- Experts rate Interactive Brokers highly for indices trading, highlighting its low commissions, extensive market access, and a robust platform suitable for both beginners and advanced traders. They note that while customer service can be inconsistent, the platform offers a wealth of research and analysis tools, making it a strong choice for various trading needs.
- Across 1375 user reviews on Good Money Guide, averaging 4.6/5, customers frequently commend the platform's low fees, broad market access, and user-friendly interface. Many users appreciate the comprehensive tools and resources available, although some express concerns about the speed of customer support. Overall, the platform is seen as reliable and efficient for both novice and experienced investors.
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) Indices Trading Expert rating
Our expert rating is the average of the areas listed here, each scored out of 5 by our team.Our experts have rated Interactive Brokers (IBKR) Indices Trading across five key areas of our review framework.
- Pricing5.0
- Market Access5.0
- App & Platform5.0
- Customer Service4.5
- Research & Analysis5.0
Pros
- Low commissions
- No account fees
- Global DMA index access
Cons
- Customer serivce can be slow
See full expert review
Our verdict
You can trade the global stock market and synthetic on-exchange indices as either a futures contract, DMA option of equity as an ETF.
Interactive Brokers has transparent, low commissions and financing rates. Equity indices can be traded in lots as small as 1x the index level. Unlike the related futures, Index CFDs (not available in the US) do not expire, saving rollover-related costs and risks.
Is IBKR good for indices trading?
Yes, IBKR is an excellent choice for index trading. For beginners, Interactive Brokers offers a wide range of ETFs that track underlying stock market indices like the S&P 500 and Dow Jones. For more advanced traders, IBKR offers DMA index futures trading with low commissions.
Pricing: IBKR is always a cheap way to trade, one of the original discount execution only brokers.
Market Access: A huge range of on-exchange ETFs or direct market access to index futures around the world.
App & Platform: Excellent - something for everyone from beginners to hedge funds.
Customer Service: A bit hit and miss sometimes, but their AI bot can solve most issues and personal dealers for larger accounts.
Research & Analysis: A constantly updating stream of analysis and data on global indices.
Customer reviews for Interactive Brokers
Customer ratings come from reviews left on this site. Every review is read and approved before it is published.Based on 1,375 reviews
- Excellent74%
- Very good14%
- Basic7%
- Poor2%
- Bad2%
Read customer reviews
Fantastic institutional quality platform delivered to private investors
Great platform, aggregated loan to value very useful. Would give 5 stars if they had UK tax reporting.
Great for Options
Can take some time getting use to the platform but its worth the effort.
Huge range of products and great for Options
Sophisticated and Flexible System
Excellent customer service.
My preferred Broker
I have used 2 other brokers one in the UK and one in Singapore.
Interactive Broker is my preferred choice and I have been with them for some time.
Interactive Brokers review
I have used for around 4 years now, I have found to be very reliable, very detailed data, platform able to be changed to suit the individual, support is good
Excellent low fees. Easy to trade
Wonderful platform. Very easy to use.
Low fees. Cannot get easier
Terrible
Poor customer service. Unprofessional, unattractive staff.
Good service
Direct acsess.
I haveca margin account pro.
5 stars 🌟
A well established company
the whole universe of deriavtives at your finger tips
Customer support is always there to help you max in hal a days time,, very swift executions..customer oriented ffedback algos in the platfoem always guding you to a more efficient way of trading and execution of trades,
Brilliant platform and company
Extremely poor customer service
I have never managed to get resolution when things have gone wrong. The new rule on withdrawal restrictions is confusing and even the IBKR team don’t seem to understand it.
Great
Very Helpful stuff
Significant Flaws with Interactive Brokers Options Account
Options account with IB.
I do not like the way you never know what commissions you are going to be charged on a trade in advance and the commissions you are subsequently shown on the live account balance screen do not always agree with what is charged for commissions in the overnight daily report.
Also I do not like being charged for live options feeds and for being charged a significant minimum fee on a monthly basis. Other brokers do not charge for options fees nor have minimum monthly fees.
Extremely comprehensive platform with excellent products
I have an IBKR Pro account. Very good option chain and reasonable fees. Great FX flexibility.
Reliable institution with a great, modern App
I'm very happy with my Interactive Brokers experience over the last 7 years. They have a very reliable trading platform with access to .... pretty much every instrument out there (USA, EU, UK, etc..). I use it as my primary retail investment platform and the only place where I manage my personal active investment portfolio.
Also, they have a great app and it's by far the easiest way to place and monitor your orders. You don't even need the desktop application. Just automate all your portfolio reporting to be delivered to you by email and run your optimizaiton mondels on your own computer.
Charting is a weak point.
I like everything about the platform, including competitive fees and a large selection of trading assets and instruments. The only weak point is charting, which is cumbersome and inflexible.
Best broker for an amateur trader like me
Apart from the ux and the user features the overall experience and flexibility of IB has made me move all my portfolios to them.
Beat Broker
Good value for money. Low fees, great trading platform.
Great service and platform
Amazing service and great trading platform with a lot features aswell as a reliable and trusted brokerage!
Very reliable
A little daunting at first sight but it’s easy to pick up and intuitive once you’re familiar.
Compare indices trading on IBKR to other index brokers below:
| Index Trading Platform | Indices Available | Index CFDs | Index Spreads | Index Futures | Index Options | MT4/5 | Customer Reviews | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 40 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ | (Based on 125 reviews) | See Platform 69% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 40 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ | (Based on 21 reviews) | See Platform 74% of retail CFD accounts lose money. |
 | 28 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ | (Based on 110 reviews) | See Platform 73% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 39 | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | (Based on 146 reviews) | See Platform 76% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 13 | ✔️ | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | (Based on 1,375 reviews) | See Platform 59.7% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 30 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | (Based on 272 reviews) | See Platform 61% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 80+ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | (Based on 746 reviews) | See Platform 68% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 80+ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ | (Based on 237 reviews) | See Platform 68% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 29 | ✔️ | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | (Based on 137 reviews) | See Platform 62% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 15 | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | (Based on 283 reviews) | See Platform 61% of retail investor accounts lose money |
 | 25 | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | (Based on 139 reviews) | See Platform74% of retail investor accounts lose money |
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
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