shanghai Stock Exchange SIX Swiss Exchange Shenzhen Stock Exchange Tadawul Toronto Stock Exchange Taiwan Stock Exchange	Borsa Italiana CAC 40 Index France Chicago Mercantile Exchange Euronext IBEX 35 Japan Exchange Group Korean Stock Exchange London Metal Exchange London Stock Exchange Nasdaq Nasdaq Nordic & Baltics New York Stock Exchange Russell 2000 Shenzhen Stock Exchange Tadawul Toronto Stock Exchange
Commodities
Aluminium Coffee Cannabis Copper Gold Iron Lean Hogs Lithium Cattle Natural Gas Nickel Oil Orange Juice Palladium Precious Metals Silver Soybeans Steel Sugar Wheat	Aluminium Gold Lead Lean Hogs Natural Gas Precious Metals Soybeans Zinc
CFD Trading
IG offers a huge selection of 17,000+ CFDs, providing more trading opportunities than most CFD brokers. Traders can go long or short on popular markets like stocks, currencies, commodities and cryptos, while custom price alerts and the IG Academy continue to enhance the trading experience.	Over 8,000 CFDs are offered on a vast array of instruments, encompassing stocks, indices, forex, and commodities. Moreover, the TWS platform lends itself to seasoned day traders, offering a comprehensive selection of over 100 order types and algorithms, alongside premium market data sourced from reputable sources such as Reuters and Dow Jones.
Leverage
1:30 (Retail), 1:250 (Pro)	1:50
FTSE Spread
1.0	0.005% (£1 Min)
GBPUSD Spread
0.9	0.08-0.20 bps x trade value
Oil Spread
2.8	0.25-0.85
Stocks Spread
0.02	0.003
Forex Trading
IG offers an above-average suite of 80+ currency pairs on its proprietary web platform, mobile app or MetaTrader 4, with more advanced charts and forex analysis tools available on the ProRealTime software. Forex spreads are competitive based on tests, starting from 0.1 pips on majors like the EUR/USD.	IBKR presents an extensive range of over 100 major, minor, and exotic forex pairs, surpassing the offerings of nearly all leading alternatives, though not CMC Markets. Forex trading occurs over multiple platforms and boasts institutional-grade spreads starting from 0.1 pips and 20 complex order types, including brackets, scale, and one-cancels-all (OCA) orders.
Forex App
IG offers a superb all-round trading app. One of the pioneers of mobile trading, the application has been developed and refined over many years, meaning it is now among the best trading apps. Quick response, user friendly layout, access to full charting and a stable and reliable application. Top marks.
GBPUSD Spread
0.9	0.08-0.20 bps x trade value
EURUSD Spread
0.8	0.08-0.20 bps x trade value
EURGBP Spread
0.9	0.08-0.20 bps x trade value
Assets
80+	100+
Currency Indices
USD
Cryptocurrency
IG's modest selection of 11 crypto CFDs trails top crypto brokers like Vantage which offers 40+ tokens. That said, it stands out with its crypto index, which tracks the value of the top 10 digital currencies by market cap and provides a holistic way to speculate on the value of the crypto market.	IBKR lets you purchase and hold Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin at competitive commission rates and without needing a crypto wallet. Additionally, there is a range of other diverse assets to explore, such as crypto indices like the NYSE Bitcoin Index, as well as futures contracts like the BAKKT Bitcoin Futures.
Spread
Variable	0.12%-0.18%
Coins
BTC BCH LTC ETH ADA DOT DOGE LINK UNI XLM	BTC LTC ETH XRP
Crypto Lending
No	No
Crypto Mining
No	No
Crypto Staking
No	No
Auto Market Maker
No	No

Review	Review
Forex trading involves risk. Losses can exceed deposits.