Best Brokers in Australia

The Ultimate Guide to

Choosing a Broker
For Australia

Not sure which broker is right for you?

Don’t worry - we’ve got you covered. In this guide, you’ll learn:

• Why Markets.com scored high for australia (Jump to section)
• Who Markets.com is (and isn’t) suitable for (Jump to section)
• An in-depth feature comparison of the top #3 brokers (Jump to section)
• An overview on australia (Jump to section)

Ready?

Part 1

Why Choose Markets.com
For Australia?

Markets.com scored best in our review of the top brokers for australia, which takes into account 120+ factors across eight categories. Here are some areas where Markets.com scored highly in:

Markets.com offers five ways to trade: Forex, Shares, Indices, Commodities, ETF and CFD. If you wanted to trade AUDUSD through copy trading or other means, skip to part two.

The two most important categories in our rating system are the cost of trading and the broker’s trust score. To calculate a broker’s trust score, we take into account a range of factors, including their regulation history, years in business, liquidity provider etc.

Markets.com have a B trust score, which is good. This is largely down to them being regulated by CySEC, Financial Services Board, segregating client funds, being established for over 9 years, and much more. For comparison:

Trust Score comparsion

The second thing we look for is the competitiveness of the spreads, and what fees they charge. We've compared these in detail in part three of this guide.

Part 2

Who Markets.com is (& Isn’t)
Suitable For

As mentioned, Markets.com allows you to trade in five ways: Forex, Shares, Indices, Commodities, ETF and CFD.

To trade with Markets.com, you'll need a minimum deposit of $100. Markets.com offers a range of different account types for different traders including a mini account, vip account.

Finally, Markets.com isn't available in the following countries: AF, DZ, AS, AO, AU, BE, BA, BR, KH, CA, CN, CU, KR, GU, GY, HK, ID, IR, IQ, IL, JP, LA, MO, MY, MM, NZ, MP, PA, PG, PH, PR, RU, SG, KR, SD, SY, TW, TH, TR, UG, VI, VU, USA, VN, YE.

Part 3

A Comparison of Markets.com vs. vs.

Want to see how Markets.com stacks up against and ? We've compared their spreads, features, and key information below.

Spread & fee comparsion

Comparison of account & trading features

Part 4

Plus 500

www.plus500.com.au

Formed in 2008, Plus500 are a world-renowned brand in the trading world. Their intuitive platform is provided within Australia by subsidiary company, Plus500AU Pty Ltd., and is licensed to provide CFDs by the
Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC). With its offices located in Sydney, local regulatory supervision, and a dedicated Australian website, Plus500 are a natural choice for traders who demand the highest standards from their broker.

Plus500 offer competitive spreads starting at 2 pips, and leverage of up to 1:300, allowing clients from to have significant exposure to their chosen underlying instruments. Some of the features available on the trading platform include Stop Limit, Stop Loss and Trailing Stop, as well as free notifications and other features that allow clients full control of their account.

The trading platform has one of the most effortless and easy to navigate interfaces, making it ideal for traders of all levels. It can be downloaded as an app for mobile phones, tablets, and laptops, or can simply be used from any standard browser when connected online. The Australian dollar can be set up as the base currency for both the live and the demo accounts, so traders from Australia can view the account balance in their native currency.

Just some of the most popular markets traded in Australia through Plus500 CFDs include S&P/ASX 200, AUD/USD, Bitcoin, & ANZ.

AvaTrade

www.avatrade.com.au

Established in 2006 in Ireland, AvaTrade now have offices around the world, including in Sydney, Australia. The company are regulated within Australia, falling under the supervisory powers of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC). Under the regulations, client funds are held in a segregated account for their protection and security. In order to empower clients to trade with confidence, they provide round the clock customer support, a wide range of financial instruments for traders to select from, and a variety of different platforms that can cater for traders using different trading strategies.

In order to open an account, traders need to deposit just $100. A free demo account is available for those who want to test their skills ahead of committing to live trades.

AvaTrade offer both fixed and variable spreads, starting at just 0.9 pips. The instruments that are offered through their various platforms include Forex, options, CFDs, metals, oil, gold, and digital currency.

eToro

www.etoro.com.au

eToro have provided the financial trading industry with an innovative platform that has attracted over 6 million users from around the world. The reason for the popularity of this platform is that it incorporates social trading technology, which enables traders to copy trades and portfolios from other clients on the platform.

eToro offer their services in Australia through the Sydney-based company, International Capital Markets Pty Ltd., which is regulated by the ASIC and holds an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL). As such, client funds are kept separate, and client data kept secure.

A wide range of financial markets are availble to trade in through contracts for difference (CFDs), including currencies, commodities, stocks and indices. Clients can fund accounts with popular payment methods such as PayPal, Visa and Mastercard.

A minimum deposit of between $50-$1,000 is required to open a live eToro account, with the platform base currency being USD.

Saxo Capital Markets

www.home.saxo/en-au/

With a head office in Denmark, the Saxo Capital Markets operate in Australia under the registered company, Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Pty Ltd. Known as Saxo, they are regulated by ASIC and hold an Australian Financial Services Licence, which gives clients from Australia the confidence that they are required to adhere to the stringent Australian regulatory standards.

Formed in 1992, the company now offer access to over 30,000 assets, with products such as equities, options, ETFs (exchange traded funds), futures, CFDs, Forex and FX options available to be traded within their platforms.

Saxo offer two different platforms: the SaxoTraderGO, which is ideal for mobile trading as it can be used across a range of devices; and the SaxoTrader for professional trading, which can be spread over six screens. A demo account can be opened for 21 days for clients to experiment with virtual funds. Clients can choose from 3 different live account types to suit their needs, with a minimum funding deposit required of AUD 3,000 when signing up to the Classic Account.

Dedicated email and telephone support are offered to clients within Australia, 24/5.

City Index

www.cityindex.com.au

With over 30 years in the industry, City Index have been serving clients in Australia since 2006 through local company, GAIN Capital Australia Pty Ltd. They have a licence to carry out regulated activities, such as CFD and Forex trading, and are registered with the Australian industry regulator, ASIC. As the co-founder of the CFD and FX forum within Australia, they operate to the highest industry standards, and ensure that client funds are protected and segregated.

With more than 4500 global markets available to trade within City Index’s powerful platforms, clients can access products such as shares, indices, commodities, and Forex. The platforms available include the Advantage Web Trading Platform, which can be accessed via a browser and offers many advanced features such as a technical analysis portal and customisable charts. A range of mobile apps are also available for download, which allow traders to live stream prices, and conduct trades from their smart phone or tablet.

Live chat, telephone, and email support are all available to clients within Australia.

IG

www.ig.com/au/

With over 40 years in the industry, IG Markets are one of the world’s largest CFD providers for retail customers. The Investment Trends Australia CFD Report in 2015 cited IG along with CMC Markets as dominating the CFD market in Australia with a market share of 56%. The IG group have offices in 13 other countries and more than 185,000 clients from all over the world. Their services are offered in Australia through the registered company, IG Australia Pty Ltd. Formed in 2001, the company are registered with and regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).

IG offer access to more than 15000 markets. Some of the popular markets traded by Australian clients include the AUD/CNH, AUD/JPY and Australia 200. Other markets available include the IG Digital 100s, and cryptocurrencies. An award winning platform is provided, which can be downloaded as an app for a variety of devices. MetaTrader 4 is also an option for clients wanting to trade using the industry standard software. The Australian dollar can be selected as the base currency for the account.

Through the dedicated Australian website, clients can access education tools, webinars, and seminars. Customer support is offered within Australia through email, or via a local telephone contact number.