Best Stock Brokers Guide
Updated December 01, 2021
Stock Brokers
A stockbroker is an individual or firm who provides services to facilitate the buying and selling of shares of stock in the stock market. A stockbroker, in general terms, is a financial advisor, investment counsellor, trading agent, or, more generally, a wealth manager, investment analyst, or wealth builder. The appropriate regulatory body licenses them in their particular area of expertise. There are many types of stockbrokers available today.
Full-service stockbrokers can handle various investments, including securities transactions, mortgage loans, purchasing stocks, mutual funds, and more. The full-service brokerage firms are also able to handle stock exchange (exchange rate) related issues. Most individuals think about the types of stockbrokers when looking for a full-service brokerage firm.
What Do Stock Brokers Do?
Most stockbrokers will offer assistance for new investors, but there are a select few who specialise only in the stock market and only offer trading advice. These brokers are usually very experienced in their field but may not have the knowledge and experience to help someone beat the market. Trading specific stocks through these brokerage firms allows investors the flexibility they need to manage their stocks properly. New investors and traders should only seek advice from a stockbroker who has years of experience dealing with the stock market.
Investors should understand the best online stock brokers for online trading. There are hundreds of online stock brokers available who can assist with day to day trading. Some online stock brokers specialize in fast trading while others are well known for their advanced trading platform. Stock Brokers has gained popularity as more investors have become savvy and aware of how the stock market works. It is important to use a stock broker who is well versed in the ins and outs of the stock market and knows how to analyze trends and changes in the market. Since time tends to fly by, investors want the ability to execute quick trades without waiting on the sidelines for the market to catch up.
What Is A Stockbroker?
A stockbroker is a financial professional who facilitates the buying and selling shares of stock or other securities in the stock market. In general, a stockbroker is licensed to provide investment advice to individuals and corporations. Their services include buying, selling, trading, and advising on mergers and acquisitions. A stockbroker can also give educational and motivational advice.
A good stockbroker will be well versed in a wide variety of investment positions and prepared to advise their clients on the most suitable investments for their needs. It can be an extremely time-consuming task for some individuals. For this reason, many business owners turn to a professional broker to take care of the complex tasks involved. By using a broker to manage their investments, business owners can run their businesses and care for their staff.
If you are considering stock market investments, then make sure you hire a professional stockbroker to manage your investments. There are many benefits to investing through a broker, including reaching many people at one time. There are also advantages to using a stockbroker for your short term and long term stock market investments. Many brokers have a large selection of investment products, making it very easy for clients to find the type of security they are looking for. The only disadvantage of using a stockbroker's services is that they sometimes charge a fee for the advice they provide.
Understanding The Role Of A Stockbroker
There are many types of stockbrokers, and the most common is the discount broker. To be a stockbroker in the United States, you have to hold a commission in the commission marketplace. This marketplace includes discount and full-service brokers and proprietary stockbrokers. A discount stockbroker has no direct interaction with clients and serves only as an independent agent for their affiliated brokerage firm.
Discount Brokers - These are the lowest-paid stockbrokers in the industry. They are typically hired by individual traders or large institutions such as hedge funds. The commission they receive from these trades is a small portion of what they earn on each trade. Many discount brokers work exclusively for one particular firm. They may also work as independent or partial stockbrokers for several different firms. As a discount broker, they may not provide any services to individuals.
Full-Service Brokers - These full-service brokers have the same access to institutional investors as their discount counterparts but at a much higher pay scale. These brokers can conduct buy and sell transactions on your behalf and not charge fees until their commission is due. As a full-service broker, you will have a wide range of investment options and have the opportunity to establish your own proprietary trading platform. Full-service brokers are not associated with an anyone brokerage firm.
Requirements For Stockbrokers
Requirements for stockbrokers include a background in the marketplace. They must have an accredited degree related to the investment industry. Additionally, a minimum of five years of experience with securities exchanges is also required. Most full-service brokerages and firms will conduct a credit check and review of their prospective employees before offering them the job.
All investors in the United States must be members of the Security Exchange and Commission (SEC). There are various other requirements specific to different states and brokers. For instance, shareholders are required to have a minimum of one share of any security. In addition to requirements for investors, many countries and provinces have their own rules and regulations about stockbrokers. These rules and regulations vary from the SEC requirements. They often include a mandate for brokers to maintain minimum qualifications, restrictions on their activities, and reporting and filing information with the appropriate provincial government.
Full Service Brokerage Firms
Full service brokerage firms provide advice and recommendations on stocks and the companies that buy and sell them. These brokers are registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and have to follow the same guidelines as other brokers. This means that these brokers cannot engage in transactions that might have a direct effect on their clients. This is why full-service brokers are usually recommended over independent agents.
Many investors find it easier to conduct their stock trading with the use of mobile apps. Investors that have an app can instantly access market data and can also analyze charts and other information that are pertinent to them. The availability of the mobile app allows investors to make better choices, which results in higher returns on their investments. Since most brokers now provide an easy-to-use mobile app, investors can now enjoy investing through their smartphones.
Investing for beginners requires them to learn the ropes with the help of full-service brokers. However, there are a lot of discount brokers that offer free services for beginners and can aid them in learning how the stock market works. In addition, these brokers can also offer advice for novice traders that can significantly help in their success. However, since most full-service brokers have their own websites, it is difficult for beginners to learn more about the industry.
When choosing stock brokers on the web the first thing to consider is their reviews.
It is important to read reviews and collect feedback from their clients, if possible.
The next is to understand their features and know which are helpful to your style of investing.
Furthermore, the trading commissions should be reasonable and competitive. More cost means a good share of profit from your trading activity could be lost.
The stability and speed of a trading platform plays important role in trading and it is suggested to use one of the latest and regulated ones.
Traders should deal with stock brokers who provide state-of-the-art trading platforms.
As an investor in shares and stocks finding a reliable reputable stock broker is essential. Finding the best stock brokers in the industry is not an easy task. Here we discuss what to look for when picking a stock broker. We list a few things your broker should have before you deposit and money and trade.
Choosing an Online Stock Broker
In general online stock brokers are relatively safe. But there are individuals who have become victims of cyber criminals who have gained access to their brokerage accounts and drained them of their investor funds. Most reputable online stock brokers provide enhanced security measures, including encryption, firewalls, and other added security measures, to keep your funds safe and secure from hackers. Still, the sad reality is that a small percentage of online stock brokers are reckless enough to let their customers' information is used by unscrupulous 'skimming' criminals. These criminals may obtain information from your investment firm or bank account, including your social security number, date of birth, address, phone number, and more.
Regulation And Reputation
To be sure that you are working with a reputable and reliable online stock broker, you should read up on his or her track record and the types of investments that they offer. For example, you should ask questions about how much experience the stock broker has, what types of investments they are most successful with, how they respond to concerns about their products or services, etc. Additionally, you should be aware of any restrictions or caps that the online broker has put on their investments and / or the amount of money allowed to be invested per month. As well, it would be wise to contact other investors in the industry and find out how they have benefited from their use of the particular online stock broker.
How to Choose the Best Online Stock Broker
Since the internet is full of online stock brokers, you should consider the factors that will affect your decision. For instance, you should find out if the particular broker charges a fee for each type of service that they provide, or if you simply pay a flat-fee fee for all of the services that you need. Additionally, you may be able to get better deals if you use a discount broker rather than full service stock brokers. Finally, you may want to consider the amount of research time and effort you will have to invest in order to be successful with your investments.
Researching Your Investments
Many online stock brokers offer free research services where you can view charts of the various stocks that they offer, as well as information and data related to trends in the market. Unfortunately, many brokers do not provide this same information to their clients. Therefore, it is necessary for you to do your own research in order to determine which stocks are currently performing the best. While many online brokers offer a wide selection of stocks and options for you to choose from, you should be sure that the research that you receive is as unbiased as possible. This is because different companies will typically have differing methods of determining the performance of their stocks.
Know Your Needs
Stock brokers are a very valuable asset to have on your side when it comes to buying and selling shares. However, there are many out there who want to take advantage of your need to know more about these things. For this reason, it is important that you understand the importance of choosing the right broker before you open an account. Since this is your money that is involved here, you need to be 100% confident in the decision you make. After all, you only get one chance to make a good one.
The first thing you need to know about your stock broker is his experience level. There is no point in choosing a broker who is new to the industry for you to trade in because even if he knows what he is doing, it is unlikely that you will learn any tricks from him. Instead, choose someone who has been trading in the market for quite some time. This will ensure that your transactions are secure and reliable because experience always brings with it the assurance that things will go as smoothly as possible.
You should also consider how much experience the broker has in the field. The more years he has been doing this, the more familiar he will be with the market operations. This is also an indication of the amount of knowledge that he holds which will translate into greater services for you when you transact.
Stock Brokers and Assessing Trading Costs
When looking into becoming a stockbroker, one of the first things you'll want to find out is how much you'll be charged. There are a variety of different types of fees that can be charged, so it's important to know which type applies to your situation. Some types of fees that can be included with trading stocks are known as 'brokerage' fees, and include such things as a commission (this fee is charged per transaction, not on a regular schedule), and other charges. You may also be required to pay an annual or quarterly fee, depending on the firm you are dealing with.
Commission
The commission charged by a stockbroker varies depending on the company he works for. larger firms charge a minimum of one percent of all trades that are made, and some will charge up to two percent. If your trade results in a profit for you, that's great! However, if your trade results in losses for your brokerage firm, you will be charged the full commission, no matter what the outcome of your transaction was.
Brokerage Fee
This is one fee you will definitely have to pay when dealing with a brokerage firm. This fee is simply a fee that is charged for the service of maintaining your account. It's basically an investment to pay your broker every time you make a trade and receive your money back. Most brokers will expect you to maintain an account with them for a minimum of six months, so make sure you can commit to paying this fee.
Initial Fee
This fee is charged to you before the stockbroker starts to manage your account. Although this fee isn't normally included in your transaction cost, it's worth checking out just to be sure. It's also usually the most expensive fee that a stockbroker charges you, but there's no reason to spend more than you have to. This fee will be due when you first open your account. You will need to add this fee into your total transaction cost before paying out any commissions.
Trade Commission
This is another fee you will need to pay when working with a stock broker. It is the commission that you will be paid by the stockbroker after they have made their sale of the shares of stock you own. This is generally pretty low, depending on which stockbroker you choose. Many people are unaware that they are actually entitled to a certain amount of money when making a trade. Most companies don't pay out as much as they're supposed to, and a lot of investors get cheated out of a few dollars by the companies. To be properly protected, you should always ask for the trade commission when working with a new stockbroker.
This is a competitive era and many stock brokers offer zero-dollar brokerage costs to trade shares.
They earn from the spread, platform fee, market data fee or routing fee. This is the reason the traders are suggested to first understand the format of fees collected by stock brokers.
Test The Brokers Platform
With the advent of the Internet, many investors are now choosing to utilize a Stock Broker's Platform as opposed to hiring a full-service broker. Full service brokers have more expertise and are able to perform a wider range of tasks such as execution trades, market trends analysis, advice on specific investments, as well as managing customer transactions. However, with the availability of Stock Brokers on the Internet it is now possible for the individual investor to take advantage of the full potential of a Stock Broker without having to hire an extensive amount of professional services. The Stock Broker's Platform is one of the best platforms that offer the investor the ability to perform a multitude of tasks. This is made possible by the use of a web-based interface which allows for the easy navigation of client accounts.
Most of the Stock Brokers provide a number of different platforms. These include but not limited to: Trading, Research, Self-Directed and Full Service Brokers. Each platform has its own set of benefits and drawbacks. Many investors tend to opt for the Full Service Brokers as they believe this type of Broker offers extensive services and advantages. However, many Full Service Brokers has limited or no customer service support. Most investors need to have their questions answered within a 24 hour time frame.
The Trading Platform is the backbone of all Forex Trading Platforms. The Stock Broker has to be fast, accurate and flexible to be at par with the fast moving market trends. Many of the new Forex Traders choose the Stockbroker's platforms which allow them to trade in the foreign exchange market using their preferred currencies. This allows the trader the ability to trade from anywhere in the world and at any time.
Stock Brokers Trading Platform
Dealing with online stock brokers mean relying mostly on their trading platforms, which are categorized into three forms - web version, a desktop version and mobile versions.
The trading tools are highly helpful to clients while trading and some of the important features to discuss here include advanced charting, virtual trading, hotkeys, scanning, backtesting, ladder trading and so on.
Stock Brokers and Services
Stock brokers offer more than just options and stock trading. They offer ETFs, futures, mutual funds and even Forex.
Ease Of Moving Funds
Stock Broker Ease of transferring funds: This is a very important factor. A Stock Broker plays an important role in the transfer of funds from one financial institution to another. They have their offices in many places across the country and can easily be reached through phone, fax, email, or their website. The most common types of financial transactions made by Stock Brokers are stock purchase and sale. Other financial transactions that a Stock Broker may help with include fund transfer, investment securities, option transactions, and foreign exchange (Forex) transactions.
What if I need to transfer funds to an Index Certificate or other type of financial investment? When you want to transfer money between accounts, you should talk with the people you are using to transfer the funds to make sure that they will accept the funding. Most stock brokers will accept funds between several accounts. However, you should read all of the terms and conditions for each type of financial investment before you transfer. Some types of investments, like index certificates, are subject to specific minimum distributions.
Stock Brokers and Customer Service Support
All the online stock brokers offer customer service support but it is important to know whether they are available 24/7.
For international clients, it is important the customer service support should be throughout the day and night due to differences in time zones.
The brokerage team should answer emails within a day or two even faster preferably to any serious queries.
Stock Research
Even though stock brokers have all the knowledge about stocks, it is important for traders to do some research, both fundamental and technical.
In fundamental research, traders can explore metrics of the companies like earnings per share, earnings growth, sales growth, debt and market capitalization.
In technical research, the traders learn about reading stock charts and analyze the price performance. This helps in predicting the price direction.
Stock Brokers and Regulation
It is important that stock brokers should be regulated by a regulatory authority.
In the United States they are governed by the SEC and added to this they need to be members of the SIPC as well as FINRA.
In the UK Stock brokers are regulated by the FCA. The FCA is short hand for Financial Conduct Authority of the United Kingdom.
In Australia stock brokers are regulated by ASIC. ASIC is short hand for Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
In South Africa stock brokers are overseen by The FSCA of South Africa.
To find out whether the stock brokers are regulated, it is suggested to look at the footer of their website to read disclosures.
They can also be verified from the website of the regulatory authorities from which they are licensed.
Safety and Security
Safety and security are important in online trading. Well known stock brokers provide the best in the industry safety and security to clients.
Their websites are SSL encrypted, which means the transactions are processed without revealing login and payment credentials to anyone.
Stock Broker Account Opening Criteria
Some stock brokers will require a minimum deposit from you. Minimum deposits average between $100 - $200. Dont be put off by the minimum deposit. As long as your broker is reputable and well regulated.
Brokers that have a minimum deposit may offer more trading features that you might find useful. Do your own research. If you are lucky, some stock brokers may even open your account without a minimum deposit.
Please note that brokers have a minimum deposit amount which is required to open a trading account. But there is another minimum stock or share trading amount. So you might not be able to spend 50 cents or 50p on shares for example.
Stock Broker Fees and Commissions
If any individual or firm claims to be the best stock broker, try to find out what commissions or fees are being charged. Find out how often the charges are taken from you. Currently, most stock brokers are in the race of reducing commissions and fees, but they try to make back the money in other ways. They ask for commissions or fees on each trade and this may become costly to you. A genuine stock broker will always justify the charges competitively without asking too much or too little.
Reduce Risk
Diversification reduces risks. This means if your money is invested in several assets, there are fewer chances of losing more than earning.
Investing with a Stock Broker
Once you have selected a well-established stock broker it is important to decide what amount you are comfortable with investing. Never invest more than you can afford to lose. The financial markets go down and well as up. Also with use of broker financial tools you should decide whether to invest in individual stock or spread your investment over several shares.
Investors need to decide if they are invest for the long term, say for about a period of 25 or 30 years. Know how much is to be invested into stocks and how much in bond funds.
If your investment criteria are short term, it is better to opt for short-term investments. Stocks are thought of as more longer term investments. Forex and CFD trading and seen as short term investments due to Forex and CFD having more fluctuating markets.
Trading for Beginners
If you are a beginner and want to make money by trading in financial markets, it is highly recommended that you register with multiple stock brokers and make full use of every educational resource the brokers offer.
You need to dedicate much time in researching and analyzing the market trend to avoid missing opportunities of buying at a lower price and selling at a higher price and making a loss.
You can make fewer loses if your strategy is a diversified investment and invested over a longer term. Please do your own research and make you know what you are doing before trading on live markets.
Stock Brokers Verdict
While choosing stock brokers it is important to deal with one who is regulated by a regulatory authority and provides state-of-the-art trading platform.
Read reviews of brokers so it is easier to know who is comparatively better.
We've collected thousands of datapoints and written a guide to help you find the best Stock Brokers for you. We hope this guide helps you find a reputable broker that matches what you need. We list the what we think are the best stock brokers below.
Reputable Stock Brokers Checklist
There are a number of important factors to consider when picking an online Stock trading brokerage.
- Check your Stock broker has a history of at least 2 years.
- Check your Stock broker has a reasonable sized customer support of at least 15.
- Does the Stock broker fall under regulation from a jurisdiction that can hold a broker responsible for its misgivings; or at best play an arbitration role in case of bigger disputes.
- Check your Stock broker has the ability to get deposits and withdrawals processed within 2 to 3 days. This is important when withdrawing funds.
- Does your Stock broker have an international presence in multiple countries. This includes local seminar presentations and training.
- Make sure your Stock can hire people from various locations in the world who can better communicate in your local language.
Our team have listed brokers that match your criteria for you below. All brokerage data has been summarised into a comparison table. Scroll down.
Our brokerage comparison table below allows you to compare the below features for brokers offering Stock Brokers.
We compare these features to make it easier for you to make a more informed choice.
- Minimum deposit to open an account.
- Available funding methods for the below Stock Brokers.
- What you are able to trade with each brokerage.
- Trading Platforms offered by these brokers.
- Spread type (if applicable) for each brokerage.
- Customer support levels offered.
- We show if each brokerage offers Micro, Standard, VIP and Islamic accounts.
Top 15 Stock Brokers of 2021 compared
Here are the top Stock Brokers.
Compare Stock Brokers min deposits, regulation, headquarters, benefits, funding methods and fees side by side.
All brokers below are stock brokers. Learn more about what they offer below.
You can scroll left and right on the comparison table below to see more stock brokers that accept stock clients
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eToro
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XTB
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IC Markets
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AvaTrade
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Roboforex
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Pepperstone
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XM
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FP Markets
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Plus500
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FXPrimus
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EasyMarkets
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| Regulation | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Markets In Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), FCA number FRN 522157, Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), CySEC Licence Number: 169/12, Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores, Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego, Belize International Financial Services Commission (IFSC) under license number IFSC/60/413/TS/19, Polish Securities and Exchange Commission (KPWiG), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC),Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), XTB AFRICA (PTY) LTD licensed to operate in South Africa | Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Financial Services Authority (FSA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) | Central Bank of Ireland, Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), ASIC (406684), Financial Services Authority (FSA), South African Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), Financial Stability Board (FSB), The Financial Services Agency (JAPAN FSA), Financial Futures Association of Japan (FFAJ), Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM), Financial Regulatory Services Authority (FRSA), Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF), Israel Securities Association (ISA), British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (BVI), BVI (SIBA/L/13/1049) | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Capital Markets Authority of Kenya (CMA), Pepperstone Markets Limited is incorporated in The Bahamas (number 177174 B), Licensed by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB) number SIA-F217 | International Financial Services Commission (IFSC), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) | Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) | Plus500UK Ltd authorized & regulated by the FCA (#509909), Plus500CY Ltd authorized & regulated by CySEC (#250/14), Plus500AU Pty Ltd (ACN 153301681), ASIC in Australia AFSL #417727, FMA in New Zealand, FSP #486026 and Authorised Financial Services Provider in South Africa FSP #47546 | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Markets In Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) |
| Min Deposit | 50 | No minimum deposit | 200 | 100 | 1 | 200 | 5 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
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| Used By | 20,000,000+ | 250,000+ | 180,000+ | 300,000+ | 10,000+ | 89,000+ | 3,500,000+ | 10,000+ | 15,500+ | 10,000+ | 142,500+ |
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| Platforms | Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, Mirror Trader, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, Mirror Trader, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, Mac | Web Trader, MT4, MT5, AvaTradeGo, AvaOptions, DupliTrade, ZuluTrade, Mobile Apps, ZuluTrade, DupliTrade, MQL5 | MT4, MT5, Mac, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, Mac, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, Mac, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, IRESS, Mac, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, Mac, Mirror Trader, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps |
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| Learn More |
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Up with etoro |
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Up with xtb |
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Up with icmarkets |
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Up with avatrade |
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Up with roboforex |
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Up with pepperstone |
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Up with xm |
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Up with fpmarkets |
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Up with plus500 |
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Up with fxprimus |
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Up with easymarkets |
| Risk Warning | 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. | 74% 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. | Losses can exceed deposits | 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider | Losses can exceed deposits | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 79.3% 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 | Your capital is at risk | Losses can exceed deposits | 72% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. | Losses can exceed deposits | Your capital is at risk |
| Demo |
eToro Demo |
XTB Demo |
IC Markets Demo |
AvaTrade Demo |
Roboforex Demo |
Pepperstone Demo |
XM Demo |
FP Markets Demo |
Plus500 Demo |
FXPrimus Demo |
easyMarkets Demo |
| Excluded Countries | ZA, ID, IR, KP, BE, CA, JP, SY, TR, IL, BY, AL, MD, MK, RS, GN, CD, SD, SA, ZW, ET, GH, TZ, LY, UG, ZM, BW, RW, TN, SO, NA, TG, SL, LR, GM, DJ, CI, PK, BN, TW, WS, NP, SG, VI, TM, TJ, UZ, LK, TT, HT, MM, BT, MH, MV, KZ, GD, FJ, BB, BM, BS, AG, AI, AW, LB, SV, US, PY, HN, GT, PR, NI, VG, AN, | US, IN, PK, BD, NG , ID, BE, AU | AF, GN, SL, BW, IR, SY, MM, IQ, TG, KH, LS, YE, CI , LR, ZW, CU, LY, TZ, CG, ML, BO, LR, NE, AO, GM, NG, AG, GH, KR, KG, GN, SN, NA | BE, BR, KP, NZ, TR, US, CA, SG | US, JP | BR, KR, IR, IQ, SY, JP, US | US, CA, IL, KR, IR, MM, CU, SD, SY | US, JP, NZ | MY, BE, US, CA, CN, ID, PH, TG, NG, DO, MA, ZW, PR, TZ, TN, UG, BW, AO, AE | AF, CI, CU, IQ, IR, LY, MM, KR, SD, PR, US, AU, SY, DZ, JP, EC. | US |
eToro Risk Disclosure
eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and cryptoassets, as well as trading CFDs.
Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 67% 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.
Past performance is not an indication of future results.
Cryptoassets are volatile instruments which can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading cryptoassets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework.
eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.
All Stock brokers in more detail
You can compare Stock Brokers ratings, min deposits what the the broker offers, funding methods, platforms, spread types, customer support options, regulation and account types side by side.
We also have an indepth Top Stock Brokers for 2021 article further below. You can see it now by clicking here
We have listed top Stock brokers below.
Stock Brokers Table of Contents
- Stock Brokers Explained
- 6 Factors to Consider when Choosing Stock Brokers
- Are Your Stock Brokers Trusted And Established?
- Are The Stock Brokers World Leading?
- What are the Stock Brokers Commissions and Fees?
- What are the Stock Brokers Funding and Withdrawl Methods?
- Find Stock Brokers with Round-the-clock support?
- Make sure the Stock Brokers Offer Comprehensive Trader resources?
- Why Stock Brokers needs to be regulated?
- Stock Brokers FAQ
- What are the best Stock brokers?
- What is the best Stoc broker?
- Related Stock Brokers Reviews
- Related Stock Brokers Alternatives
- Related Stock Brokers Comparisons
Stock Brokers Explained
Trading the financial markets with Stock Brokers when conditions are volatile can be difficult, even for experienced traders.
Apart from the educational and other resources made available online, another important factor for traders to consider when looking for Stock Brokers is the platform that a Stock Brokers offer.
Choose Stock Brokers that's at the forefront of innovation and generally considered an industry-leader.
To gain access to the financial markets, you'll need Stock Brokers that you can rely on.
6 Factors to Consider when Choosing Stock Brokers
Follow these five rules for selecting a broker that's right for you:
Are Your Stock Brokers Trusted And Established?
Look for a broker that has a good track record/longevity in the market so that your strategy is your primary concern for navigating the markets. The top rated Stock broker is eToro. Established in 2007, and in operation for 14 years eToro have a head office in Cyprus, UK.
eToro is regulated. This means eToro are supervised by and is checked for conduct by Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Markets In Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) regulatory bodies.
Another top rated broker is XTB.
XTB was established 2002, and in operation for 16 years XTB have a head office in Poland.
XTB is regulated. This means XTB are supervised by and is checked for conduct by Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Markets In Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) regulatory bodies.
| Broker |
eToro
|
XTB
|
IC Markets
|
AvaTrade
|
Roboforex
|
Pepperstone
|
| Year Established | 2007 | 2002 | 2007 | 2006 | 2009 | 2010 |
| Head Office | Cyprus, UK | Poland | Australia | Ireland | Cyprus | Australia |
| Regulation | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Markets In Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), FCA number FRN 522157, Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), CySEC Licence Number: 169/12, Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores, Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego, Belize International Financial Services Commission (IFSC) under license number IFSC/60/413/TS/19, Polish Securities and Exchange Commission (KPWiG), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC),Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), XTB AFRICA (PTY) LTD licensed to operate in South Africa | Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Financial Services Authority (FSA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) | Central Bank of Ireland, Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), ASIC (406684), Financial Services Authority (FSA), South African Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), Financial Stability Board (FSB), The Financial Services Agency (JAPAN FSA), Financial Futures Association of Japan (FFAJ), Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM), Financial Regulatory Services Authority (FRSA), Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF), Israel Securities Association (ISA), British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (BVI), BVI (SIBA/L/13/1049) | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) | Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Capital Markets Authority of Kenya (CMA), Pepperstone Markets Limited is incorporated in The Bahamas (number 177174 B), Licensed by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB) number SIA-F217 |
| Used By | 20,000,000+ | 250,000+ | 180,000+ | 300,000+ | 10,000+ | 89,000+ |
| Negative balance protection | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Guaranteed Stop Loss | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Learn More | Visit eToro | Visit XTB | Visit IC Markets | Visit AvaTrade | Visit Roboforex | Visit Pepperstone |
| Risk Warning | 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. | 74% 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. | Losses can exceed deposits | 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider | Losses can exceed deposits | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 79.3% 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 |
Are The Stock Brokers World Leading?
Choose a broker that's at the forefront of innovation and generally considered an industry-leader. eToro Segregates clients funds and offers over 2000 instruments. eToro offers both an online trading platform as well as a mobile platform giving clients easy access to markets.
In addition, the eToro platform enables access to a variety of financial markets worldwide. eToro is a world-leader when it comes to innovation and they are always looking at ways to improve and to maintain their competitive advantage.
Another good choice when looking for Stock Brokers is XTB . XTB Segregates clients funds and offers over 4000 instruments.
| Broker |
eToro
|
XTB
|
IC Markets
|
AvaTrade
|
Roboforex
|
Pepperstone
|
| Instruments Available | 2000 | 4000 | 232 | 1250 | 100 | 100 |
| Platforms | Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, Mirror Trader, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, Mirror Trader, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, Mac | Web Trader, MT4, MT5, AvaTradeGo, AvaOptions, DupliTrade, ZuluTrade, Mobile Apps, ZuluTrade, DupliTrade, MQL5 | MT4, MT5, Mac, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile apps | MT4, MT5, Mac, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile apps |
| Excluded Countries | ZA, IR, KP, BE, CA, JP, SY, TR, IL, BY, AL, MD, MK, RS, GN, CD, SD, SA, ZW, ET, GH, TZ, LY, UG, ZM, BW, RW, TN, SO, NA, TG, SL, LR, GM, DJ, CI, PK, BN, TW, WS, NP, SG, VI, TM, TJ, UZ, LK, TT, HT, MM, BT, MH, MV, KZ, GD, FJ, BB, BM, BS, AG, AI, AW, LB, SV, US, PY, HN, GT, PR, NI, VG, AN, | US, AU, CA, JP, KR, KP, SG, MU, IL, TR, IN, PK, BA, ET, UG, CU, SY, BD, NG, ID, BE, LY, MO, KE, YE, VU, GY, CD, CG, AF, LA, MZ, IQ, IR | US | BE, BR, KP, NZ, TR, US, CA, SG | US, JP | BR, KR, IR, IQ, SY, JP,US |
| Forex pairs offered | 50 | 57 | 65 | 55 | 35 | 70 |
| Forex pairs offered | 50 | 57 | 65 | 55 | 35 | 70 |
| Major forex pairs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Minor forex pairs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Exotic forex pairs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cryptocurrencies (availability subject to regulation) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Commodities Offered | 31 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 21 | 16 |
| Metals | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Energies | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Agricultural | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Stocks Offered | 2042 | 1696 | 110 | 1000 | 0 | 60 |
| UK Shares | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| US Shares | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| German Shares | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Japanese Shares | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
What are the Stock Brokers Commissions and Fees?
Ensure that your broker is transparent with fees and those dues are competitive.
The best rated Stock broker eToro offers competitive offers for Stocks, Commodities, Forex, CFDs, Social Trading, Indices, Cryptocurrency, Index Based Funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETF). eToro minimum deposit is 50.
Another top rated Stock broker XTB offers Forex, CFDs, Cryptocurrency. XTB minimum deposit is 0. Please note that any cryptocurrency availability with any broker is subject to regulation.
| Broker |
eToro
|
XTB
|
IC Markets
|
AvaTrade
|
Roboforex
|
Pepperstone
|
| Min Deposit | 50 | 0 | 200 | 100 | 1 | 200 |
| Withdrawl Fees | Yes | varies | No | No | Yes | No |
| Inactivity Fees | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Deposit Fees | No | No | Varies | No | No | No |
| CFD Commission Fees | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
What are the Stock Brokers Funding and Withdrawal Methods?
When dealing with Stock Brokers having convenient funding and withdrawl facilities makes the trading process and your trading experience smoother.
| Broker |
eToro
|
XTB
|
IC Markets
|
AvaTrade
|
Roboforex
|
Pepperstone
|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit Cards | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Paypal | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Skrill | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Payoneer | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Neteller | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Find Stock Brokers with Round-the-clock support?
Customer service is very important when dealing with Stock Brokers.
When investing and dealing with brokers customer support can be a range of customer services to assist customers in making cost effective and correct use the brokers services. It can include assistance in installation, training, troubleshooting, upgrading, and cancelation of a product or service.
Stock Brokers customer support can include Phone answering services, Live chat support and Email customer service support.
eToro support a wide range of languages including English, German, Spanish, French, Italian
XTB support a wide range of languages including English, Spanish, Czech, Chinese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, and Turkish
eToro and XTB offer support where clients are able to call or contact the helpdesk via email or a chat service.
| Broker |
eToro
|
XTB
|
IC Markets
|
AvaTrade
|
Roboforex
|
Pepperstone
|
| Support |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Languages | English, German, Spanish, French, Italian | English, Spanish, Czech, Chinese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, and Turkish | English, Japanese, Chinese, Polish, Afrikans, Danish, Dutch, German and more | Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Indonesian, Japanese, Mongolian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Malay, Korean and Turkish | English, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Indonesian, Malaysian, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Arabic, Thai, Russian, and Ukrainian | English, Spanish, Polish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Arabic |
| Learn More | Visit eToro | Visit XTB | Visit IC Markets | Visit AvaTrade | Visit Roboforex | Visit Pepperstone |
| Risk Warning | 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. | 74% 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. | Losses can exceed deposits | 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider | Losses can exceed deposits | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 79.3% 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 |
Make sure the Stock Brokers Offer Comprehensive Trader resources?
Make sure your broker offers free resources like analysis, education and risk-management tools. With a wealth of knowledge from top analysts, eToro and XTB work together to bring the latest news and insights to traders.
For most traders, the first – and sometimes only – concern is pursuing their 'edge'. While that is surely important, along with sound money management habits, to navigating the markets; that step alone does not represent the full preparation. As each trader dives into this important venture, it is important not to forget the most rudimentary yet crucial steps such as selecting the best broker to access the markets.
Why Stock Brokers needs to be regulated?
A regulated Stock broker lowers your risk.
Broker regulation protects consumers. Too little broker regulation can lead to poor services and possibly financial harm.
Stock brokers are regulated to stop fraud. The agent's working capital and clients funded account have to be separated. This amounts to fraud if client money is used to conduct the business. Regulation is required to make sure this does not happen.
Stock Brokers List
eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and cryptoassets, as well as trading CFDs.
Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 67% 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.
Past performance is not an indication of future results.
Cryptoassets are volatile instruments which can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading cryptoassets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework.
eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, Mirror Trader, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, MT5, Mirror Trader, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, MacCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
Web Trader, MT4, MT5, AvaTradeGo, AvaOptions, DupliTrade, ZuluTrade, Mobile Apps, ZuluTrade, DupliTrade, MQL5Customer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, MT5, Mac, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, MT5, Mac, ZuluTrade, Web Trader, cTrader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, MT5, Mac, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, MT5, IRESS, Mac, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Plus500 offer a 100% Free and Unlimited Demo account No Deposit fees/Commissions No hidden fees Competitive fees Tight Spreads
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
Funding methods
Bank transfer Credit Card PaypalPlatforms
MT4, Mac, Mirror Trader, Web Trader, Tablet & Mobile appsCustomer support
Live chat Phone support Email supportAccount Types
Micro account Standard account Islamic account VIP account
