eToro Editor’s Verdict
eToro established itself among the top 5 social trading brokers. With more than 17 million registered users, eToro provides one of the largest and most active trading communities. I reviewed this company to determine if the trading conditions offered are truly as beneficial as claimed. Is the eToro commission-free stock trading offer as good as it sounds?
Active investment community ideal for social trading
Dedicated tools for social trading
Broad cryptocurrency selection
Expanding educational offering for beginner traders
Internal withdrawal fees
Low retail leverage and higher minimum deposits, but within a reasonable range
Overview
eToro Markets Overview - A Leading Social and Cryptocurrency Broker,This content is not intended for US users. eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs, only real crypto assets are available.
Headquarters | Israel | |
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Regulated | CySEC, FCA, FSA, ASIC | |
Year Established | 2007 | |
Execution Type | Market Maker | |
Minimum Deposit | $50 - $10,000 | |
Trading Platforms(s) | Proprietary platform | |
Signals | ||
US Persons Accepted? | ||
Islamic Account | ||
Segregated Account | ||
Managed Accounts | ||
Support Hours | 24/5 | |
Customer Support | ||
Demo Account | ||
Lowest Avr Eur Usd Spread | 1.0 pips | |
Retail Loss Rate | 79% | |
Minimum Raw Spreads | 0.8 pips | |
Minimum Standard Spreads | 1.3 pips | |
Minimum Commission for Forex | $0.00 | |
Commission for CFDs/DMA | ||
Cashback Rebates | ||
Deposit Fee | ||
Withdrawal Fee | ||
Funding Methods | 10(bank wires, credit/debit cards, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, Rapid Transfer, iDEAL, Klarna/Sofort, Trustly) |
One of the things I like most about eToro is that it started to work on an educational section for beginner traders. I also appreciate its active push into the cryptocurrency sector with the acquisitions of Dutch blockchain company Firmo and Belgian crypto portfolio tracker developer Delta in 2019.
eToro Regulation And Security
Trading with a regulated broker will limit the potential for fraud and malpractice. I always recommend traders to check for regulation and verify it with the regulator by checking the provided license with their database. eToro presents clients with four regulated entities.
Country of the Regulator | Name of the Regulator | Regulatory License Number |
UK | Financial Conduct Authority | FCA Reference Number 583263 |
Cyprus | Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | License Number 109/10 |
Australia | Australian Securities & Investments Commission | AFSL Number 491139 |
Seychelles | Financial Services Authority | FSA License Number SD076 |
eToro segregates client deposits from corporate funds and offers negative balance protection. After becoming a publicly-traded company on the NASDAQ, it will comply with another layer of regulation and financial standards, strengthening its overall security environment.
eToro Fees
Deposit Fee | ||
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Withdrawal Fee | ||
Inactivity Fee | $10 monthly after 12 monthd | |
Commissions/Spreads | both | |
Withdrawal options | ||
Deposit options |
eToro fees shows Forex spreads as low as 0.8 pips or $8.00 per round lot, but the average is above 1.3 pips or $13.00.
Spread | Commission per Round Lot | Cost per 1.0 Standard Lot |
0.8 pips (minimum) | $0.00 | $8.00 |
1.3 pips (average) | $0.00 | $13.00 |
Here is a screenshot of the eToro proprietary trading platform during the London-New York overlap session, the most liquid one, where traders usually get the lowest spreads.
The tightest spread for the EUR/USD that I uncovered in this review was 0.9 pips or $9.00 per 1.0 standard lot. While eToro advertised commission-free stock trading, I urge traders not to confuse it with CFD trading, where a 0.09% commission applies. Only unleveraged buy positions in shares remain commission-free. The absence of trading commissions at eToro results in higher spreads, and each trader must evaluate the cost structure based on their trading and investing requirements.
One of the most ignored trading costs is swap rates on leveraged overnight positions. Depending on the trading strategy, it may become the most significant fee per trade. I always recommend that traders check them before evaluating the total trading costs.
Below is a list of trading cost examples for buying and selling the EUR/USD, holding the trade for one night and seven nights, in the eToro account.
Taking a 1 standard lot buy/sell position, in the EUR/USD at the tightest spread and holding it for one night will cost the following:
Minimum Spread | Commission per Round Lot | Swap Long | Swap Short | Total Trading Costs |
0.9 pips | $0.00 | $5.80 | X | $14.80 |
0.9 pips | $0.00 | X | $0.90 | $9.90 |
Taking a 1 standard lot buy/sell position, in the EUR/USD at the tightest spread and holding it for seven nights will cost the following:
Minimum Spread | Commission per Round Lot | Swap Long | Swap Short | Total Trading Costs |
0.9 pips | $0.00 | $40.60 | X | $49.60 |
0.9 pips | $0.00 | X | $6.30 | $15.30 |
A fee of 1% is added to the spread when buying or selling crypto assets on eToro. This fee is included in the price shown when users open or close a position.
What Can I Trade
eToro offers Forex traders a below-average 49 currency pairs but shines with its 93 cryptocurrency pairs. Other assets include 31 commodity CFDs, 13 index CFDs, 2,000+ equity CFDs, and 258 ETFs. The overall asset selection at eToro is excellent, especially for cryptocurrency and equity CFD traders.
Asset List and Leverage Overview
Currency Pairs | ||
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Cryptocurrency Pairs | ||
Commodities | ||
Metals: | ||
Indices | ||
Stocks | ||
Index CFDs | ||
Stock CFDs | true | |
CFDs | ||
Oil | ||
Gold | ||
Bonds | ||
ETFs | ||
Maximum Retail Leverage | 1:30 |
eToro Leverage
eToro offers retail traders maximum leverage on Forex of 1:30 through all its entities, as per regulations, except for Seychelles, which allows for higher leverage. However, it seems that eToro is only willing to open a Seychelles account for residents of certain restricted geographical areas.
Trading with leverage is risky, as leverage magnifies loss as well as profit.
eToro Trading Hours (GMT)
Asset Class | From | To |
Cryptocurrencies | Sunday 00:00 | Saturday 24:00 |
Forex | Sunday 21:05 | Friday 20:30 |
Commodities | Sunday 22:00 | Friday 20:30 |
European CFDs | Monday 07:00 | Friday 15:30 |
US CFDs | Monday 13:30 | Friday 20:00 |
Please note that equity and index CFDs do not trade continuously but open and close each day at the above specified times.
eToro Account Types
I like that eToro treats all retail traders to the same account type. The main difference is the regulatory environment, its restrictions, and its protections. I am curious about its newly acquired Seychelles license, from where eToro can provide more competitive trading conditions. Regrettably, little information is yet forthcoming about eToro’s Seychelles offering, but we hope to offer an update on this soon.
Professional traders may request an account upgrade if they qualify. eToro also provides an Islamic account where the minimum deposit is $1,000, while most traders can open it between $50 and $200. Depending on the geographic location, eToro offers its eToro Money Account, which comes with a debit card for swift financial transactions.
eToro Demo Account
eToro offers a $100,000 demo account, and I could not find a time limit. There is nothing inherently wrong with offering any nominal amount in a demo account, but I feel it would be more considerate to newer traders to use a lower figure as a starting balance.
eToro Trading Platforms
The pride of eToro is its proprietary trading platform, with its clean user interface and social trading tools CopyTrader and CopyPortfolios.
The web-based trading platform supports social trading well, and ProCharts allows manual traders to analyze markets. It does lack advanced features, and algorithmic and API trading are not available. I want to stress the difference between social and algorithmic trading, which are not interchangeable, where the absence of the MT4 trading platform is notable.
Platform Languages |
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OS Compatibility |
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Charting Package | ||
Scalping | ||
Hedging | ||
Mobile Alerts | ||
E-mail Alerts | ||
Guaranteed Limit Orders | ||
Guaranteed Execution | ||
One-click Execution | ||
OCO Orders | ||
Interest on Margin | ||
Web-based Trading | ||
Mobile Trading | ||
MT4 | ||
MT5 | ||
cTrader | ||
Proprietary Platform | ||
Automated Trading | ||
Social/Copy Trading | ||
MT4/MT5 Add-Ons | ||
Guaranteed Stop Loss | ||
Negative Balance Protection | ||
Unique Features | Active trading community |
eToro offers third-party analytics from TipRanks, a valuable tool for equity traders. Beginner traders, particularly millennials and GenZ who desire social trading, have a platform catering to their needs. eToro focuses on social trading, but I do find a minor inconvenience in how clicking on an asset opens the feed section instead of the chart. Also, ProCharts requires a separate login and is unavailable from the trading platform, where traders have no analytics tools.
Unique Features
The three unique features I found are CopyTrader, CopyPortfolios, and the missing MT4 trading platform. The first two offer social traders the tools they require and using them requires just a few clicks. Some of the thematic CopyPortfolios are from third-party financial firms, and others remain managed by eToro. Portfolios from traders in the popular investor program are equally available. As an algorithmic trader, I cannot ignore the absence of the MT4 trading platform.
Research and Education
While eToro does not offer in-house research, it provides analytics from third-party TipRanks, which I find an excellent choice. There is so much quality research online that the absence of an in-house team is not a negative.
One of the developments I value most at eToro is its new eToro Academy. Until recently, eToro did not offer beginner traders any assistance, relying solely on its community. It now provides a well-structured platform consisting of videos, webinars, and guides. I rate eToro Academy as one of the best educational tools and recommend beginner traders take full advantage of it.
Customer Support
Support Hours | 24/5 | |
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Customer Support | ||
Website Languages |
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Customer service is available 24/5, but live chat is only available for existing users. Visitors with questions for eToro may open a support ticket via the website. An e-mail and phone number are available for clients for the eToro Australian subsidiary. The Help Center attempts to answer most questions. I think most clients may not require customer support, but eToro remains readily available for existing clients.
Bonuses and Promotions
There is no deposit bonus or volume-based cash rebate program at eToro, but a Popular Investor Program exists. It rewards traders for having followers, assets under management, and minimum average monthly equity. Most traders will qualify for payouts between $400 and $800. Terms and conditions apply, and I urge all interested traders to read and understand them carefully before getting involved.
The five-tier eToro club offers additional benefits, including the absence of currency conversion fees and free withdrawals. The lowest tier requires an account balance of $5,000, while the most beneficial rewards are available above $25,000.
Opening an Account
Opening an account at eToro only requires a username, valid e-mail, and password. Traders may use their Facebook or Google ID to register. Account verification remains a mandatory step, satisfied by ending a copy of an ID and one proof of residency document. I find the process very efficient and hassle-free, ranking it among the best industry wide.
Minimum Deposit
The minimum deposit at eToro ranges between $50 and $10,000, depending on the geographic location. Most follow-on deposits can be as low as $50.
eToro Payment Methods
eToro offers bank wires, credit/debit cards, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, Rapid Transfer, iDEAL, Klarna/Sofort, Trustly. Please note that not all options are available to all traders.
eToro Accepted Countries
eToro accepts traders from the UK, Australia and the Netherlands. It also caters to US traders from its US-based subsidiary, which presently only offers cryptocurrency trading.
Deposits and Withdrawals
I like the range of deposit and withdrawal methods at eToro but dislike the unnecessary internal $5 withdrawal cost. Traders will also pay third-party processor costs and potential currency conversion fees. The withdrawal process follows well-established industry practices.
Bottom Line
I like the trading experience at eToro for social trading, where it delivers a competitive toolset and an active community, ranking it among the leaders in this category. I think eToro is best for millennial and GenZ traders, who prefer using their mobile phones to copy other traders. The proprietary trading platform features a clean interface, and analyzing assets is simplified. eToro delivers an exceptionable educational platform I recommend for beginner traders.
eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and cryptoassets, as well as trading CFDs.
Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 78% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Past performance is not an indication of future results. Trading history presented is less than 5 complete years and may not suffice as basis for investment decision.
Copy trading is a portfolio management service, provided by eToro (Europe) Ltd., which is authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission.
Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.FAQs
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