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Head to head
Interactive Brokers or TradeStation? Fees, regulation, platform and product range compared side by side — with a verdict drawn from the data.
Risk warning: CFDs and leveraged products are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly. Investments can fall in value. Past performance is not an indicator of future results.
The cheapest serious route to almost every market on earth — if you can live with the learning curve.
The systematic trader's terminal — elite backtesting and automation, priced for people who use it hard.
Advertising disclosure: where a partnership is active, we may earn a commission through broker links. The provider’s terms apply. Commissions do not influence our ratings; paid placements are separately labelled as sponsored.
Four decision axes, each derived from the recorded data.
Overall Interactive Brokers takes it, 4.5 against 4.0 out of 5. Interactive Brokers is the cheaper of the two: a reference EUR 5,000 stock order costs €2.50 there against €4.60. TradeStation scores 94 against 90 out of 100 on the group index. Your account's protection depends on its legal entity. Interactive Brokers covers more ground with 12 of 14 asset classes against 7. On platform and app Interactive Brokers is ahead, 4.6 against 4.4 out of 5. Which one is right depends on which of these axes matters for your trading profile.
Interactive BrokersTradeStationInteractive BrokersTradeStationInteractive BrokersTradeStationInteractive BrokersTradeStationInteractive BrokersTradeStationUp to four brokers at once — every row a decision point.
Data as of: 30 Aug 2026
| Criterion | ||
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 4.5 — Better | 4.0 |
| Group index | 90 of 100 | 94 of 100 |
| Best for | Active and professional tradersMulti-currency investorsOptions and futures tradersAlgorithmic and API tradingGlobal stock pickers | Systematic and algo tradersActive futures tradersAdvanced options strategistsEntity and professional accounts |
| Regulation | SECFCACBIASICMAS | FINRASECNFAFCAAFM |
| Top-tier licences | 5 | 5 |
| Investor protection | US$500,000 | US$500,000 |
| Listed group | Yes | Yes |
| Banking licence | No | No |
| Segregated client accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Negative balance protection | Yes | No |
| Audited financials | Yes | Yes |
| Disclosed regulatory actions | 2 | None |
| Founded | 1977 | 1982 |
| Headquarters | Greenwich, Connecticut, US | Plantation, FL, US |
| Fees | 4.9 — Better | 3.6 |
| Safety & regulation | 4.8 — Better | 4.3 |
| Trading platform | 4.8 — Better | 4.7 |
| Product range | 5.0 — Better | 3.4 |
| Mobile app | 4.3 — Better | 4.0 |
| Research | 4.4 — Better | 4.2 |
| Customer support | 3.2 | 3.7 — Better |
| Deposit & withdrawal | 4.0 — Better | 3.3 |
| Account opening | 3.5 | 3.8 — Better |
| Education | 4.0 — Better | 3.8 |
| Reference order EUR 5,000 | €2.50 — Better | €4.60 |
| Minimum deposit | None | None |
| Stocks (per order) | 0.05 % — Better | US$5 |
| US stocks | US$0.0035/share — Better | US$5 |
| ETFs | 0.05 % — Better | US$5 |
| Options | US$0.65 | tiered |
| Futures | US$0.85 | tiered |
| Crypto | n/a | n/a |
| Bonds (order) | n/a | n/a |
| Funds (order) | n/a | US$14.95 |
| EUR/USD spread | 0.1 pips | n/a |
| Index CFD spread | n/a | n/a |
| FX conversion | 0.002 % | n/a |
| Inactivity fee | None — Better | US$10 · after 1 months |
| Custody fee | None | None |
| Withdrawal fee | €1 — Better | US$25 |
| Deposit fee | free | free |
| Overnight financing | n/a | n/a |
| Other fees |
|
|
| Asset classes (of 14) | 12 — Better | 7 |
| Exchanges | 160 | n/a |
| Stocks | Yes | Yes |
| ETFs | Yes | Yes |
| Options | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | Yes | No |
| CFDs | Yes | No |
| Crypto | Yes | No |
| Bonds | Yes | No |
| Funds | Yes | Yes |
| Commodities | Yes | Yes |
| Indices | Yes | Yes |
| Warrants | Yes | No |
| Spread betting | No | No |
| Social trading | No | No |
| Platforms | Trader Workstation (TWS)IBKR DesktopClient PortalIBKR MobileIBKR GlobalTraderTWS API / Web API / FIXTradingView and other third-party front ends | TradeStation Desktop / TITAN XEasyLanguageTradeStation Web TradingTradeStation MobileWebAPI |
| Demo account | Yes | Yes |
| Fractional shares | Yes | No |
| Maximum leverage | 1:30 · Pro 1:200 | US Regulation T margin: 2:1 overnight, 4:1 intraday for pattern day traders on marginable equities. |
| Account opening | Fully online; typically 1–3 business days, longer if documents need manual review | 1–3 business days for US applicants; longer for international and entity accounts |
| Account types | IBKR ProIBKR LiteMargin account | Individual / joint brokerageMargin accountFutures accountTraditional / Roth / SEP / SIMPLE IRAEntity accounts (LLC, corporation, trust, partnership) |
| Payment methods | Bank transferSEPACheque | Bank transferCheque |
| Account currencies | USDEURGBPCHFAUDCADJPYHKDSGDSEK+8 | USD |
| Deposit time | SEPA 1–2 business days; international wire 1–4 business days | ACH 1–3 business days; wire same day |
| Withdrawal time | 1–3 business days | 1–3 business days |
| Free withdrawals | 2/month | n/a |
| Languages | EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianDutchPortugueseRussianChineseJapanese+1 | EnglishSpanish |
| Channels | PhoneEmailLive chatTicket system | PhoneEmailLive chat |
| Availability | 24/5, from Sunday evening to Friday evening US time | Mon–Fri, extended US hours; 24/5 futures trade desk |
Editorial assessment based on the recorded data.
Interactive Brokers
The cheapest serious route to almost every market on earth — if you can live with the learning curve.
Pros
Cons
Best for
TradeStation
The systematic trader's terminal — elite backtesting and automation, priced for people who use it hard.
Pros
Cons
Best for
Open an account with either
A demo account costs nothing and answers the platform question in ten minutes.
Advertising disclosure: where a partnership is active, we may earn a commission through broker links. The provider’s terms apply. Commissions do not influence our ratings; paid placements are separately labelled as sponsored.
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