eToro vs Plus500 | Main Pros & Cons Of These Brokers
Jack Moreau
Mar 2024
9 min read
Fact checked
eToro vs Plus500, choosing the right investment platform can be hard but don't worry, we've got your back. We've analyzed both eToro and Plus500 across various important areas like trading fees, assets offered, product features, regulatory compliance and more to help you decide which one suits your needs better!
eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
eToro USA LLC: Investments are subject to market risk. Including the possible loss of principal. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest.
eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
eToro USA LLC: Investments are subject to market risk. Including the possible loss of principal. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest.
eToro and Plus500 are two popular online trading platforms that both offer similar services. Let's begin with the basics and see how they compare.
eToro was founded in 2007 by Yoni & Ronen Assia. The company is available in over 140 countries and has it's main office in Tel Aviv, Israel, and legal entities in the US, UK, EU and Australia.
eToro enables its users to trade various financial instruments through its social trading and multi-asset investment platform.
eToro offers innovative social trading features that allow users to follow and copy the trades of experienced investors, creating a community-driven trading experience.
eToro offers a diverse range of assets making it a popular choice among it's over 30 million users worldwide. eToro is also available on Android and IOS where it has over 10 million downloads with a 4-star rating based on over 100,000 reviews.
On the other hand, Plus500 was founded in 2008 by Gal Haber and Omer Elazari and is registered in England and Wales.
The company has over 500 employees and is available in over 50 countries worldwide. Plus500 offers a range of financial instruments such as cryptocurrencies, forex, commodities, and more through its online trading platform.
Plus500 has gained popularity for its user-friendly interface, commitment to regulations, and access to over 2800 CFDs across different financial instruments.
Plus500 has over 20 million registered users and boasts over 10 million app downloads on Android with a 4.4-star rating based on over 100,000 reviews.
Plus500 offers users the option to trade 17 cryptocurrency CFDs, allowing traders to speculate on the price movements of various financial instruments.
eToro vs Plus500 Signup & KYC
When it comes to KYC requirements, both eToro and Plus500 require Know Your Customer (KYC) verification before users can start trading.
Creating an account on eToro is quick and easy, taking only a few minutes of your time to complete. Users are required to provide basic information such as their name, email address, and country of residence.
Once the account is created, users must complete the KYC verification process by submitting personal information and a valid government ID.
This process takes a few minutes to complete and then it can take eToro up to 1-2 business days to verify the account.
Plus500 offers a similarly swift signup process. Once users have signed up, to complete the verification, users need to provide information about their country of residence, address, and a valid ID. Additionally, users must answer over 10 questions related to trading CFDs.
Similar to eToro, the verification process on Plus500 can take a couple of business days to complete. In summary, both platforms require KYC verification before users can start trading.
eToro vs Plus500 Products & Services
eToro has carved a large niche as a leading trading platform tailored for traders who prioritise investments in a wide range of financial products.
At the heart of eToro’s offerings is a diverse range of financial instruments. The platform provides access to a vast collection of more than 3,200 stocks, featuring giants like Microsoft, Apple, Tesla, and Amazon.
Beyond stocks, traders can engage with a diverse lineup of over 50 currencies, a selection of more than 30 commodities, and an array of over 20 prominent global indices. At the time of writing, commodities, currencies and indices are not available to users in the United States.
Notably, for digital asset enthusiasts, eToro showcases an impressive roster of over 70 cryptocurrencies, covering major players like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Cosmos, Polkadot, Cardano, Doge and others.
Moreover, the platform extends its reach to the ETF sector, housing over 400 options, with notable mentions like Ark Innovation and Vanguard.
Understanding the importance of trader education, eToro Academy offers a rich selection of trading courses, interactive webinars, and detailed tutorials.
To ensure traders are equipped with comprehensive data, eToro integrates seamlessly with TradingView, providing actionable charts for enhanced decision-making.
eToro doesn't falter in risk management either, introducing features like adaptable take-profit and an efficient trailing stop-loss system.
Diversifying trading strategies is easy on eToro. The platform allows traders to short assets, offering varying leverage ratios.
While cryptocurrency trading on eToro can tap into leverage from 1:2 up to 1:30, stock traders have the leverage of up to 5x at their disposal.
Beginners or those keen to refine strategies can also use eToro's demo mode, which boasts a $100,000 virtual fund for realistic trading simulations.
One of eToro's standout features is its CopyTrader system. This innovative tool allows users to mirror the trading patterns of experienced professionals, creating a social trading atmosphere.
Venturing into the digital frontier, eToro has also rolled out Delta to simplify the entire NFT process, guiding users from exploration to acquisition, and finally to management of NFTs on the Ethereum Blockchain.
On the other hand, Plus500 offers access to 2800+ CFDs across a wide range of different asset classes including indices, forex, commodities, and non-CFD shares. Additionally, Plus500 provides trading facilities on shares, cryptocurrencies, forex, ETFs and options.
They also offer demo accounts for new users who want to begin trading and learning without risking any real money.
The user experience on Plus500 is however uninspiring as the platform looks like it was designed in the early 90s without anyone bothering to make any upgrades since.
For anyone who just wants to gain access to a wide range of CFDs, Plus500 obviously gets the job done with a wide range available.
The leverage available for Plus500 users ranges from 2 to 300 depending on the financial instrument and whether they are a retail user or a professional one.
Retail users have a max leverage of 2X for cryptocurrencies on the lower end and 30X leverage for Forex. In comparison, the professional users have a max leverage of 20X for crypto and 300X for Forex.
When it comes to trading fees, eToro and Plus500 have different approaches. Let's start with eToro. This exchange charges a 1% fee for buying and selling cryptocurrencies without any available rebates for higher trading volumes.
These fees are on the higher end compared to most cryptocurrency exchanges but to be fair, eToro also offers the option to buy and sell stocks with 0% commission and offers free fiat deposits.
Plus500 takes a different approach. While they do not charge any fees for deposits or opening or closing trades, they do charge a fee through the buy/sell spread of 0.7%.
Additionally, they will charge a Currency Conversion Fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different to the currency of the account. They also trade an inactivity fee of $10 per month if a user does not login to their account for a period of at least three months.
When it comes to depositing funds on eToro, users have quite a few options to choose from. They can deposit funds in USD, EUR, GBP or AUD and can do so via Bank Transfer, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller or debit Card.
What's more, all fiat deposits are completely free of charge on eToro making it a great option for those who want to avoid deposit fees. Conversion fee may however be applied as deposits are conducted in $.
On the other hand, Plus500 supports major fiat currencies such as USD, GBP and EUR. The deposit methods offered by Plus500 are via credit or debit card, PayPal and bank transfer.
Just like eToro, fiat deposits are free of charge for users, no matter which deposit method they choose to use.
eToro offers two options for fiat withdrawals: bank account or debit card. While eToro charges a $5 withdrawal fee, fiat currencies besides USD are subject to conversion fees.
On the other hand, Plus500 offers free fiat withdrawal fees for its users. However, Plus500 only allows users to trade CFDs, which means that cryptocurrency withdrawals are not possible as you don't buy cryptocurrencies on the platform.
eToro and Plus500 are two popular online trading platforms with a wide range financial instruments including stocks, indices, currencies, and cryptocurrencies. While both platforms offer similar services, they have unique features that set them apart.
eToro offers innovative social trading features that allow users to follow and copy the trades of experienced investors, creating a community-driven trading experience. eToro currently offers support for over 80 cryptocurrencies while Plus500 offers a more limited selection of less than 20.
On the other hand, Plus500 is available in 50 countries compared to 140 for eToro and provides access to over 2800 CFDs across different financial instruments.
When it comes to trading fees, eToro charges a 1% fee for buying and selling cryptocurrencies, while Plus500 charges a fee through the buy/sell spread of 0.7%. Additionally, Plus500 will charge a currency conversion fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different to the currency of your account.
In terms of depositing funds, both platforms offer a variety of options, including bank transfer, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller or Credit/Debit Card.
And with no deposit fees, you can deposit funds without worrying about any added costs. When it comes to withdrawals, eToro charges a flat $5 withdrawal fee for fiat currency withdrawals, while Plus500 offers free fiat withdrawal fees.
Disclaimer
Securities trading offered by eToro USA Securities, Inc. (“the BD”), member of FINRA and SIPC. Cryptocurrency offered by eToro USA LLC (“the MSB”) (NMLS: 1769299) and is not FDIC or SIPC insured.
Investing involves risk, and content is provided for educational purposes only, does not imply a recommendation, and is not a guarantee of future performance.
luckyaltcoin.com is not an affiliate and may be compensated if you access certain products or services offered by the MSB and/or the BD.
eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
eToro USA LLC: Investments are subject to market risk. Including the possible loss of principal. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest.
eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
eToro USA LLC: Investments are subject to market risk. Including the possible loss of principal. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest.
Author
Jack Moreau
Jack is a crypto writer and reviewer who has been active in the space since he caught the crypto bug in 2017. With a passion for trying out new shiny things, Jack is always eager to try the latest cryptocurrency exchanges, wallets or DeFi applications.
Signup to eToro and Get $10 Bonus (US Only) when you deposit $100! eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.