Written by StockBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Interactive Brokers vs CMC Invest, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, investment options, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
Alongside the cost per trade, most UK online brokers also charge a monthly, quarterly, or annual management fee, which varies based on the account type and balance. Based on our thorough review, CMC Invest offers better pricing than Interactive Brokers for share dealing.
Assuming a £30,000 portfolio size, here are the total annual costs for share dealing with both brokers, given different monthly activity scenarios.
5 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £15 per year, while CMC Invest would cost £0 / £120 / £300 per year.
12 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £36 per year, while CMC Invest would cost £0 / £120 / £300 per year.
36 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £108 per year, while CMC Invest would cost £0 / £120 / £300 per year.
120 trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £360 per year, while CMC Invest would cost £0 / £120 / £300 per year.
3 fund trades per year - Interactive Brokers would cost £0 per year, while CMC Invest would cost £0 per year.
What type of trader are you?
New to the world of investing? See our picks for the Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners. More experienced traders should read our guide to the Best UK Trading Platforms for Active Traders.
Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest both shine when it comes to a variety of investment options, but there are distinct differences in what each offers. Interactive Brokers stands out with its ability to trade a broad range of assets, including shares, ETFs, CFDs, funds, corporate bonds, government bonds, and investment trusts. Meanwhile, CMC Invest offers trading in shares, ETFs, funds, and investment trusts, but lacks the breadth offered by Interactive Brokers, such as CFDs and bond trading. Both brokers avoid crypto trading, spread betting, and advisor services, which keeps their offerings focused on more traditional investment choices.
Looking at third-party ratings, Interactive Brokers surpasses CMC Invest with a prestigious 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com, compared to CMC Invest’s commendable 4.5 stars. This difference reflects Interactive Brokers’ second-place ranking among 18 brokers surveyed for investment choices, while CMC Invest lands at the fifteenth spot. Whether you're looking to invest in a wide array of assets or prioritize specific types of trading, understanding these distinctions helps in selecting the broker that aligns with your investment strategy and needs.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
CMC Invest
|
|---|---|---|
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | No |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | Yes |
| Spread Betting | No | No |
| Crypto Trading | No | No |
| Advisor Services | No | No |
| Investment Choices |
|
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Professional’s Gateway to the World’s Markets.
Low-cost US and UK shares.
When comparing the trading tools of Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest, Interactive Brokers clearly offers a more robust charting and analysis suite. Interactive Brokers provides advanced features such as the ability to display corporate events like earnings and dividends on charts, which CMC Invest lacks. Interactive Brokers also offers an impressive array of 80 drawing tools and 96 technical indicators for a detailed trading experience, compared to CMC Invest's absence of these features. Furthermore, Interactive Brokers users can enhance their charts with notes, index overlays, and stock overlays, adding layers of customization and analysis that CMC Invest does not offer.
For those who prefer flexibility in their trading platforms, Interactive Brokers offers a convenient browser-based trading platform, allowing easy access across various devices. Both Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest allow users to create alerts for stock price updates, a vital tool for active traders. However, CMC Invest stands out for providing real-time market data, which is a feature Interactive Brokers does not currently offer. Overall, while Interactive Brokers caters to traders seeking comprehensive charting capabilities and platform versatility, CMC Invest may appeal to those prioritizing real-time market information.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
CMC Invest
|
|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | No |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 0 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 0 |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
Both Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest cater to investors seeking retirement account options in the UK. They each offer Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs), allowing users to invest in a tax-efficient manner. Additionally, both platforms provide Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs), enabling individuals to manage their own pension investments with greater flexibility. Whether you choose Interactive Brokers or CMC Invest, you have access to robust options for building a stable financial future through these retirement accounts.
Dive deeper: Best SIPP Providers, Best Stocks and Shares ISA Providers.
Both Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest provide convenient mobile apps for iPhone and Android users, making trading on the go accessible to many. Notably, Interactive Brokers' mobile app is highly acclaimed, earning an impressive 5-star rating from UK.StockBrokers.com and securing the #2 spot out of 18 brokers for mobile app performance. In comparison, CMC Invest's app holds a respectable 4.5-star rating and ranks #7, showcasing robust features that fulfill most trading needs. Whether you're an iOS or Android user, both brokers ensure you have the tools to manage your investments efficiently, though Interactive Brokers edges slightly ahead in expert rankings.
Dive deeper: Best Stock Trading Apps UK.
When comparing beginner investor educational resources, Interactive Brokers distinctly excels over CMC Invest. While both platforms provide educational content on share trading, funds, and retirement, Interactive Brokers sets itself apart by offering educational webinars that are not only available live but also archived for on-demand viewing—resources that CMC Invest currently does not provide. UK.StockBrokers.com rates Interactive Brokers higher, with a 4.5-star rating compared to CMC Invest's 4 stars, placing them 12th and 13th respectively among 18 brokers. This makes Interactive Brokers a slightly more comprehensive choice for novice investors seeking in-depth educational support.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
CMC Invest
|
|---|---|---|
| Client Webinars | Yes | No |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No |
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes |
| Education |
|
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Dive deeper: Best UK Trading Platforms for Beginners.
When comparing the market research features of Interactive Brokers and CMC Invest, it's evident that both platforms provide robust research capabilities, including research reports for funds, shares, and ETFs. However, Interactive Brokers takes a more comprehensive approach by offering portfolio allocation insights by asset class, a feature unavailable from CMC Invest. Additionally, Interactive Brokers supports in-depth research across a wider range of instruments, including CFDs and Bonds, whereas CMC Invest lacks these options. This makes Interactive Brokers a more versatile choice for investors seeking a broad spectrum of market research tools.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
|
CMC Invest
|
|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes |
| Research - CFDs | Yes | No |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | No |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | No |
Which broker is better overall, Interactive Brokers or CMC Invest? After collecting more than 900 data points over a 10-week period, we found Interactive Brokers to be a better trading platform overall.
Interactive Brokers is a sophisticated trading platform aimed at confident and institutional-grade investors. For newer investors, Interactive Brokers is more intimidating, though it's worth exploring the platform to see if you could save money or access more investments compared to other brokers.
| Feature |
Interactive Brokers
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CMC Invest
|
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating |
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| Charges & Fees |
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| Investment Choices |
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| Mobile App |
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| Website |
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| Ease of Use |
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| Education |
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While neither Interactive Brokers nor CMC Invest offers crypto trading, investors comparing these two online brokers should consider other features that align with their trading needs.
Select Brokers
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | CMC Invest Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
| Investments | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISA | Yes | Yes | |
| SIPP | Yes | Yes | |
| Share Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| CFD Trading | Yes | No | |
| Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Bonds - Corporate | Yes | No | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) | Yes | No | |
| Investment Trusts | Yes | Yes | |
| Spread Betting | No | No | |
| Crypto Trading | Yes | No | |
| Advisor Services | No | No |
| Trading Fees | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | £0 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 0-9 Deals/ Month | £3 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 10-19 Deals/ Month | £3 | £0 | |
| Share Trading: 20+ Deals/ Month | £3 | £0 | |
| 5 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £15 | £0 / £120 / £300 | |
| 12 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £36 | £0 / £120 / £300 | |
| 36 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £108 | £0 / £120 / £300 | |
| 120 trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £360 | £0 / £120 / £300 | |
| 3 fund trades per year (£30k portfolio) | £0 / £14.85 | £120 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £0 - £250,000 | £0 | £120 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £250K-£500K | £0 | £120 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £500,000 - £1m | £0 | £120 | |
| Annual Custody Fee: £1m and over | £0 | £120 | |
| Bonds - Corporate - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | N/A | |
| Bonds - Government (Gilts) - Fee | 0.1% (for <10,000 EUR) 0.025% (for >10,000 EUR) | N/A | |
| ETFs - Fee | £3 | £0 | |
| Investment Trusts - Fee | N/A | £0 | |
| Telephone Dealing Fee | £25 | £0 |
| Broker Screenshots | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Mobile Trading Apps Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Education Gallery (click to expand) |
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| Platforms & Tools | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Platform | Yes | No | |
| iPhone App | Yes | Yes | |
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Stock Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 96 | 0 | |
| Charting - Drawing Tools | 80 | 0 | |
| Charting - Notes | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Display Corporate Events | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Stock Overlays | Yes | No | |
| Charting - Index Overlays | Yes | No |
| Research | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research - Shares | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - CFDs | Yes | No | |
| Research - Funds | Yes | Yes | |
| Fund Research - Research Reports | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - ETFs | Yes | Yes | |
| Research - Bonds | Yes | No | |
| Portfolio Allocation Breakdown | Yes | No |
| Education | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education (Share Trading) | Yes | Yes | |
| Education (Funds) | Yes | Yes | |
| Education (Retirement) | Yes | Yes | |
| Client Webinars | Yes | No | |
| Client Webinars (Archived) | Yes | No |
| Overall Summary | Interactive Brokers | CMC Invest | |
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| Review | Interactive Brokers Review | CMC Invest Review | |
| Winner | check_circle |
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