eToro Versus Plus500: Which is best?

Based on our analysis, eToro is better than Plus500. eToro scores higher overall in all categories. However, there are some aspects of Plus500 that are better than eToro. I’ve been testing each broker for years, for our reviews, and both have come a long way over the past decade. In this guide I’ll tell you which broker we think is better for the major aspects of trading and investing.

Key Facts

• Both eToro and Plus500 were launched in 2007 as CFD and forex brokers.
• Plus500 has tighter commissions, but its limited focus on these high-risk products makes it unsuitable for any investors looking for more general or low-risk options.
• Plus 500 offers more currency pairs, more stocks and more and commodities than eToro.
• However, for a more comprehensive service, eToro has the edge. Unlike eToro, Plus500 also does not offer a copy trader option.
• For those looking for high-risk CFDs therefore, Plus500, would be the better option.
• However, those wanting a platform with more features and a more rounded investment approach will focus on eToro.

Pricing

Plus500 is actually much cheaper by quite a long way compared to eToro – Plus500 is a sort of discount broker, with variable spreads – whereas eToro is quite expensive. So Plus500 wins when it comes to pricing, although not because they are massively cheap, but because eToro is expensive. You do also have to consider that Plu500 has overnight funding, currency conversion, guaranteed stop order, and inactivity fees.

Market Access

Here eToro wins hands down, for two reasons. Firstly eToro offers more markets than Plus500, but they also offer more ways for you to trade them. Plus500 is just a trading platform where your only account type is CFDs (although if you are in the US you can trade futures). But with eToro you can choose to buy stocks as an investment in the long term where you don’t have to pay overnight financing on leveraged positions. This will save you a huge amount of money if you are an investor rather than a trader.

Platform & Apps

Both Plus500 and eToro have really easy-to-use trading platforms – they are a long way from the retail trading platforms that try and mimic professional deal screens. I think this is a really good thing for both. So many apps and platforms overcomplicate trading. Whereas in reality a trading platform or app should just be somewhere where you can go to push buy or sell.

Having said that more sophisticated traders will find the lack of features, order types and level-2 data a disappointment on both.

Between the two, I’d say eToro has a better trading platform compared to Plus500, mainly because of how user-friendly it is.

Research & Analysis

eToro definitely has a better research and analysis offering than Plus500. Plus500 hardly does any analysis and when it does it’s really bland client sentiment stuff. For some reason, they are happy to not show a personality or have any analysis on social media. eToro on the other hand has loads of videos, podcasts, and guides and they have just launched an educational course to help traders and investors improve.

Winner

eToro wins, despite being more expensive, they have a much more holistic offering compared to Plu500, especially for new or beginner traders who may also want to invest.