eToro vs Plus500

eToro or Plus500? Which broker is better? To find out, here's a detailed comparison of their essential features so you can decide wisely.

Ready to try eToro?

If you think that eToro is the winner in this fight after seeing the comparison table above and you're already interested to invest with this broker then you can click the button below. This will take you straight to their registration page so you can start trading.

67% 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.

Comparison

Here is a detailed comparison table of eToro vs Plus500's features. This data is based on the most recent information that we have gathered from these 2 brokers.

Account Types

eToro offers 2 types of accounts for their clients: retail and professional.

Additionally, there is an eToro Club where members get to enjoy extra privileges but this is dependent on regulations and the platform language. Every member is assigned with a tier based on their equity:

• Silver
• Gold
• Platinum
• Platinum​+
• Diamond

Plus500 on the other hand does not offer any account type for their clients and there no corporate accounts as well. All individual accounts are the same and are going to enjoy the same benefits.

Demo Account

Clients of eToro and Plus500 have the opportunity to test out the platform and see the user interface via the practice account. The good news is that both brokerages offer them for free and with no expiry times.

How can you actually use this?
A lifetime demo account may sound like a minimal advantage but if you’re a newbie or one that would like to develop your skill without the need to risk real capital then this feature is a great advantage.

You’ll be able to do practice trading as many times as you want to see how the market works or how you can enhance your trading strategies and decisions.

Want to try out the demo?

You can test out eToro's demo account by clicking on the button below. Take note that you will still need to open an account but won't be required to make a deposit in order to use the demo feature. You may decide to fund your account later on if you wish to continue live trading.

67% 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.

Registration

Opening an account for both brokerages can be done online straight from a web browser or from any of their apps.

Registration with eToro only requires a username, a password and an email address initially while with Plu500, an email address and a password is mandatory.

It’s important to remember that while both brokers only ask for a few details initially for you to register, you’ll be asked to complete your profile and verify your account which will require a few more additional details like your full name, address and others.

Here’s the deal:
You can also open an account with these brokers by using your existing accounts with other services like Facebook and Google.

Minimum Deposit

Plus500’s initial deposit requirement is $100 or the equivalent amount in other currencies universally, regardless where their client is residing.

In comparison with eToro, the accepted minimum deposit will be dependent on the country where their client resides. For example, eToro clients residing from the US, UK, Austria, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden or Switzerland are only required with an initial capital of $50 while a customer from the UAE must deposit a minimum of $200.

Platforms

eToro generally has 2 platforms: a web-based platform that can be accessed on any browser, and a mobile app. There is no downloadable app for Windows or Mac so for desktop or laptop users, accessing www.etoro.com via Chrome, Firefox, Edge or any web browser is the sole method for trading.

Smartphone users can install the eToro mobile app which is available for devices that are running on Android or iOS.

Plus500 has a little more diversified platform offerings for their clients and this includes the WebTrader which is the web-based version, a downloadable Windows 10 Trader for Windows 10 desktops and laptops, and a mobile app for devices with Android or iOS mobile operating systems.

The bottom line is that both offer different ways for traders to access their account and investment portfolio and not just via a single method.

Assets

Among the most popular CFD brokerages in the market, eToro and Plus500 belong to a very short list of service providers that have over 2000 assets on their platforms.

The thing is, most brokers only offer around 100 to 500 so their tradable assets are much more favorable for those who are looking to explore other markets.

As of this writing, eToro’s total tradable assets is already above 3000 while Plus500 has around 2400+.

What can I benefit from this?
A broker that has more accessible assets will give you the opportunity to diversify your trading portfolio. That means you won’t just settle for a few stocks or currency pairs, and this will give you more control over your investments since you can place Buy and Sell contracts on other interesting markets.

Spreads

eToro’s spreads are variable which means that the pip values of every asset may change depending on the condition of the market. Assets that are highly volatile in nature may experience wider spreads than those that are more stable.

For Plus500, they offer variable and fixed. Their variable spread is called “dynamic” as it is regularly adjusted based on the market spread. Their fixed spread however normally doesn’t change on the exception that the market becomes highly volatile and illiquid.

Deposit

As the saying goes: The more, the merrier!

This is very much true particularly when you’re going to fund your account. If you are given more options to make a deposit then that would make it more convenient since there are many ways to do it as compared to having just 1 or 2 options.

With eToro, traders can fund their account by using credit/debit cards, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, Rapid Transfer, iDEAL, Klarna/Sofort Banking, bank transfer and local online banking. Do take note that the availability of some of these payment gateways are dependent on the country where you reside and the regulator that supervises your account.

Plus500’s banking methods are much less as it only accepts Visa or MasterCard credit and debit cards, Skrill, Wire Transfer and PayPal. This is a non-issue if you’re used to utilizing any of the supported methods but in the event that your payment service provider experiences technical issues or has decided to ban using them for online trading then you only have few other options.

Withdrawals

Majority of withdrawals with eToro takes only up to 1 business day in order to get processed on the condition that essential documentation has been submitted while for Plus500 clients, it may take 1 around 3 business days.

Take note: Processing of withdrawals mean that your request to cash out your funds has been approved. The time it takes for the funds to reflect in your account is dependent on your bank or payment service provider and this may generally take around 3 to 8 business days.

Customer Service

Contacting the customer support departments of these brokers can be done via email and live chat only. Unfortunately, there’s no phone support but most brokerages have already removed this option since going online is the most common option.

With eToro however, there are more complementary options for such as opening a ticket or using the Help Center which has a comprehensive library of information which might be useful for their users. Plus500 on the other hand has a basic FAQ page.

Regulation

Remember this: A broker that has a license to operate from a trusted regulator is a lot more safe than one that doesn’t have any.

eToro has a license from the following:

• Cyprus Securities & Exchange Commission (CySEC) – eToro (Europe) Ltd. is licensed with company registration # HE20058.
• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) – eToro (UK) Ltd. is authorised and regulated with company registration # 7973792.
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) – eToro AUS Capital Pty Ltd. is the holder of an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) 491139 issued by this regulator.

On the other hand, Plus500 has a license from these regulators:

• Plus500CY Ltd authorized & regulated by CySEC (#250/14).
• Plus500UK Ltd authorised & regulated by the FCA (#509909).
• Plus500SG Pte Ltd, licensed by the MAS (#CMS100648-1) and IE Singapore (#PLUS/CBL/2018).
• Plus500AU Pty Ltd (ACN 153301681), licensed by: ASIC in Australia, AFSL #417727, FMA in New Zealand, FSP #486026; Authorised Financial Services Provider in South Africa, FSP #47546.

In this category, it’s tie between eToro and Plus500 because both brands have existing licenses from various financial authorities.

Conclusion

Both eToro and Plus500 offer a number of great features as compared to other brokerages that offer the same kind of online trading services. What makes eToro more competitive over Plus500 is that it has more tradable assets, a better selection of supported payment methods and a club membership that has exclusive offerings based on tier level. Plus500 on the other hand has a few more platforms to offer and a little lower initial deposit requirement (except for clients in the US, UK, Italy, Ireland and other countries who enjoy a minimum deposit of just $50).

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.