IG vs eToro 2023

IG stands out as a top U.K. broker, thanks largely to its excellent online trading platform. Strong functionality comes with industry-standard commission rates and fees, a huge variety of trading tools, and user-friendly mobile apps.

Aside from some hidden fees and a limited research area, eToro does a very good job. It offers a functional and easy-to-use platform, with the bonus of an excellent copy trading option as well as zero-commission stock trades. Its only other limitation is that it doesn’t offer the same breadth of investments as many of the more traditional brokers.

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, IG offers better pricing than eToro 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 - IG would cost £30-£40 per year, while eToro would cost £154 per year.

12 trades per year - IG would cost £96 per year, while eToro would cost £154 per year.

36 trades per year - IG would cost £108 per year, while eToro would cost £154 per year.

120 trades per year - IG would cost £360 per year, while eToro would cost £154 per year.

3 fund trades per year - IG would cost 0 per year, while eToro would cost 10 per year.

IG requires a minimum deposit of £0, while eToro requires a minimum deposit of £10. From our testing we found for accounts between £0 - £250,000 IG charges annual custody fees of £96 (can reduce by trading), while eToro charges annual custody fees of £0 (Other Fees Apply).

IG offers investors access to ISA, SIPP, Share Trading, CFD Trading, ETFs, Investment Trusts and Spread Betting, while eToro offers investors access to Share Trading, CFD Trading, ETFs and Crypto Trading. Neither have Funds, Bonds - Corporate, Bonds - Government (Gilts) and Advisor Services. Investing encompasses a wide variety of asset classes, so finding a broker that offers every investment type you are interested in is important.

Self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs) and individual savings accounts (ISAs) are tax-advantaged savings accounts that are an important tool for many individual investors. You can read more about how these accounts operate at Gov.UK: Click here for SIPP information and here for ISA information. Our analysis finds that IG offers traders access to SIPP and ISA accounts, while eToro offers traders access to neither of these accounts.

In our analysis of top brokers for share dealing in the U.K., we research whether each broker offers the ability to trade cash cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin and ethereum, which is still a somewhat rare offering amongst major U.K. brokers. Our review finds that neither IG and eToro offer crypto investing.

Our testing concluded that IG is better for research than eToro. IG offers more research options, including research reports, articles, and analyst ratings.

To compare the trading platforms of both IG and eToro, we tested each broker's website, trading platform, trading tools and stock trading app. All features compared, our analysis finds that IG offers a better share dealing platform and IG offers a better stock app for mobile trading.

Educational offerings are of particular importance to those who are newer to investing, and we examine the availability of several different types of educational materials in our analysis. Our research finds that IG offers traders access to Client Webinars, Client Webinars (Archived), Has Education - Share Trading, Has Education - Funds and Has Education - Retirement, while eToro offers access to Client Webinars, Client Webinars (Archived) and Has Education - Share Trading.