Regulated, Tested, & Trusted
2,812 users chose this broker via ChooseBestBroker
Summary
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a regulated & trusted broker that offers low fees, wide product variety & global market access.
Interactive Brokers was established in 1978 and is considered one of the most-trusted brokers in the world.
IBKR offers wide selection of services & assets from global exchanges. It offers multiple trading platforms with advanced research tools & strong functionality.
For beginners, the IBKR Global Trader app makes it easy to start trading exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, options, and even cryptocurrency (for IBKR USA & UK users). More advanced traders, on the other hand, can take advantage of the powerful features in Trader Workstation.
However, there are a couple of downsides too. To name a few, opening an account can be a little overwhelming, especially for new investors. Additionally, customer service isn’t quick to respond.
Still, Interactive Brokers remains our #1 pick overall and is the highest-rated broker at ChooseBestBroker.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Low fees | Difficult account setup |
| Global market access & Product variety | Products & services feel overwhelming |
| Wide range of powerful research tools | Slow customer support |
| Strong regulation & Safety | Complicated fee structure |
Trading fees
Interactive Brokers is known for its low trading fees and the lowest margin rates in the market. One big advantage is that Interactive Brokers pays up to 3.83% for idle USD cash balance if your account has at least $100,000 in net assets.
When compared Interactive Brokers fees to Saxo and DEGIRO – Interactive Brokers consistently came out with lower trading fees. In fact, IBKR’s US stock trading fees are less than half the industry average.
Here’s how Interactive Brokers structure their fees: under fixed pricing, you pay $0.005 per share, with a $1 minimum and a cap at 1% of the trade’s value. US clients on the Lite plan don’t pay anything at all. Meanwhile, IBKR Pro clients benefit from SMART routing, which constantly scans competing markets to find the best available price and execution.
When it comes to margin rates, Interactive Brokers is always offering the lowest interest in the market. Their tiered structure starts as low as 4.83% on IBKR Pro. Pro customers get some of the most competitive rates in the market, while Lite users pay more — the markup is 2.5% versus just 0.5%–1.5% for Pro users.
Options trading is also very affordable. US stock index option fees are about half the market average: on the Lite plan, it’s $0.65 per contract (with a $1 minimum), while Pro users can get contracts as low as $0.15.
Interactive Brokers charge no inactivity or deposit fees, and there’s no account fee either. Withdrawals are free once a month, with a small charge afterward ($10 per USD withdrawal).
| Pros | Cons |
| Low trading fees | Average CFD trading fees |
| No trading fees for US & Singaporean clients | Average Forex trading fees |
| Lowest margin rates | $10 withdrawal fee after the first free withdrawal |
Deposit & Withdrawal
Interactive Brokers supports a wide range of account base currencies and allows one free withdrawal per month. The downside is that withdrawals can only be made via bank transfer to the bank account under your name.
The good news is that Interactive Brokers doesn’t charge any deposit fees.
That said, deposit options are limited. You can’t use debit/credit cards to deposit money to your investment account. For clients based in the USA, there are more choices, including ACH transfers and cheques.
Standard bank transfers can take a few business days, and deposits/withdrawals must always come from/to an account in your name.
The first withdrawal each month is free, but additional withdrawals come with a fee. Again, most clients will need to use bank wires, although US customers can also withdraw through ACH or cheque. Cheque withdrawals are available in USD and carry a $4 fee.
We tested withdrawal speed and got the money deposited to my bank account in 1 working day.
Safety
Interactive Brokers is headquartered in the U.S. and was founded in 1978, Interactive Brokers has weathered more than four decades of market ups and downs — including multiple global stock market crashes. It is a publicly listed company on NASDAQ and has been recently included in the S&P 500 index further highlights its size, transparency, and reliability.
Interactive Brokers is regulated by multiple major financial authorities as it has branches all around the world.
it is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the USA; the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom, Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC), the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO), the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI), Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in Hong Kong, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
Talking about your investment protection, Interactive Brokers operates globally through several entities, so the level of investor protection depends on which Interactive Brokers entity you’re registered under. Usually clients are attributed to the specific branch depending on their country of residence.
For example, Interactive Brokers LLC (USA) clients’ investments are protected up to $500,000. While Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited (Ireland) clients’ investments are protected only up to €20,000.
Being publicly traded means Interactive Brokers must publish audited financial statements, which makes this company transparent. Combined with oversight of the largest regulators, these factors make this broker one of the safest brokers out there.
Account opening
Opening an investment account with Interactive Brokers is entirely digital, and there’s no minimum deposit required.
While Interactive Brokers is the most popular broker worldwide, one major downside in registration process is that the process can be lengthy and somewhat complicated, with account verification taking longer than expected. It takes a few business days for the to verify your information and provided documents.
Interactive Brokers is available in nearly every country worldwide, except for a few regions with unstable socio-economical regulations, such as North Korea.
The minimum deposit at Interactive Brokers is $0, but if you want to trade on margin or short-sell stocks, you’ll need at least $2,000 in your account. Also, if you want to open a portfolio margin account then your minimum balance should be $100,000.
Account types
Interactive Brokers offers a wide variety of account types, divided mainly into two categories: Individual accounts (for personal traders and investors) and Institutional accounts (for companies, funds, and organizations).
Individual traders can pick from several options. For example, U.S. clients can open IRA accounts, while all clients can choose between Cash, Reg T Margin, or Portfolio Margin accounts.
A Cash account is generally the best option for new traders. Cash account means that you are buying stocks with your deposited cash balance only, without using any margin (loans). Margin accounts come with stricter requirements and potential risks like margin calls, where your positions can be liquidated if your balance drops too low. Cash accounts, on the other hand, don’t have margin calls as you buy securities only with the cash you deposited.
IBKR Lite vs. IBKR Pro
Only IBKR Pro is offered for traders located other than US or Singapore. For traders located in the U.S. or Singapore, IBKR offers two plans to select from: IBKR Lite and IBKR Pro.
- IBKR Lite is best for new traders, offering commission-free trading for US stocks & ETFs;
- IBKR Pro is best for advanced traders and professional investors, providing advanced tools and access to global markets with lowers margin and trading fees.
How to Open an Account
As mentioned previously, account opening on Interactive Brokers can be a frustrating task as it is not user-friendly. You’ll start by filling out your personal information, answering questions about your trading experience, and selecting your preferred account type.
Additionally, you will need to provide proof of identity (passport or driver’s license) and proof of address (bank statement, utility bill, credit card statement).
It usually takes around 2-3 business days to review your provided documents and active your IBKR account.
Mobile App
Interactive Brokers actually has released three mobile trading apps, all available for both iOS and Android devices:
- IBKR GlobalTrader App: This is the most popular app which we recommend to use, especially if you’re just getting started with Interactive Brokers. It is intuitive and user-friendly. It delivers a smooth trading experience that covers the needs of most users;
- IBKR Mobile App: This is the original application from Interactive Brokers. It gives you access to the widest range of tradable assets. However, it is not as user-friendly as IBKR GlobalTrader app. It is more complex, which might make it less suitable for beginner traders and investors;
- IMPACT App: This is the least popular app from Interactive Brokers offering. It is designed for investors who care about environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. This application is simple and focused on sustainable investing.
Overall, IBKR GlobalTrader app stands out for its design and user-experience. It looks and feels better than the older IBKR Mobile app and just looks more like a modern application offered by other major brokers.
Desktop platform
Interactive Brokers’ desktop platform is called IBKR Desktop. That’s a refreshed and modernized trading platform that replaces the Trader Workstation (TWS) as the go-to desktop platform for Interactive Brokers users.
While it carries over much of TWS’s functionality, IBKR Desktop offers a more streamlined, faster, and visually polished interface.
What stood out most were the intuitive charting tools and advanced stock screeners. The charting experience feels a lot like TradingView — sleek, responsive, and customizable — but with an edge: you can perform multi-timeframe analysis for free, a feature TradingView only offers in its paid plans.
That said, some of the more complex tools — like algorithmic trading or certain portfolio management functions — remain exclusive to TWS. These features are mainly used by professionals and institutional clients.
The desktop platform supports multiple languages and delivers an excellent user experience overall. Despite having tons of features, the design is still very intuitive and beginner friendly, making it suitable for both beginners and advanced traders.
Additional plus is that you can customize the layout according to your preferences. You can now freely adjust tabs, resize windows, and create your own workspace setups.
Key features
- IBKR Desktop offers a lot of trading tools: Portfolio, Watchlist, Advanced Charts, Options Chains, Level 2 Market Depth;
- Enhanced Global Search that allows faster access to assets & platform functions;
- Recently released “Investment Themes” feature that helps you discover new opportunities based on market trends;
- Improved translations and language support for global clients.
Security is top-notch on IBKR Desktop. It uses two-factor authentication which sends a push notification to your mobile app when logging in.
The search functionality is very fast, well-organized and user-friendly too. When you search for an instrument, it shows all available product types — for example, whether it’s a stock, stock CFD, or option.
Product selection
Interactive Brokers offers exceptional product selection, especially when it comes to ETFs and bonds. This broker even supports a few more exotic instruments, such as warrants and structured products — something most brokers don’t offer. The only area where IBKR loses against compared to competitors is in its selection of FX pairs and CFDs. It is important to mention that the final product availability depends on your country of residence.
Interactive Brokers gives traders and investors access to 160+ global exchanges, covering everything from major markets to smaller ones. The broker also offers alternative investment options like Interactive Advisors, a hybrid robo-advisory and social trading service.
Another standout feature is Overnight Trading Hours, which provides access to 10,000+ US stocks and ETFs, including the CBOE SPX Suite of Index Options. Traders can buy and sell US equities 24 hours a day, five days a week, and overnight trading is also available for certain stock and ETF CFDs.
Stocks & ETFs
Interactive Brokers gives you access to more stock markets than any other broker. You can trade on major exchanges like the NASDAQ, NYSE, and LSE, as well as smaller ones such as the Warsaw Stock Exchange or the Mexican markets.
Interactive Brokers offers over 13,000 ETFs, which is a very large selection compared to other brokers. The platform also supports fractional shares for both US and European stocks and ETFs, plus those listed on Toronto Stock Exchange and CBOE Canada. This feature lets investors buy small portions of expensive stocks and build diversified portfolios even with modest capital.
Interactive Brokers also provides a strong lineup of forex pairs, giving traders access to most of the currencies they would want to trade.
Cryptocurrencies
Interactive Brokers offers several ways to trade cryptocurrencies: BTC & ETH ETNs on traditional exchanges; Bitcoin futures on CME Group; and Spot cryptocurrencies (BTC, ETH, Cardano, Dogecoin, Litecoin, Ripple, Solana, Avalanche) through Paxos and Zero Hash (for US clients).